Stewarding Our Leaders

Well, so glad to be able to open God's Word with you this morning.

You can get your Bibles out. We'll turn in just a second.

As we begin this morning, I wonder how many of us who have been married

! Can remember the gifts that you received on that day long ago.

For me, it was about 15 years ago, just two weeks ago.

And I was thinking about it.

The only thing that I can remember that we received as a gift that day

were some blue wedding plates that have no longer survived.

Now, this is funny to think about.

If you go to a birthday party, you can see on the expression of your kid's face

if they were hopeful for a particular gift.

We can see it in their eyes, their expression.

This even happens in our marriages when we are giving gifts on anniversaries.

Some of us have missed the mark, haven't we?

You see, it's often true that the giver and the receiver are on different pages.

But this morning, we are going to consider that God is not like us in giving gifts.

God never once gives bad gifts to His people.

Now, how we make use of those gifts, if they are used towards their intended purpose,

is a helpful way for us to think about what we're discussing this morning,

the biblical idea of stewardship.

This morning, we will give attention, especially to one form of stewardship,

and that's the stewardship of pastors and elders

that have been gifted to each local congregation to lead the body.

Now, if you're newer with us this morning,

you may not know that we have just recently appointed and affirmed new elders in this local body.

Now, it's helpful for us to remember that this is only the beginning for us with these new elders.

See, there are a lifetime of transactions that occur between a pastor and a church member,

those church members to their pastor.

So that's our goal this morning, as we're going to open God's Word in just a second,

to consider and to prayerfully ask the Lord,

is there room for me to grow in embracing the gift of elders that God has given to this body?

So let's do that.

We're going to pray this morning, and we will open in just a second to our first text.

So let's pray.

Father, we, today, this morning, recognize that it is by Your Word that You lead us.

Lord, Your Word, by Your Holy Spirit, brings new light to our lives.

There are new ways that the Gospel is intended to transform us,

to increase our joy, to increase our longing for the day that You will come back.

And so we pray this morning we would do that.

Lord, would You give us humble hearts that are no longer blinded to some of the areas that we fall short.

And Lord, we thank You that we can do this as sons and daughters,

not under condemnation if we put our trust in Christ,

but Lord with joyful thanksgiving.

So would You accomplish that and more as we spend our time together in Christ's name. Amen.

Now there's a few reasons that we don't normally think much about stewarding our elders and other leaders within the church.

We don't normally assume that elders and pastors in our life belong in the same category

that something like a checkbook or a calendar do.

We don't have a system of evaluating whether or not we are using them correctly,

only a system in our minds of evaluating how they serve us.

So sometimes we forget our responsibility.

We also are more familiar with the biblical qualifications and calling that we see across Scripture.

So many of us are familiar with the qualifications from 1 Timothy 3, 1 Peter 5, or Titus 1.

These qualifications are essential for the health and proper care of the body.

But there's even more that should be considered as a congregation.

So we're going to turn to a couple of different passages this morning.

But let me first give you the outline for what we will be looking at this morning.

So the very first point that we will be covering is actually a question.

And the question is, why does God give the church elders and leaders?

And we'll look at Ephesians 4 to answer that question.

We'll also look at three other points from Hebrews chapter 13.

Hebrews 13 · chapter mention

These points, how we steward our elders and pastors, are the following.

Number one, by considering and imitating.

Number two, by obeying and submitting.

And by number three, by pursuing the joy of our elders.

So please turn with me first to Ephesians chapter 4.

Ephesians 4 · chapter mention

Although most of our time will be in the book of Hebrews, it's helpful to start here.

And the reason is because this chapter, really, this section of verses helps to lay the foundation and the groundwork for how to understand why God gives qualified men to local congregations.

So let's read Ephesians chapter 4.

Ephesians 4 · chapter mention

We'll start in verse 4.

There is one body and one spirit.

Just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call.

One Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all.

Who is over all and through all and in all.

But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ's gift.

Therefore, it says,

When he ascended on high, he led a host of captives and he gave gifts to men.

In saying he ascended, what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower regions, the earth.

He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens that he might fill all things.

And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers to equip the saints for the work of ministry,

for building up the body of Christ.

Until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God to mature manhood.

To the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.

As we head towards understanding how we are called to embrace the gift of leadership in the body,

we first want to understand why elders and leaders are given to the church.

So first consider with me that this is not a man-made idea.

Notice in our text who is the primary actor, the origin, and the one who is actively setting his course to achieve a particular goal.

Verse 7 says,

But grace was given to each one of us, and it was according to the measure of whose gift?

Of Christ's gifts.

At this point, we don't exactly know what is being given, but we can see that the one responsible is the Lord Jesus Christ.

Because the gifts belong to him.

And he is given from his own heart, and what we see is from his grace.

This means that Jesus is not being compelled and he's not being forced.

But this giving of gifts comes from his own heart.

But notice also with me, what is the occasion that these gifts are given to?

So we tend to think of giving out gifts on special occasions like birthdays, anniversaries, or other reasons to celebrate.

But this particular celebration, it comes in response to what the text describes as an ascension and a descension.

Do you see that in verse 9 and verse 10?

Notice it says,

He descended into the lower regions, the earth.

Now, kids, if you aren't familiar with what the word descension is,

Think of somebody coming down from a position of great power, like a king.

And they come down to make themselves known to you.

Now, that's a powerful picture.

And that's what Jesus has done.

So Jesus has descended in history from his place of glory to become clothed in flesh, like you and I,

In order that he might ascend and go back.

Back to glory with his Father.

So what we have again here is we have the occasion of a celebration.

A celebration of descension and ascension.

And Jesus is celebrating the conquering of sin and death that he accomplished on the cross.

Now, as he accomplishes this great work,

What Jesus does is he shares the spoils with his people.

See, it's unlike a birthday party that you go to,

Where we give gifts to the person being celebrated here.

What we see is Jesus gives gifts to his body through his accomplishment.

Jesus has won a triumphant victory.

And we are the ones who receive the benefit.

You're familiar with this line.

It says,

Why should I gain from his reward?

I cannot give an answer.

But this I know with all my heart,

His wounds have paid my ransom.

We receive gifts from what he's done for us.

Now, we're getting closer to answering this question

of why does God give pastors and elders?

We've seen that Jesus gives gifts to his people.

And he does it to further enjoy,

to further satisfy the things that he has accomplished for us.

And we also see that Jesus,

when he gives gifts in this text,

he's giving to two different categories of people.

If you look at verse 7,

he is giving specific gifts.

And it says,

For building up the entire body.

Oh, I'm sorry.

Let me back up.

We see that in verse 7,

he's giving gifts to specific people.

But in verse 12,

he is giving gifts to the entire body of the church,

the collective group of people

that assembles together to worship the Lord.

Now, look again with me at verse 11 through 13.

It says,

He gave apostles and prophets,

evangelists, shepherds, and teachers

to equip the saints for the work of ministry,

for building up the body of Christ,

until we all attain to the unity of the faith

and of the knowledge of the Son of God,

to mature manhood,

to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.

See, our corporate gifts are the leaders

that God has put amongst us.

They are the ones we are called to steward.

They have been specifically created and designed and placed

within each local congregation

so that the body can progressively enjoy the full bounty

of the soul-satisfying work of the gospel.

Now, many churches don't enjoy the benefit

of seeing those called and appointed

as elders and leaders in their congregation.

Perhaps you grew up in one of these churches as well.

You may have picked up habits from these earlier days

and become accustomed to viewing pastors

only on a horizontal level.

See, the danger that we walk into when we do this

is we can actually only start relating to our pastors

in a form of compliance to their leadership,

perhaps tolerance for their ministry,

but worse, what can happen is disdain and resistance

can creep in towards authority,

and this can have great consequences on the church.

So I ask you, brothers and sisters,

do you receive your pastors and elders

as gifts that we see from Ephesians chapter 4?

Ephesians 4 · chapter mention

These are for your good,

and their placement is a primary means of grace

so that we can know Christ more.

Now we're going to switch,

and you can flip over to Hebrews chapter 13.

Hebrews 13 · chapter mention

We're going to read through a short section here,

but before we get that,

those of you who may be a little bit unfamiliar

with the book of Hebrews,

it's helpful to remember

that the author of Hebrews

spends a lot of his time laboring

to challenge, exhort,

and uphold the superior hope of the gospel

as the end that the Old Testament anticipates.

So the sacrificial system of the Old Testament

has been replaced

by the once and for all sacrifice

of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

But the book of Hebrews

doesn't just hold out the hope of Christ.

It also warns us

about drifting in our own hearts.

So chapter 2, verse 1 says,

Therefore we must pay closer attention

to what we have heard

lest we drift away from it.

Chapter 4 says,

Let us therefore strive to enter the rest

so that no one may fall

by the same sort of disobedience.

In Hebrews 10,

For if we go on sinning deliberately,

after receiving the knowledge of the truth,

there no longer remains

a sacrifice for sins,

but a fearful expectation of judgment.

These sober reminders

are attention worthy.

They call us to shackle

the hidden areas of self-confidence

and to root out any drifting of the heart

that exists within us.

The closing words of Hebrews

then are intended to protect us,

to point us towards

God's preserving grace

that we receive

through conduits

of the Great Shepherd Himself,

namely our leaders.

So point one

is how to embrace biblical leadership

to consider and imitate.

Chapter 13, verse 7,

we read this.

It says,

Remember your leaders,

those who spoke to you

the Word of God,

and consider

the outcome

of their way of life,

and imitate their faith.

There is a progression

within this verse

that's important for us to follow.

The progression begins

with the idea

of first remembering

leaders of the past.

The past tense word spoke

and the focus on the outcome

of their way of life

leads us to assume

that these particular leaders

being referenced

have now gone on

to be with the Lord.

Now, our text alerts us

that the call

to remember our leaders

does not stop

only with admiration

of our leaders.

You see,

the world celebrates

and it memorializes leaders

in an outward way.

But we are called

to a different type

of remembering.

We remember leaders

of the body

with an eye

towards consideration

and imitation.

It says,

consider the outcome

of their way of life

and imitate

their faith.

Now, why would God

call us

to imitate men?

Doesn't that put us

in a position

of vulnerability

to their own failures?

Well, consider

just a few chapters

before.

In the chapter

called the Hall of Faith,

chapter 11,

those mentioned

are extremely flawed men

with flawed resumes.

So, we recall

Moses was a man

who struggled

with anger

such that he

was guilty

of murder.

Now, David

was the same

as well.

He succumbed

to the pleasures

of his flesh

by committing adultery.

in themselves,

these are

ordinary men

and so

are your

elders.

But why

do we remember?

Why does God

call us

to remember

these leaders

of the past?

What is actually

worthy

of being considered

and imitated?

The point

of remembering

our leaders

is found

in the connection

to verse 8.

It says,

Jesus Christ

is the same

yesterday,

today,

and forever.

The verse

is intentionally

positioned

right here

in the context

of imitating

our leaders

because

we remember

in such a way

that we fix

our gaze

not on men,

but on the

faithfulness

of the one

who sustained

them

until the

very end.

See,

Jesus is the one

who gives

pastors

as gifts

to demonstrate

not sufficiency

in men,

but the

sufficiency

of his grace

which works

within them.

We should

expect

a particular

way

that God

will show

us Christ

in the men

that are called

to lead

the church.

So,

how is the

gospel

manifested

in their

public

and in

their

private

lives?

Where do

we witness

their strength

coming from

when their

flesh

is weak

and exposed?

Hebrews 11

Hebrews 11:13

verse 13

reminds us

of these

leaders.

These all

died in

faith,

not having

received the

things which

were promised,

but having

seen them,

they greeted

them from

afar,

having

acknowledged

that they

were strangers

and exiles

on the

earth.

Now,

these are

the types

of leaders

who bring

great benefit

to the

body of

Christ.

Many

leaders

clothe

themselves

in signs

of external

strength,

but look

to leaders,

imitate

leaders,

and pray

for our

leaders,

that they

would be

the type

of men

who wear

the banner

of Jesus

Christ

yesterday,

today,

and forever.

So,

our flesh,

it's good for

us to think

about,

our flesh

naturally

wants to

resist the

call to

imitate,

to submit,

and to

obey and

follow our

leaders.

leaders.

Now,

at least in

my own

heart,

there are

a couple

reasons why

this happens

so naturally.

The first

is because

individualism

reigns

supreme

in our

country.

We place

value on

thinking

independently,

on being

able to

navigate our

course without

needing help

from outsiders,

and this

can be very

sneaky within

our own

hearts.

What does

it look

like?

Well,

thoughts can

quietly enter

and say

to us,

we would

do things

just a

little

differently.

They don't

exactly see

the things

that we

see.

They might

have a

funny

personality.

And slowly,

our

imitation

turns only

outward towards

observation,

or even

reservation.

Is the

Lord calling

us to

repent in

this area?

Could it

be that

the grace

of receiving

care from

our Father

means to

fight against

the spirit

of individualism

in our own

hearts?

The second

reason is

that our

leaders are

sinful,

as we

well know.

While it's

good to be

discerning about

the direction

that our

leaders will

take,

we can

easily fall

prey to

the schemes

of the evil

one,

which tell

us to

resist their

influence for

our safety.

can you

imagine the

sheep coming

together with

a call to

resist the

care of

their

shepherds?

This is a

very dangerous

point,

place to

be,

church.

You see,

God has

ordained

biblical

standards for

our elders

amongst us.

Paul says,

even if an

angel comes

proclaiming

another gospel,

let him be

a curse.

God gives

our leaders

guidelines.

How we

are to be

influenced

should be

very similar

to the

words of

Paul in

1 Corinthians

1 Corinthians 11 · chapter mention

chapter 11.

It says

this,

follow me,

but follow

me as I

follow Christ.

Our

imitation

is grounded

in Christ.

Point two,

how to

embrace

biblical

leadership

by obeying

and submitting.

So for the

sake of time,

we're not

going to

unpack all

the verses

here in

the next

section of

Hebrews

Hebrews 13 · chapter mention

chapter 13,

but in

brief fashion,

notice verse

9 and the

warning that

is mentioned

in this

particular

verse.

One of

the primary

reasons we're

called to

embrace

leaders by

obeying and

submitting to

them is

because there

is no

shortage of

what verse

9 calls

strange and

diverse

teachings.

Now we

aren't told

precisely what

these teachings

are, but we

do know that

believers are

being threatened

to find false

strength in

some custom

of food

observance.

notice that

the writer

says halfway

through this

verse, it

is good for

the heart to

be strengthened

by grace

rather than

by foods

prepared at

altars.

So pastors

are called

to do

exactly what

we find

here by

the author

of Hebrews.

They warn

us to

protect us

from reaching

for false

strength.

The gospel

is indeed

sufficient, the

elders must

declare, and

that is their

only banner.

Now why is

this important?

It's because we

all reach for

something when

weaknesses are

exposed in our

life.

That is built

within our

fabric.

I am weak,

I need

strength.

I'm not

content with my

circumstances,

what hope can

I find in

other circumstances

where I've

fallen down,

what will

lift me up?

I see this

example in my

beautiful daughter

Savannah that

many of you

know.

So she's not

quite comfortable

in a pool

all by herself.

And while she

reaches for her

mom continually

around the

house, it can

be hard for me

to even capture

a moment of

her attention.

But when we

head over to

the pool,

there's only

one person

that she

wants to be

with.

See, she

reaches for

the strongest

thing that

she can when

her weakness

is exposed.

And thankfully,

that's her

dad.

Now, us

elders are

called to

do just like

I do for

Savannah.

I do not

let her reach

for her

brothers and

her sisters.

The pool

noodle that

looks really

easy to

hang on is

just a trap.

And that is

what elders

do for the

congregation.

When we

are weak

only, Christ

is sufficient

to sustain

us until

the end.

Now, God's

under-shepherds

have this

glorious privilege

of upholding

the worth

of Jesus.

But it

also says

in verse

17,

obey your

leaders and

submit to

them, for

they are

keeping watch

over your

souls as

those who

will give

an account.

So be

encouraged,

church.

Our

obedience and

our submission

to elders

is grounded

in their

accountability

ability before

God Almighty.

They are

only stewards

themselves,

and God

is presiding

over their

care for

you.

Oh, how

the Lord

loves you.

Having not

spared his

son, he

can be

trusted with

the ones that

he has put in

charge of

your care.

our last

point this

morning is

how to

embrace

biblical

leadership

by pursuing

the joy

of our

leaders.

And this

also comes

from verse

17.

It says

this,

obey your

leaders and

submit to

them, for

they are

keeping watch

over your

souls as

those who

will give

an account,

but let

them do

this with

joy and

not with

groaning,

because that

would be of

no advantage

to you.

So there

are two

goals in

mind here

with this

final instruction,

and the

first of

which is

to pursue

the joy

of your

pastors.

Let them

do this

with joy.

This is a

call,

church,

to us,

to you,

to care

specifically

for the

hearts of

your leaders.

You see,

our groanings,

our complaints,

our

dissatisfaction

has the

potential to

deplete the

heart of

those who

care for

us.

So fill

them with

joy,

church.

Refuel

and replenish

and guard

your words

against

groaning.

Measure

the ambition

of your

heart by

setting your

course for

joy in

their ministry.

And secondly,

remember that

this is also

designed for

your good.

Verse 17

reminds us

that we

are advantaged.

We are best

cared for.

we are best

stewards

ourselves

when we

are pursuing

their joy.

Now let me

say this,

I am brand

new to the

role of

being an

elder,

as you

know,

but from

talking to

those who

have labored

faithfully

year after

year at

Christ's

family,

they find

it a joy

to serve

you because

you do

these things

very well.

You

increase

our joy

in Christ

by the

way that

you live,

by the

way that

you are

gracious

with our

weaknesses,

and by

your desire

to be

led

towards

streams

of living

waters.

But as

we strive

to do

this even

more,

there are

just a

few

practical

steps

for us

to

consider.

So four

steps for

our

consideration.

The first,

you don't

have to

turn there,

comes from

3 John

3 John 1:4

chapter 1

verse 4.

It says

this,

I have

no greater

joy

than to

hear that

my

children

are

walking

in the

truth.

The first

step is

to walk

in the

truth.

What is

your compass

church that

navigates

your

relationship

with your

elders?

Do your

engagement

with your

pastors

demonstrate

that you

are hungry

for intimacy

with Christ?

Does

truth

preside

over

preference?

step

number

two,

pray.

Second

2 Thessalonians 3:1

Thessalonians

3

verse 1

says this,

finally

brothers,

pray for

us that

the word

of the

Lord may

speed

ahead

and be

honored

and that

we may

be delivered

from wicked

and from

evil

men.

Are

you

praying

for your

pastors?

A couple

specific ways,

pray that

God would

fuel us,

that we

ourselves

would hunger

for more

of Christ.

Pray that

God would

protect us

from the

schemes of

the evil

one that

are many

times directed

precisely

at your

elders.

And pray

for grace

within our

families,

that our

wives and

that our

children would

be healthy

and established

in the truth

of the

gospel.

Number

three,

provide.

1 Timothy

1 Timothy 5:17

chapter 5

verse 17

says,

let the

elders who

rule well

be considered

worthy of

double

honor,

especially

those who

labor

in preaching

and in

teaching.

This is a

great verse

that probably

deserves more

time than

we are giving

it this

morning.

But consider

what is this

verse calling

us to?

Those who

labor in

teaching and

preaching are

those who

make their

living by

proclaiming

the gospel.

We are

privileged to

have two

men who

are currently

doing that

in our

body.

What a

gift to

excel in

providing for

these men.

See, we

can be

intentional and

do our

best to

remove any

obstacles of

provision that

a full-time

pastor may

feel.

We want

them to be

freed from

the concerns

of outside

work.

By God's

grace, our

pastors do

not seek

riches,

marriages, but

they do

have families,

they do

have weddings

of the future

to prepare

for, and

they do

have

retirements

that one

day they

need just

like we

do.

Number four,

clothe

yourselves in

humility.

First Peter

chapter five

says this,

likewise,

sorry,

verse five,

likewise you

who are

younger.

Be subject

to the

elders.

Clothe

yourselves,

all of you,

with humility

toward one

another.

For God

opposes the

proud, but

he gives

grace to

the humble.

Are you

humble in

the way

that you

speak of

things that

you see

differently?

Are you

inclined to

be persuaded

by the

direction and

the encouragement

that you

receive?

Are you

quicker to

share a

different

opinion or

way of

looking at

things?

One last

question,

how would

your elders

feel if

they heard

the way

that was

spoken of

them in

private?

Church,

remember,

there are

many other

ways to

care for

our elders.

But the

way as

stewards of

a great

gift, we

are to

honor and

pursue the

joy of

our pastors

is also to

pursue the

joy that

we find in

Christ

ourselves.

There are

many other

ways that

we can

consider how

to walk in

faithfulness

with our

elders.

But let

me close

with this

encouragement

from 1

Peter 3.

It says

this,

finally,

all of

you have

unity of

mind,

sympathy,

brotherly

love,

and a

tender heart,

and a

humble mind.

I am

confident you

will continue,

church, to

do this

because you

know what

good gifts

our Father

gives.

and you

know that

your ultimate

trust is not

in men,

but it is

in the one

who upholds

these men

for your

good and

for his

great glory.

We love

you, church.

Let's pray

together.

Amen.