Picking up from the OT this article shows that Christ chose a plurality of qualified elders to rule and govern His church. This article shows what it means for elders, bishops and pastors to exercise oversight of the flock.

Source: Doug Van Meter. 3 pages.

Biblical Eldership

The Scriptures are not unclear as to the proper form of church government. Clearly, a plurality of biblically qualified elders is the means by which Christ, the Head of the church, rules His people. Consider the following clear evidence.

The Old Testament uses the term “elders” 118 times when speaking of mature men entrusted to give counsel to the people of a town or village. In fact, these were the men who could be found sitting at the city gate (see Deuteronomy 22:15-24, etc.). When we move into the New Testament, we read over and over again of the presence of elders in Jewish life. The word “elders” occurs 43 times in the four Gospels and the book of Acts, and it should be noted that in these five books (which give us much insight into first century Jewish life) the singular “elder” is never used. The norm was a plurality of leaders. These elders were clearly a group of leaders with authority to give direction to the nation of Israel, to the so-called “people of God.”

As one reads the accounts in which the word “elders” is used in these opening five books (which record the closing of the old covenant and the introducing of the new covenant) it is sadly observed that it was this band (of largely godless men) who led Israel further and further away from Christ. These elders were the loudest voice in the cry, “Crucify him.” It was this group which also led the assault against the early church (see the book of Acts).

Nevertheless, though these men perverted their office, though they abused their responsibility, the validity and importance of the office never abated. And thus when the New Testament church was inaugurated, God’s people kept this form of governance.

It should be observed that no place in the New Testament is there a record of the formal implementation of “elder rule” as a means of church governance. The reason for this absence of documentary evidence is that there was no need to adopt what was clearly a natural policy/polity amongst them. The New Covenant Church understood their continuity with the Old Covenant Church, and since the “old” people of God had a government of a plurality of elders, there was the natural assumption that so would they. The only difference (and a major one!) was that the New Testament church stressed that only those men who met the godly requirements were fit and qualified to serve in this capacity. They were careful to avoid making the same errors of apostasy committed by the Old Testament Church (see 1 Timothy 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9).

The following passages prove beyond dispute that the early New Testament church was ruled by a plurality of elders, and so must today’s churches. See Acts 11:30; 14:23; 15:2,4, 6, 22-23; 16:4; 20:17; 21:18; 1 Timothy 5:17; Titus 1:5; James 5:14; 1 Peter 5:1.

Having established the legitimacy and necessity of a plurality of elders to lead/rule Christ’s church, we must now turn our attention to the matter of what this body of elders are to do. What is their primary function? An understanding of the three interchangeable words used by the New Testament writers to describe the office will aid us in our understanding of an elder’s primary function(s).

It is correctly noted by many that the three terms “elder,” “bishop” and “pastor” all describe the same office. Because the function of an elder is a weighty one, one term fails to encompass all of its responsibilities. Therefore three terms are used in Scripture to describe the office.

The term “elder,” “bishop” and the idea of “pastor” are all found in Acts 20:17-28. In this scene, Paul has called “the elders of the church” of Ephesus (notice the plural usage) to Miletus to give them instruction. In v. 28 he addresses these elders and reminds them that they have been set apart by the Spirit of God to be “overseers” of God’s flock. This term is the Greek word episkipos and it means “to bishop,” which means “to visit,” “to inspect.” It was used in the ancient world to describe a city official whose responsibility was for the welfare of the city and thus he gave “oversight” to it. The early church used this term to describe one of the responsibilities of eldership; namely, to “bishop,” to give “inspectful oversight” to the welfare of the church. Thus, we read in 1 Timothy 3:1, “If any desires the office of a bishop” (KJV) or, “If anyone aspires to the office of overseer” (ESV). To be an elder is to be a “bishop,” that is, an “overseer” of God’s people.

Paul, in v. 28, also uses a phrase which describes the responsibility of an elder, and this phrase leads to a very endearing term. He exhorts the elders to “feed the flock of God.” The term “feed” (KJV) or “care” (ESV) translates the Greek term poimaino, which means “to shepherd” or “to pastor.” This is a term with which we are both more familiar and perhaps even more comfortable with. It is an endearing term, which conjures up images of a warm-hearted leader, who is committed to the unreserved care of those entrusted to his care. No doubt, this is a major function of the Elder. He is to feed the flock with the Word of God, not only publicly and corporately, but as it is often the case, pointedly and individually in counselling, in admonishing, and sometimes in personally disciplining. The elder carries out this function in the Shadow of the Chief Shepherd, to whom he will ultimately give an account (1 Peter 5:1-4).

In summary, one could say that these three terms describe the office of an elder as one who has been given the responsibility by God to lead (“elders”), to feed (“pastors”) and to give heed (“bishops”) to the church of God. With this as our framework, let us now address the issue of how the elders are to carry out this task. As we do so, I have one particular issue in mind that I wish to clarify. Let me explain.

Oftentimes members of a church can adopt the mindset that the elders are power hungry, authoritarian men who are control freaks. To be sure, in churches like ours, which take the eldership seriously, this idea is sometimes floating around, and this mentality comes about in the following way.

As we elders take seriously our responsibility before God, we do exercise “oversight” of the flock. We realise that just like the shepherds of old, our responsibility is ultimately that of preparing sheep for sacrifice. Jewish shepherds sought to “produce” healthy sheep that were without spot and blemish; sheep that would “pass the test” and thus be approved for the temple sacrifices offered to God. And this is precisely the goal of pastors. Like Paul, we labour that we might present everyone perfect in Christ Jesus. We travail that the church will walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, that we might all offer up our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto God. And it is because of this commitment that we are called upon to sometimes preach the “hard” sermon, to ask the uncomfortable and pointed questions, to require high standards for various ministry participations, to enquire as to why there appears to be covenantal failure on the part of some. And it is for this reason that we are called upon to hold the sheep (and fellow shepherds!) accountable to this covenant. In other words, there is a noble motive behind our sometimes resisted ministry of oversight. Let me flesh this out with an example.

Suppose you miss a couple of worship services, Wednesday prayer and Bible study opportunities, or most of the special meetings of our annual World Outreach Celebration. Now, as elders our concern will be that you are missing out on blessed opportunities to be “washed by the water of the Word” (Ephesians 5:26). Our concern will be that you are missing out on the opportunity for Christ-centred fellowship and godly edifying. Our concern will be that you may be “sliding” away from your devotion to Christ. In light of these concerns, and in light of our responsibility to present you blameless before Christ, would we not be absolutely irresponsible to not give you pastoral oversight in this area? Why then should anyone be offended and “get their back up” when elders follow up on absent and increasingly uninvolved church members? Since our motivation is a biblical one – one that has been mandated by the Chief Shepherd – you should view our “inspection” (cf. “bishop”) as one of loving concern.

For years, many outside this fellowship occasionally accused BBC of being a “hard” church, “legalistic” and because of this ethos of high accountability, the elders have been described as “overbearing” or “dictatorial.” And yet the facts speak for themselves: BBC has an immense amount of love and a sacrificial spirit toward one another. The Body life which aims to increasingly inculcate a spirit of Christlikeness is a reality here. There is a God-centredness that is increasingly bringing glory to Him. And we in no way want to depart from this passionate pursuit. Therefore, the elders are willing to live with such false accusations, for our motivation is not to please the goats but rather to pacify the sheep.

So, in conclusion, the next time that an elder speaks to you about your absence from the gathered Body, or the next time that you are tempted to moan about certain “rules” for ministry involvement, stop and consider the loving motivation behind the elders’ leadership. Giving the benefit of the doubt will go a long way to avoiding misunderstanding; a misunderstanding which may lead to bitter and harmful responses.

We love the Shepherd, we love His sheep, and thus we desire to lovingly lead you to greener pastures and to even more still waters. Indeed, our shepherding (even when we fail) is fuelled by this motive.

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