The government of the local church derives from the authority of our Lord Jesus.
For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 (NKJV)
God appoints certain individuals to serve as “under-leaders” in the church. To these persons Jesus gives authority that corresponds to their responsibility to shepherd the flock of God.
Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; 3 nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; 4 and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away. 1 Peter 5:2–4 (NKJV)
Elders
When Paul established new churches, one of the foundational things he did was appoint elders to govern them.
So when they had appointed elders in every church, and prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed. Acts 14:23 (NKJV)
Elders, which generally are older mature brethren who have godly character and wisdom, serve God by caring for God’s flock, the church, and are under the direction of the Great Shepherd, our Lord Jesus, and represent him.
Elders deserve our respect and honor as they fulfill their calling to care for God’s people.
Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and doctrine. 1 Timothy 5:17 (NKJV)
Elders are to be selected from men who have solid character. These qualifications are listed in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and describe what should be the character of every disciple.
The anointing and authority given to elders and other ministers of the gospel cannot long endure if we are lacking the character to sustain them.
The anointing will destroy us if we do not have adequate strength of character.
It is important to keep in mind that governmental leadership is not the same as ministry excellence. Some people have both, but many of us have only one.
Elders are given governmental responsibility to oversee the local church. These men may not be proficient in pulpit ministry or spiritual gifts but they have a call to oversee and govern the church.
Those who are gifted teachers, prophets, and evangelists may not have governmental oversight responsibilities.
First Among Equals
Among the elders, God usually appoints or brings to the forefront one person to lead the group, a kind of first among equals.
Moses recognized the need for such a leader.
Then Moses spoke to the Lord, saying: 16 “Let the Lord, the God of the spirits of all flesh, set a man over the congregation, 17 who may go out before them and go in before them, who may lead them out and bring them in, that the congregation of the Lord may not be like sheep which have no shepherd.” Numbers 27:15–17 (NKJV)
God heard Moses’ request and appointed Joshua to fill Moses soon the be vacant responsibility of leading Israel. Moses ordained or commissioned Joshua for this task, thus communicating his authority to him.
You shall put some of your authority on him, in order that all the congregation of the sons of Israel may obey him. Numbers 27:20 (NASB95)
Without leadership, there often is confusion and perhaps even strife as leaders vie for influence. This leader is often called the “pastor” but may have another primary gifting, such as apostle, prophet, evangelist, or teacher.
Churches led by apostles will often have a world-wide missionary vision. When prophets pastor churches, there is a strong emphasis on holiness and obeying God’s current word to the church. When evangelists “pastor,” the church will have a heavy emphasis on evangelism and outreach. When teachers are the leaders, the church will be well-taught. Pastors will preside over churches in which the people are well-cared for.
Five-fold or ascension gift ministries – apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor, and teacher – function at both the local level and translocally.
In other words, whereas elders on govern in their own local church, the five-fold ministry can function anywhere.
This leadership team should strive to maintain unity among themselves. This means that ideally there will be consensus in decisions, but we know this is not always possible.
A general rule might be for elders to follow the lead of the “pastor” unless one has a “check” or “red flag” about it.
In those cases, if possible, time should be set aside for seeking the Lord in the hope of reaching consensus. When this is not possible, the lead elder must make a decision, which the others should support.
The Nature of Godly Authority
Elders or under-shepherds carry an authority to build up God’s people rather than “lord it over” them.
I may seem to be boasting too much about the authority given to us by the Lord. But our authority builds you up; it doesn’t tear you down. So I will not be ashamed of using my authority. 2 Corinthians 10:8 (NLT)
God gives his under-leaders “spheres” or areas of authority.
It is important that we stay within these limits and not presume to have authority where God has not given us responsibility.
We will not boast about things done outside our area of authority. We will boast only about what has happened within the boundaries of the work God has given us, which includes our working with you. 14 We are not reaching beyond these boundaries when we claim authority over you, as if we had never visited you. For we were the first to travel all the way to Corinth with the Good News of Christ. 15 Nor do we boast and claim credit for the work someone else has done. Instead, we hope that your faith will grow so that the boundaries of our work among you will be extended. 2 Corinthians 10:13–15 (NLT)
For example, church planters have authority in the churches they plant. Elders have authority in the churches where they reside, but not elsewhere. Husbands have authority in their own families, but not in other men’s families.
In the church, we cannot demand people submit to our authority.
Authority from God must be first recognized and then received by the people, if it is to be effective. Leaders are not supposed to be “heavy handed” in how we handle the flock.
As apostles of Christ we certainly had a right to make some demands of you, but instead we were like children among you. Or we were like a mother feeding and caring for her own children. 8 We loved you so much that we shared with you not only God’s Good News but our own lives, too. 1 Thessalonians 2:7–8 (NLT)
Such godly leaders exercise their authority to protect, lead, feed, and watch over God’s people as a shepherd cares for his sheep.
I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. John 10:11 (NKJV)
Mentoring New Leaders
Leaders should make it a priority to develop those in the church who show potential to lead.
This means that those already in leadership will be willing to delegate responsibilities. Delegation means we still have overall responsibility, but we allow those to whom we delegate to devise their own methods to accomplish the task, under whatever level of supervision is appropriate. The greater the proven faithfulness of those to whom we delegate, the greater freedom we can give them. The goal is to develop the people around us to lead.
If we are unwilling for there to be any drop in the kind of excellence we might bring if we were to handle things ourselves, we probably will not be good at delegation. Training leaders requires us to allow those we are developing to grow into their roles over time.
When people in the church understand that making disciples is a priority, it will help them not only to tolerate the drop in excellence when people are first learning, but to cheer on those who are being mentored.
Calling, Vision, or the Burden to Lead
Those who are called and gifted to lead will have a “calling,” “burden,” or “vision” that comes from the Lord that motivates and sustains them.
Nehemiah is a great example of such a leader in the Bible. His heart was gripped by the plight of Jerusalem, whose lack of a protective wall made her defenseless against her enemies. His burden for Jerusalem’s welfare prompted him to ask the king for permission to return to his homeland to reconstruct the wall, which was granted. His single-minded devotion to this purpose gave him determination to see the reconstruction through to the end, despite continuous opposition, harassment, and threats from enemies. He clearly laid out the vision and influenced the people to accept the plan, worked hard to see it implemented, rallied the people when their courage and strength grew weak, rebuked internal enemies, and had the sense to avoid the traps set by external opposition.
Godly leadership, according to Jesus, assumes the role of a servant.
But Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them. 26 But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. Matthew 20:25–27 (NLT)
This creates tension between our understanding of how to fulfill the responsibilities of leading people set against the need to serve them.
The former asks the leader to step to the front and assume command. The latter instructs him or her to get behind or beneath people to push them upward or forward to become all they can be in the Lord. Tension is created between the leader’s courage and responsibility to tell people what God wants them to do and their need to have the humility to listen and help those who are hurting and stumbling along the path.
Perhaps the shepherd best describes this sort of leader.
It is no wonder that most who lead churches today are called pastor, another word for shepherd. Jesus was and is the greatest leader of all time. He is the Lord of lords, but he also humbled himself to serve all the way to dying on the cross.
Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. 7 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, 8 he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. 9 Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:6–11 (NLT)
Leadership is listed as one of the motivational gifts, meaning that it is placed in us by God.
Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith; 7 or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; 8 he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness. Romans 12:6–8 (NKJV)
Some people with dominant personalities are what might be called “born leaders.” Others, who are less dominant by nature, are also called by God and must learn how to lead along the way.
No matter which type we may be, if we are called to lead, we all need the Lord’s help because God’s way of leading differs dramatically from the world’s.
Dominant leaders must learn to serve and lead with humility, while deferring to the Holy Spirit. Those with less dominant personalities must learn how to step forward when they might rather stay in the background.
Moses is a great example of the latter sort of personality. He argued with God that he was not a fit leader to the point that God became angry with him. Before his time as leader of Israel was complete, however, he had become too self-confident, which cost him dearly. King David had a more dominant personality. He learned to submit decisions to God. When he did not, it usually got him into trouble.
God wants us to replace self-confidence, or the lack thereof, with God-confidence.
Some Desired Character Qualities of Leaders
Paul wrote that leaders must be diligent. (Romans 12:8) The Greek word spoude means to be earnest in promoting, accomplishing, or striving after something. God does not want anyone to be lazy or apathetic and certainly does not want leaders to behave like this.
Courage is another asset that leaders need. Sometimes we must stand for truth and God’s will when it is unpopular. We will also have to stand firm against those who resist or undermine our leadership or seek to manipulate us into following them instead of God.
Patience is another key character quality that good leaders need. Moses lost patience with the Israelites, and, in his anger, he misrepresented God to the people. This cost him by keeping him out of the promised land. (By the way, Moses represented the Law, which can never lead us into the promises. Only Jesus, (Joshua) can do that.)
Every leader needs keen discernment from God’s Spirit, which is an aspect of wisdom. Wisdom is knowing what to do and when. God wants every disciple to continue to develop the fruit of the Spirit, especially leaders who are out in front for everyone to see.
A Table Has Four Legs
Those who have leadership responsibility must rely on their God-given ability to lead, believing that God will show them what to do, the right way to do it, using the right people, at the right time.
God’s will might be thought of as a table with four legs.
Each leg is important to keep the table upright. These legs are God’s right thing, his right way, his right people, and his right timing. If one is missing, everything can be messed up.
For example, God told Abraham that his right thing was for him to have a natural born son. Abraham got tired of waiting and supposed that God wanted to have this son through Sarah’s servant, which led to the birth of Ishmael, whose descendants have been age old enemies of Israel. God’s right way was to use the right person, Sarah, at the perfect time, which came later. Isaac was the result of all four legs of the table being in place.
The Relationship between Government and Prophetic Ministry
Many local churches have prophetic people who are able to discern God’s will, which is the right thing. Often, they see what God wants to do far ahead of when he plans to do it so that prayer can be made to usher it in. If the prophet sees or announces God’s plan, it might be assumed that it is also the right time, which may not be the case at all.
God will not usually tell leaders the plan until it is the time for it to happen because they would probably mess it up by trying to make it happen too soon.
Prophetic people may become disgruntled with those in leadership because they do not think that they are adequately “hearing the Lord.” Leadership may become frustrated or intimidated by prophetic people because they do not seem to be hearing from God as do the prophets. If they dismiss or surrender their leadership responsibility to the prophetic, it will hurt teamwork. Both must appreciate what the other has to offer. The leaders should listen to the prophetic and then take it to God for his instruction and guidance. Prophetic people should communicate with leaders and leave things in God’s and the leaders’ hands.
The Role of Translocal Ministry in the Local Church
Local churches can benefit from trusted outside input or oversight. As mentioned before, the five-fold ministry can be thought of as being a gift to local churches to help them get started, mature, and handle serious situations that may arise. A wise eldership will invite translocal ministries to speak and interact with the leadership and people. It is a rare thing for a local church to have all five of these ministries present, but all are needed to help an assembly grow to maturity.
Over time, it is hoped that trust can be built between these ministries and the local eldership. Such trust will allow the eldership to turn to them for help on any serious issue that may arise.
Translocal ministries have an authority from Christ to minister and act governmentally, but their authority should always be submitted to the overseeing eldership of a local assembly.
If the eldership is fractured, this presents a more serious problem that might require five-fold ministers to exercise greater authority until the situation is rectified.
On a more positive note, we sheep are admonished to obey those whose responsibility it is to govern us.
Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you. Hebrews 13:17 (NKJV)
