Leadership of church

Jesus Christ alone is head of the church

Colossians 1:18 NIV

And he 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.

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The Holy Spirit directs the church

Acts 13:2 NIV

While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”

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The appointment of leaders in the church

God calls and equips leaders

Ephesians 4:11 NIV

So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers,

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Delegated leadership

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The appointment of apostles

Mark 3:13–19 NIV

Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him. He appointed twelve that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach and to have authority to drive out demons. These are the twelve he appointed: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter), James son of Zebedee and his brother John (to them he gave the name Boanerges, which means “sons of thunder”), Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

As founders of the church:

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As leaders of the church:

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Prophets as leaders

Judas and Silas were leaders in the Jerusalem church (Ac 15:22).

See also ; ; The role of prophets as leaders is distinct from the gift of prophecy, which was in principle available to all; ; ;

Evangelists as leaders

Acts 21:8 NIV

Leaving the next day, we reached Caesarea and stayed at the house of Philip the evangelist, one of the Seven.

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Pastors and teachers as leaders

Acts 20:28 NIV

Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.

See also ; ; ; ; ; ; ; Pastors are also called “shepherds”.

Elders as leaders

“Elder” and “overseer” or “bishop” are more or less interchangeable.

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Deacons as leaders

“Deacon” means “one who serves”.

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Qualifications for church leadership

The first apostles were witnesses of Jesus Christ’s life and resurrection:

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Qualifications for elders and deacons:

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Responsibilities of church leaders

To preach the gospel

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To teach sound doctrine

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To give direction in church life

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To be an example in loving service

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To train and appoint other leaders

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To pray for the sick

James 5:14 NIV

Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord.

To exercise discipline in the church

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The church’s responsibilities to its leaders

To respect and submit to its leaders

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To pray for its leaders

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To support its leaders financially

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The corporate government of the church

In choosing leaders

Acts 6:3–6 NIV

Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.” This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism. They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.

In implementing decisions

Acts 15:22–29 NIV

Then the apostles and elders, with the whole church, decided to choose some of their own men and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They chose Judas (called Barsabbas) and Silas, men who were leaders among the believers. With them they sent the following letter: The apostles and elders, your brothers, To the Gentile believers in Antioch, Syria and Cilicia: Greetings. We have heard that some went out from us without our authorization and disturbed you, troubling your minds by what they said. So we all agreed to choose some men and send them to you with our dear friends Barnabas and Paul—men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore we are sending Judas and Silas to confirm by word of mouth what we are writing. It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements: You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things. Farewell.

In building up the church

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In discerning true and false teachings

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In exercising discipline

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The structure of the church

The pattern of church life

Acts 2:42 NIV

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.

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The house church

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The local church

; ; It is unknown whether there were subdivisions of the church in towns such as Corinth;

Churches in a region

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The universal church

Matthew 16:18 NIV

And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.

Referring to the local as well as the universal church:

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