Elder roles and responsibilities
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In my last post, I talked about the difference between a board eldership and a biblical eldership. The easiest way to describe the difference is that a board eldership leads the local church primarily using principals and power structures drawn from the business world. On the other hand, a biblical eldership looks to the Bible in order to lead God's people the same way that Jesus did, helping them to become more like Jesus.
Before I get into the four major responsibilities of biblical elders, it's important that we look at how the Bible describes the role itself. What is an elder? Let's look at some key passages in the Bible that describe the role of an elder.
Shepherds
Acts 20:28-31 (NLT) says “So guard yourselves and God’s people. Feed and shepherd God’s flock—his church, purchased with his own blood—over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as leaders. I know that false teachers, like vicious wolves, will come in among you after I leave, not sparing the flock. Even some men from your own group will rise up and distort the truth in order to draw a following. Watch out! Remember the three years I was with you—my constant watch and care over you night and day, and my many tears for you."
Paul is speaking to the elders in the church at Ephesus. The main image he gives them regarding their role is the relationship of a shepherd to a flock. Elders are primarily shepherds! Peter also uses this same image.
1 Peter 5:1-4 28 (NLT) says, "And now, a word to you who are elders in the churches. I, too, am an elder and a witness to the sufferings of Christ. And I, too, will share in his glory when he is revealed to the whole world. As a fellow elder, I appeal to you: Care for the flock that God has entrusted to you. Watch over it willingly, not grudgingly—not for what you will get out of it, but because you are eager to serve God. Don’t lord it over the people assigned to your care, but lead them by your own good example. And when the Great Shepherd appears, you will receive a crown of never-ending glory and honor."
Not only does Peter use the same word, shepherd, to describe the role of an elder, but he goes on and says that Jesus is the great shepherd, the one shepherding all of us. Jesus is the example of what a shepherd does.
Both of these apostles tell the elders that their first priority is to be a shepherd.
It might be a good idea to mention that the word "pastor" is simply the Latin word for shepherd. So it's a perfectly acceptable thing to say that the elders are pastors, regardless of whether they are paid. Additionally, some paid pastors who are doing what elders do, should be considered elders. If the dominant image of both paid and unpaid eldership is a shepherd, then what does a shepherd do?
Shepherds are responsible for feeding, guarding, healing, and guiding the flock.
Feeding the flock (The word of God)
The way that elders feed the flock is by making sure that they are hearing, understanding, and growing in their knowledge of God's word. We hear God saying through Jeremiah "And I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding." (Jeremiah 3:15 ESV) Both Paul and the writer of Hebrews refer to biblical teaching as food. (Refer to 1 Corinthians 3:2, Hebrews 5:11-14)
In his great commission in Matthew 28 Jesus told his disciples, "….teach them to obey all that I have commanded you." The gospel must be taught, and the Church is characterized by the preaching and teaching of God's word.
Teaching is a major part of the work of an elder. That is why teaching is one of the few abilities that is mentioned as a requirement of an elder. The majority of the other qualifications that we will discuss later are personal character traits, and relate to dealing with others. However, elders are expected to know doctrine and scripture, and be able to teach it to others.
If you are an elder and you're reading this, you may be thinking, “There's no way I'm going to get up on a Sunday and preach a sermon.” That's not what the passages in Titus or Timothy mean. Preaching is more proclamatory and to large groups of people. Teaching is more one on one, or done in small groups, and is aimed at understanding and application of God's word.
Every elder is called to the work of teaching, whether they are teaching individuals or small groups. It's how God's flock keeps from starving. The flock simply cannot live on the food coming from hearing one sermon on Sunday.
Guarding the flock (False teachers, fighting, sin)
Guarding the flock goes hand in hand with feeding the flock. In order to feed them, an elder must know what is true and what is false. They must know God's word well enough to be able to spot half-truths, distortions, lies, and to identify those who are spreading them. That's why Paul told the elders in Acts 20 to guard the flock. There were going to be people who would rise up and begin teaching false doctrine. False teachers are compared to wolves who will use people for their own desires and who will twist scriptures in order to gain influence, divide the church, and destroy lives.
In recent years, there have been people throwing scripture around to justify and normalize all kinds of things that go against God's will. These people write books that end up in the hands and homes of the people in our church. Entire denominations that once knew God's word and honored him, are now voting to affirm things that are evil and unchristian. How did this happen?
This is the slow result of false teachers not being confronted by elders. And the result is also due to elders who didn't know their Bibles and sound doctrine, or didn’t speak it to their flock.
The elders are also called to guard the church from internal fighting. To the watching world, nothing harms the witness of the Church like people who are gossips, are angry, and are unforgiving toward one another. Jesus had to deal with it in his own group of twelve disciples. He also gave us a model of what conflict management should look like in Matthew 18.
The reality is that almost no one naturally follows the God-given guidelines for dealing with conflict. Instead, people come and talk to the elders instead of talking to the person they have a problem with. The elders are responsible for facilitating biblical reconciliation.
Elders shepherd and guard the flock by dealing with sin. There was a church in which they were implementing a set of expectations for those who were serving in teaching capacities. The expectations included such behaviors as sexual purity and holiness. Someone on the eldership said, “Who is going to ask that question of people? I don't think that's our place.” However, that absolutely is the role of the church and of the eldership!
Right before the passage on resolving conflict, Jesus teaches on the destructive nature of sin and the need to take it seriously. (Refer to Matthew 18:7-9) He says to cut off the hand or foot, or pluck out the eye if it causes you to sin. Sin is never only personal. It is like yeast, and has a ripple effect on the community if the sin is not taken seriously and dealt with.
We are a home for sin-sick people, but we are also a hospital that takes Jesus’ call to repentance and surrender seriously. Unrepentant sin must be dealt with by the elders. There are times when church discipline must be exercised. People who do not proactively deal with conflict should probably not be considered for eldership. When elders do not address sin, the health of the church is going to be in jeopardy.
Healing the flock (Care: responsive and proactive)
James 5:13-14 says that when there is someone in the flock who is sick, it is the elders who are supposed to go and be with him. They are to pray for the sick person and ask for God's healing touch. Elders are called to bring comfort to the hurting and when appropriate, to give godly counsel.
Physical care is only one aspect of helping to bring healing to people. There is also emotional care. This includes coming alongside people who are grieving loss (funerals), helping couples who are either preparing to get married (pre-marital counseling) or are married and struggling (post-marital counseling).
Even if there is a system for care and mobilizing the body of Christ to care for one another, or for referring people to a counselor, elders should be part of that system. Elders should also be providing care themselves, as well.
A particular area that elders should not overlook is the care for the weak and the vulnerable in their church. Paul told the Ephesian elders to help the weak (Acts 20:35). This often includes the single moms and their children, as well as widows. This was one of the first issues of the early church, and it was the elders who had to make sure that processes were put in place to love them well.
Leading the flock (Guiding the flock in the vision and mission)
I have purposefully left leading the flock to the end of this post because often, elderships tend toward this area and neglect the first three. If an eldership is doing the first three, then they are more likely to be more effective in the last responsibility.
Jesus told the parable of the lost sheep. It is a known fact that sheep get lost easily. They don't really have a sense of direction. Additionally, if sheep are not moved from place to place, they will eat everything and deplete the resources where they are located. So they need to be moved, and land and water must be managed. Our people need direction, systems need to be created, and resources managed.
Human nature tends toward one of two destinations when it comes to leadership. Either it moves toward domination or it moves toward passivity. A "Do it my way" mindset, or "That's not my job, that's what we pay you for" mindset. The Bible does not encourage or allow either kind of leadership, but instead holds out servant leadership.
The Bible talks of elders as "stewards". Titus 1:7 (NIV), says "For an overseer, as God's steward, must be above reproach." A steward is not an owner. He is a manager. Stewards are given a position of leadership where God is the owner, but who allows us to manage the people and resources that have been entrusted to us. We must manage them the way he wants it, not according to our desires.
The Bible, in1 Timothy 5:17 also talks of those who provide "oversight" and "direct" the church. This means looking at the church as a whole and seeing both the needs of the moment, as well as providing direction for where the flock needs to be going. It is possible to feed, guard, and heal the flock, yet the flock still die because they're not being led anywhere. Many churches do a great job of teaching the word, caring for their members, and calling them to holiness, but have no vision for making an impact on their community or the world. These churches often end up stagnant or closed.
The last two major commandments that Jesus gave to his followers were to make disciples (Matthew 28:18-20) and then send disciples into Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. (Acts 1:8). An elder is responsible for considering those commandments and figuring out how they should be carried out by their local congregation.
Are current ministries and leaders doing this well? If not, do ministries need to be adjusted, or has its time of effectiveness ended? Are we focused only on our people, or are we making an impact on our community? Are we focused only on our community, or are we making an impact globally?
An eldership that is listening and following the Holy Spirit will always be moved to action.
Leadership is also about identifying, entrusting, and training members of the flock to do ministry. The elders and the paid staff should not be expected to do the work of the entire body of Christ. Ephesians 4 gives us a framework for understanding that ministry is the job of every single person who follows Jesus. We are to help people see how God has gifted them, understand how the Spirit is moving, and determining where God has placed them. We then need to help them use their gifts and training to serve the family of God and be part of the mission of God, being commissioned.
When an eldership is doing all four of these responsibilities, you will have a healthy, thriving, and God-honoring church. When you only do a couple of these responsibilities well, you will see the church struggle.
So here are a few questions:
Which area are you personally skilled at and are engaged in?
What areas are your other elders skilled at and engaged in?
What areas are you not doing well?
Do you have someone on your eldership who is gifted in that area?
If not, is there someone you can identify in your church as a potential elder who could help with that area?
Are systems in place to identify, train, and unleash the body of Christ to do these things? If not, what steps can you take to make that possible?
