Who is in Charge?

This past Sunday, I preached a message about the authority of Jesus. Since then I have been thinking about  authority and how it relates to the local church. Having served in ministry for almost 30 years, I have seen many people who struggle with authority in the church. While it is true Jesus is the ultimate authority over the church, He has appointed others to carry out his will and speak for him. 

It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Ephesians 4:11-13

The authority of Christ as seen in the leadership of the church has but one purpose; to bring members of the church to maturity. Leaders do not have authority to rule or to lord over a congregation, rather leaders have the authority over a congregation for the purpose of helping people mature in Christ. Unfortunately, many people (both leaders and church members) have a misconception regarding authority. Leaders believe they must rule, members have a built in defense mechanism that bucks when someone tries to rule over them. Yet when people grasp the idea of leaders using their authority to help members mature; God is honored and the church is one the right course. 

How do leaders use their authority to help believers mature?

1. By becoming shepherds of the flock; a shepherd has two functions, to feed and protect the flock. When leaders provide good food (Bible Based Preaching and Teaching) and protect the flock from sins of the flesh, members of the body can begin the maturing process.
2. By being intentional in ministry, Good leaders know a church cannot be or do everything, thus they must be intentional about the things that will bring about maturity. That means there will be times they must say no to good things in order to say yes to best things. Leaders need discernment to make these kind of choices, but these choices bring out the maturity Christ desires for his church.
3. Realize maturity is a destination and not a program. There is no silver bullet that brings about maturity. Good leaders understand their authority must be used to keep people moving toward the destination of maturity. That will mean there will be times that the programs that were at one time very effective now have to be given over to new methods if the new ideas will bring about maturity. This can be difficult, but if we understand biblical authority we know our goal in leading is to bring about maturity, not be the keepers of the church and her traditions.

When leaders focus on maturity we no longer ask who is in charge, rather we ask, am I helping others to mature as Christ desires?

When members desire maturity, they no long rebel against Biblical authorty rather they seek out ways to submit to authority so they can mature in Christ, thus God is honored.