Shapes of Ministry in the New Testament

The author of chapter three in Women in Ministry, a professor of New Testament and Christian Origins, provides an overview of the forms of ministry that existed in the New Testament and early church. The purpose of the chapter is to warn against “structural fundamentalism” on church organization which, he explained, is “the idea that one pattern of church organization and ministry was laid down once and for all time.” The author tries to prove his point by asserting that the Bible does not provide us with a specific organizational pattern for the church. Instead, he argues that there were two types of ministry. One type he calls a charismatic ministry, to which persons were called by Christ or His Spirit. The other type he designates as an appointive ministry, to which persons were appointed by the church. Its organizational structure developed from a one-level appointed ministry to two levels, and later on to three levels of ministry. The seven men appointed in Acts 6 to “serve tables” the author sees as an example of a one-level appointed ministry. He calls these men “elders.” Sometime later, he says, a clear distinction emerged between elders and deacons, indicating a two-level ministry. It was not until the beginning of the second century, under church father Ignatius in Asia, that a three-level ministry developed, consisting of bishops, elders, and deacons. Further evidence of the changing pattern of church organization, the author argues, was that the church’s leadership included women. The “small and