Eldership

  One of the gift ideas which I put on my Christmas list was a book titled, “Just One Thing”, by John Mauldin. It is a compilation of articles he asked 12 men to write. These 12 men are all brilliant in the world’s investment market place. Mr. Mauldin asked each of them what the single most useful piece of advice they could give, which they had learned from all their years of experience.

   It is a great read if you are interested in the world of investing, but there is one chapter which really jumped out at me. It was written by Michael Masterson, and the chapter is titled, ‘Eldership’.

   One of the more fascinating aspects of the Bible versus other religious writings, is the Bible not only reveals God’s instructions on how to live a Godly life, but it also intertwines actual history into the lessons. This shows us what can happen when man chooses to ignore God’s leadership and decides to make his own way. The Bible offers parameters but also realizes that life does not always follow some perfect pattern.

For example, in Genesis 2:24 God sets the pattern for the family; one man, one woman, to have children and to raise them. However, the Bible shows an understanding that this family unit might be broken up due to the death of one or both of the parents. Deut 14:25, Isaiah 1:17, and James 1:27 speak to this reality.

The Bible also gives us a pattern for the organization of the church. Christ is the head, Ephesians 5:23, Paul instructed Titus to appoint elders at the churches on Crete, and deacons are to be appointed, Acts 6, Philippians 1:1, & 1 Timothy 3. This pattern for the church has great benefits which are easy to see. With elders and deacons it is easy to see who the physical leaders are so we know who is guiding us and who has been proven to possess the wisdom necessary to advise us in spiritual matters.

This is where we want to be at the church in Ventura, but we are faced with the reality that we have not had the men who are ready to take on the responsibility of an elder. In the interim we have a group of leaders made up of prior elders and deacons, those who have been chosen by this church to be its leaders in the past. At each meeting we pray for wisdom and that we might have recognized elders and deacons again.

To help us progress towards this goal, in January we will do some studying on this topic. We will look at what male spiritual leadership is and if it is necessary. What are the responsibilities of an elder? How much of what we think these responsibilities are come from “this is how we have always done it”? Do the scriptures set these in stone or are we allowed some flexibility? We will also look at what the Biblical role of women is in the church setting. Women’s roles in society have changed. Women run corporations, sit as judges, and hold powerful political positions. How do we bring these women into our fellowship and teach them about Christ? The goal is to place before the church members an opportunity to let it be known if there are men you would look upon as spiritual leaders, and if there are, will they serve?

This may or may not produce the eldership we desire, but it does give God an opportunity to work in the lives of men who may have doubts about their ability to lead and will remind us that while we currently lack elders, we continue to have a leader, that is Christ who “is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy”. (Colossians 1:18) Please keep those who are part of the leadership, and this effort to have an eldership in your prayers.

Jim Oliver