Multiplying Leaders

Churches do not grow by multiplying members. Churches grow by multiplying leaders. This is not just a church growth strategy, it is a biblical imperative.

And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also. 2 Timothy 2:2

• Developing leadership is the job of the local church.

Churches should be growing. The Great Commission has a notable sense of geographical and numerical expansion. As the church expands, so much the leaders within the church. Jesus told the disciples to reproduce themselves (make disciples). Church leadership provides the base upon which the mass of the congregation is built. If you do not continue to build leadership within the church, growth will stop and eventually the congregation will diminish and die.

• Developing leadership requires an understanding of and a commitment to using spiritual gifts.

Everyone is called to serve. Paul clearly teaches this in 1 Corinthians 12. If this is the case, then we need to find places (create jobs if necessary) in which even new believers can serve. There will be more demanding places of leadership within the local church that require more advanced levels of spirituality and maturity, but everyone needs to be serving. Our goal must be to have 100% participation in Great Commission ministry. It is an unattainable goal in the local church, but the nature of the spiritual gifts, the functions of the church, and the needs of the world around us demand that we keep working toward that goal.

• Developing leadership means that we must do discipleship more deliberately and quickly.

We are often painstakingly slow in the work of discipleship. Discipleship demands regular personal contact. It require teaching spiritual truth, doctrine, and Bible content. It demands showing people how to do ministry. Paul won people, discipled them, and left them in charge of local churches often in very short periods of time. While we want to avoid placing novices in positions like deacons and pastoral roles, it should not take decades for people to be ready to fill these roles.

• Developing leadership demands we stop apologizing when we ask people to serve.

If you cannot ask people to serve without apologizing, you probably do not belong in pastoral ministry. People in our churches work in jobs all week long to make money and put food on the table. The net result of that job is earthly–bound to this world. When we equip and place people in the ministry of any kind, we are giving them the opportunity to make an eternal difference in the lives of others. They are not doing us (pastors) a favor through their service, we are being a blessing to them. We are giving them an additional way for their lives to have eternal impact. If we ask people to serve as if they are doing us a personal favor, they will come to believe that is all ministry is!

• Developing leadership demands on-the-job training.

One of the remarkable aspects of Jesus’ ministry with the disciples was how quickly he sent them out to preach two by two. By any standards we might hold, they were not ready. He sent them out anyway. Then he brought them back, and taught them. It is foolish for us to think that we can fully prepare people to lead in the local church “in classroom” and then send them out without continuing to teach them as I go.

We should think of ourselves as coaches rather than just preachers. A coach teaches, then sends the players out to play. He encourages and motivates as necessary. He instructs during the game. He reviews and continues to teach all through the season and off-season. Jesus did this with His disciples and Paul did it with those to whom he ministered.

• Developing leadership demands trust.

Some young mothers can never quite trust their children to do chores around the house correctly. It is easier for mom to do it herself. It’s true. It is easier to do it herself—for now. But if she does this her children will never learn and she will do everything for them forever. Worse yet, she will fail in her primary role as a mother—preparing her children for life. Trusting new leaders accepts the fact that “newbies” will make mistakes. Those mistakes are teaching opportunities to help new leaders grow. Trust is not based upon an expectation of perfection, but on an understanding of imperfection and the willingness to teach through failures and mistakes.

• Developing leadership demands faith.

Every pastor, at some point, has gotten burned by someone he has trusted to lead. Doing the work of ministry requires us not only to take this risk but also to endure this hardship. Jesus had Judas, Paul had many who did him damage. He even mentions some by name—Demas, Alexander, Diotrophes, and others. The only way to avoid this risk, is to cease developing leaders and that would be disobedience to our Lord. So we must forge ahead enthusiastically, with confidence in Him to protect us as we do His bidding. Our faith must be in our Lord to protect us as we face the hazards and discouragements along the way.

One of the hardest things I have had to face in ministry is to prioritize leadership development. It is hard to change my job description and let others do the work of ministry. I preach a lot about discipleship and leadership development. I am preaching to myself as much as anyone else.  How about you?