There’s more to Christ’s authority in the Church than meets the eye. Although church leaders constitute a visible government, they are only a fraction of the authority that Christ has vested in His Body through His Anointing in the Holy Spirit. The invisible anointing in the Holy Spirit, which confers authority on all believers, must also be recognized and confessed in every church as essential to its well being.

“This is why I left you in Crete,  so that you might put what remained into order,  and appoint elders in every town as I directed you” (Tit 1:5 ESV).

The Word of God teaches that Christ’s churches are to be led by a plurality of elders, or presbyters (Grk, presbuteroi). Paul left Titus, an evangelist, on the island of Crete to organize the church by appointing elders. This is why our church is rightly called “Presbyterian” – elders lead it.

There are good and faithful Christians who would disagree with this form of government, however. Episcopalians would object to our form of government as being the only one taught in the Bible. They insist that bishops (Grk episcopoi) are not only admissible but also mandated. We reply that in Paul’s epistle to Titus, the terms “presbyter” and “bishop” are interchangeable: as a presbyter, an elder (presbuteros) rules in the church, and as bishop, an elder oversees and visits the flock. (See Tit 1:5,7.)

Regardless of the form that Christ’s government takes in the visible Church, the work of the ministry must be done in good order, according to Scripture (1Cor 14:40). The Word of God commands accountability and submission to authority –

“Obey them that have rule over you, and submit yourselves, for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.” (Heb 13:17)

Apologist-philosopher Jean-Marc Berthoud makes an important observation regarding the authority in the Church of Christ. While the visible Church is to be organized in terms of elders and deacons, there remains another order, that of the invisible Church, that all must recognize. It is the order of spiritual authority in Christ in the heavens. Just as we are to acknowledge the leaders appointed by Christ in the visible Church, every church member must understand their place and duty in the scheme of authority in Christ’s spiritual body. Every believer relates to this divine authority by their union with Christ and their anointing with the Holy Spirit – Christ organically shares His anointing with all his brothers (See Psa 133:1-3).

The invisible Church has only one Head and many members. All members of the invisible Church enjoy union with Christ, the Head of the Church, through the Holy Spirit. As the Head is anointed, so are all the members of the body, which is the Church. The fullness of the anointing upon Jesus Christ places Him as uniquely having all authority in the Church (Matt 28:18). Christ administers or mediates this authority from the right hand of God the Father in three offices: Prophet, Priest, and King.

As the King of the Church, Jesus is Lord over all. This would have us see the invisible Church structured as a monarchy. As Berthoud explains, the Church is a monarchy because

…the sole Head of the Church (possessing an absolutely sovereign power over it) is Jesus Christ Himself, God the Son made man. In this way we must first affirm that the Church is an institution with a theocentric, theonomic, and theocratic character, and that the prerogative that governs the Church is the prerogative of God, the very Word of God.[1]

As the Lord Jesus gives ministerial gifts to the Church in the form of pastors and teachers, the invisible Church takes the form of an aristocracy. This necessarily means that the Church has a hierarchical structure. Note that the Church is not a meritocracy, as one might expect to find in the workplace or academia. The authority is in keeping with the truth that Christ freely gives all gifts and graces to undeserving sinners. It is these gifts and graces that distinguish leaders in the Church, especially regarding the gift of prophecy (1Cor 14:39). Berthoud (referencing 1 Cor 12:28; 1Tim 1:12; and Gal 1:1) writes:

…Jesus Christ appoints men specifically chosen and trained by Him and to whom He has delegated His authority to govern His house according to the commandments included for their explicit purpose in the Word of God. The ministers of God in the Church are thus in no way instituted by popular election, by the democratic vote of all believers, but by God Himself.[2]

Finally, as the Lord Jesus is every believer’s elder brother, and as every believer is a son and a co-heir of God in Christ, the Church is a democracy (my preference is to call it a commonwealth). Berthoud explains:

The Church is also a society of a democratic nature, a society of people capable of mutual edification, a community in which all are, in their own right, members of the body of Jesus Christ…This faith of God’s people, writes Peter, is a faith just as precious and valuable as his own (2Pe 1:1). It is from this communion of all in one body, where every person has his place, that democracy exists in the Church in accordance with Scripture.[3]

All authority is honorable, and bearing an authority conferred is a privilege. The authority that Christ gives to all believers was purchased at the cost of his own life; therefore, authority in the Church is priceless and must never be left unappreciated or despised (Jude 1:6).

Authority in any society is always accompanied by duty. For the Christian to grow in his calling as a disciple, he is to be thoroughly instructed in all things that Christ has commanded for his Church (Matt 28:18-20), meaning “the whole counsel of God” (Act 20:27). An ignorant or underdeveloped disciple will fail to use his authority in the church wisely; this is a shame and it is sin. By contrast, the earnest disciple will take diligence in his studies and seek to perform his weekly service to his brothers – he will not be slack in his calling as an anointed prophet and kingly priest in Christ’s Church.

Summary

God’s Word requires the Lord Jesus’ Church and all her members to conduct themselves decently and in good order. His Word teaches that Jesus, as the only Head of the Church, has absolute sovereignty in all matters, especially in His Church. This authority Jesus has obtained by His anointing in the Holy Spirit, which anointing he shares with all who are in spiritual union with Him by faith. Thus, regardless of the external form of government, every believer is to regard Christ’s appointed authority in the Church. The place to start is to recognize one’s calling and anointing in Christ, and minister in the grace and gifts which it supplies.

Let all who are thus anointed with divine authority persist in faith and love in the house of God. May they persevere in season and out of season, even as they partake of the tribulation, kingdom, and perseverance that is in Christ (Rev 1:9). May they rejoice in the reward graciously promised to every faithful servant and son of God in Jesus Christ.

Lou Veiga is a Minister in the Presbyterian Church in America and is Senior Pastor of Covenant PCA in Houston, TX

1. Jean-Marc Berthoud, Authority in the Christian Life (Monticello, FL, Psalm78ministries.com, 2020) 91.
2. Ibid. 92.
3. Ibid. 93.