More Than a List: The Mission-Critical Work of the Nominating Committee
From the very beginning, the process of choosing leaders for the Church has played a critical role in building Christ’s Church and advancing his mission. The apostles asked the first Christians to make a list of seven men who could make sure widows received food, so that they could devote themselves to prayer and the ministry of the word (Acts 6:1-7). Members identified individuals in their midst who they believed were uniquely gifted to carry out the mission-critical ministries of the church.
Similarly, the process of identifying men to serve the Assembly is itself a reminder that Jesus has spread his gifts throughout the Church. No single member, church, or presbytery possesses all the gifts needed to carry out the mission of Christ in this world. Rather, we rely on the “gifts and graces” (WCF 26.1) Christ has scattered throughout the visible church, finding them and putting them to use so that the Church may grow into the fullness of Christ (Eph. 4:13).
The Nominating Committee is at the center of the process of identifying the men God has gifted and called to serve on the Assembly’s 14 permanent committees, special committees, boards, and the Standing Judicial Commission. They are entrusted with the serious task of considering and putting forward men who will be entrusted with overseeing various aspects of the Church’s mission.
“The Nominating Committee is vital to the health and functioning of the Church,” noted John Bise, Provisional Stated Clerk of the PCA. “This body weighs the qualifications of presbytery nominees, advising the Assembly as to those it deems best gifted to serve the needs of the Church.”
As the PCA has grown, the Nominating Committee and its work have also grown. Since every presbytery may elect a representative to serve on the Nominating Committee, it has a potential membership of 87 elders. The committee receives hundreds of nominations annually.
Due to the volume of communications and information, the Nominating Committee depends on the Administrative Committee to coordinate and facilitate its work.
“Each member of the Nominating Committee is serving in this role in addition to his responsibilities to the local church and to the presbytery,” said Ben Lyon, Nominating Committee Chairman and Executive Pastor of Trinity Presbyterian Church in Norfolk, VA. “We simply don’t have the time to handle the administrative burden of bringing together all the details required for pulling off this meeting each year in a timely manner. The Administrative Committee works incredibly hard behind the scenes to make our work as efficient as possible. That gift of efficiency is a blessing not only to each member of the committee but to our families and to the churches we serve – that we are removed from our local ministry contexts for as short a time as possible.”
Presbytery clerks submit hundreds of nominees to the AC along with nominee biographical information and letters of recommendation. The AC compiles and distributes all these documents as well as a ballot to committee members in advance of their meeting. The AC then hosts the meeting in which the Nominating Committee composes a qualified slate of nominees for the Assembly. The end result is a list of men whom the committee believes possess the skills needed to steward various aspects of the PCA’s ministry.
When your church supports the work of the AC, you support the work of the Nominating Committee. Your generosity helps ensure the Assembly finds and mobilizes gifted officers to advance the mission of the Church. This process is more than administrative. It is how Christ is building his Church and how the PCA collaborates to advance the peace, purity, and mission of the church.