The safest choice would be to call it equivalent to a 1st-level spell, since that's the highest level of spell the cleric can cast when he gains access to the ability.
If a character class grants a spell-like ability that is not based on an actual spell, the ability’s effective spell level is equal to the highest-level class spell the character can cast, and is cast at the class level the ability is gained.
So a 17th-level Cleric would treat it as a 9th-level spell, and a 2nd-level cleric would treat it as a 1st-level spell. Their caster level for it would be CL 1 though, in either case.
Where did you find the reference stating that the equivalent spell level increases as the character gains levels? The only thing I could find is a d20pfsrd unofficial FAQ entry attributed to James Jacobs, which says the opposite:
So the best way to estimate what a spell-like ability's level is if it doesn't say in the description and it doesn't mimic a spell is to just look at what level the class gets the ability at and assume it's the highest-level spell that one could cast at that level.
Also, in most cases where it's mentioned, the caster level for spell-like abilities gained from a class feature is equal to the character's levels in that class.
Where did you find the reference stating that the equivalent spell level increases as the character gains levels?
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic#TOC-Spell-Like-Abilities-Sp-
Last paragraph of the section on spell-like abilities.
Found an actual Paizo FAQ entry:
Cleric domains, sorcerer bloodlines, wizard schools, and certain other class features give spell-like abilities that aren't based on spells. What's the effective spell level for these abilities?
The effective spell level for these spell-like abilities is equal to the highest-level spell that a character of that class could normally cast at the level the ability is gained.
For example, a 1st-level elemental bloodline sorcerer has elemental ray as a spell-like ability. Because a sorcerer 1's highest-level spell available is 1st, that spell-like ability counts as a 1st-level spell. A 9th-level elemental bloodline sorcerer has elemental blast as a spell-like ability. Because a sorcerer 9's highest-level spell available is 4th, that spell-like ability counts as a 4th-level spell.
—Sean K Reynolds, 07/08/11
From that quote, the effective spell level stays fixed, and doesn't increase as the character's class level increases.
That seems right, though it contradicts the PRD. Errata, perhaps?
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I didn't remember the passage that Sir Ophiuchus quoted, at all. So I did some digging. It's from the most recent errata, released a month ago.
I think they messed up though. IMO, the errata seems to have been intended to convey SKR's ruling that Are posted, but whoever translated it for the 5th printing jumbled it into what we see in Sir O's post.
As an aside, d20pfsrd really isn't an official source. When I see something there that doesn't jive with what I think the rules are, I always have to go searching my books/the official PRD to verify. Now that Paizo has released their own PRD, it's just as easy to link to it, and it's a lot more official than d20pfsrd.com.