In the years following the establishment of the church in Acts 2 there began to be a separation of those who publicly preached and taught and those who didn’t. The reasons for this were diverse, but the result was a professional class that was to publicly proclaim and a class that was to be taught. These became known as the Clergy and Laity.

Clergy comes from “kleros” which means “a lot, portion or heritage”. Laity comes from “laos” which means “the people”. Therefore all of God’s people are laity. And all of God’s people are of His “lot, portion and heritage”; therefore they are clergy. The problem is not in there being laity and clergy, but in there being a separation between the two. No where in the New Testament is there any reference to this separation. The separation of clergy and laity is simply not a New Testament concept. Paul in Romans 15:14 exhorts the church “to admonish one another”. No designated person or group had the exclusive right or responsibility to admonish the church. Ephesians 4:11-12 is important to consider in this light:

Verse 12 contains three functions; 1) Perfecting of the saints; 2) Work of the ministry and 3) Edifying of the body of Christ. Unfortunately, this is sometimes read as if the offices listed in vs. 11 were to do the functions listed in vs. 12. However a closer study of this passage shows that the offices listed in vs. 11 were to “perfect (or equip) the saints” so that the saints could do the work of the ministry and the edifying of the body (church). A literal translation of vs. 12 is “with a view toward the equipping of the saints for the work of the ministry and for the work of edifying the body of Christ”. This does not mean that the apostles, prophets, evangelists and shepherds did not edify the body, but they were also to teach (equip) the other members of the body so that the members would also do these things. The NIV renders vs. 12 well as it says those in vs. 11 were to “prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up.” It was to be a mutual effort of the body not an exclusive work of the clergy.

The evolvement of the clergy system was often fed by a natural and sincere desire to use our best. To use our best speakers on Sunday morning, then our best speaker, and over time capable men, though maybe not the most eloquent, were left out of the public edification. This desire for the best has led man to develop clergy to speak for them, choirs to sing for them and professionals to minister for them. Certainly, we want to present our best to the Lord, but let us not confuse what we consider best with what the Lord considers best. When we discern best we often look at the outward, the presentation, the eloquence and the style. But when God looks at the best, He looks at the heart and the truth it speaks and therefore often sees differently than we do. Excellence is not something we are to hire; rather it is something we are to give. Paul tells the Corinthians to “excel unto the edifying of the church” (1 Corinthians 14:12).

In Christ Jesus our Lord, there is not one item of praise or spiritual worship which is the exclusive right of a particular class. We are to “edify (build up) one another” (1 Thessalonians 5:11). Any child of God who is qualified is to serve in the carrying out of God’s will. Any brother who is capable of publicly edifying the body has an equal right and responsibility to do so. “The body grows through that which every joint supplies… unto the edifying of itself in love” (Ephesians 4:16). The church in which we are all priests and ministers is the dynamic that can change the world.