According to well-known church consultant Aubrey Malphurs, in
his book Leading Leaders (Baker Books, 2005), the key to effective leadership in the vast majority of today's churches lies as much with their governing boards as it does with their pastor. But Malphurs is concerned that many churches are led by those who volunteer because there is a need, yet they have little leadership training to help them succeed. He asks, “How can well-meaning but sometimes ill-prepared lay people guide the path of a church body?”
While church boards are necessary, I doubt serving in this role has ever generated the kind of enthusiasm that other forms of church ministry do. Perhaps if boards reacquainted themselves with some crucial theological and practical aspects of church leadership, those involved in this vital ministry might feel reinvigorated. Therefore, let me illustrate some universal “best practices” of boardmanship in local churches, drawing upon insights from Malphurs book and the Bible:
- Praying (Malphurs, pp. 66-67). Boards can lead by praying for the congregation, for the pastor and staff, and for themselves. Taking their cue from Epaphras, board members can lead through wrestling in prayer for everyone’s strength of faith, maturity and full perception of God’s complete will for them (cf. Col. 4:12). Paul urges the churches at Colossae and Laodicea to “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ…” (Col. 4:2-3 NIV).
- Monitoring or Overseeing (Malphurs, pp. 67-70). In the spirit of the way Paul instructed Timothy to “Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers” (1 Tim. 4:16 NIV), there are four crucial areas that require board oversight:
- The church’s spiritual condition: Boards can monitor the church’s spiritual vital signs, such as passion in worship, attentiveness to the Holy Spirit’s voice, relational health, regular and meaningful fellowship and active participation in Christian mission.
- The church’s essential biblical doctrine: All this assumes that board members have a working knowledge of the Bible and theology. Church leaders must remember there are essentials and non-essential doctrines. I recommend taking direction from Mohler’s guidelines for “theological triage.”[1] Boards can offer a different pulse on the congregation’s teaching needs that will help pastors be more relevant.
- The church’s ministry direction and philosophy: Certainly this includes both mission and vision but also the church’s ministry style. A church’s direction and philosophy of ministry is often an area of conflict and intense competition. Someone must clarify what kind of church this is lest strong personalities attempt to highjack it around their own interests.
- The Senior Pastor’s leadership: Depending on the functioning of the church’s governance model, monitoring, encouraging, protecting and evaluating a senior pastor is the board’s responsibility. Good policy along with trust and wisdom in these matters will help ensure the long-term health of a local church’s leadership.
- Deciding (Malphurs, pp. 70-71): A crucial meeting that determined a theological and cultural tenet occurs in Acts 15. Here, the apostles and elders met to consider the question of Gentile observance of Jewish customs in relation to salvation. After much listening and discussion, Scripture records a wonderful phrase: “It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us…” (Acts 15:28), that illustrates the persons involved in and method of vital decision-making in church leadership. Ultimately, it is boards and pastors who should be meeting to make the church’s key decisions in concert with the direction of the Holy Spirit.
- Advising (Malphurs, p. 71): Having been in diverse leadership roles, I have found there is indeed much to gain from several advisers. Proverbs 15:22 states “Without consultation, plans are frustrated, But with many counselors they succeed (NASB). Boards must not shrink back from advising pastoral staff on ministry issues because they believe the pastor knows better. Having been a pastor and now a board member, I can testify that neither party holds the lion’s share of wisdom or expertise on church ministry.
[1] Learn more about this at http://www.albertmohler.com/commentary_read.php?cdate=2004-05-20 (accessed Feb.12, 2008).
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