In the organization of the church it has already been discussed that Christ was ordained by God to be at the head of the church, and others had their specific roles. The Holy Spirit, apostles, and prophets were also given specific charges and responsibilities. Were these the only officials to be within the church? No! There are other scriptures (Acts 11:27-30; Acts 20:15-17; Titus 1:4-5; and I Peter 5:1-2) which state that God gave some to be elders.

There is to be a plurality of men appointed to serve as elders in each congregation of the Lord’s church (Acts 14:21-23; Acts 20:15-17; Titus 1:4-5; and I Peter 5:1). Yes, these scriptures speak of a plurality of elders in each congregation; but there are not any scriptures that speak of a congregation having only one elder. Therefore, it must be concluded that God has specified that each congregation of his church will have more than one elder.

The apostle Paul interchanges the two words in Titus 1:5-7 and in Acts 20:17 Paul sent for the elders of the church in Ephesus, but in Acts 20:28 he refers to them as overseers. The English word bishop comes from the Greek word episkopos, which means overseer. This is why the "American Revised" version of the New Testament uses the word bishop instead of overseers in this particular scripture. Bishops, elders, overseers are synonymous with one another, therefore a bishop is an elder.

No! The member who serves as an elder or bishop must be the husband of one wife and father of more than one child (I Timothy 3:2-4 and Titus 1:6). His wife and all his children must be faithful members of the church (I Timothy 3:11 and Titus 1:6). Yes, all of his children must be faithful members of the church. Any man who has children who have not obeyed the gospel has not yet proven himself; but this must be done before he is appointed to the position of elder (I Timothy 3:4-5). Likewise a man who has children who are out on their own, who are unfaithful to the church, cannot serve in the capacity of a bishop or elder. Why? The scriptures specifically state that he must be a man "…having faithful children." Not a man that has had, a one time or another, faithful children.

A man appointed to serve as an elder must have a good understanding of God’s word and be able to teach it (Titus 1:9 and I Timothy 3:2). A man who is a recent convert or novice may also not serve in the position of bishop/elder (I Timothy 3:6). It is also important to note that a man whom outsiders (non-Christian) do not look upon as being godly cannot serve in the position of bishop/elder (I Timothy 3:7). Last of all, the man appointed to the position of bishop/elder must be a model Christian (I Timothy 3:1-3 and Titus 1:7).

Yes! If a man is to become an elder he must have a wife (I Timothy 3:2). If his wife dies, he no longer has a wife and therefore is no longer qualified to serve in the capacity of bishop. If a man is to serve as a bishop (or deacon) his wife and children must be faithful (I Timothy 3:11 and Titus 1:6); therefore, if any one of them becomes unfaithful to the Lord, the man loses his qualification for the position of elder. If his own godly life style ceases to be blameless, he will no longer be qualified to serve in the role of elder or bishop (this would include conditions of mental and physical health that would preclude him from carrying out the duties of the position).

Yes! Some of the congregations Paul established and those in Crete functioned for some time without bishops (Acts 14:21-23 and Titus 1:5). If these congregations existed and were recognized by Paul as houses of God it holds that congregations today may also exist without elders. This is only true however if a congregation doesn’t have at least two men that are qualified to serve as elders.

The scriptures teach that if a congregation has elders, they are to make the decisions (Acts 20:28 and I Peter 5:1-2). The scriptures do not say who will make the decisions in congregations that have no bishops. Congregations without elders must, select someone to make decisions for the congregation.

They can’t involve all the members in this body because some would be women and a woman is not to rule or usurp authority over man within the church (I Corinthians 11:1-3; I Corinthians 14:34; and I Timothy 2:12). A congregation also couldn’t merely choose, elect, or appoint a committee of men to be the decision-makers. The scriptures only give one group of men the authority to make decisions over other men, those qualified to serve as bishop (Acts 20:28 and I Peter 5:1-2). It is logical then to assume that for congregations without qualified men to serve as elders, all the men of the congregation that are members of the church, must serve as this decision making body.

Some say they are to be appointed by the preacher. This is based upon what they read in Acts 14:23 and Titus 1:5 where it states that Paul and his co-laborers ordained elders in every church. This is an assumption that cannot be proven. The elders in Ephesus were made or ordained by the Holy Spirit. Did the Holy Spirit come down from heaven and in person pick out the elders? No, he inspired the apostle Paul to teach congregations that they were to select qualified men to serve as their overseers. It could then be said that Paul made those men elders of the church of Ephesus. Even so Paul and others taught the congregations they were to have elders. In that limited sense, they ordained elders; but (the decision-makers) all the men in the congregation actually were responsible for choosing who was to serve.

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