77a) Basic Theology of the Eldership, Parts 1

Introduction to the Pastoral Theology Course and Unit 3: The Biblical Framework for Oversight

0:02 Now, particularly for the benefit of our visiting brethren, let me take just a moment to apprise you of where we are in the overall structure of the pastoral theology course in the eight units in which we try to cover the full gamut of pastoral work from calls to the pastoral office to the matters of individual pastoral care generally designated as pastoral counseling. We are at that point where we are dealing with the work of oversight, government, and shepherding by the man of God in the pastoral office. And in Unit 1, we address the biblical description of the task in its essence and governing disposition, sought to expound the key categories of the work of oversight

0:47 as given to us in the New Testament, and then to address what is so critical in that work, namely the governing disposition by which the work is carried on. And then in Unit 2, we dealt with the biblical categories of the task, focusing particularly on the tasks pertaining to the corporate life of the people of God, and then those tasks pertaining to the individual needs will be taken up in Unit 8 under pastoral counseling. Now we come to Unit 3, having addressed the biblical description of the task, the biblical categories of the task, now the biblical framework for the task. And as we take up the subject, let me articulate,

Presupposition 1: Synonymous and Interchangeable Terms for Oversight

1:30 It's now there in your notes for today, page 174. In approaching this subject of the normal or the ideal framework for the task of oversight, I am approaching it with two presuppositions underneath all that is said, the way in which it is set before you, and in the various categories of the biblical materials that we will address. And presupposition number one is that the biblical terms used for the office and task of oversight are synonymous and interchangeable. As most of you know, there are nouns which describe the office and verbs which describe the task.

2:12 And although each has its own particular nuances, and we considered a number of those under Unit 1, a biblical description of the task, each adding a... special dimension of description to the task, they do not describe different offices and fundamentally different tasks.

2:34 The two major nouns are presbyteros and episkopos, and the two major verbs are poimaino and hegeomai that describe the actual working out of that task. However, the two classic passages which demonstrate the validity of this preceptor are presupposition, namely, that the terms used for the task of oversight are synonymous and interchangeable are those watershed texts in Acts 20 and in Titus chapter 1, texts which force even a bishop lightfoot to acknowledge that any attempt to make a fundamental categorical distinction

3:16 between an elder and a bishop falls short of biblical warrant. In Acts chapter 20, remember that Paul has called to himself the elders of the church at Ephesus. In Acts 20 and verse 17, from Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called to him the elders, the presbyters of the church. And when they were come to him, he said unto them, and to these elders, these presbyteroi, he says in Acts 20 and verse 28, take heed unto yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, episcopoi.

3:59 The presbyteroi are the episcopoi, and they are together in concert to shepherd, poimaino, to shepherd the church of the Lord which he purchased with his own blood. So the task of shepherding the flock, assigned to those who were called to Paul, described as elders, is the task of, accomplished by elders and bishops. Bishops and elders being used interchangeably in this passage. And likewise, in Titus chapter 1, we have the same interchangeable use of the two words.

4:38 As you know, Paul has left Titus in the Isle of Crete to further the work of establishing the church in that island. And he says in verse 7 of Titus chapter 1, sorry, verse 5, for this cause I left you in Crete, that you should set in order the things that were wanting and appoint elders in every city as I gave you charge. And those who are to be appointed elders are described in verse 7 as the bishop. For the bishop or the overseer must be blameless.

5:14 And unless we're prepared to say that the apostle was deliberately attempting to confuse Titus and all the subsequent generations until the end, of church history as we know it in the overlapping age, then surely it is the intention of the spirit of God that we understand that these two designations are used interchangeably. He is to appoint elders, and in so doing he is to recognize that the bishop must be blameless. So that presupposition, well established on solid exegetical grounds, undergirds everything that I will say concerning this matter of the, normal or the ideal framework for the task of oversight.

Presupposition 2: Crucial Importance of Qualified Overseers for Church Well-being

5:57 And presupposition number two is this, that the presence and function of biblically qualified overseers is a matter of crucial importance for the well-being of the church. And I would urge you to underline the words well-being of the church. I am not asserting, as I have been accused of asserting, that a plurality of elders, is essential to the very being of the church. And Paul says, as it has been slanderously reported, and some affirm that we say, that no church is a true church unless it has a plurality of elders.

6:37 I do not believe that that position can be established on the basis of the word of God. But what I am asserting, and this is a presupposition in the handling of the biblical materials, is that the presence and function of biblically qualified overseers is a matter of crucial importance. is a matter of crucial importance for the well-being of the church. Now, on the one hand, many adopt a cavalier and a totally pragmatic attitude to this whole subject.

7:07 They say there has been so much confusion in the history of the church, there are so many differing perspectives, they throw up their hands and say, we will just feel our way along and whatever works must be all right. On the other hand, some take an idealistic, unrealistic approach that not only forces us to believe, but also forces us to believe. It not only forces some of the biblical materials, but flies into the face of some very stubborn facts of church history, such as the fact that God has done some of his most effective and powerful work in the history of the church, where men have labored in a sole eldership framework. And while we may have solid biblical grounds to say that is an abnormality, that falls short of the norm

7:51 that we see in scripture, we must not come to the point of saying, it is such an abnormality as automatically to elicit the frown of heaven and to withhold the blessing of God. If we think biblically, we see that in apostolic thought and practice this issue was one of high priority. And I've chosen the words carefully. Crucial importance, high priority.

Apostolic Priority in Appointing Elders (Acts 14)

8:18 And we see this illustrated particularly in a passage such as Acts chapter 14 and verse 14. And we see this illustrated particularly in a passage such as Acts chapter 14 and verses 21 to 23. Acts chapter 14, verses 21 to 23. And when they had preached the gospel to that city and made many disciples, they returned to Lystra.

8:40 They did not go on to establish new frontiers of gospel endeavor, though they had much success in that present sphere, but they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch. And in their returning, what was the focus of their endeavors? Confirming the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that through many tribulations we must enter into the kingdom of God. They were concerned to set before these relatively new disciples the fact that they had only begun their race, and that if they were to complete that race, they would complete it through many tribulations.

9:21 They were giving them a no-nonsense, realistic, idea of what lay before them. And the generic task was one of confirming, strengthening, establishing the souls of the disciples, and no little measure of that establishing found its focal point in this spate of exhortation concerning the reality of what they will face if they go on in persevering faith. Then verse 23. And when they had appointed for them elders in every church, and prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord on whom they had believed.

10:00 Were the apostle and his companions confident that if God had begun a good work in them, he would carry it on until the day of Christ? Absolutely. They commended them to the Lord on whom they had believed. They commended them to the Lord on whom they had believed with full confidence that he who began the good work would carry it on to completion.

10:23 But because they had believed, they were not able to do it. Because he is the God that works by means, and because of the realities focused in verse 22, recognizing that these disciples must continue in the faith, not only they shall if they are true disciples, but they must, and that through many tribulations they must enter the kingdom, concerned for the well-being of that fledgling assembly, they concentrated many of their spiritual and ministerial endeavors upon the task of securing competent spiritual oversight for those assemblies. When they had appointed for them elders in every church, and how we wish that there were a footnote given to us by divine inspiration that gave us a rubric

11:08 of how they went about this appointment. What process did they go through? What is the specific significance of kairotoneo in this passage? Does it mean that they engaged the suffrage of the people?

11:22 Do they exercise a unique apostolic? There are all kinds of questions that we wish were answered in a divinely inspired footnote. I never read the passage, but I wish there were such a footnote. But no such footnote exists.

11:36 But this much is clear, that in the thinking of the apostles, this matter of seeing the churches functioning in this ideal framework of biblically qualified overseers was a matter of high priority in their thinking and in their practice. Bannerman, in his excellent work on the biblical doctrine of the church, I'm referring here to Douglas Bannerman, on page 530 says, Let us consider how such principles, that is, principles of church practice, were put in operation in the apostolic church on Gentile Christian ground. And then he lists those major concerns. And at the head of them is, number one,

12:20 appointment of elders or presbyters. And then he quotes this text. And then he makes this comment. There could hardly be a more striking proof of the importance attached by Paul and his fellow laborers to the right organization of the churches of the Gentiles and of their conviction that the steps which they took in this respect were in accordance with the mind and will of Christ for the spiritual good of his people.

12:51 So far at least as regards this primary office of the eldership, the organization of the church of Christ was not a matter to be left to chance or to develop itself on different lines according to circumstances and the predilections of the first converts in each locality. Whether the founders of these infant societies would ever be able to return to them again after his second visit was very doubtful. And then he goes on to elaborate on that principle and says the primary place of concern is manifested in their actual labor. It is interesting to observe with respect to the first organization

13:36 of the churches of Gentile Christendom that in connection with apparently Paul's third visit to Lystra the eldership or presbytery of that place which had been appointed on his second visit as noted above solemnly set apart Timothy for special service as a fellow worker with the apostle in the field of the Gentile mission. And he's alluding here of course to Acts chapter 16 verses 1 and 2. So here we see that the practice was personally administered by the apostle and his companions and then secondly in precept and by delegation the same priorities are reflected in the apostolic

14:20 writings. And here I refer of course to the materials of first Timothy chapter 3 and also in Titus 1. As Paul clearly tells Timothy why he left him behind at Ephesus in verses 14 and 15 of chapter 3 in the first letter to Timothy these things I write unto you hoping to come unto you shortly but if I tarry long that you may know how men ought how men ought to behave themselves in the house of God which is the church of the living God the pillar and ground of the truth. And one of the elements of the ought-ness of church behavior is obviously the matter of setting in place

15:04 biblically qualified church officers. In the case of Timothy at Ephesus we have reason to believe it was an ongoing work of strengthening and expanding the ranks of those in leadership. And so in chapter 3 verses 1 through 13 we have this whole block of the letter setting forth the biblical standard of gifts and graces requisite in those who would be recognized and set apart as elders and as deacons. Now of all the things that the apostle could have put in a letter to Timothy with respect to the ongoing maturation and government and life of the church at Ephesus surely to give so much to this issue

15:48 reflects the crucial importance of the issue in the mind of the apostle. Likewise when we come to Titus you have the generic statement in Titus 1 in verse 5 For this cause I left you Titus in Crete that you should set in order the things that were wanting the things that were lacking. There are matters concerning the life and ministry of the church in Crete that are lacking and high upon the list is this issue and a point appoint elders in every city as I gave you charge. Yes there are many things pertaining to generic lacks that need to be addressed and here is a supreme area of concern

16:33 that the church in every city have duly qualified properly recognized overseers. So then in the apostolic practice and in precept and by delegation we see that this presupposition I trust I carry your judgment is well founded that the presence and function of biblically qualified overseers is a matter of crucial importance for the well being of the church. If Christ who is not only the chief shepherd of his church but according to Ephesians 5 as its heavenly bridegroom committed to nourishing and cherishing his church

17:16 if he so guides those unique foundation blocks in his church the apostles that they should give such a critical place to this issue do we not cast aspersions both upon the wisdom of Christ and the care of Christ for his church if we reflect anything less than that perspective as we think of the ongoing concerns in the churches of Christ. Now with those two presuppositions beneath us and as it were surrounding us as we work through the materials we come to large letter B in your printed notes the major thesis and for you who are newer among us this has undergone

Major Thesis: Plurality, Parity, and Functional Diversity of Overseers

17:59 constant revision and refinement over the years and when I came to review the notes for today I said at long last I have a statement that I don't want to change any of the words so either I'm so locked into my present spiritual myopia on this matter or maybe it has stood the test of the input of other brethren and refinement and the added years of wrestling with the issue and while I claim no special inspiration I do believe that this reflects what ought to be our perspective regarding this subject the normal framework for the administration of the task of oversight is that of a plurality of scripturally qualified overseers

18:43 functioning with genuine parity and with realistic harmonious functional diversity now that's a mouthful and we're going to break it down bit by bit alright first of all the evidence for a biblical standard of qualification I've asserted as my major thesis that the normal framework for the administration of the task of oversight is that of a plurality of scripturally qualified overseers now it may shock some of you to know that back many years ago more years than I'd like to believe when we were just a fledging fledgling fellowship wrestling with the whole issue

Evidence for a Biblical Standard of Qualification (1 Timothy 3 & Titus 1)

19:26 of how shall the church be governed who should give leadership what is an elder what is a deacon it was as though I had entered a whole new world when scouring the scriptures I came across and took seriously for the first time 1st Timothy 3 and Titus 1 and I can remember sharing my youthful enthusiasm with a much older seasoned brother and saying brother look at this God has actually said if we're going to have elders we're going to have deacons these are the requirements these are the minimal graces and gifts that must be present and we're not left to pragmatism and we're not left to subjective desires and personality affinity and the rest we've got something that says

20:11 the bishop must be and I'll never forget the first time I studied that passage in my Greek New Testament and that little particle of necessity stand it out day the bishop must be and I was so excited and thrilled and I'll never forget the wet blanket this brother taught me he said now look my brother look look look that's the biblical ideal but don't take that seriously at every point I said well why not it says the bishop you'll never have any elders or deacons and I shall never forget the disappointment I had respected this man I had learned much from this man but I thank God at that point I didn't make myself his pupil and my response was my brother until I see that

20:55 the bishop must be simply says it is expedient if he happens to be and it is desirable if perhaps he may be then I shall stand on these passages and if God does not give us men who meet this standard we will have no elders and no deacons now of course that was looked upon like a naughty Joseph with his dreams but by the grace of God we've known the blessedness over the years of being able to sit with men who with all of our sins and imperfections have a good conscience that we've not treated in a light or cavalier way 1st Timothy 3 and Titus chapter 1 there is clear evidence for a biblical standard

21:39 of qualification there are many aspects of biblical duty which must be understood by a process of careful deduction and by selected collation of a passage here a principle here a precedent here a precept there but with respect to this matter very little deduction is necessary we have 1st Timothy 3 1 saying with that particle of necessity if anyone seeks the office of a bishop he desires a good work two very strong verbs if a man is reaching out after and having a holy lust for this work of oversight he is pursuing a good work

22:23 the bishop therefore must be must be and here it is not a matter of expedience now when we come to the particulars of any given individual what is it to be without reproach and we come into marginal issues is this thing in his life such as to make him without reproach or is it a legitimate area of reproach there we need heavenly wisdom in the application to particulars but in terms of what is required in these passages we need careful exegesis reasonable and responsible exposition and application and utter dependence upon the spirit of God to know how each and every qualification

23:07 has as it were tentacles in the particulars of a man's life but we are not engaged in that with any thought that we are going to bend the standard to expediency the application of it is a matter of heavenly wisdom and balance of perspective but that a divinely given standard is set before us is without question and the same in Titus 1 in verse 5 though we don't come to the particle of necessity until verse 7 nonetheless it is there in the passage in verse 7 for the bishop must be blameless as God's steward not self-willed not soon angry etc. and if we are indifferent

23:51 or insensitive to the matter of qualification we must not be surprised if there is little or no blessing of God upon the institution of quote an eldership if this matter is pursued as a biblical duty but not perceived in a path of biblical obedience God will curse our willingness to surrender these clear tracks that God has laid out in his word and let me say by way of application to you men here in the academy not to our visiting pastors one of your primary concerns must be to take these things seriously for yourself if you have not brought your own life

24:36 with judgment day honesty through these passages and are willing to be assessed by them how can you with a good conscience lead a congregation to assess another man sometime down the road and surely we need to go back periodically to these matters and ask God to search us and to try us and to make sure that we have not grown careless assuming we have some kind of ecclesiastical tenure and we are safe when in reality there is a rationale for every one of these requirements that if we are to lead people in spiritual matters we must carry their consciences that we ourselves are spiritual men if we are to preach with grip upon their consciences our lives must be living

25:20 growing monuments of the sanctifying power of that word that we would convey to others most of the problems arise from failure to regard this standard on the front end and then men get into the office and then they have an image they may have success and then there is this tremendous tension that goes on as they play with their own consciences if I am in disobedience to the word of God how is it that God is blessing my ministry to such an extent or the people struggle with it yes we see these blatant contradictions in this area and that area between 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1 and this man but God uses him this one has been saved and that one has been helped

26:04 and all kinds of issues get in and convolute and confuse the issue the bishop must be saved and if a man could preach like Whitfield Spurgeon Edwards Tennant and a host of others all rolled up into one but his life is not blameless he is known to be self-willed he has a trigger temper he loves a good verbal brawl he is known to be a man who has a passion for things I don't care he can preach like all those men rolled into one he has no business being in that place of spiritual leadership so the evidence of a biblical standard is clear in the word of God and I commend to you Owen's comments in volume 15 pages 493 to 496 where Owen gives

26:49 a summary of the biblical requirements it's in his catechism a brief instruction in the worship of God question 25 what's required unto the due constitution of an elder pastor or teacher of the church then he gives a summary of the biblical requirements in the word of God and I commend you Owen's comments then he gives a summary statement and then breaks it down point by point here's his summary statement that he be furnished with the gifts of the Holy Spirit for the edification of the church and the evangelical discharge of the work of the ministry that he be unblameable holy and exemplary in his conversation that he have a willing mind to give up himself unto the Lord in the work of the ministry

27:34 that he be called and chosen by the suffrage and consent of the church by fasting and prayer and imposition of hands unto his work and ministry and then in his explication he opens up those five assertions that he has made and supports them with very helpful exposition and application I commend that section for your future study when you wrestle with this issue in a real life situation of seeking to discern the mind of God with respect to the recognition of God God is a priest of the temple of Abraham the doer of the temple

28:19 of Hade give the servants and the proper and the holy work of Jesus and his people and his children and his children and his family and his people the head of the church reserves the ultimate prerogative to give gifts unto his church. And where Christ does not give, we better be very cautious about trying to recognize what he hasn't given. And I've lived long enough to see what I would call an eldership fad come and go and leave in its wake a very sour taste about the whole matter

29:03 of plurality of eldership. This became the sacred cow. This became the touchstone of ecclesiastical orthodoxy and the way you proved that you weren't a mini-pope was to have a plurality of elders as soon as you could have it regardless of how you had to attain it. And there are whole sections where you just mention plurality of eldership and people are ready to go to war with you and say, I don't want to touch it with a ten-foot pole.

Evidence for Plurality of Overseers: Apostolic Practice and Description

29:28 I have seen the tragic results of hasty, sloppy pursuit of this. And so, brethren, please don't read into my words anything akin to that whole scenario. But having said that, nonetheless, when we come to the Scriptures, the evidence that plurality of overseers is the norm, in my judgment, is abundant and is clear. And I've put it into three categories.

29:56 First of all, the record of apostolic practice. The record of apostolic practice. We've looked at the Acts 14.21-23 passage and we don't need to go back and reiterate that.

30:13 Titus 1 and verse 5. You are to appoint elders in every city as I gave you charge. In each city, there are to be elders, plural. Not an elder in each church, but elders in each church.

30:31 The record of apostolic practice is clear. Secondly, the description of apostolic churches is equally clear. When we read the description of the configuration of the large, thriving church there in Jerusalem and the account of how another local church, the church at Antioch, is sending representatives to consult with the church at Jerusalem with its unique deposit of the apostolate there, we read in verse 3 that these representatives from the Antioch church being brought on their way by the church passed through Phoenicia, Samaria, declaring the conversion of the Gentiles and caused great joy

31:16 unto all the brethren. And what are they doing? They are going up to Jerusalem, verse 2, I should have started there, these who are appointed to go with Paul and Barnabas, certain other than that they should go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders, plural, about this question. And in all the subsequent references, verse 6, the apostles and the elders were gathered together to confess, to consider the matter, verses 22 and 23 of the same chapter, it seemed good to the apostles and the elders, and they wrote, the apostles and the elders, brethren, and this is a strategic church, as you know, this first Pentecostal church of Jerusalem,

31:59 and the apostles were there when the scattering came upon the persecution that arose over Stephen, that there in this assembly, the apostles, who were the unique architects, of the church and its new covenant configuration, obviously established a framework in which there was a plurality of elders, even though the apostles were there. Verse 30 of chapter 11, speaking of the benevolence gift that is taken up to Jerusalem, which also they did, sending it to the elders by the hand of Barnabas and Saul. And then when we come to Paul's favorite church, at least in my judgment, it was his favorite church, there was a unique, a unique bond between the apostle

32:44 and the church at Philippi. This church that had unique commitments to Paul and unique sympathy with his ongoing gospel endeavors as he sits in his Roman prison and thinks of that church that he's now about to communicate with. How does he think of them? Paul and Timothy, servants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Christ Jesus that are at Philippi with the bishops, with, with the overseers and deacons, grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

33:20 In a most natural way, he thinks of this well-established church as comprised of saints in union with Christ, and he thinks of it as a church that is blessed with a plurality of overseers and with official servants designated as deacons. And so in this description then of the apostolic church, churches in Paul's gathering the leaders of the church at Ephesus, he calls for the elders, plural, the materials are well known to you. And then of course the third category of evidence is the assumption of apostolic injunctions.

Evidence for Plurality of Overseers: Apostolic Injunctions and Parity of Authority

34:00 When apostolic injunctions are given to the people of God with respect to those responsible for their government and oversight, it always assumes that there is more than one in that position. 1 Thessalonians 5.12 We are to know them that are over us in the Lord and admonish us and to esteem them exceeding highly in love for their works' sake. Now surely if God has only placed one over any group of people, they ought to esteem him.

34:34 Yes. But the assumption is there would be them and not him. And likewise in the passages in Hebrews 13, verse 7 and verse 8, the same clear assumption, and I'm almost embarrassed to quote the text, but these are the front line texts that ought to be there at our fingertips whenever we think and speak and act with respect to this issue. Remember them that have the rule over you.

35:01 Men, not a man, that spoke unto you the word of God and considering the issue of their life, imitate their faith. And again in verse 17, obey them that have the rule over you and submit for they watch in behalf of your souls as they that shall give an account. And then in 1 Peter 5, 1 and 2, where Peter exhorts the elders among you who am a fellow elder, shepherd the flock of God which is among you, assuming that there is a plurality of biblically qualified overseers administering divine shepherding to the people of God. Professor Murray

35:44 in volume 2 of his works has an excellent statement on this matter of the plurality of elders. Page 345 of volume 2 in his essay or message, sermon, lecture on the form of government. This emphasis upon plurality indicates the jealousy with which the New Testament guards against government by one man. The New Testament institution is not, as we have seen, a pure democracy.

36:15 Neither is it an autocracy. It is the simple truth that singularity has no place in the government of Christ's Church. In every case, the singularity exemplified in diocesan episcopacy, whether it be in the most extreme form of the papacy or in the most restricted application of local diocesan bishops, is a patent deviation from, indeed, presumptuous control of the institution of Christ. Plurality is written in the boldest letters in the pages of the New Testament and singularity bears the hallmark of despot to Christ's institution.

36:59 And then he goes on to say that we may not see all of the reasons for the wisdom of Christ in so governing His Church, but he says there are some that are clear. Plurality is a safeguard against the arrogance and tyranny to which man, as the most characteristic proclivity. And plurality in this sphere always differentiates the singularity that belongs to Christ and to Him alone. It is no wonder that failure to adhere to the plurality that must be maintained in the government of the Church has, by logical steps, resulted in what, on all accounts, is the greatest travesty ever witnessed in the history of Christendom, namely the pretensions and blunders and blasphemies

Evidence for Parity of Authority Among Overseers

37:44 of the Roman sea. Now here you can just hear the old professor saying these words with his lips hissing and burning when he speaks of the pretensions and blasphemies of the Roman sea. Well then we come in the third place to the evidence for a parity of authority among the overseers. My fundamental thesis includes the words that the normal framework is that of a plurality of qualified overseers functioning with genuine parity.

38:22 Now the word parity means the state of being the same in power, value, and rank. It comes from the word par. As Professor Murray clearly points out, the moment one presbyter or overseer is given a position or rank of authority qualitatively above another, plurality is, is fractured because we have another of a different kind. I may talk about the parity of my fistful of marbles, but the moment one of them is metamorphosized into an egg, it's foolish to talk about the parity of my marbles.

39:02 Now the marbles may be of different colors and shapes and attractiveness, as we'll see when we come to deal with realistic, functional diversity, but in terms of our understanding of the authority, the office under Christ, I'm insisting that there is biblical evidence that we should think and act in terms of a parity of authority among the overseers. And I rest that case not upon inference, but upon the data that is there in your notes. Number one, the requirements for the office are uniform. We do not have differing sets of requirements for differing classes of overseers.

39:46 And unless we're prepared to say that because of an unusual measure of gift, because of other factors of individual charisma, etc., that will naturally bring a man into an unusual place of influence, unless we're prepared to say he then leaps outside the lids of his Bible for guidelines as to how he should view himself in the government of Christ's church, then we must insist that since the requirements for the one office are uniform, there is, indeed to be, true parity among the overseers. And when we turn to 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1, while it is clear that the Apostle recognizes a functional diversity,

40:30 particularly in 1 Timothy 5 and verse 17, an oft-debated passage, but whatever we are led to say about it, one thing is clear. The Apostle recognizes some functional diversity. Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially, those who labor in the Word and in teaching. And since this is such a critical passage, I do commend to you a careful study of the passage, and I would urge you to take seriously the help that I believe John Owen is uniquely qualified to give us in wrestling through this, Volume 16, pages 115 to 123.

41:10 Volume 16, pages 115 to 123.

41:20 But I'm resting the case, for parity of authority, on the fact that the requirements for the office are uniform. Secondly, the responsibilities of the office are laid upon all the elders as a body. When Paul gathers the elders of the church at Ephesus, Acts 20, 17, he charges all of the elders with taking heed to themselves and to all of the flock of God in the which the Holy Spirit constituted them overseers to shepherd the church of the Lord which he purchased with his own blood. And whatever functional diversity there may have been in the church at Ephesus, the task of overseeing, of shepherding,

42:04 is laid upon the elders as a body. And likewise in 1 Peter 5, 1 and 2, the elders among you, I exhort, who am also an elder, you are to shepherd the church of the Lord. And Hebrews 13, 17, and 13, 13, 7 as well. So if the responsibilities of the office are laid upon all of the elders as a body, is it not right for us to think then in terms of a parity of divinely conferred responsibility?

42:35 And then thirdly, the submission enjoined upon church members applies to all of the elders as a body. The submission enjoined upon church members applies to all of the elders as a body. Obey them that have the rule over you. Hebrews, 13, 17.

The Ongoing Debate on Church Offices and the Need for Independent Thought

42:53 1 Thessalonians 5, 12. Know them that are over you in the Lord and admonish you and esteem them highly in love for their work's sake. Now, I'm fully aware that there has been an ongoing debate in church history on the two or three office view, and it is no small issue. Are there three distinct offices?

43:17 The minister, the ruling elder, and then deacons. Or, are these functional distinctions between those who in terms of gift and opportunity and other factors are more focused in their labor in preaching and teaching and in conjunction with other biblically qualified elders perform the task of oversight and government and shepherding one office, functional diversity within the eldership and then the second office of deacons. And that debate goes on to this very hour and it will go on and must go on. I was, I pulled out of my, or put into my satchel just before I left.

43:56 I think I have it with me. I think I put into my satchel. Maybe I didn't. No, I guess I didn't.

44:04 Volume 2 of Dabney, page 119, where Dabney says, ah, I did get it. Very interesting thing. When we get weary of saying, well, look, this thing has been thrashed out. You've got whole gobs of sections in Thornwell's work where he was debating this issue with Hodge and it's a fascinating 200 pages of work.

44:22 It's a lot of reading. And you see how Professor Murray thrashes out the thing in his works and it's being debated. There's a book that's been recently edited by an OPC minister out in Pennsylvania on this whole issue. And you say, man, can't we get beyond this?

44:39 Why do we have to wrestle with this? Well, I commend to you the thoughts that Dabney sets forth in dealing with this very subject in his essay called Theories of the Eldership. He said, while man remains the creature he is, such discussions are to be expected and desired. Each generation must do its own thinking and learn for itself its own lessons in first truths and general principles.

45:06 If we insist that this generation, in his case, as a Presbyterian, shall hold our father's principles on trust and by mere prescription, the result will be they will not hold them sincerely at all. If they simply say, man, we've got great minds and great exegetes and great theologians and great churchmen who give us this legacy, let's just all swallow it and not even burp. We'll just take it on trust. He said, it won't be long before it's not held sincerely at all.

45:34 For by the very reason that general principles do not lie on the surface but are to be detected by analysis and induction, they are always in every science other than first appearances and first impressions would lead men to suppose. Hence, in every science the true general principles are unpopular and paradoxical in the first unthinking view. Prior to his active investigation, it is, in astronomy for instance, the earth which seems to stand still and the heavenly bodies to move. In hydrostatics, it's the empty tube which seems to suck up the water.

46:13 In theology, it's the Pelagian view which commends itself to the natural mind instead of the Calvinistic. So, in church, in church government, the actual first truths of the New Testament are not those which our unreflecting impressions would lead us to suppose. Hence, each generation must correct those first impressions for itself and be led down to the true principles by the laborious collision of debate and investigation.

46:44 I love the term. Laborious collision of debate and investigation.

46:50 Some of us wish we'd be able to do respect to my Presbyterian or paedobaptist brethren. Some of us wish we could have simply taken our position on church government baptism on trust. When we came to see our scriptures open to us and realize that when we saw that there was an election of grace and when we began to see some of those glorious truths that have been nicknamed evangelical Calvinism, we thought, well, now that we have been led deeper into those biblical truths that we saw in our Bible, that by the hand we're led into rich paths of fuller understanding by the great giants of the past, all we'll need to do is take on trust the views they had as to who are the proper subjects of baptism

47:35 and how should the Church of Christ be governed. And some of us tried that but we couldn't do it. And though we may be wrong, at least we have the peace that we've tried to dig down to first principles. And that's why we can stand with our brethren who in making the same effort have come up on the different side of the issue with them.

47:53 We can at least respect them as men seeking to walk with integrity before God in these matters. And if a man says, well, I believe this because surely Calvin couldn't be wrong and Warfield couldn't be wrong, I'm ready to say, how can you call yourself a Christian? Call no man master. Call no man master.

48:11 One is your master. One is your true teacher. And so, though it is laborious and though it is painful, it is nonetheless vital. Well, that's a little digression.

Anticipating Functional Diversity

48:22 But now we come to the point number four, the evidence for realistic and harmonious functional diversity.

48:31 My definition or my thesis says that it's the plurality of biblically qualified elders functioning with realistic, harmonious, functional diversity. And bear with me now. Complete this point. No, in fact, this would be a good place to break.

48:47 And then we can take up the necessary admonitions. I've been going for close to 50 minutes. So let's take a break.