Christian Tithing

This is a great question: Should Christians use tithing as a basis for giving?

Christian tithing refers to giving a minimum of 10% of one’s income to the Lord through one’s local church. The Church has debated the concept of tithing throughout its history, yet overall, has affirmed the Old Testament tithe as the basis of Christian giving. 

A Brief Biblical Argument in Favor

The Christian tithing discussion has focused upon the Lord’s tithe in the Old Testament, not festival giving, giving to the poor, or other tithing, or even freewill offerings above and beyond the Lord’s tithe. 

The concept of tithing itself permeated ancient near eastern cultures prior to the giving of the Law to Moses. Pagans would offer tithes from their property, produce, and currency to their gods. The first recorded example in the bible of a follower of Yahweh offering tithes is that of Abraham:

After his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh, that is, the King’s Valley. And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High. And he blessed him and said, ‘Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand!’ And Abram gave him a tenth of everything. (Genesis 14:17–20 ESV)

Jacob, in Genesis 28:18-22, offered to give the Lord a full tenth out of all that the Lord would give him. Tithing actually pre-dates the Mosaic Law and both of the examples of Abraham and Jacob are examples of voluntary giving motivated by grace.

This reality served as the background for when God gave the Law to Moses. In the Law, God systematized tithing for his worship and maintenance of his new nation of Israel (Leviticus 27:30-32; Numbers 18:21-32; Deuteronomy 12:5-19; 14:22-27). Later, the prophets would frequently exhort the people of God regarding the practice of tithing, often due to their neglect of it (e.g., Amos 4:4-5; Malachi 3:7-12). The historical writings recorded the renewal of the practice of tithing after returning from exile (e.g., 2 Chronicles 31:4-12; Nehemiah 10:34-39).

In the New Testament, the Gospels have recorded a few discussions of tithing, for example in Matthew 23:23-24. But, overall there remains an absence of instruction on tithing in the rest of the New Testament because of the impact of the New Covenant. Instead, the Apostles put forward other reasons for giving (see 2 Corinthians 8-9; Hebrews 7-8): (a) personal motivations, such as giving sacrificially, voluntarily, joyfully, thankfully, generously, and the list goes on; and (b) New Covenant considerations, because of the greater covenant including the Holy Spirit and the need to support churches on mission.

We Still Have to Answer the Question

The question of whether or not Christians should use tithing as a basis for their giving will likely continue to be debated and discussed, which gratefully should advance our understanding together. However, Christians still need to answer the question, in practice, somehow. Giving remains an important issue in Christian discipleship and maturity in the faith. Under both the Old Covenant and the New Covenant, giving has been presented as a matter of grace, though administered differently.

                        

At what level of giving would you suggest starting? Would you dare suggest less than 10%? Shouldn’t believers under the full blessings of the New Covenant in Christ give more than those under the Old Covenant? And prior to the Law, even the pagans in Abraham’s day who worshipped false gods gave their gods 10%; but, Christians worship the One True God!

Our Personal Journey of Christian Tithing

When growing up, I observed people putting a token $20 in the offering plate each week. I thought that was a lot of money being a young child. When I became a true Christian in my high school years, I don’t recall receiving instructions or guidelines on tithing of giving (maybe I wasn’t listening). Anyway, I kept all the money I earned; actually, I foolishly spent it all on myself. During my college years, I didn’t earn much of an income at all, but I occasionally gave what I could afford and was learning about giving at the church I attended. After getting married and starting to earn a living, we started to tithe—it was a delight and served as a key to our Christian growth together at our new church.

            

However, when we entered full-time Christian ministry finances become challenging due to minimal income, babies, and student loan payments. We struggled to tithe, live, and not default on our loans. Tithing became something we felt we could only do every other month; as a result, it became an agonizing commitment, contributing to weekly sadness and daily tension. So, we decided not to tithe, but taking someone’s advice, we decided to give 2-3% and work hard to change our situation. This was a painful decision because we didn’t fully believe it was the right decision. At first, we kept track of what we owed God, but eventually gave up on this. Anyway, it wasn’t too much longer, and the Lord provided a little more income, so we sought good counsel, consolidated our loans, and began to increase our giving to 10% as fast as we could.

Soon after that decision, our church’s interim preacher at that time preached a three-week series on giving. He covered information we already knew, but the Lord used it to encourage us in our renewed commitment to giving 10%. He told the story of his own journey of not only tithing, but for a number of years increasing his giving by 1% a year until he felt the joy of sacrifice—wow! We continued to tithe, but tithing was still a real struggle for us, but was also a real joy for us. We understood in a new way, so many things about giving financially as an act of worship to the Lord and mature responsible commitment to his mission. Ever since that time, our favorite check to write is our check to our church!

Moving Forward

Christians, especially Christian leaders, should prioritize their lives in order to position themselves to honor the Lord in the matter of tithing. Don’t make excuses, such as, being in debt, going through hard times, giving elsewhere or in other ways, or hoping to get to that level of giving soon. Learn to tithe early in your Christian walk and make the commitment to tithe for the sake of your spiritual health. In addition, making and keeping a budget that includes tithing will provide even greater freedom and cash flow for further generosity.

                                    

Christian tithing shows that we really believe: (a) all that we have belongs to the Lord, (b) he is faithful to us in meeting our needs, and (c) our lifestyle should be different than the world because we prioritize worship and service to God.

What further questions do you need to explore to strengthen your understanding of a biblical view of giving? What stories of blessing do you have that you could tell to encourage others?

The Bible Is Not A Leadership Handbook

What is biblical leadership? Or, what is leadership according to the bible? These are great questions to which many of us continually seek the answers. If we could put together a biblical model of leadership, what would that biblical model of leadership involve?

Caution: This might not be as easy of a project as it at first sounds. Volker Kessler (2013) examined two pitfalls when attempting to write a biblical view of leadership: Christ Against Culture and Reconstructionism.

Pitfall One, Christ Against Culture

The first pitfall, Christ against Culture (Niebuhr, 1951), attempts to find a pure form of biblical leadership without respect to culture, or input from other resources. Those who attempt such an approach to use only the bible, and nothing but the bible, often fail to realize that when the bible doesn’t directly address certain matters, they themselves tend to fill in the gaps with their own cultural experiences of what would be best. Hence, it ends up not really being a pure form of biblical leadership, anyway.

Kessler provided examples of Christian leadership forums from Russian, German, Hungarian, and American perspectives. Have you observed people attempting to find a purely biblical form of Christian leadership, only to fail in the end? If so, what role did culture play?

Pitfall Two, Reconstructionism

The second pitfall, Reconstructionism, attempts to discover modern theories of leadership in the bible and reconstruct what was supposedly really there in the bible all along. Kessler described four phases in this process:

 

1. Perception of what is currently popular in leadership discussions. 
2. Acceptance of the useful insights for the church, even citing biblical parallels. 
3. Assimilation through proof-texting and normalization of the freshly re-discovered biblical leadership. 
4. Standardization of this newly declared biblical view of spiritual leadership as true and good biblical leadership. 

He provided an example of the contemporary emphasis on visionary leadership in American evangelicalism. Have you seen this reconstructionist process at work with other leadership theories, ideas, and fads?

What about: leadership as influence, servant leadership, heroic leadership, the leader within, loving leadership, coaching, leading like Jesus, leadership by the book, authentic leadership, laws of leadership, early church leadership, tools of leadership, healthy leadership, heroic leadership, painful leadership, courageous leadership, etc.? (Based on a cursory search of Amazon, there appears to be an almost unlimited supply of Christian leadership books, approaches, ideas, and repackaging of others’ ideas.)

Kessler concluded that: (a) the bible should not be viewed as a leadership handbook, (b) leadership theories are necessary and useful, and (c) the goal is to develop multiple leadership theories consistent within the Christian framework. This seems like a modest and refreshing proposal of a schema that remains tethered to theological and biblical (even authoritative) foundations, and a proposal that calls for awareness of cultural contexts in such a way that they can be appreciated, incorporated, and challenged. Is this proposal sufficient?

Putting the question back to you: If you could put together a biblical model of leadership, what would that biblical model of leadership involve?


Kessler, V. (2013). Pitfalls in biblical leadership. Verbum Et Ecclesia, 34(1), 1-7. doi:10.4102/ve.v34i1.721
Niebuhr, H. R. (1951). Christ and culture. New York, NY: Harper & Row.

10 Missing Christian Themes

Reflecting on my conversations with Christians, my observations from social media, and my impressions from sermons this past year, I have complied a list of 10 missing Christian themes that need more attention in our churches and Christian living these days.

Certainly, there are other themes to be identified and more verses to be studied. However, from my perspective, Christians in America need to honestly and privately assess their faithfulness on these ten missing themes that scripture presents as vitally important for our Christian discipleship.

I have simply listed the theme and supplied one passage. This way it is simple, and it allows for reflection. Again, many other biblical passages could be provided. May God bless His Word to our souls.

1. Obedience to Civil Authorities


Romans 13:1–7 ESV “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer. Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience. For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.”


2. Unrighteousness of Anger




James 1:19–20 ESV “Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.”


3. Slander is Evil

James 3:5–18 ESV “So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water. Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”

4. Sexual Ethics Matter

1 Corinthians 6:18–20 ESV “Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.”

5. Rage is False Spirituality


2 Timothy 3:1–5 ESV “But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.”


6. Christ Truly is the Only Way


1 John 2:22–23 ESV “Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also.”


7. Submission to Authority of Scripture

2 Peter 3:16–18 ESV “. . . the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures. You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.”

8. Courage to be Clear (not Vague) about Commitment to Christ


Matthew 10:32–33 ESV “So everyone who acknowledges me [Jesus Christ] before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.”


9. Righteousness is Required


Matthew 5:17–20 ESV ““Do not think that I [Jesus Christ] have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”


10. Focus, Focus on the Gospel

Ephesians 2:1–10 ESV “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

Destructive Leadership

Transformational leaders appeal to the moral values of their followers, seek to elevate their ethical awareness, and motivate and involve them in the mission of the organization. Followers will trust, admire, give loyalty to, and respect these types of  leaders. The opposite of this visionary and ethics-based leadership is a self-serving unethical leadership that leads to the destruction of organizations and the people associated with them. Have you ever witnessed this type of destructive leadership?

In his classic article “The Dark Side of Leadership,” Conger (1990) identified a number of reasons why some visionary leaders fail and fail miserably, highlighting negative leaders who place their personal needs as paramount, chase their visions while miscalculating circumstantial realities, and use their communication skills to deny flaws in their vision and manage their image. 

In their book, The Allure of Toxic Leaders, Lipman-Blumen (2005) described destructive and toxic leaders as those who exhibit highly dysfunctional personality characteristics. But they also placed blame upon followers who seek out such leaders in the midst of challenging and often fearful circumstances. Often, both destructive leaders and those who follow them rationalize their views and mutually support one another and end up advancing a system of destructive leadership.

Recently, Padilla, Hogan, and Kaiser (2007) provided a useful description of destructive leadership theory in terms of a toxic triangle made up of threes dimensions, the “confluence of destructive leaders, susceptible followers, and conducive environments” (p. 176). 

• Destructive Leaders exhibit the characteristics of “charisma, personalized need for power, narcissism, negative life history, and an ideology of hate” (p. 182). 

• Susceptible Followers come in two groups, conformers and colluders, “conformers comply with destructive leaders out of fear, whereas colluders actively participate in a destructive leader’s agenda” (p. 183). Conformers make themselves vulnerable because of their “unmet basic needs, negative core self-evaluations, and immaturity” (p. 180). Colluders actively support destructive leaders because of the opportunity to enact their “similar ambitions, worldview, and values” (p. 180). 

• Conducive Environments for destructive leadership include four factors: “instability, perceived threat, cultural values, and absence of checks and balances and institutionalization” (p. 185).

Have you ever observed destructive leadership theory at work in an organization? What could be done to help those involved dismantle the toxic triangle of destructive leadership, susceptible followership, and conducive environmental factors? What might be the role of prayer, repentance, forgiveness, and the use of wisdom for instituting change?

Conger, J. (1990). The dark side of leadership. Organizational Dynamics, 19(2), 44-55.

Lipman-Blumen, J. (2005). The allure of toxic leaders: Why we follow destructive bosses and corrupt politicians—and how we can survive them. New York: Oxford University. 

Padilla, A., Hogan, R., & Kaiser, R. B. (2007). The toxic triangle: Destructive leaders, susceptible followers, and conducive environments. The Leadership Quarterly, 18(3), 176-194.

Organizational Citizenship Behavior

In simple terms, organizational citizenship behavior basically refers to “being civil or polite with regard to others in an organization” (Konopaske et al., 2017, p. 200). Does this describe the culture of the organizations to which you belong? Does it characterize you? Are you a good organizational citizen? Do you help others become better organizational citizens?

Good Citizenship

The Apostle Paul opened and closed his letter to the Philippian church talking about good citizenship (1:27; 3:20). He emphasized their heavenly citizenship as Christians; yet, he played off of their pride (in a positive sense) of being good citizens of their city and the Roman empire.

Philippians 1:27 ESV (modified) “Just one thing: behave as citizens [Gk., politeuesthe] worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in the One Spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel.” 

The Philippians prided themselves on being Roman citizens. But as Christians, they were to be proud of their heavenly citizenship even moreso. The Apostle Paul was playing off of, and playing against, their Roman citizenship, just like we do in the American church, and churches around the world do, as well. As Christians, we posses dual citizenship (as Martin Luther taught); we are members of two kingdoms at the same time—Christ’s heavenly kingdom and some earthly kingdom (political entity).

Future Citizenship

We are already citizens of heaven, because of Christ’s righteousness, and will live there eventually (cf. Ephesians 2:19). For now, we are governed by Christ as a “colony of heavenly citizens” (as one biblical dictionary put it) here on earth as “aliens” (1 Peter). And He is ruling from heaven with all power all things on behalf of His Church. Our future should be strongly guiding our present lives.

Philippians 3:17, 20 ESV “Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us. . . . For our citizenship [Gk., politeuma] is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,”

We are eagerly waiting a Savior from heaven, the Lord, Jesus Christ. This is a direct reference to Caesar Augustus and his imperial titles of “Lord” and “Savior.” He was called the “Savior of the world” because of bringing order and peace throughout the civilized Roman world. But, Jesus Christ, the True Lord and Savior, will return to this earth from heaven as the True Emperor of All. He will deliver us from our suffering and fears and trials in this world—He is our hope!

Daily Life Citizenship 

Let’s return now to Konopaske’s et al. (2017) definition of organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) as referring to “being civil or polite with regard to others in an organization.” After reviewing the Apostle Paul’s correspondence with the Philippian church, this seems so basic, and truly a simple reality for Christians to live out at their places of employment, in their churches, and within their mission organizations.

Podsakoff et al. (1990) described OCB as discretionary behavior by an employee that goes beyond the role requirements of one’s job. Think about your job—your secular job, your job at church, your job in the mission, and your job in whatever other organizations you belong to. Podsakoff et al. identified five key dimensions of OCB: 

1. Altruism, which refers to helping others; 
2. Conscientiousness, which refers to exceeding minimum role requirements;
3. Sportsmanship, which refers to toleration without complaining; 
4. Courtesy, which refers to prevention of problems; and 
5. Civic Virtue, which refers to taking an active part in the life of the organization.

What if we as citizens of the kingdom of God lived out, and encouraged others to live out, such recognized concepts of OCB in our workplaces, churches, and missions as part of the worthy behavior of Philippians 1:27? What difference do you think this would this make?

Konopaske, R., Ivancevich, J. M., & Matteson, M. T. (2017). Organizational behavior and management (11th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill Education.

Podsakoff, P. M., MacKenzie, S. B., Moorman, R. H., & Fetter, R. (1990). Transformational leader behaviors and their effects on followers’ trust in leader, satisfaction, and organizational citizenship behaviors. Leadership Quarterly, 1(2), 107-142.

Servant Leadership

We talk about servant leadership a lot in our churches and missions, but different leaders mean different things when using the term and practice servant leadership differently. 

Robert K. Greenleaf developed the leadership theory we call “servant leadership” in 1970. Greenleaf (1977) based his theory of servant leadership on examples from the New Testament. Other theorists have continued to explore the Scriptures and leadership studies and have furthered the description of servant leadership. Jesus Christ set the example when he washed his disciples feet and finished with these words:

John 13:14–16 ESV “If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.”

The Theory

In servant leadership theory, leaders primarily attend to the needs of followers, while accomplishing organizational goals as a secondary priority. Servant leaders build trust with their followers by communicating openly and honestly, exhibiting personal integrity, and trusting followers themselves. Servant leaders listen to their followers’ personal concerns, help them grow wiser and healthier, and empower them to achieve their individual goals. Such leaders seek to create a culture focused on caring for the needs of all the organization's members as they work together to achieve common goals, all the while seeking to develop many other servant leaders within the organization. 

Patterson (2003) developed seven constructs for describing servant leadership: (a) love, (b) humility, (c) altruism, (d) vision, (e) trust, (f) empowerment, and (g) service. In Patterson’s definition, love concerns itself with moral judgment and action. Humility shows itself by keeping proper perspective of oneself and staying focused on others. Altruism consists of concern for the welfare of others and acting with complete fairness. Vision focuses on the personal vision and faith of followers, not the organization’s vision, rather the individual’s goals and fit within the organization. Leaders build trust through integrity and mutual respect. Leaders empower others by truly sharing power, emphasizing teamwork, and valuing input. Finally, the mission of servant leadership will be achieved by service as a way of life, attitude of the soul, and manner of being.

Servant leaders primarily concern themselves with serving their followers, while also helping them contribute to the organization's mission. How applicable is servant leadership in leading your church or mission?

Greenleaf, R. K. (1977) Servant leadership: A journey into the nature of legitimate power and greatness. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist.

Patterson, K. A. (2003). Servant leadership: A theoretical model. Servant Leadership Research Roundtable, Virginia Beach, VA. 

Approved And Entrusted

The concepts of being “approved” by God and “entrusted” with His gospel played a key role in the Apostle Paul’s self-understanding of his mission, his relationship to God, and his relationship with all people including the Thessalonians. This approval and trust empowered him to minister boldly in the midst of great opposition, to remain committed to avoiding error, impurity, and deceit, and to stay focused on pleasing God rather than people. 

In the first chapter of 1 Thessalonians, the Apostle Paul recounted God’s powerful working among the Thessalonians in their radical conversion to Christ from idolatry and their immediate zeal for spreading the gospel throughout the region. Intense opposition followed Paul wherever he went and the Thessalonian church had already begun to experience it for themselves. And so, Paul, Silas, and Timothy wrote this letter to encourage this new community of Christians in their faith and identity in Christ. They would need to be able to withstand, persevere, and triumph in their new life of adversity and persecution.

For you yourselves know, brothers, that our coming to you was not in vain. But though we had already suffered and been shamefully treated at Philippi, as you know, we had boldness in our God to declare to you the gospel of God in the midst of much conflict. For our appeal does not spring from error or impurity or any attempt to deceive, but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please man, but to please God who tests our hearts. (1 Thessalonians 2:1-4, English Standard Version)

Empowerment of the Apostle Paul and His Team

Motivation and empowerment increase when people’s work matches their values, when they possess confidence that they will be successful, when they can choose when and how they perform their work, and when they believe they can make a difference. God delegated to the Apostle Paul tasks of appropriate difficulty that related to his career as an Apostle. In his empowerment of the Apostle Paul, God delegated in a manner consistent with what is considered good delegation: (a) specifying his responsibilities clearly, (b) providing adequate authority, (c) monitoring his progress, (d) providing necessary information, support, and assistance, and (e) turning his mistakes into learning opportunities (Yukl, 2013).

God’s empowerment of Paul noted in 2:1-4 fits with psychological empowerment as a leadership theory. Paul referred to himself in 3:2 as a co-participant, sunergon, with God in the Gospel, and described the delegation of duties in 2:1-4 in various ways. God approved Paul and his team and entrusted them with the Gospel. Consequently, Paul ministered with great motivation to please God and appeal to people with the Gospel. 

The four elements of psychological empowerment are: (a) meaning, (b) self-determination, (c) self-efficacy, and (d) impact. Paul felt empowered because God changed his life and gave him a new mission (meaning), trusted him to develop his own strategies and methods (self-determination), infused him with confidence that he could be successful (self-efficacy or competence), and allowed him to witness the results of conversion and transformation of people, and the establishment of churches (impact).

Empowerment Continues for Us Today

As a public Apostolic epistle, 1 Thessalonians was meant to be read aloud to the faith community in Thessalonica and to all faith communities (5:27) for their encouragement. God’s empowerment of Paul extended to the empowerment of the Thessalonian believers, and it has continued to extend to His Church ever since and all throughout the world. From the Apostle Paul’s ministry model with the Thessalonian church Christian leaders and churches today can shape and re-shape their ministries accordingly, and by God’s Spirit and grace can expect similar results that will bring Him glory through increased effectiveness and spiritual joy. 

Christians should proclaim the gospel boldly and live out the gospel genuinely. The Apostle Paul served as an entrusted messenger, teaching Christ-followers how to live out the gospel they preach. Can Christians today likewise appeal to others to examine their lives as Christians, and ask God to do the same? Such transparency speaks volumes to the world about honesty, integrity, and authenticity. The world needs more Christians like this. This will further strengthen and empower the church as God keeps supplying a greater boldness and the grace to prove faithful as those “entrusted with the gospel” (v.4). 


Yukl, G. (2013). Leadership in organizations (8th ed.). New Jersey: Prentice Hall.

Not Just Any Verse For Every Situation

Pastors deal with complex situations in leading their churches, complex situations in counseling their congregations and complex situations in speaking to their broader communities.

Few troubles are as frustrating for pastors as church members who might be somewhat familiar with a situation, or outsiders with little knowledge of a matter, approaching them with urgent Biblical counsel they have discovered that will help him.

Where Do the Bible Verses Come From?

When Christians read their Bibles, sometimes verses strike them like never before, and they are eager to share them and apply them. Maybe it applies to this situation with which our pastor is dealing, they wonder.

Many Christians have favorite Bible verses they have memorized and find useful in their lives on many occasions. Somehow they made a connection from one of their favorite verses to the pastor’s situation. Maybe it will help, they reason.

Other Christians stay current with cultural trends and Christian trends. They know the Biblical passages under discussion these days. And so, they hope to inform their pastor and help him see how the situation with which he is dealing is addressed by this current discussion.

Yet other Christians believe that all of Christian theology and practice can be encapsulated in key verses. Often these key verses have to do with broad themes such as love, grace and mercy, or authority and submission, or divine sovereignty and human responsibility, and the list goes on.

In each of these examples, people wrongly think they have the secret answer verses providing simple solutions to complex problems. Sincerely motivated as they may be, not just any verse applies in every situation.

3 Unrecognized Problems

When we are excited by our new discoveries in the Bible we see perhaps more connections than are warranted. When we see the world primarily through our favorite verses we can miss a lot of other things in the Bible and in other people’s lives. When we vigilantly stay current, the foundations and the history too quickly fade from view. When we live by broad themes we might feel especially skilled, however, we might fail more often than we realize in specifics of life’s realities.

First, people often miss the point of the text they are referencing. It certainly holds great and godly instruction. It is inspired by God and intended by Him for proper use according to His intention. But such a misuse of the text will not really advance God’s purposes.

Second, people often miss the point of the situation into which they are trying to speak. Likely, they don’t really understand the life situation and the spiritual dynamics of it. As a result, they mismatch it to their selection of Scripture.

Third, people often miss the best and proper texts that could provide the counsel that is needed. Because of a cursory search of Bible passages and only a surface analysis of the situation, they draw hasty and inaccurate conclusions on both fronts.

3 Constructive Solutions

First, as a pastor and leader, make sure to pushback against off-base counsel. Often people are simply too eager to share their point of view without understanding other points of view. They are mistaken about the Bible, the situation and their relationship.

Second, teach people about how to use the Bible, and how to use it well and appropriately in conjunction with its purpose. Assume those who would counsel you are well meaning, even if you suspect they are not.

Third, explain with patience both the situation about which they are concerned and the Bible verse they about which they are excited. We do not have to share all details, and obviously most often we can’t do this. But, we can share what we are doing, our approach to the situation and the Bible, and our seeking of counsel.

Finally, simply thank those who visit you in this manner. Thank them for their concern. Thank them for their love of the Word of God, and eagerness to live by it and please the Lord. Thank them for praying for you and others involve. Then, close by asking for their prayers and praying together with them.

Why Don’t We See More Of Our Missionaries?

A few years ago a fellow pastor and friend of mine asked me, “Why don’t we see more of our missionaries? Is there something wrong with our church?”

Perplexed and Hurt

This seemed strange to him because overseas missionaries who are on home assignment are usually eager to visit their supporting churches and reconnect with many friends in the church. This church considered itself very mission-minded, genuinely devoted in prayer and partners in the work. My friend was somewhat offended and hurt.

I happened to know this church and its approach to missions fairly well. True, it was somewhat of a mission-minded church, but the leadership and the congregation were not as committed to missions as they thought they were. It is safe to say that those outside the church would not describe the church as a mission-minded church.

3 Measurements of Commitment

So, I asked how much the church supported each of its missionaries.  It was a modest sum, probably a little too modest. Then we talked about the travel costs for the missionaries to visit the church. This cost was not reimbursed by the church, either. Their missionaries seemed to visit when their church was an easy add-on to a trip, but they were not the main destination.

Then we talked about what a missionary visit would look like. Were opportunities created for the missionaries to give an in-depth view of their work, and would they have freedom to ask others to become supporters of their ministry? It turns out that the church didn’t take the initiative to create such opportunities, or much else.

Then I asked about recent mission trips taken by the church. The last significant one was over five years ago. Occasionally people still talk about it and reminisce about its value and glory. However, in today’s world of inexpensive travel and easy to organize short-term trips of value, it should be routine practice to have church leaders and others visit a church’s missionaries. This is a wonderful opportunity to encourage them, bless them, learn from them and be of value to them.

Making Necessary Adjustments

My pastor friend agreed that they were really a low mission commitment church. And their missionaries probably didn’t sense great commitment on the church’s part. The relationships had not been nurtured. Gladly, my pastor friend decided to make the necessary changes! 

Since our conversation a few years ago, the church has been steadily increasing their financial support of all their missionaries. The church leadership communicates much more and at a higher level of quality with their missionaries and their congregation. 

There is a new level of engagement that is obvious to all. Missionaries are highlighted and given greater access to people. Slowly, new trips are being organized, well-planned for added value, and they are being seen as a key investment for the advance of the Gospel!

Sermons Are Not Meant To Be Remembered

How many of you remember the sermon from last Sunday?  Don’t worry, you were not supposed to anyway.

Look at and Listen to the Preacher:  Not Obnoxious Learning Devices

The congregation really wanted sermon notes in the bulletin, so I gave in. However, I don’t like people looking down when I am preaching. Much more preferable is to have everyone engaged with me in the amazing biblical text, enjoying it together.

Another bad idea is having people looking to the side at a screen as if this holy event were a business presentation or educational lecture. And yet, the ultimate bad idea is fill-in-the-blank preaching notes, especially when bloated with alliteration.

It is also infuriating to listen to powerful (and often long) illustrations, well-crafted story-telling, creative reconstructions of a Bible story (sometimes even including theatrical garb and voice), because the Bible gets lost, and really fast.

Entertaining, motivating, counseling, providing practical steps, creating artsy set designs—can we just stop it and just preach the Word? This is all for getting people to remember. And we falsely assume that remembering brings about transformation. It doesn’t.

What if we gave up on getting people to remember sermons and just went for the transformation outright?

It is actually easier, less time consuming and much more enjoyable for everyone, trust me. Simply listen to the preachers as they explain and apply the Word for us all. It is a good and beautiful thing. Look at the preacher!

Look at and Listen to the Book:  Preaching is Unique Communication

I have never preached so that people remember outlines, stories, life principles or any other cute Christian slogans or quaint Christian sentiments. I don’t want people to remember my sermon, I want them to know and love God more through the Scriptures, and be able to do so on their own, in their families and with other people.

There is no parallel for preaching, not school teaching, not academic lecturing, not business presenting, not inspiring, not theater, not solving problems. We really need to stop trying to find an analogy, because no analogy exists.  Preaching is a unique event.

If the goal is to rejoice in God and His Word before His People, trusting the Holy Spirit who wrote the Bible and indwells His People to stir their hearts for the glory of God, then what are we doing messing around with inferior methodologies and delivery methods that cannot hold the weight of the message!?

We need to believe more in God and His Word. Our goals of transformation are going to be accomplished through the Biblical text. Each person in the congregation should be able to go back to the text and remember by the Holy Spirit and re-preach it to themselves. They should be able to see God’s transformational truth from the Word themselves without the added baggage of the preacher’s outline obscuring the text and confusing them.

This kind of preaching is what the people of God really hunger for. This kind of preaching is what those without God really want and really need to hear. We preachers need to stop playing games and simply love our people and preach the Word. Look at the book!

( See related blog post: Hijacked Preaching)

I remember when I became a Christian at the age of 17. All I wanted was someone to teach me the Bible, someone who knew the Bible, loved the Bible and simply explained it to me without pulpit antics or goofy gimmicks to get me to like the Bible.

As our Apostle Paul instructed Pastor Timothy (2 Timothy 3:14-4:5):

“But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. 

“I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.”

Lest you think I am a complete iconoclast, I will grant that add-ons can be helpful, but they are not preaching, they are add-ons. All I am asking for is a more thoughtful and prayerful reconsideration of what we are doing when we are preaching the Word of God, the Holy Scripture.

Pentecost For The Rest Of Us

One particular annual celebration in the Church calendar holds special meaning for me. It is Pentecost. This is because I was converted on Pentecost Sunday in 1984. And so, as a pastor I would preach on it every year and promote its celebration to those who have forgotten it.

Three main feasts in the historical Christian Calendar relate directly to Jesus Christ. Christmas celebrates the Incarnation of the Son of God.  Easter celebrates the redemption He accomplished for us in His Cross and Resurrection. And Pentecost celebrates His exaltation and giving the Holy Spirit to His Church.

The Historical Event


Pentecost is the annual celebration of the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the Church, and the initial 3000 conversions at the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Originally a harvest festival under the Old Covenant, the first New Covenant celebration was the harvest of conversions.

Luke records the historical event of Pentecost in Acts 2 to encourage us with one of the basics of the Christian Faith. The Spirit’s role in the Church is to empower the Church for witness to Christ Jesus. This is what we see throughout the Book of Acts (i.e. Ac 8, 10-11, 15, 19). This is what we see throughout Church History. The Holy Spirit began a new ministry in and through the people of God in the New Covenant. The Holy Spirit indwells all the People of God.


The Holy Spirit empowers the Gospel, and He empowers the Church to preach the Gospel. Luke is telling us that we all as Christians are Pentecostal Christians. Forget the Pentecostal connotations and embrace Biblical language, or post-Pentecostal Christians, if you prefer. We are a Church empowered by the Holy Spirit to preach the Gospel of Salvation.

An Unrepeatable Historical Event

Pentecost is an unrepeatable historical event. It is a climactic point in the History of Redemption, fulfilling many Old Testament prophecies of the time of the Messiah and the New Covenant.

It is not a paradigm for personal experience, as some have mistakenly interpreted it. Some use the event to promote various forms of Second Blessing spirituality. Others use it to raise expectations for large scale conversions. And other use it to mark out the parameters of their vision for communal living. And the list goes on.

The question is often asked, “what prevents us from being just like the early Church at Pentecost?” The answer is simple: Pentecost is an historically significant event in History of Redemption. It is non-repeatable, as much as the Incarnation, Cross and Resurrection are unrepeatable, to which Pentecost is itself is tied.

It is the wrong question to be asking. The better question to ask is, “in what ways are we to be like the early Church at Pentecost?” To answer this questions requires more thorough Biblical understanding, deeper theological reasoning and practical reflection on Christian living.

Today, we proclaim the same empowered Apostolic Gospel as those empowered by the Holy Spirit. We urge people to forsake this evil generation and believe in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We welcome them into the Church as the Holy Spirit convicts and converts them. Together, we enjoy the blessings of God as a forgiven people and as people possessing the Holy Spirit.

The Repeatable Part is The Mission Part

Pentecost is about the Mission, which leads to the ultimate goal: the worship of God among all the nations. Missions is about God, who through the Gospel is gathering His elect from all people groups to worship Him in glorious joy forever and ever.

This is why we celebrate Pentecost annually, to remind us of our identity as the Church and our purpose as the Church. Let us pray continually for the outpouring of Pentecostal power of the Holy Spirit upon us. Let us do so for the empowerment of our Gospel witness for the expansion of the Church.

This is Pentecost for the rest of us, ever since that great day long ago, 50 days after Jesus’ Resurrection, and until the Day of His Glorious Return and His Kingdom. This is why I would preach a special sermon every Pentecost. Some of the passages are: Acts 2:1-47; Jn 3:1-15; Joel 2:18-32; Matthew 12:22-37; Galatians 5:16-26; 1 Peter 2:9-10; Romans 8:8-11; and Hebrews 8:1-13. There are many many passages to preach and teach the People of God about their great and full salvation!

5 Short Stories of Competing Visions

Leaders have their reasons why they believe that more than one vision is best for their church or organization and how it really sets them apart. But, they are wrong.

When meeting with them, after listening to some of their success stories and current ministry struggles, we as a group of leaders start exploring how and why things work the way they do. We talk about core ministry passions, opportunities and resources. We talk about what more could be done, and what could be better.

Then, at a strategic time in the conversation I ask them how having multiple visions within their organization is really working for them, for the advance of the ministry.

They start to see that having more than one vision is not helpful. It never works out well. There can only ever be one vision per organization. Following are five short stories.

Starting a New Church Well

Recently I was asked about the possibility of a church planter and an associate working together on a church plant with slightly differing visions. Would this be okay?

Why would leaders think this was a good idea? Is it because there would be two pastors working as partners? They could reach different groups of people. And resources could be pooled. Nevertheless, this is a terrible idea.

Differences will become irreconcilable, and this will probably happen sooner than expected. Philosophy of ministry underlies every vision and is a core part of who we are as pastors. Trying to manage two of them will hinder the church plant’s development. Also, different ministry activities seen as critically important will compete for time, volunteers and other resources. A better solution would be to plant two churches.

A Vision in Waiting

Another conversation took place with the leadership team of a growing and healthy church. However, they sensed that there were three separate competing visions within their church. This really wasn’t the case. They actually identified three closely related ministry passions that could easily be brought together under one vision.

Their challenge was to work together on writing out this common vision and writing a fuller description of what it would look like as they accomplished it. They also needed to come back together in their personal relationships as one team and as one church.

We talked about where vision comes from, who shapes it, keeps it and promotes it. We discussed the role of the senior pastor and the leadership team. This was an encouraging and energizing conversation looking toward the future.

The Seditious Staff Member

In another church, a staff pastor was leading a vision revolt, using his ministry team as the place to begin fomenting unrest. Leadership meetings revealed the fraction with the senior pastor. He would frustrate the board by regular dissent or he would agree but then carry out his own agenda.

This staff pastor needed to submit to the larger vision of the senior pastor and the other board members. He needed to humble himself and know his place in the organization, or he needed to leave for the sake of the congregation. Those people he was stirring up needed to be reconnected to the true vision of the church and reassured of the rightful leadership.

Mission in the Slough

A mission organization that touted itself as an expert in vision development and strategic planning somehow could never seem to clarify its own vision. They struggled to see strategic plans through to fruition. This was largely because they changed the vision at almost every leadership meeting, so in reality many visions existed, not one.

Obviously, the lower level leaders and staff lacked confidence and did not trust the top leadership. Worse yet, those arrogant leaders were oblivious to the quality of leaders and people they had in their own organization.

It was a missed opportunity to create one vision with an organization willing to embrace one vision. Organizations need top leaders who can lead, who can lead other leaders, who can lead real people and genuinely value, honor and trust other leaders than just themselves.

Laity Leading Loosely

Another church has as many visions competing as lay leaders in the congregation.  Since there is no clear vision from the pastor or the board, everyone just does things, good things. Each person promotes his or her ministry to attract people and gain resources.

They try to package everything together and present it as one really broad vision. They convince themselves that this is true and good. They find themselves floundering and having to rejoice in very minor successes. Were they to unite behind a common vision, and then align themselves and work as a team, their success would be amazing!

Many more stories could be told, both short and long, about churches and organizations experiencing problems because of not understanding the role that vision plays, actually having a vision and only one organizational vision.

The Pulpit Bully

Have you ever cringed while listening to a sermon and afterward felt that your spirit was harmed rather than helped? If so, it might be because the preacher is a bully.

These types of preachers are aggressive in seeking to dominate others. They are often strident in their pronouncements. But, just as many of them are sly and secretly persuasive.

Preaching bullies do not preach the Bible properly, nor usually accurately. They confuse their role of faithful persuasive application with the Holy Spirit’s role of conviction and changing the heart.

There are at least three indicators of bullying from the pulpit, corresponding to their designs upon others’ thoughts, feeling and behaviors.

Control Thoughts

A pulpit bully uses his position of power and his knowledge to impose his viewpoint as the only option when there are other options. He draws unnecessary lines in the sand, mocks other viewpoints and casts suspicion on those who hold other views than his own. He prefers that people don’t think for themselves.

Instead, the preacher should help us think well biblically. He should respect other legitimate Christian viewpoints. He should take the opportunity to model for us how to rejoice in the richness of God’s Word and the glory of Christ.

Manipulate Feelings

A pulpit bully uses his platform to push people around until they feel the way he does about things. He moves people’s passions into conviction on some matters and not on others, until their emotions match his own. He defines the fruits of the Spirit in terms of his own character development, and denies and chides the experience of others.

Instead, the preacher should acknowledge the valid range of human emotions. He should respect people and the working of the Holy Spirit in His People. He should take the opportunity to celebrate the powerful purifying presence of the Spirit working Christlikeness in us.

Conform Behaviors

A pulpit bully uses his privilege to relentlessly advance his agenda and pressure others to get his way. He criticizes misbehavior at length, persists in addressing the same set of life issues and coerce our choices by fear. He works people over so they all look, speak and behave in a prescribed manner.

Instead, the preacher should trust his congregation and their spiritual judgment. He should not be afraid of disagreement or diversity. He should be patient with people as our heavenly Father is patient. He should take the opportunity to honor the lifelong process of Christian growth.

Advice to the Battered Ones

The Apostle Paul instructs pastors to pursue a different path: 1 Timothy 1:5 ESV “The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.”

Bullying is using one’s position and power to intimidate and keep others in a position of weakness. Pulpit bullies do this through preaching. They do not respect the Word of God, the People of God, not really even God Himself!

If you face a bully in the pulpit week after week, just leave and find a preacher who thinks more highly of the calling of preaching. If not, you could end up destined to live life as a weak and abused Christian. Find a healthy godly church with a preacher that brings blessing and healing into your soul through the true Word of God.

Can I Help You Find Another Church?

Many people have had to go through the difficult experience of switching churches within the same town. This can be very unsettling and stressful, leading to great unhappiness in the process. People generally have a hard time seeing that their discontent might be God’s method of moving them on. How can a pastor be most helpful?

3 Poor Approaches

1. Anger. Pastors should not get angry or defensive. Although it feels highly personal, and might be some of the times, most often it is not. Even when it is, if we gain strength from Christ and put our hope in His glory and vindication, we can address the situation as needed. Dealing harshly with people displeases the Lord, and will result in leadership failure.

2. Ignore. We should not ignore people who are struggling, either. Avoidance, hoping the problem will resolve itself is poor leadership. It hurts everyone, the whole congregation, you as the pastor and those who are disgruntled. If they leave it will remain unresolved. If they keep on complaining they need to be confronted.

3. Sell. Nor should we attempt to appease their complaints. Often our initial reaction is to explain why we do ministry the way we do it, and why they should be excited about it and embrace it. We point out the many successes and obvious blessings from the Lord. We try to sell them, or re-sell them, on our vision.

Instead of these approaches, we should engage people more deeply and truly help them. In doing so, we ourselves will grow in Christ and in spiritual skill in leading His People. In a few cases, such people might start to see things differently and make a dramatic change and become a team player. But, more likely at this stage this will not be true for the large majority. So, how might we part ways in a more spiritual manner?

3 Better Approaches

1. Explain. Explain that maybe they are entering a different stage in life. A lot of people don’t even realize this about themselves and their families. Our needs and hopes change throughout life. Likewise, our spiritual journeys and desires for growth change. This reality needs to be understood much better by all of us and embraced as God’s design in our path to being fully transformed into the image of Christ.

2. Explore. Explore with them the possibility that God may be moving then on to help another church and its ministry. We are one large worldwide team in Christ’s Church. There are numerous places to serve, among many different peoples, and many with far greater needs than our present congregation. Ask questions about their passions for Gospel ministry. Take time to enter their stories and find out what God is doing in them.

3. Exhort. Some simply need to be exhorted, told maybe for the first time that they are just ornery and obstinate people who need to leave if they do not change. Be prepared that unhappy people are just that--unhappy. Some have serious spiritual problems with trusting the Lord and submitting to His authorities and established leaders. Don’t let people despise you and your position. Challenge them as you tell them to leave.

Doing The Parting

People don’t know what to do with discontent or where to go. Often they need to be given the gifts of freedom and understanding, rather then being told they are bad Christians. They are already struggling with this before the Lord. Don’t over-spiritualize church membership and abuse the concept of loyalty. (See related blog Three Problems With The Marriage Analogy.)

At the proper time, ask directly, “Can I help you find another church?”

Asking such a question will be surprising to most people. The fear and expectation going into this kind of meeting with the pastor overwhelms people. The idea of parting on good terms, and even to bless one another as friends, probably has not occurred to them.

The reason the pastor should ask this question, is not only because he is the leader, but because often people don’t know other churches in the area like the pastor does. We have the opportunity to match them up for the next stage in their journey and to maximize their usefulness for the Kingdom!

This is by far a better conclusion to what is often the inevitable outcome after people become considerably dissatisfied. Why not take advantage of the situation, preserve the relationships, help them find another church, and bring further glory to God?

6 Signs Of Leading Like A Boss

Every once in a while you encounter Christian organizations that are run more like an organized crime family than a church family, denomination, mission agency or non-profit. 

It is their leadership style that gives them away. Here are six clear signs of abuse of power and manipulation, that if you see them, you should run and not look back.

Decisions are Unilateral and Whimsical



Examine who are the real decision makers. How many of them are there? Does it ever seem confusing how they make decisions? Can you articulate their criteria? Can they? What hoops must you jump through in order to make a significant decision? When was the last time you were allowed to make one? If decisions are unilateral and whimsical you are likely dealing with a mafia boss style leader.


Favors are Granted for Ingratiation



Follow the money. Money tells all, or very close to it. Who has the authority to dispense funds indiscriminately? Who can’t, and why? Money talks and money makes people look good, even better when they give it away. What is expected of the recipients—immediate praise of course, but what about in the long term? Is such generosity a virtue or a vice? If favors are granted to ingratiate others you are likely dealing with a mafia boss style leader.

Enforcers are Visible and Invisible



Most likely they do not wear suits, sport shades and carry uzis under their jackets. But, notice who is almost always in the room, whether silently at the table or leading the meeting. Do people ever show up unexpectedly, filled with questions about your decisions, actions, spending, travel, relationships or goals? Can members or employees ask questions about abrupt ministry changes, or are they too afraid to ask? If enforcers are present and in your business you are likely dealing with a mafia boss style leader.


Loyalty is Touted as the Highest Virtue



Loyalty is obviously a virtue. But, how often do your superiors talk about loyalty? If it is a whole lot, there might be something wrong. It could be a mild form of megalomania, or it is waiting to become full-blown. Is your loyalty ever questioned, or rather paraded as an example? What about others in the organization? If loyalty is the conversation of the day, almost every day, you are likely dealing with a mafia boss style leader.


Excess is Enjoyed, Gifted and Withheld



Follow the money, yes. But, following the spending is even a better indicator of self-absorption and idiocy. How much is spent on dining, liquor, hotels, entertainment, airline upgrades, clothing et cetera? More importantly, observe who they share it with and who they don’t, and why, and when. Stay alert and make solid conclusions. Do not accept excuses. If the luxuries and pleasures flow freely you are likely dealing with a mafia boss style leader.


Notification is Given about Who is Trustworthy



Have you received that email telling you someone is a bad guy and you should stop communicating with him? Or, you have been told you can trust so and so without question. Why are you letting someone else make these decisions of character assessment for you without your own investigation? Have you ever considered that this might be manipulation, especially after a few rounds of names? If you are regularly notified about good guys and bad guys you are likely dealing with a mafia boss style leader.

Realize that mafia style Christians in leadership will cover up the above with spiritual language. The decisions will be billed as Spirit-led, favors will be promoted as blessings, alignment will be described as what moves us forward, loyalty will be described as teamwork, travel perks will be deemed necessary for major advancements and finally the purity of the mission must depend on identifying the trustworthy. 

In many places in the world, violence and intimidation will be used along with these six means of coercion. Pay attention to the unhealthy nonsense. If these ungodly signs are present, even just a few of them, get out fast!

Hijacked Preaching

Preaching is not what many have come to think it is.

It is not about giving a good speech with applause and handshakes to follow. 
It is not about delivering a theology lesson with head nods and warm hearts agreeing.
It is not about providing counseling for the myriads of hurting people. 
It is not about motiving people to a better morality, making them feel guilty or superior. 
It is not about making Jesus sound politically correct or incorrect.
It is not about skillful altar calls, and the baptisms that follow. 
It is not about artsy appeals to a live really cool communal Christian lifestyle. 
It is not about presenting the top (insert a number) tips for living a happy life. 
It is not about convincing unbelievers, while ignoring the soul needs of believers. 
It is not about the preacher’s hair, jeans or suit, his language, or his makeup artists.
It is not about the newly released book and the promises contained in it.
It is not about dropping nuggets of wisdom for financial and relational successes. 
It is not about addressing current political concerns, injustices or outrageous atrocities. 
It is not about wooing weak women or duping men easy to be suckered. 
It is not about the number of people in the room or those listening by live streaming.
It is not about meticulously mentioning the concerns of various constituencies. 

The list goes on, and for American Christians this is especially true, sadly, embarrassingly and reprovingly. Preaching has been hijacked, taken to places it should not go.

Certainly, preaching, even good preaching, may contain some of the elements from the above list, but preaching still stands separate; it is not those things. It is a unique calling.

Preaching as Sui Generis

Preaching is a unique event without analogy or parallel. As John Stott named it in his book Between Two Worlds, preaching is sui generis, its own genre. There are only three things a preacher need to know about and concern himself with: the Holy Spirit’s role in Scripture, people and the preacher. God the Holy Spirit has written the Scripture. He indwells Christians. And He empowers the preacher. 

The Bible is God’s Word. There is nothing more powerful and important to study, declare and apply than this! What else is there worthy to be preached?! It is a simple task, though it is a profound task. And we are called to honor the Word before the Lord, His people and the angels.

1 Peter 1:12 ESV “It was revealed to them [Old Testament prophets] that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.”

Believers in Jesus Christ really want to listen to the Word. They really truly do, more than seeing the things in the list above! They have been re-made to hunger and thirst for the Word of God. And unbelievers will be given spiritual life by the living and abiding Word through the preaching of it. So everyone benefits.

Psalms 119:130 ESV “The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.” 

2 Timothy 4:1–2 ESV “I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word . . .”

The unction of God upon the preacher is easy to recognize and makes a world of difference! This is not simply passion, but the anointing of the Spirit that stirs the soul of the preacher, affecting him first and then the congregation. It far surpasses anything on that relatively boring preaching list above.

Simply Preach the Word

A few years ago I did some academic research on historical metaphors and models of preaching. I was stunned and lamented to see the modern devolutions, especially in the last couple of centuries.

For the pastor today, the pressures to perform and produce are intense. It is a matter of spiritual warfare. Consequently, every Sunday that I preach I must reset myself by prayer to the classical view of preaching, which is simply declaring the Word of God. 

Stay focused. Don’t let your preaching be hijacked, taken places other than God’s designed destination, and don’t bother listening to preaching that has been hijacked.

Calvinists And Arminians On Mission Together

When determining who will make the best ministry partners on mission trips one consideration I take into account is whether they are Calvinistic or Arminian.

Most of the time I will pair them up with a partner holding the opposite viewpoint. My purpose is to build them into stronger disciples of Christ and more effective evangelists of the Gospel.

My History on Mixed Theological Teams

My own experience includes being saved within an Arminian perspective. Much of my early Christian growth was with organizations and from leaders who also held this viewpoint, although I didn’t understand much about these theological differences at the time. Nonetheless, I held strong Arminian opinions. A pastor and good friend at one church I attended challenged me to keep on digging deeper into the Scriptures, to take my time and learn.

It was a good number of years later while I was teaching through Romans and Hebrews, and during my formal theological training, that I became thoroughly convinced of the Reformed or Calvinistic perspective. The seminary where I studied had faculty from both perspectives, which made learning about this important matter all the more fascinating, valuable and a great blessing.

I strongly believe that the Calvinistic understanding most faithfully and accurately represents the biblical teaching on salvation. Yet, while serving in my first official ministry position in a local church, I was ministering alongside a fellow assistant pastor who attended the same seminary I did, but who was thoroughly committed to the Arminian view. We had great debates, challenged one another, and yet we still found ourselves able to love one another and one another’s families, and advance the Gospel together.

When the Lord led me into the role of a lead pastor it was with an association of churches that welcomes both viewpoints. Our particular local church was committed to the Reformed position on the doctrines of grace, but we were called to graciously work alongside other churches with different commitments on these matters.

Because of my personal experience I know mixed theological ministry teams can work, can work very well, and that everyone will grow in the process of doing ministry and mission together.

Conflicts on Mixed Theological Teams

A person’s theological position makes a really great difference in how that person ministers the Gospel. Some today try to minimize the value of theology and strongly held opinions, ignorantly thinking that theology makes little difference in doing ministry.

Nothing could be further from the truth! Once people are on a team having to strategize how to reach a group of people, deciding on how the Gospel will be presented, and then actually presenting the Gospel from a variety of biblical passages in multiple conversations with unbelievers, the truth can be easily seen and felt—doctrine matters a whole lot!

Here are some of the most important and defining questions separating the two theological systems: How depraved are people? How does this affect them and their ability to respond to the Gospel, or not? What does it mean that God is sovereign and that He choses some for salvation? How do we understand the role of the free will of humanity? What exactly did Jesus’ death and resurrection accomplish? For whom was it designed and how do we see its effects? Can people resist the call of God? What would this look like and how would we respond to real people in the midst of it? Can people fall away from the faith, and if so how do we explain this? What is the basis for a secure salvation?

Benefits of Mixed Theological Teams

Conflict will be inevitable between viewpoints and between us as people. We both want to serve the Lord whole-heartedly and faithfully. And here is one of the greatest benefits of being together, seeing the vitality and reality of one another’s faith in Christ though from a very different evangelical theological system. He or she is also a godly Christian believer!

John 13:34–35 ESV “[Jesus said,] A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Serving this closely with others who hold the opposite view also helps us deepen our own convictions. We are driven to the Word of God to rediscover what the Holy Spirit wrote about Jesus Christ and the work of God in our salvation. This is a really good thing. We are also made better theologians, more humble theologians who can respectfully disagree and learn from one another. Who knows, we may convert the other to the truth of our own view!

Moreover, the debates and discussions we have are no longer only biblical and theological, but practical as well. We are serving on mission together at the same time, praying with one another, and declaring the Gospel to real people for the purpose of God’s glory being revealed!

My teams of mixed theological persuasions have proven my approach over and over. It has been a great blessing for them to work in such an environment and many have told me it was one of the best training and equipping experiences of their lives. They enjoyed being challenged to think more biblically, dialogue more honestly with others, and rejoice above all in the advance of the Gospel! In the end, they had even more confidence that regardless of their differences the basic truths of the Gospel were being proclaimed.

It is also good to be on teams that hold the same view as one’s own, just not exclusively. It is perhaps best to be in a church, or with a mission, that has a clear theological commitment so everyone can move in the same direction. Just make sure to get out once in a while and partner in some ways with those of the other viewpoint.