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CHAPTER TWO

THE NEW TESTAMENT LEADERSHIP

Scripture Reading: Acts 2:36; 5:31; Rev. 1:5; Eph. 1:22; Col. 1:18; 1 Cor. 11:3; Heb. 13:24; Rom. 12:8; 1 Tim. 5:17; 3:2; 1 Pet. 5:2-3; 1 Thes. 5:12; Heb. 13:17; Gal. 2:7; Rom. 11:13; 1 Cor. 16:12; 1 Tim. 1:3-4; 2 John 9-11; 2 Cor. 13:10; 1 Cor. 4:17b-21; 7:17b; 16:1; 11:2; 2 Thes. 3:6, 9, 12, 14; 1 Cor. 1:10; 5:11-13; 11:34b; 2 Cor. 10:6; Acts 14:23; Titus 1:5; 1 Tim. 5:19-20; Exo. 28:29-30; Num. 27:15-23; 1 Sam. 3:1, 19-21; Acts 15:6, 23, 28; 2:42; 13:1

  1. The headship of Christ:
    1. Christ having been made Lord and Christ by God—Acts 2:36.
    2. Christ having been exalted as the Leader over all the rulers—Acts 5:31.
    3. Christ having been made the Ruler of the kings of the earth—Rev. 1:5.
    4. Christ having been appointed to be the Head over all things to the church—Eph. 1:22.
    5. Christ being the Head of the church—Col. 1:18.
    6. Christ being the Head of every man under the headship of God—1 Cor. 11:3.
  2. The leadership in the church life:
    1. The elders taking the lead diligently in the church life—Heb. 13:24; Rom. 12:8.
    2. The elders laboring in teaching the saints—1 Tim. 5:17b; 3:2.
    3. The elders shepherding the church as the flock of God, overseeing it according to God, and becoming patterns of the flock, not lording it over the flock—1 Pet. 5:2-3.
    4. To be regarded, obeyed, and honored by the saints—1 Thes. 5:12; Heb. 13:17; 1 Tim. 5:17a.
  3. The leadership in the ministry:
    1. Peter taking the lead in the New Testament ministry among the Jews—Gal. 2:7b.
    2. Paul taking the lead in the New Testament ministry among the Gentiles—Gal. 2:7a; Rom. 11:13.
    3. The leadership in the New Testament ministry being in the New Testament teaching more than in the leading ones of the New Testament ministry:
      1. The leading ones not being strict in directing the move of their co-workers—cf. 1 Cor. 16:12.
      2. The leading ones being strict in the teaching of the New Testament—cf. 1 Tim. 1:3-4; 2 John 9-11.
    4. God’s delegated authority in the leading ones:
      1. For building up and not for overthrowing— 2 Cor. 13:10.
      2. In their teaching—1 Cor. 4:17b-21; 7:17b; 16:1; 11:2; 2 Thes. 3:6, 9, 12, 14.
      3. In their dealing with the problems and affairs of the churches—1 Cor. 1:10; 5:11-13; 11:34b.
      4. In their avenging of the saints’ disobedience— 2 Cor. 10:6.
      5. In their appointing of and dealing with the elders—Acts 14:23; Titus 1:5; 1 Tim. 5:19-20.
  4. God’s government in the administration of the churches:
    1. Not autocracy nor democracy, but theocracy.
    2. The theocratic government among the people of Israel in the Old Testament:
      1. Through the priesthood with the Urim and the Thummim—Exo. 28:29-30; Num. 27:15-23.
      2. Through the coordination of the prophets— 1 Sam. 3:1, 19-21.
    3. The theocratic government in the churches in the New Testament:
      1. Through the Spirit who dwells in the spirits of the apostles and the elders, both of whom are the New Testament priests, with the revelation of the New Testament teaching—Acts 15:6, 23, 28; 2:42; 1 Thes. 5:12; 1 Tim. 3:2; 5:17.
      2. Through the coordination of the New Testament prophets—Acts 13:1.

In this chapter we will fellowship concerning the New Testament leadership. The proper leadership is a great matter. In any human institution there is the need of a proper leadership. If a country has an excellent president, that country will be an excellent country. If, on the other hand, the leadership is poor, the people of that country will suffer. Even in a family, having the proper leadership helps everyone in the family. Without the proper leadership, there is confusion and disorder. God is not a God of confusion, but of peace and order (1 Cor. 14:33, 40). Any situation of confusion is not of God; everything of God is always in order. The universe is so great, but all the billions of items in it are in a proper order. Because everything is in order in God’s creation, the earth is in a peaceful, restful situation. A small change in this order, however, would make the earth unable to support us.

Because man was created by God, everything related to his physical body is in order. If even the smallest disorder occurs in our body, we become sick and suffer. In the same way that our physical body is in such a proper order, there is also an order in the church, which is the Body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:27; Eph. 1:22-23). Some have said that since the church is the church of the saints, the saints in the church are equal in every way, with no leadership or delegated authority among them. This is a wind of teaching (Eph. 4:14) which disrupts the church and brings disorder to it. The Bible does say that the church is the church of God (1 Cor. 1:2; 10:32), the church of Christ (Rom. 16:16), and the church of the saints (1 Cor. 14:33). There is no verse in the Bible that tells us that the church is the church of the apostles. The apostles never proclaimed themselves to be the owners of the church. Rather, they preached Christ Jesus as Lord and themselves as slaves to the churches (2 Cor. 4:5). However, this does not mean that every member in the Body is a head. For all the members to be the same with no leadership among them is not according to God’s ordination.

When God’s people in the Old Testament became a collective entity, there was a proper situation of order among them. Likewise, in the entire New Testament, we can see that God is altogether against any kind of confusion. We have to see the truth of the New Testament leadership according to the pure Word of God. The Bible is our “constitution.” In a democratic country such as America, the highest authority is not the president or the Congress. It is the constitution. To solve any matter, we must come back to our “constitution,” the Bible.


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The Apostles' Teaching and the New Testament Leadership   pg 5