by Elder Peter Lim

Growing up in the mid 1970s, The original Star Trek series quickly became one of my favorite TV shows to watch. It was quite an amazing show since it portrayed interstellar travel in a way that was more than just a collection of shallow, outer-space, visual effects. The story lines involved many of the elements that modern science fiction movies include as well as social issues. Who can forget the episode where a man with a half-black face felt racially superior to another man with a half-black face simply because the other guy was black on the left side instead of on the right side? It also gave an optimistic vision of the future world which was largely ordered and moral instead of being full of chaos. Starfleet Command gave the overall leadership to the Starship captains. The captains were followed by the first officer, and then other commander-rank officers. Rare were occasions where there was confusion as to who was in charge. There was a proper chain of command. Any lower ranking member of the crew must obey any higher ranking member. When the captain was on an away mission, he designated exactly who would be in charge while he was gone. How you feel about a decision is irrelevant. This is leadership at its highest efficiency. No time to waste arguing about what to do next. The leader in charge makes all the decisions. Every military force in the world operates on similar principles of proper succession of command in order to maximize efficiency.

So what does Star Trek have in common with the local church? Very little of course. However, many people try to implement a Star Trek-like efficiency into the polity of the local church. They imagine that having a leadership structure that is similar to the ones used in Star Trek or the military or corporate business is the best way to run a church. I can understand how such a system can be beneficial if the primary goal is to maximize efficiency of an organization. However, the goal of a church is not to achieve maximum efficiency. The primary goal of a church is to maximize God’s glory. This is why God has chosen fallible men to shepherd His flock as elders. It is when elders give preference to one another in a humble way that God’s glory is maximized, not when the captain makes unilateral decisions. This is difficult because everybody thinks that their own way is the best way. It’s difficult to consider the possibility that someone else might have a better idea.

Being an elder can be a frustrating task. No wonder God considered character qualities to be of utmost importance when choosing elders. In 1 Tim. 3, there is no qualification for an elder to be a college graduate with an MBA degree. There is no qualification to have been proven in business skills by running a profitable business. There are only character qualities which demonstrate his proper standing before God and with relating to other people. Imagine a scenario where an elder goes home after a frustrating meeting and says to his wife, “Guess what, they didn’t listen to me AGAIN.” He and his wife would then start to harbor bitterness against the other elders or possibly start planting seeds of division within the church as they talk to other people about the bad decision made by the other elders. A Godly man would never make such a remark. He would understand that even if he believes the wrong decision has been made, that he might be wrong. If his opinion is later proven to have been the best way to go, he wouldn’t gloat about that nor be smug. A Godly man would seek to encourage the rest of the board and move on. Although the optimal decision wasn’t made, God is glorified because His character was demonstrated by a Godly elder.

This also means that the goal of elders meetings is not simply to make quick and efficient decisions in order to have short meetings and go home early. Elders meetings are fellowship times to keep each other accountable, sharpen one another, and shepherd the flock of God by caring for the people. This is not to minimize the importance of the efficient running of a church and its activities but merely to put people ahead of the programs. An excellent elder board will seek to do both tasks well. When work can be delegated to deacons, staff, and other church members, the elders can then be freed up to devote more time for prayer and shepherding issues, especially for each other. This is especially important because all elders are mutually responsible before God to present His bride the church spotless and blameless. But because elders are fellow sinners, there will be disagreement and conflict, guaranteed. When disagreements arise, it’s important to remember that these differing opinions come from fellow brothers whom we love dearly and more importantly, loved by God.

Please pray for humility and wisdom for the elders of our church. We are all too familiar with our own weaknesses and faults. It is a great honor and privilege to serve you members of Lighthouse!