Leaders Must Be Authoritative Without Being Authoritarian.
Plato thought philosophers should rule the world. In his book "The Prince," Machiavelli said about the same thing. Even Alexander Hamilton, one of the founding fathers of the United States, had similar views concerning government.
An authoritarian believes decisions are to be made by one man or group of men presumed to know better than others what ought to be done. Yet, we must remember that no man rules the Church. We are under a monarchy. Christ is our King, and no one has the right to make his own rules or to change what the Lord has already decided.
Elders have delegated authority to rule and make decisions in matters of judgement. In other words, their job is to expedite God's law. God has already made the decisions in matters of faith. Therefore, elders do have authority, but they must always guard against becoming authoritarian.
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