Don’t Skip the ‘Lay’ Elder Stage
I skipped this stage.
I was never a ‘lay’ elder.
I went to Bible College when I was 23 and had no real clue about the responsibility and pressure that comes with serving as an elder.
I didn’t become an elder until I took up the role of assistant pastor at the church I now am pastor of.
[Note that I’m using pastor here to describe an elder who is set apart to give their time solely or substantially to the work of ministry and receive pay for their labour (see 1 Timothy 5:17)]
My story I don’t think is unusual.
I know lots of men in the UK who are serving as pastors or who are currently training to be one who have not experienced being a ‘lay’ elder.
At Banstead Community Church we’ve had 5 trainee pastors. None of them had been ‘lay’ elders before they began with us. Prior to each trainee pastor joining us, I asked the pastor of the church they were sent from if they thought they met the qualifications to be an elder found in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1, including commenting on their ability to teach, manage their household, and reputation with outsiders.
Wouldn’t it have been better if they had had the opportunity to serve as a ‘lay’ elder, as this would show that not only did the pastor believe they met the qualifications to be an elder, the members of their local church did too?
A Better Way?
How have we ended up in a situation where churches will happily appoint a qualified man, often in late 20s or early 30s, who has never been an elder, to serve as a pastor (because they done some formal training) but are reluctant to put forward a similarly qualified man (who hasn’t done any formal training) to be a ‘lay’ elder?
Surely it would be more beneficial (and more biblical) for those who are serving as pastors or who are training to be pastors to have been ‘lay’ elders for a couple of years or more before being recognised and set apart by a church to serve as a pastor or train to be one.
Local church, don’t skip the lay elder stage
If you identify someone who has the character and gifting and desire to be set aside for the work of ministry, give them the opportunity to serve as a lay elder first before suggesting that they train to be a pastor or actually serve in this capacity.
Future pastor, don’t skip the lay elder stage
You might be keen to get on with training for ministry or serving full time as a pastor, but don’t be in such a rush to do this that you miss out this stage. If your church thinks you’re called to pastoral ministry, it seems strange they would not want you to be a ‘lay’ elder first. That’s like rejecting a good gift that Jesus has given to them. At the very least make sure whatever training you do includes experiencing what elders do.
Field Notes
A reminder that every Saturday I send out a Substack with 10 links from around the web worth checking out and the latest resources I’ve produced at Blog of Dan (my online Notion page).