Pastoral Qualifications
Within our leadership, Jesus alone is the Senior Pastor (1 Peter 5:4).
From there, the clear pattern of scripture is for local churches to train up multiple qualified elders to serve together. By doing this we create a safeguard for both the church and the elders (Acts 20:17; 2 Timothy 2:2; Titus 1:5; 1 Peter 5:1).
Along with raising up multiple elder-pastors to safeguard the church, elder-pastors also participate in LifeGroups generally led by someone else, collaborate with lay leaders and volunteers in the church, share the weight of teaching on Sundays, fellowship with other like-minded churches, and receive feedback and input from our financial advisory team for all budgeting decisions.
Elders, also called pastors, bishops, and overseers, (Acts 20:28; Ephesians 4:11; 1 Peter 5:2) are the leaders of the church. Elders are to be men chosen for their ministry according to clear biblical requirements (1 Timothy 2:11-3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9) and an elder’s duties include ruling and setting vision for the church (1 Timothy 5:17), managing the church’s resources (1 Timothy 3:4-5), tending to caring for the people (1 Peter 5:2-5), living an exemplary life (Hebrews 13:7), humbly exercising authority (Acts 20:28), teaching (Ephesians 4:11, 1 Timothy 3:2), preaching (1 Timothy 5:17), doctrinal instruction (Titus 1:9), and church discipline (Matthew 18:15-17). Lastly, elder-pastors are called to one day give an account to God for all of the above. (Hebrews 13:17)
Related resources:
To hear more about our leadership pipeline, listen to “Leadership and the Church” from our 1 Timothy series
To hear more about our teaching philosophy, listen to “People of the Word” from our Following Jesus Together: Gathering series
To hear more about our pastoral qualifications, listen to “Teaching, Authority, and the Church” from our 1 Timothy series