While lone eldership is not the biblical ideal, neither is appointing unqualified or untrained elders. So what is a church supposed to do when four of its five elders step down?
That’s exactly the dilemma that faced Cornerstone Gospel Assembly in Bangalore, India, last year.
Three of its five elders had moved away to other continents, and another elder wanted to remain involved at the church but asked to be relieved of his formal eldership duties. The situation left Easho Jacob as the sole elder.
While lone eldership is not the biblical ideal,
neither is appointing unqualified or untrained elders.
neither is appointing unqualified or untrained elders.
Believing it was not the Lord’s will for him to lead alone, Easho was reminded of the School of the Shepherds courses on the Biblical Eldership Resources website, and his church quickly scheduled a twelve-week training session. They selected seven godly men with leadership potential, and they met every Saturday from August through October 2019, using the School of the Shepherds as their training curriculum.
“It is our desire to train leaders who will serve the Lord and His saints in the church, to further his eternal purposes,” Easho said.
At the end of the course, the seven men were each asked to pray for a few weeks about the Lord’s leading. Afterwards, three of the men expressed willingness to take on deaconship. The church was asked to pray, and after about a month, all three men were installed as deacons.
The School of the Shepherds is an affordable online training program designed to help churches like Cornerstone all around the world. Whether you want to train potential future elders or better-equip your existing leadership team, we encourage you to check it out.
Learn more at BiblicalEldership.com/School-of-the-Shepherds.