Leadership in the Church of Christ:

THE ELDERS OF THE CHURCH (Part 3)

          In my 14 years of preaching I have found that people have many questions about the role of elders in the church.  In this article I want to address a few of those questions.  I hope that they will help you in your study of church leadership.

How should an elder shepherd his flock?  How does that compare to Jesus?  Shepherding is mean to lead/rule not to rule/lord, like with the power to destroy.  Remember a few weeks ago I noted that Christ is the Chief Shepherd (I Peter 5) and He will fulfill that role at His return (Revelation 2:27; 12:5; 19:15). Christ "will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats" (Matthew 25:32).  Some will go to destruction and others to eternal life.  Christ will shepherd with a rod of iron. However, He will also be a shepherd of great gentleness: "The Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes."  Shepherds are told to imitate Jesus' gentle style and serve willingly.

Who is higher in the church?  An elder, deacon, minister?  In many denominations, there is a hierarchal system of government.  The Lord’s church DOES NOT work like that according to the New Testament.  Hierarchical churches (Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Anglican, Methodist, etc.) even assign bishops to each region to have administrative authority and then leaders over them, etc.  The New Testament does not reveal this particular structure.  Just because an elder is out in front, or the deacon is serving tables, or the minister is appointing church leaders, does not make any of them superior in their ministry.  WE WORK TOGETHER! 

Are the offices of the church lifetime or temporary?  Christians sometimes view the eldership as a lifetime calling, but its not the supreme court. There is no verse that requires lifetime service.  God calls every member to serve in various times and in various ways, especially the shepherds.  Due to changing circumstances in their lives, church leaders may resign from the role entirely, depending on what they understand God to be calling them to do.  People who see leadership solely in terms of authority might view this as a demotion, but when ministry is seen in terms of service (a the New Testament teaches), a resignation might be seen as a spiritually mature response to God's call to serve in a new way.

In our next article we will focus on who should appoint church leaders, what it means to direct the church work, the extent of the authority of the elders, and replacing an elder or asking him to step down out of the eldership.  And, of course, if you have any additional questions, please feel free to get them to me and I will see if I can answer them for you.  Have a great week!