11. (a) No official positions that draw lines between 'professional' ministry and everyone else – just the exercise of different gifts within the body. (b) Some gifts require much time to exercise, so I believe the Word gives license for supporting such laborers, although not in the sense of an expected or negotiated salary. (c) A local church is led and shepherded by elders, not a single professional trained religious figure.
[(a) 3 John 1:9-10; Mat 20:25-28; Mark 10:42-45; Luke 22:25-26; 2 Cor 1:24; (b) 1 Tim 5:17-18; Gal 6:6; 1 Cor 9:1-19 (c) 1 Pet 5:1-3; Acts 14:23, 15:2, 4, 6, 22, 23; Acts 20:17; Titus 1:5-11; Jam 5:14]
I know this is a controversial topic, and encourage dissenters to read the passages noted here. Please reply with scriptural evidence if we have made error here. We want God's Word to speak louder than tradition.
Understand that we are not denying the idea of spiritual gifts, but rather the common modern practice of putting certain men and women on a pedestal. We are all equal in worth to God, and leaders are to lead by example, not by "lording it over" the "lay people" . This distinction between clergy and laity has often ended in giving glory to men, rather than Jesus Christ, the true Head of the church.
We don't see the term "undershepherd" in the Bible. Rather, we find elders that lead by example, serving and protecting from doctrinal errors and such. You will also find deacons, men of godly character, that desire to serve people and take care of the day to day needs of the church. Any other positions, job titles, and such have been added to Biblical standard, yet are often regarded as holy writ.
The Bible holds no standards for ordination in the New Testament, the church age, except those denoted for elders and deacons. Even then, these are not ordination qualifications, but given that believers will recognize and respect those among them that lead exemplary lives so that they can counsel, teach, and disciple others in these godly character traits. See Stephen's example of what a deacon should look like.
Some have argued that the hierarchical system is one of the last leftovers from the Catholic system, others assume a desire for power among "professional clergy". We will make no such arguments, but rather desire to seek out the true Biblical pattern that was used in the early church. We want simply pure doctrine from God's Word, nothing added, nothing taken away.
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