ELDER-LED, CONGREGATIONALISM
Who is the leader of the church? The answer lies within the church's very name - it's Christ's church, therefore Christ is the leader. Scripture affirms this clearly, identifying Jesus as the head of the church (Colossians 1:18). Moreover, the Bible portrays Jesus as both the good shepherd (John 10) and the chief shepherd (1 Peter 5:4).
But how does our ascended Lord, now seated at the right hand of the Father, guide His church today? Scripture provides clarity here too. The risen Christ has bestowed gospel ministers as gifts to His church (Ephesians 4:11-13). These ministers, specifically pastors (also referred to as elders or overseers), nourish God's flock with the gospel message and provide leadership through their example (1 Peter 5:1-5).
Scripture also reveals that the congregation holds a God-given authority in specific areas: exercising church discipline (the keys of the kingdom - Matthew 18:15-20), safeguarding doctrine (Galatians 1), and confirming its leaders (Acts 6; 1 Timothy 3). Our governance structure strives to align with these biblical principles. We can best describe our approach as elder-led with congregational governance.
Specifically, while a plurality of Elders provides leadership, the congregation bears ultimate responsibility under Christ for managing membership, establishing biblical doctrine, and recognizing its leaders.
ELDER-LED
What does "Elder-Led" means? It means that elders are entrusted by God to guide the church according to Scripture in fulfilling Christ's great commission - making disciples of all nations (Matt. 28:18-20). This leadership primarily manifests through biblical teaching (1 Tim. 3:2; Titus 1:9) and preparing church members for ministry (Eph. 4:11-12).
Scripture indicates that churches should be guided by multiple elders working together (Acts 20:17; Phil. 1:1; Titus 1:5). The ideal model involves several qualified men serving as elders, each demonstrating:
- Godly character (1 Tim. 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9)
- Genuine pastoral care for church members (1 Tim. 3:5; 1 Pet. 5:2)
- Strong doctrinal convictions and biblical understanding (Titus 1:9)
- Proven ability to teach God's Word effectively (1 Tim. 3:2; 2 Tim. 2:24; Titus 1:9)
These essential qualities - character, care, conviction, and competence - must be evident and observed by the congregation over time before someone can be considered qualified for eldership. It's worth noting that in Scripture, the terms elder, overseer, bishop, and pastor are used interchangeably to describe this role (Acts 20:17, 28; 1 Pet. 5:1-2).
CONGREGATIONALLY-GOVERNED
It is important to note that the Elders do not have the final say in all matters. At Grace Church, we do not hold to an elder-rule model of government. Instead, we believe Scripture teaches that the congregation as a whole has the final say in four key areas: doctrine, membership, discipline, and appointing elders and deacons.
In matters of membership and discipline, while the church body holds ultimate authority, the elders are responsible for faithfully implementing our membership processes and bringing disciplinary matters before the congregation. In Matthew 18:15-20, Jesus teaches that it is under the jurisdiction of the church as a whole to discipline those living in ongoing, unrepentant sin. Moreover, he says to the church, "Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." The phrase refers to the church's act of receiving and removing members.
Furthermore, in 1 Corinthians 5:1-13, Paul calls the church to remove a man from its membership when he is living in unrepentant sin, and in 2 Corinthians 2:6, Paul speaks of punishment of a member "by the majority," indicating the majority of the church had acted to remove the man from membership. Therefore, in light of these biblical examples, while the elders are charged with overseeing the membership process and bringing matters of church discipline before the congregation, in which removal from membership is considered, the final authority in these matters rests with the church body as a whole. This process for which members are received and removed is outlined clearly in the bylaws of Grace Church.