No to the World, But Yes to What?

We have established that no one should become a Church leader the worldly way--that is, by asserting themselves or imposing their authority. So, we shouldn’t choose Church leaders the worldly way, but how should we choose them?

Should we vote? Should we follow the will of the people—the choice of the majority? That’s the natural style of selecting leaders for most of us, since it matches the democratic principles that underlie most societies in the World today. But is it right for the Church?

Democracy: The Rule of the People

Let’s contemplate the functionality of democracy in the Church. There are Bible examples of God’s people choosing leaders democratically, but those attempts gave devastating results. Here’s one from the New Testament, courtesy of Paul:

… the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear (2 Timothy 4:3).

Notice the expression ‘they will gather around them’ in this verse. The verb gather around literally means to heap up, which is why the NKJV translates the passage ‘they will heap up for themselves teachers…’ It means that the people in churches will seek, hire, and contract certain kinds of teachers among them. And they're already doing it. There’s democracy at work! The people choose their teachers. The will of the majority establishes these men and women.

The people choose these men, but they are not men chosen by God. The people give these teachers their support, but they don’t have God’s support. And they don’t have God’s support for good reason: They preach what people want to hear, not what God wants to say. They 'say what their itching ears want to hear.'

They let the people govern through them, creating a vicious cycle of human-based leadership in God's Church. This is not the original design of God for the Body of Christ. We are not an institution or an organization. We are not a political body. We are a spiritual body.

Equal Rights!

Another passage that shows democracy "at work" among God’s people is the one where Aaron and Myriam asserted themselves over Moses. Unfortunately, these two began to consider themselves to be just as important as their brother, Moses. Affirming that God spoke through them just as clearly as he spoke through Moses—they fought for equality.

Miriam and Aaron began to talk against Moses… ‘Has the LORD spoken only through Moses?’ they asked. ‘Hasn’t he also spoken through us?’ And the LORD heard this… At once the LORD said to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, ‘Come out to the tent of meeting, all three of you.’ So the three of them went out. 

Then the LORD came down in a pillar of cloud; he stood at the entrance to the tent and summoned Aaron and Miriam. When the two of them stepped forward, he said, ‘…Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?’ The anger of the LORD burned against them, and he left them (Numbers 12:1-2, 4-6, 8-9).

Democratically-minded people believe that there should be a balance of power in leadership. Aaron and Myriam, inspired by the principle of equal rights, asserted themselves against Moses, but God rebuked them.

The lesson they learned was that leadership is based on who God chooses, not about balancing power. Leadership in the Church is not about sharing authority. Leadership is not even a right. It’s a privilege!

God’s Choice

We have just seen that the foundation of true Church leadership is not human choice, but God’s choice. It’s not about democratic vote, but divine election. Are you willing to let God choose who leads in the Church? Jesus was. The apostles were.

Today we also must be willing to let God choose our leaders. We can learn very important lessons on this topic from two Biblical examples: how God chose Judas, and how he chose Matthias to replace Judas. Let’s review their stories, the stories of one who lost his apostolic ministry, and the other--who gained it.

God Chose Judas

Jesus picked the Twelve Apostles, but notice he did not choose them according to his own will. His choice was not based on what he wanted—how else can you explain why Jesus chose Judas?

Jesus never actually wanted to choose Judas. Who would ever want to choose a hypocrite as a friend and confidant? But Jesus did just that!

Jesus replied, ‘Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!’ (John 6:70)

Did Jesus lack discernment? Not at all. In fact, Jesus discerned the will of God so well, he chose Judas against his own will. Did Jesus choose Judas because Judas was able to trick Jesus into thinking that Judas was good? No, Jesus knew very well that Judas was evil.

Jesus chose Judas for one simple reason: He wanted God’s will to be fulfilled, as difficult as it was. Jesus knew that he had to be delivered into the hands of his enemies, and that the surrendering of his life to evil men had to happen by means of a betrayal. He knew that a traitor needed to be among the Twelve Apostles he chose.

Jesus knew that his overriding ministry as a Savior had to be fulfilled through death--and death by crucifixion. Jesus knew that he was the Lamb of God. God’s will for Jesus was for Jesus to be a sacrifice.

Through his study of the Bible, our Lord realized that betrayal by a friend would be the only way for him fulfill his role as the Passover Lamb. He knew that he had to be handed over to the Jewish leaders to die. Jesus read Psalm 55 and knew that it applied to him:

If an enemy were insulting me, I could endure it; if a foe were rising against me, I could hide. But it is you, a man like myself, my companion, my close friend, with whom I once enjoyed sweet fellowship at the House of God, as we walked about among the worshipers (Psalm 55:12-14).

Choosing Judas was no easy feat for Jesus. He chose Judas along with the other eleven apostles after consulting with God for an entire night. He held a vigil to make this decision.

So let’s learn from our Lord Jesus: He put his choice of Church leadership in God’s hands—shouldn’t we then? Jesus didn’t choose Church leadership according to his own desires, but according to God’s strategic plan for the salvation of the World. Shouldn’t we do the same?

Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God. When morning came, he called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them, whom he also designated Apostles (Luke 6:12).

God Chose Matthias

The Twelve Apostles followed Jesus’ example of leadership selection. They made sure that future pastors and elders were chosen by God. When the time came for them to choose Judas’ replacement, they did what Jesus did—they consulted with God. They had the maturity and sensitivity to nominate two men in prayer, and then they cast lots between the two—that is, they prayed and rolled the dice!

[Peter said] “… it is written in the Book of Psalms: ‘May his [Judas’] place be deserted; let there be no one to dwell in it,’ and, ‘May another take his place of leadership.’

Therefore it is necessary to choose one of the men who have been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus was living among us, beginning from John’s baptism to the time when Jesus was taken up from us. For one of these must become a witness with us of his resurrection.”

So they nominated two men: Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias. Then they prayed, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two you have chosen to take over this apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs.” 

Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven Apostles (Acts 1:20-26).

With the casting of the lots, the apostles could feel certain that the man who would assume his part in the ministry of the Twelve was God’s man.

The apostles were wise in requiring that the man be someone who was with them during the entire 3-year ministry of Jesus. He had to have been someone who experienced the baptism of John, and who witnessed the resurrection of Christ—those were the obvious requirements—but outside of those common-sense requirements, the apostles did not depend on their own wisdom. They put the final decision in God’s hands.

The Church Chose Deacons

The Christians of the New Testament also consulted with God on big decisions. Deacons are not church leaders per se, but they are very significant helpers to church leaders. The Jerusalem church chose the first deacons, and in a remarkable moment in history, their collective will matched God’s will.

This is one of the only times such a thing ever occurred in the Bible! A group of people was in sync with God. It was a very spiritual group.

… the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, ‘It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the Word of God in order to wait on tables. Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the Word.’

This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism. They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them (Acts 6:2-6).

Due to their excellent sensitivity to spiritual matters, the Jerusalem Christians were wise enough to choose the deacons God wanted. Is today’s Church spiritual enough to choose the leaders God would have for us? The answer is a resounding no. Today’s Church is not spiritual enough.

It’s a fact that right now the Church is deeply engrained in apostasy. Not only does it reject the men who are sent to it by God; it rejects the foundational doctrines and the basic Truths of Christianity. Some leaders in churches have made it their objective to redefine marriage. They don't even know what holiness is!

The Church Chose Missionaries

The church at Antioch chose Paul and Barnabas to be missionaries. They made their choice through fasting and prayer, and God spoke to them audibly through the Holy Spirit. It was an amazing moment in history because nobody shared an opinion on what they thought of Paul or Barnabas. Who cares about opinions if the Holy Spirit reveals his choice directly?

… in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers… While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.’ So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off. The two of them, sent on their way by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia… (Acts 13:1-4)

Here’s the conclusion of the matter: We don’t elect Church leaders by popular vote. We do that with candidates for public office. Democracy is what our Western culture values in government—and that’s fine. But it’s a mistake to mix political ideologies with church-life. Never was voting used in the history of Israel or the Church for the selection of spiritual leaders. Never.

Don’t think that God gave democracy to the Church.

The divinely-inspired election principle is this: Certain men are equipped by God to lead. Certain men have been given authority from God. Paul, introducing himself as an apostle, almost always pointed out in that he was chosen and sent by God, not men.

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God… (Ephesians 1:1)

Paul, an apostle—sent not from men nor by a man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father… (Galatians 1:1)

Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God… (1 Corinthians 1:1)

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the command of God our Savior… (1 Timothy 1:1)

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God… (2 Timothy 1:1)

You can tell who Church leaders are if you have wisdom. You can tell who they are because God has anointed them. In fact, you must find out who these men are.

They are the ones ‘who spoke the Word of God to you’ as it says in Hebrews. We should consider the outcome, the fruit of their lives, and submit to them. Here again is the passage we used to start this post:

Remember your leaders, who spoke the Word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life… Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority… (Hebrews 13:7, 17).

Democracy: Is It Good for You?

There is wisdom in democratic political elections because they put the responsibility of choosing leadership on the people. That allows the people share the burden of electing leaders. The people will not likely revolt against a government they have freely elected, so democratic societies have less likelihood of revolution than those ruled by an elite group or a monarchy.

Nonetheless, after more than 140 years (they’ve been around since the late 1770s), democratic elections still haven’t solved the age-old problem of how to get the best leader for a nation. That's because if democratic elections are not the way to establish Church leadership, how will those same elections ever solve the problem of political leadership?

Is the Church not God’s model community for the world? Yes, it is. We are the light of the World and the salt of the Earth. We set the example for the nations through our leadership-selection process. Our process is based on wisdom--but more importantly, it's based on divine choice. Societies throughout the world would do well to make use of those same two tools.

What a failure for Christians to put their confidence in democracy! We are never taught in the Bible to trust in the majority. We are taught to put our trust in God. “In God we trust” is the mantra of the Church as well as the slogan of all U.S. currency. We shouldn’t be afraid to preach and teach divine election—as medieval and antiquated as it may sound to our Western counterparts.

Divine Election

Divine election is the fundamental principle for Church governance--its bedrock. It means that God should make the choice of who leads, not the people. Are Christians ashamed to believe in it? Do we believe in a God who reveals his will, or in a God who hides his will? Will not God give us a revelation of whom he chooses to lead, or must we remain in the dark until the votes are counted?

Let’s have compassion on the multitudes of people that have become disappointed and frustrated with democracy, oligarchy, dictatorships, socialism, and communism and tell them about divine election. If they've finally come to their wit's end, it will be a relief for them to know that there is another option.

The best men will never be popular, and they will never get to positions of leadership if elections are in the hands of the majority. The majority is evil and easily manipulated. We learned that the day the crowd in Jerusalem—multitudes of people who knew the Word of God—cried out ‘Crucify him, crucify him’ and chose Barabbas over the Blessed Lord Jesus.

They got what they deserved. They made a criminal their new neighbor while they completely disenfranchised God’s King-elect. The people’s choice prevailed.

They could have chosen the man God wanted. It’s not like God hadn’t made his choice public enough through the miraculous healing power of Jesus, through a voice from Heaven, and through the revelation of the Scriptures. God absolutely made his choice of Jesus known—but the people who witnessed his trial were blind.

Sadly, many Evangelicals are just as blind today. That's why many of our pastors are the blind, selfish, spineless men they are. If the Church knew how to choose its leaders, we would have the men God has anointed. But the Church has become too worldly to let God choose. The Salt of the Earth has lost its flavor.