In God’s infinite wisdom, He had a plan for church leadership. According to the Bible, that plan does not include some “governing body” or a system where the preacher makes all of the decisions. Rather the Bible speaks of elders watching over the local congregation–shepherding the flock (see Titus 1 and 1 Timothy 3). The church will never grow, long-term, beyond her leadership. The direction that elders will lead the church into this 21st Century is crucial for our souls. We may easily see the need for faithful preaching, but do we just as quickly acknowledge the need for sound elderships? In this issue of Think, we are making an effort to support these good men in the work to which they have devoted their lives. We pray that it will help them in some way. We deeply appreciate every faithful elder in the Lord’s church. We say to them, “Thank you for who you are and what you do.”
Every Christian needs leadership provided by elders. If there is to be anyone in the congregation that not only leads Christians but also demonstrates the Christian life, it must be the elders. Sadly, in many congregations there is a vacuum of true leadership and courage to stand on His Word. This office and its work isn’t the design of men but of God. On Paul’s first missionary journey the Apostles, working as messengers and ministers for God, introduced the office of elder into Christ’s church in Acts 14:23. The Holy Spirit (Acts 20:28) qualifies men to serve in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-9. Terms such as elder or overseer, describing the men and their work, are not titles which create an arrogant hierarchy. In fact, that is precisely what Jesus was condemning when He said, “They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, ‘Rabbi, Rabbi.’ But you, do not be called ‘Rabbi’; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren” (Matthew 23:6-8). Since we are all “brethren,” these terms point to what God expects of the man and his work. For example, elder points to the maturity of man who would be older. Bishop or overseer describes his responsibility to care for all as a superintendent would do. Shepherd obviously describes the pastoral relationship of these men collectively providing and protecting God’s sheep.
These men have a great challenge. There is no new sin under the sun (Ecclesiastes 1:9), but there are new methods and cultural indulgences that are wrecking lives. This brings opportunities for elders to consider their role as shepherds. Elders must consider how God would have them care for these souls. How would God want you to support a members struggling with homosexuality? Jesus died for their souls. He loves them. and His church is to love them too. Elders must not compromise the truth while doing this, therefore needing the wisdom of Solomon. While they love the homosexual, they also must provide truth and wisdom to a congregation that is being bombarded with questions in their daily walk about same-sex marriage while being accused of intolerance and bigotry.
Then for the elder, the pendulum of responsibility swings to families hurting because of disease or death. Families caring for those with Alzheimer’s disease or other debilitating illnesses need a special support from the church. Shepherds in God’s family ought to be leading the way in making sure their congregations are caring for them.
Another need much more frequent, but far different, is to help those deceived by pornography. Pornography is perhaps the most epidemic sin in the church today and far too many shepherds have posed as ostriches while souls are dying in their care. The silence of the leaders is screaming shame, which in turn drives them deeper into their addictions. If they cannot come to the church for healing, where should sinners go who are hurting?
Another challenge facing elderships today is because of the increased mobility of our culture. The mobility is no longer people simply moving from state to state, but more than ever from country to country. But no matter their nationality, their souls are mentioned in the Great Commission and have a place in Christ’s church. The challenge may lie in the fact that some of us grew up in congregations where everyone was born, reared, lived, and died in the same community. That is rare today. Yesterday, without it being any special occasion, I sat down for a weekly Bible study with six other men. Two were from the Philippines, one was from Honduras, and the other half was from the U.S. How well are elders doing at bringing all people of their communities to the Lord? It is a challenge to bring all the ethnicities into unity through Christ when so much is different, including the language! Finally, we will ask elders to consider who shepherds them? Every Christian benefits from having elders. So who shepherds elders according to God’s plan?
We pray this issue helps the church and its leadership. We are calling on parents across the nation to rise to the challenge of rearing up their children to be strong elders. Stop complaining and start molding.
Although it may seem to have articles written only to elders, that is not the design. If you are a member of the Lord’s church, we hope this issue helps you better understand what your elders are dealing with and also help you to appreciate them even more (1 Thessalonians 5:13). If you are a young family man, we hope this issue will challenge you to see the heavy responsibility that will need to one day rest on shoulders such as yours. We urge you to give your all to carefully lead your soul and your family’s souls toward God so you will be equipped and qualified to lead God’s family when that time comes (1 Timothy 3:5). If you are a young unmarried person, we hope this issue will cause you to consider that now is the time to purpose in your heart to marry someone that will help you do great things in the Lord’s kingdom. We pray you would one day become an elder or elder’s wife.
Every eldership will have to deal with the problems of modern culture, because that is from where new converts come and where war is waged against wayward saints. As always, we hope you will think on these things as you pray for your elders.
