Why Elders?
The unified and consistent pattern of church government in the New Testament involves multiple male elders governing and overseeing the church. (Acts 20:28; Hebrews 13:17; 1 Peter 5:2-3)

Why Multiple Elders?
No passage of Scripture suggests that any New Testament church was governed by only one elder. The consistent New Testament pattern is a plurality of male elders governing and overseeing "in every church". (Acts 14:23; Acts 20:17; Titus 1:5)

Qualifications and Duties of Elders:
The primary duties of elders are to 1) function as the spiritual authority of the church, and 2) teach and protect sound doctrine within the church. These and other duties, along with an extensive discussion on qualifications can be found in 1 Timothy 3:2-7, 1 Timothy 5:17-25 and Titus 1:6-9. The lead pastor is an elder, working along side of and under the authority of the elder board. He will assume the primary role as preacher/teacher and will have considerable authority to make decisions and provide leadership in many areas of responsibility that have been delegated to him by the elder board as a whole. Elders serve more as church fathers or shepherds, and less like CEO's or managers.