Christ-Centered Church Leadership (Pt. 1)
On October 9th, 2010 Rev. Canon Benoni Mugarura-Mutana was invited to St. Paul’s Church Kisimbiri to share his thoughts on church leadership. As this topic is in line with the mission of the Joy Centre, we bring you excerpts from his teaching. God bless.
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If Christ were the head of your church, how would it be different?
Don’t think metaphorically. Think literally.
If Jesus were really the head of your church, what would change?
The Bible states unequivocally that Jesus is the head of the church.
Ephesians 1:22
And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church.
And in Ephesians 4:15
Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ.
Colossians 1:18
And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.
Believe it or not, Christ is the literal head of the church, his body. Without him as leader and head of the church, the body is just a deformed, pointless torso.
The vision, the breath, the speech and the hearing of the church are the functions of the head: Christ. It is strange therefore, that many leaders in the church who think they can run the church by themselves.
What is our loss if we ignore the headship of Christ?
Vision.
The vision of any church given by the leaders, but only if they are in communion with Christ. Jesus says in Mattew 16:18 “… I will build my church and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” This implies that the building of the community of believer is the responsibility of Christ alone. He is the eyes of the church and the power of believers.
Empowerment.
Jesus baptizes the church with the Holy Spirit. John 20:22 reads: “And with that he breathed on them and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit.’” It is the same thing John the Baptist testifies to in Matthew 3:11 when he says, “I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.”
Wisdom.
We have replace Christ as the head with other things like traditions and our own intellect. Instead of focusing on Christ, we focus on the constitutions and the canons of the church. In the end, our churches are run like businesses and not areas of growth and renewal.
Service.
The extensive explanation of the church working as the body of Christ is found in the same passage that deals with the operation of the gifts of the Holy Spirit in the church (Colossians 1). Manifestations of the gifts of the Holy Spirit only work in the context of a body led by Christ.
Leadership and ministry in the church, received from Christ, is the responsibility of the entire body. Churches are led by one or multiple leaders who work with their congregation to fulfill God’s plan of restoration and salvation of the world.
Where are the Biblical principles from which this comes?
Exodus 18:5-24: Here we have Moses as the principle leader with the priests serving under him.
Acts 6:1-7: This is the New Testament version of the Exodus experience.
There are particular qualifications of leaders in Christ’s body.
- They should be people who filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 6:3). The Bible explains how this quality is evident.
- The fruit they are bearing (Matthew 7:17-20)
- The fruit borne is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23)
They should have wisdom as Paul explains in the following verses:
- 1Corinthians 12:1-11
- 1 Corintians 12:28-30
- Ephesians 4 :11-13
- Romans 12:7-8
- Peter complements this with in 1Peter 4:9-11
There is no doubt that this list is not meant to be exhaustive. There are many more gifts the Holy Spirit he would like to give the church for the ministry in the church.
Notice that the gifts of the Holy Spirit are
- Free
- Given to all Christians
- That all Christians receive the Holy Spirit
- All Christians have spiritual gifts
- All these gifts are for the common good and not for individual benefit
(It is important to know that when the word Christian is used here it means those who are born again. It is not the loose colloquial form used today to describe anyone who goes to church.)
It takes the body of Christ functioning in the power of the Holy Spirit for the manifestation of the
Spiritual gifts related to the ministry of that church.
So, tell me again, if Christ were really the head of your church, what would be different?
