Today, we are going to ordain and install a new elder and a new
deacon. As I thought about this and prayed about it, it seemed good to take
some time to talk to you about what that means. What are we going to be doing,
and why are we doing it? Those are important questions that need to be asked in
many areas of life. And they certainly apply to the Church. It’s when people do
things just because that’s the way it’s always been done that there will be
problems. So, when we ordain and install Dave and Aaron, we need to understand
what’s going on.
For us to do a good job answering those questions, we need to
understand the big picture. Many errors can be avoided if you do that. So, in
terms of the big picture, what will be happening with Dave and Aaron? Here’s
something that Jesus teaches that answers that question.
And I tell you, you
are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall
not prevail against it. Matthew 16.18
Jesus is in the process of building His Church. That is a project that
will take Him the rest of history as we know it to complete. Ordaining Dave and
Aaron is a part of His project. Seeing that in this way puts a different spin
on things, an important spin. So, with that in mind, let’s take a look at what
Jesus is saying here.
First, it’s important to be clear about what Jesus means by this word ‘build’.
It includes two dimensions. The first has to do with Jesus’ plans for how large
His Church is to be. And the fact is that He intends it to be very large. He
wants His Church to be filled with many, many people. But that has to be
connected with the other dimension here: depth. It is also Jesus’ intention to
build a Church that continually goes deeper. It goes deeper first and foremost
in its understanding of who God is. The Church needs to grow in its
understanding of how God is faithful to all His promises, how He rules, how He
loves and how He hates. It is as the Church grows in its understand of the
wonder of God and lives out that understanding that it will be filled with lots
of people. So, breadth and depth, two dimensions to Jesus’ plan to build His
Church.
Another key word here is the word Church. What’s that? What is Jesus
referring to? Some say that Jesus is talking about people who are His
disciples. That’s clear. However, these also say that these disciples don’t
necessarily form a group that you can point to. The Church is simply those
people who are truly following Jesus. In a way, according to these folk, one
can say that the Church is invisible. Oh, there are these groups of people that
meet together but, according to these folk, that’s not what Jesus is talking
about in this passage.
Well, obviously we need to be clear on this. And we need to do that so
that we will understand what Jesus is saying. What is He promising to build?
What do the Scriptures teach about this? What is the Church? What I
will show you is that, according to Scripture, the Church is a very visible
group of people. And it can be made quite clear who is part of that group and
who is not. And it is this group, this institution, that Jesus is set on
building.
Those who hold to the idea of the Church as an invisible group rely,
in part, on the history of the Greek word that is translated ‘church’. I think
many of you have heard this word, ‘ekklesia’. It is said that this word is
about those who are called out. That’s literally what ‘ekklesia’ originally
meant. So, the Church is those whom Jesus has called out of the world to follow
Him.
Now, it may be true that at one time the word ‘ekklesia’ had the sense
of ‘called out ones’, but words don’t stay put. They change their meanings over
time. So, what you need to do is not to understand how a word had been used at
some point in its history but rather how it is used at the particular time in
question.
Take the simple word ‘want’. What does that mean? When we say, ‘I want
that’, we are saying that we have a desire for something. But how does that
meaning fit with the first line of the familiar Psalm 23 as it is commonly
translated following the KJV’s lead?
The Lord is my
shepherd I shall not want.
Is this saying that we are not to have desires? Obviously not. No, it’s
about not experiencing a lack, which is what that word meant when the KJV was
translated. But it doesn’t mean that today. There are a couple of new
translations that take the bold move to translate that in ways that we actually
speak today. Here’s one example.
The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I
lack. Psalms 23:1 [HCSB]
The meaning of words changes.
Whether the Greek word for ‘church’ originally had something to do
with people being called out is not that important for our understanding of
what Jesus was referring to in our text. What we want to know is how is it used
when Jesus’ words were being written down. How is it used when the New
Testament was being written? In the New Testament, that Greek word is always
used to refer to a clearly defined group of people. In fact, there are a couple
of times when it is not even translated as ‘church’. Here are just a few
examples of that.
This is about Israel in the desert.
This is the one who
was in the congregation in the
wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our
fathers. Acts 7.38
This is about the riotous mob in Ephesus.
Now some cried out
one thing, some another, for the assembly
was in confusion, and most of them did not know why they had come together.
Acts 19.32
We see the same thing in Hebrews where one of the Psalms is quoted.
I will tell of your
name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation
I will sing your praise. Hebrews 2:12
Then, of course, there are the times when it is very clear that
certain local churches are being referred to.
Paul, Silvanus, and
Timothy, to the church of the
Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and
peace. 1 Thessalonians 1.1
John to the seven churches that are in Asia… Revelation
1:4
Jesus is not promising to build up some individuals as they follow
Him. No, He is set on building an institution. This is an institution made up
of people who are mystically connected to Him and each other by the Spirit and
who are organized into smaller groups called local congregations or churches.
All of this becomes important when you ask how Jesus will do this. He
will use means. That is, He will use people like elders and deacons as they
lead these local churches. Understanding what Jesus means by His Church helps
to make clear what He wants elders and deacons to do.
Now, where do I get that from? Where do the Scriptures talk about
elders and deacons in this way? One place is our text.
Many Protestants struggle with a part of our text. Let me read it
again to you.
And I tell you, you
are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall
not prevail against it. Matthew 16.18
To many Protestants, that just sounds Catholic, with Peter as the
first pope. That would be a misunderstanding of what Jesus is saying. But one
thing that is clear is that Jesus is going to use people to build this
institution, His Church, people like Peter.
And Peter wasn’t alone in this calling. Jesus makes that clear in
other places. Listen to Jesus in Matthew 18 as He instructs His Church on how
to deal with an unrepentant member.
If he pays no
attention to them, tell the church. But if he doesn’t pay attention even to the
church, let him be like an unbeliever and a tax collector to you. I assure you:
Whatever you bind on earth is already bound in heaven, and whatever you loose
on earth is already loosed in heaven. Again, I assure you: If two of you on
earth agree about any matter that you pray for, it will be done for you by My
Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am
there among them. Matthew 18:17-20 [HCSB]
First thing to note is that Jesus’ Church, as an institution, has a
role to play here in the care of the saints. The last step of Matthew 18 has to
do with the Church.
And next, we need to ask about who Jesus is talking to. Who’s the
‘you’? It’s not just Peter. It’s all of the Twelve. And He tells them that when
His Church, which they will be leading, is dealing with someone who simply
refuses to repent of some sin, then they, as leaders of His Church, are to
declare that person an unbeliever. And that decision, what Jesus calls binding,
is approved in heaven. And as they come to that conclusion, Jesus is among them,
guiding them. There needs to be the two or three witnesses to what is
happening, a principle rooted in other Scriptures, but as long as that
requirement is met, Jesus stands behind the decision. In this He is building
His Church, here especially in terms of depth, through the means of these
leaders.
Now, it’s important to remember that Jesus’ comments were made to the
Apostles. You always need to remember the original audience of any Bible
passage. That does raise a question. Does this have anything to say to us who live when there are no Apostles? The answer is a
clear, ‘Yes’. First of all, it would be odd for Jesus to organize His Church
with such leaders only intending it to last as long as the Twelve were living.
What happens after they die? A Church without leaders? No, Jesus intends this
to be the way that His Church is to function throughout the time that He is
building it, that is, until He returns.
So, who gets to lead the Church in these things after the Apostles are
gone? That would be the elders of the Church. How do I know that?
Consider Acts 15. Here, we see elders joining the Apostles in leading
the Church at the first Church council. This assembly had to deal with whether
aspects of the Mosaic law were to continue. Listen to how Luke begins his
account.
The apostles and the elders were gathered together to
consider this matter. Acts 15:6
There is some overlap here before the Apostles died. The elders of the
Church join them in caring for and leading the Church, something that they would
do alone once there would be no Apostles.
Next let’s consider the manner by which elders and deacons are placed
in their positions of leadership. Here, I want to talk about the laying on of
hands, an important symbolic act. We see one instance of this in Acts 6 when
some men were appointed by the Apostles to oversee the distribution of food to
the widows.
These they set
before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them. Acts 6:6
The same sort of thing happened in Acts 13.
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.” Then after fasting
and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off. Acts 13:2-3
The laying on of hands is a physical act that pictures a spiritual
reality. It can, as a result, be understood as a sacramental act. This can be
easily understood by something in Leviticus.
If his offering is
a burnt offering from the herd, he shall offer a male without blemish. He shall
bring it to the entrance of the tent of meeting, that he may be accepted before
the Lord. He shall lay his hand on
the head of the burnt offering, and it shall be accepted for him to make
atonement for him. Leviticus 1:3-4
The laying on of hands is about the transference of something. In this
passage from Leviticus, it’s about the transference of sin from the person making
the offering to the animal he is offering up. In so doing, the sacrifice ‘shall
be accepted for him to make atonement for him’.
When it comes to elders and deacons, what is being transferred is
authority. So, in Acts 6 that I just read, when the Apostles laid their hands
on those seven men, they gave them a measure of the authority that they had
received from Jesus. Or to say that more clearly, Jesus gave those seven men a
measure of His own authority. He did that through the Apostles who had also
received a measure of Jesus’ authority. And Jesus did that so that the members
of the Church would know to submit to them as they cared for the widows.
Paul instructs Timothy about laying on of hands in a few passages.
Do not neglect the
gift you have, which was given you by prophecy when the council of elders laid
their hands on you. 1 Timothy 4.14
For this reason I
remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the
laying on of my hands… 2 Timothy 1.6
In a few moments, Ray and I will lay hands on Dave and Aaron. As we do
that, we will be giving them a measure of the authority Jesus gave us when
hands were laid on us. Or, again, to say that clearly, Jesus will be granting
them authority, through Ray and me, so that you will know to submit to them as
they work to fulfill their callings. And in this way Jesus will build His
Church.
Now, what does it mean for them to fulfill their callings? What is an
elder and a deacon to do?
Let’s start with a deacon. There is actually almost nothing in the
Scriptures to define the work of a deacon. If we take what was going on in Acts
6 with the distribution of the food to the widows as the ordination of the
first deacons, that will give us something, though it never calls those men
deacons. If we do that, then what a deacon is to do is to care for the physical
well-being of the saints. And that can cover a lot of territory, including
things like making sure that you have enough to eat. The goal here is to care
for the flock.
And what is an elder to do? There’s much more available here for us to
consider. So, Paul says to the elders at the church of Ephesus,
Pay careful
attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made
you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own
blood. Acts 20:28
Peter adds this,
So I exhort the
elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ,
as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: shepherd the
flock of God that is among you… 1 Peter 5:1-2
Elders are to care for the flock, to shepherd the flock. So, what does
that cover? What areas of life are included in shepherding the flock of God? It
covers everything. And that’s clear because Jesus’ Lordship covers everything.
So, again, the goal is to care for the flock.
Elders and deacons are to care for the flock. That’s clear, but it leads
to another question. Who is included in the particular flock that an elder or a
deacon is commanded to care for? That question becomes more pointed when you
consider this bit of Scripture.
Obey your leaders
and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who
will have to give an account. Hebrews 13.17
The leaders of a local church, the elders and deacons, are to care for
their flock. And they will have to give an account to Jesus, the Chief Shepherd
of the Church, about how well they did that. So, who are they accountable for?
Listen to how Jesus describes a good shepherd who cares for his flock.
But he who enters
by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. The
sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. …
I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father
knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. John
10:2-3,14–15
What Jesus is describing is a relationship between Him and His sheep.
He knows them, and they know Him. And that’s why when He calls them, they
follow Him. And that’s why He is willing to lay down His life for them. A good shepherd
knows who’s in the flock that he is to care for, and the sheep know who their
shepherd is and they depend on him to care for them.
It’s when the relationship between elder and flock is seen in this way
that membership, as intend by Scripture, makes sense. Membership is a solemn
bond between the leaders and the members of a local church. It’s the leaders
saying to the members of their church, ‘I am responsible for you. So, I will
care for you. If that means laying down my life for you, I will do that. It’s
what a good shepherd does’. There’s more to membership than that, but not less.
Now, two last questions.
Here’s the first. Why is this important? It’s about understanding what
Dave and Aaron and Raleigh and Ray and I are to be doing. There are too many
churches where the roles of elders and deacons have been watered down. In these
cases, the church is viewed as merely a social institution, a religious Elks Club.
And every social institution needs certain things to happen. It needs people to
make business decisions, and it needs people to maintain the property. And that
is what elders and deacons have become in too many churches.
But Jesus’ Church isn’t some social institution. It is a spiritual
institution. It is something that Jesus is busy, even now, building. And that
means changing people’s lives by applying the Gospel to them by word and deed.
That is what elders and deacons are really about. And to opt for what is too
common these days is to betray Jesus and His plans for His Church and this
world. This is why I started out with the big picture. This is why what I’ve
talked about this morning is important.
Last question. What are you to do with all of this? What I have been
talking about is how you are to be cared for. That has to do with things like
how well you are praying, meditating on the Scriptures and growing in grace, as
well as things like how well you are doing at paying your bills. That’s what
elders and deacons are for. So, here’s what you do with all of this. Let them
care for you. Be open to them as they
work at fulfilling their callings. They want to be sure that all is well with
you. Let them do that. Help them do that. Remember the goal of all of this:
Jesus building His Church.