So when they had appointed elders in every church, and prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed.
Acts 14:23

An aspect of church planting is appointing elders. Without elders you may not have a church. Of course there may be circumstances in which a church is without elders, but that must be seen as a temporary situation. That church would hopefully get an elder or two, and if that church is a member of an association of churches (yet another reason for associations of like-minded churches!), the churches in the association can help.

It is also worthy to note that when elders of churches are mentioned in the New Testament, it is always plural (1), meaning a church should have more than one elder. Why a “plurality” of elders (meaning more than one)?

A consensus of a plurality of elders lends greater credibility because there is wisdom “in a multitude of counselors” (Proverbs 15:22). This doesn’t guarantee that all the elders agree on everything perfectly, but that they pray through and work through matters until there is a consensus (2).
Having more than one elder helps keep the church from becoming a one man show.
Having more than one elder helps ensure that a church is not left with no elders if something happens to one of them.

What about choosing elders? Next time…

(1) The Bible never speaks of the elder of a church.
(2) Consensus means that (a) everyone is involved in the decision making process, and (b) even if everyone is not 100% agreed, all can live with, and be supportive of the decision.