Ministerial Leadership

The Classis Ministerial Leadership Team (CMLT)...

Clouds in the sky

Orientation

Description here and here and here.
Clouds in the sky

Process Guides

Description here and here and here.

Since leaders are most easily identified by church councils and leaders, CMLT’s should develop creative ways to communicate regularly to the churches about leader development. 

How to communicate? 

  • CMLT reports, bulletin announcements, emails, scheduled classis conversations about leadership development, social media posts or whatever creative ways your classis already has in place to communicate!

What to communicate?

  • Communicating the needs within the "leadership landscape of the CRCNA" has been one effective way to encourage churches to identify leaders, so sharing some of the statistics in the 2024/2026 Candidacy Committee reports to synod could be helpful
  • You could also encourage church councils to add into one of their agendas a session to pray and brainstorm who in their congregation God might be calling to take on a leadership role. Then they could take action by having conversations with those individuals and inviting them to try specific ministry roles
  • Pastors and experienced leaders in your classis should be encouraged to see themselves as "equippers" of newer leaders, always looking for opportunities to give some of their responsibilities to younger leaders so that they can develop their skills through serving (while the experienced leader supports)
  • Classes could consider mobilizing their retired ministers as mentors and equippers as well! It often blesses the retired ministers to play this role and their wisdom is a tremendous asset to emerging leaders 
  • Creating a clear leadership development pathway and communicating it effectively can draw people into leadership training. There should be small steps first for people to engage-- such as study of the OT and NT, which could be applicable to a wide range of ministry leaders-- Bible study leaders, church staff, GEMS and Cadets leaders, etc. These learning opportunities should be designed to bridge smoothly into trainings for officebearers (elder, deacon, licensed exhorter, commissioned pastor and perhaps even minister of the Word). See “leader development resources” section for some ideas!

(More detailed info and contact information for these programs can be found on this document: Training Programs For Commissioned Pastors)

Recommended Accredited programs for training Commissioned Pastors:

  • Calvin Seminary Commissioned Pastor Certificate Program – this would be an excellent choice for those who intend to continue on to complete their MDiv for ordination as Minister of the Word. CMLT works with the student to choose 8-20 credits of coursework and those credits are stackable into an MA or MDiv.
  • Empower Program – Calvin Seminary wants to help your classis offer accredited, contextual training to emerging leaders! Your classis could use this program for individuals or groups training to become commissioned pastors with minimal manpower. Contact Aaron Einfeld ([email protected]) to find out more.
  • Calvin Seminary Commissioned Pastor Certificate in Spanish – coming soon! (also stackable into an MA or MDiv at CTS)
  • Christian Leaders Institute /Christian Leaders College (CLC credits accepted by CTS)

Recommended non-accredited programs for Training Commissioned Pastors:

  • Coram Deo 
  • Classis Wisconsin, Classis Red Mesa and Classis Atlantic Northeast have excellent LDN’s in place. If your church is in one of these classes, contact Stated Clerk or CMLT for more information. Other classes may also be developing programs for training commissioned pastors so inquire with the CMLT of your classis to find out what is offered in your area!
  • Luke 10 program in Spanish – excellent courses and networking with a community of other Spanish speaking CRC pastors and leaders
  • KIM program in Korean – video curriculum to be studied with an assigned mentor. This is usually used as a learning plan for ministers affiliating through article 8 but it can also be used as a commissioned pastor learning plan.

Recommended programs for training various types of leaders:

Resources for training individuals for a license to exhort

  • Calvin Seminary offers a Gospel Preaching course that could be taken for credit or audited by non-degree seeking students. Additional courses could also be taken if desired, including courses in OT and NT study, reformed hermeneutics and additional one-credit preaching courses focused on specific skills.

Forms for Article 6 (seminary route, CTS and EPMC)

Classis Initial Report

Forms for Article 8 (for those ordained in other denominations) - English

Classis Forms for Article 8 in Korean/English

Classis Forms for Article 8 in Spanish/English