Hi Lloyd, I generally agree with everything you wrote. Yes, the church should operate more as a family or a body rather than a business. Agree. Agree. Agree. Or... Amen, Amen, and Amen. :-)
Our church has a team of elders (myself being one of them). We also have deacons, trustees, a church "coordinating council," a stewardship (finance) committee, etc. And we have some wonderful lay people who volunteer. Without our dedicated volunteers, we couldn't do the things we do.
The problem is that most churches today - including churches like ours (which have congregational polity and multiple leaders and committees) - only have a core number of people (usually a small minority) who are really dedicated and committed to rolling up their sleeves and doing the work of ministry. This means that the bulk of the work falls on a small group of people, specifically the few dedicated volunteers, our staff, and yes, the pastor.
In a biblically ideal church, everyone (or most everyone) would be fully committed parts of the body of Christ -- each bringing their gifts and strengths to the work of the Lord. Few churches rise to that ideal.
The other word of caution I would offer is that the New Testament does make clear that some in the church are called to leadership and oversight of the local body of Christ. Christ is of course the ultimate Head, and (under Christ) there are those (within the local church) who are "over" the church and who "rule" the church. See I Thessalonians 5:12-13, I Peter 5:1-4, Hebrews 13:17, and of course I Timothy 3 and Titus 1.
Different churches and denominations will debate the nature of bishops (overseers), shepherds (pastors), and elders. But I believe that those terms are often used interchangeably - with elder sometimes being an ordained elder and sometimes a mature believer in Christ. Timothy was a young man, but he was ordained to and functioning in the office of elder.
I also agree with Robin who points out that, in churches with structurally or positionally weak elders/pastors/overseers, the power often ends up going to vocal influencers within the congregation -- not all of whom are spiritually mature or biblically grounded. I once heard this great quote from a famous preacher - I think it was the late Adrian Rogers -- who, when asked if he thought the pastor should be a dictator, said: "No, I'm not here to be a dictator. I'm here to make sure no one else becomes a dictator." Love that quote! So, so true!
God bless you!
