Presbyter is the Greek word for elder. Bishop or overseer was used interchangeably with elders. There were multiple elders in the local church who functioned in a single office. There was no chief elder. As time went on, the natural side of the human took over and certain elders began to have preeminence over the others. In time, the pattern that God had given was rejected, and the man-made idea of a chief elder took over. Eventually, the word, Bishop, became the term used to refer to this extra-biblical chief elder position. The other presbyters were known as elders and were subordinate to the "Bishop." This marked the end of the theocratic rule of the church and the beginning of the church monarchy. They repeated the mistake of the Children of Israel, who rejected God's rule through the judges of Israel and demanded a king to rule over them. |