What An Elder Is NOT
An elder is not…
A board member where he only acts in an advisory role.
A fan in the stands who merely cheers on what the staff are doing.
A distant church politician who wields power to go in favor of their personal preferences rather than Scriptural principle.
An only-here-for-meetings man.
A person who just likes to go to coffee shops with others.
A graduated Deacon.
A sinless man or a man who doesn’t have “a past”.
The most popular man in the church.
Someone who can merely “get things done”.
Someone with a general interest in Scripture yet with a really good personality.
Someone who will start acting like a leader once they’re ordained to be a leader.
Someone who has many things prioritized more than the church.
Someone unwilling to have a self-sacrificial ministry.
Someone who lacks a moral, ethical, and theological backbone.
An automatic choice because they’re the longest tenured member.
Someone who cares more about the status quo than conforming to Scripture.
Someone who does his own individual ministry apart from the other Ruling or Teaching Elders.
Someone who cares only about being right rather than speaking the truth in love and with patience.
A prayerless man.
A man who is not known for his evident love for Christ.
A man who isn’t known for delighting in God.
A man who looks at Christianity as merely the best option of all the religions and will only be faithful to that until it makes him uncomfortable.
A perfect man.
A man who is slow to apologize, confess sin, and ask for forgiveness.
Someone who is indifferent about the denomination.
Someone who doesn’t know the sheep.
Someone who isn’t already seen as a godly leader by the sheep.
A man who never breaks a sweat over people’s souls.
A man who cares more about avoiding burnout, off days, and a “chill” mentality than he does about the urgency of seeing souls saved and cared for.
A man who doesn’t revere the Lord’s Day—the Sabbath Day—Sunday.
A man who is indifferent to the way people are living.
A man who attends the bare minimum of the means of grace.
A man who fails to speak highly of the means of grace.
A man who promotes unfair criticism of the pastor or other elders.
A man who never wants to be told he’s wrong.
A man who only or mainly complains about what’s wrong with the church.
A man who isn’t faithful to his wife.
A man who isn’t loving and leading his children.
A man who is stingy with his time and money toward the church.
A man who is more passionate about sports on Saturday and Sunday than he is about the worship of the incomparably glorious King of Kings on Sunday.
A man who has no weaknesses.
A man who never opens up.
A man who never has dry seasons.
A man who arrogantly thinks he’s worthy of being an elder.
A man who never suffers from spiritual warfare.
A man who never can be corrected.
A man who isn’t humble and teachable.
A man who rarely wants to tell others about Jesus—not merely vague or random apologetic statements or things about theology but actually getting to talk about the gospel.
A man who can’t and won’t submit to the brethren.
A man who won’t defend his pastor’s faithfulness even when others would reject him for standing up for his pastor.
A man who regularly shows up late to worship and not having his heart ready to worship.
A man who is more greedy for recognition than recognizing others’ work.
A man who doesn’t study doctrine.
A man who makes decisions based above all else on wanting the people to like him.
A man who isn’t faithful to the vows he took upon ordination and installation.
A man who isn’t faithful to promote and protect the doctrinal standards.
A man who doesn’t feel a sense of being humbled by reading this list.
A man who doesn’t regularly run to Jesus for mercy.