The Word of God as Primary
By Chris Hendrix
If you ever wanted to start a debate, then just bring up the question, what makes a good leader? Opinions upon opinions abound on this subject. As Christians, we must guard against the cultural opinions that easily creep into defining leadership within the church. Elders, are given to the church by Jesus Christ to shepherd the flock of God [1 Pet 5:2]. In this leadership role, there is a high calling to exercise oversight, not in our opinions, but from the Lord’s.
Yet, the temptation exists for us to fall to pragmatism, programs, and paltry practices. Distractions present themselves, though in the form of ‘good’ opportunities, and must be combatted. What is our focal point? This isn’t only important for Elders themselves to know, but for every Covenant Partner as well. This shapes what to expect and desire from the Elders. Alexander Strauch, in his book Biblical Eldership, sums it up this way, “Elders lead the church [1 Tim 5:17; Titus 1:7; 1 Peter 5:1–2], teach and preach the Word [1 Timothy 3:2; 2 Timothy 4:2; Titus 1:9], protect the church from false teachers [Acts 20:17, 28–31], exhort and admonish the saints in sound doctrine [1 Timothy 4:13; 2 Timothy 3:13–17; Titus 1:9], visit the sick and pray [James 5:14], and judge doctrinal issues [Acts 15:6].”
“The greatest way we can love you is by making the Word of God primary.”
However, these all describe the functions of an Elder, but the question remains, what are Elders to be about? Undergirding the functions of the Elder, we find this presupposition in Acts 6:4. We are to be about the ministry of the Scriptures and prayer. In other words, the Word of God and prayer define everything we think, say, and do in our role to the church. This means we aren’t the Board of Directors analyzing the church stats and developing new ways to grow the church. We aren’t the group of Commanders devising attack and defense strategies. We aren’t the Heads of State determining what rules to put in place to combat a virus, though we do combat sin. We are the under shepherds of Jesus Christ, who are about the things He has stated and are recorded, and we impart that to the church.
The implications from obeying this, or not obeying this, are demonstrated all around us. When we function out of a Bible-centric position, then you will be exhorted yet encouraged, repentant yet joyful, and offended yet humbled. When we fail to do this, then you may be entertained yet shallow, happy yet depressed, confident yet self-righteous. The greatest way we can love you is by making the Word of God primary.
Some may argue that we are making too much out of the Bible. We should not be so clear on the importance of it, we should not care as much as we do regarding it, or we should not care to define the inspiration, infallibility, or inerrancy of it. Behind this is a lack of understanding on the essentiality of Scripture to life. For example, water is essential to life, yet we define the drinkability of it because our bodies need pure water. Likewise, we should desire the pure milk of the Word [1 Pet 2:2] and feast on it alone [Matt. 4:4]. As Elders of VBC, this is what we are to be about, and this is what it means to make the Word of God primary.