Pastors
We want to structure our church in a way that is faithful to the Bible and that follows the pattern we see in the early church. Those churches were led by pastors/elders (”pastor” and “elder” mean the same thing in the Bible). These elders were the servant-leaders who were responsible for teaching, leading, and praying for the church. We believe, then, that solid churches are led by solid men (see 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-9) who serve faithfully in this role.
All of this must be done with great humility. In the words of Jesus, pastors must never be like the rabbis of his day who elevated themselves above the community:
They do all their deeds to be seen by others…they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others. But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers. (Matthew 23:5-8)
