Elder Nomination Process
Introduction
Welcome to a deeper dive into the process.
According to our Book of Church Order, the privilege and responsibility for choosing elders and deacons lies in the hands of the congregation. Though vetted, trained, examined, and ordained by our present elders, church members submit nominees and elect their leaders. You will choose those from whom we will receive love, service, and encouragement. You will choose those to whom we will owe our respect, prayers, and submission.
This document will help you think and pray through this responsibility. It will remind you that elders shepherd the local church by praying, preaching and teaching, and visioning and guiding the direction of our community; they hold the same authority as pastors. Deacons serve the elders and the congregation and are called to care for the physical and financial needs of the church and raise up others to serve around them.
The following pages deal with the process of ordination and the qualifications for elders, but they are not exhaustive. If you find that you still have questions about how to fully participate in this process, please email us at elders@welcometoredeemer.com.
Please pray for those that you nominate as they will be doing a lot of soul-searching to discern their own calling during this time. And pray for us: that we would honor the Lord and serve the church well as we vet, train, and examine the people who will be our future leaders.
For His Church,
Matt Odum, on behalf of the Elders of Redeemer
The collective groups of elders in a particular church is called the session.
The PCA’s Book of Church Order (BCO) gives us guides on this process in Chapter 24-1.
CHAPTER 24
Election, Ordination and Installation of Ruling Elders and Deacons
Election
24-1. Every church shall elect persons to the offices of ruling elder and deacon in the following manner: At such times as determined by the Session, communicant members of the congregation may submit names to the Session, keeping in mind that each prospective officer should be an active male member who meets the qualifications set forth in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1. After the close of the nomination period nominees for the office of ruling elder shall receive instruction in the qualifications and work of the office. Each nominee shall then be examined in:
his Christian experience, especially his personal character and family management (based on the qualifications set out in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:6-9),
his knowledge of Bible content,
his knowledge of the system of doctrine, government, discipline contained in the Constitution of the Presbyterian Church in America (BCO Preface III, The Constitution Defined),
the duties of the office to which he has been nominated, and
his willingness to give assent to the questions required for ordination. (BCO 24-6)
If there are candidates eligible for the election, the Session shall report to the congregation those eligible, giving at least thirty (30) days prior notice of the time and place of a congregational meeting for elections.
If one-fourth (1/4) of the persons entitled to vote shall at any time request the Session to call a congregational meeting for the purpose of electing additional officers, it shall be the duty of the Session to call such a meeting on the above procedure. The number of officers to be elected shall be determined by the congregation after hearing the Session’s recommendation.
Time-Line & Process
Please note, we will seek to follow this timeline but we should all be flexible on the exact months mentioned below. This is our target timeline to give us all an idea on what this process might look like in 2022.
Beginning on January 30 of 2022, we hope to start the nominating process wherein each member of the congregation can submit names for the office of elder. The nomination process will be open through February 27, 2022.
You may nominate someone for the office of elder by writing their name on an index card and placing it in a designated box at the front of the church, or you may simply email the elders of Redeemer to nominate someone (elders@welcometoredeemer.com). When you submit a nominee for the office of elder, please also list your name as the active member of Redeemer so that we can have accurate records as a session.
In order to nominate someone you should have a sound knowledge of this person and want to follow them as they serve and lead (more information on how and who to select can be found at the end of this document and a more thorough explanation of the office of elder can be found on our resource site made available on our website here.
You should see the fruits of the Spirit embodied in their lives, and one translation of what that looks like is that this person should have “affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity, willingness to stick with things, sense of compassion in the heart, a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people, involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely” (The Message translation of Galatians 5:22-23).
The session will receive all names submitted from members of Redeemer as suggested persons for the process. They may not make it through the examination process because of information that the session is aware of that may not have come to the surface for the congregant who suggested the nominee. For example, a nominee is out of line with the PCA’s theological standards but that was not known to the congregant who suggested the nominee.
For those who enter the next stage, these nominated candidates will enter a training process from March through the middle of summer. Please be in prayer for your nominees as they will be in the middle of trying to discern their sense of call to serve as an officer. In the spring, the elder nominees will move toward a gracious but grueling period of examinations. The current active elders of Redeemer will ask the nominees about their Christian experience and character, their reliance on Christ, their knowledge of Scripture, doctrine, and church government, their understanding of the duties of their office, and their willingness to lead our Church.
It is our hope that in the summer the current active elders will present to you a slate of elder candidates 30 days before a congregational vote. Those 30 days are a time to a) get to know the officer nominees you don’t know so that you can make an informed decision and/or b) bring to these candidates any concerns you might have about them taking the office.
Lord willing, sometime in August/September of 2022 we will ordain Redeemer’s new class of elders. In the fall we will take the deacon nominees through the same process, in hopes to present the new class of deacons to you in the early part of 2023.
The collective group of deacons in a particular church is called the diaconate.
The Qualifications of Elders
The Bible specifically gives us qualifications in three places: I Peter 5, Titus 1:6-9, and I Timothy 3:1-13 (below). These passages set a high bar for leadership in Christ’s church — requiring an obvious love of God and His Church while maintaining a visible and authentic humility found in their reliance on Christ. As you read them, you can see that godliness is more important than giftedness and character is more important than a competence. Jesus’ church is led by weak people made strong in grace, not spiritual superheroes without problems. You are looking for elders who are convinced that Christ is our only source for true and lasting healing and hope. Being biblical, relational, and humble are the 3 characteristics that should shine for anyone nominated for the office of elder. Here are some questions to ask as you consider nominating someone:
Has God given them a heart for his kingdom?
How have they shepherded/served their family and friends?
What would people say about them and their heart/work/family/ behavior?
What are they known for within our community?
How well do they repent of their sin and turn to Christ for forgiveness and healing?
How well have they guided you to do the same?
Do they have any recurring sins that will hinder them from serving Christ or His Church?
Do they love the Word and want to apply it to
shepherding or service?
Are they compelled by the mystery of Christ and his love for His church?
Have they loved the mission and vision of Redeemer, the church to which they are called?
Will they be good team players, humble enough to consent and strong enough to lead?
You are looking for a person who is first and foremost serious about applying the truths of God’s Word to his own heart and life. They are growing in grace and mercy for themselves and others. Elders guide, shepherd, and love others with God’s Word. These people need to have instincts toward Scripture as the guide and rule of life, and they need to be gifted in applying the Scriptures to our lives.
Look for people that God uses to help others understand what He has for them in Christ Jesus. Elders are those who you want to watch over you and your family. They are those who will be glad to be with you at the hospital or just for a meal.
Why Only Male Elders?
Let us first say that we understand that individuals in our church find this topic very difficult. We do not underestimate the ways in which gender and authority have been misused to dominate congregation members. We also do not underestimate the beauty and goodness of men and women.
Our denomination believes the Scriptures below limit elders to men. Though with varying degrees of certainty and comfortability, the elders of Redeemer are comfortable submitting to this historic teaching of the Church.
Our denomination also believes the same for deacons. In submission to our denomination, the women who serve as deacons at Redeemer are not ordained but commissioned — as ordination places us out of accord with our denomination.
This topic is rife with misunderstanding, but we are more than willing to engage with gentleness and compassion. Redeemer held a class in October of 2021 that was recorded for more detail which can be found on our podcast entitled “Women in Leadership.”
I Peter 5:1-3 ESV
So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you, not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock.
Titus 1:5-9 ESV
This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into order, and appoint elders in every town as I directed you — if anyone is above reproach, the husband of one wife, and his children are believers and not open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination. For an overseer, as God's steward, must be above reproach. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain, but hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined. He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.
I Timothy 3:2-13 ESV
The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church? He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil. Deacons likewise must be dignified, not double-tongued, not addicted to much wine, not greedy for dishonest gain. They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. And let them also be tested first; then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless. Their wives likewise must be dignified, not slanderers, but sober-minded, faithful in all things. Let deacons each be the husband of one wife, managing their children and their own households well. For those who serve well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and also great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.
How do you know?
If you are nominated, here are some questions and guides to help you discern whether you are called to the office of elder or not.
HEART
Has God given you a heart for his kingdom?
Do you dream about the growth and beauty his people?
What are some possible sinful reasons why you are seeking the office?
FAMILY & FRIENDS
How have you shepherded/served them?
Do they have any issues with you being an officer?
REPUTATION
What would people say if asked about your heart, work & family? • What are you known for within our community?
If you told a co-worker that you were nominated, what would they think? (we plan to ask them)
BEHAVIOR
Do you have any besetting sins that will bring shame on Christ or His Church?
Is there an area that you need to confess and be delivered in by God’s grace?
If so, who knows and who needs to know as you pursue this calling?
DOCTRINE
Do you love the Word and want to apply it to shepherding or service?
Are you compelled by the mystery of Christ and his love for you?
Do you have any major beliefs that you are at odds with Redeemer?
Do you agree with the Westminster Confession of Faith with its catechisms as being your comprehensive stance in theology? This doesn't mean you don’t have differences with the Confession but if you do have differences that strike at the heart of the Confession you must make that known (of your own volition) to the other elders.
To be a member of Redeemer requires the basic tenants of Christianity. First circle doctrines are within the 5 membership vows. (Example of first circle: Death & Resurrection of Jesus, Apostles creed, Authority of scripture. Second circle: Sacraments, only men as elders. Third circle: Calvinism, covenant theology, end times views.)
To be an officer requires adherence to our doctrinal standards at a much higher level.
If you hold office in a PCA church you are required to predominantly agree with our theological standards in the Westminster Confession of Faith. Doesn’t mean you don’t have questions or that you don’t wrestle with particular issues (we encourage theological wrestling with scripture and practice), but any officer at Redeemer will be tested over their theology and how it lines up with our theological heritage.
EXTERNAL CALLING
What ministry activities have you been involved in at Redeemer and outside of our church that point to your desire to use your gifts and serve God's people?
Can others in the church say they have seen your gifts and service to the church?
Are you presently in friendships that require accountability?
Are you meeting with people who know you well, regularly?
What would they say about your candidacy for this office?
Has anyone in the leadership or at the lay level at Redeemer suggested to you that you should consider being an elder or deacon?
INTERNAL CALLING
What makes you think that the Lord may be putting this call on your heart?
What scripture can you point to that resonates with your openness and possible calling to this office? (Ex: The prophet Samuel? how did he know he wasn’t crazy? External and internal call working together.)
PRAYER AND COMMUNITY
Try to spend a few hours uninterrupted alone in prayer. Pray through some key passages about discerning God's call: 1 Timothy 3, Psalm 37:5, Isaiah 30:21, Jeremiah 1:1-10.
Spend some time writing about your emotions and thoughts concerning this office and any concerns you may have as well.
Ask several close friends, prayer/life group, mentor, family, etc. to join with you in prayer as you seek the Lord's direction regarding this decision.
Remember, ultimately you are not responsible for discerning your call, the elders and the church are. This can free you to pursue the question with vigor.
Last updated January 27, 2022.