LEADERSHIP and GOVERNMENT

Hope Church is a member of the Reformed Church in America, and is governed by elders and deacons. The elders are responsible for the spiritual welfare of the congregation and overseeing the preaching of the pastor. The deacons are responsible for the physical plant, the finances, and to help the church members and others with food, rent payments, or bills when someone is in need by means of the Deacon's Fund. Together, the elders, deacons, and pastor make up the consistory (church board) which meets once a month to help the congregation to be what God wants it to be. At that monthly meeting, the consistory prays for people of the congregation with special situations. 

Elders and deacons are chosen annually, and are chosen by lot. The selection process is based on Acts 1:21-26 in which lots were cast to choose a disciple for the apostolic ministry to replace Judas.  When we cast lots,  we pick qualified people and put their names in a vessel, shake the vessel and turn it over, and the first name to fall out is the chosen one. Proverbs 16:33 says, "The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord." The reason we do this instead of popular election is: 1- popular elections are not biblical in church elections; 2-popular elections cause jealousy and hurt feelings because it becomes a popularity contest; 3-casting the lot is a way that is fair for everyone and does not cause problems. 4-Before the lot is cast, we pray that whomever God wants will be selected by Him and not us. It is a more godly way of choosing our leaders. 

Each RCA church is a member of the RCA governing body. The state RCA governing body is called classis, which means "fleet of ships." The state classis is responsible to the regional synod which consists of several states; the regional synods are responsible to the General Synod, which is made up of delegates from each classis and meets once a year to discuss important issues and pass laws that need to be followed. If the churches do not believe that a rule is biblical, a recourse is made available for rebuttal. 

All RCA churches are somewhat autonomous in that they are free to live according to their consciences. For example, the RCA General Synod has approved the idea of women preachers;  however, if a congregation does not want a woman preacher, they can continue to call men. The General Synod has said that an active homosexual or lesbian is not allowed to be a pastor; if a congregation tried to call an active homosexual as pastor the RCA judicatory would intervene. The General Synod tries to abide by its conservative evangelical stance as per the Scriptures. During its history, the RCA has never had a scandal; however, pastors have been defrocked by continually disobeying the biblical rules. Church members have been disciplined and excommunicated for continually living in unrepentant sins that bring shame upon the name of Christ. The task of discipline begins with the pastor and elders and may take its path clear to the General Synod. However, this seldom happens.

For helpful information on issues facing leaders, visit The Leadership Journal, a resource from Christianity Today.

Pastoral Leadership

Hope Community Reformed Church welcomes the arrival of Pastor Jonathan Meester in September, 2005 to lead us into the next season of our minstry.

MEET PASTOR JONATHAN MEESTER  

Pastor Jonathan was born and raised in Albany, New York. His father was a minister in the Reformed Church of America, and passed away in 1988. He has a brother and a sister who still live in New York, as does his mother, but he also has family nearby in Sheboygan.

Jonathan has an undergraduate degree in biology from SUNY at Oswego and became a computer programmer in the insurance field before heeding the call to attend seminary. He graduated from Western Theological Seminary in Holland, Michigan in 2003.

Before coming to Hope he led a variety of small groups and teaching in outreach ministries, was involved with Christ Memorial Church in Michigan and provided pulpit supply in various places.

Pastor Jonathan enjoys biking and fly fishing.

The covenant community of Hope welcomes Pastor Jonathan to our community and wish to make him feel at home. .