Edited by Jon Zens, Searching Together is a journal published quarterly by Quoir. This issue from 2015 contains thoughts from Jon Zens, Dennis J. Mulkey and T. Austin-Sparks. The excerpt below by Jon Zens is from a section called Christ Alone:Five Challenges Every Group Will Face. You can obtain this copy by clicking here.
A brochure promoting a conference put on by the Willow Creek Church in Illinois announced, “Thousands of leaders across North America gather together to hear speakers from all over the world, participate in interactive dialogue, and have practical training-which focuses on helping the church raise up leaders, as well as helping leaders in churches develop their leadership gifts.”
The truth is, since 250 AD the visible church has been all about leaders. If you read church histories, the great bulk of the content is about this leader and that leader. It cannot be denied that what church has been about is “leadership.” The thousands of books about leadership and the many aspects of “pastoral leadership” testify loudly to the lop-sided emphasis on this subject that dominates the church landscape.
Jesus, however, did not share our inherited views about leadership. When talking about the religious leaders of His day, He noted that they liked to be greeted publicly as “Rabbi, Rabbi” (in our day it would be “Reverend, Reverend”). Christ told His audience, “don’t be called ‘Rabbi,’ for I alone am your Teacher, and you are all brothers and sisters.”
He went on to assert, “don’t call anyone ‘Father’ on earth, for One is your Father in heaven. Neither be called ‘leaders,’ for One is your Leader, the Anointed One. The greatest among you will be the one who takes care of others.”
Jesus told us rather clearly not to be called “leaders,” yet history of the church is mostly about people wanting positions with titles so that they can be set above others as “leaders.” Even in groups meeting outside mainline churches, the emphasis often still falls on “leaders,” and much energy is devoted to continually training more non-leaders to become “leaders.”
How can we expect it to be clear that Jesus is our Leader when we spend so much time focusing on human leaders? Our Lord specifically said that calling humans “leaders” would detract and deflect from His singular Leadership. Typical concerns about “leaders” should never be an issue in organic groups. Function together for a period of time as a priesthood of all believers, and see what He reveals in your life together down the pike.
The topic of “leadership” comes up all the time in groups on Facebook. In this instance I responded, and my thoughts speak to why worrying about leadership is vastly premature in believing groups.
[David Munley:] In your view, how does God develop leaders?
[Jon:] Given the flow of church history and the accretion of assumptions, this is a question with many layers of concerns that could be addressed.
But in a nutshell, I would say that Father is not focused on developing leaders. His purpose is to see Christ formed in His people. When believers function as simply brothers and sisters in a community for a length of time, the expression of Christ and specific aspects of giftedness blossom in His Bride.
It is my observation that this is the crucial dimension absent from the great majority of “church leaders.” They have rarely lived out the life of Christ in the body for sustained periods of time as non- leaders. The NT speaks about “knowing” one another. This reality comes only through long-term relationships. A huge problem is that many leaders are not “known.” You know a person when you’ve seen them function in all the vicissitudes of life as a brother or sister.
As I said in 58 to 0-How Christ Leads Through the One Anothers: “In the NT, the organic way for everything to develop is through the functioning of all the living stones together. To focus on leaders without having first a functioning body is to put the proverbial cart before the horse-with far-reaching dire consequences. If a group is filled with Jesus and his guidance, ‘leaders’ will probably not be on their minds; if a group lacks the fullness of Jesus, they will probably become fixated on the need for ‘leaders.’”
[Billie Ritter Ford:] I think a leader is one who steps out ahead of the group and says let’s try it this way.
[Jon:] That’s true, but what many miss is that anyone in the body can say, “let’s try this.” Everyone participates in the Spirit’s leadership. We are used to just looking at a few as “leaders.” But the Lord brings leadership out of all the saints as time goes on-if the open opportunity and loving atmosphere are present. Spirit-leadership can be seen as shifting and floating among the whole priesthood.
Father removed Moses and Elijah from the scene, and when the three disciples looked up, they saw only Jesus, and the voice from the Shekinah glory proclaimed, “This is My beloved Son, hear Him.” How could our One focus be any clearer?
The body of Christ must listen to the Lord. Each person in the body, and the body as a whole is able to hear the Son’s voice. We want to hear from our Leader. In order for His leadership to prosper among us, we must stop looking to one or a few, and cease calling people “leaders.”
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