Church Leadership

Leadership is the process by which someone influences one or more people to achieve common goals (Leadership by Hughes et al.). But what happens to the definition if we add the adjective Christian to the noun leadership?

I define Christian leadership as the process by which God moves in and through a Christian to influence others to accomplish God’s purposes (to serve, evangelize, disciple, and love God above all), using God’s Word as the guide. One of the most important contexts where God uses Christians to lead is within a local church.

The resources below focus on how aspiring or current church leaders can lead their churches more effectively. If you serve on an elder board, for example, perhaps you want to read books with your fellow elders, reviewing and discussing one or two chapters per meeting. Doing so not only helps us grow as individuals, but it unifies us as we lead together, teach together, and pray together.

*21 Days of Prayer & Fasting by Gary Rohrmayer (1): If we believe that it is ultimately God who leads his people, then Christian leaders must constantly align themselves with God and his will before springing into action. And the best way to align ourselves with him is through the Word of God, prayer, and fasting in the context of Christian community. This short book provides concrete guidance to reconnect with God and seek his will. There are times to fast in secret, but if you are a Christian leader, do not hesitate to invite all your followers to join you.

The Gospel-Driven Church by Jared C. Wilson (2 or 3): The author outlines principles by which church leaders can evaluate their work in a local church. An excellent place to start if you want to study the motivations and nature of faithful ministry.

*The Spiritual DNA of a Church on Mission by Bob Burton (3 or 4): “In Spiritual DNA of the Church On Mission, author Bob Burton compares the missional foundation of the early church to human DNA. He argues that understanding the Church's missional DNA is the most effective starting point in engaging your church members on God's mission for the sake of total gospel transformation.” The author produced an accompanying workbook.

Activate by Nelson Searcy & Kerrick Thomas with Jennifer Dykes Henson (2 or 3): This book outlines twelve “Big Ideas” to help us rethink our approach to small groups, and it also presents a practical system for implementing a small group ministry.

The Vine Project by Colin Marshall & Tony Payne (2 or 3): As a follow-up to their book The Trellis and the Vine, The Vine Project offers practical advice to help churches prioritize the work of making disciples through proclaiming and explaining the Word of God (the vine), aligning organizational structures to support the work (the trellis).

What Is the Mission of the Church? by Kevin DeYoung & Greg Gilbert (3 or 4): Proclaiming and explaining Jesus’s mission for the church is an ongoing, lifelong responsibility of every Christian leader. The authors guide us with supernatural clarity.

The God Who Goes before You by Timothy Jones & Michael S. Wilder (3 or 4) and Shepherding God’s Flock by Benjamin L. Merkle & Thomas R. Schreiner (eds.) (3 or 4): Two of the best books on the nature and purposes of Christian leadership.