The "Corporate Model" Strikes Again (by Jim Faughn)

[NOTE: My dad, Jim Faughn, preaches and serves as an elder for the Central church of Christ in Paducah, Kentucky. Along with many other skills, he is an excellent writer, and that shows through most often in his bulletin articles. The following article first appeared in the September3, 2006, edition of The Central Message. It is a very important article that every Christian needs to read. Thanks, dad! (The article has been reprinted as it appeared, including all emphases.)]

The phone call was disturbing. A young man whom I have known for many years wanted to talk to an older preacher. He didn’t say that, but that was the reason for the call. It is a little disturbing to realize that I’m now in the “older preacher” category, but it is more than a little disturbing when I realize that young men who have a great zeal for God and knowledge of His Word get discouraged, disappointed and hurt.

The words that keep ringing in my ears are, “Jim, I expected better.” What he meant by that was that he expected elders of the Lord’s church to behave differently than they have in this particular case.

How did they act? What disturbed the young man so much?

Sadly, to many, they acted just like elders are supposed to act. They acted as the board of directors. A complaint had been registered; the “hired help” had been called in; and the young man was told that he needed to make some changes. Of course, the implication was, “Or else.”

Isn’t that what elders are supposed to do? Aren’t they to set the policy and do the hiring and firing? Isn’t that what many of us expect of them?

Maybe, but the question is; what does God expect of elders? Space will not permit a discussion of this to any real degree at all, but all me to suggest some reading to you. I would suggest that all of us read the qualifications that the Holy Spirit gives for elders in I Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:6-9. How many of those qualifications are business qualifications? How many of them are family and interpersonal relationship qualifications? It might be helpful to also read Peter’s admonition to elders in I Peter 5:1-4. Special attention might be given to the phrase, “not as being lords over those entrusted to you…” (v. 4). For further reading, you may want to reflect on Jesus’ own description of Himself as the “good shepherd” in John 10:1-30. Where is there any indication in this passage that the shepherd’s tast is to “show somebody who is in charge around here”? As I read the passage, I see a picture of a relationship, not an organizational chart.

In the not too distant past I’ve heard of preachers receiving the following instructions from their elders: be sure the font size is large enough in your bulletin articles so that people can read them easily; make sure that nobody claps during VBS (this elder never attended VBS); you need to talk to ____ about his habit of chewing gum while he’s making the announcements.

While these momentous and weighty decisions come down from “headquarters,” families are breaking up; people are slipping out the back door of the church and into the world; deacons are going to athletic contests while their brothers and sisters worship God on Sunday mornings; there are those who have lost loved ones and need to be comforted; there are young and immature Christians who need to be helped in their maturity, knowledge and development; etc. The list could go on and on.

It is my prayer that, when my young friend is my age, he will still be preaching. Hopefully, he will not become discouraged to the point that he “throws in the towel.” I also hope he will be telling people, “You know, there used to be a time when it was commonly accepted that the eldership acted as a board of directors and handed down dictates to their underlings. Thankfully, that has changed during my lifetime. Elders now understand that their major responsibility lies in the spiritual realm. They now realize that they are on the ‘same team’ with the preacher and everybody else and are now following more closely a shepherd model in their work instead of a corporate model. It is a joy to do what I am told in I Timothy 5:17, ‘Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and doctrine’.”