Discipleship Pastor Job Description
Overview and General Description: The January 31, 2016 (as amended) bylaws of Grace Bible
Fellowship church (GBF), specify the general qualifications, duties, and responsibilities for a Discipleship Pastor at GBF. The pertinent descriptions are quoted below:
“Pastors shall be qualified as Ministers in Word and Doctrine, shall be sound in their Christian Faith and in their presentation of the Word of God, shall be of irreproachable Christian character, shall be worthy examples in their lives and teaching, and shall subscribe to and abide by the Statement of Faith as set forth in Article III of the Constitution. Pastors must have the qualifications of Elders as set forth in the Scriptures (I Timothy 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9; I Peter 5:1-3).”
The Discipleship Pastor will execute the GBF mission and vision under the supervision of the Senior Pastor,
focusing on discipleship principles and goals. Grace Bible Fellowship church believes: A disciple is a
committed follower of Jesus Christ who is being transformed into His likeness and who is influencing
others to do the same.
In his position, the Discipleship Pastor will fulfill his responsibilities under the guidance and supervision of the
Senior Pastor, along with effective communication with leadership, which includes church staff and lay ministry leaders. GBF envisions the ideal candidate to be a strategic thinker who is highly collaborative in nature and promotes teamwork, grace, communication and unity within our leadership team and our church body.
Discipleship Pastor Qualifications:
As a consensual spiritual overseer of GBF, the Discipleship Pastor is expected to demonstrate these
qualifications:
1. Fulfill the biblical qualifications of I Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-9.
2. Be able to minister in accordance with the GBF Constitution.
3. Demonstrate adequate ministerial training and sound understanding of biblical doctrine and practice.
4. Have verifiable history and ministry experience within a local church setting.
5. Be competent in administrative, managerial, and technological skills.
6. Per biblical guidance, the candidate must be a man.
Duties and Responsibilities for The Discipleship Pastor:
- Support the Senior Pastor in the accomplishment of the GBF vision through ministry effectiveness evaluation, discernment, decision making, and planning.
- Model and abide in prayer continually for our church body and for the church leadership in general.
- Collaborate with the Senior Pastor in developing and upholding a discipleship ministry and organization.
- Work closely with our ministry coordinator and the head of each ministry to make sure each ministry
understands the vision of the church, the goals for discipleship, and how each element directly impacts their
ministry.
- Provide continual and timely communication with the Senior Pastor, the Elders, the council, the GBF staff,
and the ministry leaders, on all relevant GBF activities.
General Compensation Items for the Discipleship Pastor:
The Discipleship Pastor’s schedule requires flexibility. The Discipleship Pastor should be available for evening
and weekend activities as needed and appropriate. He shall manage his schedule to generate a balance between personal family time, and with the time spent on church activities.
The salary compensation and other benefits for the Discipleship Pastor are under the authority of the Leadership Council, and are to be reviewed annually as part of the yearly staff evaluations.
For more information and/or to apply, please contact John Thomas at gbfjohnthomas@gmail.com
Other Resources
1. The Best resource is the Bible itself. Take a notebook and pencil and start to read. Write your thoughts and questions down. If you have never read the Bible much, start by reading the book of John. If you are familiar with the Bible and have gotten away from reading it, google "Bible Reading Program" and use one of the many programs listed. I (Pastor Keith) prefer McCheyne's but the Discipleship Journal plan is good. JUST READ!
2. Never in the history of mankind have we had so much information and it is impossible to read everything that is even good. The Christian market is mind-boggling with its array of tabloid sounding promises of "this is the most important subject!"
After the Bible, the best resources are an honest heart, a dissatisfaction with things (stuff), and a desire for God. Again read the Bible and don't get tied up saying "I don't understand this." Talk to me or one of the elders here at Grace and we will do our best to come along side as you endeavour to learn of the most wonderful person EVER, Jesus the Son of God! (Sorry, a little Forrest Gump there)-
3. Books are not bad. Knowledge is necessary and full of wonder. Other people have seen and help others see what they have seen that honors God. I have listed authors and specific books that have been life giving to me.
Good authors: AW Tozer, CS Lewis, Martin Lloyd-Jones, Jonathan Edwards. Most of these were prolific writers and have many titles to their credit. You can't go wrong reading any of them.
It's easy to locate titles online by a simple search engine inquiry using an author's name. Some favorites are: Tozer - Knowledge of the Holy, Lewis - Chronicles of Narnia (Fiction aimed at children but the imagery of what is really real is glorious), Martin Lloyd-Jones - Spiritual Depression, and Jonathan Edwards - Religious Affections.
In addition, I make no apologies that I have been greatly influenced by a living author. (These others are all dead, and their books do not tend to show up on garage sales) John Piper of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, MN has been a great blessing to me. His writing feeds my soul. Future Grace, Pleasures of God, Desiring God, and God is the Gospel are all worth digesting.
BUT, put all these mens' work on one side of the scale and the Bible on the other; the Bible side shoots down and the other works go flying into space. Read the Bible - its author is God.
Grace Bible Fellowship is a co-operative member of the B.R.I.C.K ministry which provides practical and/or financial help for those with urgent needs.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
1. Food Donations: Donations have dropped substantially. Please consider donating non-perishable food items to help stock our shelves OR make a cash donation so we can purchase needed items to fill in where needed.
2. Help spread the word that our food shelf is open on Thursdays from 9 am to 7 pm.
For more information on The BRICK and how you can become involved contact Cheyanne Reeves at: officemanager.thebrick@centurytel.net or call (715) 682-7425.