What is an "Elder"? Here's what Scripture says...

Ask ten Christians what an elder is and you may get eleven different answers. Some picture a board of older men making decisions behind closed doors. Others assume an elder is simply another word for “pastor.” The New Testament gives us something richer, healthier, and more relational than either stereotype.

At Pensacola Bible Fellowship, we recognize God’s design is for each local church to be led by a plurality of qualified men serving as elders. Pastor is a specific gifting from Christ within that one office, not a separate rank above it. In this season, our Board of Directors is intentionally seeking to function according to this pattern, and as the Lord provides permanent pastoral leadership, our goal is to recognize elders more formally in line with this conviction.

What follows is our understanding of biblical eldership and why we are committed to pursuing it together.

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WHAT IS AN ELDER?
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The New Testament uses three closely connected words to describe one leadership office.

Elder (presbuteros)
This word highlights spiritual maturity and proven character. Elders are not defined first by age, but by a long obedience in the same direction.

Overseer (episkopos)
This word highlights responsibility and careful oversight. Overseers pay attention to what the church believes, how it lives, and where it is headed.

Shepherd or pastor (from poimainō)
This word highlights caring for, feeding, protecting, and guiding God’s people. The image is personal, patient, and often unseen.

Acts and the pastoral letters bring these terms together as three angles on the same role, not three different offices. An elder is therefore a man who gives spiritual oversight, teaches and applies the Word, and shepherds a particular flock.

Because these responsibilities involve spiritual authority and the public teaching of Scripture, the New Testament reserves the office of elder for qualified men. This is not a statement about value or worth but about God’s ordering of roles in the family and in the church.

At PBF, that conviction shapes how we think about leadership. We are not aiming for a personality at the top, but for a team of biblically qualified men who together shepherd this congregation under Christ.

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CHARACTER COMES BEFORE POSITION
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The word elder may sound like it is about age, but Scripture is far more concerned with maturity. An elder must not be a recent convert. He should be a man whose faith has been tested over time through ordinary life, ordinary sufferings, and ordinary service.

The qualifications in the pastoral letters emphasize character far more than gifting. An elder should be known for:

Integrity in public and private

Faithfulness in his home

Self-control and sobriety

Hospitality and openness to people

Sound doctrine and discernment

A good reputation inside and outside the church

Notice what Scripture does not require. It never says an elder must be charismatic, wealthy, highly educated, or naturally gifted at public speaking. Healthy churches recognize men who have already been living as faithful disciples long before they are publicly recognized as elders.

That is what we want at PBF. Titles will not make a man into something he is not. We want the office to fit men who are already walking in these ways, not to be used in the hope that it will force them to grow into them.

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HOW PASTOR AND ELDER RELATE
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Many churches today talk about pastors and elders as if they were two different kinds of leaders, one paid and one volunteer. The New Testament does not make that sharp division.

Pastor is a specific gifting from Christ within the one office of elder. Some elders are especially gifted and called to the regular public ministry of the Word and to equipping the saints. They are shepherds who teach and teachers who shepherd.

So:

Every pastor who leads and teaches the flock should meet the qualifications for elder.

Not every elder will serve full time as a pastor, but all elders must be able to teach.

The pastor is not a CEO over the elders, but one elder among a plurality, serving with a particular gifting and responsibility.

That is the model we at PBF want to live out. In this transitional season, our Board of Directors is carrying elder-like responsibility together. As the Lord provides a pastor for this church, our intention is that he will serve as one of a team of male elders, using his pastoral gifting within a shared leadership, rather than standing above it.

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WHY A PLURALITY OF MALE ELDERS MATTERS
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One of the clearest leadership patterns in the New Testament is plurality. Each local church was not entrusted to a single man, but to multiple elders. That was not a cultural accident. It is wise, protective, and deeply practical.

Shared eldership means:

No single man carries all authority

Wisdom is sharpened through discussion and accountability

Blind spots and weaknesses are more easily exposed and corrected

The burdens of ministry are shared instead of crushing one person

Healthy elder teams are not groups of men who always agree instantly. They open their Bibles together. They pray together. They ask direct questions. They sometimes debate and wrestle. Then, over time, they move toward shared conviction under the authority of Christ and His Word.

Unity does not require that elders never disagree. It requires that they disagree as brothers, listen well, and submit together to Scripture. That is the kind of plurality PBF wants to embody: a table of godly men who can talk honestly, repent quickly, and lead together.

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WHAT ELDERS ACTUALLY DO: SHEPHERDING
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At the center of biblical eldership is shepherding. Elders are called to shepherd the flock of God among them, willingly and eagerly, not under compulsion and not in a domineering way. That is far more than attending meetings.

Real shepherding happens in the ordinary places of life:

In living rooms and around kitchen tables

In hospital rooms and at gravesides

Over coffee and quiet, honest conversations

During seasons of joy and success

During seasons of confusion, doubt, and loss

Through regular, faithful preaching, teaching, and counsel

Jesus said that a good shepherd knows his sheep, and his sheep know him. Faithful elders are not distant or unapproachable. They learn names, stories, and struggles. They move toward people rather than away from them.

Shepherding cannot happen if elders remain anonymous or unreachable. It thrives when they are accessible, present, and willing to enter both the beauty and the mess of real lives. Our desire at PBF is for our leaders to be known as shepherds more than as officers.

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WHAT ELDERS ACTUALLY DO: TEACHING AND PROTECTING
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Every elder must be able to teach. Some will spend more time in the pulpit than others, but all must handle Scripture well and apply it wisely. Pastors, in particular, devote significant time to the ministry of the Word and prayer so that the church is well fed and well anchored.

Faithful teaching does not use the Bible as a launch pad for personal ideas. It opens the text, explains what God has said, and presses that truth into real decisions and desires. The goals are straightforward and profound:

Help people understand God’s Word

Help people see Christ

Help people follow Him in the details of life

Elders also guard the flock. Scripture warns that false teaching and destructive patterns will always threaten God’s people. Because of that, elders must:

Hold firmly to sound doctrine

Teach truth clearly and patiently

Correct error graciously but plainly

Protect the church from ideas and influences that undermine the gospel

Guarding the flock does not mean stirring up constant fear. Healthy protection is steady, watchful, and grounded. It builds confidence by keeping the church close to Scripture and close to the Savior.

As PBF moves forward, we want men in elder roles who love this work: men who will open their Bibles with people, watch the horizon for danger, and respond with courage and tenderness when it appears.

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ELDERS ARE STILL SHEEP
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Perhaps the most beautiful thing about biblical leadership is that elders never stop being ordinary believers. They are not a higher spiritual class. They remain under Christ’s authority. They need grace every day. They need correction and encouragement. They keep learning and repenting.

Jesus alone is the Head of the church. Every elder is an under-shepherd who will one day give an account for how he watched over the souls entrusted to him. That reality should produce humility, caution, and prayerful dependence, not pride or entitlement.

When elders remember they are sheep, they lead differently. They are more approachable. They are quicker to admit weakness and sin. They lean harder on Christ and less on their own wisdom. They do not ask the congregation to trust them because they are impressive, but because they themselves are submitted to the Word and to the Chief Shepherd.

This is the kind of elder leadership PBF is asking God to raise up and sustain.

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RAISING UP FUTURE ELDERS AT PBF
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Churches should not wait for a crisis to think about leadership. Instead, they should be praying, watching, and preparing men whom God may call into eldership long before there is a vacancy to fill.

Future elders are men who:

Love Christ more than position

Love God’s people and are already among them

Love God’s Word and handle it with reverence and care

Serve faithfully without needing recognition

Demonstrate humility, reliability, and teachability

Aspire to shepherd with joy, not under pressure or for personal gain

The desire for this work matters, but so do motives. A man who shrinks back from all responsibility is not ready to bear this weight. A man who craves power or platform is not ready either. We are looking for men who are willing, not grasping; eager, not ambitious.

As PBF grows, we want to be intentional about spotting such men, investing in them, and inviting them into real responsibility. Faithful men who are quietly doing the work now are often the ones God intends to set apart later.

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HOW THE CONGREGATION CAN SUPPORT PLURAL ELDER LEADERSHIP
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Not every believer will be an elder. Every believer, however, plays a part in whether elder leadership is life giving or exhausting.

Members can support a biblical plurality of male elders by:

Praying for them regularly, by name when possible

Encouraging them when they see faithfulness and sacrifice

Receiving biblical teaching with humility and discernment

Bringing concerns directly rather than gossiping

Supporting their leadership as they follow Christ and obey Scripture

When elders can serve with joy rather than constant discouragement, everyone benefits. A strained, suspicious relationship between leaders and congregation weakens the whole body. A trusting, prayerful, honest relationship strengthens it.

At PBF, we are asking the Lord to build that kind of culture as we move into the future together.

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WHERE PBF IS HEADED
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Faithful elders are not corporate executives or religious celebrities. They are shepherds. They teach God’s Word. They care for God’s people. They protect the church from error. They model steady, everyday discipleship. And they do all of this together, under the authority of Jesus Christ, in a plurality of godly men.

Pensacola Bible Fellowship is committed to that pattern. In this season, our Board of Directors is intentionally trying to lead as a team of shepherds and overseers, not as a group of managers. As the Lord provides a pastor uniquely gifted to teach and equip, and as He raises up additional qualified men, our aim is to recognize a formal plurality of male elders who will continue this work together.

We believe this is not only biblically faithful, but also best for the long term health of our church. Under the care of Christ, the true Chief Shepherd, we want PBF to be a place where leaders serve humbly, the flock is well fed and well protected, and every member is helped to follow Jesus with joy.