Coconut
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Ephesians 4:11: "And he [GOD]gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as PASTORS and teachers."
This is the only place in Scripture where the word "Pastors" is actually used. Imagine! A single verse has come to define one incredibly significant, man made office in every institutional church for 1700 years. Notice that the word used is the plural "Pastors" - NOT the singular "Pastor." Whoever these "Pastors" were, there were apparently more than one in The Church (I'm not referring to a building- but the body of Christ here).
About this, author Richard Hanson says, "For the people who first used them, the titles of these offices can have meant little more than inspectors, older men and helpers ...it was when unsuitable theological significance began to be attached to them that the distortion of the concept of Christian ministry began."
The Greek word for"Pastors" is "poimen," meaning "shepherds" ("Pastor" is Latin for shepherd). "Pastor" actually describes the FUNCTION of an individual in The Church (again, I'm not referring to a building-but the body of Christ), NOT an office or a professional title. As the word implies, Shepherds provide nurture and care for God’s sheep, loving them into maturity.
Nowhere do we find their role defined in any way similar to that which describes the Catholic priests at the time of the Reformation: preaching, administering sacraments, praying for the flock, living a godly life, handling church discipline, church rites, caring for the poor, and visiting the sick. Protestant ministers can add to that list the praying over civic and community events like luncheons and 10K runs.
I've excerpted the following from Frank Viola's book:
"Pagan Christianity: The Origins of Our Modern Church Practices."
"The modern Pastorate rivals the functional Headship of Christ in His church. It illegitimately holds the unique place of centrality and headship among God’s people. A place that is only reserved for one Person—the Lord Jesus. Jesus Christ is the only Head over a church and the final word to it. By his office, the Pastor displaces and supplants Christ’s Headship by setting himself up as the church’s human head.
"For this reason, nothing so hinders the fulfillment of God’s eternal purpose as does the modern pastoral role. Why? Because that purpose is centered on making Christ’s Headship visibly manifested in the church through the free, open, every-member functioning of the Body. As long as the pastoral office is present, you will never witness such a thing.
"It is "lonely at the top" because God never intended for anyone to be at the top—except His Son! In effect, the modern Pastor tries to shoulder the 58 NT "one another" exhortations all by himself. It is no wonder that most of them get crushed under the weight...
The modern Pastor is the most unquestioned element in modern Christianity. Yet he does not have a strand of Scripture to support his existence nor a fig leaf to cover it!
"Rather, the modern Pastor was born out of the single-bishop-rule first spawned by Ignatius and Cyprian. The bishop evolved into the local presbyter. In the Middle Ages, the presbyter grew into the Catholic priest. During the Reformation, he was transformed into the "Preacher," "the Minister," and finally "the Pastor"—the man upon whom all of Protestantism hangs. To juice it all down to one sentence: The Protestant Pastor is nothing more than a slightly reformed Catholic priest..."
Viola adds, "At best, this text [Eph 4:11] is oblique. It offers absolutely no definition or description of who Pastors are. It simply mentions them. Regrettably, we have filled this word with our own Western concept of what a Pastor is. We have read the modern idea of the modern Pastor back into the New Testament. Never in the imagination of a hallucinating man would any first-century Christian conceive of the modern pastoral office! Catholics have made the same error with the word "priest." You can find the word "priest" used in the New Testament to refer to a [all] Christian three times..."
This is the only place in Scripture where the word "Pastors" is actually used. Imagine! A single verse has come to define one incredibly significant, man made office in every institutional church for 1700 years. Notice that the word used is the plural "Pastors" - NOT the singular "Pastor." Whoever these "Pastors" were, there were apparently more than one in The Church (I'm not referring to a building- but the body of Christ here).
About this, author Richard Hanson says, "For the people who first used them, the titles of these offices can have meant little more than inspectors, older men and helpers ...it was when unsuitable theological significance began to be attached to them that the distortion of the concept of Christian ministry began."
The Greek word for"Pastors" is "poimen," meaning "shepherds" ("Pastor" is Latin for shepherd). "Pastor" actually describes the FUNCTION of an individual in The Church (again, I'm not referring to a building-but the body of Christ), NOT an office or a professional title. As the word implies, Shepherds provide nurture and care for God’s sheep, loving them into maturity.
Nowhere do we find their role defined in any way similar to that which describes the Catholic priests at the time of the Reformation: preaching, administering sacraments, praying for the flock, living a godly life, handling church discipline, church rites, caring for the poor, and visiting the sick. Protestant ministers can add to that list the praying over civic and community events like luncheons and 10K runs.
I've excerpted the following from Frank Viola's book:
"Pagan Christianity: The Origins of Our Modern Church Practices."
"The modern Pastorate rivals the functional Headship of Christ in His church. It illegitimately holds the unique place of centrality and headship among God’s people. A place that is only reserved for one Person—the Lord Jesus. Jesus Christ is the only Head over a church and the final word to it. By his office, the Pastor displaces and supplants Christ’s Headship by setting himself up as the church’s human head.
"For this reason, nothing so hinders the fulfillment of God’s eternal purpose as does the modern pastoral role. Why? Because that purpose is centered on making Christ’s Headship visibly manifested in the church through the free, open, every-member functioning of the Body. As long as the pastoral office is present, you will never witness such a thing.
"It is "lonely at the top" because God never intended for anyone to be at the top—except His Son! In effect, the modern Pastor tries to shoulder the 58 NT "one another" exhortations all by himself. It is no wonder that most of them get crushed under the weight...
The modern Pastor is the most unquestioned element in modern Christianity. Yet he does not have a strand of Scripture to support his existence nor a fig leaf to cover it!
"Rather, the modern Pastor was born out of the single-bishop-rule first spawned by Ignatius and Cyprian. The bishop evolved into the local presbyter. In the Middle Ages, the presbyter grew into the Catholic priest. During the Reformation, he was transformed into the "Preacher," "the Minister," and finally "the Pastor"—the man upon whom all of Protestantism hangs. To juice it all down to one sentence: The Protestant Pastor is nothing more than a slightly reformed Catholic priest..."
Viola adds, "At best, this text [Eph 4:11] is oblique. It offers absolutely no definition or description of who Pastors are. It simply mentions them. Regrettably, we have filled this word with our own Western concept of what a Pastor is. We have read the modern idea of the modern Pastor back into the New Testament. Never in the imagination of a hallucinating man would any first-century Christian conceive of the modern pastoral office! Catholics have made the same error with the word "priest." You can find the word "priest" used in the New Testament to refer to a [all] Christian three times..."
