Today leadership is in the forefront of the discussion on ecclesiology. Mostly the fact of “submitting” to such leadership. The verse that is typically used is found in Hebrews, particularly verse 17. Here it is:
17 Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.
I have posted a couple of posts about this. But reading it again I think there is something that I missed. The subject is “your leaders”. You see today, we have men who call themselves leaders. This leads to a genuine question. Exactly how is leadership established in the local church, and who MUST a Christian submit to and obey? I think this is where it gets muddy. So I am going to write what I think and I would love the interaction of others who have wrestled with this.
Exactly who does other believers have to submit to and on what basis should they submit. What constitutes a leader? How do I know if this person is really a leader and I should be submitting to them? What if I don’t want to submit to them? When should I not submit to them? Am I free to ignore them? Would I be in sin if I don’t submit to someone who I don’t believe I should submit to? These are serious questions and questions I don’t know if we ever really consider.
What if a person tells me I should submit to them? What do I do? What litmus test should I take them through to ensure they really are God’s leaders? Seminary? Calling? Affirmation from other leaders (this seems to be the case of Paul’s assistants and fellow co-workers)? Mere position? Many people call themselves leaders? That leadership is established many ways. Lets look back at the verses leading up to verse 17:
Heb 13:1;7
13:1 Let brotherly love continue
7 Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith.
Paul (??) is writing this Church about brotherly love. The first imperative is to “let brotherly love continue”. Next he goes to a personal application of what this brotherly love would look like. One is “remembering” those who spoke the word to them. If my assumption is right, to “speak” the word may have put their lives in danger. Given the fact that the reason this letter was written was to encourage wavering ethnic Jews from running back to the Old Covenant because of severe persecution. This is why Paul reminds them that Christ went outside of the camp and bore shame and they were to also go outside.
Given the fact that these leaders had served them even in the face of death wouldn’t it be expected that they would follow their service and not make ministering to them difficult. They had proven that they were worth following not by mere position and not by being in authority, but by risking their very lives to preach the Gospel to them. Many had lost homes and jobs, but instead of shrinking away they were empowered by the Spirit to preach the word even as death stared them in the face.
Any man who risks his life, loses his job, home and maybe even his family, to bring me the good news is worthy of being followed. This had to be extremely difficult. This had to be heart-breaking, discouraging, even demoralizing so then Paul says:
Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.
Why make ministering any more difficult than it was? I think one way of making it difficult was that they were begining to question them about Jesus’ ministry and the validity of the Gospel. They started to question if Jesus was really enough, which Paul explains quite clearly from Chapters 1-10. Many of these leaders had seen the gathering shrink (Heb 10:25) due to this questioning and persecution. So Paul admonishes them not to forsake the gathering (this isn’t church membership and tithing folks). They were probably hearing “if Jesus isn’t sufficient then why should we meet”.
So in closing, this is the type of example that is to be followed. These men stared death in the face and is spite of losing it all they continued to preach the wonderful sufficiency of the Lord Jesus. So this is relational, example like, servant leadership. Not men who have went to school and have been transplanted. Not men who have been accepted by a theological party, but men on their own initiative who would minister the Gospel regardless of the risk, most likely for FREE not at a salary package, not if you could only offer them enough money, not for gain! Those who had come to know Jesus were questioning them and began to make ministry hard for them. They may had begun to reconsider theri faith (this is why there are so many warnings in this book, warnings about falling away) so Paul encourages them by rebuking the Church and telling them to go outside the camp where Jesus bears the shame of sin! Not the safety of the Old Covenant that was powerless, obsolete and left void by God. To turn back meant nothing, to turn back was to be like Israel in Numbers 14, to turn back was to turn away from the very God that they say they wanted. No turning away wasn’t the option and these leaders most likely fought with them and reasoned with them and labored among them to show them the truth of Jesus Christ and the recipients of this letter had begun to ignore them.
Concerning leadership in Christ’s church, I probably hold a similar view as lionelwoods7 – it is not any kind of position that is awarded arbitrarily. Nay, it is not even rewarded at all. It simply exists, because it is proven. How can it be proven?
When one considers mainstream Christendom’s view of leaders, they are usually seen as the Clergy (Catholic and offshoots) or Pastors and Elders (Protestant and offshoots) These positions can easily be traced back thousands and thousands of years – as an example, to the earliest theologians, or much farther if you care to look at wordly hierarchical systems of government.
Nevertheless, each church or religious faction zealously uphold their view of who and what constitutes leadership. In virtually every instance, it is the man, the fleshly man, that exercises authority over another man. But what did Christ have to say about this? The scriptures are expressly clear; Mark 10:42 records Jesus saying:
“You know that those who are recognized as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them; and their great men exercise authority over them. 43″But it is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant.”
Furthermore, Matthew 8 says “But do not be called Rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers.”
Naturally, if one were to present these scriptures to followers or leaders in churches anywhere, they will say that the existing “leaders” of their particular church emphatically do NOT lord anything over anyone. But such an argument merely misses the point that Jesus was saying: Christ’s church is not at all reflected by worldly authority of any kind! Jesus didn’t say to rule in such and such a way, or to do it carefully, or to do it respectfully (not that carnal humans are capable of that anyway). Rather, Jesus said not to do it at all!
In relation to Christ’s message to the seven churches in Revelation, I strongly feel that the overcomers are the leaders of Christ’s church. It is they that lay down their lives to be buried in Christ. It is they who are persecuted and cast from the synagogues (Is 66:5/Matt 24:9) for speaking truth.
It is they that lay down their lives for Christ (Rom 6:3-11) and sacrifice themselves even loving those who hate them (John 15:13/Matt 5:44) Scriptures such as these, so often repeated, have become catchphrases to the point that their meaning is almost lost. Such character can only come from Christ, and such faith certainly is worthy of imitation!
Thus, it would be prudent to be cautious of men who appoint themselves as leaders. Jesus said that you would know them by their fruits. If their fruits are constituted by a love of respect, power, image, money, etc and a lack of love, humility and teachability (and look carefully because evil fruit like these are very cleverly concealed) then you should know they have not sacrificed their lives for Christ and certainly won’t do so for you or anyone else.
Finally, be at peace, because Christ’s great love for us will reconcile all of us to Him. Romans 5:19 states “For as through the one man’s disobedience the many (all, because all have sinned) were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the one shall the many (same as above: all) be made righteous.”
Though reconciliation to Him means undergoing purification by fire (Heb 12:29) we know that our Lord and God is victorious over all and through all. Praise be to God in the Highest!