International Bible Church (Caribbean Netherlands) – Pastor

The Big Picture

International Bible Church (https://bonaireibc.org) is seeking an additional Pastor to join with our current Pastor and elders in shepherding a growing congregation of about 120 weekly attendees. This pastor will work to build up the body of Christ by encouraging people to establish and grow in fellowship with God and with one another by faith in Jesus Christ, faith empowered by the Holy Spirit. He is expected to prepare to transition to the role of principal Pastor and to assist in the

development of ongoing succession plans to assure future continuity of shepherding in the church.

Key Responsibilities

Depending on the Lord’s leadership, the needs of the congregation, and the skills and gifts of the person, he will be expected to collaborate with other leading servants to fulfill the following responsibilities.

Expositional Christ-Centered Preaching Collaborate with the current Pastor in delivering sermons and teaching ministries that faithfully communicate the truth of Scripture (the gospel) in a way that leads people to trust Christ.

Building Structures for Fellowship Provide opportunities for people to deepen

their understanding of God’s Word, to give themselves entirely to God in Worship, to share their thoughts and needs with God in Prayer, to show up in each other’s lives, to open up with each other, and to share what God gives with each other. Build and staff structures for assimilating people into the life of the church.

Leading Servant Development Join with other leaders in the ongoing work to

develop and present training to engage the congregation in servant fellowships,

grounding them in Sound Theology, the Priority of Fellowship, and the goal of

growing into Leading Servants. Encourage and equip Leading Servants and Servant Fellowships to take responsibility for the work of ministry. Help to build self-sustaining structures for ministry—structures that will identify and develop future leading servants. Oversee all of the educational ministries of the church with special attention to the Three (Sound Theology, Fellowship Strategy, Leading Servant Development) and the Six (Word, Worship, Prayer, Show Up, Open Up, Share).

Children, Youth and Family Ministry Equip and encourage our Servant

Fellowships that serve these groups. Proactively engage with children, youth, and

parents to nurture faith and Christ-centered fellowship within families, and among

people at common developmental stages.

Language Acquisition Commit to learning and becoming proficient in

Papiamentu and/or Dutch to effectively minister to the local community. A

candidate who already possessed one or both of these languages would have an

important advantage.

Pastoral Care and Shepherding Come alongside people to help them live wisely,

being grounded in Christ and reflecting his image. As the opportunity develops,

train others to do the same.

Community Extension Support gospel-centered outreach efforts that extend the

fellowship of the body of Christ into the community. Equip and encourage Servant

Fellowships for this purpose.

Fundraising Join with the Pastor and elders to develop and implement a

fundraising plan to secure financial support for a significant portion of salary,

benefits, and relocation expenses, in accordance with IBC's giving principles.

Succession Planning Work closely with the Pastor and elders to prepare for a

potential transition to the principal Pastor role, and to plan for succession in the

second Pastor role.

Administrative Support Assist with church operations, communication, event

planning, and volunteer coordination as needed to facilitate ministry effectiveness.

Personal Development Demonstrate an ongoing commitment to building

relevant knowledge, skills, and wisdom, especially in those areas aimed at growing

in fellowship with God and building up God’s people. Becoming a well-rounded,

well-read person.

We hope to find someone who…

-Will demonstrate a critical understanding of, agreement with, and facility to teach

and defend the historic doctrines of the Christian faith as outlined in Statement of

Faith of IBC and elaborated in the accompanying church profile.

-Will commit wholeheartedly to the church’s values of organic community,

fellowship as ministry strategy, and leading service.

-Possesses the ability to teach and preach messages that are properly contextual,

biblically accurate, theologically sound, and Christ-centered, and to do so with

clarity, humility, and pastoral sensitivity,.

-Has had ministry experience of sufficient length to demonstrate the ability and

enthusiastic desire to fulfill these responsibilities.

-Possesses a Master of Divinity (M.Div.) degree or higher from an accredited

theological institution, or can demonstrate a similar proficiency.

-Faithfully exhibits the biblical criteria for serving as an elder by God’s grace and

provision.

-Walks with God in Christ in a way that visibly bears the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control

(Gal. 5:22-23).

Commitment and Terms

-Permanent, full-time missionary position, requires raising of financial support.

-Reports directly to the Pastor and works under the oversight of the elders.

-Embraces IBC’s vision to grow together in sound theology, fellowship,

and leading service.

-Prepared to take on the role of principal Pastor in the near future.

The Process

Please look over this job description and the church website. Along with your resume please answer these questions:

Why do you believe that you might be a good fit as the Pastor at International Bible Church?

Describe your experiences in ministry and how you may be qualified to serve as the Pastor at International Bible Church?

In just a few sentences please give a summary of your theology and how that is in line with the Statement of Faith of International Bible Church?

Please send your resume, the answers to these questions and a link to at least one online sermon to Jason@LancasterSearch.com