Elders — How Appointed
Text: Acts 14:23
Series: Restoration Sermons
Date:
Speaker: Ed Rangel
Location: Waupaca Church of Christ
Bible Version: NASB 1995
Sermon Type: Expository
Learning Objectives
By the close of this lesson the hearer should be able to:
- Recognize that the New Testament does not prescribe one fixed method for selecting elders.
- See why elders are not to be chosen by popular vote, but appointed.
- Understand how Acts 6 illustrates the principle: the congregation recognizes, the appointment is made.
Thesis
The New Testament reveals no single method for selecting elders, only that they were appointed; therefore any method that does not violate a New Testament principle and that promotes unity may be used — but not a popular vote, which divides rather than appoints.
Burden
The outline begins with a lament that still stings: the elders have been so depreciated and ignored that neither they nor the church respect the office — superseded on one side by the preacher and on the other by the members, until they have become almost useless appendages. Part of the trouble is confusion over how they come to serve at all. Some import the world's machinery — campaigns, ballots, popular votes — and the result is division, not shepherding. This outline clears the ground: Scripture tells us elders were appointed, leaves the exact method open within its principles, and forbids the one method that would split a church. The burden of this lesson is to restore both the dignity and the right manner of the eldership.
Introduction
The elders have been depreciated and ignored until neither they nor the church respect their position — superseded by the preacher on one hand and crowded out by the members on the other, until they have become almost useless appendages. The outline addresses one root of the confusion: how elders are appointed. He proceeds in four steps: the New Testament does not prescribe a method, elders are not elected by popular vote, the lesson of Acts 6, and the simple fact that they were appointed.
I. The New Testament Does Not Prescribe a Method (Acts 14:23)
- No exact method of selecting elders is revealed — Scripture records that elders were appointed (Acts 14:23) but does not lay down a single procedure.
- Therefore any method that does not violate a New Testament principle may be used.
- And any method that promotes unity may be used — for unity is itself a New Testament principle (Eph. 4:3).
Where God left the method open, men must not bind one as though it were commanded; but they must keep within His principles.
II. Elders Are Not Elected by Popular Vote
- A popular election would promote division — campaigning, factions, winners and losers in the flock.
- No church in the New Testament was ever authorized to elect elders by ballot.
- They were always appointed — recognized and set in place, not voted into office by a contest.
The world's politics has no place in the choosing of shepherds; a method that divides the flock contradicts the very purpose of the office.
III. The Lesson of Acts 6:2-6
The appointment of the seven illustrates the principle, even though those men were not elders:
- These men were not elders — likely deacons, or at least servants for a special need.
- Yet the pattern is instructive: "select from among you seven men" (Acts 6:3).
- "Look out among you" meant the congregation was to agree among themselves who possessed the qualifications — the people recognized the qualified men.
- The apostles would appoint them (Acts 6:3).
- And the apostles did appoint them (Acts 6:6).
So the congregation recognizes the qualified, and the appointment is then made — a pattern that does no violence to any New Testament principle and preserves unity.
IV. They Were Appointed (Acts 20:28)
The consistent testimony is appointment, not election:
- Paul and Barnabas appointed elders in every church (Acts 14:23).
- Titus appointed elders in every city (Titus 1:5).
- The Holy Spirit appointed elders — "the Holy Spirit has made you overseers" (Acts 20:28).
- And these are not in tension: to follow the Holy Spirit's revealed qualifications in appointing elders is the same as the Holy Spirit appointing them. When the church recognizes the men the Spirit's word has qualified, the Spirit is doing the appointing through His word.
Application
Two things follow for any congregation. First, restore the dignity of the office: do not let the eldership become the useless appendage the described, crowded out by preacher or members. God ordained shepherds for His flock, and a church that ignores or overrides them is poorer for it. Second, choose them rightly: recognize, by the congregation's honest agreement, the men whom the Spirit's word has already qualified, and appoint them — but do not turn it into a popularity contest that splits the body. The method is free within God's principles; the goal is always unity and faithful oversight. Where the Spirit's qualifications govern the choice, it is the Spirit Himself who appoints.
Conclusion
The New Testament does not hand us one procedure for selecting elders, but it does forbid the dividing method of popular election and consistently shows elders appointed — by Paul, by Titus, and ultimately by the Holy Spirit through His qualifications. Recognize the qualified, appoint them in unity, and honor the office God ordained.
Invitation
The Holy Spirit who appoints shepherds over the flock first calls sinners into it through the gospel. Answer that call today: believe on the Lord Jesus, repent of your sins, confess Him, and be baptized for the remission of your sins (Acts 2:38), and the Lord will add you to the church the Spirit watches over (Acts 20:28). Come while we sing.
Word Study
| English Term | Greek Term | Basic Meaning | Usage in This Sermon | Sermon Significance | Key Texts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Appoint | cheirotoneō | to designate or install in office | the New Testament's verbs for elders are verbs of appointment, not of balloting | the New Testament's verbs for elders are verbs of appointment, not of balloting; the men are set in place, not elected in a contest | Acts 14:23 |
| Select / look out | episkeptomai | to look over and choose out | the congregation's part is to recognize the qualified, after which the appointment is made | the congregation's part is to recognize the qualified, after which the appointment is made | Acts 6:3 |
Scripture Interlock Table
| Theme | Boles' Outline | Supporting Scripture |
|---|---|---|
| Elders appointed; method open | I | Acts 14:23; Eph. 4:3 |
| Not by dividing popular vote | II | (principle of unity) |
| Acts 6: congregation recognizes, apostles appoint | III | Acts 6:2-6 |
| Appointed by Paul, Titus, the Spirit | IV | Acts 14:23; Titus 1:5; Acts 20:28 |
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Converted from H. Leo Boles, Outline 53. Doctrinal audit: core-framework (elders appointed, not popularly elected; method free within NT principles and unity; the Spirit appoints through His qualifications recognized by the congregation; Acts 6 as illustrative pattern though the seven were not elders); no correction. Boles' lament over the depreciated eldership is preserved as his pastoral concern. Style audit: OCR cleanup. Source note: no primary-text line; Acts 14:23 (cited at IV.1, the appointing verse) supplied as text and flagged. Supplied supporting reference (Eph. 4:3) flagged; Boles' own citations retained.
