Last time, we observed that the New Testament draws two pictures about two kinds of ministers. One man goes out to reach people who do not yet know Christ. The other man, whom I’ll call a resident pastor, lives among a congregation of people who already do. He serves as an elder, sometimes called a bishop or overseer. These terms describe the role people today commonly call a pastor.

In this article, we’ll examine passages people often use to authorize paying resident pastors a regular salary. I want to make one point clear from the beginning: nobody has misunderstood what these verses say. Jesus and Paul both affirm the right of gospel workers to receive material support. The question is not what the verses mean. The question is who the verses describe.

Before we apply these passages to resident pastors, we should ask a simple question: Do the people in these passages belong to the same category as the resident pastor? Watch closely as we follow the context.