An Introduction to Elder Leadership #2

What do elders do? They oversee the work in the Church. They teach the Church. They exemplify Christian living to the rest of the body through their character traits which are required there in Titus chapter 1. Welcome back to the Truth Pulpit with Don Green, founding pastor of Truth Community Church in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Hello, I'm Bill Wright, and today Don continues our series in the book of Titus titled, God's Glorious Plan of Grace. It's part two of the message, An Introduction to Elder Leadership. Last time, Don defined elders as recognized leaders of a local church who oversee it. Today, Don will talk about the teaching responsibilities that elders bear. They must know scripture well and be able to defend sound doctrine from those that would undermine it. But even more so, they must show by their lives what it means to be a Christian.

No pressure or anything. We continue in Titus chapter 1 as we join Don now in the Truth Pulpit. What else do elders do? They oversee the Church. Secondly, they teach the Church. They teach the Church. It is evident that the Church in Crete was young and needed help, and they were plagued by troublesome influences, let's say. We could say that.

Turn back to Titus now. Elders oversee the Church. Secondly, they teach the Church. Now what was going on in Crete at the time?

We don't have to speculate. We know something of the problems that were there, and we know something of what needed to be said in order because we keep reading and we see something in verse 10 of chapter 1. Paul said, Titus, I want you to set things in order. Why, Paul? What needs to be said in order? As if Titus didn't know. Verse 10, set things in order. Why?

Four. Verse 10, four. Here's why it needs to be said in order. There are many rebellious men, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision. There was a large Jewish influence on the island of Crete.

We'll look at that sometime. Many rebellious men, empty talkers, deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, who must be silenced, Titus. These men must be silenced because they are upsetting whole families, teaching things they should not teach for the sake of sordid gain. Verse 12, one of themselves, a prophet of their own, said, Cretans are always liars, evil beasts and lazy gluttons. And Paul says that poet was right.

Verse 13, this testimony is true. Cretans are like that. And so here's the situation that Titus was facing as he looks at this, as these believers dispersed throughout the island of Crete. They were being influenced by men who were not submissive to the gospel. They were rebellious men who carried about in them the animation of the spirit that marked the culture of their day. Rebellious, lazy, evil, wicked men, Paul says. And he says, Titus, there are men like that, especially the ones who are Jews, that are influencing the church. They're upsetting entire families. Their teaching is all wrong. Titus, you need to get in there and straighten that out. You need to appoint men who can get in there and help you straighten that out.

You see? And part of the problem was bad teaching. They were teaching things that they should not teach. Well, part of the responsibility of elders is that they teach the church. Look at verse 9.

Chapter 1, verse 9. Paul says, he's still listing the qualifications of elders, and he says, an elder must be someone who is holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, the apostolic teaching that Paul had given. These elders, Titus, they have to be able to hold fast.

They must be ones who hold fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict. Look, you think about what elders are responsible for. This is really sobering.

This is really sobering. And I want to tell you, it weighs on me either consciously or just below my conscious thought every time I step into a pulpit that elders are uniquely responsible for the teaching in the church, and they have to uphold, listen, they have to uphold the truth that Christ died to deliver to His church. They have to uphold and defend the truth that prophets shed their blood for in the Old Testament.

They have to defend that body of truth that has been given to the saints. And they have to be faithful to it, and they have to get it right. That's a lot of responsibility.

Because you know what? James chapter 3 says, let not many of you become teachers because you're going to face a stricter judgment when you do. When I stand before Christ and give an account of my life at the judgment seat of Christ, I'm going to face a stricter judgment as a result of having been a teacher of God's Word. That's true of every elder. This is a sober responsibility that elders have to presume to teach the Word of God to the people of God. That's what elders are called to do. And so, look, if you've never felt a call to teach, a responsibility to teach, it's not something that you've really wanted to do.

You don't need to apologize for that. There's a sense in which you could thank God for that, that you don't carry that responsibility that you'll one day give an account for. Especially young men, they come and they see a guy up front. They say, hey, I want to be like that. Sometimes motivated simply by wanting to be up front. Well, when that's the motivation, guys aren't getting it at all. When you realize the responsibility that comes and the fact that God has commanded us to handle His Word with faithfulness, huh, it's a heavy responsibility.

If that's not on you, that's not something to regret or to feel bad about or to feel inferior about. There's only some men that God has called to this, and the ones that He's called are going to give a stricter account as a result of it. And so, part of the responsibility for elders is that they teach.

Here's another aspect of the responsibility of it. Look at the end of verse 9 with me again. He says they have to be able to exhort in sound doctrine. There's going to be teachable, receptive believers that are the delight of every elder, every pastor that's ever been around.

To have people that are teachable and receptive is the greatest joy that a pastor has. But it's not all joy and roses and sweet perfume for the man of God. He also, look at the end of verse 9, has to refute those who contradict. That means he's going to be engaging conflict over the proper interpretation of the Word of God. He's going to be engaging sometimes people with great influence, great authority and far greater followings than what this particular man himself has to deal with. And I know some of you feel that and carry that weight in your own individual ministries and you know what it's like.

You don't have a whole lot of people on your side. The big voices are arrayed against you and challenging you. That's the way it is for elders. That's the way it is for teachers of God's Word. And the elders have to be able to step up to that and say, I understand what you say and here's why you're wrong. And the thing on top of that is an elder has to be able to smile when he does it.

And so, elders have to teach and that's a great responsibility. Look at chapter 2 verse 1. You'll see this teaching theme throughout Titus and also through 1 and 2 Timothy.

We won't go into the other ones. But Titus chapter 2 verse 1, Paul says, As for you, speak the things which are fitting for sound doctrine. Sound doctrine is at the heart of being a true elder. Verse 15, These things speak and exhort and reprove with all authority.

Let no one disregard you. You have to teach sound doctrine. Titus, these elders have to be able to teach sound doctrine.

They need to speak it with an air of authority so that people have the sense that the Word of God is serious, the Word of God is true and they respond and submit their hearts to its authority. Look, this is part of the reason why a pastor can't be a jokester and a comedian in the pulpit. And you guys have all seen these comedians and these jokers with their million dollar smiles. But the pastor and elder can't be a comedian. Because if you're a comedian, you know what? People don't take you seriously. The whole point of being a comedian is you're telling people don't take me seriously.

I'm here to make you laugh, not to instruct you with authority. And so, the elder has to be a sober-minded man who can handle the Word of God, who is evidently in love with the Word of God. It's obvious to everyone and he has a skill and an ability to handle that so that people learn when he teaches.

That's the responsibility of an elder. And Titus, Paul, tells Titus, Titus, I want you to appoint elders who know how to teach, who can refute this false teaching that's infecting this group of believers on the island of Crete. Titus, they're undermining the Gospel. They're upsetting entire families, Titus. Titus, get the right men in there so that they can be strong and fight for the truth. And as part of their oversight responsibility, as elders teach, as they minister, as they refute false teaching, you know what happens?

You know what starts to happen? Families that used to be upset start to settle down. Families that used to be in conflict start to find themselves more at peace because the truth of the Word of God, when you drive out error through true teaching, it has a settling impact on the souls of everyone that's under the sound of the voice of those teaching elders. And one of the things that you see in this, one of the things that you see, when Paul says in verse 11, look at verse 11 with me again, he says, they're upsetting whole families, Titus.

These empty talkers and deceivers are upsetting whole families. You see, that hints at that oversight, that pastoral oversight role that elders have. When families are upset by false teaching, elders step in and say, let me clarify this for you, let me help you with this.

They say, oh, oh, I'm so glad you helped me with that. And the upset families turn into peaceful families, which says something. It means that the families in the church in the first century and here in northern Kentucky, the families in the church and their demeanor, it matters.

It's important. Families are meant to be cared for under the oversight of biblical leadership so that they're not upset but they're calm, they're peaceful, and they're in a position to grow. The responsibility for that falls on the elders. And so they teach in order to protect the gospel, advance the gospel, and to be a means and an avenue of blessing to those that are under their leadership. Now, third thing here, elders oversee the church. Secondly, they teach the church.

And thirdly, what do elders do? They exemplify Christian living. They exemplify Christian living. They show by their lives what a Christian looks like.

That's what elders are responsible to do. Now, obviously, those in Crete had much to learn about Christian living. Look at chapter 3, verse 1. Chapter 3, verse 1. Paul tells Titus, remind them, speaking to those who would receive his teaching, these people that were scattered throughout the island of Crete who were known by culture to be empty talkers and evil beasts and liars and lazy gluttons. Boy, wouldn't you hate to be a part of that and have an apostle call you out and say, you come from a culture and your guys are evil beasts and lazy gluttons.

What's the matter with you? Well, there was a lot of carryover and baggage from their culture and their prior lives. And so they needed help. They needed instruction.

They needed a model. In chapter 3, verse 1, you can see this. Paul says, Titus, remind them of some things. Remind them to be subject to rulers, to authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good deed, to malign no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing every consideration for all men.

That's a long laundry list. Titus, they've got a lot to learn. And you need to remind them of these things. Well, look, beloved, it's not just through didactic teaching. It's not just through an oral instruction that that takes place. God's design in the church is for elders to be an example that the rest of the church can look to and say, oh, I see. I see it in his life what a Christian is supposed to be like. Look at chapter 2, verse 6. Chapter 2, verse 6, in the sense that elders are to exemplify Christian living. Paul says, chapter 2, verse 6, he says, Titus, urge the young men to be sensible.

And then he pivots. And in verse 7, he says, in all things, show yourself to be an example, a pattern, a pattern, an example of good deeds with purity and doctrine, dignified sound and speech which is beyond reproach so that the opponent will be put to shame having nothing bad to say about us. He says, Titus, you've got to go in there and you've got to live a godly life so that your life would be an example that illustrates the teaching that you give from the pulpit, so to speak. A man's life is to illustrate his teaching when he is a teacher inside the church.

That's what an elder does. And so that's why we read earlier in verses 6 through 9 all of these character qualifications of an elder, but you see the character qualifications are there to make sure that the life that the elder manifests is consistent with the doctrine that he teaches. He's supposed to be an example, not merely a mouth, not merely a talking head. He's supposed to be a living example.

And you know what else that means? If you're going to be a living example as an elder, you've got to be amongst the people to whom you're to be an example. That's why it couldn't possibly be correct that this is referring to people who are in a remote headquarters a thousand miles removed some place and that those are the bishops. It can't be that way because a man that's a thousand miles away can't be an example to you of daily Christian living. And so elders are meant to be local in the assembly, not someone who is remote and removed and walks around in long flowing robes but doesn't know you from Adam. That's not biblical eldership at all. That's a fabrication of men who love power more than they love Christ.

Let's pull all of this together. I'm going to summarize it all here. What do elders do? They oversee the work in the church. They teach the church. They exemplify Christian living to the rest of the body through their character traits which are required there in Titus chapter 1. Now, those three points are summarized in other passages that I want to show you real quickly. Just so that you can see, as we let Scripture illuminate Scripture, we see that this is what Scripture teaches about leadership in the church. Turn over to Hebrews chapter 13. Hebrews chapter 13 in verse 7, where at the end of this long epistle that has exalted Christ and glorified and spoken about the superiority of Christ, the writer of Hebrews says in verse 7, says, Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you, and considering the result of their conduct, imitate their faith. All three of the things that we said elders do are wrapped up in that one verse.

Remember those who led you. That's the oversight. They spoke the word of God to you. That's the teaching. Considering the result of their conduct. That's their example.

It's all right there. Those are the three primary responsibilities of an elder to lead, to teach, and to exemplify. To be an example of what Christian living is supposed to be like. True elders. Biblical elders are not on a power trip. They are merely the human instruments through whom God leads the church. True elders, biblical elders understand that their authority is given to them so that they could be instruments of dispensing the blessing of God upon the body of Christ. They're not there to accumulate power to themselves. They're not there to rule people's lives. They're there to oversee, to teach, and to be an example. Have men abused the office of elders in the past?

Sure. I've known elders who I thought were some of the most foolish men I've ever met. But we have to understand, we have to say, What does the Bible say about the leadership? What title does it apply? How is it that we see this office and how do men hold this office and lead through it?

Oversight, teaching, being an example, not lording it over the flock. I told you when I was young, I was skeptical when I first heard the term elder. I went into that church and I stayed there for a while. It was new to me. I was a brand new Christian and I was very untrusting. I mean, not only had I not ever seen it before, I was a law school student and so you're just untrusting and probably untrustworthy yourself. There was just all this skepticism that was wrapped up in my whole demeanor, my whole persona. Very skeptical young man.

I was very, very uncertain about what this was going to be like and I was reserving judgment as to whether this was going to work or not. Elder, never heard that term before. What does that mean? Then you know what happened?

You don't? I'll tell you. The Lord brought one of those elders into my life, a man named Morris Robertson. As far as I know, he's still living. I haven't talked to him for a long, long time. Morris was probably in his early fifties at the time.

What a great age that is. You know what Morris did? He taught me. He led a small group Bible study, taught me and some other people some of the basic fundamentals of Christian doctrine.

You know what else he did? He had me into his home. I watched him interact. I did not have a Christian father like many of you have never had a Christian father. I watched him interact with his family, how he spoke with his wife, the affection that he showed toward his kids.

You know what I learned in that process? Biblical elders, both words being important there, biblical elders, Morris Robertson in particular, was not a threat to me at all. Morris Robertson was an instrument of the blessing of God in my life. His position, and he never ever bared the arm of his authority in any of his conversations with me.

It was not even on the surface of anything that we did. His authority, his influence came through his example, through his teaching, through his loving oversight, not only of my life, but of his fear of that wonderful church at the time. When we're talking about elders here, that's a picture of what biblical eldership and truth community is going to be like.

We're talking about the spiritual leaders in a local church who oversee the ministry, that teach and live lives that serve as an example to the rest of the flock. What you have to know from the Scriptures, because God is the one who appointed this. This comes from Scripture. This pattern comes from Scripture.

It comes from the very Christ who shed his own blood to save us from our sins. The Christ who has all authority said this is how I want it done in our church, in my church, speaking as Christ. But see, biblical eldership is an instrument of God's blessing to God's people. As we go forward in the future, we're going to ask the question, how do we know what men to appoint to that position?

How do we know that we can trust the men in that position? We're going to answer that question. How is it that a congregation interacts with elders? We're going to deal with those questions.

Those are all important questions, and all things that we must answer thoroughly before we move forward. All I want you to see today is what is an elder? A church leader. What does he do?

He oversees, he teaches, he serves as an example. What's the result of that to the people in the congregation who aren't elders? Blessing.

Blessing. This is how God leads his church. It's through men who love Christ, who manifest proven character over time, and take up the mantle to be a blessing. Not to lord it over, but to serve and to be a blessing to those who are there. That's what elders are.

They're not a threat. They're the instrument of blessing to God's people. After hearing an introduction to elder leadership here on The Truth Pulpit, do you hope to someday be one yourself?

If so, you'll need to know more about the qualifications of elders. That's Pastor Don Green's topic next time, as he continues the series, Titus, God's Glorious Plan of Grace. We hope you'll join us then. Right now, Don's back here in studio with some closing words. Friend, if you have enjoyed this broadcast today, let me encourage you to do something that would be an encouragement to the partners who help make it happen. Drop a note, if you would, to the radio station that you've heard this broadcast on. They would love to hear that they have ministered to you because they love to share God's word with you. Also, it will help them know that they're reaching people with God's word through the ministry of The Truth Pulpit. Drop them a note and give them thanks, and be sure to tell them that you heard The Truth Pulpit on this station.

Thanks, Don. Friend, if you'd like information on obtaining free CDs of the messages you hear on our broadcast, just visit us online. Our web address is thetruthpulpit.com. That's thetruthpulpit.com. Thanks for joining us today. We'll see you next time on The Truth Pulpit with Don Green.