Empire Baptist Temple

Church Oversight

Dr. Ronald L. Tottingham

In 1996, I attended a military officers "Leadership School" at Maxwell Air Force Base, the Air University Campus of the U.S. Air Force. While listening, some interesting thoughts began surfacing, which I'd like to hand off - just for thought.

Is there a difference between leadership and management? Yes, there is. How do the differences affect our church leadership and how do such principles fit into a biblical perspective? Are churches to be led or managed? Are pastors leaders, or managers, or both?

The military (and corporate) structure in upper realms are keenly searching for leaders and leadership, and are searching for more successful management. Many books have been written to help define these two key issues and to help in training or teaching these principles. Also, the writer who seems to condense such deep and seeming insurmountable ideas into simple "one-liners" will be a millionaire and quoted in every corporate management bulletin and training seminar in the universe.

What is leadership in condensed form? It's vision, emotion, inspiration, motivation - the formulators. All in all, leadership seems to exercise the qualities mostly found in divine input. God is the supreme leader. True leadership traits I've studied, read about and learned in the classroom are basically traits of the Godhead and very biblical in concept. Personally, I think this is interesting. No wonder those in the secular realm find it difficult to understand or grasp the true art of leadership. Now, there have been leaders who "knew not the Lord" but any list would be shorter than we would think. Far more of the world's leaders, true leaders, have been those professing faith in Jesus Christ. Now isn't that interesting?

Most corporate structures are built on and run on built-in management, not leadership. After studying leadership/management now for many years I'm beginning to conclude that management is more of the "natural man" and true leadership more of a "divine man" (or born again - spiritually regenerated man).

I'm inclined to wonder if corporate management could not be a deadly infection-replacing leadership which diseases Christianity with denominationalism, a creeping paralysis. Corporate management in churches becomes management or deacon management or congregation managing the churches. This then moves to Democratic management of non-spiritual people managing to accommodate the carnal desires of the congregation. Could I be right? I'm wondering.

It is interesting how deteriorated "Christianity" has become managed Christianity, managed "traditions" that management has set and protects. Historic Baptist pastors are by and large leaders - innovators, inspirers and the churches these "leaders" pastor are alive, visionary, motivated with mission and life. Could it be that God's men need to be leaders driven by the gift the Lord gives with His selected call into the ministry? Rather than management focused and/or managed by the congregations. Does this mean management is not necessary or desired? Oh, no, that's not what I mean. But leadership IS a top issue for God's men to develop and exercise as shepherd of one of God's Historic Baptist churches. Management skills are necessary, but the vision and inspiration of leadership is required to keep life in a church. Management without leadership will evolve downward to the spiritual death of corporate traditions sooner or later.

The natural man is management prone. In spiritual revival leadership emerges, to decline to managing, entangles itself in committees of common people ruled by common goals. I Cor. 3:1-3, James 4:1-3