How is new life governed?

New Life is an autonomous local gathering of believers overseen by a team of elders who, under Jesus Christ the head of the church, carry final responsibility for governmental aspects of community life. 

The eldership team consists of men who qualify biblically according to 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1 and have been called by Christ. New elders are proposed by the existing eldership team. They are ordained, set into the office, by an apostle (Acts 14:23) or an apostle’s delegate (Titus 1:5). The eldership team, like any other team, has a leader whom we refer to as the lead elder (Senior Pastor). A good way of explaining the reason for and the limitations of this role is to say that the lead elder leads the eldership team which leads the church.

Elder, and overseer are terms used interchangeably in scripture to describe different aspects of the role of eldership. ‘Elder’ refers to the biblical office these men occupy, while the verb pastor, (literally “to shepherd”), describes their spiritual role. ‘Overseer’ refers to the functional role of “directing the affairs of the local church”, and includes responsibility for direction, doctrine, and discipline in the local church. Part of that responsibility includes financial oversight of the church. The financial integrity of the church is safeguarded through a thorough segregation of financial duties and an annual review of our financial records by external auditors.