The Elders function as the spiritual leaders of the church, carrying the responsibility and authority to lead the congregation. The work of Christian elders is “to shepherd the church of God.” (1 Pet. 5:1-4) Elders are to be servant-leaders, actively involved in the lives of the congregation.
Alexander Strauch writes on pages 158 and 159 of his book “Biblical Eldership,”
“These shepherd elders are to guard the flock from false teachers. To guard the gospel and teach the whole counsel of God. Thus elders must be doctrinally sound leaders who are able to defend and teach the Word. Elders are also obligated to guard ‘all the flock,’ that is every single member. Hence Christian elders are required to know and be involved in the personal lives of the people they shepherd. Furthermore, they are to sacrificially care for needy, suffering members of the flock… the life of an elder must be marked by hard work, generosity, and a life of service on behalf of others. The kind of leadership Paul has in mind is shepherding, guarding, feeding, leading, and caring for God’s flock. In short… Christian elders are responsible for the pastoral oversight of the local church.”
The government of Shoreline Community Church operates under the direction of a plurality of elders. The pastor-teacher or “teaching-elder” may be a leader among peers, but has equal authority with the other elders. The pastor-teacher is accountable to the entire Board of Elders. The Board shall be made up of called and qualified men (1 Tim. 3:1-11;Titus 1:5-9) from within the Shoreline Community Church congregation. (Associate pastors attend elder meetings in an advisory capacity, but are not voting elders.)
Elder decisions are to be made by seeking 100 percent Board approval. Should an agreement on an issue not be reached, the item will be tabled for further prayer and discussion until 100 percent approval can be obtained. Should an Elder Board decision be “required” while a member is incapacitated or unreachable, the decision may be made by a 100% vote of the remaining Board members. Deacon decisions will be made by a simple majority vote at regular or specially called deacon meetings.
The elders and spiritual leaders of Shoreline Community Church:
Harry Abel: Harry is a founding elder of Shoreline Community Church and has been serving on the board since the church was founded in 2006. Harry is a board member of K-Light Radio and was instrumental in Christian radio station’s birth. Harry also served for several years on the board of Southwestern Oregon Community College.
Mike Barnard: Mike is the teaching elder and lead pastor of Shoreline Community Church. Mike is a founding elder who has served on the elder board since 2006. Mike has been a full time pastor since 1996 serving as a Children’s Pastor, Adult Ministries Pastor and now for the past 15 years as the lead pastor of Shoreline Community Church.
Jim Brown: Jim is the newest members of the elder board serving on the board since 2020. Before that Jim has served as a longtime deacon at Shoreline Community Church. Jim has been teaching a Bible study for the past 25 years.
Kip Johnson: Kip is a founding elder of Shoreline Community Church and has served on the board since 2006. Kip leads a weekly Life Group and also heads up the Coos County chapter of the Gideons. Kip has been very involved in the Gideon’s Coos County Jail ministry.
Bob Pedigo: Bob has served on the elder board since 2007. Bob is a retired pastor with many years experience and has been an Infaith (American Missionary Fellowship) missionary for over 40 years.
Tom Trammel: Tom joined the elder board in 2013. Tom and his wife Debbie lead the Gospel Jubilee at Shoreline and have a well known music ministry; the couple has over 2 1/2 million hits on one of their songs on Youtube. Tom leads one of our Shoreline Life Groups.
Dave Rymer: Dave is a pastor who has ministered effectively since the days of Skid Row in Los Angeles. Dave has a passion for evangelism and is often found out in the community ministering to people in stores or on the street. Dave teaches classes at Shoreline and also has a local Christian television and radio show. As a pastoral staff member, Dave attends elder board meetings in an advisory capacity and has served since 2020.
Elder Emeritus
David Bogs and David Foster hold the honorary title of elder emeritus at Shoreline Community Church and can fill in for the other elders when the board is shorthanded or in need of extra help. Both men are founding elders of Shoreline Community Church.
shorelinecc.us 