New Testament Elders: God’s Shepherds
From our brief survey of the 3 biblical titles used for the office of Elder, we can put together a general pastoral job description: An Elder is responsible for overseeing the souls of God’s people. And, as we see in the Ephesians 4:13 text, an Elder does this work of overseeing by pastoring. Biblically, pastoring means teaching and applying the Word of God to the people of God.
There it is. That’s what an Elder/Pastor does. He oversees the souls of the people of God through explaining and applying the Word of God.
What being an Elder Does Mean...
Elders are responsible for the life and lifestyle of their people. According to Hebrews 13:17, “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account.”
Elders will give an account to God for the lives (the souls) of the people that God has placed under their watchcare. That’s a heavy mandate. What you believe AND how you live matter deeply to your Pastors. It is our God-given job to care.
Elders practice the task of overseeing souls in a variety of ways:
Weekly preaching the Word of God in Church services.
Worship Service order and design.
Music choice.
Corporate prayer.
Weddings and funerals.
Godly Leadership.
Leadership development.
Pastoral visitation.
Sunday school and small group teaching.
Discipleship groups.
Pastoral Counseling.
Casual conversation.
Friendships.
Elders have the responsibility of knowing the Word of God well so they can explain and apply the Word of God in whatever situation they may find themselves. "Preach the Word; be ready in season and out of season; rebuke, correct, and encourage with great patience and teaching" (2 Tim. 4:2).
John Owen notes, "It is not an easy thing for ministers to instruct their people in the things of God...We must labor, then, to have a thorough knowledge of these mysteries or we will be useless to a great part of the church. The work [of pastoring] requires spiritual wisdom and understanding in the mysteries of the Gospel." (Gospel Ministry, Banner of Truth, 76-77)
Paul reminds Titus (1:9) that Elders must also know the Word of God in order to rebuke those who contradict the Word. They are shepherds after all; there are times when dangers must be driven out of the flock.
For many Elders like me, a typical week might include 1-2 sermons, worship service planning, ministry program planning, staff meetings, several discipleship group meetings, a few counseling sessions (some planned, and some not), a wedding, or more likely, a funeral, and numerous phone calls, text messages, and emails. Every pastoral situation is a chance and an obligation to explain and apply the Word of God in a particular and specific way.
Elders accomplish the God-given responsibility to oversee the people of God as they pay attention to their people in whatever life-situation is occurring at that present time. Here are some real life examples of what I encounter on a weekly basis (thankfully, not usually all in the same week)…
“Pastor, my marriage is in trouble…”
"Pastor, can you help me learn the Bible better?"
“Pastor, I found out that a friend of mine is trying to backstab me…”
“Pastor, I’ve got cancer. How do I tell my wife?”
“Pastor, a Christian I know is acting like a non-Christian…”
"Pastor, I really enjoyed your sermon. Can we meet to talk about it?"
“Pastor, my spouse is cheating on me…”
“Pastor, I'm addicted to pornography…”
“Pastor, why would God let my child die?”
"Pastor, can you help me learn to pray better?"
"Pastor, you're not doing enough about..."
“Pastor, why would God let me suffer?”
“Pastor, I understand what the Bible says, but…”
"Pastor, why didn't you..."
“Pastor, I’m not sure I’m a Christian…”
"Pastor, I'm really growing in my faith!"
“Pastor, I really don’t like where you are trying to lead us...”
"Pastor, I really support the direction you're leading us!"
“Pastor, I feel you could be doing better..”
Other issues that Elders walk people through include...
Pride.
Depression.
Stubbornness.
Selfishness.
Helping families work through planning a wedding or a funeral that is honoring to God.
Elders have a tremendous responsibility to always be ready, in season and out of season, willing to explain and apply the Word of God to the people of God in the specific details and circumstances of life. Sometimes it's formal, like a sermon. More often, it's an informal, unplanned moment in time. And that is a full-time commitment.
That's what being an Elder means.
What being an Elder does NOT mean…
While there are many things that fall under the job description of an Elder, there are many things that do not. For instance, being a Pastor does not mean that the only thing I do is preach a sermon each week. Being a pastor does not mean being the Church CEO, the manager of all Church ministries, or the head of all committees.
God built His Church with great wisdom, assigning many of these tasks to qualified Deacons.
Many churches, without meaning to, expect wrong and unfair things from their Pastors. The modern American Pastor tends to function more like a leadership expert or corporate manager rather than a shepherding-teacher. Many churches think that when they hire a Pastor, or a pastoral staff, the hard work of running the church is over. “The professionals are here.”
Such an attitude betrays the biblical job description of Elders, but more than that, it undermines the authority of the Bible itself.
Church Elders are not to be managers or CEOs. They are to be shepherding-teachers who oversee the souls of the people of God.
As we've noted, their primary job consists of teaching and prayer (Acts 6:4). When churches expect Pastors to devote more time and energy to things other than the ministry of the Word and prayer, both Pastors and the Church suffer.
The Pastor suffers because he inevitably stretches himself too thin, and winds up neglecting/forgetting something. He also, without fail, begins looking to the Church for his fulfillment and self-worth. “Do the members think I’m doing enough?” “Are they pleased with what I’m doing?” Etc…
The church suffers because it puts too many expectations on the Pastors, which ends up robbing the members of serving in ways God expects and to which He calls them...
1 Cor. 12:14-20, "For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body."
After all, Ephesians 4 tells us, “And [God] gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers [the Pastors], to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ…”
The primary job of a Pastor-Elder is to get the Word of God into the people of God...and that happens in all kinds of ways.
So, if Pastors are not expected to be managers and CEOs, who is supposed to do these things in the Church?
The biblical answer is: The Deacons.
Stay tuned for the next post as we explore the biblical role of the New Testament Deacon.
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