sermon 11-14-2010

Paul's Charge to Elders

Sermon on 11-14-2010 by Minister Mike Johnson

1 Timothy 5:17-2

I’ve mentioned before that I grew up with parents who took me to church every Sunday. I knew that the church had pastors, elders and deacons and that they performed different tasks. I even remember when new elders and deacons were voted in to office. Although I knew they did different things, I often wondered what their overall role was in the church, how a person decided to serve in that capacity and how it affected the life and health of the church. Today we are going to take a closer look at the specific role of the elder.

You might ask what it takes to be a good elder. Well, Paul explains this to Timothy in his letter. In 1 Timothy 5:17 Paul states, “Elders who provide effective leadership must be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard in speaking and teaching.” Elders are to take on integral roles of the church to make sure the church is strong. Elders might teach, they might oversee the ministries of the church, or they may take a role in the congregational care of the church. It is up to no single elder to take on all these roles, but each elder assumes roles according to the gifting and leading of the Holy Spirit. 1 Peter 5:1-3 states, “So as your fellow elder and a witness of Christ’s sufferings and as one who shares in the glory that will be revealed, I urge the elders among you: Give a shepherd’s care to God’s flock among you, exercising oversight not merely as a duty but willingly under God’s direction, not for shameful profit but eagerly. And do not lord it over those entrusted to you, but be examples to the flock.” As the passage tells us the elder must lead, but not for selfish or shameful profit. An elder is meant to follow God’s direction and is not to seek this position for the sake of power.

Elders are to lead according to the Lord’s will. As I mentioned, each elder is called to various tasks in the church. These tasks help aid with health and function of the congregation. However, it is not only the responsibility of the elders to maintain the health and purpose of the church. It includes all who are in positions of leadership, whether elected or not. All who teach Sunday school, lead a small group, lead music ministry, and all other roles must seek these positions to the glory of God and the building of His people. All positions in the church carry some weight in the wellbeing and function of the church’s purpose. If the Sunday school is lacking so will the education of the students. If the preaching is lacking so will the nourishment of the body of believers. If the budget is not watched the monetary health of the church will falter. We need to have help from all members of the church for the health of the church to remain in good standing. With this said it cannot be emphasized enough that the Holy Spirit must be sought in every move and decision in the church. A church can build as many programs it wants. It can have as many fundraisers it wants. It can hire all the top speakers it wants. However, if no one seeks guidance from the Holy Spirit the church will be unhealthy.

The minute we begin to try to mold a shape a church in what we want it to be we lose sight of the Lord’s purpose. We begin to react to fear, power, or selfishness. It becomes about what “I” think is right versus seeking what is right in the eyes of the Lord. This is why the Holy Spirit is necessary for a church to grow. Following the Holy Spirit will remove all our fears and anxieties and replace them with faith and trust in Jesus Christ. We won’t need to worry about direction and security for the members of the church because the Holy Spirit will be speaking to the leaders. This leads us to the importance of prayer.

The Lord knows what is best for us as individuals and for the church as a whole. Would any of you here say you know the Lord’s plans better than He does? I sure hope not! The Lord will always reveal His plans to us. Not the other way around. We do not reveal plans to the Lord. We certainly seek His guidance, but we cannot force our own agendas if they are not what the Lord wants. If we do this, our best laid plans will surely crumble. Thus, effective elders and leaders pray to the Lord. They pray with each other and they pray alone. The minister prays for the church, the body of elders may gather to pray for leadership, a small group may pray for each other. At the end of the day we must all pray. We pray not only for guidance in the church, but also for protection from the enemy.

Elders are charged with the responsibility of protecting the integrity of the church and its members. Acts 20:17,28-31 states, “From Miletus he sent a message to Ephesus, telling the elders of the church to come to him…. Watch out for yourselves and for all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God that he obtained with the blood of his own Son. I know that after I am gone fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Even from among your own group men will arise, teaching perversions of the truth to draw the disciples away after them. Therefore be alert, remembering that night and day for three years I did not stop warning each one of you with tears.” Elders are meant to protect the church and through prayer will receive guidance on how to defend the church when it is being attacked.

We can see in the world how the church is being attacked. Laws are passed banning prayer in schools. Our culture wishes to make all religions inclusive meaning all religions are paths to salvation, but finds a way to demonize Christianity at the same time. Television seeks to make Christians out to be a bunch of mindless followers of a god that does not exist. In some places still Christians are persecuted and killed for their faith. This is how the world is attacking Christianity. The enemy wishes to destroy our faith in any way possible and will use the world and culture around the church to accomplish this desire. However, the enemy’s attacks are not limited to people outside the church. The passage from Acts points out that wolves will come from within the church. People who wish to push their agendas or to cause dissent among congregants have been prevalent in all churches at one point or another. This is why the elders, but also the congregation as whole must remain vigilant. We must pray for security, humility, and honesty to call out and rebuke the enemy when he tries to attack us. In doing so the Lord will keep the church strong and keep the members of His body safe.

Elders are also called to care for the congregants in a church. James 5:14 states, “Is anyone among you ill? He should summon the elders of the church, and they should pray for him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord.” The elders of the church are to keep knowledge of the health of the members. I would argue this is not only physical, but also mental and spiritual health. This passage from James clearly argues the elders must pray for anyone who is ill. This might be at their home, maybe at church, or in the hospital. This is not only for serious illness, but for any illness. Maybe a virus has been spreading among the members of the church or maybe someone just had a car accident. It might be someone who lost a close family member or friend and has been struggling with depression. Maybe someone has been struggling with his or her faith. The elders are to come to the side of the person and pray for them.

When we pray we must seek the Lord’s guidance. Seek the Lord on how to pray for someone. Ask what needs to be prayed for. Is there something that is being missed? We can seek the Lord to give us increased strength and faith in our prayer life. It is not always easy to believe the Lord will cure major illnesses such as cancer, but He can and He has done this many times. This is why prayer requires faith and trust in the Lord. It requires faith because we cannot accomplish the Lord’s work without Him and we cannot maintain the physical, mental, and spiritual wellbeing of a church if we do not seek the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Care, however, is not limited to prayer only. Acts of good service are also a form of care. I remember when my mom was really sick when I was a kid. She was sick enough to be in the hospital for a couple of days. During this time people from our church’s congregational care team made dinners for us the nights she was hospitalized. This type of care goes a long way in a church. This type of care is necessary because as a church we are a body. Just as Christ is the Head of the church and cares for us, so are we to care for one another.

Let’s recap the role of an elder. Elders are in office to help with the operations of the church such as teaching, leading, overseeing congregational care, and protecting the church. Elders are set in place to observe the church, to make sure that not only the minister of the church is preaching accurately, but also that the members or the church are following the Lord’s teachings. The role of the elder is not a passive role, but an active one. It carries great responsibility. However, elders are not the only ones charged with responsibility in the church. We are all charged with the responsibility of caring for and building up the church.

If we take our role as members of the church seriously our body will be strong and healthy. It will grow into the congregation the Lord desires. So where are you gifted? Where is the Lord calling you? Maybe you are already using your gift and you simply wish to strengthen it further. Seek the Lord! Ask Him what to do and then listen for His response. Ask him to remove any fear you may have about taking on a role in the church. I have heard time and time again people say they would like to help in an area of ministry, but they don’t have the skill or knowledge to do so. My response is if the Lord is calling you to an area of ministry then He will not let you fail. The Lord wants us to step out in faith and He will give us strength. If you think that I felt comfortable when I first started preaching you are mistaken. One of the things that held me back from pursuing ministry was a fear of public speaking. When I began to pray that the Lord would give me courage my anxiety was removed and I felt free. Free to minister one-on-one, where my comfort zone is, and free to stand up here in front of you and talk about the Lord’s Word to us. He can do the same for anyone here. You do not need to be called to the role of an elder to teach, pray, or provide care to others. Seek the Lord. Ask Him how He can use you. Then, when you hear His voice and follow His instruction and He will fill you with joy.