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Effective Christian Leadership for Today: Key Aspects, Stages & More

It’s hard to think of a more important topic for the church today than leadership. Doctrine matters. Cultural exegesis matters. Scriptural fidelity matters. But without Scripture-soaked, servant-minded leaders at every level of the church, God’s people struggle. Ed Stetzer writes,

Yet the need for godly leadership isn’t an invention of the modern world. A lack of leadership—whether because of ineptitude or absence—is often coupled with Israel’s straying from her God-given mission. The clearest example of this is in Judges when the Bible says, “In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did whatever seemed right to him” (21:25 CSB). Without godly leadership, God’s people tend to ignore God’s ways.

On this page, we’ll work through several different aspects of Christian leadership. Feel free to navigate ahead to the topics that interest you most:

What Christian leadership is—and what it isn’t

4 aspects of christian leadership.

• The stages of Christian leadership

Keys to developing leaders

• A call to leadership

Bible study & sermon/lesson prep resources

What is Christian leadership?

A. D. Clarke writes in his article on leadership in the  New Dictionary of Biblical Theology  that all leadership is “framed within the overarching context of divine sovereignty.” Christian leadership—whether within the church, business, government, or the home—gets its foundation from the authority God himself has. Whether Christian or secular, all leaders are stewards of the authority given to them by God. Peter Drucker aptly says about leadership, “The only definition of a leader is someone who has followers.” But Christian leadership has a higher purpose in mind. Christian leaders aren’t simply moving people toward morally and spiritually ambiguous goals. Christian leaders seek to serve others and marshal them toward a goal ordained by God. Pastors, authors, and academics have been defining Christian leadership for decades. Understanding its importance in the life of the church and toward the completion of the mission of God in the world, church leaders have tried to describe it in helpful ways. Robert Clinton , longtime professor of leadership at Fuller Theological Seminary, offers a noteworthy definition of leadership: “Leadership is a dynamic process in which a man or woman with God-given capacity influences a specific group of God’s people toward his purposes for the group.” Ed Stetzer offers one of the best recent definitions of Christian leadership : “Christian leadership is a process of influencing a community to use their God-given gifts toward a goal and purpose as led by the Holy Spirit.”

At the heart of any differentiation of Christian leadership and secular leadership is the idea of purpose. Christian leaders move people toward a Christ-honoring goal. That’s why Ken Blanchard, the best-selling author of  Lead Like Jesus , explains that Christian leadership aims at the heart of the leader first: “Every tactical problem, whether at home or in the workplace, can be traced to heart issues within the leader: weak character, fear, pride, not being able to distinguish right from wrong, or misplaced priorities.” He adds, “The heart of a leader must be transformed before any other lasting personal and organizational change can take place.” 2 The heart of Christian leadership is the heart of the Christian leader.

What Christian leadership isn’t

The concept of Christian leadership alludes to something deeper than simply a leader who happens to be a Christian. It encompasses the timeless Christian ideals of service, stewardship, shepherding, and humility. The 12 apostles—people who were called to lead God’s people after Jesus’ resurrection—exemplified both healthy and unhealthy leadership. Mark 9:33–37 recounts a time when these same apostles were arguing over who was the greatest. Jesus reminded these growing leaders that “if anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all” (v. 35). Jesus modeled this for his disciples throughout his earthly ministry by feeding people, washing feet, and teaching all who would listen to see their lives in the light of God’s kingdom. Leadership, then, isn’t about hierarchy, power, or status. It’s ultimately about serving God and his people by using God-given gifts of leadership to bring the kind of focus and mission-mindedness needed to work together toward a Christ-honoring goal.

Because Christian leadership is intrinsically connected to the heart of the leader, the leader’s heart is the single most important part of Christian leadership. Christian leaders mobilize others not out of what they know but who they are in Christ.There’s good news and bad news when it comes to developing a leader’s character. We can grow character. In fact, the Bible describes character development as a key ingredient to Christian discipleship.But the bad news is that affliction is a core ingredient to God’s training room for character. You can’t learn character from a textbook. You have to learn it from hardship. Paul writes, “And not only that, but we also boast in our afflictions, because we know that affliction produces endurance, endurance produces proven character, and proven character produces hope” (Romans 5:3–4 CSB). In fact, writing in the  International Standard Bible Encyclopedia , G. E. Montgomery describes character as the “successful endurance of testing.”What does Christian character look like? Paul gives us possibly the best description in Galatians 5:22–23 with these characteristics, typically referred to as the fruit of the Spirit: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” When these characteristics permeate a Christian leader’s life, as they are tested, the leader has the moral force necessary to mobilize others to engage in God’s mission.

A leader’s convictions are the truths they believe about God, themselves, and the surrounding world that lay a foundation for leadership. In his book  The Conviction to Lead , Albert Mohler writes: “The leadership that really matters is all about conviction. The leader is rightly concerned with everything from strategy and vision to team-building, motivation, and delegation, but at the center of the true leader’s heart and mind, you will find convictions that drive and determine everything else.”Those convictions begin with the  classic Christian creeds of the church  and their descriptions about God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, the Bible, sin, salvation, etc. What a leader believes about these biblical truths becomes foundational for how they act—and how they mobilize others to act. These convictions are vital because a leader will pass them on to others through discipleship. A leader who hasn’t properly done the work on their own convictions can’t faithfully teach them to others.A leader must have convictions about the major doctrines of the Bible, but they must also develop deep, actionable beliefs about ministry philosophies, ministry direction, and social action. A church’s actions ought to be directed by a leader who is humble and confident about the direction God is moving them toward. This isn’t only a theological necessity but a pragmatic requirement. Without deeply held convictions, leaders will always struggle to build teams and alignment. People respond to authentic leaders who lead out of deeply held beliefs.None of this means that a leader’s convictions won’t change. In fact, healthy leaders routinely revisit convictions to ensure they correspond to the teachings of the Bible and the leadership of the Holy Spirit. The ability to continue learning and growing is a hallmark of healthy, God-honoring leadership throughout Scripture and Church history.

Of all the characteristics of godly leadership, calling is often the most difficult to clearly articulate. The concept has its root in both the Old and New Testaments. In  Eerdmans Bible Dictionary , A. C. Myers describes calling as: “A term designating God’s summons to a specific task or role and his special relationship to his people.” Although every believer has a general call to salvation, God calls each Christian to specific tasks in his kingdom work.God’s call is a holy summons to participate in his mission in the world. Just as every part of the human body is necessary, the Church needs every Christian to know and live out their calling (1 Cor 12:12–31). For some, that might be a call to pastoral ministry, but for others, it might be to serve as a Christian witness in the marketplace or in the classroom as a teacher. All are equally important to the mission of God.Understanding God’s call—and when God is calling them in a new direction—is an important part of any leader’s journey. Wrestling with the mystery of that call helps to prepare a leader for a lifetime of service. It’s the first step of faith in a lifetime of equally difficult and often equally unclear steps.

Leaders also have certain skills to develop. Every leadership role—whether it’s in formal ministry or the marketplace—has various competencies attached to it. For example, pastors in most ministry contexts preach, counsel, shepherd, teach, lead teams, etc. Pastors will become more effective in discipling and leading others as they grow in each of these competencies.All Christian leaders have a different set of competencies that are important in their context. While counseling may be a significant part of some pastoral roles, it may be less important in other contexts. Leaders in a church’s children’s ministry may need to become effective in classroom management or volunteer development. A church’s senior adult ministry leader may need to be strong in grief counseling.There is no set list of competencies for ministry. Most theological schools and training organizations have lists of competencies they hope to develop in leaders they serve. For example, Beeson Divinity School divides ministry competencies into five broad categories:

• Pastoral care
• Personal and spiritual issues
• Proclamation
• Relational skills

Acts 29 has 11 such categories for its church planters:

• Spiritual vitality
• Theological clarity
• Convictions and commendations
• Relationships
• Missional lifestyle
• Disciple-making
• Ability to teach
• Entrepreneurial aptitude

While it’s important that leaders develop a variety of skills, the Bible ultimately declares that the Holy Spirit provides competency for Christian ministry. Competency can become a crutch that can separate a leader from the necessity of God’s power.Paul writes, “Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some, letters of recommendation to you or from you? You yourselves are our letter of recommendation, written on our hearts, to be known and read by all. And you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts” (2 Cor 3:1–3).

Stages of Christian leadership

Below we’ll work our way through the four stages of Christian leadership: discernment, growth, maturity, and multiplication. Don’t think of the stages of leadership development as linear. While these stages tend to intersect with certain life stages, leaders experience aspects of these stages throughout their lives.

Discernment

The discernment period is most prominent in the early years of ministry and during transitional periods. It’s the time when leaders wrestle with God about their calling. Sometimes they try different roles as they sense a specific ministry fit. It’s usually a time of great excitement and energy—of both highs and lows. But leaders never reach a stage where they don’t need to discern God’s will in ministry. They will wrestle with God’s direction their entire lives. Even if they’ve settled into a specific lay or professional ministry role, leaders will continue to search out new ministry contexts and new visions of future work. The process of ministry discernment is an ongoing part of life. It’s important during the discernment period for leaders to find godly counsel that will help them seek God’s will and learn from others who have served in a similar role.

Again, church leaders should never have a period in their ministry where they are not developing their character and skills. In the development period, leaders take stock of the training and experiences they need to fully embrace God’s call on their lives. In a sense,  leadership development  is simply another step in the discipleship process. For some leadership roles, this development occurs most effectively informally—through mentoring and lay training experiences. This informal process is often done within a church community, particularly when a leader is preparing for a lay ministry role. A seminary or a Bible college can also be a part of the development pathway for Christian leaders. Most seminaries are designed to prepare leaders for professional ministry roles (such as pastors, missionaries, and church administrators) who need a more specialized training regiment. Some seminaries also offer training in Christian leadership or marketplace theology that’s designed to equip men and women who don’t work full-time in ministry. With the advent of the internet age, leaders have access to Christian higher education without leaving their current ministry contexts. Highly informative, actionable theological education, such as  Logos Mobile Education , is available anywhere on the planet and on nearly any topic. This specific development stage, characterized by learning and growth, extends long after any period of formal or informal training. Leaders must often serve selflessly for years before reaching the next stage of development (maturity). These years are typically full of frequent rotating periods of failure, learning, and growth as leaders learn from their mistakes and build upon struggles to set the foundation for future ministry fruitfulness.

As leaders mature, their ministry grows in effectiveness. This tends to happen as ministry discernment, development, experience, and humility come together in specific contexts that fit leaders’ unique backgrounds. While leaders in this stage continue to discern God’s call on their lives and develop their doctrinal convictions and ministry competencies, the maturity stage is marked by leaders’ focus on the work of ministry. While fruitfulness will look different in every context, it’s this period when you usually see it most clearly in the life of a leader. One common characteristic of this period is that leaders increasingly have the opportunity to focus on areas of giftedness. Leaders who are particularly gifted in shepherding spend more of their time in this area. Leaders who are strong teachers spend more time teaching. While the fruitfulness of this period relates to skill growth, it’s the leader’s increasing clarity of their calling that has the biggest impact upon ministry growth.

Multiplication

Discipling other leaders is always a critical part of a leader’s job—particularly a Christian leader’s job. Even young and inexperienced leaders can step out of their comfort zone to disciple less experienced leaders. Yet a leader who has experienced ministry maturation by discovering their unique fit and context has a special opportunity to pour into the lives of other leaders. As this happens, leaders multiply. Mature leaders don’t  multiply themselves  accidentally. It happens because they intentionally make mentoring a priority.

Leaders need mentors, and they need to be mentors. Both aspects of mentoring play a key part in leadership development. Leaders need to be led by people who are a bit further in their journey who can help them prioritize spiritual disciplines, serve their families, shepherd their churches, and engage their communities with the good news about Jesus. They also need to regularly practice the habit of discipling and training others. While academic training for some kinds of ministry can be critical, it can’t replace life-on-life relationships.

Mentoring is a type of leadership development with no cap on its potential. A leader doesn’t need access to higher education or to be literate to connect with a mentor and, in turn, mentor someone else.

Ministry fit

To develop Christian leaders, churches need a system for helping people discover the right ministry fit. Churches and Christian leaders do this in several ways.

Trial-and-error:  Aspiring leaders can serve in capacities that seem to line up with their gifts, but they can do so without a long-term commitment. If the ministry doesn’t fit, they can simply move on to one that does. This process can be effective for most roles. Even aspiring pastors can serve in short-term roles to get a firsthand idea whether that ministry role is a strong fit.

Assessments:  Many churches use gift assessments—either self-assessments or ones administered by the church—to help in this process. Typically, these assessments include a series of multiple-choice questions around personality and interests. The tabulated scores provide aspiring leaders with a list of the top spiritual gifts the person demonstrates a proclivity toward.

Interviews:  Some churches enlist interviewers to talk through a person’s experiences, skills, and gifting and serve as a guide in discovering a ministry fit. These interviewers can be staff members or even the pastor in smaller ministry contexts. They can also be lay people. They simply need to understand how to ask a series of open-ended questions and have a broad understanding of how to connect people to ministry opportunities within the church.

Lifelong learning

Leaders never reach a point where they don’t need to learn. Because leaders often serve in the church for decades, it’s critical they have an opportunity to sharpen their skills and apply those skills in ever-changing ministry contexts. For example, a volunteer who began leading youth in a local church in the early 1990s is now serving in a context that is vastly different three decades later.

Whether a person serves as a lead pastor, a children’s ministry worker, or some other role in the church, constant access to learning will help to ensure a leader not only faithfully fulfills their calling today but can also effectively disciple others.

Churches can enlist everything from regular, on-the job-training to  on-demand classes  and even in-person observation in other churches to help with this.

Biblical community

Ministry is never a solo effort. It’s always most effectively done in a community of leaders who are seeking after God’s best together. Leaders need community to provide support through the inevitable ups and downs of leadership. They need prayer support, mentoring, and the opportunities to serve that come within biblical community.

The time for leadership is (always) now

From the time of Jesus’ first followers to the days following Pentecost to the Reformation and beyond, God has worked through people to fulfill his mission in the world. Leaders have been at the heart of that movement. As committed Christian leaders have mobilized the Church toward the Great Commission, God has worked through his people. But today, as the Church faces a growing number of challenges, leaders are more important than ever. The Church’s ability to develop and deploy leaders who create new leaders will be one of its great tests in the twenty-first century. The world has leaders. Every segment of society has people that will fill a leadership vacuum if necessary. But there’s leadership—and there’s Christian leadership. The Church’s current moment desperately needs leaders committed to doing God’s work in God’s way with God’s people. “A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.” —John Maxwell

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• https://outreachmagazine.com/features/16970-my-lovehate-relationship-with-leadership.html
• https://leadlikejesus.com/blog/
• https://www.christianitytoday.com/pastors/2014/october-online-only/why-your-church-needs-group-mentoring.html

Tobin Perry

Tobin Perry has spent over 20 years as a writer and editor for faith-based audiences. He has written for Christianity Today, Baptist Press, Saddleback Church, the North American Mission Board, and more. He has also served as a lead pastor of a small church in Southern Indiana and a church planting intern in Seattle, Washington. Tobin has a Bachelor of Journalism degree from the University of Missouri and a Master of Divinity degree from Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary (now Gateway Seminary). He lives in Evansville, Indiana with his wife and three children.

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The Power of Christian Leadership: 8 Principles You Need to Know

Christian leadership is more than just being in charge. It’s about having a deep sense of purpose and serving others with humility and compassion. Effective Christian leaders are not just knowledgeable, but also display ethical behavior in all their actions. In this article, we will explore eight principles that are essential for any Christian leader to know.

Vision and purpose are at the heart of Christian leadership . Christian leaders should have a clear understanding of what they want to achieve and why they are doing it. A strong sense of purpose helps leaders to stay focused and motivated, even when the going gets tough. This means that leaders need to be intentional about creating and communicating a vision that inspires others to join them on their mission.

Servant leadership is another crucial principle for Christian leaders. Jesus himself demonstrated the importance of servant leadership by washing his disciples’ feet. Effective Christian leaders must be willing to serve others and put their needs before their own. They must be humble, compassionate, and willing to listen to the people they lead. When leaders serve with sincerity, they build trust and respect, which leads to greater influence and impact.

Decision-making is an essential skill for any leader, but it’s especially important for Christian leaders. The decisions they make should be guided by biblical principles and focused on what’s best for the people they lead. Leaders should seek wise counsel, consider all the facts, and pray for guidance before making any decisions. Effective Christian leaders understand that their decisions have a significant impact on the lives of those they lead.

These are just a few of the principles that make up Christian leadership . If you want to learn more about what it takes to be an effective Christian leader, keep reading. We’ll explore five more principles that can help you become a better leader and make a positive impact on the world around you.

Table of Contents

Discover the True Meaning of Christian Leadership

Christian leadership is about more than just being in charge. It’s about serving others, inspiring change, and living a life that reflects the teachings of Jesus Christ. True Christian leadership is a calling, and it requires a unique set of skills and qualities to be successful. In this article, we will explore the eight principles of Christian leadership that will help you become a better leader in your church, community, or workplace.

The Principle of Service

• Sacrifice: A true Christian leader is willing to sacrifice their own interests for the sake of others.
• Humility: A humble leader recognizes that they are not perfect and is willing to learn from others.
• Compassion: A compassionate leader shows empathy and care for the needs of others.

The Principle of Influence

A Christian leader has the power to influence those around them. They use their influence to inspire and encourage others to live a life of faith and service.

The Principle of Integrity

• Honesty: A Christian leader speaks the truth and does not deceive others.
• Transparency: A transparent leader is open and honest about their actions and decisions.
• Accountability: A Christian leader takes responsibility for their actions and is willing to be held accountable.

Whether you are a pastor, business owner, or community leader, these principles of Christian leadership will help you become a better leader. By serving others, using your influence for good, and demonstrating integrity in all that you do, you can make a positive impact on those around you.

Unleash the Power of Vision and Purpose

Christian leadership is not just about leading people, but it’s also about leading them towards a shared vision and purpose. It’s about inspiring them to work together towards a common goal that is bigger than any one individual. When leaders have a clear vision and purpose, they can inspire and motivate others to follow them towards achieving that vision.

As a Christian leader, it’s important to understand the power of having a clear vision and purpose. Here are three ways to unleash that power:

Communicate Your Vision Clearly

The first step towards unleashing the power of your vision and purpose is to communicate it clearly. This means that you need to explain your vision and purpose in a way that is easy for others to understand. Use clear, concise language and avoid using technical jargon or complicated terms. When your followers understand your vision and purpose, they can work together towards achieving it.

Align Your Goals with Your Vision

Once you have communicated your vision and purpose, the next step is to align your goals with that vision. Make sure that every goal you set is in line with your vision and purpose. When your followers see that you are committed to achieving your vision, they will be more motivated to help you achieve your goals.

Lead by Example

Finally, as a Christian leader, it’s important to lead by example. You need to embody the vision and purpose that you are trying to achieve. This means that you need to model the behavior and actions that you want your followers to exhibit. When your followers see that you are committed to your vision and purpose, they will be more likely to follow your lead.

By unleashing the power of vision and purpose, you can inspire and motivate your followers to achieve great things. When you have a clear vision and purpose, you can work together towards achieving your goals, and ultimately make a positive impact on the world around you.

Why Servant Leadership Matters More Than You Think

Servant leadership is a management philosophy that puts the needs of others first, before the leader’s own interests. It’s about serving the people you lead and creating a culture of mutual respect, trust, and collaboration. While some may see this approach as weak or ineffective, in reality, it’s a powerful way to lead that can benefit both individuals and organizations.

Here are three reasons why servant leadership matters more than you may think:

Higher Employee Engagement and Retention Rates

When employees feel valued and supported, they are more engaged and committed to their work. Servant leaders create a culture that fosters personal and professional growth, encourages creativity and innovation, and provides opportunities for skill development. This can lead to higher retention rates, which can save organizations time and money in recruiting and training new staff.

Improved Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty

Servant leaders prioritize the needs of their employees, recognizing that happy employees lead to happy customers. By fostering a culture of empathy, understanding, and service, organizations can create a positive customer experience that leads to increased loyalty and repeat business. This can have a significant impact on the bottom line, as loyal customers are more likely to refer new business and provide positive reviews.

Greater Organizational Success and Impact

Servant leaders focus on the success of the organization as a whole, not just their own personal success. They work collaboratively with others to identify and achieve common goals, and they prioritize the long-term sustainability and growth of the organization. This approach can lead to greater innovation, stronger relationships with stakeholders, and a greater impact on the community.

In conclusion, servant leadership is a powerful approach to management that can benefit both individuals and organizations. By prioritizing the needs of others, creating a culture of trust and collaboration, and focusing on the long-term success of the organization, servant leaders can create a more engaged and committed workforce, improve customer satisfaction and loyalty, and achieve greater organizational success and impact.

How to Build Strong Relationships as a Christian Leader

As a Christian leader, building strong relationships is crucial. Not only does it help you gain trust and respect from those around you, but it also enables you to effectively communicate and collaborate with your team. Here are some practical tips to help you build strong relationships:

Prioritize Communication

Effective communication is the foundation of any strong relationship. Make sure you’re actively listening to others and clearly expressing yourself. Consider using communication tools like active listening and asking open-ended questions to build deeper connections with those around you.

Embrace Vulnerability

Being vulnerable is a key component of building strong relationships. Share your own experiences, thoughts, and emotions with your team. This shows them that you trust them and are willing to be transparent, which can in turn encourage them to be more open with you.

Cultivate a Servant Heart

As a Christian leader, serving others should be at the forefront of your leadership style. Look for opportunities to serve those around you, whether it’s through acts of kindness or listening to their needs. By prioritizing others over yourself, you will build deeper connections and earn the respect of your team.

• Make yourself available to your team members
• Show empathy and understanding towards their needs
• Encourage and support them in their personal and professional growth

Building strong relationships takes time and effort, but the benefits are invaluable. By prioritizing communication, vulnerability, and a servant heart, you can create a team culture that fosters trust, respect, and collaboration.

The Art of Decision Making: A Crucial Skill for Christian Leaders

As a Christian leader, decision making is a crucial skill to master. Every decision you make has an impact on your followers, your community, and your faith. Here are some key aspects of decision making that can help you make wise choices and lead with integrity.

Seek guidance from God: As a Christian leader, it is important to seek guidance from God when making decisions. Pray and meditate on the Word of God to discern His will for your life and the lives of those you lead.

Evaluate your options:

• Analyze the situation: Gather all the relevant information and evaluate your options objectively. Consider the potential consequences of each decision.
• Consult with others: Seek input from those you trust and respect. Get a fresh perspective and consider all viewpoints before making a decision.

Take action with confidence:

• Trust in God: Once you have made a decision, trust in God’s plan and move forward with confidence. Have faith that He will guide you through the consequences of your decision.
• Communicate clearly: Communicate your decision clearly and with compassion to those affected. Listen to their concerns and address them with empathy.

Remember, decision making is not always easy, but as a Christian leader, you can rely on your faith and the wisdom of God to guide you. With prayer, evaluation, and action, you can make decisions that align with your values and lead your followers with integrity.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is christian leadership 8 principles.

Christian Leadership 8 Principles is a set of guidelines and principles that are based on the teachings of Jesus Christ. These principles help Christian leaders to effectively lead and serve others while remaining true to their faith. The eight principles are Integrity, Humility, Discipline, Vision, Wisdom, Courage, Inspiration, and Servanthood. By following these principles, Christian leaders can create a positive impact on the world around them.

How can Christian Leadership 8 Principles help me become a better leader?

Christian Leadership 8 Principles can help you become a better leader by providing a solid foundation for your leadership style. These principles can help you lead with integrity, humility, and wisdom, while serving others and remaining true to your Christian faith. By following these principles, you can become a more effective and impactful leader in your community or workplace.

How do I apply Christian Leadership 8 Principles in my daily life?

You can apply Christian Leadership 8 Principles in your daily life by incorporating them into your daily routine and decision-making process. For example, you can practice integrity by always being honest and transparent in your interactions with others. You can practice humility by putting others’ needs before your own and recognizing your own limitations. By living out these principles, you can become a better leader and a positive influence on those around you.

Can Christian Leadership 8 Principles be applied in any leadership context?

Yes, Christian Leadership 8 Principles can be applied in any leadership context, whether it’s in the workplace, community, or church. These principles are universal and can be adapted to any leadership situation. By following these principles, you can become a more effective leader and create a positive impact on the world around you.

What is the most important Christian Leadership 8 Principle?

It’s difficult to say which Christian Leadership 8 Principle is the most important, as they all work together to create a strong foundation for leadership. However, many would argue that Servanthood is one of the most important principles, as it involves putting others’ needs before your own and serving them with love and compassion.

How can I incorporate Christian Leadership 8 Principles into my organization?

You can incorporate Christian Leadership 8 Principles into your organization by promoting these principles among your team members and encouraging them to apply them in their daily work. You can also create training programs or workshops that focus on these principles and how they can be applied in the workplace. By incorporating these principles into your organization’s culture, you can create a more positive and productive work environment.

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The Marks of a Spiritual Leader

John Piper Twitter @JohnPiper

What is healthy teaching, radically free to please god, did my negligence kill my baby, faith sees 3-d, how did the false teachers misuse the law, where does empty talk come from, the confidence christians need.

Founder & Teacher, desiringGod.org

This lengthy article is now available as a booklet published by Desiring God in paperback, and free of charge in three electronic formats.

I define spiritual leadership as knowing where God wants people to be and taking the initiative to use God’s methods to get them there in reliance on God’s power. The answer to where God wants people to be is in a spiritual condition and in a lifestyle that display his glory and honor his name.

“Spiritual leadership is using God’s methods to get his people where he wants them in reliance on his power.”

Therefore, the goal of spiritual leadership is that people come to know God and to glorify him in all that they do. Spiritual leadership is aimed not so much at directing people as it is at changing people. If we would be the kind of leaders we ought to be, we must make it our aim to develop persons rather than dictate plans. You can get people to do what you want, but if they don’t change in their heart, you have not led them spiritually. You have not taken them to where God wants them to be.

Everyone has the responsibility of leadership in some relationships. But my concern in this article is with the characteristics that a person must have in order to be a spiritual leader who excels both in the quality of his direction and the numbers of people who follow him.

Biblical spiritual leadership contains an inner circle and an outer circle. The inner circle of spiritual leadership is that sequence of events in the human soul that must happen if anyone is to get to first base in spiritual leadership. These are the absolute bare essentials. They are things that all Christians must attain in some degree and, when they are attained with high fervor and deep conviction, they very often lead one into strong leadership. In the outer circle are qualities that characterize both spiritual and non-spiritual leaders. What I would like to try to do now in this article is simply explain and illustrate these qualities of the inner circle and the outer circle.

The Inner Circle of Spiritual Leadership

1. that others will glorify god.

The ultimate goal of all spiritual leadership is that other people might come to glorify God; that is, might so feel and think and act as to magnify the true character of God. According to Matthew 5:14–16, one of the crucial means by which a Christian leader brings other people to glorify God is by being a person who loves both friend and foe.

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven .”

This text shows that there is an attitude and lifestyle that is so distinctive that when it appears in the arena of fallen humanity, it gives valid evidence that there is a God and that he is a gloriously trustworthy heavenly Father. When the reality of God’s promises to take care of us and to work everything together for our good grips our hearts so that we do not fall prey to greed or fear or vainglory but rather manifest a contentment and a love and a freedom for other people, then the world will have to admit that the one who gives us hope and freedom must be real and glorious.

2. Love Both Friend and Foe by Trusting in God and Hoping in His Promises

But how shall we attain to a love that is strong enough to bless and pray for its enemies? The answer given in Scripture (and this is the second level in the inner circle) is that trust in God and hope in his promises leads to love. Galatians 5:6 says, “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love.” That is, when we have strong faith in the goodness of God, it inevitably works itself out in love. Colossians 1:4–5 says, “We heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven.”

“Trust in God and hope in his promises give us the strength to love others — even our enemies.”

In other words, when our hope is strong, we are freed from fears and cares that prevent the free exercises of love. Therefore, a spiritual leader must be a person who has strong confidence in the sovereign goodness of God to work everything together for his good. Otherwise, he will inevitably fall into the trap of manipulating circumstances and exploiting people in order to secure for himself a happy future which he is not certain God will provide.

3. Meditate on and Pray over His Word

But how shall we sinners come to have this kind of confidence in God? Romans 10:17 says, “Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” And Psalm 119:18 says, “Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law.” These two texts together show us that faith in God is rooted in God’s word.

When we hear God’s word, especially the preaching of Christ in whom all the promises of God have their Yes (2 Corinthians 1:20), we are moved to trust him — but this does not happen automatically. We must pray that our eyes be open to the true significance of the word of God in Scripture. So, the spiritual leader must be a person who meditates on the word of God and who prays for spiritual illumination. Otherwise, his faith will grow weak and his love will languish and no one will be moved to glorify God because of him.

4. Acknowledge Your Helplessness

But finally, we must ask how a person comes to be willing to spend time with and be open to the word of God. The answer seems to be that we must acknowledge our helplessness. All true spiritual leadership has its roots in desperation. Jesus commended the man who said, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner” (Luke 18:13). Jesus said of his own ministry, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners” (Mark 2:17). This means that the beginning of spiritual leadership must be in the acknowledgement that we are the sick who need a physician.

Once we are humbled to that point, we will be opened to reading the doctor’s prescription in the word. And as we read the wonderful promises that are there for those of us who trust the doctor, our faith will grow strong and our hope will become solid. And when our faith is strong and our hope is solid, all the barriers to love, like greed and fear, will be swept away. When we become the kind of people who can risk our lives, even for our enemies, and who don’t hold grudges and who devote our energies to do others good rather than seeking our own aggrandizement, then people will see and give glory to our Father in heaven.

“To lead effectively, you must be out ahead of your people in Bible study and prayer.”

The implication of this inner circle of leadership is that, in order to lead, you have to be out ahead of your people in Bible study and prayer. I think there will be no successful spiritual leadership without extended seasons of prayer and meditation on the Scriptures. Spiritual leaders ought to rise early in order to meet God before they meet anybody else.

They will probably want to keep a journal of insights and ideas as they read the word and pray. They will want to read books about the Bible (for example, books by J.I. Packer and Paul Little and John Stott and dozens of other excellent evangelical authors) and about prayer (for example, the eight books by E.M. Bounds). They will want to take a periodic half-day retreat with a Bible and a notebook and a hymnbook. If you want to be a great leader of people, you have to get away from people to be with God.

Hudson Taylor’s Example

Dr. Howard Taylor, in Hudson Taylor’s Spiritual Secret (234–235), describes an experience that he had traveling with his father, Hudson Taylor, through China. He writes,

It was not easy for Mr. Taylor in his changeful life, to make time for prayer and Bible study, but he knew that it was vital. Well do the writers remember traveling with him month after month in northern China, by cart and wheelbarrow, with the poorest of inns at night. Often with only one large room for coolies and travelers alike, they would screen off a corner for their father and another for themselves, with curtains of some sort; and then after sleep at last had brought a measure of quiet they would hear a match struck and seek the flicker of candlelight which told that Mr. Taylor, however weary, was pouring over the little Bible in two volumes always at hand. From two to four a.m. was the time he usually gave to prayer; the time when he could be most sure of being undisturbed to wait upon God. That flicker of candlelight has meant more to them than all they have read or heard on secret prayer; it meant reality, not preaching but practice.

The hardest part of the missionary career, Mr. Taylor found, is to maintain regular, prayerful Bible study. “Satan will always find you something to do,” he would say, “when you ought to be occupied about that, if it is only arranging a window blind.”

George Mueller’s Example

George Mueller is noteworthy for his great faith in the work of his orphanages. In his autobiography he has a section entitled, “How to Be Constantly Happy in the Lord.” He complains how for years he used to try to pray early in the morning and found that his mind wandered again and again. Then he made a discovery. He records it like this:

The point is this: I saw more clearly than ever that the first great and primary business to which I ought to attend every day was to have my soul happy in the Lord. The first thing to be concerned about was not how much I might serve the Lord, how I might glorify the Lord; but how I might get my soul into a happy state, and how my inner man might be nourished. . . . Before this time my practice had been at least for ten years previously as a habitual thing to give myself to prayer after having dressed in the morning. Now I saw that the most important thing I had to do was to give myself to the reading of the word of God and to meditation on it, that thus my heart might be comforted, encouraged, warned, reproved, instructed; and that thus, while meditating, my heart might be brought into experimental communion with the Lord. I began, therefore, to meditate on the New Testament from the beginning early in the morning. The first thing I did, after having asked in a few words the Lord’s blessing upon his precious word, was to begin to meditate on the word of God, searching as it were into every verse to get blessing out of it; not for the sake of the public ministry of the word; not for the sake of preaching on what I had meditated upon; but for the sake of obtaining food for my soul. The result I have found to be almost invariably this, that after a very few minutes my soul has been led to confession, or to thanksgiving, or to intercession, or to supplication; so that though I did not, as it were, give myself to prayer but to meditation, yet it turned almost immediately more or less into prayer. When thus I have been for a while making confession or intercession or supplication or have given thanks, I go on to the next words or verse, turning all, as I go on, into prayer for myself or others, as the word may lead to it; but still continually keeping before me that food for my soul as the object of my meditation. The result of this is that there is always a good deal of confession, thanksgiving, supplication, or intercession mingled with my meditation and that my inner man almost invariably is almost sensibly nourished and strengthened and that by breakfast time, with rare exceptions, I am in a peaceful if not a happy state of heart.

Mueller: “The first thing the child of God has to do morning by morning is to obtain food for the inner man.”

Now that God has taught me this point, it is as plain to me as anything that the first thing the child of God has to do morning by morning is to obtain food for the inner man. As the outward man is not fit for work for any length of time, except we take food, and as this is one of the first things we do in the morning, so it should be with the inner man. We should take food for that, as everyone must allow. Now what is the food for the inner man? Not prayer, but the word of God; and here again, not the simple reading of the word of God, so that it only passes through our minds, just as water runs through a pipe, but considering what we read, pondering over it, and applying it to our hearts. By the blessing of God I ascribe to this mode the help and strength which I have had to pass in peace through deeper trials in various ways than I have ever had before; and after having now above forty years tried this way, I can most fully, in the fear of God, commend it. How different when the soul is refreshed and made happy early in the morning, from what it is when, without spiritual preparation, the service, the trials, and the temptations of the day come upon one!

It should be an encouragement to all of us to persevere in the meditation upon God’s word when we read a letter which, in 1897, George Mueller sent to the British and Foreign Bible Society in which he had to excuse himself from attending a meeting in Burmingham. He said, “Will you have the kindness to read to the meeting that I have been for sixty-eight years and three months, viz., since July, 1829, a lover of the word of God and that uninterruptedly. During this time I have read considerably more than one hundred times through the whole of the Old and New Testaments with prayer and meditation.” If we are going to be powerful spiritual leaders, we must move in the direction of Hudson Taylor and George Mueller.

The Outer Circle of Spiritual Leadership

Everyone in the church has one or more spiritual gifts. Everyone should be involved in ministry. Everyone should be seeking to lead others to the point where they bring glory to God by the way they think and feel and act. But there are some people to whom the Lord has given qualities of personality that tend to make them more able leaders than others. Not all of these qualities are distinctively Christian, but when the Holy Spirit fills a person’s life, each of these qualities is harnessed and transformed for God’s purposes.

1. Restless

Spiritual leaders have a holy discontentment with the status quo. Non-leaders have inertia that causes them to settle in and makes them very hard to move off of dead center. Leaders have a hankering to change, to move, to reach out, to grow, and to take a group or an institution to new dimensions of ministry. They have the spirit of Paul, who said in Philippians 3:13–14, “Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” Leaders are always very goal-oriented people.

God’s history of redemption is not finished. The church is shot through with imperfections, lost sheep are still not in the fold, needs of every sort in the world are unmet, sin infects the saints. It is unthinkable that we should be content with things the way they are in a fallen world and an imperfect church. Therefore, God has been pleased to put a holy restlessness into some of his people, and those people will very likely be the leaders.

2. Optimistic

Spiritual leaders are optimistic not because man is good, but because God is in control. The leader must not let his discontentment become disconsolation. When he sees the imperfection of the church, he must say with the writer of Hebrews, “Though we speak in this way, yet in your case, beloved, we feel sure of better things — things that belong to salvation” (Hebrews 6:9). The foundation of his life is Romans 8:28, “For those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” He reasons with Paul that, “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:32). Without this confidence based upon the goodness of God manifested in Jesus Christ, the leader’s perseverance would falter and the people would not be inspired. Without optimism, restlessness becomes despair.

The great quality I want in my associates is one of intensity. Romans 12:8 says that if your gift is leadership, do it “with zeal.” Romans 12:11 says, “Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit.” When the disciples remembered the way Jesus had behaved in relation to the temple of God, they characterized it with words from the Old Testament like this: “Zeal for your house will consume me” (John 2:17). The leader follows the advice of Ecclesiastes 9:10, “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might.”

“If you want to be a great leader of people you have to get away from people to be with God.”

When Jonathan Edwards was a young man, he wrote a list of about seventy resolutions. The one that has inspired me the most goes like this: “To live with all my might while I live.” Count Zinzendorf of the Moravians said, “I have one passion. It is He and He alone.” Jesus warns us in Revelation 3:16 that he does not have any taste for people who are lukewarm: “Because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.”

Spiritual leaders must go out alone somewhere and ponder what unutterable and stupendous things they know about God. If their life is one extended yawn, they are simply blind. Leaders must give evidence that the things of the Spirit are intensely real. They cannot do that unless they are intense themselves.

4. Self-Controlled

By self-controlled I do not mean prim and proper and unemotional, but rather master of our drives. If we are to lead others toward God, we cannot be led ourselves toward the world. According to Galatians 5:23 self-control is a fruit of the Spirit. It is not mere willpower. It is appropriating the power of God to get mastery over our emotions and our appetites that could lead us astray or cause us to occupy our time with fruitless endeavors.

In 1 Corinthians 6:12 Paul says, “‘All things are lawful for me,’ but I will not be dominated by anything.” The Christian leader must ruthlessly examine his life to see whether he is the least enslaved by television, alcohol, coffee, golf, computer games, fishing, Playboy, masturbation, good food. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 9:25–27, “Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.” And he says in Galatians 5:24, “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.”

Spiritual leaders ruthlessly track down bad habits and break them by the power of the Spirit. They hear and follow Romans 8:13, “If you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” Spiritual leaders long to be free from everything that hinders their fullest delight in God and service of others.

5. Thick-Skinned

One thing is for sure: if you begin to lead others, you will be criticized. No one will be a significant spiritual leader if his aim is to please others and seek their approval. Paul said in Galatians 1:10, “Am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.” Spiritual leaders do not seek the praises of men, they seek to please God. Dr. Carl Lundquist, former president of Bethel College and Seminary, said in his final report to the Baptist General Conference that there was hardly one of the 28 years in which he served the Conference that he was not actively opposed by many people.

If criticism disables us, we will never make it as spiritual leaders. I don’t mean that we must be the kind of people who don’t feel hurt, but rather that we must not be wiped out by the hurt. We must be able to say with Paul in 2 Corinthians 4:8–9, “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed.” We will feel the criticism, but we will not be incapacitated by it. As Paul says in 2 Corinthians 4:16, “We do not lose heart.”

Leaders must be able to digest depression because they will eat plenty of it. There will be many days when the temptation is very strong to quit because of unappreciative people. Criticism is one of Satan’s favorite weapons to try to get effective Christian leaders to throw in the towel.

“Jonathan Edwards looked for the truth in every criticism that came his way before he discarded it.”

I should, however, qualify this characteristic of being thick-skinned. I do not want to give the impression that spiritual leaders are closed off to legitimate criticism. A good leader must not only be thick-skinned, but also open and humbly ready to accept and apply just criticism. No leader is perfect and Jonathan Edwards said once that he made it a spiritual discipline to look for the truth in every criticism that came his way before he discarded it. That’s good advice.

6. Energetic

Lazy people cannot be leaders. Spiritual leaders redeem or “[make] the best use of the time” (Ephesians 5:16). They work while it is day, because they know that night comes when no man can work (John 9:4). They do “not grow weary of doing good,” for they know that in due season they shall reap, if they do not lose heart (Galatians 6:9). They are “steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:58).

But they do not take credit for this great energy or boast in their efforts because they say with the apostle Paul, “I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me” (1 Corinthians 15:10). And, “For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me” (Colossians 1:29).

The world is run by tired men, someone has said. A leader must learn to live with pressure. None of us accomplishes very much without deadlines, and deadlines always create a sense of pressure. A leader does not see the pressure of work as a curse but as a glory. He does not desire to fritter away his life in excess leisure. He loves to be productive. And he copes with the pressure and prevents it from becoming worrisome with promises like Matthew 11:27–28, Philippians 4:7–8, and Isaiah 64:4.

7. A Hard Thinker

“Careful and rigorous thought is not contrary to a reliance on prayer and divine revelation.”

“Be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature” (1 Corinthians 14:20). It is not easy to be a leader of people who can outthink you. A leader must be one who, when he sees a set of circumstances, thinks about it. He sits down with pad and pencil and doodles and writes and creates. He tests all things with his mind and holds fast to what is good (1 Thessalonians 5:21). He is critical in the best sense of the word; that is, not gullible or faddish or trendy. He weighs things and considers pros and cons and always has a significant rationale for the decisions that he makes.

Careful and rigorous thought is not contrary to a reliance on prayer and divine revelation. The apostle Paul said to Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:7, “Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.” In other words, God’s way of imparting to us insight is not to short-circuit the intellectual process.

8. Articulate

It is hard to lead others if you cannot state your thoughts clearly and forcefully. Leaders like Paul aim to persuade men, not coerce them (2 Corinthians 5:11). Leaders who are spiritual do not muster a following with hot air or waves or words, but rather with crisp, solid, compelling sentences. The apostle Paul aimed, like all good leaders, at clarity in what he said. According to Colossians 4:4 he asked the people to pray for him, “that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.”

It is astonishing and lamentable how many people today cannot speak in complete sentences. The result is that a great fog surrounds their thought. Neither they nor their listeners know exactly what they are talking about. A haze settles over the discussion and you walk away wondering what it was all about. If no one rises above the muddle-headedness and verbal chaos of “You know . . . I mean . . . Just really”, there will not be any leadership.

9. Able to Teach

It is not surprising to me that some of the great leaders at Bethlehem Baptist Church have been men who are also significant teachers. According to 1 Timothy 3:2 anyone who aspires to the office of overseer in the church should be able to teach. What is a good teacher? I think a good teacher has at least the following characteristics.

• A good teacher asks himself the hardest questions, works through to answers, and then frames provocative questions for his learners to stimulate their thinking.
• A good teacher analyzes his subject matter into parts and sees relationships and discovers the unity of the whole.
• A good teacher knows the problems learners will have with his subject matter and encourages them and gets them over the humps of discouragement.
• A good teacher foresees objections and thinks them through so that he can answer them intelligently.
• A good teacher can put himself in the place of a variety of learners and therefore explain hard things in terms that are clear from their standpoint.
• A good teacher is concrete, not abstract, specific, not general, precise, not vague, vulnerable, not evasive.
• A good teacher always asks, “So what?” and tries to see how discoveries shape our whole system of thought. He tries to relate discoveries to life and tries to avoid compartmentalizing.
• The goal of a good teacher is the transformation of all of life and thought into a Christ-honoring unity.

10. A Good Judge of Character

Jesus knew the hearts of men (John 2:24–25) and he urged us to be perceptive in assessing others (Matthew 7:15–20.). Leaders must know who is fit for what kind of work. Good leaders have good noses. They can snoop out barnacles in a hurry; that is, people who are forever listening but never learning or changing. They can detect potential when they see it in a beginner. They can hear in a short time the echoes of pride and hypocrisy and worldliness. The spiritual leader steers a careful course between the dangers of rigid pigeonholing on the one hand and indifference on the other hand.

11. Tactful

Paul said in Colossians 4:5–6, “Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.” And the writer of Proverbs said, “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a setting of silver” (Proverbs 25:11). We must remember that leaders are aiming to change hearts, not just to get jobs done.

Therefore, alienating people unnecessarily is self-defeating. Tact is that quality of grace that wins the confidence of people who are sure you won’t do or say something stupid. You can’t inspire a following if people have to hang their heads in embarrassment at the inappropriate and insensitive things you say or do. Tact is especially needed in a leader to help cope with embarrassing or tragic situations.

For example, very often when you are leading a group, someone will say something totally irrelevant, which is recognized to be very foolish by everyone in the group. A tactful leader must be able to divert the attention of the group back to the main course of the discussion without heaping scorn upon the individual.

Another example, which I recall, comes from my experience at Wheaton College. I was present at the chapel service where V. Raymond Edman had a heart attack in the pulpit and fell over and died. Hudson Armerding, who followed him as president, was sitting behind him when Dr. Edman paused in his lecture, took one step to the side, and fell over. In one of the most beautiful and sensitive demonstrations of tact that I have ever seen, Dr. Armerding quickly kneeled beside him as 2,000 students fell silent. Then he stood, led us in a brief prayer committing Dr. Edman to the Lord, and dismissed the students quietly. Dr. Edman died as we walked out.

The tact of a leader must demonstrate itself in forthright confrontation. The person who is unwilling to approach a person who needs admonition or rebuke will not be a successful spiritual leader. Combined with his judgment of people’s character, a leader’s tact will enable him to handle delicate negotiations and opposing viewpoints. His choice of words will be astute rather than clumsy. (There is a big difference between saying, “Your foot is too big for this shoe” and “This shoe is too small for your foot.”)

12. Theologically Oriented

Colossians 3:17 says, “Do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus.” First Corinthians 2:16 speaks of the spiritual man as having “the mind of Christ.” A spiritual leader knows that all of life, down to its smallest detail, has to do with God. If we are to lead people to see and reflect God’s glory, we must think theologically about everything. We must work toward a synthesis of all things. We must probe to see how things fit together. How do war and sports and pornography and birthday celebrations and literature and space travel and disease and enterprise all hang together? How do they relate to God and his purposes?

“A spiritual leader knows that all of life, down to its smallest detail, has to do with God.”

Leaders must have a theological standpoint that helps give coherence to all things. This will give the leader a stability that keeps him from being knocked off his feet by sudden changes in circumstances or new winds of doctrine. He knows enough about God and his ways that things generally fit into a pattern and make sense, even when they are unpleasant. So, the leader does not throw up his hands, but points the way onward to God.

13. A Dreamer

According to Joel 2:28, in the last days (in which we now live), “Your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.” This is the positive counterpart to restlessness. We must not only be discontent with the present, but also dreaming dreams of what could be in the future. In 2 Kings 6:15–17, Elisha and his servant were surrounded by Assyrians in the city of Dothan. When the servant sees this and cries out with dismay, “Elisha prayed and said, ‘O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see.’ So the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

Leaders can see the power of God overshadowing the problems of the future. This is a rare gift: to see the sovereign power of God in the midst of seemingly overwhelming opposition. Most people are experts at seeing all the problems and reasons not to move forward in a venture. Many pastors are ruined by boards who think that they have done their duty when they throw up every obstacle and problem to an idea that he brings. That’s cheap. Hope and solutions are expensive. The spirit of venturesomeness is at a premium today.

Oh, how we need people who will devote just five minutes a week to dream of what might possibly be. The text says that “old men shall dream dreams.” How sad it is, then, to see so many old people assuming that their age means that now they can coast and turn over the creativity to the young. It is tragic when age makes a man jaded instead of increasingly creative. Every new church, every agency, every new ministry, every institution, every endeavor, is the result of someone having a vision and laying hold on it like a snapping turtle.

14. Organized and Efficient

A leader does not like clutter. He likes to know where and when things are for quick access and use. His favorite shape is the straight line, not the circle. He groans in meetings that do not move from premises to conclusions, but rather go in irrelevant circles. When something must be done, he sees a three-step plan for getting it done and lays it out.

He sees the links between a board decision and its implementation. He sees ways to use time to the full and shapes his schedule to maximize his usefulness. He saves himself large blocks of time for his major productive activities. He uses little pieces of time lest they go to waste. (For example, what do you do while you are brushing your teeth? Could you set a magazine on the towel rack and read an article?)

A leader takes time to plan his days and weeks and months and years. Even though it is God who ultimately directs the steps of the leader, he should plan his path (Proverbs 16:9). A leader is not a jellyfish that gets tossed around by the waves, nor is he an oyster that is immovable. The leader is the dolphin of the sea and can swim against the stream or with the stream as he plans.

15. Decisive

In 1 Kings 18:21 Elijah cries out, “How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.” A leader cannot be paralyzed by indecisiveness. He will take risks rather than do nothing. He will soak himself in prayer and in the word and then rest himself in God’s sovereignty as he makes decisions, knowing that he will very likely make some mistakes.

16. Perseverant

Jesus said in Matthew 24:13, “The one who endures to the end will be saved.” Paul said in Galatians 6:9, “Let us not grow weary of doing good.” We live in a day when immediate gratification is usually demanded. That means that very few people excel in the virtue of perseverance. Very few people keep on and keep on in the same ministry when there is significant difficulty.

Vision without perseverance, however, results in fairy tales not fruitful ministry. My dad once told me that the reason he thinks many pastors fail to see revival in their churches is that they leave just before it is about to happen. The long haul is hard, but it pays. The big tree is felled by many, many little chops. The criticisms that come your way will be long forgotten if you keep on doing the Lord’s will.

17. A Lover

Here I am speaking directly to men who are husbands and leaders. Paul said in Ephesians 5:25, “Husbands, love your wives.” Love her! Love her! What does it profit a man if he gains a great following and loses his wife? What have we led people to if they see that it leads us to divorce? What we need today are leaders who are great lovers: husbands who write poems for their wives and sing songs to their wives and buy flowers for their wives for no reason at all, except that they love them.

“What does it profit a man if he gains a great following and loses his wife?”

We need leaders who know that they should take a day alone with their wives every now and then; leaders who do not fall into the habit of deriding and putting their wives down, especially with careless little asides in public; leaders who speak well of their wives in public and compliment them spontaneously when they are alone; leaders who touch her tenderly at other times besides when they are in bed.

One of the greatest temptations of a busy leader is to begin to treat his wife as a kind of sex object. It starts to manifest itself when the only time he ever kisses her passionately or touches her tenderly is when he’s trying to allure her into bed. It is a tragic thing when a wife becomes a mannequin for masturbation.

Learn what her delights are and bring her to the fullest experience of sexual climax. Talk with her and study her desires. Look her in the eye when you talk to her. Put down the phone and turn off the computer. Open the door for her. Help her with the dishes. Throw her a party. Love her! Love her! If you don’t, all your success as a leader will very likely explode in failure at home.

18. Restful

We began with the quality of restlessness and we end with the quality of restful. “Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep” (Psalm 127:1–2).

The spiritual leader knows that ultimately the productivity of his labors rests in God, and that God can do more while he is asleep than he could do while awake without God. He knows that Jesus said to his busy disciples, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while” (Mark 6:31). He knows that one of the Ten Commandments was, “Six days shall you labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God” (Exodus 20:9–10).

He is not so addicted to work that he is unable to rest. He is a good steward of his life and health. He maximizes the totality of his labor by measuring the possible strains under which he can work without diminishing his efficiency of unduly shortening his life.

There are no doubt many other qualities which could be mentioned which, if a person has, would make him an even more successful leader. These are simply the ones that came to my mind as I was pondering this subject. One need not excel in every one of them. But the more fully each one is developed in a person, the more powerful and fruitful he will be as a leader.

Let me emphasize again that it is the inner circle that makes the leadership spiritual. All genuine leadership begins in a sense of desperation — knowledge that we are helpless sinners in need of a great Savior. That moves us to listen to God in his word and to cry out to him for help and for insight in prayer. That leads us to trust in God and to hope in his great and precious promises. That frees us for a life of love and service which, in the end, causes people to see and give glory to our Father in heaven.

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What is a Christian Leader

Dennis mccallum.

We can describe leaders from several perspectives, each of which casts a different light on what goes into the complex task of leadership.

Many of the best leaders lead via vision. Such leaders get an idea (hopefully through interaction with God) that they want to share with others. The idea is often a mental picture of a possible future based on biblical principles combined with imagination or possibly, an actual special revelatory "vision" from God. This idea excites such leaders or fills them with longing. They want others to see what they see and appreciate how cool it would be. A leader may not always develop a new, unique vision, but may buy into another's vision. Some studies suggest that the best leaders are not necessarily the most creative people in a community, although they are usually more creative than average. Whether the leader's vision is original or borrowed is unimportant. Good leaders practice ways to communicate their visions, tying future pictures to past realities, showing how such a picture is better than the status quo. They can explain why attaining such a vision justifies risk and pain. Followers of visionaries find their excitement contagious, and accept the leader's vision as their own. They find themselves highly motivated to attain the vision, usually without much consideration of personal benefit.

In the Christian context, leaders are those who take the time to think deeply about the issues in which they lead. Most great leaders in Christian history were also scholars (e.g. Luther, Calvin, Wesley, Edwards, etc.). It makes sense that people are attracted to those who know what they are talking about because of their deep study of the word. Likewise, an agenda that has been carefully thought through, not only from the standpoint of what will give results pragmatically, but also from the standpoint of the theological implications and overall theological and biblical balance is often (though not always) more persuasive. Christians should look, not for leaders who can press their own agenda, but for those who know and can press God's agenda. Such leaders gain much of their inner strength and stability from the fact that they have reflected long and hard on their lives, the church, and the Bible, and are convinced about what God wants.

Someone is a leader when she influences other people, whether for good or bad. We lead others whenever we cause others to change their behavior or attitudes, either because they see our example and admire it, or because we persuade them with words to change. We can persuade more effectively after we carefully reflect before God on what others need to change in their lives. Practice in persuasion and learning to show others what they have to gain through change are basic skills in leadership. Also, personal investment into others' lives leads to increased influence in those lives. Some leaders focus primarily on influencing those with whom they are deeply involved relationally, and depend on them to influence others.

Leaders may often suggest nothing new or different from what people are already doing, but are leaders in that they bring a sense of urgency, excitement, or passion to those activities. Leaders' own passion becomes contagious. People are drawn to passionate, excited people as they seek passion and excitement in their own lives. If we learn how to get passion and excitement in our own minds regarding the things of God, leadership is sure to show, and people will be influenced as a result.

Strong leaders are effective at bringing others together in a team. This is often the difference between leaders and others who also get good ideas, but never have much impact on the Body of Christ. Bringing people together and helping them overcome barriers to understanding, personal resentments, jealousies, and prejudice is typical work for leaders. Good leaders often engage in conflict management with peaceful results. Those who try to manage conflict between others but end up fanning the flames or consistently repudiating one or the other party in conflict usually cannot lead for long, or at least must have a small following. Team-building also means that the leader is a consensus former. She is able to get more than one person to agree about key values or directions of movement.

Those who lead suffer just like others, and often more than others. The difference is that leaders can suffer with grace and even with thanksgiving. They remain focused and functional during times of suffering and do not lose confidence in their principles as much as others might. Leaders know how to avoid focusing only on their own suffering even during times of intense pain. They can keep their eye on the ball spiritually at least most of the time. People admire the heroism of those who can suffer without losing their trust in God or their commitment to others. They will ponder how to gain that ability for themselves and become willing to follow the leader as a result. Leaders who lose their composure too often or too completely when suffering usually forfeit influence with those they lead.

Leaders often have to fight negative trends or false beliefs that develop within groups. Good leaders carefully consider before God what factors are leading to the negative trends or views among their friends, and devise counter-measures. Leaders know that Satan launches attacks on the health of any group of fruitful Christians, and this knowledge leads to important conclusions: 1) Individuals within the group are not the ultimate source of wrong thought and action because "we wrestle not with flesh and blood." (Ephesians 6:12) Therefore, even propagators of wrong can be, and often are salvaged and rescued from their own foolishness. Look for good leaders to be co-workers with some who were in sin in the past and some who opposed them earlier. Of course, even the best leader will lose some who fall into error, and good leaders are willing to sustain such losses rather than go soft on God's standards. 2) Anticipating spiritual attack leads to watchfulness and alertness (1 Peter 5:8). Leaders are not always the first to discern a problem, but they are attentive to problems whether discovered by themselves or others. 3) Leaders know they have to fight in prayer and they bring others into this work. (Romans 15:30)

Jesus taught that the heart of spiritual leadership is servanthood. (Mark 10:43-44) People are attracted to those who have served them and helped them in the past, and will often follow their advice. Leaders won't feel they have to meet all needs in the church, but will regularly strip themselves to wash the saints' feet. People are suspicious of leaders who put on airs and seem to feel they are too important to do common-place work. Such leaders forfeit influence

Leaders are regularly battered by circumstances, by Satan, and by their own people. All good leaders must demonstrate that they can take it without losing composure. People are drawn to strength of character, and tend to believe what strong people say. While they may feel sympathetic toward the weak, they tend not to follow them. This doesn't mean leaders should pretend they are not suffering, but that their determination and integrity dictate that they maintain consistency even in the face of suffering. It also means that a leader would continue to pursue the right goals and live for God even if no one else follows. A good leader is not afraid of rejection by his followers because his concern is doing what is right, not being followed. Jesus taught that the good shepherd "goes out before them" which means that such a shepherd sets a course knowing that the sheep will follow after. When people sense that a leader is more concerned about being followed than about what God wants, they grow cynical about following. Most people are suspicious of leaders anyway, and will test leaders by threatening not to follow. Only when they see that a leader can't be manipulated will they realize their choice is to follow or to take their chances elsewhere.

Good leaders tend to be relatively stable over a period of years. While poor leaders periodically strike off in radically different directions, good leaders commonly stick with their handful of central values and convictions. Innovation takes the form of finding new and different ways to achieve old goals that haven't changed in decades of the leader's life. Another common form of instability is quitting. Unstable leaders leave the work for various reasons, while good leaders are present and accounted for year in and year out. Many who demonstrate terrific natural charismatic leadership ability end up being poor leaders because of the erratic course of their lives, while others who manifest little natural leadership end up being respected and effective leaders because of their sheer dogged focus on basic spiritual principles. In times of crisis, people tend to fall apart and panic, often proposing destructive radical solutions to the problems at hand. The good leader is the one who stands firm under crisis and cannot be moved from the foundation of truth. People are attracted to such stability and reliability, rightly discerning that such reliability is the result of clear vision for God's way.

Ironically, good leaders are also compromisers. While doggedness and determination are important, perfectionism works against effective leadership. We live in a fallen world where our visions will never be completely fulfilled. People never quite do what they should, and life always presents us with the unexpected. As a result, leaders realize they need to get the best they can, while not insisting on perfection or even on complete agreement. Wise leaders realize that the closer they come to their goal, the better, and that any movement is better than no movement. They also realize that a following must either be very small, or must include those who have a slightly different view, even though in general agreement on the most important issues. Leaders also realize they must prioritize goals and they feel good when major goals are attained even though lesser goals are not. Leaders who fail to prioritize, or who are perfectionistic, run the danger of eventually breaking themselves and those around them. They are poor at team building, and cannot negotiate effectively. In the end, they nearly always forfeit their following.

While it is possible to lead without encouraging, good leaders have learned to use this important spiritual tool. The Bible commands us to encourage one another, and the leader should show the way in this area. (1 Thessalonians 5:11) Leaders are those who, through encouragement, can restore confidence and enthusiasm to a group of people who are discouraged and depressed. Good leaders are constantly reminding people of their value, of God's love, of the promises of Scripture, and that failure is not the end of the world. Since followers are bound to fail often, the role of encourager, while not owned exclusively by leaders, is crucial to leaders' ability to maintain morale. Encouragement coming from a leader often has more impact for good than that coming from others.

Christian Leadership in a Secular World

Introduction

Over the past decades, corporate corruption and unethical behavior have risen steadily. This has caused organizations to be scrutinized, leading to a corporate environment of distrust and suspicion. Evidence of major corporate corruption includes the Enron and Worldcom scandals, as well as the indictment of Arthur Anderson. There is much debate in literature as to the causes of increased corruption. Personal greed, a decline in personal ethics, decreased sense of service, and cultural environments that condone unethical behavior have all been identified as possible reasons for an increase in unethical behavior (Zuber, 2015).

Because of widespread ethical concerns, organizations have shown a renewed interest in the concept of workplace spirituality, for both the organization as well as the individual employee (Dodd, 2003). Although spiritual leadership in secular research has increased in popularity (Dodd, 2003; Greenleaf, 1977), one criticism of this stream of literature is that there is a lack of appropriate models of spiritual leadership (Hunt, 2005; Heifertz & Laurie, 2005), particularly as it pertains to Christianity and the teachings of Jesus. Since its birth almost 2000 years ago, Christianity remains a dominant religion; however, its application to modern business is relatively recent. Drawing from Jesus’ teachings, this research will offer several practical ways that will enhance authentic Christian leadership in secular organizations.

The purpose of this article is first to discuss workplace spirituality, a topic that is prevalent in secular literature. Next, a discussion of the attributes of Christian leaders (which include being Christ-led, a person of character, humility, wisdom, absence of power and ego, and a servant leader) will be presented. Finally, the tensions Christian leaders experience in balancing the interests of all organizational stakeholders will be addressed.

Ethics and Spirituality Versus Religion

There is a growing body of business literature on workplace spirituality, both for the organization and the individual employee. Studies show that the presence of workplace spirituality has a positive influence on organizational outcomes (Avey, Luthans, & Mhatre, 2008; Badrinarayanan & Madhavaram, 2008). Organizations that report a high level of spirituality tend to have more positive attitudes (Avey et al., 2008), better working relationships (Badrinarayanan & Madhavaram, 2008), increased employee commitment, decreased employee turnover and absenteeism (Badrinarayanan & Madhavaram, 2008), and increased job satisfaction (Avey et al., 2008).

However, despite its popularity in academic and practitioner publications, literature has not agreed upon a standard definition of workplace spirituality (Spohn, 1997). Neck and Milliman (1994) define spirituality as “expressing our desires to find meaning and purpose in our lives and . . . a process of living out one’s set of deeply held personal values.” Von Tonder (2009) defines spirituality as an employee experiencing a sense of wholeness, connectedness at work, and deeper values. Dehler and Welsh (1994) describe spirituality as an individual’s inner source of inspiration and an energizing feeling. In their review of the literature, Giacalone and Jurkiewicz (2003) compiled a meta-analysis of definitions of spirituality. This resulted in workplace spirituality being defined as “a framework of organizational values evidenced in the culture that promotes employees’ experience of transcendence through the work process, facilitating their sense of being connected to others in a way that provides feelings of completeness and joy” (p. 13).

Despite not having a unified definition of spirituality, much research has added value to the discussion of spirituality in the workplace. Spirituality has been linked with ethics, moral behavior, and individual value systems (Fry, 2003; Fry & Slocum, 2008; Sweeney & Fry, 2012). In this regard, Fry and Slocum (2008) emphasize that personal ethics are driven by what people believe are the values and principles of moral behavior, and further, that people come to work with their own values and attitudes that drive their behavior. This is a particularly important point because generally, leaders create the culture of an organization which in turn impacts the decisions made by organizational members.

Regarding spiritual leadership, Fry (2003) framed the concept in terms of leaders’ ability to understand their core values and to communicate them to followers. He defined spiritual leadership as, “comprising the values, attitudes, and behaviors that are necessary to intrinsically motivate one’s self and others so that they have a sense of spiritual survival through calling and membership” (p. 695). Effective spiritual leadership creates a shared vision among organizational members, giving them a sense of purpose and importance. Such a vision helps produce a culture of genuine compassion and care for other organizational members and a selfless attitude (Fry, 2003).

Although the various definitions of spirituality recognize the importance of organizational culture and the value of interpersonal relationships, they do not offer anything substantial other than a “feel good” environment. Recently, the concept of workplace spirituality has been comprehensively criticized (Mabey, Conroy, Blakeley, & Marco, 2017). In many cases, the component missing from workplace spirituality is a guiding ethical system or an entity that shapes moral reasoning. For Christians, this component is based on one’s understanding and implementation of the attributes embodied in Jesus Christ.

It is crucial for this discussion to differentiate between spirituality and religion. Like the concept of spirituality, a definition of religion also has been debated. For example, Kirkland (1976) considered the concept from several perspectives before arriving at his conclusion that religion is humanity’s sensitivity to the ultimate meaning of existence, which derives from his relationship to a transcendent or super-empirical plane of reality. The purpose of religion is to give direction and guidance for all aspects of life. For religious members, believing in a higher power gives life meaning and a source of strength and purpose; additionally, it provides a common ground for others in a group that espouses a common belief in a deity (Covrig, Ledesma, & Gifford, 2013). However, despite the bonds built through religious institutions, there may be stronger social controls regarding beliefs and practices. Thus, religion could be perceived as harmful, whereas spirituality stresses stronger personal control. Along these same lines, others have pointed out that studies of workplace spirituality have not considered religious ideology; further, the inclusion of religion from a practical workplace application could be divisive due to the perceived social control (Fry & Slocum, 2008).

Christian Leaders

The guiding force of Christian leaders is to know God to become more like Jesus (Early, 2006). One of the greatest gifts God gave Christians is the presence of the Holy Spirit, who takes up permanent residence in the hearts of believers (Rom. 8:9; 1 Cor. 6:19-20, 12:13). It is the Holy Spirit who guides and helps us with wise discernment and transforms our hearts. This transformation, outlined in the Sermon on the Mount, emphasizes humility, integrity, kindness, forgiveness, peace, and love as the core of Christian living (Matt. 5:6). This is in direct opposition to living for self, both in the sense of decision-making and materialism (Mabey et al., 2017).

In addition to these Christian virtues, truth is one of the most valuable characteristics a leader can possess, both Christian and non-Christian. The Holy Spirit is the revealer of truth, and it is Christ who sends the Holy Spirit to dwell inside Christians and to guide them in truth. Jesus told the disciples that “when He, the Spirit of Truth comes, He will guide you into all truth” (John 16:13). He reveals to us the whole counsel of God as it relates to Christian living and thus, Christian leadership. The Holy Spirit is our ultimate guide, creating a more complete understanding and making all things clear. Without such a guide, we as humans are prone to make mistakes. Therefore, real Christian leadership must embody the teachings of Jesus and be guided by the Holy Spirit, who was sent to all Christians by Christ.

However, it is important to note that there are effective, successful leaders who are not professed Christians; there are also non-Christian leaders who have adopted ethical behaviors. The Bible even speaks of such in Luke 16:8: “And, the Lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light” (KJV).

One modern-day example of a successful leader who does not espouse belief in God is Bill Gates. Bill Gates has been documented as saying that he prefers to believe in a more scientific approach rather than to believe in a Creator (Goodell, 2014). However, he does believe that there is substantial merit in the moral aspect of religion and that religion can have a positive impact on ethical code in organizations. Therefore, Gates believes that whether God exists or not, Jesus’ teachings could still have a positive impact on moral and ethical development in organizations. Those like Gates who believe that Jesus Christ was just a good man who lived long ago (and is not God) often recognize the benefit and value of His moral and ethical life. Therefore, Jesus Christ’s teachings can be influential on both the Christian and the non-Christian, if the non-Christian is open to the direct influence offered in biblical teachings.

However, for the non-Christian leader, the Holy Spirit is not a guide for truth and understanding because according to Romans 8:9, the Holy Spirit dwells only in believers of Jesus Christ. “You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to Him” (ESV). In this same vein, Ephesians 1:13-14 teaches us that the Holy Spirit is a seal of salvation for those who believe. “In Him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in Him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of His glory” (ESV). Thus, although the perfect life of Jesus Christ can influence non-Christian leaders’ ethical decisions, the Holy Spirit can only reveal the council of God to true believers in Christ.

Our society is blessed with many great leaders worth studying. However, the man whose life and leadership left the most significant impact on our world is Jesus Christ. The premise of this argument is that, although there are ethical, non-Christian leaders, their foundation of goodness is themselves which is earthy and imperfect. For Christian leaders, their foundation is on Jesus Christ who is perfect. Although studying the life of Jesus Christ could be beneficial to all leaders (Christian or non-Christian), with their compass set on Him, faithful Christian leaders will have a higher purpose than earthy success.

However, having ethics is not always congruent to having morality. What is deemed “ethical” may not necessarily be Christ-like. For example, ethics are the guiding principles of the behavior of a group of individuals, whereas morality relates to the principles that guide one’s judgment of right and wrong. Ethics, on the other hand, are influenced by an organization and in one’s professional field. Morals are influenced by society, culture, and religion, and are typically not related to professional work per se. The legal system partly defines ethics; the consequence for breaking an ethical code generally is some form of societal punishment, such as a financial fine or perhaps prison.

Organizations often make decisions that largely are considered immoral by society, but which fall within the legal framework. For example, exploiting cheap labor markets has been an ethical dilemma for decades. From an ethical and legal perspective, moving production facilities to under-developed nations and paying the workers at their nation’s standards are considered ethical practices by many American organizations. Such business strategies significantly lower costs, which is beneficial for many organizational stakeholders. However, these conditions trigger a moral argument about the disparity in the treatment of the foreign worker versus the organization’s American workers. Additionally, from a Christian standpoint, the question is, “What would Jesus do?” From the many examples of how Jesus treated others, a reasonable conclusion is that Jesus would treat every person with love and respect, regardless of their station in life.

Part of being Christ-led is to be a person of good character. Character is the most crucial element of leadership, but also is the most elusive (Sheehy, 1990). Our view of life is defined by what we choose to value, and our character is determined by how we actively live out that which we value (Gini & Green, 2014). Therefore, being a person of character is ongoing; it is not a one-time activity. A common theme in recent leadership literature is the virtues-based model; this model assumes character development is at the heart of ethical decision-making (Crossan, Mazutis, Seijts, & Gandz, 2013). According to Ephesians 4:17-22, it is not possible to develop good character by trusting in personal strength. Something more than willpower and good intention is needed; we need to live out the new self through the power of the Holy Spirit. Paul states, “You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (NIV). According to scripture, good character comes from being Christ-led.

As Christian leaders, we should value the virtues taught by Christ that lead to good character. Additionally, it is important that our actions demonstrate good character as Christian leaders in organizations. When outlining the qualifications of church leaders, elders are instructed to have character above reproach, which means that they are to be free from sinful behaviors that would negatively influence others (Heb. 13:7; 1 Pet. 5:3). In his letters to Timothy and Titus, the Apostle Paul was addressing church leaders; however, this does not diminish the need for all Christians to aspire to the same qualities, specifically Christian leaders in any organization. A sampling of these qualities includes humility, admitting mistakes, leading with wisdom, honesty, and avoiding the pitfalls of ego, and the influence of power.

Because of the emphasis on individual achievements, power, and authority, humility is often a missing virtue among leaders (Argandona, 2015). Despite these selfish reasons that humility is undervalued in organizations, theories of leadership and organizational management continue to recognize the necessity for organizational leaders to be humble (Cameron, Bright, & Caza, 2004). Humility is defined as an interpersonal characteristic, comprised of a willingness to see oneself accurately, acknowledgment of the strengths and contributions of others, and an openness to new ideas and feedback (Owens, Johnson, & Mitchell, 2013). Research has linked leader humility to the foundation for organizational learning, quality customer service (Vera & Rodriguez-Lopez, 2004), charismatic leadership (Nielsen, Marrone, & Slay, 2009), and participative leadership (Morris, Brotheridge, & Urbanski, 2005).

Studies show that organizational leaders characterized as humble tend to collaborate, share information, jointly make decisions, and possess a shared vision (Ou, Waldman, & Peterson, 2018). Additionally, humble leaders are associated with stronger firm performance, increased organizational commitment (Ou et al., 2018), and increased leader-follower relationship (Owens et al., 2013), thus suggesting that CEO humility has important implications for firm processes and outcomes (Ou et al., 2018). Humility of leaders can be shown by admitting mistakes (Malphurs, 2003), creating a culture where the voices of organizational members are heard (Early, 2006), and deflecting praise to employees (Owens & Hekman, 2012). An extension of humility is honesty, which is thought of as a value or characteristic that is good. Frequently, being honest involves being open and genuine to fellow workers, which in turn would result in trustworthiness and good relationships (Elm, 2003).

Jesus’ teachings on leader humility coincide with academic findings. Jesus directly linked faith and humility to necessary qualities for leaders (Mabey et al., 2017). When the disciples began to debate who was the greatest after the Lord’s Supper, Jesus answered, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who exercise authority over them call themselves benefactors. But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest and the one who rules like the one who serves” (Luke 22:25-26, NIV). Christians should put into practice those things that are true, honorable, and right because we are “God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works” (Eph. 2:10, NIV). For example, Paul revealed in Philippians that the Lord requires Christians to be humble while providing grace to others. Although this is not an easy task, as we discover our weaknesses, we can draw on God’s wisdom and power for help with the understanding that it is “God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill His good purpose” (Phil. 2:13, NIV).

With each corporate scandal, we are left to question where are the wise leaders and managers. Why is it that the same leaders and managers, once celebrated as heroes, turn out to have been complicit in fraud or are profiting personally at the expense of their company and society at large? As Sternberg (2003) states, “Certainly, the business leaders of Enron, Arthur Andersen Accounting, Worldcom, and other organizations whose leaders drove them into bankruptcy were intelligent and creative. They were not wise’’ (p. 396).

Wisdom is almost always associated with doing the right thing in the right way under the right circumstances to achieve the common good. Paired with the increase in corporate corruption, there appears to be a decrease in leader wisdom. In an attempt to understand why there seems to be a wisdom deficit, recent research on the subject has emerged (Kessler & Bailey, 2007), particularly among leaders (McKenna, Rooney, & Boal, 2009; Nonaka & Takeuchi, 2001; Solansky, 2014; Yang, 2014; Zacher, Pearce, Rooney, & McKenna, 2014). Wisdom has been characterized as a developmental process, one that emerges out of encountering difficult situations, experiencing irreconcilable moral dilemmas, and deliberating about them (Holiday, Statler, & Glanders, 2007; Srivastva & Cooperrider, 1998). Wisdom comes from learning through many experiences and failures (Gini & Green, 2014). Some researchers doubt that wisdom exists in corporate America due to greed and selfish behavior (Nonaka & Takeuchi, 2001), but others believe that wisdom can be taught and learned (Hicks & Waddock, 2016). What can be agreed upon is that leadership wisdom has positive effects on organizational performance (Elbaz & Haddoud, 2017).

The importance of wisdom in leadership has a strong theological background (Robinson, 1990). The Bible tells us that wisdom comes from God. Proverbs 2:6 states, “For the LORD gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding” (NIV). If any of us wants to obtain wisdom, we must ask God, and it will be granted to us. James 1:5 states, “If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him” (NIV). Scripture allows us to receive God’s wisdom, but wisdom can also come by seeking wise counsel. For example, in Proverbs 11:14 we are told, “Where there is no guidance the people fall, but in an abundance of counselors there is victory” (NASB), and in 12:15, “The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man is he who listens to counsel” (NASB). Proverbs 18:13 suggests that decision-makers should have all of the facts: “He who gives an answer before he hears, it is folly and shame to him” (NASB). Proverbs 19:2 further advises that careful consideration and analysis are important for good decision-making: “Also, it is not good for a person to be without knowledge, and he who hurries his footsteps errs” (NASB). This idea is supported further in Proverbs 21:5, which suggests that due diligence should be given in the decision-making process. The author writes, “The plans of the diligent lead surely to advantage, but everyone who is hasty comes surely to poverty” (NASB).

Of course, the most famous wise leader in all of history is King Solomon; he asked for wisdom instead of earthly riches, which pleased the Lord. The Lord said to Solomon, “Behold, I have done according to your words. Behold, I have given you a wise and discerning heart, so that there has been no one like you before you, nor shall one like you arise after you” (1 Kings 3:12, NASB). However, the Bible also teaches that wisdom only comes if you live in obedience to the Lord. King Solomon lost his wisdom when he turned away from God by inviting foreign wives into his home; he allowed himself to be influenced to worship idols instead of the Lord (1 Kings 11:3). Solomon knew better because the Lord had warned him of such evils (1 Kings 11:2). Because of his sins, God declared that he would surely tear the kingdom away from Solomon and give it to one of his servants (1 Kings 11:11). Solomon’s sins would eventually lead to his kingdom being divided into the two separate kingdoms of Israel and Judah (1 Kings 11:26-40).

We see this consequence come to fruition in 2 Chronicles when Solomon’s son, Rehoboam, chose to listen to unwise counsel as his father had at the end of his life. Shortly before Rehoboam was to be crowned King of Israel, the people asked that he consider decreasing the workload that King Solomon had instituted. Rehoboam sought out wise counsel from the elders and foolish counsel from his friends. Sadly, he chose to implement the foolish advice he received; as a result, the kingdom of Israel was divided, and Jeroboam became King of Israel (2 Chron. 10:8), just as God had promised. This biblical example demonstrates that Christian leaders must continue to be Christ-led, seeking the wisdom that only God can give, through sources such as Scripture and the wise counsel of others.

Avoiding the Negative Influence of Power and Ego

The character of leaders influences the degree to which organizations are run ethically and responsibly (Bragues, 2008; Wright & Goodstein, 2007). Power has been shown to negatively impact ethical behavior (Mabey et al., 2017). For example, there is an inverse relationship between power and empathy, compassion, and concern for others, but a positive relationship exists between power and selfishness (Anderson & Brown, 2010). Power leads to ego, which then leads to self-gratification, the promotion of self-interest, as well as a lack of empathy, self-control, humility, or self-sacrifice (Kohlberg, 1984). Jesus spoke about the dangers of leadership and power by confirming that individuals who obtain power were more likely to be susceptible to becoming hypocrites, corrupted by power. To be a true Christian leader it is crucial to be Christ-led, having humility and wisdom to guard the heart against the negative influences of power and ego.

Servant Leadership

Greenleaf (1977) introduced the concept of servant leadership into secular literature; his ideas were based on the theory that leadership is not about the leader. Authentic servant leadership lays ego and selfish behavior aside, emphasizing the needs and desires of the community and others.

Following Greenleaf’s lead, several other notable writers and consultants (e.g., Blanchard, 2016; Covey, 1990; Drucker, 2004; Senge, 1990) embraced the principles of servant leadership (Kolodinsky, Bowen, & Ferris, 2003). For example, Blanchard’s (2016) overall idea of servant leadership suggests that there are two parts to the concept: 1) Leaders should have vision and direction which are shared; and, 2) Leaders should assume a servant role in the implementation and operational aspects of the organization. Another similar philosophy had been previously introduced by covey (1990), whose principle-centered leadership suggests that leaders should be service-oriented individuals with positive energy, who recognize the potential in other people. Drucker (2004) argues that the primary purpose of all organizations is to make the human condition more secure, more satisfactory, and more productive. Senge’s (1990) definition of servant leaders mirrors that of Greenleaf; Senge states that servant leaders emphasize others, not self. Therefore, leadership means service, not self-interest (Senge, 1990).

Other researchers also have attempted to operationalize the concept of servant leadership by emphasizing that leaders should be altruistic, moral/ethical, and spiritual (Ehrhart, 2004; Smith, Montagno, & Kuzmenko, 2004; Pekerti & Sendjava, 2010). Such characteristics of servant leaders include integrity, humility, relational power, autonomy, and moral development of followers (De Pree, 1992; Focht & Ponton, 2015). Additional characteristics of servant leadership include stewardship, empowerment, accountability, forgiveness, courage, and authenticity (Focht & Ponton, 2015; Van Dierendonck & Nuijten, 2011). Servant leadership also has a community service component, which might include considering the well-being of followers, community service, and acting ethically (Avolio, Walumbwa, & Weber, 2009; Erhart, 2004; Liden, Wayne, Zhao, & Henderson, 2008; Reed, Vidaver-Cohen, & Colwell, 2011; Stone, Russell, & Patterson, 2004).

Part of the good character practiced by Jesus was being a leader who served others. Biblical teachings suggest that servant-leadership is Christ-centered. The Apostle Paul presents servant leadership as being united in Christ when he states:

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interest of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature god did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death. (Phil. 2:3-8, NIV)

Because of the compelling desire for ethical and effective leadership, some theorists have suggested that embracing a servant leader model would result in a more desirable environment where leaders would serve others and invest in the development and well-being of organizational members, while promoting the idea of ethical leadership (Smith, Montagno, & Kuzmenko, 2004; Pekerti & Sendjaya, 2010; Shekari, Nikooparvar, & Taft, 2012). The need for renewed attention to ethical and moral leadership has become much more pronounced after the recent decades full of fraud and corruption; also, the concept of servant leadership has become the leadership benchmark for many organizations.

Stakeholders

Thus far, the discussion (in terms of both the secular and biblical contexts) has focused on the qualities that a Christian leader should possess, including being Christ-led, being of good character, and being a servant leader.

However, these two-dimensional descriptions do not consider how Christian leaders integrate their faith when decisions are complicated and hard to discern, particularly when decisions affect the organization’s stakeholders in both positive and negative ways. Christian leaders often find themselves pulled in many directions; they may find themselves faced with creating an appropriate vision while articulating a strategic plan that is in line with stakeholder values. This is especially difficult when stakeholder values are not congruent with one another. This tension that Christian leaders often face creates a polarity between caring for the needs of the person (e.g., employees, communities) and caring for the needs of the organization (Cafferky, 2011).

Pohlman and Gardner (2000) suggested a model whereby the organizational leader should consider eight major stakeholder groups: external cultural values, organizational cultural values, individual employee values, customer values, supplier values, third-party values, owner values, and competitor values. It is essential that leaders, both Christian and non-Christian, consider all stakeholder values when making decisions. However, the individual characteristics of the leader play a role in using the stakeholder model (Mitchell, Agle, & Wood, 1997). For example, the leader’s own values relative to a situation may have a substantial impact on how they react to the major stakeholders in the situation; these values may include self-interest or self-sacrifice (Mitchell, Agle, & Wood, 1997). Kotter (1990) posits that leaders must understand and deal with the complexities of aligned relationships within an organization or industry, and execute implementations through inspiration, recognizing that stakeholders have a mutually dependent relationship with one another. Thus, one stakeholder exerting power over another is not always in the best interest of the organization as a whole (Appelbaum & Paese, 2003).

Some researchers suggest that the leader’s consideration of stakeholder values should go beyond financial reasons to recognize that other moral obligations exist in the organizational context (Phillips, 2010). The Christian leader will ideally consider more than just the organization’s bottom line. In developing their visions, Christian leaders will recognize the importance of balancing the major stakeholders’ values and needs for the long term. Thus, Christian leaders have the difficult task of creating organizational strategies that value all stakeholders (e.g., communities, employees, customers, and organization) in a way that avoids creating a great benefit for one group at the expense of or detriment to another (Anderson & Adams, 2016). Although some studies mention that it may be necessary to accept lower profits in order to align Christian values with values of the stakeholders (Driscoll & Wiebe, 2007), other studies show that organizational leaders who balance the values of the relevant stakeholder groups see higher profits in general (Ni, Egri, Lo, & Lin, 2015).

Examples of leadership failing to please multiple stakeholders can be found among many organizations, especially in the manufacturing sector. One such example is that of the NIKE corporation. NIKE’s organizational leaders continue to choose to operate their factories in Asian countries, benefitting the customers, shareholders, and executives by producing great products at lower prices. However, the social responsibility of NIKE has been called into question with the decision to manufacture products where labor is cheap and where working conditions are below American standards; this manufacturing decision also displaced American workers when factories moved abroad. While there has been much debate in academic literature on the issue of the appropriate degree of social responsibility as it pertains to overseas manufacturing, the ethical concerns of such decisions are not within the scope of this article. However, this example reflects a situation where Christian leaders might have made different decisions.

Organizational leaders should seek to be Christ-led by prayerfully seeking guidance from God’s Word. For example, Jesus often withdrew to a quiet place to pray and seek the Father for direction (Matt. 14:23; Luke 5:16; 6:12; 22:41-44), and He taught His followers to do the same (Matt. 6:5-15; Luke 11:2- 4). While seeking to be Christ-led, leaders should ask questions such as: Will this action benefit humanity? Is the plan ethical and moral? Will any aspect of the implementation bring harm to a particular stakeholder group? The notion that organizations must sacrifice specific stakeholders (i.e., community and employees) for financial success has been refuted in the literature (Na, Egri, Lo, & Lin, 2015). To be truly Christ-led means exhibiting the character and servant heart that comes with balancing the needs and values of all relevant stakeholders, while still maintaining a profitable bottom line.

Whether or not a leader is successful depends as much on the time, place, and circumstance as it does on particular skill sets and leadership qualities (Gini & Green, 2014). There is no rubric to follow in the uncertain, unstable environment in which organizations operate, which perhaps, has created much unethical behavior in organizations. However, Christian leaders do have a specific guidebook for leading like Christ: the Bible. The Bible gives us clear direction on how to be a true Christian leader; this narrow path is not always easy, and the gap between actions and words can be worlds apart. For Christian leaders, the challenge becomes how to accomplish the traditional functional roles of leadership while incorporating the ethical, moral attributes suggested by the literature and the Scriptures. By following appropriate business practices and being Christ-led, a person of character, and having the heart of a servant, it is possible for Christian leaders to run a profitable organization effectively.

In short, leadership is more than just a set of facts and theories; it is a lived process. In this regard, future research is needed to examine how Christian leaders incorporating their Christian values might elucidate further the practical ways in which leaders can impact their organizations in a positive way. Additionally, quantitative studies would help to determine the effectiveness of specific programs or practices.

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Janet S. Jones , D.B.A., is Professor of Management at Wayland Baptist University in Plainview, Texas. Samantha R. Murray , Ph.D., is Associate Professor of Management at Wayland Baptist University in Plainview, Texas. Kelly B. Warren , Ph.D., is Professor of Management at Wayland Baptist University in Plainview, Texas.

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Understanding Christian Leadership Essay Examples

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Topic: Leadership , Education , Christians , Church , Teaching , Religion , Jesus Christ , God

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Christian Leadership

Christian leadership is the type of leadership that is practiced in the church according to the life of Jesus Christ. Jesus set the foundation of leadership of the church by placing the apostles on the bottom-most part of the church to support the rest of the followers. Paul, the apostle took the work of the apostle seriously to ensure the doctrine of Christianity is spread throughout the world. He named five ministers who would help in building the kingdom of God as Jesus wished (Ascough 2002).

The five-fold leadership ministry or the ascension gift matrix is a concept of leadership found in Ephesians 4:11 that divide the church into four offices namely: Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors, and Teachers. The fivefold ministry arose when Jesus ascended into heaven and it is meant to build up the Gods temple build of living “stones”. The five ministries are tools that Jesus uses to set up his Kingdom and they do so by equipping, encouraging and training.

Almost in the whole world pastors, teachers and evangelists are recognized to be existent even today. However there is a controversy over the apostles and prophets though in recent studies some scholars have talked of existence of them today (Lawrence 2004).

In some aspects of the bible the Apostles and prophets, being the most important in the church were meant to be existent throughout the life of the Christian church. Jesus Christ is found to have the qualities of the leaders in the five ministries, where he was referred to as an apostle in Hebrews 3:1, he was referred to as a prophet in the book of Mathew 22:11, he was referred to as a pastor where he was referred to as the shepherd. He is also referred to as Rabbi, the teacher in Peter2:25.

According to Apostle Paul prophets existed even after the death and resurrection of Jesus hence they were not meant to be in existence until the time of Jesus since he said this decades after the ascension of Jesus. The term ascension gift comes from the deeds of Jesus of appointing other apostles and prophets during his ascension. Thus the fivefold ministry was meant to exist until the second coming of Jesus. Prophets are explained to be there in the end of times by the Bible, to witness his coming (Marshall 1991). An Apostle is a messenger of the church who is visionary and whose job is to keep the church in progress. They give guidance since they have a lot of knowledge than all the other church followers. An Apostle has courage, charisma and experience to keep the church in dominance and to bring the church direction. In modern day there are those people who act as the apostles in the church such as some bishops and priest who are completely dedicated to spreading the gospel. An example are the bishops of the East African Church in Africa who are showing a great structure of their church where they are committed to the spreading of the gospel and to fulfill the wish of apostle Paul who asked fellow apostles to bring more and more people into the church. That is the apostolic role (Maxwell 2004).

A prophet is an individual who is able to speak with the supernatural beings and communicate their messages to the rest of the people. Prophets are expected to have high moral standards and know clearly well between wrong and right. They can tell the future events or advise people to repent for the sake of coming of God or his messenger who could be even angels. The message to be communicated may be meant for an individual or for a group of people.

False prophets are the prophets who claim to be chosen by God to communicate his message but they are actually after deceiving people and for self-glorification. The Bible in the book of Deuteronomy gives green light to kill false prophet who can be known if their prophecies do not happen.

Prophets are known to be human beings only with special ability to tell people the message of God so they are subject to sins and may make wrong decisions. According to Paul prophets are the second discipline from apostles in the fivefold ministry and they lead in both the churches that Paul lead and those that he did not and said that the validity of the prophets was to be tested by the doctrine of the apostles (Marshall 1991).

According to the Christianity doctrine there can be no appointments of prophets by fellow church member neither can there be any qualifications outlined for one to become a prophet. Paul put it clear that not all believers shall have the gift of prophesying as prophets make statements that are authoritative wise and instructive. So throughout the generations that have been there and those to come prophets will have to be there and they shall tell the people the will of God until Jesus comes again. Prophet must stand firm as they are open to opposition and doubt of which they must overcome by being faithful, firm in their words and be gentle (Stott 2002).

The third ministry is the evangelist whose work is to preach the gospel and ultimately reach conversion of people to accept Christ. In the present day evangelistic mission seems to be failing in greater magnitude than in the past in that many preachers are seen to be preaching to multitudes but few or no people are converted. It was also happening during the times of Jesus where he would go to Synagogues and people would attend with different reasons. Some would come only to see him but other would come to receive the gospel and get converted.

Evangelists have the duty to convince the people to change their ways for the better and uphold holiness from the point of change. Baptism is one common practice that is meant to signify conversion from bad ways to a Christian’s way of life. An evangelist has a tough task of converting people in places where opposition is very great, where people have been convinced of other ways of live that they believe are much better than any other. An evangelist should be a person of good reputation in actions, words and intention. Many people have been seeking fame and self-glorification in the name of evangelism and their mission is characterized by hype and heavy advertisement which is not meant to gather people for conversion to God’s way (Nelson 2008).

The forth element of the ministry is the pastor whose role is to keep the church member, rather the congregation focused on the church. The word pastor means a feeder or a shepherd and so he has an obligation of taking care of the believers. They must be gentle as stated by bible that it is bad to yell at a sheep and send it away but a good pastor like a shepherd must be polite and welcoming to any of his sheep.

In the present day a pastor duty is still very vital in the apostolic church in keeping the believers together. They are seen in all churches where the maybe given different titles but their duty of keeping the flock intact is similar. They are supposed to have good knowledge of each of the congregation member and must be intimate with them also. This puts the pastor in a very sensitive position as he must think about the best way to go so as not to mislead the congregation. They should assume the characteristic of God of loving sinner even more and do everything that will bring them back to the congregation he is leading.

The last ministry is the teacher whose main role is to maintain and restore peace. This means that the teacher should let the people know God by educating them. Since the coming of Jesus schools teaching about Gog have been set up to assist in preaching of the gospel. Over time the schools have kept growing and spreading all over the world. Education should be administered in an orderly manner so that the learners can understand with ease. Teachers can be trained in schools and can also be researches who later teach what they find out in their researches. A teacher must allow the pupils comprehend what he teaches them by giving them information bit by bit and allow them to practice what he theoretically teaches them. Thus a teacher sheds light on the knowledge of God (Briner 2009).

Like in the case of pastors and prophets, there can also be a false teacher who would teach their pupils what is not correct. The false teachers are the teachers who are led by greed, impatience and selfishness. A teacher must show much better morals than his fellow mankind. The teachers have a duty to prepare the pupils’ future by assist them create their foundation in Christ. A teacher should have good knowledge of the language and good speaking skills so that his pupils may sit down and listen.

According to Paul, a leader should not rule but serve and for the church to keep going there must be cooperation of several leaders whom must fulfill their duties as leaders so as to finally achieve the goal of the church as set by its head, Christ himself. Both women and men should team up and develop the church in oneness. For God word to keep spreading there must be order from top of the hierarchy of the five ministries (Marshall 1991).

The apostles have the duty of church-planting and establish the church in new areas. The prophets proclaim the revelation of God. Prophets are human and can prophesy something wrongly and should not be condemned as false prophets since there can also be people who can tell the future through powers given by Satan like the woman whose demons were rebuked by Paul. The evangelist has the duty of conversion of people who are lost or are believers of other beings other than God’s way according to Christ. Pastors’ duty is to keep the congregation together and showing it the right way. The teachers’ duty is to educate the congregation on the importance of Christian’s way of life (Stott 2002).

The apostles and the prophets are on the bottom supporting the people and that is why the apostles were put into place first after the ascension of Jesus. Paul together with his colleague who were not among the twelve apostles show that the duty of apostles was to be done by even other apostles beside the apostles who had been named by Jesus. Jesus told the people to be careful in fellowship so as not to follow their leaders just blindly (O'Malley 2007).

Apostles today have different names in different Christian churches but their duty has remained the same of keeping the church thriving and in full gear of progress. In some churches they are called bishops who act as the leaders in their respective areas of leadership. The prophets who are existent have the duty of foretelling the people of the future events that God has revealed to them; they give warnings and tell the people to repent. Prophets until today cannot be appointed by fellow men as their abilities are just special that are not acquired through learning. They are still known to be people of great faith, firm in their words and gentle.

Evangelists in modern churches are still very crucial as they execute the duty of converting people to be followers of the Christians way of life in their churches. Evangelists maintain good reputation in their actions, words and intention and must lead by example. Pastor are the shepherds whose duty is to keep reminding the believers of their faith and today they may have different titles but their duty of keeping the flock together remains. The teacher in today’s church is there to educate the people and sometimes they may carry out the duty of a pastor of reminding people of their faith and the vice versa may also happen when the pastor does the duty of a teacher.

The five ministries together do work of holding the church together and proving its strength. Each of the ministries has a duty of fighting against opposition and being patient when they face a lot of opposing forces. In communication of vision the apostle and the prophet have bigger tasks of setting the vision of the church and the evangelist, the pastor and the teacher do the duty of working towards realization of the vision by encouraging and giving hope to the believers. The five ministries must take charge of their dockets and work together as a team, observing cooperation in the church as the goal of the church ministries is common.

Ascough, R. and Cotton, S. 2002. Passionate Visionary: leadership Lessons from the Apostle Paul. Peabody: Hendrickson Publishers. Pp. 79-124

Briner, B. 2001.Leadership lessons of Jesus. New York: Random House. Pp.67-93 Lawrence, J. 2004. Growing Leaders: reflections on leadership, life and Jesus. Oxford: BRF. Pp. 76-89 Marshall, T. 1991. Understanding Leadership.Chichester: Sovereign World. Pp.9-47 Maxwell, J. C. 2004. Developing the Leader within You. Nashville: Thomas Nelson. Pp. 16-39 Nelson, J. 2008. How to become a creative church leader: A modem handbook.Norwich: Canterbury Press. Pp. 14-23 O'Malley, D. 2007. Christian Leadership.Bolton. U.K: Don Bosco Publications. Pp. 89-120 Stott, J. 2002. Basic Christian Leadership: Biblical Models of Church, Gospel and Ministry.Leicester: Inter-Varsity Press. Pp. 56-68

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