Elders at Jacksonville Baptist Church
Currently Serving Elders:
Duane Stephenson,
Matthew Bubar,
Tyler McHatten,
Guy Cheney,
Jonathan Jones,
Richard Reid
The Jacksonville Baptist Constitution
describes the Elders' responsibilities in this way:
The Elders Board – Provides Accountable Spiritual Leadership:
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Has the authority and responsibility to oversee the mission and ministry through accountable leadership.
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Is primarily responsible to declare and pursue the mission of the church.
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Works with the pastoral team to accomplish the mission of Jacksonville Baptist Church (by leading, teaching, visioning).
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Meets regularly with the pastors and periodically with the other leaders as deemed necessary for support, 2-way communication, and assistance as needed.
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Carries out these responsibilities through the following 4 activities:
i. Prayer: as an example for the congregation and an expression of our need for dependance upon God, the true Head of the Church.
ii. Decisions: that help the Pastoral Staff to lead the church to establish its mission (Acts 15; 6: 2 – 5).
iii. Advising and Protecting: supporting the Pastors and other ministry leaders when criticized unfairly; and advise them when their own weaknesses or blindness lead them to poor decisions or actions. This includes establishing and maintaining two-way communication with the congregation.
iv. Monitoring:
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The church’s ongoing spiritual condition;
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The church’s essential doctrine (pulpit, Life Groups, other ministries);
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The church’s essential direction (mission, values, vision, results);
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The church’s pastoral leadership.
The work of the Elders (including how Elders are chosen) is done through policies, which are beliefs or values that guide how a Governing Board makes its decisions. The value of a policy approach is that it makes sure that the Board’s primary mission is always “ends” related (Matthew 28: 19– 20; Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8).
Qualifications of Elders: The Elders shall be men who are recognized servants of the church, whose qualifications are clearly set forth in Scripture (I Timothy 3:1 – 7 and Titus 1: 6– 9) and detailed in our Guidelines Manual.
The Elders shall recommend a pulpit committee to the church as the need arises.