Rinne Church Elders

How to Shepherd God's People Like Jesus
1. Auflage 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4335-4090-5
Verlag: Crossway
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: 0 - No protection

E-Book, Englisch, 144 Seiten

Reihe: Building Healthy Churches

Effective leadership is important. Nowhere is this more true than in the church. Jeramie Rinne offers readers a concise overview of the Bible's teaching on spiritual leadership, setting forth an easy-to-understand 'job description' for elders that is focused on enabling pastors and church leaders to effectively shepherd their congregations. Giving practical guidance to new elders and helping church members better understand and support their spiritual leaders, this conversational book emphasizes purposeful ministry rather than project management. It will also bolster leaders' confidence by encouraging them to embrace their pastoral calling with grace, wisdom, and a clarity of vision.

Jeramie Rinne (MDiv, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary) serves as the senior pastor of Sanibel Community Church. He has been a regular contributor to the 9Marks Journal, a devotional writer for the Good Book Company, and an instructor for the Simeon Trust Workshops on biblical exposition. He lives in Sanibel, Florida, with his wife, Jennifer.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Rinne, Jeramie

Leseproben

1

DON’T ASSUME

I became a disciple of Jesus as a preteen through the faithful gospel ministry of a little elder-led Baptist church outside of Las Vegas, Nevada. At age twenty-six, I became the senior pastor (or senior elder, you could say) of a little Baptist church in the suburbs of Boston, Massachusetts. So you might assume I understood what elders are all about. But believe it or not, it was only after I became an elder that I started really studying what the Bible says about elders.

When I did, two things surprised me. First, I was amazed at how much the Bible has to say. Almost all of the New Testament authors address elders. There are more than a dozen texts. It became clear to me that Christlike elders are not an optional church feature; they are central to God’s plan for shepherding his churches. How had I missed it?

Second, I was startled by how different both the biblical job description and the qualifications for elders are from what I had assumed. I had thought I was qualified to be a pastor and elder because I loved Jesus, had a seminary degree, and could preach decently. What more does it take?

Maybe you assume you should be an elder too, but for different reasons. Perhaps you believe the time has come for you to join the elder board because you have been a faithful church member. You have served two terms on the missions committee, hosted a home Bible study, and even taught second-grade Sunday school when they couldn’t find a teacher. You have paid your dues, and now it is your turn to lead.

Or maybe you assume you are elder board-bound because you make large donations. The church would not have ended the fiscal year in the black without the check you wrote. Big donors deserve to have a big say and sit on the big boards. Those are the rules. Besides, your church could use a leader with a little business sense.

It is also possible you think you should lead in the church because you lead outside the church. Maybe you manage a successful company, sit on the board of a nonprofit, chair a department, command a battalion, or coach a team. It’s safe to assume your leadership skills, experience, and gifting make you an ideal elder candidate.

Right?

As I noted in the introduction, your first elder-related duty is to investigate whether you should in fact be an elder, based on the Bible’s qualifications. Don’t assume. Even if you have served as an elder before, allow God’s Word to vet your candidacy.

Below are six elder qualifications gathered from the New Testament. Read through them prayerfully. Stop and reflect often. Invite others into the conversation. Show this section to your wife, some friends, or an elder, and ask, “Do these qualifications describe me?”

YOU KNOW YOU’RE QUALIFIED TO SERVE AS AN ELDER IF . . .

1. You Want to Be an Elder

In one of the New Testament’s longest teachings about elders, the apostle Paul began by saying, “This saying is trustworthy: ‘If anyone aspires to be an overseer, he desires a noble work’” (1 Tim. 3:1). Peter put it this way: “Shepherd God’s flock among you, not overseeing out of compulsion but freely, according to God’s will” (1 Pet. 5:2).

Aspiration. Desire. Freedom. You’ve got to want it. Faithful shepherding demands much of you. If you don’t have an inner hunger for the role, you can burn out. Of course, that doesn’t mean that everyone who wants to be an elder is qualified. But it does mean a lack of desire is a problem.

There is a man in my church who is solid elder material. Our nominating team asked him to serve as an elder. In fact, we asked him three times. Apparently the third time was the charm because he finally consented. But as I talked with him more, it became apparent he lacked a strong desire to be an elder. He had agreed to serve in part because he had turned the offer down twice before. Finally, a sense of duty to his church compelled him to agree to serve—the very thing Peter warned against.

He also told me about his desire to free up time in his schedule in order to engage his neighbors and town with the gospel. I could only imagine his likely frustration if he invested himself in shepherding the flock when he longed to be out adding to the flock. So after further prayer, he changed his mind and courageously declined the nomination a third time. We had almost confused an evangelist for an elder.

While not all motivations are godly, you must have an inner desire to be an elder. Has the Holy Spirit placed a godly yearning in your heart to shepherd the local church? What is motivating you?

2. You Exemplify Godly Character

You might assume that the most important characteristic for an elder would be skill in running an organization. While management ability is a part of being a church overseer, the New Testament writers put far greater emphasis on holy character. Jesus’s under-shepherds must reflect Jesus’s character. Better a godly elder with mediocre leadership gifts than a charismatic leader with glaring moral flaws.

Read over these portions of two overseer qualification lists from Paul. These virtues should fit an elder like a custom-tailored suit:

An overseer, therefore, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, self-controlled, sensible, respectable, hospitable, an able teacher, not addicted to wine, not a bully but gentle, not quarrelsome, not greedy. (1 Tim. 3:2–3)

For an overseer, as God’s administrator, must be blameless, not arrogant, not hot-tempered, not addicted to wine, not a bully, not greedy for money, but hospitable, loving what is good, sensible, righteous, holy, self-controlled. (Titus 1:7–8)

Given the importance of Christlike character, let’s slow down and consider a few of these qualities in more detail.

Above reproach. Paul began his virtue lists with “above reproach” and “blameless.” These descriptions don’t mean an elder has transcended sin and leads a morally impeccable life. If that were the case, churches would need to fire their elders—all of them. Rather, a man who is above reproach displays an exemplary degree of Christlikeness, free from conspicuous sin. Being “above reproach” is akin to being “respectable” (1 Tim. 3:2), “righteous,” and “holy” (Titus 1:8).

In his book on elder qualifications, Thabiti Anyabwile puts it well: “Being above reproach means that an elder is to be the kind of man whom no one suspects of wrong-doing or immorality. People would be shocked to hear this kind of man charged with such acts.”1

Nominating men who are above reproach to be elders stokes the congregation’s trust in its leaders. Further, church leaders who are above reproach safeguard the church’s witness to the community, for as Paul said, “He must have a good reputation among outsiders, so that he does not fall into disgrace and the Devil’s trap” (1 Tim. 3:7).

Self-controlled. According to Paul’s profiles, elders must be self-controlled, sober-minded, temperate, and disciplined. Self-control is a fruit of the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:23) and a mark of the Christian life. In short, a Spirit-filled man is a self-controlled man.

Interestingly, in both lists, Paul warned against a particular manifestation of lack of self-control: addiction to wine. Drunkenness destroys lives and sucks people into further sin. I know a man who gave up drinking when he became an elder. He wanted to be above reproach when it came to drinking and a model for church members who battled alcoholism. While Scripture does not require elders to abstain from alcohol, they must possess the capacity for self-denial that this brother displayed.

Do you conceal a secret addiction to alcohol, drugs, pornography, or gambling? Do you lose control with anger, spending, swearing, or gossiping? Do you need to postpone eldership for a season in order to devote yourself to crucifying some habitual sin and cultivating self-control?

Gentle. There is a famous Swahili proverb that says, “When the elephants fight, the grass is trampled.” Likewise, when a church’s shepherds are combative and aggressive, the sheep get hurt. That’s why Paul described the qualified elder as “not a bully but gentle, not quarrelsome” (1 Tim. 3:3) and “not arrogant, not hot tempered” (Titus 1:7). Egotistical, domineering, argumentative, pushy, gruff, hotheaded, explosive overseers crush church members.

Instead, elders must be gentle giants. Gentleness does not mean weakness or cowardice. Gentle elders exercise their authority with the tenderness of a shepherd and the sensitivity of a loving father. I once watched a television program in which a tortoise crawled up next to an elephant that was drinking at a watering hole. The elephant looked down and gingerly moved the tortoise to the side with its toe so that it wouldn’t crush the reptile accidentally. I was amazed to see that massive creature take such care. People are similarly amazed when they experience gentleness from a church leader.

Are you gentle or heavy-handed? Are you a peacemaker or a fire-starter? Do you listen well or talk over others to express your opinions? It is difficult to gauge these things in yourself. Be brave and ask a few insightful church members to give you candid assessments.

Not greedy. Elders must not be “greedy for money.”...