The New Testament teaches us that Jesus Christ is the head and Lord over all things pertaining to his church [Colossians 1:18-20].

 

It is under the leadership of Jesus Christ that we see the establishment of the role of elder within the local church [Acts 20:28; 1 Corinthians 3:5; Ephesians 4:11-13; 1 Timothy 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-9; 1 Peter 5:1-4]

 

Elders are called to follow Jesus’ example and fulfil the role of servant leaders of the local church [Mark 9:35; Mark 10:43; John 13:14-15]

 

The elders are given the responsibility of the spiritual care and oversight of the local church. They have the responsibility of knowing, leading, feeding, and protecting the church family.

 

The New Testament church describes multiple elders with no one elder having more or less authority than another. We call this plurality, meaning each elder is an equal part of a larger team of elders.

 

The pastoral care of the church family [flock] is the responsibility of the elders. The bible uses the terms “overseer” and “shepherd” to describe the main purpose of role of elders.