What is a Pastor?

(addressed to Church on Fire)

        There seems to be some confusion in our western culture over what the word “pastor” relates to.  Is it a job title for the top dog in a local church? Are pastors those who are more spiritually equipped to lead in a church?  Are they God’s chosen authority figures? Here are some of my thoughts on the matter…

        “Pastor” can be just a general leadership title for those who serve a local church with their governance gift.  I don’t personally have a problem with this as long as there is a healthy understanding of what it means to serve the Body as a leader.  Church on Fire’s Philosophy of Leadership sums it up this way: 

According to Romans 12:8, leadership is a gift God has given to some members of Christ’s Body in order to be a blessing to the entire Body. The gift of leadership should be celebrated (as should all gifts from God) but should not be elevated in value above the other gifts. The call to leadership is a call to self-sacrifice, servanthood and love.

       Jesus didn’t seem to have a problem with titles either as long as his disciples understood that the call to lead is a call to serve.  After washing the disciples feet he tells them, “You call me Teacher and Lord – and you are right, for that is what I am. So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet” (John 13:13-14, NRSV).
        In a general sense “pastor” and “leader” are synonymous in our culture.  Not everyone with the title of “pastor” necessarily has a shepherding leadership gift, which is how the New Testament describes pastoring. Actually, the Bible doesn’t say a lot about pastors.  It does however, talk about shepherds.  The only verse in the new testament usually translated with the word “pastor” is Ephesians 4:11 which says, “The gifts he have were that some would be… pastors” (NRSV).  Even there it would make perfect sense in the Greek to put the word shepherd. 
        Shepherds in biblical times were not the CEOs or power brokers of society.  They humbly cared for, protected and fed the sheep. However, we see that God many times honored shepherds. King David was a shepherd as a boy.  When Samuel came to anoint a king for Israel his father didn’t even bother calling him in for consideration. Later on David writes that God is our shepherd (Psalm 23). It was to shepherds that God announced the birth of his Son in Luke 2.  And many times Jesus is called a shepherd or refers to himself as a shepherd (Matthew 9:36; 18:12; 25:32; 26:31; John 10; Hebrews 13:20; 1 Peter 2:5; 5:4; Revelation 7:17).
        At Church on Fire we have nine people who share the responsibility of “senior pastor” by  nurturing the values and culture we desire to have as a community of believers.  We each carry the gift of shepherding, but some more then others.  It is the diversity of leadership gifts on the team that make it strong.  This in itself is unique among local churches and there are a lot of reasons, that I don’t have time to discuss now, why we have a team of leaders instead of just one person.  However, the Apostolic Leadership Team (click here to see why we call ourselves that) is not the only way to serve as a leader at Church on Fire.  In fact, there are limitless ways for you to lead based on your own calling, passions and gifts. 
        If God has given you a heart to shepherd people then there is room for you.  In fact, I am convinced our church will only grow numerically as much as we have people with a heart for nurturing others in this way.  I believe this because we have placed a priority on people over programs.  Growth for us isn’t about people in the seats – it’s about people growing in relationship with God and each other.  Shepherds are and will be the true spiritual fathers and mothers of Church on Fire.  They are the ones people call on when they are sick, hurting, or in need of comfort.  They are the ones that feed and protect the sheep by speaking truth into a person’s circumstances.  They are the ones that celebrate with deep joy when one of their sheep has a victory. 
        I would not trade my shepherd’s heart for anything.  It is a deeply fulfilling call.  If these ideas have stirred your heart in any way and you think the Lord may be speaking to you about shepherding his flock then let us know.  It is our sincere desire to partner with the Holy Spirit in helping you to become all that he has called you to be.