Elders and Congregation

For the local Christian congregation that sincerely desires to follow the New Testament church model. Jesus Christ is Chief Shepherd, Scripture is the final and sufficient guide, and the elders are Christ's under-shepherds. Using a different but compatible imagery Paul refers to the elders as “God's stewards” (Titus 1:7. According to this model, the authority to govern and teach the local church resides in the plurality of elders-Christ’s under-shepherds, God's household managers.

As Christ’s under-shepherds and God's Stewards, the elders are under the strict authority of Jesus Christ and His Holy Word. They are not a ruling oligarchy. They cannot do or say whatever they want. The church does not belong to the elders; it is Christ's church and God's flock. Thus the elders' leadership is to be exercised in a way that models Christlike, humble, loving leadership.

Because the elders bear greater responsibility for the spiritual care of the entire congregation than other members, scripture teachers that the congregation is to highly esteem, love, and honor its pastor elders (1 Thess. 5:12,13; 1 Tim. 5:17). Scripture also expressly commands the congregation to obey and submit to its spiritual leaders (Heb. 13:17; cf. James 5:5).

Submission is always difficult. Our hearts are stubborn, prideful, and rebellious. Yet we are called to submit, even in trying and disagreeable situations. Children must submit to imperfect parents, wives to difficult husbands, and employees to demanding employers. Likewise, the congregations is required to submit to and obey its elders, even if the elders have weaknesses and faults. Indeed, most elders are quite imperfect, so those who are disobedient can always find a reason to revolt. OF course the things we consider to be the elders' misjudgments of errors may well be our own errors, so we should not be too hasty to disregard the judgment of those God has chosen to provide for our spiritual care.

The requirement to submit, however, is not meant to suggest blind, mindless submission. Not does it suggest that elders are above questioning of immune from public discipline (1 Tim 5:19 ff.). The Elders are most assuredly answerable to the congregation, and the congregation is responsible to hold its spiritual leaders accountable to faithful adherence to the truth of the Word. As we saw in chapter 14, the congregation is to be directly involved in the public examination and approval of prospective elders nd deacons (1 Tim. 3:10). All members have a voice in assuring that what is done in the church family is done according to Scripture. So there is a tightly knit, delicate, and reciprocal relationship between elders and the congregation.

Despite the existence of priestly and levitical castes, and later of kings, that position can already be perceived in shadow in the Old Testament. The old covenant was with people rather than simply with leaders and under it a certain egalitarianism can be perceived in the relation between people and their covenant God: the superior status, as distinct from authority, later accorded to the monarch in Israel obviously derived from the hardness of the people’s heart rather than the primitive purpose of God 9See 1 Samuel 8:10-18; Hosea 8:4, 13-14). The promise is comprehensively fulfilled in the New Testament. There we see a new covenant with a new people which embrace the youngest to the oldest. All received the sign and guarantee of the covenant-the Holy Spirit; from that Spirit all have knowledge of God and all have the heart of flesh to obey God; all are kings and priests to God; and each receives (from young to old) spiritual gift, severally according to the will of God, for the mutual upholding of the church. The old Israel was dependent usually on a few leaders; in the new, spiritual insight, spiritual power, spiritual character and spiritual standing are now much more widely disseminated through the whole body.

Consistent with this teaching, the New Testament accords a much higher status and role to the congregation at large than has often been accepted and practiced in the experience of the church-though it should be noted that in times of revival and renewal there has been a constant tendency to rectify matters.

Christ’s presence is with the whole congregation, not just the elders. Christ ministers though all the members because all are Spirit-indwelt, but all members do not function as shepherds to the whole community-the council of elders does that. The congregation governs itself through the congregational elders. It is not governed by any external person  or group.

The New Testament does not indicate that the congregation governs itself by majority vote, and there is no evidence that God has granted every member one equal vote with every other member. Rather, the New Testament congregation is governed by its own congregational elders. The elders, according to the express instruction of the New Testament, have the authority to shepherd the congregation.

Of course there are matters of congregational business and debate that required the involvement and decision of the whole congregation. Jesus taught that the discipline of an unrepentant, sinning member (after individual efforts to correct the sin had failed) requires the collective wisdom, action, and discipline of the congregation (Matt. 18:17-20; 1 Cor. 5:4,11; 2 Cor. 2:6). Paul also instructs the whole church to examine prospective elders of deacons (1 Tim. 3:10). When issues are brought to the congregation, the elders, as Spirit-placed shepherds, take the lead in guiding the congregation in orderly and prayerful decision making. As the congregation looks to its elders for wise leadership, the elders also look to the congregation—their brothers  and sisters—for wisdom, counsel, inspiration, creative ideas, help, and prayer. Elders who understand the sacred nature and dynamic energy of the Spirit-empowered congregation know the necessity of congregational participation in all major decisions.

The goal of the elders and congregation should always be to speak and act as a united community. Both the leaders and the led should take the time and make the effort needed to work and pray together to achieve this oneness of mind. This means that elders must inoculate themselves against aloofness, secrecy, or independently seeking their own direction. Godly elders desire to involve every member of the body in the joy of living together as a family of God. This requires a great deal of free and open communication between the elders and congregation.

The first Christian congregation provides us with some examples of a leadership council and congregation workings together in decision making and problem solving. In Acts 6, when conflicts broke out between the Hebrew and Hellenistic widows in the congregation over the fair distribution of funds, the twelve (the leadership council) immediately devised a plan for resolving the problem. They called the  congregation together and presented their plan. The congregation approved the plan, which called for their participation in choosing seven men tto take responsibility for the care of all the church widows. After the seven were chosen by the congregation, the apostles officially placed the seven men in charge of the poor by the laying on of hands and prayer.

In Acts 15, the congregation in Jerusalem was confronted with serious doctrinal controversy. The account shows that the whole Church was involved in resolving the controversy but that the apostles and elders took the lead in all the proceedings (Acts 15:4,6) The apostles and elders permitted public debate, including the presentation of the opposing view (Acts 15:5,7). The chief leaders within the leadership council brought the matters to a conclusion so that all the leaders could “become of one mind” (15:25). The final decision was the decision of the apostles, the elders, the whole church, and the Holy Spirit: “Then it seemed good to the apostles and the elders, with the whole church, to choose men from among them to send to Antioch….’For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay upon you no greater burden than these essentials’”(15:22,28).

From theses two examples, it is clear that the leadership body takes the lead fro the congregation, and that the congregation participates. Depending on the circumstance, the leaders wisely use different procedures and strategies to help the congregation solve problems and make decisions.

The New Testament does not prescribe detailed rules and regulations regarding the elder-congregation relationship or decision making process. The New Testament is absolutely clear, however, that Christlike love, humility, and prayer are to guide all our relationships and all our deliberations. As the scripture says:

            But we [church leaders] will devote ourselves to prayer (Acts 6.4a).

These all [the first congregation] with one mind were continually devoting themselves to prayer (Acts 1.14a).

Make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross (Phil. 2:2-8).