{"id":25118,"date":"2010-11-30T20:21:00","date_gmt":"2010-12-01T02:21:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/?p=25118"},"modified":"2020-08-23T20:25:03","modified_gmt":"2020-08-24T01:25:03","slug":"are-elders-responsible-for-the-employment-of-preachers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/are-elders-responsible-for-the-employment-of-preachers\/","title":{"rendered":"Are elders responsible for the employment of preachers?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\t

Question:<\/h2>\n

I enjoyed and appreciated your article on\u00a0the work of the evangelist<\/a>.\u00a0 I find it quite different from many by what you might consider institutional churches of Christ.<\/p>\n

I am concerned about the final paragraph on the selection of the minister.\u00a0 As I understand first-century history,\u00a0 many preachers were involved in the establishing, building up, and beginning of local congregations, as much as were the apostles.\u00a0 This explains why there are not directions to those churches on selecting ministers.\u00a0 Elders and deacons, on the other hand, are leaders who are appointed (or ordained) after the beginning and establishing of the churches.<\/p>\n

What it seems difficult for many churches of Christ to accept is that evangelists served a lead role distinctive from elders in leading the churches.\u00a0 At no time did any of them work simply as servants for a congregation, absent of the right to direct the affairs of the congregations.\u00a0 Part of what feeds this widening of the gulf of understanding is the insistence in many churches of Christ that their elders are responsible for the employment of ministers.\u00a0 This teaching is absent from the Bible.\u00a0 The truth is, each member was individually responsible for sharing with his teacher (Galatians 6:6).<\/p>\n

Still, I was impressed with the amount of free expression of the truth of the role of the evangelist from the point of Scripture.<\/p>\n\t

Answer:<\/h2>\n

It is true that preachers are heavily involved in getting congregations started and established. However, do take note that the Scriptures give instructions for how congregations select elders and deacons. But in that same time period of established congregations, there is no mention of selecting preachers even though preachers still went out.<\/p>\n

A preacher is in a leadership position by the nature of his work. He has been given authority (Titus 2:15) and teaching is a way that authority is exercised (I Timothy 2:12). It is the preacher’s duty to teach people the truth and make sure they follow the truth. But I know of no verse that says a preacher directs the affairs of a congregation. Elders are involved in caring for people’s souls. Their duty is to get people to heaven by remaining faithful to God. Deacons are the ones who take care of the activities of the church.<\/p>\n

Churches (not elders) do support preachers. “Even so the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should live from the gospel<\/em>” (I Corinthians 9:14). In that, Paul told the church at Corinth, “If we have sown spiritual things for you, is it a great thing if we reap your material things?<\/em>” (I Corinthians 9:11). That support is not limited to just the local congregation. Other congregations may choose to also support a preacher. “And when I was present with you, and in need, I was a burden to no one, for what I lacked the brethren who came from Macedonia supplied<\/em>” (II Corinthians 11:9). “Now you Philippians know also that in the beginning of the gospel, when I departed from Macedonia, no church shared with me concerning giving and receiving but you only. For even in Thessalonica you sent aid once and again for my necessities<\/em>” (Philippians 4:15-16). Thus, churches are involved in the support of a preacher. The local church has the primary responsibility to see that preachers working on their behalf are taken care of. Churches also support preachers in other areas, especially in getting works established.<\/p>\n

What I do see happening is many people see elders as being the church. I suspect it is the influence of society. We see the board of directors as being a company and there is a tendency to see elders as the board for a church. Elders guide and direct a church through their teaching and wisdom, but they are not the church. Along those lines, you might be interested in “The Rule of Elders<\/a>,” written by an old friend of mine who has served as both a preacher and an elder in several congregations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Question: I enjoyed and appreciated your article on\u00a0the work of the evangelist.\u00a0 I find it quite different from many by what you might consider institutional churches of Christ. I am concerned about the final paragraph on the selection of the minister.\u00a0 As I understand first-century history,\u00a0 many preachers were involved in the establishing, building up,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[20],"tags":[123,667,1511],"class_list":["post-25118","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-elders","tag-organization-of-the-church","tag-preachers"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":62367,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-sponsoring-church-arrangement-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":25118,"position":0},"title":"The Sponsoring Church Arrangement (Jennings)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 28, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"by Ethan Jennings Not long after World War 2, members of the Lord's church decided they wanted to take the gospel overseas to the countries with whom we had been at war. This was a good attitude to have. Especially since we are supposed to spread the gospel to everyone.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":68309,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-arent-the-elders-helping-me-to-learn-to-preach\/","url_meta":{"origin":25118,"position":1},"title":"Why aren’t the elders helping me to learn to preach?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"June 8, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I hope this email finds you doing well. I have a question. I finally got to preach and teach for a month in another congregation. I asked the elders in my church to attend one day and give me pointers. One finally attended, but all the elders said that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":50044,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-difference-do-elders-make\/","url_meta":{"origin":25118,"position":2},"title":"What Difference Do Elders Make?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 28, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"by Matthew Bassford via\u00a0His Excellent Word Yesterday, a friend of mine Facebook-messaged me, asking precisely the question in the title.\u00a0 Apparently, they'd been having a conversation with a friend, and the subject arose.\u00a0 It has the sound of a rhetorical question, which says something interesting about the experiences of members\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":29235,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-organization-of-the-church-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":25118,"position":3},"title":"The Organization of the Church","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 8, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Text: Hebrews 8:1-5 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0We give God glory when we teach His doctrine and execute it accordingly - I Peter 4:11 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Thus we are to follow the pattern set for us - Philippians 3:17 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Warnings abound not to change the message - Galatians 1:6-10 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0C.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Any change would give glory to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":92122,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/i-never-met-an-elder-before\/","url_meta":{"origin":25118,"position":4},"title":"I Never Met an Elder Before","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 14, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Edward O. Bragwell, Sr. Belinda, a fine young Christian from Mexico, spent six weeks of last summer with my daughter's family. Her enthusiasm, devoutness, and general spirituality were an inspiration to us all. What a delight to see one so young and so interested in so many things, yet\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":83173,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/do-the-letters-in-revelation-support-the-idea-of-a-leading-elder\/","url_meta":{"origin":25118,"position":5},"title":"Do the letters in Revelation support the idea of a leading elder?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 12, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: We believe in the plurality of elders in the church and that elders are equal in the sense that there is no senior or chairman elder. In Revelation chapters 2 & 3, the seven letters are addressed to \"the angel of the church.\" The angel refers to the elder\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25118","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25118"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25118\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25118"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25118"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25118"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}