“Thomas Linacre (1460–1524) was  a scholar, court physician to King Henry VIII, and personal friend of both Erasmus and Sir  Thomas More. He lived before the Reformation, when the Bible was restricted to the clergy. But one day a priest gave him a copy of the four Gospels in the original   Greek. After carefully studying the sacred text, Linacre remarked, “Either these are not the Gospels, or we are not Christians!” It wasn’t long after this when, in 1517, an Augustinian monk name Martin Luther hammered ninety-five theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg to protest the same gap between Christ and his church. The  Reformation had begun.” – Os Guiness

 

We are now down to our last parable for this section of Matthew chapter 13. There are more parables in this book, but we have studied and understood the majority of them here, which will help us grasp the nature of the church in relation to the kingdom of God. I believe it was comprehensive enough to persuade us of its importance and prayerfully ask God to apply them in our lives in this church.

 

So, what is the nature of the church of Christ? In summary, the church is invisibly composed of regenerated, elect believers. At the same time, it is visible, and while the spiritual realities are present, it awaits a glorious and perfected consummated end. Specifically speaking, we understand that the visible church is organic, meaning it grows mysteriously and yet powerfully. In this sense, we are encouraged to consider its unseen and yet profound impact here on earth. As a result, we are called to value Christ’s church against all costs. This is about conversion and discipleship. We are exhorted to seek God’s kingdom and its righteousness. Lastly, and this is our topic this Lord’s Day morning, we must know that the church is also an institution. It simply means God has placed visible and tangible aspects in it which he has called us to do and participate in.

 

The church as an institution calls us to engage in the ministry of the gospel. She is also exhorted to defend the truth and model holy living. This is what we are going to explore and end with this Lord’s Day. We have two points:
1) Church as Ministers of the Gospel;
2) Church as Guardians of the Whole Counsel of God.

 

Before we begin, Let us pray:

 

 

The kingdom of God here on earth, while organic by nature, comes to us through established institutions. As an organic institution, the visible church, composed of individual professors and their children, will select faithful and mature men to formally take on the task of preaching, teaching, and disciplining its members. She will ordain and install these men into the gospel ministry of the church.

 

After Jesus taught and explained his parables, he made sure to check if they truly understood them, and they all said: “Yes!” (Verse 51). There is one thing we need to notice from this. Jesus aimed for understanding and acceptance. He did not ask what they felt about it or what their key takeaway from the experience was, but he pressed them for assent. Jesus wanted to make sure that despite the hiddenness inherent in teaching parables, they understood its plain meaning. This inspired understanding will become the basis for the inscripturation of the gospel of Christ.

 

Next, in Verse 52, Jesus expounded to his disciples this parable to commission them to the gospel ministry. He said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house, who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.” Jesus did not stop with making sure they understand, but instead, he told them what they need to do about it. They need to bring the message out! Jesus commissioned them to bring the whole gospel message to the whole world! The gospel ministry of these disciples will become the foundation of the visible church (Ephesians 2:20) from then on. With Jesus as its chief cornerstone (1 Corinthians 3:10-11), they will become the scribes of the kingdom. Scribes during their time were teachers of the law and its traditions, and calling the disciples as scribes assumes the disciples will replace the function of their current scribes as teachers. Why? Because they received understanding and are now responsible for assimilating them to all the members of God’s household.

 

But how are they going to bring them out? This implies a certain level of qualification. Jesus stated that his disciples are scribes “trained for the kingdom of heaven”. It’s crucial to understand that while all believers are generally encouraged to participate in the gospel ministry of the church, not everyone is specifically called to the unique role of officebearers. Paul posed several rhetorical questions to emphasize that not everyone is called to the special office of overseers. He wrote, “Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? (1 Corinthians 12:29)”. The answer is a resounding “No!”. Applying this to our day, overseers no longer refers to the extraordinary ministry of apostles and prophets but the ordinary office of pastors/teachers, elders, and deacons and as “scribes” we are focusing on their teaching and disciplining duty. This is why on a different epistle, but discussing the same topic, James warns, “Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. (James 3:1)”. He suggests some form of training or qualification for these men in office, as the criteria for judgement is stricter.

 

Where does this leave us? I would like to answer three areas of concern faced by modern churches of our day.

 

First, it is a common perception today that placing a high standard for qualifying as overseers creates a feeling of inadequacy among church leadership and this is less than desired. Well, it is completely normal to feel inadequate given the high standards of church leadership. But this feeling of inadequacy is not a sign of weakness, but rather an indication of an awareness of the gap between one’s current self and the requirements of leadership. The key to overcoming this feeling is not to shy away from it, but to understand if one is truly desirous of such an office, and if God is calling them to service, we have face up to them. Remember, God supplies what He requires, and if the calling is from God, He will provide everything needed to fulfill that call.

 

Second, there is a danger of lowering the standards and even willingness to compromise for the sake of mere compliance. Lowering standards and compromising on biblical church government and eldership can lead to a church’s demise. But some might object, “Should we just simply put interim leaders while waiting for these men to mature?”. God gifts his church with men in office (Ephesians 4:8). The cure to the church’s spiritual stagnation and decline is a biblically defined and applied eldership. So the answer to the question is “No”. The church must insist on biblically qualified elders, even if such men take years to develop. 

 

Third, we need to realize that as a church strict requirements for overseers signifies it importance and seriousness. Strict requirements discourage unqualified men from taking office and discourage any temptation for the congregation to compromise. The high standards are meant to encourage godly living and are a sign that the Holy Spirit is truly working in that church. Holiness is the standard of godly living, and effectiveness in the ministry can only be caused by holy living.

 

Why is it essential to have overseers in the church who are both biblically qualified and trained? The answer lies in their dual role within the gospel ministry. Not only are they tasked with preaching the Word, but they also bear the responsibility of safeguarding the flock, as stated in 1 Peter 5:2-3. Their mission extends beyond nurturing believers within the church; it also involves warding off unbelievers and hypocrites. This twofold function requires biblically qualified and trained officebearers.

 

Jesus provides a metaphor for this, describing “a master of a house, who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old (verse 52).” The ‘treasure’ in this context does not carry the same meaning as in previous parables, where it symbolizes Christ as the ultimate treasure. Instead, it signifies the entirety of God’s counsel, the inscripturated deposit of divine revelation. The phrase “what is new and what is old” encapsulates the idea that “The new is concealed in the old; the old is revealed in the new,” a concept expressed by Augustine. This refers to the whole counsel of God (Acts 20:27). The act of “bringing out” the treasure implies “guarding against” tarnish and decay. Preserving the truth means guarding against any falsehood.

 

The visible church, as an institution, does not exist solely ‘to serve the hierarchy.’ Its purpose is not merely to provide temporary relief to mankind. Instead, the mission of the church is to bring the saving message of the gospel. Jesus wanted His disciples to understand that their belonging to the kingdom was not about being served, but about serving. As Christians, this core purpose defines our existence: to minister the gospel to the nations. And the way for the gospel ministry to continue moving forward is to institutionalize gospel ministers.

 

The complex problems often experienced with many modern churches today stem from the lack of conviction and the desire to defend truth. This is a far cry from what Paul expressed in his charge to the Ephesian elders. He wrote: “…for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God. Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood (Acts 20:27-28).” Paul was concerned about false teachers devouring the flock (verse 29). He was warning them against anyone teaching anything other than the gospel taught from scripture (verse 30). He reminded them to continue building up and exhorting one another in the faith (verses 31-32). So the lack of conviction and passion for truth expresses itself first with ignoring the requirements for biblical leadership.

 

Unfortunately, many churches today have set their goal as simply ‘maintaining the status quo.’ Some are naively content to avoid ‘rocking the boat.’ Their aim is to never offend anyone at any cost. However, as the prophet Jeremiah lamented, they have ‘healed the wound of my people lightly, saying, “Peace, peace,” when there is no peace’ (Jeremiah 8:11). This means that the duty of protecting the flock against false doctrine and ungodly living is no longer diligently practiced. Failure to discipline indirectly repudiate the gospel ministry. Why? Because apostasy comes from within and not from without.

 

There are two sure paths to apostasy and they often result from misunderstanding the nature of the church as an institution: these are enthusiasm and formalism. Enthusiasm, which thrives in disorder, requires no qualifications for office other than a happy-go-lucky disposition. Formalism, on the other hand, excessively imposes structure and demands unwavering compliance. The former neglects proper training, while the latter suffocates passion. But maturity balances training with passion. Training develops skills, and passion breeds character. Overseers must demonstrate their zeal with knowledge, not without it, as Paul warns us against ignorant zeal (Romans 10:1–3). They must be able to teach right doctrine but also wisely model it with their lives. As guardians of the whole counsel of God, we, as a church, must continually aim for such an institution. Jesus has laid down in His last parable for this section how the message of God’s kingdom will be proclaimed. He will do so through the faithful ministry of godly and capable men.

 

You may want to ask: ‘Pastor, I agree with you. We need biblical overseers in our church. What can I do as a member or attender in the church?’ Prayerfully, the congregation must actively seek them out, encourage them, and install them to positions of pastors/teachers, elders, and deacons. Let me again emphasize the doing part by listing the action verbs: Pray, seek, encourage, and install. Members’ involvement must first come from a genuine spiritual concern but it must also be accompanied by actively seeking and encouraging men to engage in the ministry, and eventually appoint and install them to these offices. If there is a great need in our churches today, I would say we need more godly and able men as overseers.

 

Before we end, let me encourage our qualified men for office once again. Remember that true believers will always seek out, and help build true and healthy visible churches. Faith-grounded hope does not settle for anything less. It is simply not an option. As we grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, our conviction to grow also in obedience to God’s will deepen as well. May we acknowledge these needs as we diligently answer the call to serve Him as officers in His church. Amen.

 

Brothers and Sisters of Zion Covenant Reformed Church – Imus, our Lord establishes His kingdom here on earth and has instituted ways and means for the church to move forward until His second coming. As ministers of the gospel, overseers are essential for preaching and guarding the truth. They must be biblically qualified and trained. Let’s seek out and encourage more godly and capable men to become overseers. Amen.