The Problem of Cowardly Elders

Three Surprising Ways an Elder is Disqualified

Most qualifications of elders center around two specific passages of Scripture.

1 Timothy 3:1–7

Qualifications for Overseers

¹ The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. ² Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, ³ not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. ⁴ He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, ⁵ for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church? ⁶ He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. ⁷ Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil.

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Titus 1:5–9

Qualifications for Elders

⁵ This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into order, and appoint elders in every town as I directed you— ⁶ if anyone is above reproach, the husband of one wife, and his children are believers and not open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination. ⁷ For an overseer, as God’s steward, must be above reproach. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain, ⁸ but hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined. ⁹ He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.

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And another passage has further insights:

1 Peter 5:1–4

Shepherd the Flock of God

¹ So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: ² shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight,¹ not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; ³ not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. ⁴ And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.

Here’s a compilation of 17 traits drawn from these three passages:

An elder must:

1. Be above reproach, well thought of by outsiders

2. Be the husband of one wife

3. Be sober minded and self controlled, not quick tempered

4. Be respectable, upright, holy, and disciplined, and a positive example to the flock

5. Be hospitable

6. Be able to teach, holding firm to the trustworthy Word, able to give instruction in sound doctrine

7. Be able to rebuke those who contradict God’s Word

8. Not be a drunkard

9. Not be violent, but gentle

10. Not be quarrelsome

11. Not be a lover of money or greedy for gain or eager for shameful gain

12. Manage his home and family well with submissive children who aren’t insubordinate

13. Not be a recent convert

14. Not fall into disgrace

15. Not be arrogant

16. Be a lover of good

17. Be a shepherd of the flock, exercising oversight over it without being domineering, being willing and eager to love and care for the flock, not because they have to

For the sake of this article, I want to look at numbers 7, 11, and 17. One of the deepest, most insidious frustrations I’ve experienced in my own church hurt story has been the complacency of those charged with shepherding the church. Instead of caring for the members of the church, they have shape-shifted into protectors of the institution and the ego of the main pastor.

First and foremost, though, we have to look at our pastor(s) through this lens. Our pastor(s) should possess all these qualities, as they are one among the other elders. Which means they must treat their family well, be excellent examples of good conduct, open their home to people (and not just wealthy ones), be capable of exegeting and teaching Scripture, avoid alcohol (and substances), not be given to hot takes, be untouched by greed, be humble, and joyfully shepherd the flock in their care. If they do not do these things, they are unqualified to be the pastor, no matter what size the congregation is.

(And just because the church is growing does not mean an elder can shirk their responsibility in confronting a pastor’s nefarious practices. Growth is not always good. Cancer grows.)

Some might argue, well, this man is more of a CEO of a megachurch, so these traits and aspirations don’t apply to him.

Yes, they do.

They have to.

They must.

The church is not a corporation.

So what happens when the pastor violates some, many, or all these qualifications? He must be dealt with by brave, godly elders who are unafraid to do the right thing.

So back to the three things highlighted:

Rebuking those who don’t align with God’s word, choosing to shepherd the flock, and not being greedy.

I heard about several elders in a church with a problematic pastor who violated almost all of these elder qualifications. The congregation, alarmed, did the right thing, as did many leaders. Several key people sent letters to the elders (because they couldn’t get any access to the pastor). Many tried to talk to elders, but were rebuked. Some had meetings. But the overwhelming messaging they received was this:

Thank you for your feedback. We will not do anything about your concerns. Our job is to protect the pastor’s ego and position, not shepherd the sheep under our care. The pastor is our primary concern.

And if you dig under these horrendously unChristian statements, this is what they meant:

We must protect the financial viability of this institution.

In doing so, they violated their own elder requirements.

They were cowards. They were not brave enough to call the pastor out on his debauchery, bombastic rhetoric, greed, and pride. They shrunk beneath the ego of the one who ruled the elder board with high control, using “loyalty” as the highest trait necessary. (I would argue loyalty is not a fruit of the Spirit). Not rebuking a pastor who violates God’s Word both in word and deed is a terrible undermining and devaluing of the sacred office. They must resign if they kowtow to the pastor’s opinion more than they listen to the people in the pews.

They turned away from the many (the flock) and preferred the one (the pastor), which is favoritism. This, then, allowed for the predatory pastor to harm the flock unhindered. In short, they worried far more about what the powerful pastor thought than they gave credence to the many, many voices who raised the alarm. When they protect a predator, they are saying they align with him, including all his violations. They victimize and re-victimize those harmed by the pastor by blindly siding with him. And they are complicit. If they protect the pastor and ignore the bleats of the sheep, they have ceased to be an overseer. Instead, they have become yes people. A yes person must resign.

Last, they gave into greed. In protecting the financial viability of the institution rather than feeling the conviction of the Spirit to protect the spiritual viability of the congregation, they are saying money is more important than people. And if they do that, they are disqualified and must resign. As Jesus iterated, you cannot serve both God and money. Cannot.

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Those who are tasked with shepherding the flock must take their job with holy seriousness. They cannot treat their role as merely corporate protectionism. They are not a Board of Directors, they are entrusted with the very flock of God. To treat the office as merely a business decision degrades themselves, threatens to deify the pastor, and demeans the congregation they are meant to protect. It’s time the Lord cleaned his house of these cowering elders.

When I think about the demise of so many churches, much falls on the shoulders of the ones who didn’t do the right thing. Who protected the one while marginalizing the many . . . all for the sake of money.

This should not be.