Mother’s day … and yet we are talking about Eldership today. Is that a bit odd, something better suited to Father’s day perhaps …, or is there a connection?
Would you be surprised if I said “Yes, there is a connection”?
Well have a look at 1 Thess 2:6-7, Paul speaking in his role not just as an Apostle but as a founding missionary pastor and elder of this church speaks of his affection for them under the evocative image of a nursing mother. Paul saw and used this as a perfectly natural image to draw attention to heart which Christ’s leaders in the church should have. He used the same imagery in his letter to the Galatians (see 4:19).
He saw these Christians for whom he had responsibility under Christ as his ‘children’, and he cared for them with all the love, desires and self-denial one sees in a godly, gentle and tender-hearted mother.
And in in this Paul is not the first. Moses uses this imagery in Numbers 11:28, and that in a context where God provides for him 70 elders to share the burden of leading, nurturing and governing His people. It is a very evocative and expressive image for an elder.
So what is a church elder ? The 9Marks Ministry gives the following helpful summary:
- The Basics: An elder is a man who
- meets the qualifications in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:6-9
- is recognized by his congregation as an elder
- and leads the congregation by teaching the Word (1 Tim 3:2), praying for the sheep (James 5:14), and overseeing the affairs of the church (1 Peter 5:2)
- Oversight: An elder must watch over the flock. He must instruct all the sheep, strengthen the weak ones, guard the vulnerable ones, rebuke the obstinate ones, and bear with the difficult ones (2 Timothy 2:24-25; Acts 20:28; 1 Thess 5:14). An elder watches over the members of his church as one who will give an account to God (Heb 13:17)
- Plurality: In the New Testament, local churches consistently have a plurality of elders (Acts 14:23, 20:17; Phil 1:1; 1 Tim 5:17; James 5:14). Christ, the Chief Shepherd, means to care for His flock through a number of godly men who together teach, guard, guide, protect, and love the sheep. This means that every local church, following the leadership of their pastor, should look out for men who are already doing the work of an elder and appoint them to the office.