Murray Street Baptist Church (MSBC), a historic church in downtown Peterborough, Ontario, Canada in a traditional inner-city setting is seeking a full-time pastor who has spiritual maturity, wisdom, energy, enthusiasm, and passion in discipling, mobilizing, and motivating people for its mission in spreading the kingdom of God to all people in the surrounding urban community. The pastor will faithfully and humbly seek to follow in the footsteps of Christ in teaching, mentoring, and equipping the members and adherents of MSBC to grow in faith and to share the love of Jesus through all ministries inside and outside the church walls.

Murray Street Baptist Church (MSBC), a historic church in downtown Peterborough, Ontario, Canada in a traditional inner-city setting.

Murray Street Baptist Church (MSBC), a historic church in downtown Peterborough, Ontario, Canada, in a traditional inner-city setting, is seeking a full-time pastor who has spiritual maturity, wisdom, energy, enthusiasm, and passion in discipling, mobilizing, and motivating people for its mission in spreading the kingdom of God to all people in the surrounding urban community. The pastor will faithfully and humbly seek to follow in the footsteps of Christ in teaching, mentoring, and equipping the members and adherents of MSBC to grow in faith and to share the love of Jesus through all ministries inside and outside the church walls.

Requirements and Commitments

1. Ordained, accredited with CBOQ or willingness to become accredited with CBOQ.
2. Masters of Divinity or equivalent.
3. Become a member of MSBC and as a member, adhere to the Church Covenant and to the Church Constitution and By-Law
4. Comply with the Child Safety Policy

Preaching / Teaching and Worship

It is vital for the pastor to be able to communicate MSBC’s approach to ministry through effective biblical preaching. The pastor will preach on a regular basis with the occasional guest speaker from within the congregation or outside of it. The pastor, together with the worship deacon, will oversee the planning and execution of all worship services.

Ministry Development

1. Develop leadership: This will include mentoring potential leaders and collaborating with other members of the ministry team and Board of Deacons (BOD) to develop leadership within the church.
2. Oversee ministries: Provide oversight to ministries of the church.

Wider Community Involvement

Build relationships outside the church by making connections with people, businesses, and culture. This will also include other ministries in the city and continuity of our ties with Canadian Baptists of Ontario and Quebec (CBOQ), Canadian Baptist Ministries, Trent Valley Association, etc.

Pastoral Care

Oversee visitation of seniors and others in the congregation in collaboration with the spiritual care and discipleship deacon. As well as minister to people in crisis, weddings, funerals, etc., as needed.

Personal and Spiritual Development

1. Take one workday monthly for quiet and renewal.
2. Take advantage of opportunities for professional development, in accordance with CBOQ guidelines.

Development and Implementation of Vision and Strategic Planning

Embrace the current vision of MSBC and develop action plans to implement it through current congregational ministries, as well as through strategic outreach and connection with the community.

Administration

Supervise staff and Church Office. Attend BOD meetings and task teams as needed.

Requirements and Commitments

1. Ordination recognized by CBOQ. Candidates not currently recognized must be eligible and willing to have their ordination assessed and affirmed by CBOQ.

Accreditation in good standing with CBOQ is required. Candidates who are not currently accredited must be eligible and willing to pursue accreditation and maintain good standing as a condition of continued employment.

1. Master of Divinity or equivalent.
2. Become a member of MSBC and as a member, adhere to the Church Covenant and to the Church Constitution and By-Law
3. Comply with the Child Safety Policy

Gifts, Abilities, and Attributes

To fulfill this role, the pastor will require the following:

• Preaching: biblical, relevant, coherent, effective, and directed by the Holy Spirit; experience with a variety of styles, reaching people in all seasons of spiritual and physical walks of life.
• Pastoral: is spiritually and emotionally astute, accessible, sensitive; nurturing, caring, and with effective communicating and listening skills.
• Spiritually mature.
• Love for the urban setting; has an ability to see “the big picture” and MSBC (i.e., the cultural, generational, socio-economic, and gender issues that impact our community) and is willing to partner with other churches and organizations to further the mission of the church in the city.
• Facilitator/motivator; has the ability to encourage, train, develop, teach, and inspire lay leaders and the congregation; requires strong leadership skills.
• Passion for evangelism; has a heart for unbelievers and a passion to reach out to them, winning them to Christ and teaching others to do the same.
• Appreciative of the importance of music in worship; comfortable with various forms of worship music.
• Able to manage and adapt to change.
• Experience in a congregational church setting; leads by building consensus.
• Comfortable and effective in communicating and interacting with people.
• Skilled in the use of social media, technology, and email.

Structure

• The pastor will provide leadership to the ministry team and the members of the congregation. Decisions are made by members of MSBC during business meetings.

Accountability

• The pastor is accountable to the congregation of MSBC through the Board of Deacons which includes Executive; Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary and Treasurer plus seven portfolios: Spiritual Care/Discipleship, Evangelism/Missions, Community Engagement, Media, Worship, Finance and Property.

To apply for the position, email a resume, cover letter, philosophy of ministry statement, sermon recordings, and references to Barrie Burhoe, Pastoral Search Committee, barrie.burhoe@gmail.com. The committee will consider applications on an ongoing basis.

The MSBC Search Committee will conduct a first interview with all suitable candidates. Deadline for applying is May 1st 2026.

For those wishing to mail:

Murray Street Baptist Church

175 Murray Street

Peterborough, Ontario

K9J 8L7 Canada

Attention: Pastoral Search Committee

www.murraystreetlive.ca