Would you recommend some resources about ordination?
I remember the day I was ordained. It was a Spring day after having been before a counsel of local pastors for the purpose of examination. I stood before my local church in Durham, North Carolina to be affirmed by the entire congregation. It was a sweet moment. It was a moment I realized that I wasn’t in ministry alone. There were people who affirmed and supported my calling to pastor. Whether someone is being ordained as a pastor or deacon, that affirmation and support is the same.
But, is this kind of ordination biblical? There aren’t really records of Jews practicing ordination like this anywhere as a precedent for the Christian practice. Rabbis were not ordained. Priests were only priests by birthright. The New Testament is completely absent this kind of ordination by community. The only thing we see coming close is Paul and Barnabas’s appointment by their local church as missionaries (not as pastors or deacons). In the New Testament, deacons were recommended by the congregation but appointed by the apostles (cf. Acts 6). Pastors were never voted on or ordained by a congregation. Instead, they were appointed by what we might refer to as a representative of the apostles (like a presbytery but not exactly the same; cf. Acts 14:23; 1 Timothy 3; 5:22; Titus 1:5). Modern-day ordination looks vastly different.
I want to offer a word of caution, here. It is tempting, especially for the young man who desires to be in ministry, to move hastily from, “The Bible doesn’t describe it that way,” to brushing off the modern-day practice as a practical heresy and either complaining about or rejecting any church with a polity not described in Scripture altogether. I want you to notice something about the text; nowhere does Scripture actually say, “This is the acceptable way to appoint pastors (elders) and deacons.” Those words are not there. Every place we have a description of how they were appointed or who by, those verses are all descriptive, not prescriptive. So, young and zealous Christian, don’t jump too hastily into the pit and sling mud from there upon Christ’s bride by all your flailing about. I’ve been there. You will only be disappointed by the result.
If there are no prescriptive texts about exactly how a pastor or deacon should be appointed, then I assume God meant to leave us a margin–freedom to be discerning and wise in our administration of the gospel. God has given us explicit qualifications for pastors and deacons. There is to be some kind of evaluation. It seems we have freedom in the method of our evaluation. That’s good because it means Presbyterians and Baptists can all enter the kingdom of God even though their polities seem so different. It also means that in that stage of life when I was hyper-critical of precise polities in different churches (even choosing not to go to a church because of its governing structure), I was the one in sin because I was being more strict in what I expected from a local church than Jesus. He instructed us from the beginning not to add anything to His words (cf. Deuteronomy 4:2). I think He has a purpose for commanding that. We diminish the gospel and our love for others when we add expectations that God Himself does not have of people. I am ashamed to say that I have often had expectations of other people and churches (especially concerning church polity) that I don’t think even God had. As a theologically reformed man, I can say that many reformed young men are prideful enough to carry expectations that God Himself does not have. If we are going to be so strict with the regulative principle that we can only do things the way we see described in Scripture, I fear it is impossible to appoint anyone as an elder or deacon at all.
Let me form a logical argument for you.
- All pastors and deacons described in the New Testament were appointed by the authority of the 13 apostles.
- The 13 apostles are dead.
- Therefore, no new pastors and deacons can be strictly biblically appointed.
This line of thinking has led some denominations to hold to an Apostolic Succession viewpoint, whereby anyone ordained as a pastor or priest must have descended from one of the 13 apostles–as if the apostles’ children would somehow carry their apostolic authority. I don’t think that follows. So, if we are to have elders and deacons at all, we have to use a method that is not described in Scripture. The method described in Scripture is no longer available to us (unless you are one of those who believe the Apostle, John, is still living somewhere on the earth giving apostolic authority for elders to be appointed).
It is more likely, and certainly so, that these passages are descriptive and not prescriptive. So, we find the principles of Scripture to apply to our own ordination or appointing methods. I’ve already mentioned the first one. (1) Pastors and deacons must be examined according to the qualifications in Scripture. Different individuals, groups, and denominations will disagree about what those qualifications mean exactly (e.g. disagreement about what it means to be the husband of one wife), but the qualifications are there. We must examine those who are to serve as pastors and deacons according to God’s qualifications, not ours.
2. There is no clear instruction about how a church ought to raise pastors and deacons, only that it should.
3. Ultimately, it is God who gives pastors and deacons (Ephesians 4:11-12) for the purpose of building up the body until we all attain unity of the faith and knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood as measured by the stature of the fullness of Christ.
Like everyone else, I have my feelings about whether there should be a plurality of elders, the meaning of the office of deacon, congregationalism, the nature of the qualifications, and how a church ought to be governed. When I am strict on my ways even though I can certainly defend them biblically, I find that I create more division and ultimately fail to build up the body of Christ (which defeats the purpose of having pastors in the first place). When I realize that I can have my thoughts on a subject but also remain humble so as to realize I have stronger feelings about the exact nature of polity than God does, I open the door to contentment in ministry. I recognize the freedom that God has given His church. I don’t have to fight uphill battles to change things too quickly. I don’t have to complain about Christ’s bride. I can get along with other generations of Christians who are just as much led by the Spirit as I think I am. And, I can enjoy the family of God in Christ.
Too many young Christians get zealous about things like polity. Be patient. Don’t leave churches because they aren’t doing things your way or the way you are convinced Scripture tells us to do things. The local church is more than a governing structure. If we would take a few moments to be humble, we might discover something amazing. I get it. I have often wanted to draw a hard line in the sand, “If there is not a plurality of elders and deacons aren’t simple servants, I will not pastor that church!” “I won’t set foot in another church that’s not elder-led!” I understand. I am also saying that, no matter how good we get at defending those methods biblically, the Bible just isn’t as clear on the subject as we try to make it. It doesn’t mean we are wrong. It does mean we should be humbler. The kingdom of God isn’t like the kingdoms of the world in that way. It’s relational. If we grow disenchanted with methods concerning polity, unless their actually sinful, it is our own fault for being so zealous according to our own thoughts.
Here we are on a vast ocean. Don’t abandon ship and so cast yourself into the abyss. Ordination can be healthy or not. We have freedom in our methods, not in our qualifications. The desire to serve as an elder or deacon is to desire to do a fine work indeed.
Ordination, then, is a way after the death of the apostles for people, a local church or counsel of elders, to affirm a calling to ministerial office that God has placed on someone’s life. Since there is to be an examination and no one is to be appointed in haste, no one can simply say, “I am called to be a pastor (or deacon),” and go be that thing without the affirmation of the church in some way. In this sense, ordination, though it is not described in Scripture exactly like we practice it in the modern day, is a biblical necessity–whether by a presbytery or congregation, but certainly by qualified men.
When it comes to resources about ordination, I would simply remind you about the freedom we have. Every local church is going to be different. The way we serve in each context will take on its own character. The best thing we can do is simply strive to have the kind of character reflected in the biblical qualifications and live to know and serve the people in our congregations. Don’t take yourself too seriously. Be sincere. Lift others up and be lifted up. People have written all sorts of resources to tell you exactly how and what you should be, but your best references by far are the Bible and people you serve–lest you read a book by mere human hands and throw your people off your ship in an effort to keep the boat afloat on the waves of many pages.
Leave a Reply