Grace Baptist Church - Bylaws - Article B

ARTICLE B - PASTORAL STAFF

Section 1: Qualifications:

The qualifications for a Pastor are found in I Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:6-9.
     
Section 2. General:

a.  Pastors and their wives will automatically become members of the church upon acceptance of the call and arrival o­n the field.

b.  Salary shall be fixed at the time of the call and may be changed at the annual or at any special business meeting, provided such a change has been considered and approved by the Deacon Board.

c.  Members of the pastoral staff shall be entitled to an annual vacation in accordance with the employee handbook. Additional leave may be granted at the direction of the Deacon Board.

d.  In matters pertaining to the pastoral staff, pastors and their families shall not exercise the privilege of voting.

e.  The Senior Pastor and Board of Deacons shall recommend to the church the creation of additional staff positions when deemed necessary. This recommendation shall include a job description. All staff members shall be directly responsible to the Senior Pastor for fulfillment of duties as delineated in the job description.

Section 3. Duties of Pastor: 

a.  The Senior Pastor shall be a man who has been called of God and who is well trained for his position as spiritual leader of the church. The method of his call is found in Article J.

b.  His duties shall be to: 

  1. Preach and teach the whole counsel of the Word of God.
  2. Administer the ordinances of the church.
  3. Exercise spiritual care and watchfulness over the members of the church.
  4. Organize and develop the spiritual strength of the church for the best possible service to the Lord Jesus Christ.
  5. Supervise the duties of the pastoral staff, office staff and other church personnel, in cooperation with the Deacon Board. 


c.  The Senior Pastor shall be a non-voting member of the Deacon Board and all committees and Ministry Teams of the church.

Section 4. Other Pastors: 

a.  Other pastors shall be men who are called of God and who are well trained for the particular positions for which they have been called. They shall meet the same spiritual and scriptural qualifications as the Senior Pastor.

b.  Call: The Senior Pastor and Board of Deacons shall determine the method for seeking the man to fill the staff position. All recommendations shall be through the Board of Deacons to the church. Each staff member shall be called to this position by an 85% majority vote of eligible members present and voting at any business meeting.

c.  Other pastors shall be non-voting members of the Board of Deacons.

d.  Termination: Provisions for termination shall be the same for the Senior Pastor and other pastors as set forth in Section 5.

Section 5. Involuntary Termination of Pastoral Relationship

a.  There are two ways in which a pastoral relationship may be involuntarily terminated:

  1. The Pastor’s term of office may be ended if he fails to meet the qualifications and duties as set forth in Article B sections 1 through 3.
  2. A pastor’s term of office may be ended by the church at a called business meeting as stated in Article K, section 3. A ¾ vote of the members present at a meeting called for the purpose shall make valid the termination of office.


b.  Any consideration for severance pay will be determined by the Deacon Board.

Section 6. Voluntary Termination of Pastoral Relationship: 

a.  The term of office may be ended upon thirty (30) days written notice of resignation on the part of any member of the pastoral staff.

b.  A Pastor guilty of gross misconduct or doctrinal heresy and subject to church discipline shall not be permitted to resign to escape discipline nor receive any severance pay except as provided in Section 5.

c.  Upon the Deacon Board’s acceptance of a letter of resignation, any member of the pastoral staff shall receive not less than o­ne month’s, and not more than 3 month’s separation pay. The schedule of o­ne week’s pay for each full year of service at this church will be used. Partial-year service shall be computed o­n a pro-rata basis.

d.  The schedule of payment(s) shall be arranged by the Deacon Board or its representative in consultation with the church Treasurer, but in general should follow the regular payroll schedule.