The Lord’s word in Matthew 23:8-12 indicates that we should not have any leader. Today in the New Testament age there is only one unique Leader, that is, Christ. The headship is assigned solely to Christ; only He has the headship (Eph. 1:10, 22; Col. 2:10; 1 Cor. 11:3). This point has been fully missed by today’s Christianity. Christ’s headship has been insulted by organized Christianity, not only today but even since the second century. The entire organization of Christianity, both in the Catholic Church and the Protestant churches, is a complete insult to the headship of Christ. No group or denomination in Christianity today has the proper regard for the headship of Christ. Rather, they are concerned only for their organizations, all of which have a human leader.
According to the concept of most believers, including those in the local churches, any time a group of believers comes together to meet, they immediately wonder who will take the lead. There are some practices in the Lord’s recovery that have partly transformed our concept, but much of our old concept remains. Allow me to illustrate. When I was young, my family met in a denomination. When we went to church gatherings, we had the concept that there were specific leaders. When we entered into the church building, we would wait for the leader to arrive. We did not have any feeling of responsibility for the meeting. The mentality of almost all believers is filled with the thought that we have definite leaders. In contrast, it seems that whenever we come together in the Lord’s recovery today, everyone is a leader, for all can call a hymn, offer a prayer, or share a testimony. The saints do not wait for a leader to come and direct the meetings. However, our practice is still not up to the standard. There remains within us a concept that certain ones are leaders. For practicality and coordination the elders often sit in the first row in the meetings. However, this does not mean that they are official leaders in the meetings. Indeed, in some meetings the elders sit in the back.
We need to realize that in the New Testament age God does not intend for His people to have any official, permanent, organizational, or positional leaders. The Lord’s word in Matthew 23:8-11 is clear. He said, “Do not be called Rabbi, for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers...Neither be called instructors, because One is your Instructor, the Christ. And the greatest among you shall be your servant.” There is no thought of any human leadership in God’s New Testament economy, because the headship of Christ should be uniquely respected and regarded. Nevertheless, the actual situation among Christians today is exactly the opposite. Even the mentality among the saints in the Lord’s recovery has not been thoroughly purified concerning the matter of leadership. However, no one should take this word as a basis for rebellion. Human leadership is not right, but neither is rebellion. On one hand, God has ordained that His people be in a proper order, but on the other hand, God does not desire that there be any kind of official, permanent, organizational, or positional leadership.
Peter, who was the leading apostle and the leading elder in Jerusalem for some time, wrote to the elders, “Nor as lording it over your allotments but by becoming patterns of the flock” (1 Pet. 5:3). The elders are not lords; rather, they are patterns. According to the natural human mentality, in any organization or group the leaders are in a position above others and give orders. If a restroom needs to be cleaned, a leader in worldly society customarily gives an order for someone to clean the restroom. However, in the church the elders should be the first to clean the restroom in order to establish a pattern, an example. It is the elders’ responsibility to be the first to carry out a service, and all the other saints simply need to follow. However, this is not the practice among many churches today. Regrettably, in many churches the elders are lords over God’s flock. This is wrong. The elders should not be in a position over the saints. Rather, the elders should be under the saints, serving them. The elders should not lord it over the saints but should establish an example. This God-ordained concept that is found in the Bible is beyond our human mentality. The kind of leadership that is according to our human mentality is not found in the Bible. The Lord said, “The rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and the great exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you; but whoever wants to become great among you shall be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you shall be your slave” (Matt. 20:25-27). Among us there is only one Leader, that is, Christ. We are all slaves.