Too Many Chiefs......? (Part 2)

As noted previously, it is interesting to see how many resources there are for “leadership development”. Volumes have been written on the subject. But in the New Testament church, what was the “method” for making leaders. Was it determined by the person’s skill base? Was it based on the person’s popularity or level of charisma? What was it that made a person a leader?

It is safe to say that it was not a person’s skill base. Take Peter as an example. This incredibly powerful and effective preacher of Pentecost was a fisherman by trade, not a skilled orator or motivational speaker. It’s also safe to say that it was not popularity or level of charisma. Take the Apostle Paul as an example. He was an ex-persecutor of the church. At first the people did not trust him. He had to continually defend his apostleship, and his position on Gentiles, circumcision, the law, and justification by faith made him very unpopular with a significant portion of the church population. Matthias is another glaring example of ‘popularity not being a qualification’. He was chosen by the casting of lots. In our day of “enlightenment”, this may seem strange to us, but Proverbs 16:33 tells us that “he lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord.” This method insured that the selection of Matthias was not a popularity contest.

So, what was it that made a person a leader? It seems that the vast majority of leaders in the New Testament church had one thing in common. It was not training nor was it popularity. It was the supernatural empowerment of the Holy Spirit. Stephen, one of the first deacons, was described as being full of the Holy Spirit, as was Barnabas. The Apostle Paul tells to fan into flame the gift he received by the laying on of hands. This clearly speaks of spiritual gifts given by the Holy Spirit.

You see the selection or appointment of leaders in the early church was actually more of an act of affirming what the Holy Spirit had already decided. The early church recognized the power and the work of the Holy Spirit in an individual’s life to equip and empower them for the work at hand.

Sadly, it seems that many leaders in the church are selected or self-promoted based on much lighter, trivial, and insignificant qualities such as popularity, personality, and even “coolness”. This creates the illusion that these “positions” are fun, glamorous, and self-edifying causing many people to set their sights on this goal and seek to make a name for themselves as one of the “church’s elite”. This non-biblical, man-centered approach to leadership identification by default causes those leaders to participate in all sorts of non-biblical, man-centered ministry practices. After all, this is what got them to “the top”, and this is what will keep them there.

It is no wonder that, in light of this modern view of church leadership, people would rather fancy themselves a leader rather than a servant. However, within Christianity broadly and the church more narrowly, what is the most common call, the call to leadership or the call to service?

To be continued.......