Men's Bible Study
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Our Structure and Leadership
Staff and leaders
Wellington is a Christ-led church. Christ, in a very real and literal sense, is the head of our congregation; not the pastor; not the elders; not the church members. There is no hierarchy of authority at Wellington; only differences in biblical responsibility. No one seeks to be the “main leader” because all who have leadership responsibilities are in submission to one another out of their respect for Christ as the head of the church and in obedience to His word.
Christ, as the head of the church, rules by the power and authority of His word; therefore, all decisions within the Wellington congregation are governed by what the Lord has revealed as His will in scripture. Church elders oversee decisions that affect the biblical growth and spiritual wellbeing of the church, using God’s word and fervent prayer as their guide for discernment. Decisions are not made based on a majority of votes, but unanimous consensus as the elders trust the Holy Spirit to be consistent in His leading of each elder on every decision.
The deacons oversee decisions within their respective areas of ministry (ministries that align with their areas of giftedness and expertise) as they follow biblical principles and seek godly counsel and direction from the church’s elders when needed.
And church members joyfully serve in a spirit of unity as outlined in scripture, as they lift up, encourage, appreciate, and pray for those who are leading them in the study of God’s word.
Christ literally governs the attitude and behavior of each member of the congregation through the teaching and instruction recorded in His word.
It may sound like Wellington is loosely structured compared to many churches, but there is a wonderful peace and unity within the church where Christ is literally, instead of theoretically, the “main leader” and all members of the church regardless of the capacity in which they serve are submissive to Christ, His word, and one another out of love and respect for the One who redeemed and reconciled them for eternity. Below you will see some common questions we have received over the years about our leadership position and our answers to those questions.
Who is the “main leader” at Wellington? Are you a pastor-led, elder-led, board-led, or congregation-led church?
The head of the church is Christ; therefore, He is the “main leader” at Wellington. Many think of Christ as only being the head of their congregation in theoretical or metaphorical terms. Therefore, within many denominations where a corporate mentality has replaced biblical submission the pastor often assumes the role of “main leader” or CEO of the church, with associate pastors, supporting staff, secretaries, and other paid employees under his direct or indirect supervision. The church elders and deacons often serve as the board, who meet monthly to set policy, make decisions and hold the pastor accountable. Within this scenario a battle for “who is in charge” has often emerged between the pastor, head elder and/or board chairman. However, Wellington is a Christ-led church. Christ, in a very real and literal sense, is the head of our congregation; not the pastor; not the elders; not the church members. There is no hierarchy of authority at Wellington; only differences in biblical responsibility. No one seeks to be the “main leader” because all who have leadership responsibilities are in submission to one another out of their respect for Christ as the head of the church and in obedience to His word.
Who makes the decisions at Wellington?
Christ, as the head of the church, rules by the power and authority of His word; Therefore, all decisions within the Wellington congregation are governed by what the Lord has revealed as His will in scripture. Church elders oversee decisions that affect the biblical growth and spiritual wellbeing of the church, using God’s word and fervent prayer as their guide for discernment. Decisions are not made based on a majority of votes, but unanimous consensus as the elders trust the Holy Spirit to be consistent in His leading of each elder on every decision. The deacons oversee decisions within their respective areas of ministry (ministries that align with their areas of giftedness and expertise) as they follow biblical principles and seek godly counsel and direction from the church’s elders when needed. And church members joyfully serve in a spirit of unity as outlined in scripture, as they lift up, encourage, appreciate, and pray for those who are leading them in the study of God’s word. Since Wellington doesn’t have a traditional "corporate" board of leaders, there are no board meetings. The church elders gather frequently to pray and discuss how to best keep the congregation growing in God’s word and the deacons meet as needed to communicate and coordinate their areas of service. This leadership structure encourages the harmonious growth of the body and minimizes situations for individuals to fall into the temptation of attempting power plays to usurp the authority of Christ as the “main leader” at Wellington.
Christ literally governs the attitude and behavior of each member of the congregation through the teaching and instruction recorded in His word. It may sound like Wellington is loosely structured compared to many churches, but there is a wonderful peace and unity within the church where Christ is literally, instead of theoretically, the “main leader” and all members of the church regardless of the capacity in which they serve are submissive to Christ, His word, and one another out of love and respect for the One who redeemed and reconciled them for eternity.
How does someone become an elder or deacon at Wellington?
There were two ways an individual can be considered for service as an elder or deacon. I Timothy deals with those seeking to serve as an elder, while Titus deals with appointing spiritual leaders. In other words, a man can express interest in serving or he can be recommended by another member of the church for consideration and encouraged to begin the process to be appointed by the current eldership to a particular ministry. It is a seven step process as described below.
- Once a person has expressed an interest or someone has suggested he be considered, the current eldership will give him careful consideration in due time. If any elder or church staff has a legitimate objection to someone being considered, he should convey the objection in writing and give it to an elder in a timely fashion. If the objection is clearly a scriptural disqualification, the person will not be considered.
- If there are no known scriptural objections, the individual will be informed that he is under consideration. If he has an interest or desire, he will enter into a period of self-examination. He would understand this is only a consideration stage. If he agrees, he will complete a Desirability and Qualification Questionnaire, which is based on scripture. The current eldership will review his responses, which will include his personal testimony. The classes he will attend during this stage will help him to understand the biblical significance and responsibilities associated with serving as an elder or deacon.
- If his responses to the questionnaire are scriptural and he is in harmony with the convictions and direction of God’s word, then he will be asked to appear before the eldership for an interview.
- Following the interview, the current eldership will evaluate his qualifications, his desire and his capability to serve as an effective elder or deacon. If the eldership unanimously agrees he is qualified, he will enter into a time of testing. During this time a questionnaire will be sent to his wife and he will be asked to complete a doctrinal questionnaire.
- If the responses on both questionnaires are satisfactory, he and his wife will be interviewed by the eldership.
- If the interview is satisfactory, he will be given an appropriate briefing relative to the expectations of his service as an elder or deacon. As a part of the testing period, he will be observed by the eldership as to whether he can effectively function in the role of “an elder in training” or “deacon in training.” Since elders deal with the spiritual growth of the church and deacons oversee service ministries, each individual is evaluated on their personal growth in the scripture, their giftedness for being an administrator over a particular ministry, and their ability to encourage others within the field of ministry they desire to oversee.
- Following the “time of testing” he will be presented to the church. The congregation does not vote on anyone, but are given three weeks to contact any current elder if they know of a reason as to why this individual should not serve the church as a leader. Any objections or concerns are to be submitted in writing. If no one objects, he will begin serving as an elder or deacon on a date established by the eldership. If there is an objection, the matter must be resolved to the satisfaction of the current eldership before he is to begin serving. If the matter is not resolved, he will be informed of the problem and given a reason as to why he is no longer being considered for service in this capacity.
Based on your answer above, wouldn’t Wellington be considered an elder-led church?
No, because the elders do not lead at Wellington based on their opinions, desires, traditions, or preferences. Wellington is a Christ-led church because His word governs the attitudes, decisions, and actions of the elders, deacons, and members. The elders are simply fulfilling their responsibility within the church according to scripture.
When one becomes an elder or deacon at Wellington how long do they serve in that capacity?
Since Wellington does not have a corporate board of leaders with rotating terms of service as is common in many churches, those ordained as elders and deacons serve as long as they desire the work, are effective in their oversight of the ministry, are faithful in their relationship with the Lord, and continue in their spiritual growth. However, at Wellington anyone can request time off for personal reasons or can switch areas of responsibility, which is common if a deacon has successfully discipled others to oversee his current area of ministry in order to free him to more effectively serve in another capacity.
