Humility and Obedience
Church Covenant • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
0 ratings
· 26 viewsNotes
Transcript
Week 1 - we talked about Gospel centered unity corporately but also with in our own homes.
Week 2 - We examined what it looks like for us to live a kingdom-centered life.
Week 3 - We learned that biblical stewardship is much more than money, its stewarding our lives well. but we noted that will include purposing our finances toward kingdom work.
Week 4 - I encouraged you to take responsibility for your walk with Christ and make training in God’s word a priority.
Today is the last week of the series on our church Covenant.
“As the leadership remains faithful to the ministry of prayer and The Word, I will be faithful to follow.”
“As the leadership remains faithful to the ministry of prayer and The Word, I will be faithful to follow.”
Over the years, I have seen many questions about the authority of pastors and elders in the church. There seems to be two extremes found in the modern churches. One type of extreme authority is that likened to the Pope. By matter of decree He can make something happen and people are expected to follow without question.
I would argue this type of authority is not scriptural and lends itself to the abuse of power and spiritual abuse.
The other extreme is that the Pastors and Elders are simply ex-officio’s who preach and teach, but all the authority rests in the hands of member boards, committees, or some type of democratic process.
I would argue this type of authority also lends itself to the abuse of power and usually ends up with many arguments, infighting and church splits. Think of congress and ask should the church really be modeled after this system?
So then what does the Bible say about who is to lead the church? What does that authority structure look like and what are it’s boundaries?
So that is what we are going to look at today.
Remember your leaders who have spoken God’s word to you. As you carefully observe the outcome of their lives, imitate their faith.
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
Don’t be led astray by various kinds of strange teachings; for it is good for the heart to be established by grace and not by food regulations, since those who observe them have not benefited.
Obey your leaders and submit to them, since they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account, so that they can do this with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.
In this passage the author of Hebrews , some say Luke others Paul, is giving the Jewish Christian church some instructions. The book as a whole was written to show the preeminence of Christ in all things and to warn these believers who were in danger of apostatizing due to persecution, hardship and false teaching.
So it is rather natural that the author would talk about leadership in this letter.
The first thing I want you to notice is the identity of the leaders
I. The Identity of the Leaders
Hebrews 13:7 (CSB)
Remember your leaders who have spoken God’s word to you...
How do we know what leaders the author is addressing? He calls them out by their function. Those who are teaching you....
You will see throughout scripture that the leaders of the church were the primary givers of biblical instruction. These two things went hand in hand. The leaders in the church were the primary teachers.
They were the elders in the church. In fact, teaching is built into the description of an elders.
An overseer, therefore, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, self-controlled, sensible, respectable, hospitable, able to teach,
The Lord’s servant must not quarrel, but must be gentle to everyone, able to teach, and patient,
So this the group that is being referred to here. I would also point out the verse does not say “remember your leader”. Leader is plural. In fact you will only find the word for “elder” in the plural form when referencing the church. That is important to notice. The church was always meant to have multiple elders guiding and directing the local church. They were to be spiritually mature men, able to teach, whose love for God and love for his church was witnesses and lived out.
So this passage is encouraging those who are believers to remember their leaders and to imitate them.
Hebrews 13:7 (CSB)
...As you carefully observe the outcome of their lives, imitate their faith.
Now I would suggest to you that it is pretty hard to imitate an elder(s) who you are not willing to follow.
Notice with me that it doesn’t say only imitate them if you like their personality, preaching style, haircut, clothing choices and every decision they have ever made.
It doesn’t say imitate their faith until the message offends you. Then fire them , and get new elders.
Did you know scripture address this mindset as well...
For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, will multiply teachers for themselves because they have an itch to hear what they want to hear.
The scriptures teach that God through the Holy Spirit appoints elders to a place, yet in this scripture we see the people take on that role for themselves. They pick the teachers they want based upon their own godless desires.
You see, This passage makes it clear that its really not about the elder(s) its about their faith. Are they being faithful to live out the scriptures and teach it to others? If yes, imitate that faith.
However,
Does the Bible justify a time when it is okay not to follow the leadership in the church? The answer is absolutely “yes” and its found in the next couple of verses. Let’s look when not to follow.
2. When not to follow the leadership.
2. When not to follow the leadership.
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
Don’t be led astray by various kinds of strange teachings; for it is good for the heart to be established by grace and not by food regulations, since those who observe them have not benefited.
You see the Bible never suggest blind obedience or allegiance to a group of men. Right after the scriptures commands us to imitate them it also gives you the framework by which this imitation is to happen. You are to imitate and follow only when the leaders faithfully adhere the sound doctrines of scripture.
A Pastor is given authority within the bounds of scripture. There is no authority outside of them.
In fact, You are not to follow when the elder/teacher no longer adheres to sound doctrine.
Sometimes we sit back an wonder how did a church or denomination get so far removed from the word of God. Why did the people follow them?
#1 possibly due to ignorance of scripture. They are deceived. Which we talked about last Sunday.
#2 They admire their leaders more than they admire the Word of God.
If I ever stray from The Word of God. I have no authority, please do no follow me. If ,God forbid, I begin to ignore or to teach doctrine that is contrary to the Word, do not be lead astray.
A pastors authority in the church begins and ends with scripture. In fact, a pastor or elder has no real authority of his own. It is given to Him by the Lord and governed by scripture.
It is a derived authority.
Timothy Witmer in his book The Shepherd Leader states it this way:
“ All who hold derived authority are ultimately accountable to the One who gave that authority”
Hebrews 13:17 (CSB)
Obey your leaders and submit to them, since they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account...
We’ve all heard the saying heavy is the head that wears the crown. Why Pastors and elders are not kings but shepherds there is a weight that comes from this responsibility. The Responsibility that I will answer to God for how I lead.
I will give an account for every message I preach, every decision I make. To be honest, that idea sometimes keeps me up at night. I know the grace of God will cover me and fill in the gaps where I am insufficient but none the less it is a joyful burden.
3. What is the purpose of the authority of the pastors and elders?
3. What is the purpose of the authority of the pastors and elders?
Why does God give authority to the Pastors/elders of the church?
Look at Hebrews 13:17 again.
Obey your leaders and submit to them, since they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account, so that they can do this with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.
To keep watch over you. To Gaurd you. Why should you follow the leadership because they work for your benefit. Notice I did not say that they work for you. The U.S. Government may see me and other elders as employed by the church But God see us as employed by Him for the benefit of the church.
A Pastor is to guard the church against sin that is always encroaching.
A Pastor is to guard the church against sin that is always encroaching.
Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; correct, rebuke, and encourage with great patience and teaching.
When a church member tells a pastor that their life is none of His business they fail to recognize the proper function of a pastor.
We live in a day where correction is the worst offense. Don’t you dare tell me that I am wrong…is the mantra of today. Pride has taken over everything.
A fool’s way is right in his own eyes, but whoever listens to counsel is wise.
Don’t be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and turn away from evil.
Do you see a person who is wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.
Yet a pastor is to use his authority to preach and teach, correct and rebuke, and encourage. According to scripture we have the authority and responsibility to do these things and to do them with gentleness and love. In fact according to scripture we have been appointed to this office by the Holy Spirit.
A Pastor is to defend the church from false teachers.
A Pastor is to defend the church from false teachers.
Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as overseers, to shepherd the church of God, which he purchased with his own blood.
I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock.
Men will rise up even from your own number and distort the truth to lure the disciples into following them.
Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for three years I never stopped warning each one of you with tears.
So why has God given pastors and elders authortiy in these matters? For your benefit.
To many modern churches fail to see the pastor/elders as authoritative. To many churches to count run off their pastor not because he has violated the word of God, but rather because he stood by it and refused to be moved from his responsibility. How many pastors have been driven to the point of depression from sheep that Bite.
Through the inspiration of God the author of Hebrew warned of this very thing.
Obey your leaders and submit to them, since they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account, so that they can do this with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.
I would argue that whenever the leadership is rebelled against it will always bring harm to the flock. How many churches today are barely making it because they can’t keep a pastor and they live with perpetual infighting.
However, I want to stand here today and commend you all. You all are a joy. I mean that from the bottom of my heart and I thank you for your godly disposition and your willingness to pivot when necessary. I listen to many pastors and the horror stories of ministry. I hear of so many dropping out of ministry all together because they are burned out and broken. And then I get to pastor you all. It’s a blessing.
many of you may have noticed that I used pastors and elders in the plural throughout my sermon. That is because that is how scripture uses the same term. My goal is to have a mixture of both vocational elders and lay elders to shepherd this flock.
Multiple elders ensure the other elders don’t get off track. They are trained in the word to know if the pastor has deviated. My goal is to put into place a system that will serve this church faithfully for generations if the Lord tarries.
At the beginning of this series, I told you that at the end we would have a church-wide signing of our family commitment. So today after a time of prayer. I am going to ask you as the church body to come an sign as a renewed commitment to these scriptural principles.