Lead Pastor - First Church of Christ

Lead Pastor

First Church of Christ, in Altoona, PA is seeking a lead minister/pastoral elder. First Church of Christ is an elder led church with a focus on teaching, preaching, connections, care, and evangelism.

About First Church of Christ

• Purpose and Mission
  • The First Church of Christ is a self-governing, nondenominational New Testament church. Our purpose is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. We exist to help people fall in love with Jesus by our worship, service, fellowship, discipleship, and evangelism and to provide an authentic Christian community where people can experience Christ's love and grace, the power of prayer, and the truth of the Bible. 

• Elder Led
  • Consistent with the exhortation of Scripture, First Church is led by a team of Elders/Pastors, not one man who reports to a board. This team of Elders/Pastors governs, corrects, cares for (shepherds), and oversees the spiritual interests of this church. An Elder must be a Member of this church and lead a life that meets the qualifications of Scripture and embodies the spirit and intent of the requirements found in scripture.

Responsibilities

• Teaching and Preaching
  • Participate on the Teaching Team and in the planning of the annual sermon calendar and scheduling of preachers.
  • Deliver approximately half of sermons on Sunday mornings. By the grace of God, preach and teach the Word with sincerity and authority as a servant messenger approved and entrusted by God.
  • Offer comfort, guidance, and teaching to members in times of need, fostering a supportive Christian community.
• Care and Connections
  • Provide pastoral care to members, including visiting the sick, homebound, and those unable to attend worship services, administering the Lord’s Supper as needed.
  • Support members who may be struggling spiritually or morally.
  • Provide biblical counseling.
  • Pray for and with congregation members, addressing their spiritual and physical needs.
  • Preside over baptisms, weddings, and funerals.
• Evangelism
  • Exemplify spiritual growth, education, and stewardship, setting a positive example for the congregation and spread the gospel to the general community.
    • Lead the church’s evangelism team.
    • Participate in the Blair County Pastor’s Network to promote Christian Unity among the Church of Altoona.
    • Promote the doctrine of First Church while maintaining grace for other orthodox positions.

• Pastoral Elder
  • Attend weekly meetings of the elders.
  • Attend monthly meetings of the church board.
  • The Pastoral Elder has the same duties and responsibilities as the other Elders.
  • Accountable to the Elders for the oversight of the Beliefs and Governance of the church.
  • The Pastoral Elder will be ex-officio member of the church board.
  • Provide written reports at regular church board meetings.

Personal Characteristics & Qualifications

• Faith in the divine inspiration of the Bible; the Deity and supreme authority of

Christ.

• Belief in the Virgin Birth; the miracles of the Scriptures; the death, burial and bodily

resurrection of the Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

• Belief in the necessity for faith in Christ, repentance for sins, confession of Christ,

baptism by immersion, and the effectiveness of prayer.

• Faith in the reality of both a future reward in heaven for the obedient

and faithful, and a future condemnation in the real hell for the disobedient.

• Commitment to the task of bringing about the unity of God's people on the basis of restoring.

the New Testament church in its ordinances and doctrines.

• Life is aligned with 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:6-9
• Significant preaching experience required.
• Formal biblical training required. Degree preferred.
• Godly character and strong personal integrity.
• A servant leader who is relational, approachable, humble, and family-oriented. 
• A shepherd with God’s heart for the flock, caring for and shepherding with humility, compassion, and by example.

First Church of Christ History

In 1892, W. L. King, a member of the Restoration Movement, sought to establish a church in Altoona that adhered to the movement's principles of Christian unity across denominational lines and the primacy of Scripture and placed an advertisement in the local newspaper inviting like-minded individuals to gather at his home. On July 31st, 1892, six others responded to the call, joining the Kings for worship. As the congregation grew, they relocated to a hall on twelfth street on October 16th, 1892, and officially chartered as the First Church of Christ on May 13th, 1895. Today, over a century later, the church continues to uphold the principles of Christian unity and faith, gathering weekly for worship, symbolizing continuity with the ideals of the Restoration Movement and the early Christians at Pentecost. 

This vacancy is available as a result of the retirement of the church's minister who served in that role at First Church of Christ for 30 years.

Typical service size ranges from approximately 150 in the traditional service to approximately 300 in contemporary service. The 9 AM traditional service begins with hymns and ends with contemporary worship music. The 11 AM service contains all contemporary worship music. The order of each service begins with worship songs, followed by a short weekly communion message and communion. Each service contains the same sermon and concludes with the same contemporary worship song.

The pastor is ultimately responsible/accountable to the elder board. Salary will be based on experience. A benefits package is included.

If one believes God may be calling the candidate as the next Lead Pastor at First Church of Christ, please submit the following materials to the Search Team

1. Cover letter.

Resume that includes:

Essay/short answer questions (1 page or less)

- Why is the candidate interested in this position?

- Salvation testimony/call to ministry

-One's philosophy of ministry/vision for the ministry?

-Share one's pastoral strengths, and share how one's ministry has demonstrated these in the past?

Links to preaching samples.

References

Concise statement that characterizes the candidate's current ministry efforts.