As we consider the relationship between elders and trustees it is important to know what the distinctives are of these two bodies of people.
God-commissioned
First, elders must be those who are recognised as being commissioned by God. One day they will stand before the judgment seat of God and be asked to give account for all the people in their care (Heb 13:17). If they have never been commissioned (ie maybe have just seen ‘elder’ as a title) there could be a few embarrassed faces! So laying on of hands for eldership is no light matter and should follow a period of serious prayer and seeking God’s mind. And this comes after there has been a thorough testing and proving of such men according to Biblical principles.
Job Description
You will not find a detailed job description for an elder in the Bible (nor for other leaders). Why not? It seems that God is more interested in the stewardship of his gifts and in character than in function.
First, God imparts gifting to potential elders and tests them to see how faithfully they use these gifts to equip, encourage and console the church (1 Cor 14:3). Second, he looks at character, as Paul spells out in his first letter to Timothy (1 Tim 3:1-7). Here are a few of the distinctives he specifies: ‘above reproach’ (v2), ‘self-controlled’ (v3), ‘manages his household well’ (v4), not ‘puffed up’ (v5), ‘well thought of by outsiders’ (v6), and so on. (This is not a complete list; I encourage you to study the passage.)
Once God sees mature character qualifications he imparts the skills and gifts necessary to fulfil the calling, which will vary from one person to another eg leadership, pastoral care, teaching, etc. and then appears to leave it to the individual to carry out the role in a suitable way. The ways in which these are outworked will be determined both by that person’s own spiritually mature judgement and also by the needs of the local eldership team working for the health of the church. That is servant leadership.
Tested first
Let me dwell a little longer on one specific character qualification, ‘well thought of by outsiders’ (1 Tim 3:6). This is similar to ‘tested first’ a few verses later when Paul teaches about the appointment of deacons (1 Tim 3:10). It is also echoed in ‘of good repute’ in Acts 6:3, referring to those called and appointed by the apostles to resolve a significant pastoral issue in the early church. Reputation and a good track record are vital for successful leadership. The people in the church need to have already demonstrated their willingness to follow these potential leaders before elders are formally commissioned to that responsibility. It is easier and more comfortable to ‘commission’ than to ‘de-commission’, so it is wise not to rush such appointments.
Not democratic
Finally, there is one very important point to note. Having a good reputation does not imply that elders should be appointed by popular vote. Church is not a democracy. As already referenced above, in Acts 6:3 the early church leaders called for men of ‘good repute’ to be brought to them. These were ‘set before them’ (interviewed?) and then, after careful consideration, they prayed and laid hands on them (Acts 6:6). That is an important principle to follow for any leadership role.
What about trustees? We will look at the distinctives of these next time.