The Direction, Administration, and Organization of the Church

Who are the leaders?

Because of confusion regarding the roles of pastor and flock, a confusion created largely by certain cultural expectations that have developed over the years, it has become even more imperative that we all have a clear biblical understanding of who the leaders and people are if churches are going to have effective ministries. Eph. 4:12; 1 Thess. 5:12-13; Heb. 13:7, 17 these verses sets a biblical standard and example of who and what the leaders should be and what roles are need to feel.

 

The leaders of the church are referred to as “elders” Acts 20:17 this is a body of men who fit the biblical standards set up by the word or who are striving to fit this standard in an openly manner. These are roles of servant hood not power.

The people of the church are ministers who are to be trained for the kind of growth in the Word that results in changed lives and ministry.

 

Pastoral Priorities in Responsibilities

God is the central priority. Everything else flows from this center. Examples of this can be seen in the following scripture. Prov. 4:23; Matt. 12:34-35; 23:6

A strong marriage relationship (Eph. 5:25; 1 Tim. 3:4).

b. Training and disciplining one's children (Eph. 6:4; 1 Tim. 3:4-5).

 Serving the church in his pastoral responsibilities as set forth in Scripture (1 Pet. 5:2-3).

 Character of Christ (1 Tim. 4:12, 15; 1 Pet. 5:3).

e. Doing the work of evangelism with neighbors, friends, relatives, etc. (1 Tim. 3:7).

 

Primary Responsibilities

Prayer, in-depth Bible study, and spiritual preparation for teaching and communicating the Word.  (Ezra 7:6-10; John 15:7; Eph. 5:18; Col. 3:1-3, 16; 1 Tim. 4:14-16; 2 Tim. 2:15).

Preaching and teaching the Word (1 Tim. 4:6, 11-13; 2 Tim. 4:1-2; 1 Cor. 9:16). Some Goals:

Teach the people to love the Word of God (Isa. 66:2; Ps. 1:1-3).

Lead people to submit to the authority of the Word and to see obedience as a major goal of their lives (Josh. 1:8).

Demonstrate that the proclamation of the Word is critical to worship (John 4:24).

Motivate people to look for and live in view of the coming of the Lord (Tit. 2:1, 11-15).

Motivate people to good deeds or ministry (Tit. 2:14; 3:1, 8, 14)

Discipling leaders and future leaders (Matt. 28:19-20; 2 Tim. 2:2)

 

 

Secondary Responsibilities

(1)   Calling, visiting, counseling (Rom. 15:1-4; 1 Thess. 5:11-12; Jam. 1:27; 5:14).(2) Administrative functions: thinking, planning and organizing, letters, etc.

 

 

Church leaders Philosophy agreement

Definition: an agreement, especially among the leaders, but extending to a broad base in the congregation, concerning (1) the purposes, goals, and product of the church, (2) the priority of certain ministries over others (exposition, training, evangelism, etc., versus some of the typical expectations that people have regarding the church), and (3) the methods used to reach those objectives.

 Description: Philosophical purity means unity or oneness of mind, harmonious agreement, but not necessarily unanimity, the complete agreement on all issues (cf. Phil. 1:27; 1 Cor. 1:10). Unity means coming to a working agreement based on a common objective.

 Necessity: this is vital to the kind of ministry that is able to multiply itself in growing, mature people who become active in the work of ministry in evangelism and edification.

 Key Scriptures: John 17:11-23; Eph. 4:3-16; Phil. 1:27; 2:2.

 

 

Principles of Administration

(1) Face Problems: Problems do not go away, they only get worse. They must be faced and dealt with according to the principles of Scripture.

(2) Get a clear Understanding of the Problem Before Seeking Solutions: This means getting all the facts available and then prayerfully seeking biblical solutions.

(3) Delegate Responsibility: This principle follows naturally the “establishment of priorities” as seen in Exodus 18 and Acts 6. Scripture stresses that this must be done with people who are qualified spiritually and by their ability (gifts and training as is needed).

(4) Establish Priorities: In solving problems and meeting the needs of people, we must, as emphasized above, act in accord with God's priorities or we create overload and burnout

(5) Solve Problems Under the Leading of the Holy Spirit: It is easy to get locked into administrative routines that kill the freedom of the Spirit of God to lead us in different ways and use our God-given creativity.

 

Organization

(1) Organize to Accomplish New Testament Purposes: Organization must never become an end. We must seek to develop structures for the church which will help us accomplish New Testament purposes and objectives.

(2) Must meet needs: We must never organize to organize. The New Testament church organized only when a need arose and only as long as the need existed

(3) Be Flexible: Biblical leaders were never locked into organizational structures.

 

The Authority of Scripture

The prophet wrote, “I know, O Lord, that a man's way is not in himself; Nor is it in a man who walks to direct his steps” (Jer. 10:23). The authority of the Word of God is crucial to all that it is and does. We must not operate in a way that contradicts what is written in Scripture.