Church Life
Government
Jesus Christ is the head of Grace Church (Colossians 1:18, 2:9). Under His headship, we are governed by a plurality of elders, who are men called by the Holy Spirit to oversee the life of the church. Each of our elders is recognized by the existing group after an extensive process which includes examination of his Christian maturity and Bible knowledge in light of the qualifications set forth in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1, a period of internship, and consideration of feedback received from the entire congregation.
The role of the elder is to oversee and guide the life of our church body, to guard the truth of our teaching and doctrine, to provide counsel and encouragement to individuals in the body, and to be examples of faith and Christian living. Our leaders may be paid or unpaid, with varying functions and varying degrees of visibility, but all work to equip the people of Grace Church for the work of the ministry.
The only Biblically authorized offices within the church are head or chief shepherd (who is Christ), elder, deacon, and believer-priest. The New Testament knows nothing of a single-leader church, however that leader may be designated.
Thus our form of government is solidly Biblical (Acts 14:23, 20:28; Hebrews 13:17; 1 Peter 5:1-4) and has been a part of Grace Church from its beginning. We believe that there are also several practical benefits of government by a plurality of elders:
- Decision making that obtains the wisdom of all before action is taken
- Effective maintenance of the character and vision of the church, since it is held by several men rather than by only one
- Personal and moral accountability of each elder to a team of fellow shepherds
- Modeling leadership through varied personalities and spiritual gifts.
Since Christ is the head of Grace Church, our leadership must seek and conform to His direction in shepherding and guiding the flock. Therefore the elders have committed themselves to being unified in all major decisions; disagreement over an issue is taken as a sign that more consideration and prayer are needed. Likewise, the elders are committed to actively seeking input from the entire church family before making major decisions.
The elders are assisted by a group of deacons, to whom has been delegated ongoing ministries crucial to our church.
You are urged to pray regularly for the elders and deacons and to make your needs, suggestions and observations known to them.
Church Membership
The universal church consists of all who have put their faith in Jesus Christ as personal savior. No local church can confer or withdraw this membership. The Bible clearly demonstrates, however, that each Christian needs to give his love, loyalty and commitment to a local group of believers (Hebrews 10:23-25). There is a lifetime of growth to be found in developing the relationships and ministry opportunities that God has for each of us within such a fellowship. Therefore, we believe that regular participation in the life of a local church is vitally important for every believer, and we encourage you to make this type of personal commitment.
Although there is nothing Biblically wrong with formal church membership, for several reasons we have adopted the policy of having no formal Grace Church membership roll:
- We want each person to feel at home and fully included in our church family on no other basis than his or her relationship to Jesus Christ
- We want to provide shepherding and nurturing to anyone who desires it, apart from any official membership status
- We believe that our teaching on the nature and function of the church will be more effective if we avoid some of the traditional practices concerning church membership.
We welcome anyone who has personally trusted Jesus Christ as savior, and who wishes to identify with Grace Church, to "join" through regular participation with us.
Church Discipline
We believe that the practice of church discipline is a Biblical imperative. It is commanded by Jesus (Matthew 18:15-17) and by Paul (1 Corinthians 5:1-13). By neglecting the proper exercise of church discipline a church not only compromises its spiritual integrity but also endangers its very existence (i.e. the church at Thyatira in Revelation 2:20-24).
Grace Church is committed to following the Bible's clear teaching on this important issue. A full statement of our policy on church discipline is permanently posted in the foyer of our building; a copy may be obtained from the church secretary. Your choosing to become a part of the Grace Church family indicates that you accept the Biblical teaching regarding church discipline and consider yourself subject to our policy.