Deliberate Church: Chapter 15

Chapter 15: Assessment (of elders)

Introduction
Churches rarely grow past the maturity of their leaders. Therefore, churches must do a careful job of assessing the character, ability, and fit of their leaders.

Assessing Character
“A good candidate for the office of elder is known by his behavior, because his behavior reveals his character, and character is largely what makes an elder.”

Assessing Ability
Particularly, we must evaluate a potential elder’s ability to teach God’s Word. “Ability to teach the Word simply means that a man is able to explain the Scriptures accurately to other people in ways that profit them spiritually. He should be known by other in the congregation as a man to whom people can go in order to have the Scriptures explained to them.”

Assessing Fit
We must assess whether a potential elder fits in a helpful way with the other elders.

Conclusion
The entire process of selecting elders should be driven by Biblical Qualifications.