Female Elders and Overseers

Female pastors and elders has become a hot button issue in more recent generations.  If God has no issue with female pastors, neither should we BUT if God makes it clear about his ordained unique roles in His church, we ought to obey.  To know the TRUTH on this matter is extremely important.  It is the difference between standing on truth and obedience or denying God's truth and being disobedient.  That's huge.  To properly understand this, we must ALWAYS go to God's Word first.  We will pick apart 1 Timothy 2:11-14, 3:1-7, 8-13, Titus 1:5-9, and then address common arguments.

The 10 Elements of a Healthy Local Church

The true and genuine church is invisible and is made up of unnamed unspecified individuals but all share common elements.  It is these elements that help us see and know the Body of Christ- the church.  10 Elements are identified in scripture and we can use them to help determine if a local gathering of people is a healthy church or not.

Take the 26 question test to help determine if the church you are attending or considering is consistent with what The Bible reveals about a health church.  The test is based off the criteria below.  Scores below 70% should cause some concern for the healthiness of that church.

TEST HERE

This is the orderly hierarchy of The Body of Christ- the Church (Eph 4:15-16, Titus 1:5)

1.  Christ is Head (authority and guide) of that (and all) local body of believers (Eph 4:15, Col 1:18)
2.  Christ ordains individuals to manage and take care of the local body (1 Tim 3:5)
3.  The local body of believers follow the teachings and commands of Jesus Christ guarded and continued by the apostles and elders (John 10:27)
4.  The local body and its overseers and care takers seek to build each other up in the spirit and in life (Eph 4:12)
6.  Each local member has talents and gifts unique to help that local body (1 Cor 12:27)

ELEMENT 1:

Statement of Faith: The Church

           The Church, the Body of Christ, is a spiritual organism made up of all believers of this present age (1 Corinthians 12:12-14;2 Corinthians 11:2;Ephesians 1:22-23,5:25-27).

           The ordinances of believer’s water baptism as a testimony to Christ and identification with Him;  Baptism is an important action of obedience for a Christian and signifies a person's identification with Christ.  Baptism is not necessary for salvation.  It is an outward manifestation of an inward reality of trust in the sacrifice for Christ, of conversion, and of identification with Christ. The act of water baptism does not save anyone.  Man is made right before God by faith alone, not by faith and baptism (Rom. 3:28-30; 4:3, 5; 5:1; Gal. 2:16, 21; Phil. 3:9; see also Acts 10:44-48).