Architecting the Church: Principles

Part two in a five-part series about church leadership structures (read part one).

At Mars Hill Church, here are the biblical principles that ground our leadership structure:

Principle #1: Jesus is in charge.

The Bible says that Jesus is the Senior Pastor of every church—whether he’s given credit or not—and that he should be honored as such. Here are various titles scripture uses to express Jesus’ position in relation to his people:

• Chief Shepherd (1 Peter 5:4)
• Master (Jude 1:4)
• Overseer of our souls (1 Peter 2:25)
• Cornerstone (Ephesians 2:20)
• Head of the body, the church (Colossians 1:18)
• Sovereign, King of Kings, Lord of Lords (1 Timothy 6:15)
• Chief Apostle (Hebrews 3:1)
• High Priest (Hebrews 3:1)

Principle #2: Submit to the Bible.

The Bible is in authority over the church. Its teachings are to be taken as true and perfect. Though a church must create policies to address and define specific aspects of its leadership structure, the Bible should inform all of these decisions, and it overrides any manmade methods or structures (2 Timothy 3:16; Hebrews 4:12).

As such, pastors (or “elders”) must be qualified according to the biblical criteria for the office, as described in 1 Timothy 3:1–7 and elsewhere (namely, Acts 20 and Titus 1):

• A man
• Above reproach
• Able to teach
• A mature Christian
• A husband to one wife
• A father to obedient children
• A good manager of his family
• Temperate
• Self-controlled
• Not given to drunkenness
• Not a lover of money
• Respectable
• Hospitable
• Not violent
• Gentle
• Not contentious
• Good reputation with outsiders

The Bible defines the office of deacon as a supporting role within the church. Deacons fulfill tasks that would otherwise distract the pastors from their primary duties of preaching, teaching, leadership, prayer, and shepherding. Some distinctive responsibilities and qualifications for deacons can be found in Acts 7:1–7 and 1 Timothy 3:8–13.

In addition, ministry is not the sole responsibility of elders and deacons. The members and lay leaders of any church play a significant role in the health and well being of any church (Romans 12; 1 Corinthians 12; Ephesians 4).

We recently invited our core of members to renew their commitment, and updated the general member process. You can read an in-depth description and explanation on the Call to Mission website.

Also, in June, Pastor Mark Driscoll’s book, On Church Leadership, will be published. It will contain a more in-depth look at some biblical principles for architecting the church.

Tomorrow: how does MHC apply these principles?