An Elder's Duty

Today is our second week in a series that is focused on church leadership. A lot of you have already heard that our members’ meeting on February 23 will include receiving names of men you’d like us elders to consider as a potential future elder. All of you members will have a chance to submit names to us.

We’re not going to vote on any elders that night, but the elders will review the names. We don’t know how many names we might get, but our plan is to review the list among ourselves first, and then start talking with some of those men so that we can understand their heart and desire and also so that they can get a better understand of what eldership looks like her at our church.

Eventually, if any of those men were ready and willing to serve as an elder, we, the current elders, would bring their names before the congregation at a future business meeting, and the members would vote.

Well, in preparation for all, it’s good for us to be remined what the Bible says about elders.

Last week’s sermon was a historical introduction or overview, and I was basically laying out the biblical case for elders. The biblical pattern of the early church was to have elders, and the biblical instruction for the church affirms that as something to continue. Basically, the message was that the local church should have, or should be moving toward having, elders. Elders are the leaders. They’re the representatives.

Once we get that framework in place, at least in our understanding, the next thing we need to address is what the elders actually do. Last week’s message dealt with the necessity of elders. Today’s message is going to be about the responsibility of elders. What are they supposed to be doing?

That’s a very important question for any any kind of leadership, in order to function well. Everyone has to know what the duties of the leadership are. It doesn’t make any sense to make someone or call someone a leader if nobody knows what that means.

Understanding the role of the elders is helpful, first of all, for the elders. That’s obvious. We want to know what we’re responsible for. Secondly, it’s helpful to new elders or potential elders. They should know what they’re aiming for, what kind of team they’re joining. And thirdly, it’s very important for all of us to know as the church. That’s important, not just because you’re going to submit names or vote on a nominee, but because you are part of the way God encourages us and shapes us. We need you to help us.

Biblically, elders are shepherd, but they’re also sheep. We’re not in some class all by ourselves.

I was listening this week to a pastor who was asked whether or not a wife is allowed to criticize or rebuke her husband. Is that okay? And the question came because some people take the idea of submission and authority so far that they say a wife can’t ever address his faults.

If you believe that someone in submission should never rebuke or correct someone in leadership, that’s a serious problem.

Well, in response to the question, the pastor reminded the congregation that the woman was created to be a helper for her husband. And he said that it wouldn’t make any sense for her to be a helper if she couldn’t address the areas her husband needs help in. And then he went on to talk about the right way to address things helpfully, in love and humility.

Well, I think that same principle applies to us as elders. We’re all sinners. None of us do anything perfectly, and none of us are above being corrected by somebody else. We elders benefit from your feedback. We all have lessons to learn. And so we want to be approachable and humble.

Along those same lines, I want you to understand something. This is worth remembering. The role of the leadership does not minimize the role of the membership. That is so important to remember. That is critical. The role of leadership does not minimize the role of the membership.

That means that if we do our job right, you will do more work, not less. Whatever work the elders do shouldn’t undo the work that you’re supposed to do. Some people have this idea that if the elder are going a great job, you get to sit back and relax, because we’ve got it all taken care of. That is not the biblical picture.

Some of you, I know, have experienced this in your own life, maybe at work or with chores around the house. If one person is working hard, then another person doesn’t have to work as hard. That gets very annoying very quickly, if you’re the one working hard. That’s not God’s design in the church. The church is a body, and everybody is supposed to contribute.

We’re going to run through a list of duties today, and I want you to know what the Bible describes for elders is not unique to them. It’s not something that only the elders should be doing. Almost all of the same words are used for members as well. You may not do some of these things in the same official capacity, or in the same degree. But you are still called to do them.

So, don’t listen to today’s message and just think: “Yeah, elders, you all better start doing your job’s right.” Don’t think like that. As we work through these duties, you should also be thinking, “How can I grow in these areas? How can I do that better in the sphere God has placed me in?”

Okay, well for today, I’d like to divide our study into three categories or three lists. And I hope they’re helpful to you.

The first category is the elders’ general duties. This would be for some of the broad responsibilities. Secondly, we’ve got the elders’ specific duties. Those are a little easier to define. And lastly, we’ve got the attitude behind the duties. That’s talking about HOW we should do what we do—the manner. So we’ve got the general duties, the specific duties, and the attitude behind the duties.

For as little as it seems to be addressed in American Christianity, the topic of elders is not an obscure topic. There are many passages that talk about them. But rather than jump around a whole bunch of those passages, I’m going to focus our attention on one passage today, and that is Acts chapter 20. I referenced this passage last week, but we didn’t look at it. This is one of the main passages that comes up in a discussion about elders. Turn there with me. Acts chapter 20, verse 17.

Paul is in the city of Miletus, which is on the coast of the Aegean Sea, about 40 miles south of Ephesus. From Miletus, since Paul is going to leave, he calls the elders of Ephesus so that he can have a final time with them. And what we get is a very heartfelt message. Let’s read it. ACTS 20:17-38.

There’s a lot we could look at in this section, but rather than work through it like an ordinary sermon, we’re just going to pull out the elements that pertain to the role of an elder. So, we’ll start by pulling out the general duties.

This passage gives us two general duties. And they both come to us in verse 28. Let’s read it again—Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.

The first general duty on our list is to oversee—which is a pretty literal word for the task. To have oversight means to watch over something. You’re giving something your attention, you’re taking care of it. You’re accepting some responsibility for it.

 The Greek verb which means to oversee is episkopéo. And the meaning includes the idea of being physically present. Sometimes, that word “oversight” is translated as visitation. If you carry that idea over for the overseers (which I think is appropriate), you’re talking about a group that is present in the church to watch over it.

There are other passages in the Bible that refer to the elders as overseers. That’s what you find in the opening verse of Philippians and 1 Timothy 3. Elders are overseers. Older, or more traditional translations used the word “bishops.” The elders are the bishops of the church.

Now, through the centuries, the term bishop came to mean someone who wears a funny hat. So, we don’t usually use that word because of the connotations. Elders are overseers.

Now, like I said, elder duties are not unique to elders. We’re all supposed to be doing this is some way. Let me read to you what it says in Hebrews chapter 12, verse 15. This is a command for all of us—See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled.

The command there for all of us is to “see to it.” And it’s the same Greek word that means to watch over, to be vigilant. We all play a part in watching over each other’s life, but the elders do that more generally for the entire church. They oversee.

There’s a second broad duty for elders, and it’s also here in Acts 20, verse 28. Speaking more generally, elders are supposed to shepherd. So, they oversee the church, and they shepherd the church.

ESV says the overseers are to care for the church. New American uses the term shepherd, which I prefer in this case. That’s actually how this verb is translated in First Peter 5: Elders, shepherd the flock of God among you.

Now, if a man is supposed to oversee, we call him an overseer, right? Simple enough. What if a man is supposed to shepherd a flock? What do we call him? … Same word, it’s just that one is a verb and one is a noun. We call him a shepherd.

Well, the term shepherd is used for a person various times in the New Testament. On the night Jesus was born, a group of shepherds were outside that night. And when Jesus taught the people, He sometimes used the term shepherd as part of an analogy or a parable.

There is only one occasion, however, where this term for shepherd is used specifically for the leadership in a local church. That’s in Ephesians 4:11. And when that happens, our English translations don’t use the word “shepherd.” What the word that’s used? It uses the word “pastor.”

The elders are the overseers of the church, and they are the pastors of the church. Those words are used interchangeable in the Bible. Words like bishop, or overseer, or pastor are used in a different way today, but biblically, they mean the same thing. The connection between pastors and elders is easier to notice in Spanish, because word for shepherd is the same as the word for pastor.

In the practice of the New Testament church, a pastor wasn’t some kind of professional title. It was an elder. It was an overseer. That’s the same office.

This is important for the way we think about church leadership. Some pastors receive no payment from their church. Some pastors receive part-time compensation from the church. And some pastors receive a full-time salary. But no matter waht the employment arrangement is between an elder and the church, the biblical picture is that all elders are pastors.

We might have different strengths or different areas of emphasis and focus, but we are all supposed to see ourselves as the pastors of the church. And again, that’s a broad term.

So, what I want to do now is show you some of the more specific duties that fall under the general duties. How do elders oversee the church? How do they shepherd the church? More specifically, what are they supposed to be doing?

Back up with me Acts 20, verse 20. Paul is describing his own ministry in Ephesus, but he’s using it as a model for what they’re ministry should look like too. This is the example they should follow.

The first specific duty of an elder is to model. Elders model, and I’m not talking about clothing. Elders are supposed to serve as examples.

Here in Acts 20, it’s not as explicit, but it is specifically mentioned in other parts of the New Testament. Look again at Paul’s opening words to this group of elders. Middle of verse 18—You yourselves know how I lived among you…

In other words, “You saw my life. You saw how I lived.” And the point here is not that Paul is bragging about his holiness. He’s setting his life up as an example for these elders to follow.

Somewhere else Paul said, “Follow me as I follow Christ.” We should all be able to say that, but those who should be able to specifically say that are the elders. Elders are examples. Elders model what it means to follow Jesus Christ. And even when we mess up, which is very often, we can model what it looks like to repent.

Hebrews 13:7 says we should imitate the faith of our leaders. First Peter 5:3 says the elders should be examples to the flock. Elders aren’t supposed to go through life detached from the members. They’re supposed to live among them, open their lives and their homes. I can’t remember where I first heard it, but someone once said, “Shepherds are supposed to smell like sheep.” That assumes a closeness. And that kind of closeness is necessary if an elder is going to let someone else see and follow their example.

Here’s the second specific duty of the elders. Elders teach. Elders teach. Look at verse 20—I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you in public and from house to house.

There are different words that the Bible might use for this—like teaching, proclaiming, declaring, admonishing, testifying, etc.—but the idea behind them all is that you’re opening your mouth to give someone God’s truth.

If we’re using the shepherd analogy, this is feeding the flock. Sheep have to eat. That’s their sustenance. That’s how they grow.

Well, in the church, how do we grow? What is our milk, or our meat? We don’t live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. We’ll look at the qualifications of an elder in the coming weeks, but one of the characteristics listed in First Timothy and Titus is that an elder be competent to teach, able to teach.

Why is that a requirement? Because an elder is supposed to be teaching. That should be pretty basic. If you go apply for a job, and the requirements say you need to be able to lift 25 pounds, the assumption is that’s part of the job, right? The same is true for teaching for the elders. Elders teach, or they’re supposed to.

Now, it’s important for us to clarify that teaching has all kinds of way that it’s expressed. The most visible expression is in preaching, but that’s not the only way. I think every elder should be willing, if the occasion called for it, to preach a sermon, but that isn’t necessarily mandated in the Bible.

If we take the Apostles as an example, we know that the Apostles were teachers. That’s why Acts 2:42 says the church dedicated itself to the Apostles teaching.

Peter and John preached sermons. But what about Andrew? What about Philip? What about Bartholomew? What about Matthew? What about Thomas? What about James, the son of Alpheus? What about Thaddeus? What about Simon the zealot? What about Matthias, who replaces Judas? What happened to their sermons?

We don’t even know if they ever delivered a sermon to the church. But that doesn’t mean they didn’t teach. We can imagine that they taught the people in many other settings.

Paul says here in verse 20 that he taught in public and from house to house. Those are different settings. Public teaching is very visible and very proclamatory. House-to-house is much more intimate, but it’s still teaching.

All the elders are responsible to be teaching, but that doesn’t mean they all have to preach the same amount. So, don’t think less of an elder or of a pastor, just because he doesn’t preach as often.

Collectively, we want to teach in the church. We want to disseminate God’s truth. We can teach in a sermon or a devotional. We can teach in an FLG. We can teach in a counseling situation. We can teach in a regular conversation. The point is that we are opening our mouths to share God’s truth.

And that teaching has an effect. Ephesians 4 says it equips the saints for the work of ministry. It builds up the body. It matures us. That’s what God’s truth does. It sanctifies us, as Jesus said in John 17:17.

And since Paul understood the power of the truth, that’s why he says down in verse 27, “I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God.

Paul didn’t want to leave anything out. Colossians 1 says he wanted to present everyone mature in Christ. That’s why he taught them everything. And we elders should do our best to do the same. That’s why our typical approach is to teach through a book of the Bible, without skipping any sections. We want to cover it all.

If I were to just start picking topics every week that we’re going to address, that would end up slanting toward the topics that I feel confident about or that I’m personally curious about. I won’t cover everything like that. But if we work our way methodically through a book, we’re forced to cover all of it, no matter what it says.

As elders, we want to get better at teaching you. And we want to better equip you to teach others. To a certain degree you’re all called to teach, right? Parents teach their kids. Older women teach the younger women. And we’re all supposed to be equipped to edify one another with words that give grace. So, the more you grow as teachers or evangelists, the more we’re going grow as well. And vice versa. We’re all growing together

Now, along the lines of teaching the truth, we have a third specific duty. Elders model, elders teach, and elders guard. They guard the flock. With sheep, they need protection from predators or thieves. That same kind of protection is what God expects from elders.

Look at the opening command again in verse 28—Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock.

Verse 29 unpacks that a little bit—I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them. ³¹Therefore, be alert…

The primary danger is false doctrine, which can come in from false teachers or false shepherds. Just to be clear, not ever doctrinal difference means someone is a false teachers. But when someone comes in teaching something contrary to the foundational principles of the gospel, that’s extremely dangerous. That’s heresy.

People go to hell because they do not embrace the truth about Jesus Christ. That’s why Paul says in First Timothy 4:16: [Timothy,] Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers. True doctrine guards the church for salvation. That’s part of the elders duties.

True doctrine also guards the church for holiness. If you have an incomplete or a twisted gospel, you will end up with a legalistic church or a lawless church. And the testimony of God’s transforming grace is ruined.

In Second Peter 2, it talks about false teachers, and it says that they creep into the church with destructive heresies, and many will follow their sensuality. That’s a major problem for a church and for Christ’s testimony.

So elders guard the church for salvation, they guard the church for holiness, and thirdly, they guard the church from harm. And I’m specifically talking about physical harm or financial harm. I think that’s part of a shepherd’s job.

You know, when Jesus taught the people, part of what he did was expose the hypocrisy and the wickedness of the Pharisees and their religious system. He said they “devour widows’ houses.” They used their authority to get rich off the poorest people. Personally, that is one of the most aggravating and frustrating things I see in the church.

I see those TV preachers flying jets around the country, living in multi-million dollar mansions, because they’ve fooled the people into sending them money. And they’ve developed a system where people do it willingly because they’ve bought into some kind of works-based blessing. And these false teachers are experts in it. They’re persuasive. They’re charming.

A couple years ago I saw a movie from the 1970’s called Marjoe. It’s about a prosperity gospel preacher who started when he was 4 years old. Vey tragic story. His parents were abusing him and manipulating him. But he was making them a lot of money. He eventually left that kind of life.

But once he got older, he was low on money, so he decided to go back out on the revival tours, and he let a camera crew follow him, so he could document all his tactics for how to get the money from the people. And there he is in his hotel room, soring out a pile of bills, counting it for himself. It’s terrible.

True shepherds do not use the flock for their personal gain, they are there to protect them, to make sure they are provided for. That’s why in the early church, there was even an emphasis on providing for the widows and the orphans, because those kinds of people had no way to provide for themselves. Elders are supposed to guard the sheep.

Let’s move on to a fourth and final specific duty of the elders. Elders model, elders teach, elders guard, and elders pray. Elders pray.

Some of you might be familiar with the story in Acts 6, when the Gentile widows go to the Apostles and tell them they’re being neglected in the daily distribution. That was a big deal. It needed to be addressed. But how did the Apostles respond? What did they say?

They gathered up the entire church, and they said: “It is not right for us to give up preaching the word of God… We will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word. And so, seven men were chosen to deal with that specific issue.

The Apostles didn’t want to jeopardize their time spent in prayer. They weren’t trying to avoid work, but they were trying not to lose focus of their primary tasks, which were prayer and proclamation.

Here in Acts 20, the point about prayer isn’t made specifically, but Paul does allude to it in verse 32. Look at it with me, and this will be our last point. Acts 20:32—And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified.

Paul turns them over to the Scriptures. The Scriptures will guide them as they go forward. But before that, Paul says that he entrusts them to God. Paul understood that everything the elders were charged with doing wasn’t going to happen apart from the power and the grace of God.

And so, before Paul leaves, verse 36 tells us, he kneels down, and he prays with them. That’s what elders should be doing too, praying that God would empower and bless their work.

Paul said it in First Corinthians, he planted the seeds, Apollos watered it, but who gets the credit? God causes the growth.

The arrogant elder, or the self-sufficient elder, will not pray much. And the complacent elders will not devote themselves to prayer.

You know, the more we elders understand what God is calling us to do, and the more we recognize God’s power and God’s heart, the more we will be driven to pray, to pray for our members, our sheep.

That applies to all of us, right? We are supposed to be praying at all times, depending on God. How much more should the elders be doing that.

God has called the elders to watch over the church, to shepherd the church. And that is done primarily as we model, teach, guard, and pray. We’re hoping that all our efforts will help our church look more and more like Jesus Christ.

Paul compared his ministry to the anguish of childbirth. He wanted Christ to be formed in all his people. That consumed him. And that’s the kind of heart a healthy body of elders will have for the church God has placed in their care.

I told you earlier that after we talked about the duties of the elders, both generally and specifically, we’d talk about the attitude of the elders, the heart behind it all. We’re going to have to leave that for next week since we’re out of time. But I’m looking forward to how that will challenge us and help us grow as well.

For now, let’s close in prayer.