Confusion abounds as to what the role of a pastor is. Is the concept of a pastor a spiritual gift? Is it an office to be held by someone in the church? Is it a gift and an office? Who is qualified to be a pastor? Should women be pastors? What are the distinctive duties of a pastor? Just what is a pastor, anyway? Perhaps it is just a flattering title created by men to feed their egos and their pocketbooks.
There is good reason for all the confusion surrounding the role of a pastor. The Church, or at least what passes for the Church these days, is a mess. We all know it-- some of us more than others. Even non-Christians know that something is amiss with today's Church and the people who claim to be pastors. How could they not know? The newspapers are full of stories about pastors caught up in some kind of scandal. There are money scandals, sex scandals, divorce scandals, legal scandals, ego scandals, and great rifts over church practice and doctrine. And for every high profile story that you hear about in the news, be sure there are countless other stories that don't even get reported. This is partly because many churches try to cover things up in order to save face and preserve their "tithe base". The other reason you don't hear about them is simply this-- nobody cares. We have come to accept it as a way of life. If Pastor Jones at the corner church happens to be a flake, it is hardly newsworthy. We live in a sad day.
As tempting as it may be, we cannot let the negativity, controversy and confusion surrounding pastors cause us to disparage the concept of a pastor. Good things often get a bad rap because man has distorted and perverted what God originally intended them to be. We see this with words like "religion" and "doctrine", which inherently carry no negative connotation, but cause many to cringe because man has cast a shadow of falsehood upon them. The same can be said of pastors. Many have a negative view of what a pastor is because they have seen hirelings bear rule by their own means, while claiming to be sent from God.
To sort out the confusion that has been foisted upon what a pastor ought to look like, there's no better place to turn than to God's plumbline-- the Word of God. Without getting too deep into theological explanations of all that a pastor is, a simple definition of what the word means, should go a long way in clearing up the confusion. The word "pastor" is simply a synonym for a shepherd; an overseer of sheep. Both the Hebrew and Greek words translated as "pastor" in the Bible, are used interchangeably with the word for "shepherd". So while the word "pastor" only appears once in the New Testament and just a handful of times in the Old Testament, the concept of shepherds overseeing a flock is found throughout the scriptures. With this in mind we can get a pretty good mental picture of what the duties and function of a pastor ought to be. God gave us the figure of a physical sheep herdsman to be an allegory for a spiritual shepherd. Not only that, He sent his only Son to be a living example of the ultimate good Shepherd (see Psalm 23 for just a few pastoral duties).
What marks a good overseer of sheep? Consider the life of a shepherd boy named David who even fought a lion and a bear with his bare hands to protect his sheep. In similar fashion, Jesus Christ, the Son of David, lived a life of servanthood by laying his life down for the sheep and defeating the one who prowls around as a roaring lion. As Chief Shepherd he raised up others to follow in his footsteps. He taught them the differences between a good shepherd (pastor), and a hireling. In one case Jesus challenged Simon Peter three times to demonstrate his love for Messiah by feeding His lambs. Indeed, that is the surefire test of a good pastor-- one who is faithfully feeding the flock he has been given to tend!
The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed: Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; Neither as being lords over God's heritage, but being examples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.
1Peter 5:1-4