Tag: leadership

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Adam, Eve, and Paul: Discerning the Role of Women in the Mission of God

A Theological Reflection on 1st Timothy 2:11-15

Regarding Paul’s writings about the role of women in the church, William Mounce has written, “If it could be proven that elsewhere Paul allows women to teach… authoritatively within the context of the household of God, then it would have to be concluded that Paul is inconsistent or [has] been misunderstood.”[1] L. T. Johnson has suggested that Paul was “nervous” about the role of women in the church. He offers a very helpful discussion on the various hermeneutical options that inform interpretation. He concludes that the only viable option “is to engage the words of Paul in a dialectical process of criticism within the public discourse of the church, both academic and liturgical.”[2]

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Pastoral Bonds are Never Broken

Throughout life and ministry we meet many people. One of the things I have learned through the years is that it is amazing how certain people continue to cross our paths. My first pastorate was in Attapulgus, Georgia, a small town just north of Tallahassee, Florida. We served there just less than two years. But in those two years we met people that remain a part of our lives today. When we left Attapulgus, it never occurred to me that we would return over twenty years later as their district bishop. In that capacity, I was responsible for guiding them through a pastoral appointment process. The families of that small church continue to be a significant part of our lives.

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Chrism, Charismata, and Character

Peer Accountability – Sanctification through Community

Paul charged the Ephesian church elders: “Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood” (Acts 20:28). His warning is not to guard the flock from the devil, but from toxic leaders within the church: “…savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them” (Acts 20:29-30). Here we discern two aspects of guarding the flock. First, church leaders must exercise sober caution in the initial placement of leaders in ministry. Paul places the responsibility for dealing with toxic leadership squarely upon the bishops and elders of the church. He warns, “Do not lay hands upon anyone too hastily and thereby share responsibility for the sins of others; keep yourself free from sin” (1 Timothy 5:22). When the bishops of the church fail to guard against toxic leaders, they become complicit toxic leaders.

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A REFLECTION – Firestorm: Preventing and Overcoming Church Conflicts

This book should be required reading for every ministerial candidate. I have read dozens of good books on conflict resolution in the church, but none better than Firestorm. The narrative style makes the principles of conflict resolution accessible to all readers. Ron Susek’s story of Pastor Steven Gates and Central Baptist Church is the narrative in which Susek weaves much pastoral wisdom. The presentation is so straightforward that a pastor, or church leader, could easily use this material for sermons or training church leadership.

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The Pentecostal Bishop

The title of bishop is used to designate a person who is charged with oversight of a local congregation (pastor) and/or multiple congregations. The term “bishop” (episkopos) is used in the New Testament only six times. Five of these occurrences are Pauline and speak to oversight of the church (Acts 20:28; Philippians 1:1; 1 Timothy 3:1ff; and Titus 1:7).  The fourth occurrence is Petrine and speaks to the ministry of Christ as he who is “Shepherd and Guardian of your souls” (1 Peter 2:25).  In his farewell address to the church elders at Ephesus, the Apostle Paul exhorted, “Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood” (Acts 2:28). Here Paul offers a paradigm for understanding the ministry of bishop in the apostolic church.

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