Workers for Your Joy: The Call of Christ on Christian Leaders

by David Mathis

Overview

Pastor-elder David Mathis expands on the nature and calling of local church leaders as joyful workers for the joy of their people, through the framework of the elder qualifications found in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781433578076
Publisher:	Crossway
Publication date:	09/13/2022
Pages:	352
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.40(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

David Mathis serves as senior teacher and executive editor at desiringGod.org, a pastor at Cities Church in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and an adjunct professor at Bethlehem College & Seminary in Minneapolis. He and his wife, Megan, have four children. He is the author of several books, including Habits of Grace: Enjoying Jesus through the Spiritual Disciplines.

Table of Contents

Preface 11

Introduction: The Pastors We All Want 23

Part 1 Humbled: Men before Their God

1 How Christ Appoints His Pastors 45

2 Not a Novice-or Arrogant 63

3 Pastors Are Teachers 75

4 Pastors Keep Their Head in a Conflicted World 95

Part 2 Whole: Men Where They Are Known Best

5 Self-Control and the Power of Christ 111

6 The World Needs More One-Woman Men 127

7 Does Drinking Disqualify a Pastor? 143

8 Does Your Pastor Love God or Money? 153

9 The Tragedy of Distracted Dads 163

Part 3 Honorable: Men before a Watching World

10 The First Requirement for Christian Leaders 183

11 How Pastors Win (and Lose) Respect 193

12 Love for Strangers and the Great Commission 207

13 The Strongest Men Are Gentle 221

14 How Do Pastors Pick Their Fights? 229

15 Why Christians Care What Outsiders Think 241

Commission: Christian Leadership versus Modern Celebrity 249

Thanks 261

Appendix 1 Who Are the Deacons? 265

Appendix 2 A Word for Leaders: On Plurality and Team Dynamics 269

Appendix 3 What Is Anointing with Oil? 283

Appendix 4 What Is the Laying On of Hands? 289

Appendix 5 How Old Should Eiders Be? 295

Study Questions 303

General Index 327

Scripture Index 335

Desiring God Note on Resources 343

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“David Mathis is right that two thousand years later, the biblical qualifications for elders ‘continue to pulse with relevancy to the everyday work of Christian leadership.’ What a great help this book would have been forty years ago when I was trying to build church-wide consensus around how the local church is to be led. What makes this book unique is the way pastoral joy, patient exposition, and personal application are woven into the fabric of Christian leadership. May God use Workers for Your Joy to raise up thousands of leaders who do not lord it over their people’s faith, but ‘work with you for your joy’ (2 Cor. 1:24).”
—John Piper, Leader, Teacher, and Founder, desiringGod.org

“As an author who has written two books about leadership in Christ’s church, I know of no other book like Workers for Your Joy. David Mathis leads you through an examination of the biblical qualifications of an elder in a way that is penetrating, personal, and practical at every point. As I read chapter after chapter, each dedicated to a pastoral qualification, I was both deeply convicted and encouraged. As you read, you cannot help being amazed at the generosity of our Lord in gifting his church with this kind of leadership—all for the joy of his people. And I have to say: I love that joy is the central organizing theme of this book about pastoral ministry! I cannot think of any member or leader in the body of Christ who would not benefit from taking some time to stroll through the garden of practical gospel wisdom that makes up the pages of this book.”
—Paul David Tripp, Pastor; author, Lead: 12 Gospel Principles for Leadership in the Church and Dangerous Calling: Confronting the Unique Challenges of Pastoral Ministry

“Our culture is averse to authority, partially because of the sinful abuse of authority. Still, God intended for there to be leaders in our churches, and David Mathis helps us understand in this biblically saturated and pastorally wise book what the Scriptures teach about elders. The duties and responsibilities of elders are unpacked clearly and powerfully chapter by chapter. We desperately need qualified and godly leaders in our churches, and this is the ideal book for church members considering who should lead a church, for leaders as they consider whether they are qualified, and for seminarians and college students as they study what the Scriptures teach about elders.”
—Thomas R. Schreiner, James Buchanan Harrison Professor of New Testament Interpretation, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

“The antidote to bad authority is not no authority. It's good authority. And we need a whole lot more good authority—humble, whole, and honorable—in the church today. I commend David Mathis’s wonderfully clear and biblical guide to Christian leadership that glorifies God.”
—Collin Hansen, Vice President for Content and Editor in Chief, The Gospel Coalition; Host, Gospelbound podcast; coauthor, Rediscover Church

“At a time when Christian reflection on leadership seems to have been hijacked by ideas from the corporate world, it is refreshing to see a book on leadership that derives its material from the Scriptures. The major leadership crisis facing the church today has to do with character, not with method or strategy. The Bible has a lot to say about that. This is the focus of this book. It reflects deeply on what the Scriptures teach in a way that challenges our attitudes and behaviors and encourages change towards Christlikeness.”
—Ajith Fernando, Teaching Director, Youth for Christ, Sri Lanka; author, The Family Life of a Christian Leader