The Pastoral Work of a Local Church
The Pastoral Work of a Local Church THE PASTORAL WORK OF A LOCAL CHURCH
By Roy H. Lanier In this study of the pastoral work of a local church we shall first ask, What is the pastoral work of a church? The answer to this question may be stated both in principle and detailed application of the principle. We shall use three passages of scripture, in the analysis of which, the pastoral work of a church is clearly defined.
First, Ephesians 4:11-15, “And he gave some to be apos-tles; and some prophets; and some evangelists; and some pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, unto the work of ministering, unto the building up of the body of Christ: till we all attain unto the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a full grown man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: that we may be no longer children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, in craftiness, after the wiles of error; but speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into him, who is the head, even Christ.” From this scripture we learn it to be the duty of each church to perfect, the saints, to bring each individual into the state of maturity, “unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.” And I hope you will not lose sight of the fact that each individual member of the church is entitled to such attention as is necessary to bring that one to maturity. This perfecting of the saints, as set forth in this passage, contemplates at least five things:
1. That we come into the church in an immature state; that we are babes in Christ, unable to care for our own growth properly.
2. It contemplates the operation of a law of growth in each individual in the church; that it is God’s plan, and intention, that each person shall grow in knowledge, experience, wisdom, strength, and activity; and that this growth will be in harmony with certain fixed laws, and the result of certain efforts on the part of the church.
3. It contemplates the character of Christ as the ultimate goal for each individual to reach, or at least toward which to strive.
4. This passage contemplates hindrances, such as “every wind of doctrine,” “the sleight of men,” and “the wiles of error,” which may check, or completely prevent, the operation of the law of growth toward the fulness of Christ. And,
5. It is also suggested that the work of the church is to care for the immature and guide them safely past all hindrances. It is for this purpose that the gifts, mentioned in verse 11, were bestowed upon the church. And among these gifts is found that of “pastors,” which proves that the work outlined is a pastoral work. Our second passage is found in Colossians 3:10. ' “And have put on the new man, that is being renewed unto knowledge after the image of him that created him.” This verse also suggests five things:
1. That we begin the Christian life as a new (young) creature.
2. That the new creature is being renewed. Notice the tense of the verb, “is being,” which denotes continuous process; it is being continually renewed. Notice too that it is passive, which suggests that the renewing is something done to the individual. And the word “renew” simply means gathering strength, or growing, developing.
3. This growth is “unto knowledge.” Of this word “Knowledge,” Thayer says it is used in the New Testament to mean “precise and correct knowledge of things ethical and divine.” The teaching is this, that the individual is to be brought to that stage of maturity where he can distinguish between right and wrong; where he can make keen, clear-cut distinctions in spite of the devil’s efforts to make all things appear acceptable.
4. Again the likeness of Christ is the goal of all elforts, the standard by which our pastoral work is judged. And,
5. This renewal of the new creature is made the basis of a high standard of morals, which standard is urged “seeing ye have put off the old man and have put on the new man which is being renewed.” The third passage which teaches our principle is Colossians 1:28. “Whom we proclaim, admonishing every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ.” This passage suggests five things:
1. Imperfection on the part of every man, and the responsibility of improvement.
2. It lays stress on the individuality of the work. The' phrase “every man” is used three times in this short verse, ’“admonish every man,” “teach every man,” and “present every man.” This suggests that we will not be presented to the Lord as a congregation, but that the pastors of the churches will present their work one individual at a time for the Lord’s inspection, when they give account of the souls over which they have watched.
3. The methods and instruments of the maturing process are suggested as, proclaiming, admonishing, and teaching God’s word.
4. This is a work which requires wisdom, for which we are taught to pray. This work is to be done “in all wisdom.” It also requires labor and striving on the part of the one who thus works on this material which is to be presented to Christ. And,
5. This work is done in view of a day of presentation. The laborers work and strive that they may have “every man” perfect, or full grown, when the time comes to present their work to the Master. And since the Master will inspect, judge, each piece of work separately, the pastoral work of the church is to give special attention to each member, doing what is necessary to bring each one to the highest possible stage of perfection. The application of the principle set forth in these three passages is two-fold. First, the pastoral work of the local church is to bring each member to the highest possible stage of perfection in doctrine. Doctrine is the foundation on which the structure of life is erected. The need of a good, broad, deep foundation to support a superstructure is the need of sound doctrine as the sure foundation for an active spiritual life. It is then the duty of the local church to teach the word of God to each member, to ground each in the faith, that he may stand against the wiles of error. Not only should each member be taught the whole truth as it is revealed in the Bible, but he should be taught the false doctrines most prevalent that he may be prepared to make his own choice between truth and error and that he may be able to lead others out of error into truth. The apostle Paul warns us that in these “later times some shall fall away from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of demons” (I ,Tim. 4;I); and that the faith of some may be. ^overthrown”-by the teaching of error (2 Timothy 2:18). Since babes in Christ must associate daily with people who believe and teach false doctrines, they must be equipped with sufficient truth to withstand ‘‘every wind of doctrine,” and, if possible, open the eyes of them who are blinded by false teaching. Considering the value of souls it is imperative that the local church begin early and earnestly to bring each convert to that degree of ma-turity which will insure his safety. Since false teachers are going about seeking whom they may ensnare, the church is also obligated to furnish protection by “exhorting in sound doctrine and convicting the gainsayers. For there are many unruly men, vain talkers and deceivers .... whose mouths must be stopped; men who overthrow whole houses, teaching things which they ought not” (Titus 1:9-11). This protection against false doctrines is as necessary as the teaching of the truth, and should be done as fearlessly and as unsparingly. But to bring babes in Christ to maturity in doctrine without leading them to apply that doctrine in every-day life will make legalists, formalists. And that is a danger toward which, I fear, some of us are working. Surely then it is the pastoral work of the church to perfect every saint, to present every man as fully developed, and as near perfection in practical Christian living as possible. But that we may make the matter as clear as possible, let its descend once more to details, only to suggest the different spheres ’of life in which each member should be brought to the stage of maturity.
1. In His Social Life.
Each member of the church is to be brought by teaching and guidance'to correct social Standards, that 'he may choose between what is right and wrongs From a failure on the part of many to form correct social standards and maintain them, the boundary line between the church and the world is all but erased. ‘Evil companionships corrupt good morals” (1 Corinthians 15:33), said Paul, and it is still necessary for us to remember this when doing the pastoral work of the church. One may learn Christian doctrine perfectly and attend every service of the church, and still be in danger of becoming again entangled in worldliness on account of his companionships. It is also a common experience with preachers to find some who are best versed in the scriptures living on about the lowest moral level of any in the church. We must learn that regardless of how well one knows the scripture, and regardless of howr regularly one attends church services, if his social life is on a low vulgar level, that one is not a Christian.
2. In Amusements and Recreation.
It is the pastoral work of the church to lead each member to the plane of mature Christian living in regard to his amusements and recreation. There are types of amusements and recreation which are positive hindrances to spiritual growth. Babes in Christ are to be taught self-denial, and led into the application of that principle by refraining from taking part in such. The time and expense of certain tynes of amusements and recreation forbid that a Christian take part while his ttme and money are to be used in carrying the gospel to this sinful world, and to feed and clothe the destitute. To know the doctrine and attend church services regularly while continuing to take part in questionable amusements and recreation not only subjects the church Lo shame and reproach on one’s account but it also exposes one to the danger of other and more grievous departures from correct standards.
3. In His Business Life.
It is the pastoral work of the local church to give each member engaged in business such instruction and guidance as will lead to the formation and practice of thoroughly Christian principles in legitimate activities. Young people need help to interpret business ethics in the light of Chris-tianity. They need to be taught how Christ would meet the business world, and which of its principles he would use and which he would discard; and then they need to be shown by their elders how Christ would do these things. As in other activities mentioned, so in business, one may be well versed in the scriptures and attend church services regularly and still use unchristian principles, or be engaged in unchristian activities. It is easy for one to divorce completely his church life and business life, and excuse his unchristian principles and activities on the ground that present day methods and competition make it impossible to follow first century standards of ethics. Such reasoning on the part of even one business man in the church makes it imperative that those responsible for the pastoral work of the church provide such instruction and guidance as will lead all to attain to that measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ in business life.
4. In His Home Life.
Another pastoral work of the church is to make the homes of its members thoroughly Christian. The home is God’s oldest institution on this earth, and a very important institution. Statesmen have been saying for years that the success of our nation depends'upon the'success of the homes. And with an-equal'‘degree of truth it may be said that the success of the homes depends in whether or not the church gives it that instruction and guidance it needs in order to make a worthwhile contribution to the nation. Christian homes are not the product of chance or accident; they are the result of Christian planning and Christian building which must be done in spite of discouragements and hindrances from within and without. And the success of this planning and budding depends upon Christian teaching and examples. Every church owes it to its young people to offer a course of study in home planning and build1'ng. Young men need to be taught what are the duties of a husband and father; and young women need to be taught by experienced teachers how to be Christian wives and inoihers. As in business, so in home life, many are inclined to divorce it from the church; they fail to apply in. their homes the principles which they learn from the church. So a man who never prays in his home may most frequently lead the church in prayer; and the roan who offers thanks every Sunday at the Lord’s table may never offen' a word of thanks at his own table. And the woman who so tenderly and patiently teaches her class of children in the Bible school may scold and upbraid her own children at home, but never teach them God’s word. And the husband and father who is the soul of courtesy and unselfishness before the public, may be a contemptible, self-centered old grouch in his home. In all such cases there is need for pastoral work in order to bring such individuals up to that degree of perfection which will be pleasing to our Lord.
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5, In Jesus Worship.
Since people do not become fervent worshippers of God by accident, it is the duty of each church to teach each and every member how to worship. Our Lord’s disciples asked him to teach them how to pray as John taught his disciples. Babes in Christ need to be taught how to sing, how to pray, how to take the Lord’s supper, and how to give. Anyone can sing or pray, or take the Lord’s supper or give, but few worship when they do these things; few enter into communion with God, or know how pleasant or profitable such experiences are. Those who know the joys and satisfaction of worship do not need be be urged to attend prayer meetings. So all should be led, through proper instruction and guidance, into such experiences as will cause them to love the worship, rather than go through the form because of a sense of duty.
6. In His Service.
Saints are to be perfected in order to the work of serving, or ministering. This statement from Paul suggests that there ought to be some work done toward perfecting the saint before he can render service; and that this work of perfecting the saints is the pastoral work of the church. Since there are many lines of service to be performed in the church, and since there is to be a member for each service, it is necessary that each babe in Christ make a choice as to what line of service he will enter. He then should make careful preparation to render the best service possible in his chosen field. In his choice and preparation the church should lend encouragement and counsel. He should be encouraged to make his selection as early as possible, and to persevere both in preparation and performance of his service. No doubt many are idle today because no one has given them the leadership they need in se-lecting and preparing for service. Thinning ranks of experienced servants are emphasizing the need for such leadership in the church today. The second question in our study of the pastoral work of the church is, Who should do the pastoral work of the church? I realize this is a very simple question, tne answer to whicn, especially to this audience, is most evident. All through the years from the pulpits we have preached the truth, and from the debate platform we have contended for the right; but in spite of this in our practice, “brethren, we are drifting.” For this reason I think it worthwhile to set forth the New Testament plan for doing the pastoral work of the church. In the first place the student of the New Testament cannot keep from noticing certain words or titles used m certain definite connections. The first of these is the word “elder.”
“And when they had appointed for them elders in every church” (Acts 14:23) ;
“And from Miletus he sent to Ephesus, and called to him the elders of the church” (Acts 20:17); “Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in word and in teaching” (1 Timothy 5:17); and,
“The elders therefore, among you I exhort .... Tend the flock of God which is among you,' exercising the oversight, not of constraint, but willingly” (1 Peter 5:12). The word “elder” is a Jew ish term which denotes rank of office, and, according to Thayer* is used “of those who preside, over the assemblies, or churches.” The next word which suggests something as to who should do the pastoral work of‘the church ^'“bishop’ or “overseer.” ‘Take heed unto yourselves and to all the flock, in the which the. Holy spirit hath made ^ou bishops^-to feed the church of :the Lord’h (Acts 20:28>; Paul writes to “-all the saints in Christ Jesus that are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons” - Php_1:1); “If a man seeketh the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work. The bishop therefore must be without reproach” (1 Timothy 3:1-2); and, “For the bishop must be blameless” (Titus 1:7). This word “bishop” is taken from Greek institutions, and denotes function, whereas “elder” denotes rank of office. The definition of the word as given by Thayer is, “An overseer—a man charged with the duty of seeing that things done by others are done rightly .... In the New Testament, a guardian of souls, one who watches over their welfare; the superintendent, head, or overseer of any Christian Church.” Certainly the wrord itself, to say nothing of the connection in which it is used, would suggest to the student that the one wearing the title wrould have much to do with the pastoral work of the church. And the third word used in the New Teslament which suggests who is to do the pastoral work of the church is “pastor,” or “shepherd.” This word is from the Greek word “poimeen,” and is used by Jesus when he said, “I am the good shepherd”; it) is used of him when he is called “that great shepherd of the sheep” (Heb. 13:30), and “Ye have returned to the shepherd and bishop of your souls” (1 Peter 2:25); and the word is used by Paul to designate those who are to “perfect the saints,” when he said, ‘And he gave some to be pastors .... for the perfecting of the saints” (Ephesians 4:11). That all three of these words refer to men filling one office is more than evident. For when Paul left Titus in Crete to appomt: elders in every city, he described the qualifications in which he referred to them as bishops'. Again, Paul- called the elders from Ephesus and told them that the Holy Spirit had made them bishops of the church. But if someone contends that bishops were appointed from among- elders, I remind you that one became an elder, in this use of the term, by appointment. For Titus was to appoint elders in every city, and Paul also appointed elders in every church (Titus 1:5; Acts 14:23). Another line of reasoning which proves these words to refer to the same office, and which ties in the third term used, is taken from Peter’s charge. “The elders therefore among you I exhort .... Tend the flock of God which is among you, exercising the oversight” (1 Peter 5:1-2). Here the elders are to tend, or shepherd the flock; but to shepherd the flock is the work of the shepherd, or pastor; therefore the elders are to be pastors. Again the elders were to “exercise the oversight.” The words “exercising oversight” are the translation of one Greek word “episkopountes,” which is the participial form of a verb whose noun is translated “bishop,” showing that the work of the elder is, using another translation of the word, “doing the duty of a bishop.” Surely no careful student can read through the New Testament without getting the. idea that the men who are described by these terms are charged with the responsibility of doing the pastoral work of the church. But when we study the duties of elders, bishops, pastors, as laid down in the New Testament, we are led to the firm conviction that they are the men whom God expects to do the pastoral work of the church. First, these men are,said to “rule over” the church (Hebrews 13:7; Hebrews 13:17)* The words “rule over” here are a translation . of - the Greek word V“heegeomai,” which is -defined . by Thayer to- mean, “leading as respects influence, contrdlliflg in counsel.” While; in 1 Timothy 5:17 -- ‘‘Let the elders that tide well,” the word rule comes from “proisteemi,” and means “To be over, su-perintend, to preside over.” This word is also used in 1 Thessalonians 5:12 Where Paul exhorts the church to “know them that labor among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you.” And in the same connection Paul says to them that are over the church, “Admonish the disorderly, encourage the faint-hearted, support the weak, be long-suffering toward all.” In this connection we may as well study a third term which suggests a similar duty of these men who are to do the pastoral work of the church. This word is “episkopountes,” and is translated “exercising the oversight,” or “doing the duty of a bishop.” This is to be done willingly, not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; “neither as lording it over the charge allotted you, but making yourselves ensamples to the flock” (1 Peter 5:2-3). From this we learn that these elders, doing the duty of bishops, have a charge allotted to them. And the relationship of these elders to the charge is expressed in the words “exercising oversight,,r and “neither as lording it over.” But surely these passages are sufficient to prove that the elders were responsible for the conduct of the members’ of the churches. But there are two other words Which more clearly indicate the pastoral duties of these men. These words are taken from pastoral •' life. The first is “agrupneo,” which Thayer says means, “to wratch.” He also says it is a term taken from pastoral life That means ‘ffo exercise constant vigilance;’? This word is Used in Hebrews 13:17, “Obey them that have the rule over you and'submit to them: for they Watch’;in behalf of your Souls as they that shall'give account.”
Here we have the picture of an undershephercl keeping constant watch over his flock, feeding each one and caring for each one, knowing that' he must give account to the owner, or overshepherd. The other word taken from shepherd life is “poimaino,” and means ‘To feed, to tend, to keep sheep.” It is used in Acts 20:28 where the bishops are told to “feed the church of the Lord,” and in 1 Peter 5:2 where elders are told to “tend the flock of God which is among you.” Of this latter use Bloomfield says, “The sense is: Nourish with sound doctrine, and take care of the morals of those committed to your care.” To shepherd a flock is to do more than to feed, or tend; both words are necessary to express the idea. The shepherd both fed and cared for his flock. So the elders are to shepherd the flock, to feed and protect, to nourish and guide people in the charge allotted to them. From these passages it is evident that the Lord made the elders, pastors, bishops, responsible for the pastoral work of the church. And that every member in every church might have this pastoral care the apostles “appointed elders in every church.” As stated before we all believe this and preach it this way, bpt with one consent we all begin to make excuses: It is said, Our elders are business men and do not have time to visit from house to house, or to look after each individual in the Church. Or, Our elders are laboring men whose employers require all their time, and they are not financially able to take off sufficient time to do such pastoral work. But if similar excuses were given by our denominational friends for not being baptized, or for not taking the Lord's supper, we would literally cover them with arguments that God's plan is to be followed regardless of the sacrifice one must make. The fact that these conditions exist is proof that our present trend is definitely toward the one man pastor system. I do not believe preachers are to be blamed for being the pastors of the churches. In many places they have found the elders incapable of doing the work, and in other places they were not financially able to take the time to do their work. So rather than see the work go undone, the preachers have done it for the elders. We have tried to justify ourselves in this by saying the elders are having the work done, overseeing it; doing the work by proxy. But the leading part taken by the average preacher silences this quibble. Neither do I think our elders are to blame for this situation. In the main they are good men who love the church and want to see it grow. But they are working men and have little time or energy to give to study or to visiting, and consequently it has seemed necessary to ask the preacher to do the pastoral work of the church. And since it certainly is no sin for a preacher to visit from house to house, encourage, admonish, exhort and reprove, it has appeared to be a fair solution of our problem. Another thing which has contributed to our failure to use God’s plan is the fact that when an elder becomes efficient as a public teacher, and has sufficient ability to meet and mix with the public to make him a leader, he immediately turns preacher. So instead of being one of the pastors, he becomes “the pastor” of a church. But I am not an alarmist; I am not afraid the church will fail, or that it will apostatize. When we found ourselves on the back street in a, little one-room building, where you couldn’t. do the .work of the Lord, we pulled up on Main Street and built a suitable plant for work and worship. When we found our boys and girls educated by infidels, we built Christian schools where they may have a college education under faithful teachers while living in a Christian environment. When we discovered that we were doing nothing to care for homeless children, we built and equipped homes to care for them. We have been busy at these tasks and our success may truly be said to be outstanding. In my opinion our next task, and a pressing need, is to outline and put into operation a program of pastoral work in the churches by the pastors whom the Holy Spirit has placed over the churches. To my mind this will require a three-point program. First teach and train, as far as possible, our present elderships, this work will have to be done by preachers who do not want to be “the pastors,” and by those elders who are really qualified for their work and are awake to the need of a scriptural pastoral work.
Second, an extensive course of teaching and training for young men who wish to be elders. Elders are not made by chance or accident; neither are they born. Elders are made through teaching and training. These courses ought to be offered in each local congregation, and in our Christian colleges. And third, when a man has been prepared to do the pastoral work of the church, keep him from turning preacher and be-coming “the pastor” of a church. To do this churches may have to pay their elders a part-time salary, and possibly full salary; but if they do, they have scriptural authority for doing it. As a result of such a program churches will be able to carry on their work and worship without the aid of a preacher every Sunday in the year, and preachers will be released from so many pastoral duties so that they can preach the gospel in communities where there is no church, and in regions beyond where the gospel has never gone.
Questions for Study
1. With the aid of a dictionary the student should learn the meaning of the words elder; presbyter;
pastor; shepherd; bishop; overseer. The difference between Bible usage and present day
usage should be noticed.
2. Name and discuss the five things contemplated in Eph. 4:11-15.
3. Name and discuss the five things suggested in Col. 3:10.
4. Name and discuss the five things taught in Col. 1:28.
5. Discuss the importance of sound doctrine in perfecting the saints.
6. What is the result of much doctrinal teaching without guidance in application of the doctrine taught ?
7. What is the duty of the church to each member with reference to his social life?
8. What can the church do about the recreational life of each' member ?
9. What guidance may business men and women expect from the church?
10. What contribution should the church make to our home life?
11. What oversight should the church exercise in our worship?
12. How can the church help each member to render his best service to the church?
13. What terms are used in the New Testament to designate those who are to do the pastoral work of. the church?
14. Were these terms, according to New Testament usage, applied to one person ?
15. Who has the ruling power in the church? And what restrictions are placed on their power to rule?
16. What is the duty of members of the church toward the rulers?
17. What words describing the duties of elders are taken from shepherd life?
And what peculiar duties are expressed by them?
18. Why have churches not followed God’s plan for pastoral work?
19. What can be done to improve our situation? Name as many as possible.
20. To whom can we look to take the lead in making these improvements?
21. What can the young people in the church do to improve our situation?