According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary to ordain someone is: to invest officially (as by the laying on of hands) with ministerial or priestly authority.  According to the Wikipedia dictionary, ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform various religious rites and ceremonies.  The process and ceremonies of ordination vary by religion and denomination. One who is in preparation for, or who is undergoing the process of ordination is sometimes called an ordinand. The liturgy used at an ordination is sometimes referred to as an ordination.

The word ‘ordain’ in the Bible is defined as: to place down (permanently), to designate, constitute, convoy:—appoint, be, conduct, make, ordain, set.  This same word is translated as make, appoint, ordain, set, and made. 

To answer your good question, I have looked into how various denominations hold an ordination service for a pastor.  It can be a local church group or a denominational conference that can recommend someone to be ordained and thus enter the ranks of the clergy.  The service of ordination usually will include the following:

  • A brief service to encourage the one being ordained.
  • Questions that might be posed to make sure the one being ordained teaches along the same lines as the denomination that ordains him.
  • Someone will pray an ordination prayer and others previously ordained will lay hands on the one being ordained. The person being ordained may be presented a Bible and along with his wife and family receive the congratulations of the people after the benediction has been given.
  • A Certificate of Ordination is presented to show the person has been duly ordained.

It is a serious thing to declare who is fit for Christian service.  While we can discern a person’s teachings and, to some degree, his behaviors, it is a most dangerous thing to ‘qualify’ one for service.  To determine if the Lord has truly called a person into service for Himself is better handled between that person and the Lord.  It is indeed encouraging to receive the ‘right hand of fellowship’ from fellow believers who agree the Lord has called them into service.  We have an example of that in Acts 13:2-3 which reads, “As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.”  As Barnabas and Saul (later to be called Paul) were laboring for the Lord, they were called into a particular service by the Lord.  The local brothers were instructed to look upon them and realize the Lord had called these two men for a purpose.  After fasting and praying, they laid their hands on them.  It took some time for these local brothers to discern from the Lord that Barnabas and Saul had indeed been called of the Lord.  Upon discerning that, they “laid hands” upon them.  This simply means that they extended the right hand of fellowship to these men.  They did not give them permission or authority to preach…the Lord had already done that.  They did not elevate them to positions above their fellow believers.  The clergy/laity system is not a scriptural system and is condemned by the Word of God. 

Who ordained Paul so that he might operate as an apostle?  Was it a group of fellow believers?  Was it by vote or by trial that he was given that position?  NO.  Let’s read Galatians 1:1, “Paul, an apostle, (NOT OF MAN, NEITHER BY MAN, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead).”  Paul made it clear that his appointment to service for the Lord had nothing to do with any men.  His calling was not OF MAN.  It wasn’t the idea or promotion of men that gave Paul that work.  It was not BY MAN because no man gave him permission to serve the Lord in the capacity that he did.  It was by Jesus Christ, and God the Father.  His calling came from God, so he was ordained by God. 

The only one who can truly call and appoint someone into the Lord’s service is the Lord Himself.  While others may acknowledge and thank the Lord for one’s service to the Lord, it is ONLY God that truly sends that person into a realm of service.  I was once asked if I had been ordained.  I replied to the person that I found it so unnecessary to get permission from man to do what the Lord had already told me to do.  (CC)  (619.4)