The qualifications for those who may serve in the church office of an elder/pastor/overseer (they refer to the same thing) are laid out explicitly in 1 Timothy 3:1-7, Titus 1:5-9, and they are referenced in 1 Peter 5:1-3 as well. Let’s take a closer look at these passages so we can get a better idea whether or not the elders/pastors/overseers of Grace Church are qualified or unqualified to serve in that role. Continue reading
Tag: Biblical
While we have touched on this in other places, we thought it would be good to lay out some of the reasons why we believe it is biblical to make our stories and our call for repentance public at this time.
We should start by saying that many individuals have repeatedly addressed these issues with BF and many other leaders in person and in writing on multiple occasions.
Some people are reluctant to discuss these issues because they believe the way we are going about it is a violation of Matthew 18, and therefore it fundamentally invalidates or discredits what we are saying. This stems from a misunderstanding of the primary application of Matthew 18 as well as an oversimplification of this situation. Unfortunately, this is a passage and a tactic that leadership at Grace Church has often used to its advantage. Continue reading