Church of God By Faith - Organization

Organization

National headquarters are located in Jacksonville, Florida. Churches are in the up and down the eastern seaboard United States from New York to Florida – with a few churches in the midwest and in the state of Washington.

== Executive Board ==

Bishop James E. McKnight

Bishop James E. McKnight has served as the spiritual leader of Church Of God By Faith Inc. for more than 20 years.

An ordained minister of the organization since 1957, Bishop McKnight was appointed assistant bishop in 1970. He was named presiding bishop in 1984, and underwent the formal consecration ceremony two years later.

Bishop McKnight is charged with fostering the spiritual and physical growth of more than 200 churches and missions across the country.

He has initiated a half-million dollar project that will involve the construction of an administrative headquarters that church officials say will be more conducive to the volume of business generated by the 90-year-old organization.

National church officials have bought an acre off of Old Middleburg Road, in Jacksonville, Fla., with plans to build an administrative headquarters that will feature a conference room, offices and a library to showcase and preserve historical documents and memorabilia. Bishop McKnight has said he envisions a plaque emblazoned with the names of all of the organization's churches and missions on the wall.

The Gainesville, Fla. native is a veteran of the Korean War. He is married to Mother Jessie Camps McKnight. They have four adult children.

Elder John Robinson Jr.

Elder John Robinson Jr. grew up in Church Of God By Faith. The Ormond Beach, Fla. native was 18 when he gave his life to Christ. Elder Robinson, who has been preaching "The Gospel" since 1954, was appointed to his first church a few years later.

The young pastor wore many hats. He served as the church musician, choir director and lead singer. Elder Robinson was named superintendent of the Florida East Coast District in 1961, and was later appointed as a ruling elder on Church Of God By Faith's Executive Council.

He was the general council's first chaplain, and traveled with then-Bishop Matthews to Texas, Mississippi, Washington and Tennessee to help establish churches for the organization.

Elder Robinson has shared The Gospel outside of the four walls of his churches, through his work as an evangelist as well as his prison outreach and former gospel radio program ministries. In November 1999, Elder Robinson was recommended to Inter-Faith Theological Institute and Seminary to receive an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree.

He serves as treasurer for the executive council. He and Mother Maxine Robinson have been married for 51 years. Seven children were born to their marriage.

Elder David C. Rourk

Elder David C. Rourk is a long-time member of the executive board, and has served the church organization in many capacities. Elder Rourk, who has been the pastor of Adams Street Church Of God By Faith since 1974, was appointed to serve as the district elder of the Northwestern New York District four years later.

He was tapped to serve on the executive board in 1991. He has served as the organization's executive secretary since 2003. His assignments as pastor have included Prayer House Crossroads and Sodus Center COGBF.

Elder Rourk and his wife, Ruth, make their home in Rochester, N.Y. They have four children and several grandchildren and great grandchildren.

In November 1999, Inter-faith Theological Institute and Seminary conferred Elder Rourk with an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree.

He enjoys reading, fishing, walking and bike riding.

Elder James E. McKnight, Jr.

Elder James E. McKnight Jr. shares The Gospel through outreach programs across the Bradford County Community in Florida.

Elder McKnight serves as president of the Bradford County Ministerial Alliance and is the president and founder of Bradford County Faith Community Center, a faith-based organization that serves North Central Florida by providing HIV testing and counseling, a recovery program and prison ministry, food distribution and a family literacy program.

Last year he led an expansion project that included the purchase of more than 21 acres (85,000 m2) to better serve Bradford County and its surrounding areas.

Elder McKnight has been serving the Lord since he was a teenager. The eldest son Bishop James E. and Mother Jessie McKnight, Elder McKnight has been a member of the Executive Council since 2003.

He began his ministry in 1985, holding services inside of an abandoned store in Bradford County, with his wife, DeLois, and their three children as members.

The McKnight's, who have long since moved beyond the walls of their makeshift sanctuary, hold multiple Sunday services in their current church to accommodate their growing congregation.

Elder Horace Nelson Turner, Sr.

Elder Dr. Horace Nelson Turner Sr. is the pastor of Sears Street Church of God by Faith in Douglas, Georgia and COGBF in Nicholls, Georgia.

An ordained minister since 1986, his mission work can be traced back to an old funeral home and storefront.

He is well known for his gospel radio and television broadcasts that have aired in the Coffee County area. The former correctional center chaplain is the founder of Faith Base Pod, a prison ministry. He is the chaplain for the Coffee County Sheriff's Office, chairman of the South Georgia District Christian Board of Education and a member of the Coffee County Ministerial Alliance Association.

Last year, Elder Turner was elected to serve as a national Ruling Elder for the church organization.

He and his wife, Sandra LaFaye, have 6 children and 10 grandchildren.