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Elders in Congregational Life: Rediscovering the Biblical Model for Church Leadership
Self-government and autonomy are long-standing cherished traditions of most evangelical churches. Ideally this means each member participates in decision making, but in reality pure congregationalism is unwieldy and unworkable. Pastors try to solve the problem by assuming more and more of the authority themselves. Neither approach is biblical.
A biblically functioning church requires intentional devotion to the New Testament model of church leadership. In this practical book, experienced pastor Phil Newton examines this biblical model of leadership by explaining the necessity of elder plurality and how it functions in a congregational setting. Newton demonstrates the history of elder plurality from personal experience in Baptist life, expounds three biblical texts to shed light on the New Testament model for spiritual leaders, and provides answers to commonly asked questions.
A biblically functioning church requires intentional devotion to the New Testament model of church leadership. In this practical book, experienced pastor Phil Newton examines this biblical model of leadership by explaining the necessity of elder plurality and how it functions in a congregational setting. Newton demonstrates the history of elder plurality from personal experience in Baptist life, expounds three biblical texts to shed light on the New Testament model for spiritual leaders, and provides answers to commonly asked questions.
176 pages, Paperback
First published April 15, 2005
17 people are currently reading
80 people want to read
About the author
Phil A. Newton
32 books6 followersPhil A. Newton (PhD, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary; DMin, Fuller Theological Seminary) is senior pastor at South Woods Baptist Church in Memphis. In pastoral ministry for over thirty-five years, he also serves as an adjunct professor at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary’s Equip Center.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
February 23, 2013
Some of my favorite quote so far from Elders in Congregational Life: Rediscovering the Biblical Model for Church Leadership by Phil A. Newton
I know of no other book that gives such particular and practical consideration for transitioning to plural elders. Mark Dever, Capitol Hill Baptist Church
when the leadership group of a church is swamped in the mundane and temporal, they may fail to take to heart the deeper spiritual needs of the church.
the duties of elders might better be approached in a fourfold manner: doctrine, discipline, direction, and distinction in modeling the Christian life.
What difference can elders make in church life? If a congregation has a group of godly spiritual leaders who walk with Christ, who do so in such a way that they assist the body in fleshing out the details of the Christian life, who attend to the doctrine of the church, who labor to maintain discipline of the members, and who regularly give direction to the church, that church will be better positioned for spiritual growth and effective ministry.
These young, small churches of Asia Minor needed biblical instruction, regular discipline, spiritual leadership, and models for the faith.
The most remarkable thing about these characteristics is that there is nothing remarkable about them. -D. A. Carson speaking of requirements of elders in the Bible
Elders, deacons, and other church officers that fail to display the character required of spiritual leaders have done great damage to churches.
The congregation as a whole was not part of the discussions or debates, but they were later informed, and affirmed the result of the council
the congregation at large must focus on mobilization for ministry rather than spend its time worrying over governance.
the pastor is first among equals in authority-first by virtue of the church's call and his training and gifts, but equal in that he is not a "Lone Ranger" figure in church leadership.
I know of no other book that gives such particular and practical consideration for transitioning to plural elders. Mark Dever, Capitol Hill Baptist Church
when the leadership group of a church is swamped in the mundane and temporal, they may fail to take to heart the deeper spiritual needs of the church.
the duties of elders might better be approached in a fourfold manner: doctrine, discipline, direction, and distinction in modeling the Christian life.
What difference can elders make in church life? If a congregation has a group of godly spiritual leaders who walk with Christ, who do so in such a way that they assist the body in fleshing out the details of the Christian life, who attend to the doctrine of the church, who labor to maintain discipline of the members, and who regularly give direction to the church, that church will be better positioned for spiritual growth and effective ministry.
These young, small churches of Asia Minor needed biblical instruction, regular discipline, spiritual leadership, and models for the faith.
The most remarkable thing about these characteristics is that there is nothing remarkable about them. -D. A. Carson speaking of requirements of elders in the Bible
Elders, deacons, and other church officers that fail to display the character required of spiritual leaders have done great damage to churches.
The congregation as a whole was not part of the discussions or debates, but they were later informed, and affirmed the result of the council
the congregation at large must focus on mobilization for ministry rather than spend its time worrying over governance.
the pastor is first among equals in authority-first by virtue of the church's call and his training and gifts, but equal in that he is not a "Lone Ranger" figure in church leadership.
March 21, 2019
Outstanding book. Newton uses the Bible to show how leadership in New Testament churches looked. He not only considered Baptist history, but Biblical history - which is most certainly primary. The first two sections of the book are meant to prove that plurality in church leadership (elders) is not only Biblical, but beneficial. The last section, "From Theory to Practice" is more of a recommendation of how to implement Biblical leadership in a church that lacks it. Some of the suggestions in this last section will vary from church to church due to size if nothing else.
I recommend that every Christian leader reads this book. But, especially those filling a Baptist pulpit.
I recommend that every Christian leader reads this book. But, especially those filling a Baptist pulpit.
January 10, 2021
I'm starting a book slot in my reading regiment for the various stewardships the Lord has given to me. In no particular order, the first responsibility I looked at was elder. Newton addresses the topics of elders in Baptist churches from a few angles: history, biblical exegesis, and practical implementation. Much to think about and pray through as I read the book as a new elder. I forget how this compares to the 9Marks version where Matt Schmucker contributes, but I know this version would be helpful to any aspiring/present church leader whether you use the title elder or not.
November 12, 2014
There has been quite a resurgence of Biblical polity in many churches that have, seemingly since the advent of the Second Great Awakening and Finney-brand revivalism, often been plagued by an unbiblical model of church government. I remain convinced from Scripture of the necessity of a plurality of qualified and called pastor-elders to serve as under-shepherds, leading God's local flock. I do still have reservations as to the validity of congregationalism, but do see that the idea(generally) is not completely foreign to Scripture. In particular, Newton presents a rather convincing argument for the necessity and legitimacy of a type of congregationalism, particularly one led by a plurality of elders.
Phil Newton's book,Elders in Congregational Life , dives into the challenge of moving a church with an unbiblical government to a church with a plurality of qualified elders. This book seems specifically aimed at Southern Baptists, but is applicable beyond. By being aimed at Baptist, Newton is able to address specific issues, use specific examples and pull from the history of the denomination, while consistently basing his argument in Scripture, to counter illegitimate examples, modern tradition that spurns the tradition of the founders of the SBC and poor exegesis.
Newton divides the book into three sections. The first section is used by Newton to address the problem of poor church polity and the history of biblical church polity in the SBC. Section two looks at 3 specific passages and how they support the idea of a plurality of leadership and what a biblical elder actually resembles. Section 3 is the application section. Rather than begin by giving a list of how-to's and pages of commands and promises, Newton chooses instead to tell the story of some churches that have made the change, and the challenges faced and success enjoyed by these examples. He then proceeds to make some practical suggestions. It is important to note that this section is not binding. It is not commanded in Scripture, or even modeled in Scripture, but it is practical advise gleaned from multiple sources that have led a change in a congregational church from single elder/pastor to plural, biblical elders.
It was when Newton began dealing specifically with the “first amongst equals”, or the “senior pastor”, that he lost my seemingly perpetual “amen”. The term itself, “senior pastor”, when applied to a man is offensive to me. According to Scripture, Christ is the Senior Pastor, the Chief Shepherd, of His Church and, subsequently, every local church. Anyone who serves the church as an elder is an under-shepherd of Christ. This is not just some semantical* nit-picking because it is important, as Newton points out in his book, that every elder realize that he is not autonomous and that he is accountable to the Shepherd for how he handles His flock. Beyond that, when addressing the role of the “senior pastor”, it seemed to place much too high an emphasis on him. Plurality of leadership did not seem to flow into plurality in the pulpit and plurality when leading the way in decisions and announcements and vision. I would have liked Newton to have offered a vision of true plurality, where a plurality of men are filling the pulpit on a regular basis and the vision of the church is solely tied to the church, and not to the “first amongst equals”.
Elders in Congregational Life is great for what it is. It is concise yet robust, dealing with the Biblical mandates, support and examples as well as addressing the rich history of plurality of leadership within Baptist history. The practical sections give a lot of great ideas, if at times the advice seemed a bit one-size-fits-all. If you want a broader defense of plurality of leadership and exposition of the texts dealing with plurality and elder qualifications, I would suggest Strauch's Biblical Eldership. But, if you want a solid, congregationalist based argument for plurality and a sufficiently thorough exposition on the qualifications of an elder, Newton's Elders in Congregational Life is a great read.
*It appears that the word “semantical” may not exist. For the sake of clarity, brevity, and possibly irony, I have left it in. Plus, legitimate semantics or not, I like the word. :-D
Phil Newton's book,Elders in Congregational Life , dives into the challenge of moving a church with an unbiblical government to a church with a plurality of qualified elders. This book seems specifically aimed at Southern Baptists, but is applicable beyond. By being aimed at Baptist, Newton is able to address specific issues, use specific examples and pull from the history of the denomination, while consistently basing his argument in Scripture, to counter illegitimate examples, modern tradition that spurns the tradition of the founders of the SBC and poor exegesis.
Newton divides the book into three sections. The first section is used by Newton to address the problem of poor church polity and the history of biblical church polity in the SBC. Section two looks at 3 specific passages and how they support the idea of a plurality of leadership and what a biblical elder actually resembles. Section 3 is the application section. Rather than begin by giving a list of how-to's and pages of commands and promises, Newton chooses instead to tell the story of some churches that have made the change, and the challenges faced and success enjoyed by these examples. He then proceeds to make some practical suggestions. It is important to note that this section is not binding. It is not commanded in Scripture, or even modeled in Scripture, but it is practical advise gleaned from multiple sources that have led a change in a congregational church from single elder/pastor to plural, biblical elders.
It was when Newton began dealing specifically with the “first amongst equals”, or the “senior pastor”, that he lost my seemingly perpetual “amen”. The term itself, “senior pastor”, when applied to a man is offensive to me. According to Scripture, Christ is the Senior Pastor, the Chief Shepherd, of His Church and, subsequently, every local church. Anyone who serves the church as an elder is an under-shepherd of Christ. This is not just some semantical* nit-picking because it is important, as Newton points out in his book, that every elder realize that he is not autonomous and that he is accountable to the Shepherd for how he handles His flock. Beyond that, when addressing the role of the “senior pastor”, it seemed to place much too high an emphasis on him. Plurality of leadership did not seem to flow into plurality in the pulpit and plurality when leading the way in decisions and announcements and vision. I would have liked Newton to have offered a vision of true plurality, where a plurality of men are filling the pulpit on a regular basis and the vision of the church is solely tied to the church, and not to the “first amongst equals”.
Elders in Congregational Life is great for what it is. It is concise yet robust, dealing with the Biblical mandates, support and examples as well as addressing the rich history of plurality of leadership within Baptist history. The practical sections give a lot of great ideas, if at times the advice seemed a bit one-size-fits-all. If you want a broader defense of plurality of leadership and exposition of the texts dealing with plurality and elder qualifications, I would suggest Strauch's Biblical Eldership. But, if you want a solid, congregationalist based argument for plurality and a sufficiently thorough exposition on the qualifications of an elder, Newton's Elders in Congregational Life is a great read.
*It appears that the word “semantical” may not exist. For the sake of clarity, brevity, and possibly irony, I have left it in. Plus, legitimate semantics or not, I like the word. :-D
January 17, 2016
Make no mistake - this is a survey course on and in defense of church elders. This reality makes it somewhat academic in nature with an intent to provide information and guidance in elder leadership. Even so, I had not problem reading it and enjoyed the experience. Not only was it helpful in ways authors Newton and Schmucker intended it to be, but it was also engaging in ways I didn't necessarily expect. Perhaps what I appreciated most about Elders in Congregation Life was the historical and biblical precedent for church elders. This lesson in church polity history got me off to a great start and made the experience as much of a page-turner as it could possibly be. I recommend it as an outstanding tool for research, transitioning to elder leadership, or for those crazy people that read this stuff for pleasure. Great job Phil A. Newton and Matt Schmucker!
November 5, 2007
A good fast read to look at the biblically warranted church polity of plural elders in a congregational church. A good balance of defining the need for elders, Scriptural clarity, and practical implementation is given. The balance between a plurality of elders without compromising the equality and connection with every member in a local church body is clearly argued. The Baptist distinctions are addressed to deal with changes the Baptist are encountering as the move from one Senior Pastor (Elder) with Deacons boards, to a plurality of Elders and Deacons.
September 1, 2015
I liked the book, but believe there are more helpful books out there on this subject. However, the book does have the best material, that I have found, on how to transition to elder leadership. Even if you do not read the entire book it is worth your time to read the last three chapters.
Read the updated version (September 1, 2015). The new chapters by Matt Schmucker made a good book ever better.
Read the updated version (September 1, 2015). The new chapters by Matt Schmucker made a good book ever better.
March 3, 2016
For me growing up as a Baptist, I saw elders and congregationalism as at cross purposes. But the more I read the NT and the more I read books like Newton's Elders in Congregational Life, the more I realize that they aren't and don't have to be at cross purposes. Elders is just another name for 'pastors' or 'overseers,' with each term having a different nuance to the same office. He gives me much to think over.
December 18, 2012
For anyone considering a change to a more biblical form of church government, this book will be a must read. I love Newton's practical and sage advice to those who would make a change too. It's beneficial and packed with real wisdom.
November 18, 2018
One of the best books on biblical eldership I've read. The last few chapters on the transition to biblical eldership in an American setting or missionary seting were especially helpful and worth the price of the book.
March 5, 2016
Helpful book outlining the reasons for and the practice of plural pastoral leadership in the local church. Most helpful is Newton's section on moving from theory to practice.
For Tim Challies' 2016 Reading Challenge, I read this book as a book written by a first-time author.
For Tim Challies' 2016 Reading Challenge, I read this book as a book written by a first-time author.
January 8, 2014
A good treatment of the Biblical basis, implementation, and responsibilities of elders.
October 3, 2013
A very helpful guide to the study of eldership for congregational Baptist churches.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews