Virtually any study or discussion of church elders immediately focuses on the qualifications for the office. Does the person have "believing" children? What does that entail, and must all his children be faithful? Is the person "apt or able to teach," and is he a good leader in the home? But when was the last time you heard a significant discussion concerning the "work" of elders?
Those ordained to be elders certainly need to meet the divine qualifications enumerated in Scripture. Yet, it is not unusual to study these qualifications for years and spend months selecting and ordaining men, only to discover the new elders have little idea of what it is they are supposed to do.
It still is not uncommon to find preachers doing the elders' work, elders doing the deacons' work, and deacons doing nothing. This is both unscriptural and impractical, and any congregation in such a situation suffers.
Other elders see themselves as church money managers, mere decision-makers and administrators. Some have been appointed because they are popular, run secular businesses well, or are good at general leadership.
Why does this happen?
One great reason for this dilemma is the failure to connect the qualifications with the work. To be more precise, every qualification is given, not just as a hurdle to be cleared, but also as a necessity for carrying out the elder's work.
We quickly observe that very few of the qualifications are unique to elders. Not every Christian must be a man, husband, father, or non-novice. But the other qualifications are character traits and behaviors in which every Christian is directed to grow.
Thus, what we are looking for in an elder, generally speaking, is a mature Christian man, with experience leading a smaller group (his family), to lead a larger group (local congregation).
Most of the qualifications found in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1 aren't to be found in the absolute in men considered for the office. Granted, a person is a man, father, and husband--or he is not. But the other qualifications require congregational judgment, in light of the work he will be undertaking. There are varying degrees of ability to teach, and hospitality, and success in guiding one's house. Since all candidates are human, the qualifications that pertain to temperance, sober-mindedness, and loving what is good can't be measured to absolute perfection.
Yet, we need mature men who are able to do the work of elders and able to set good examples of the behaviors and character traits to which every Christian aspires. Thus, we can choose men who have attained a high degree of accomplishment in these qualities.
What is the work of elders?
Let's begin to answer this question by noticing that elders are not unique to the New Testament church. The Old Testament is full of references to elders. And while there are some differences between the two groups, there is also much similarity.
The first elders are mentioned in Genesis 50:7, during the time Israel was in Egypt. They existed in Moses' day, even before God gave the Ten Commandments (Exodus 3:15-16). Notice that the elders served as representatives and were to convey what they learned to the people (Exodus 17:2-6). They were to oversee regulations concerning the cities of refuge, seeing that justice was done (Deuteronomy 19:11-12; Joshua 20:1-4). They served as the court of appeals for cases of levirate marriage (Deuteronomy 25:5-10).
Did you notice the teaching, oversight, and judicial functions--the latter dealing with application of God's law?
While there is no list of qualifications for Old Testament elders, as there is for those in the New Testament, general qualifications were given for Israel's leaders and judges. In Exodus 18:21-22 and Deuteronomy 1:13-17, the writer states that they were to be able (apt) men, God-fearers, truthful, haters of covetousness, wise, understanding, well-known among the tribes, known for righteous judgments, and impartial. Does this sound familiar?
The work of church elders
Church elders are to "rule" or lead (1 Timothy 5:17; Hebrews 13:7,17). But the Scriptures also say they are not to act as "lords" over the congregation (1 Peter 5: 1-3). This has led to all sorts of debate among brethren. Those who want the elders to exercise considerable executive power emphasize the passages that speak of "ruling." Those who want to limit or eliminate the exercise of elder power emphasize the "no-lording" citation. So how are we to properly understand what elders are to do? What constitutes their authority and work?
Elders are not to become "masters" of the congregation. That, essentially, is what it means to "lord" over someone. Christians do not owe service to the elders. We owe that to Christ. The Bible clearly says there is "one Lord," and that is Jesus (Ephesians 4:5).
But, someone will say, if you strip away that much authority--the right to demand compliance with his directives--the elder really has no power. It might seem so at first, but the Bible presents another model of leadership. It is not the rule of one who is in a superior position. Elders don't have a right to rule and lead because they are superior to the rest of the congregation but because the congregation has seen in them the maturity and character traits they need to follow.
Jesus is the one who did the best job of explaining this. The mother of Peter and John asked Jesus to give her sons prominent, powerful positions in His kingdom. Jesus answered, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave--just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many." (Matthew 20:25-28)
The Lord described, and modeled, a leadership style that involves being a servant to others. Jesus was actually the reverse of our concepts of greatness and rank.
We may be able to better understand the type of rule elders are to exercise by looking at one of the qualifications--the ability to rule his own house well (1 Timothy 3:4-5).
Think about it. How does a husband, in particular, and father exercise authority in the home? Is it merely because he has a superior position? Can he justly rule by brute force? No, he has authority, but he exercises it by example, by making requests and demands for compliance with God's law, and by lovingly serving his wife and children.
Under the "Gentile" model he seems to have no authority; but under Christ's model, he has a different, but very powerful, authority.
Comparing a father to an elder
A father teaches his son how to change the oil in the car, not merely by commanding his son to do the job, but by showing him how, doing it with him. Likewise, he conveys moral standards by teaching him God's word and by modeling those standards. A father can't perform his job effectively if he sits in an office and writes directives, acting as some sort of board of directors for the family.
A father doesn't do his job by being aloof or separate from his family. He can't isolate himself from them and lead according to Christ's model. Leadership, you see, isn't synonymous with simple "decision-making."
If the "family" qualifications for the eldership don't make this clear enough, the "shepherd" qualifications do. We have no example where shepherds did their jobs in "shepherd meetings." They functioned among the flock, living with them, feeding them, protecting them, and sacrificing for them.
Congregations play a big role
No husband can, by physical force, "make" his wife obey his rule. If he tries, he'll find himself involved in sin. A husband's successful rule and leadership in the home requires his wife's "deference," that is, her respect for, and her agreement to be led by, him in accordance with God's will.
It is no different in the Lord's church. As godly women, when they marry their husbands, agree to give deference to their leadership, so a congregation, when it ordains (appoints) elders, agrees to give deference to their leadership.
Deference involves submitting or yielding to another's judgment, will, or opinion. Listen to what Scripture requires. "Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls. . ." (Hebrews 13:17)
When you take deference and combine it with the leader's appeal to God's word as the uniting, guiding force, you arrive at the result all leadership is designed to achieve--oneness and unity of purpose and action.
The early disciples were able to achieve this "one accord" (Acts 1:14; 2:1; 2:46; 15:25). Decisions were made in such a way that they pleased the whole congregation (Acts 15:22). The apostle Paul appealed for such like-mindedness (1 Corinthians 1:10).
Again, as we try to understand how elders lead, observe two elements that are involved:
- Elders who know God's word and have developed the ability, within their families and through other parts of their lives, to persuade others, with love, to do what is right.
- A congregation willing to listen to mature, godly men and be persuaded by them to do what is right.
If you remove the first element, you won't have a congregation of one accord. In fact, the congregation won't even know what is happening. If you remove the second element, the congregation will have a "you can't make me do that" attitude; and you have a divided church.
What we learn about the elders' work by examining their designations
The most common term for the local-congregation leaders is elder. It demonstrates a principle found in both covenants--the less mature should reasonably respect, honor, and defer to those who are mature. This principle holds true even when we aren't talking about the office of elder. Younger Christians, in general, are directed to defer to older Christians (1 Timothy 5:1; 1 Peter 5:5). In age and maturity (especially spiritual age), there should be wisdom and knowledge (Job 12:12; Leviticus 19:32). In ancient Israel, elders served as counselors to kings. In the church today, elders should be our counselors.
Church leaders also are called bishops or overseers. This implies they are to superintend, guard, and oversee. But what are they to superintend, guard, and oversee? The treasury? The building? Or souls?
Maybe all three answers are correct. But, as Hebrews 13:17 illustrates, watching for the wellbeing of souls takes priority. The verb forms of the word for overseers also illustrate this. The Greek word episkeptomai means, "to look at, examine, inspect, have oversight, care for, go see, visit with help" (Cf. James 1:27; Matthew 25:36). The word episkopeo means, "look at, take care, see to it" (Cf. Hebrews 12:15; 1 Peter 5:2). Thus, we can conclude that for an overseer to oversee, he must be deeply concerned about the flock, visit the flock in times of distress, and see to it that souls receive care. Obviously, he must be willing to become involved in the lives of those he oversees.
Scripture also refers to church leaders as pastors or shepherds. The terms are used figuratively to relate the physical job of shepherding to the spiritual one of being an elder. A good shepherd supplies needs and gives comfort (Psalm 23). Examine also Isaiah 40:11. Jesus described himself as the "good shepherd" (John 10:11-16).
From this description, what do we learn about an elder's work? He must have intimate knowledge of the flock. He knows them; thus, he must spend time with them. They respect him and listen to him. One of his chief concerns involves the wayward members of the flock (Matthew 18:12-14). The shepherd feeds and protects the flock. So now we see why God requires the shepherds to be "able to teach."
Finally, church leaders are called stewards (Titus 1:7). The word refers to a manager. In former days, a steward was a slave or servant who was put in charge of his master's household or property. He was responsible and accountable for things that belonged to another (Hebrews 13:17). He had authority, but only to the degree that he acted in his master's behalf and for his master's purposes.
Conclusion:
So we see that elders are responsible for doing much more than making decisions. In fact, there is little Scripture evidence of their making decisions independently. Rather, they lead by using God's word, their spiritual maturity, and their experience to persuade. Knowledge of God's word is their critical tool. They must be able to use it correctly-have a willingness to watch for, correct, and rescue those who err.
And, Because of the elder's age, knowledge, responsibility, and accountability, the flock of God is to respect and listen to him-as long as he is faithful to God's word.