Step 6 - License Ministers Through Your Church

Your church will have legal authority to license and ordain

One of the greatest advantages of establishing a church is your autonomy. When a church is autonomous, it a has a greater ability to establish relationships with other churches regardless of their denominational backgrounds. Additionally, it brings to your church the ability to license and ordain ministers in accordance with the convictions of the leadership's heart. When licensing, one must keep in mind that it is God who ordains and man simply recognizes what God has already done.

The word license as found in Webster’s dictionary is defined as "permission granted by competent authority to engage in a business or occupation or in an activity otherwise unlawful." Here we see that when your church grants a ministerial license it is granting someone the authority

to perform certain acts that he/she would not otherwise be able to perform. Examples are marrying, funerals, pastoral counseling, clergy-penitent rules, special rules for filing taxes, etc. Whenever your church grants a license the government accepts it as valid and allows the person to exercise the rights and privileges that come with being a licensed or ordained minister.