Introduction

Among the duties of elders listed in the URC Church Order (Article 14), we read, "They are to... actively promote the work of evangelism and missions." This is an addition to other Dort-based church orders. In my opinion it is also an improvement. It is also included in the new church order article on the work of elders which will be proposed by the Joint Church Order Committee.

However, my interest this evening is not to make a case for including such a reference to evangelism and missions in a church order dealing with the office of elder. Our concern tonight is broader than that. I want to lead you in a consideration of the importance of both elders and deacons exercising a leadership role in the missionary and evangelistic task of the church.

THESIS: Christ has appointed Officebearers to be leaders in the missionary and evangelistic task of His church.

1. The Proof of this Leadership Role
2. The Qualifications for Office and this Leadership Role
3. The Practice of this Leadership Role

Two qualifications/explanations:

1. We want to give special attention to the calling of elders and deacons in this regard. The lesser attention to the role of the minister is not to suggest that he has a lesser responsibility. It is just that the minister's role is often taken for granted, creating an imbalance that we might seek to correct by focusing more on elders and deacons.
2. We are not suggesting that involvement with missions and evangelism is the main work of the elders and deacons. By not addressing other matters belonging to their duties, we are not minimizing their importance. It is just that more attention is typically given to them, perhaps to the neglect of this part of their work and calling.

1. The Proof of this Leadership Role

1.1. Biblical Basis for this Leadership Role. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Amen. (Matthew 28:19-20)

1.1.1. This task is given to the church of all ages: Lo I am with you always...

1.1.2. This task clearly pertains to the church in her institutional / organized character. The activities of teaching and baptizing are not given to missionary societies or other groups of people who may have a zeal for the kingdom of God; "mission is a task of the church and not of a society or of some group of persons filled with compassion for those who are still living in darkness" (With Common Consent, W.W. J. Van Oene, p. 244).

1.1.3. Every aspect of this task belongs to the church. Every action here spoken by the Lord: (Go, make disciples, baptizing, teaching...) identifies the mandate given to each church.

1.1.4. Whatever belongs to the task of the church, as such, is the special responsibility of the officebearers. Teaching and baptizing belong to the official work and oversight of the offices, particularly of minister and elder. These are aspects of the going, disciple-making task of the church which must be carried out under their leadership and supervision.

"Proclamation of the Gospel both to those far and near is the task of the church, therefore of each church under the direction and leadership of the officebearers. It is not a hobby or a fruitful pastime, but a mandate. Each church should be aware of this" (Van Oene).

In the Elder's Handbook by Gerard Berghoef and Lester De Koster, they include a commendable chapter entitled "The Great Commission". Speaking of this commission in connection with elders, we read, "The Great Commission is the Church's charter for enlisting disciples in the service of the Lord to whom all authority has been given. The Church does so by being the Church, preaching and practicing the inspired Word of God. To oversee this witness of Word and work is the elder's grave responsibility toward his Lord's Commission" (p.239). These authors show a similar interest in the role of deacons in the church's missionary task in their Deacon's Handbook (Christian's Library Press; in print).

1.2. Confessional Expression of this Leadership Role. "We believe that this true Church must be governed by that spiritual polity which our Lord has taught us in His Word; namely, that there must be ministers or pastors to preach the Word of God and to administer the sacraments; also elders and deacons, who, together with the pastors, form the council of the Church; that by these means the true religion may be preserved, and the true doctrine everywhere propagated... (Belgic Confession, Article 30).

1.2.1. The "propagation of the true doctrine everywhere" clearly expresses a missionary concern.

1.2.2. The advancement of this concern is here given as belonging to the very purpose of our Lord's institution of the three offices of the church.

1.2.3. In his commentary on this Article of the Belgic Confession, P.Y. DeJong gives a brief overview of the missionary concern of Calvin and the early Dutch Reformed Churches. "This missionary responsibility," he syas, "is intimately bound up with the offices instituted by Christ in his church" (The Church's Witness to the World).

1.3. Church Order Reflection of this Leadership Role.

1.3.1. "The Churches shall endeavor to fulfill their missionary task. When Churches cooperate in this matter, they shall, as much as possible observe the division into classes and regional synods" (CanRC C.O., Art. 51).

1.3.1.1. Although very brief, this Article clearly assigns the missionary task to the church. This implies the leadership of officebearers as indicated in the above comments by Van Oene on this article.

1.3.1.2. This article also implies that this missionary task belongs first of all to the "local" congregation, with the involvement of classes and regional synods required when churches cooperate in this matter.

1.3.2. "The church's missionary task is to preach the Word of God to the unconverted. When this task is to be performed beyond the field of an organized church, it is to be carried out by ministers of the Word set apart to this labor, who are called, supported and supervised by their Consistories. The churches should assist each other in the support of their missionaries" (URC C.O. Art. 47).

1.3.2.1. The heart of the church's missionary task is carried out by ordained preachers.

1.3.2.1. They are called, supported, and supervised by their Consistories.

1.3.3. In both the CanRC C.O. and the URC C.O., the task of the deacons includes exhorting members of the congregation to show mercy. The URC C.O. specifically includes a reference to needs outside the congregation (Article 15). Our common understanding of the tasks of deacons does not limit their work to members of the church. In this connection, our common C.O. language referring to their task of distributing the gifts of the congregation in the Name of Christ, and encouraging and comforting with the Word of God must also be understood with reference to evangelistic labors. Deacons may actually face more opportunities to bear witness to the Gospel as they carry out their ministry of mercy than elders.

Conclusion: The Scriptural teaching, the confessional expression and our church order reflection of the church's missionary task clearly assigns to officebearers the leadership role in this work. If officebearers do not take up this leadership role, who may? Who will?

2. The Qualifications for Office and this Leadership Role

2.1. Missionary and evangelistic interest (zeal?) should characterize officebearers.

2.1.1. Officebearers must themselves be true Christian men.

2.1.1.1. It is an essential characteristic of the Christian man that he is concerned for the glory of God's Name and the advance of Christ's kingdom on earth (see the first petitions of the Lord's Prayer). To pray these petitions with understanding and faith involves missionary concern.

2.1.1.2. No Christian may be indifferent to the spiritual needs of others. Every Christian must know himself to be a sinner, saved by grace. The Christian man will not look down on unbelievers with an air of superiority. Even when it comes to the most blatantly wicked people the Christian must say, "But for the grace of God, there go I." We heard that mission is a task of the church and not of a society or of some group of persons filled with compassion for those who are still living in darkness. True enough, but the church also should be a body of persons filled with compassion for those who are still living in darkness. This is a matter of Christian love. In his book entitled The Ruling Elder, 19th-century Presbyterian leader and professor at Princeton seminary, Samuel Miller asks:

"Is not every Christian, whether a minister, an elder, or a private member of the church bound to do all in his power for the extension of the Redeemer's kingdom, and for the conversion of the world? Is any disciple of Christ at liberty so far to consult his own ease or pleasure, as to shrink from doing all that in him lies for promoting the spiritual welfare of all within his reach?" (page 361).

2.1.2. Qualification for office includes a measure of maturity in this aspect of Christian character. It has been observed that most of the specific qualifications for office in Timothy and Titus are qualities that all Christians should aim at. If officebearers must possess some maturity in these areas, the same is true of these most basic Christian characteristics of zeal for God's honor and love for our neighbor. In the same book just mentioned, Miller seems to be describing this aspect of Christian character when he says:

"A ruling elder ought to be a man of public spirit and enlarged views. He who is called by his official duty to plan and labour for the extension of the Redeemer's kingdom surely ought not, of all men, to have a narrow and illiberal mind--to be sparing of labour, parsimonious in feeling and habit, or contented with small attainments. It is eminently desirable, then, that a ruling elder be a man of expanded heart toward other denominations, as far as is consistent with entire fidelity to scriptural truth and order; that he aim high in spiritual attainment and progress; that he be willing to give much, to labour much, and to make sacrifices for the cause of Christ; and that he be continually looking and praying for the further enlargement and prosperity of Zion. Such a man will not be willing to see the church fall asleep or stagnate. Such a man's mind will be teeming with desires, plans, and prayers for the advancement of the Savior's cause. Such a man will not content himself, nor be satisfied to see others contenting themselves, with a little round of frigid formalities, or with the interests of a single parish. But the aspirations of his heart and the active efforts of his life will be directed to the extension and prosperity of the church in all its borders, and to the universal establishments and triumph of that gospel which is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth (Romans 1:16)" (The Ruling Elder, p.260).

2.1.3. Officebearers are then called to lead by example, also in missionary and evangelistic interest.

"We shall generally find that, in liberality of contribution to various objects of Christian effort, and in enlargement of mind to desire and seek the extension of the Redeemer's kingdom, the mass of members of any church may commonly be graduated [measured] by the character of their elders. If the leaders and guides of the church are destitute of public spirit--and are not found in taking the lead in large plans, labours and sacrifices for extending the reign of knowledge, truth and righteousness -- it will be strange indeed if a more enlarged spirit is found prevailing among the generality of their fellow members" (Miller, page 261-262).

"Both the apostles Paul and Peter express deep concern that Christians have a good reputation before a watching, nonbelieving world.... If all believers are required to have a good testimony before nonChristians, then it is imperative that the leaders have a good reputation with unbelievers. The church's evangelistic credibility and witness is tied to the moral reputation of its leaders.... An outsider's opinion of a Christian leader's character cannot be dismissed, for it effects the evangelistic witness of the entire church, "the pillar and support of the truth." That is why Paul emphatically states he must have a good reputation." (Alexander Strauch, Biblical Eldership, p. 201).

2.1.2.2. Hospitality (love of strangers) should not be viewed in the limited way of opening one's home to fellow Christians.

"Hospitality is coming more and more to be a useful means of evangelism and nurture in Christian fellowship... Hospitality does not mean just an open door to one's home. The hospitable man is one whose heart is first open to the lonely, the rejected, the alien among men of all kinds and in all conditions" (Lawrence R. Eyres, The Elders of the Church, p.30).

As deacons possess this openness of heart, even those inconvenient and questionable requests for help from the unchurched will be seen as opportunities to advance the honor of Christ by the ministry of His mercy and Word. "Those who love hospitality love people and are concerned about them. If the local church's elders [and deacons] are inhospitable, the local church will also be inhospitable and indifferent towards the needs of others" (Strauch, p.195).

2.1.3. Elders in particular are to be able to teach (I Timothy 3:2). While we properly think of this requirement first of all in terms of its exercise within the congregation, the ability to give a clear explanation of the Gospel to unbelievers or to disciple new converts should rank high in our assessment and use of this gift (Matthew 28:20).

3. The Practice of this Leadership Role

3.1. Officebearers must give oversight in the matter of the Church's evangelistic/missionary task.

3.1.1. The Belgic Confession, Article 30 connects the offices with the propagation of the "true doctrine". Christ commanded the church to make disciples teaching them to observe everything He commanded (Mathew 28:19-20). Not every evangelistic program or method may be endorsed. The Form of Subscription requires officebearers to oppose the unbiblical message and methods of Arminian evangelistic programs.

3.1.2. Our members are likely to become exposed to popular evangelistic campaigns, fads and methods used by other churches. Our churches will receive invitations to participate in a variety of evangelistic efforts. Years ago it was Billy Graham Crusades. Later it was the Evangelism Explosion drive. More recently it is the "Alpha program" and the campaign promoting the movie "The Passion of the Christ." Consistories should be informed about such things. Sometimes it is wise to present critical evaluations of these things to the congregation.

3.1.3. Deacons must continually evaluate the causes supported by the church. They should read the literature provided by missionary agencies. Financial reports ought to be studied seriously, and the responsible exercise of stewardship by missionary agencies ought not to be taken for granted.

3.1.4. This oversight includes the pulpit. Does the minister proclaim the missionary and evangelistic calling of God's people? Does he remember to pray for missionaries and for the evangelistic efforts of the congregation?

3.1.5. Evangelism Committees must function under the oversight of the Consistory, and ideally should include elders and deacons in their membership.

3.2. Officebearers should actively promote evangelism and missions in the congregation.

3.2.1. Among the tasks of the deacons is that of "exhorting members of the congregation to show mercy." How can this be done? Updated bulletin announcements by the deacons, explaining missionary causes and appealing for generous giving may be one way. Personal, direct explanations of need, with earnest appeals for the involvement and help of God's people are more effective than cold announcements of distributions of literature. Some deacons may be well gifted to offer such exhortations and appeals at congregational meetings or other public gatherings of the church.

3.2.2. Home visits by elders and deacons are suitable opportunities for this promotion of the church's missionary calling. One of the reasons why good works are necessary, according to Heidelberg Catechism (LD 32) is that "by our godly walk our neighbors also may be won for Christ." Do our lists of questions for home visits include questions about our members' witness in this world? Do we actually use these questions? We should.

3.2.3. Promoting missions and evangelism may well take the form of challenging our young people with respect to their vocational aspirations. We realize that the kingdom of Christ can be advanced and our God served in any lawful calling, but could it be that in our day we are witnessing a lack of distinct missionary interest and zeal when it comes to vocational choices? Officebearers can raise awareness of the importance of missionary work by challenging our young people to consider it.

3.2.4. What about challenging our retired members to consider what they might do? "Senior Discounts" are for missionary travel. By this heading, John Piper takes on a certain retirement mentality that is materialistic, selfish and unbiblical:

"I am not saying that we can make professions and businesses keep us employed beyond 65 or 70. I am saying that a whole new chapter of life opens for most people at age 65. And if we have armed ourselves with the "thought" of the suffering Savior and saturated our mind with the ways of the supremacy of God, we will invest our time and energy in this final chapter very differently than if we take our cues from the American dream. Millions of "retired" people should be engaged at all levels of intensity in hundreds of assignments around the world. Talk about travel! Park the RVs and use the senior discounts and "super savers" to fly wherever the agencies have need. Let the unreached peoples of the earth reap the benefits of a lifetime of earning. You will be repaid at the resurrection of the just (Luke 14:14)." (From Let the Nations be Glad!: The Supremacy of God in Missions, John Piper, Baker, p.110-111).

3.3. Officebearers should take the initiative in the church's missionary and evangelistic calling. This involves more than evaluating what others are doing, or "letting" the minister or interested members "do their thing". As Reformed Churches, we may become good at criticizing what others are doing, while failing to take any positive initiative ourselves. We may not endorse the "Alpha" program, but can we use certain insights they offer to develop our own endeavors to reach unbelievers with the Gospel? We cannot endorse "The Passion of the Christ", but can we somehow take advantage of the hype to promote the true Gospel? (e.g. Piper's Book distribution offer).

3.4. Councils must engage in self-evaluation. Deficiency in evangelistic and missionary interest, zeal and effort is a sin of omission. Like other sins of omission, our failings here may not be particularly glaring, they may not be divisive in the congregation. But our neglects might, none the less be very real in the eyes of the Lord.

3.4.1. Self-evaluation means being willing to assess practices or traditions that could be a hindrance to reaching and gathering unbelievers into our fellowship. This is a real challenge. This must not mean watering down Reformed doctrine and teaching. It doesn't mean giving up traditions that are rooted in biblical principle and are part of our heritage, for the sake of becoming "seeker friendly". It does not mean denying our cultural and ethnic roots. It does require a sensitivity to how some of our teachings and traditions may be perceived or misunderstood by others. It may mean actually making changes so that if people are "turned off" or "turned away" by our witness, it is indeed the witness of Gospel that is causing the offense, and not some unexamined ways of doing or speaking that put stumbling blocks in the path of our message.

Conclusion

Perhaps as we consider the role of the officebearers in Missions and Evangelism, we may feel overwhelmed at how much there is to do, how much we could be doing - perhaps how much we have neglected. Let's not become discouraged by this. The purpose of this talk is to raise awareness of the importance of the officebearer's role, and to encourage us to take steps in the direction of increasing faithfulness. Perhaps as Reformed churches, we have some catching up to do. It seems to me that the church's calling to missions and evangelism deserves greater prominence in our whole outlook as church of Jesus Christ. This is a challenge to ministers, elders and deacons and all the members. I was struck by a statement I read by John Piper in a recent book of his called Don't Waste Your Life. In connection with the church's call to use her resources for the furtherance of the Gospel, he said that "missions saves the church". He quoted J. Campbell White, who wrote:

"The effort to evangelize the world presents the speediest and surest method of saving the Church. Our material resources are so stupendous that we are in danger of coming to trust in riches rather than in God. If a man is growing large in wealth, nothing but constant giving can keep him from growing small in soul. The evangelization of the world is the only enterprise large enough and important enough to provide an adequate outlet for the Church's wealth" (p.171-172).

For its own soul, the church needs to be involved in missions. This is true not only as an antidote to covetousness; the overall health and spiritual-mindedness of our congregations relates to this aspect of seeking the kingdom of God. It may also be the antidote to petty disputes that can arise among us. It may be the antidote to a kind of inward looking that can cause us to lose perspective on our high calling in this world. It may also be the antidote to a kind of spiritual boredom and depression that needs to be replaced with the invigorating work of putting Christ's kingdom first in our lives. For its own soul, the church needs to be involved in missions. Leadership in this is crucial to the work of officebearers.

Rev. Pols is pastor of the Orthodox Reformed Church in Edmonton.

Note: Rev. Pols' speech is also available on DVD. Contact the steering committee to borrow the DVD.