I have been preaching the gospel for nearly forty years. For most of that time, I have been privileged to serve under four different elderships. I served a congregation for five years that did not have elders, and it was the only time that I had trouble with a local church. From that experience, I realized the great need for elders in the Lord’s church.
Having elders is God’s will for every local church with qualified men. Any local church without elders should strive to have them as soon as possible. Of course, the desire to have them should never override the importance of having qualified men. To have unqualified men serving as elders is worse than not having elders at all.
There are three situations in which a local church can find itself when it comes to organization: 1) Scripturally Organized. 2) Scripturally Unorganized. 3) Unscripturally Organized, or 4) Unscripturally Unorganized.
Number one is God’s will for local churches. Number two is God’s will for congregations without qualified men. Number three takes place when a local church has elders who do not qualify, and number four is when a church has men who qualify to be elders but do not have them. Three and four are conditions not pleasing to God.
Scripturally organized congregations are local churches that function best. The qualifications for elders, found in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-11, are God-given, and because God knows best, the men who meet those qualifications are good men who know how to oversee a local church.
Local churches that have elders should never take them for granted. Some churches have always had elders so their members do not know anything else. This can lead to members not appreciating how valuable elders are to the local church. If you are a member of a local church with elders, make sure you appreciate them and occasionally tell them so.
Elders cover a multitude of sins. They do not do so by ignoring sins but by taking care of them before they endanger the flock, oftentimes without the church knowing they ever existed. Meetings with struggling members (that sometimes go on for hours) take place without anyone except those involved knowing about them. Elders spend long hours among themselves discussing issues that can potentially hurt the local church, trying to head off problems before they take root and negatively affect the church. Brethren sometimes thank God in public prayers for the peace of the local church. Those are good prayers that give God honor, but please know that the work of the eldership contributes greatly to that peace, and we should all be thankful.
There are too many churches that do not have elders. We need to remind our young men that elders are not produced overnight. The qualifications are such that men must begin at a young age living according to God’s will so that they may qualify later if they desire the office. Many churches do not have elders because the men of the congregation started serving God too late in life. To be clear, the most important thing in the life of those men is that they are now in a right relationship with God doing what they can for the cause of Christ. Still, young men need to give thought to this critical issue. I urge all young men to examine the qualifications for elders now and do all you can to meet them. Only God knows if you will someday serve in that capacity, but at least you will be in a position to do so if called upon by a local church.
There is a great need for elders in the local church, first because it is God’s will, as well as His arrangement, but also because it is in the best interest of the church. Local churches without elders are forced to have men’s business meetings where unqualified men are making decisions for the church. A lot can, and often does, go wrong in that situation. This week I want us to consider the immense importance of elders. Hopefully, it will help us to appreciate the elders like we should, giving them the respect God wants us to give them.
As you wind down for the night, think about these things.