Question: The wisdom view maintains that pastors are not required to have a mystical call to be qualified. How does this square with Acts 20:28, which says that the elders of the Ephesian church were "appointed" (NLT) by the Holy Spirit? (Chapter 21)

Answer: In this passage Paul says that the Holy Spirit made these men overseers (or pastors or elders). The verse says, "Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God" (Acts 20:28).

While it is clear that the Holy Spirit in some way placed these men in their position of elder, the methodology is not spelled out. The word "made" is a common word that can mean "appoint," "put," or "place" in a position. Various means were employed in the New Testament: Matthias was appointed by prayer and casting lots (Acts 1:23-26); the first deacons were chosen by the Jerusalem church and presented to the apostles (Acts 6:2-6); Paul and Barnabas were called from the Antioch church by special revelation from the Holy Spirit (Acts 13:1-2); and finally elders were appointed by Paul, Barnabas (Acts 14:23), and Titus (Titus 1:5).

These verses illustrate at least three ways that pastors were properly appointed. Advocating only one of these ways could lead to an insistence on apostolic succession, divine revelation, or local church ordination-to the exclusion of the others. In the case of the Ephesian elders, we don't know how they were appointed. But because they met Spirit-inspired requirements that were recognized by the church, Paul concluded they had been appointed by the Holy Spirit. God can do this directly through prophecy or through the appointment of the founder of a church or by an established church using God's biblical guidelines.

A clear example of God putting a person in a position without a prophetic or mystical call is governing authorities. God says that such authorities are established and appointed by Him (Romans 13:1). The ruler is called the "minister" and "servant" of God (Romans 13:4, 6). All rulers fit this description of being put into office by God.

If God considers secular government officials as having been appointed by Him to be His "ministers," then it is certainly appropriate to regard a pastor as Spirit-appointed because: 1) The Spirit qualified him by his spiritual gifting (1 Corinthians 12:11; see 12:28 where the same verb "appointed" is used); 2) He produced the required maturity and fruits of the Spirit in the man (1 Timothy 3:1-7; Titus 1:6-9); and 3) He worked through His church recognizing divinely specified qualifications to appoint him. F.F. Bruce supports this sense of Spirit-appointment in Acts 20:28.

Probably the reference to the Holy Spirit here does not mean that their appointment to this sacred ministry had been commanded by prophetic utterance in the church, but rather that they were so appointed and recognized because they were manifestly men on whom the Holy Spirit had bestowed the requisite qualifications for the work.... Cf. 1 Cor. 12:4ff.

Every man, then, who has the necessary gifting of the Holy Spirit, possesses the required character the Holy Spirit produces, and is recognized by the Holy Spirit's Church and placed in the position of pastor is a Holy Spirit-appointed pastor.