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Elders in every cityChurch leadershipELDERS IN EVERY CITY Our esteemed editor has a sense of humour! He sends a book for review to someone he knows very well takes a different view from that of the author! This is a serious biblical and historical study of the Christian ministry intended to affirm Church of England clergy in their traditional role both in the church and in society. A loss of confidence has arisen from charismatic sources, the taking over of much counselling by other professionals, and by anti-establishment trends in society. People who have been reared in evangelical ‘free’ churches, who have always been puzzled by the ideas of vicars, and bishops with their thrones, will have some of their questions answered. Others who understand the evidence in a very different way, preferring simply elders and deacons, no more and no less, need to test their positions by the kind of thorough treatment Roger Beckwith gives us here. The biblical provision of men who were elders (presbyters), overseers (bishops) and pastors is examined in the light of the Old Testament and of Jewish practice, especially in the synagogues at the time of our Lord and the apostles. We are also taken through the developments since the apostles that have led up to today’s arrangements. The New Testament emphasis on teaching by those duly equipped and appointed is honoured, and is seen as necessary for the development of ‘lay’ ministries. Questions arise. Is it possible that the simple New Testament arrangement of elders and deacons was precisely what the Lord intended for the churches for all time? If the answer is yes, then even with the multiplication of the churches, there was no need to create bishops as separate from elders. On the other hand, is it possible that those who advocate plural eldership in local churches have been overmuch influenced by charismatic ideas and a culture that has little room for any kind of authority? Just testing! Clifford Pond, © Evangelicals Now - April 2005 |