Hebrews Chapter Thirteen, Follow The Leader

 

Hebrews 13:7 Remember those who rule over you, who have spoken the word of God to you, whose faith follow, considering the outcome of their conduct.

 

In the previous passage the Hebrew Christians are instructed that their conduct should not derive from covetousness, but from the sure knowledge of God’s word that He would always be with us, see Matthew 28:20. The elders, or bishops, or overseers, are to be measured by their conduct, to ensure that what they teach (having spoken the word to you) agrees with what they practice (considering the outcome of their conduct) before blindly accepting their governance.

Paul twice instructs the Corinthian church to imitate him, the second time adding the caveat that only as far as he imitates Christ, 1 Corinthians 4:16, 11:1. Paul went so far as to send Timothy to them, as a reminder both in word and deed, in how Paul conducted himself as a teacher among them, 1 Corinthians 4:17. A teacher is only instructive, according to God’s word, if they practice what they preach. In other words, do the elders of the church abide by the words spoken? The words may be right, but if men unwilling to follow them speak them hypocritically their testimony is tarnished by their conduct. In this instance such teachers fall into the injunction Jesus gave regarding the Pharisees: “Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do,” Matthew 23:3.

 

A good teacher must rightly divide the word of God, and be open to correction in both doctrine and conduct. We, who are born again by God’s Spirit, are not infallible or incapable of falling into doctrinal or moral error. Teachers especially must clothe themselves with humility, admitting that the more one teaches, the more one must learn, applying that knowledge in daily life, which the Bible currently refers to as conduct. James warns that teachers will be more strictly judged than saints that are not called to teach, James 3:1.

 

Christians are to follow their elders only as the faith of said elders reflects what accurate teaching from the Bible conveys. If there is incongruity between doctrine and lifestyle, the saints are charged with respectfully calling out error, 1 Timothy 5:1. If the error that tarnishes God’s truth is not repented of, excommunication may inevitably be the result, 1 Corinthians 5:13. Doctrine is reproached when the conduct of the teacher is called into question. Ravi Zacharias unfortunately makes for an example all too close to home. His teaching for the most part was sound. But his hidden sin, brought to light after his decease, brought his doctrinal integrity sharply into question. It was said that there are five gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and the Christian preaching them. Our lives must reflect the gospel or the world. If the latter, the potency of the gospel message is marred, confusion amplifies, and indifference results. Why accept a message that has no transformative power?

 

That was why the apostle Paul put forth criteria for electing elders to the church, 1 Timothy 3:2-7. Notice how of the fifteen criteria Paul lists to Timothy about the qualifications of an elder, one is doctrinal (able to teach), fourteen describe his moral conduct. Those in the church—to say nothing of those outside—have an unspoken assumption about how a man of God will behave in his daily life. Paul actually addresses this assumption and agrees, providing a bucket list of what such a teacher of the word, a shepherd of the church of Christ, ought to conduct himself like. The bishop must be a monogamous, married heterosexual. Temperate or mild mannered, sober minded or not given to frivolity, of good behavior (as opposed to known sinful behavior). Hospitable, such as entertaining strangers or visiting the prisoners, not a drunkard, not violent or greedy for money, which would lead to peddling God’s word for gain. They must be gentle, not interested in inciting arguments or debates, not covetous, which is a form of idolatry, ruling their household well, implying that they love and admonish their children. Elders must not be young in the faith for fear of pride unseating them. And finally such elders must have a good reputation from those outside the church, who know them more intimately than the congregation they are intending to lead.

 

This is the summation of following the faith of an elder once their conduct is considered, or studied, pondered, or reflected upon. Blind adherence is shunned; God wants our faith to be founded on reasonable evidence, and our conduct will reflect the surety of the faith we espouse. The nearer an elder comes to imitating Christ, the better they are as an example of whose faith we should follow, or imitate. Christians, read Scripture fervently and know your Savior intimately, so we may, one and all, be able to scrutinize a teacher’s doctrine and conduct, and discern who is fit to learn from, and who is not.