Choosing Church Leaders

Introduction

Some churches have a flat leadership structure. Others have a more hierarchical one. Some are part of a denomination where leaders are chosen at a central level. Others choose their own leaders locally. This is for you if you belong to a church where much of the control lies with local leaders. If so, you will probably be asked to vote for leaders at various levels from time to time. This is my attempt to figure out how that works.

When God allowed the children of Israel to choose Saul as king, it didn’t go so well, did it? So how does God choose leaders? God rules from the top down. His rule is not a democracy.

How Does God Choose Leaders?

He Chooses Them

God chose David. “I have chosen one of his sons to be king” (1 Samuel 16:1) explaining “the LORD looks at the heart.” (v7). He could have just told Samuel who he had chosen and why, but God made Samuel go through all Jesse’s sons before he got to David, the least likely of them all in the eyes of the world. Why? “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD. (Isaiah 55:8).

Moses: “I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.” (Exodus 3). His qualification is that God is with him (v12).

Paul: “This man is my chosen instrument” (Acts 9:15). Again, God chose the least likely.

He Casts Lots

He doesn’t actually. God does not gamble, but sometimes He does reveal His plan for us in this manner. The Urim and the Thummim were placed in the breastpiece of Aaron’s priestly garment and used as a “means of making decisions for the Israelites” (Exodus 28:30). It is a way for us to ensure that it is the will of God, not ours.

Matthias: The disciples nominated Joseph and Matthias as successors for Judas. “Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles” (Acts 1:26).

What Made These Men Good Leaders?

Simple: They followed God. David especially, but even Moses, had a few slip-ups, but as long as they followed God, they did just fine. It is not a coincidence that Jesus called the disciples this way “Come, follow me” (Matthew 4:19).

When a leader follows God, he leads people to God. That is the mission of the church and that applies to the local church as well as the universal church. So how do you know if a person you would consider as a future leader follows God?

It’s a matter of the heart. It has nothing to do with who is most popular, most handsome, richest, loudest or any of those external qualities. God only looks at the heart. Because God is in charge, the question becomes do they have a servant’s heart? Are they willing to serve according to His rule? “Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant,” (Matthew 20:26). Obviously, you cannot just ask people if they have a heart of God. The answers are more likely to reflect the person’s humility or lack thereof more than his or her qualifications. God has provided a way for us to know the heart of other people. It is called community. When we spend time with people, talk to them, we learn about them, what they are thinking, how they make decisions and so on. When we listen to them, it will be revealed if they have a servant’s heart or not.

How Do We Prepare Leaders to Serve?

If you think you might be chosen and would like to serve, I would like to recommend that you seek out a few of the current leaders. Find out from them what kind of things they do, what it is like to be a deacon or a trustee or whatever capacity you might be interested in.

There may be a number of practical things you are expected to do and there may be times when you may have to go through some difficult times dealing with personnel issues or other leaders. When that happens, it is vital to have a solid foundation in the Word of God. Spend time with the Lord daily. Go into your room, close the door and pray, but also be prepared to seek the counsel of more mature leaders.

Lead Like Jesus Revisited

Ken Blanchard has written a number of books on leadership. He is not only a well known and respected expert in church leadership context, he is also regarded as an authority on the subject by corporate leaders.

You will come away with practical ways make disciples who make disciples.