Bible Studies
Overseeing With Purpose
Series: The Selection and Appointment of OverseersIntroduction:
1. “Following a comprehensive study of leadership, a major business corporation stated this definition of a leader: ‘One who can generate, communicate, and sustain commonality of purpose’” (Joe Ellis, The Church On Purpose, p. 129). 2. As leaders in the Lord’s church elders are to generate, communicate, and sustain commonality of purpose.a. They generate commonality of purpose by defining the work that God has given the local church to do. They ask, “What are we supposed to be doing?” They look into the Scriptures to see what God wants his church to do.
b. They communicate this common purpose to the congregation. That is, they work to persuade the members of the congregation to accept this purpose as their purpose so that they contribute to its accomplishment.
c. They sustain the common purpose. That is, they keep people focused on the purpose so that they don’t go off on tangents and fail to accomplish God’s objectives.
3. As we give consideration to the selection and appointment of elders we need men that are committed to the purpose God has defined for the local church. We need men who can rally us together in the accomplishment of that purpose, and who can help us stay focused on doing what the Lord wants us to do. 4. In this lesson we are going to talk about what God wants a local church to do. We will then look at four characteristics of spiritual leaders critical to the accomplishment of this great work.Discussion:
I. What does God want us to do?A. Our highest objective is to glorify (honor) God. This is expressed in various ways in Scripture.
1. In Ecc. 12:13 Solomon wrote: “The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments . . . For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil.”
2. The purpose of God is accomplished by the very creation itself. In Psa. 19:1 David wrote, “The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.”
3. God has created his people in demonstration of His glory. In Isa. 43:6-7 he said, “Bring my sons from afar, and my daughters from the ends of the earth, everyone who is called by My name, and whom I have created for My glory.”
4. When we recognize the awesomeness of God, when we honor Him as God, when we worship and respect and submit ourselves to Him we are accomplishing our purpose.
B. The objective of each group of Christians falls within the confines of this ultimate objective. Our objective as a congregation is a subset of the ultimate objective of all Christians generally. Matt. 28:19-20 defines what we are supposed to be doing.
1. We are supposed to be making disciples of all the nations, baptizing them and teaching them to observe what Christ commanded.
2. Our primary work is making disciples. A church is a group of Christians that have agreed to work together to make disciples.
3. But our work is not finished with baptizing people. We are then to teach them what Christ has commanded.
4. If we are not making disciples, baptizing and teaching them we are not doing the work God has given us to do.
C. As we do this work the people of the world are transformed into the people of God and so accomplish the ultimate objective of glorifying God.
1. Before they became disciples they may have ignored him.
2. Before they became disciples they were ignorant of him.
3. By becoming disciples they honor him as God.
D. Some Christians are not clear on what the objectives are.
1. They appear as a swamp rather than a dam producing mega watts of power.
2. They are stagnant and unclear.
3. Woe to us if we appoint elders who don’t know what we are supposed to be doing. And if we don’t know what we are supposed to be doing that may well be what we do.
4. If we know what our work is, if we appoint elders who know what the work is, and if those elders can direct us in that work, then disciples will be made and taught, and God will be glorified.
II. Characteristics of spiritual leaders who can lead us in accomplishing the work God has given us to do.A. Elders must know what the work is.
1. Perceived visually.
| Operational objectives: | Transcendent objective: |
| GOD GLORIFIED | |
| Making disciples | |
Teaching them |
|
| by-products | |
| social changes |
2. The training of disciples involves three major areas.
a. Personal Christian living—personal moral virtues, not lying, not stealing, respecting other people, how to get along with marriage partner, etc. Focuses on me and my relationship with God.
b. As a member of the body of Christ—what role do I play in the work of the church; how do I work together with other Christians to accomplish the work. Focuses on me and my relationship with other Christians.
c. Function in the world—as an employee, employer; how do I get along with non-Christians; my neighbors, etc. Focuses on me and my relationship with non-Christians.
B. Elders must be personally committed to the accomplishment of the purpose.
1. The objective is specified by God.
2. Leaders who are not committed to the objective either through ignorance of what the objective is or through a tenuous commitment to it he will not be a good leader.
C. Elders must know how to lead the congregation in accomplishing the objective. Not only must the elder know where he is going he must know how to get there.
1. He must know the process through which the congregation must go in order to accomplish the objective. Necessitates constant learning—what works in one period of history may not work in another.
2. He must address himself and his followers narrowly to the purpose.
a. Cannot go off on tangents.
b. Must recognize differing responsibilities (Acts 6:2-4).
1) Preaching and teaching the word—pointing the way, guiding, motivating, challenging, inspiring, devising and executing plans, keeping the vision clear.
2) Leg work—finding resources, developing the ways and means, administering the programs.
D. Elders must be able to excite trust within those they are leading.
1. The followers must perceive a commitment within the leader to the accomplishment of the purpose they have given themselves to.
2. Must perceive that the leader knows what he is doing, that what he is doing is facilitating the accomplishment of the objective.
3. This trust is excited by the elders teaching and preaching role.
a. Through teaching and preaching they persuade followers to willingly obey the Lord.
b. Followers do not become followers by decree. They are won by persuasion to commonality of purpose. Too many Christians have as their purpose going to heaven when they die. Heaven is our destiny; our purpose is to glorify God as we persuade others to do the same.
c. Trust in elders to lead in this purpose creates unity rather than division. It creates respect (1 Tim. 5:1) and obedience (Heb. 13:17).
Conclusion:
1. Sir Winston Churchill is most recognized for the ability that he had to rally people to a common cause. 2. Without him the allies may not have been victorious in WW II. 3. On one occasion he was asked to give a speech. In the speech he rehearsed several events that were then occurring in the war. He ended his speech with the call: “Never give up. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. 4. With that he called on people to rally to the cause, to use every ounce of strength and when exhausted to give some more, because the cause was worth it. 5. Elders need to be people who rally people for the cause of Christ. There is no cause greater than seeking and saving the lost.
