The manner of training elders
Barry Gritters examines how the Protestant Reformed Churches train elders for their vital role in church leadership and oversight. He argues that elder training occurs primarily through the Holy Spirit's work via the means of grace—God's Word preached and taught in the church—which develops both the spiritual character and biblical knowledge necessary for faithful eldership. The article emphasizes that this spiritual formation of heart and mind, while different from formal seminary training, is equally rigorous and essential for the church's governance and discipline.
By God's grace, the Protestant Reformed Churches are determined to train our ministers well -- our prophets and teachers. With equal determination we must train our elders well, for the watchmen on Zion's walls must have the wherewithal to watch properly, her gatekeepers must be skilled in the use of the gate's keys, and her overseers must have wisdom to make proper judgments about the faith and life of the members and about the instruction from the church's prophet. I wrote last time that our...
Full article available on sb.rfpa.org