Six D’s of Eldership

By the grace of God I have been able to serve as a Pastor/Elder of our Church for 10 years. I pray, the Lord may grant me many more decades of service in this role. In this role I have also been able to serve alongside a number of incredibly godly men, who have taken the role of eldership very seriously. I have seen in them, and very often learned from them, the weight of this responsibility. I write this, as a reflection both on the Holy Scriptures, as well as the lives of the men I have had a chance to witness. What I have written below is by no means the sum-total of the responsibility. Nevertheless, I have found these categories helpful in communicating the general task placed before faithful elders. May the Lord continue to raise up more men to serve boldly and faithfully in this role!

Devotion: First a Pastor must live a life clearly devoted to the Lord. The Apostle Paul hints at this when he describes the way he lived among Ephesians.

Acts 20:18-21 "You yourselves know how I lived among you the whole time from the first day that I set foot in Asia, serving the Lord with all humility and with tears and with trials that happened to me through the plots of the Jews; how I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you in public and from house to house, testifying both to Jews and to Greeks of repentance toward God and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ."

The life of all Christians is to be marked by one of deep devotion and steadfastness in Christ. Yet, as an Elder, our personal life of devotion must drive our leadership. It is from our prayer closets that we govern. It is from our rich study of God’s word first doing its work upon our souls and lives that we have any grounds to teach or to preach. Elders must be those men in the congregation who every person in the flock can say, “Their walk with God gives me something to chase after.” Imperfect as they will be in this endeavor, they must exemplify devotion nonetheless.

Doctrine: Faithful shepherds of God’s flock must guard sound doctrine. The Apostle uses this exact language when providing the requirements for Eldership to Titus.

Titus 1:9 "He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it."

Sound doctrine is woefully short these days. From every corner of Christendom, new self-proclaimed influencers have sprouted up offering fresh takes on the Bible. Their theology is shallow at best, and misleading at worst. It tickles the ears of modern individuals steeped in secularism, but it fails to form godliness in its audience. Faithful elders must have the backbone to declare God’s Word unashamedly and clearly against any and all threats. In order to do this, elders must be men of study and conviction. They must not carry the Word of God with a timidity that fears that it may cause someone to be offended or confused. Rather, we use the Word of God, to demolish false argumentation, and to establish truth in God’s flock. This is most difficult with whatever issue is most culturally pressing at any given time. But he who stands on God’s Word on every issue but on the issue that rages most sensitively at their current moment, is failing to guard God’s Word as Christ commanded.

Discipline: The Church is fully of Christians who are all works in progress, including the Elders. Every Christian ought to be a part of a Church that is intent on helping them mature in their faith. One of the ways the Bible demonstrates this kind of growth and overcoming of sin can take place is through a Church faithfully practicing church-discipline. The Apostle Paul instructs the Corinth to sharply deal with a professed Christian who is caught in deep sexual sin in the following way.

1 Corinthians 5:4-5 "When you are assembled in the name of the Lord Jesus and my spirit is present, with the power of our Lord Jesus, you are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord."

In this most extreme form of Church discipline, the sinner who sin has begun to spread like leaven throughout the entire church body is cast, for a time, from the body. They are excommunicated for the sake of saving their own soul, and reorienting their lives back towards godliness. While excommunication is the most extreme form of discipline, typically discipline looks like putting together a “care plan.” When a member of a church confesses to sin, and desires to grow through it, the elders come together lovingly, like a mother and father with their child, and put together a practical plan, with accountability, to see maturity gained. This is often very difficult work, and takes great patience and a doctor’s discernment to understand the root issues. It also requires humility and transparency on behalf of the member who has fallen into sin. But when disciplined well, the church is protected, and the members thrive.

Direction: Elders must provide direction for their flock. This is underneath the larger category of leadership. When the Apostle was leaving Ephesus, it was a great sadness to entire Ephesian Church, but we are told the Ephesian elders took the lead by accompanying Paul to the port.

Acts 20:38 "being sorrowful most of all because of the word he had spoken, that they would not see his face again. And they accompanied him to the ship."

In the same way, elders must see the circumstances that lay before their church, and be willing to prayerfully make the hard decisions. This is never to be done alone, always among the plurality of the Elders. Nevertheless, decisions must be made, and many will often disagree. Such is the weight of leadership. An Elder can take great comfort, if he is regularly going before the Lord pleading for wisdom, listening and ministering carefully to the flock, and laboring together in unity with the other elders, that the Holy Spirit will guide their decision making, and provide every means to attain the ends that seem fit to that group of faithful men.

Display: We have already seen that an Elder must have a personal hidden life of devotion. But underneath this category we consider that an Elder must also have an outward life marked by Gospel transformation.

1 Timothy 3:1-7 "The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church? He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil."

The requirements listed above for Eldership are practical spaces in a man’s life where the fruit of the Spirit can easily by others. How does he treat his wife? Is he faithful to her, caring and loving towards her? Does he control his emotions and his temper? Does he struggle with alcohol, anger, or greed? Is his family well organized, and his children submissive? The list of course is longer than this, but these entail areas of life where the whole flock can look in and see godliness. Again, imperfect as they will certainly be, godliness. Their lives, their conversation, and their impact, ought to be one of easily recognizable godliness.

Defense: Elders are tasked with the defense of the flock. Typically when we think of the idea of “defending the flock” we immediately turn to doctrine, that an elder must defend sound doctrine. This is true, but is not necessarily what is meant here. Here, it is meant that an elder must defend his flock against all wolves, doctrinally, relationally, emotionally, and physically. Speaking to the Ephesian Elders, the Apostle wrote the following counsel.

Ephesians 20:29 "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."

Here we must remember that shepherds were not gentle men. Yes, it is true, elders must have a deep heart of compassion and warmth and tenderness with their flock. But they also must have the courage to take the hit on behalf of their flock, to fight the lion that seeks to devour the flock, to beat back the wolf that is seeking a sheep to devour. This is one reason why the role of elder is restricted unto men, because this work of defending the flock is woven into the heart and nature of a man. Men are naturally endowed with the tools necessary to stand strong in whatever defense is needed of those they love. Just as a child would look to their father if they sensed some danger, so ought a flock run to Christ first and then take some immediate shelter knowing their elders are up to the task.