The Christian Leadership Model Everyone Will Be Talking About One Year From Now

The resignations and/or firings of prominent pastors in the last few years have created a tipping point.  The days of the pastor being primarily influenced by the business community are coming to an end.  The days of delivering a TED Talk and throwing in a Bible verse at the end are coming to end.  The days of the pastor leading through his larger-than-life presence and personality are coming to an end.  The days of the pastor valuing personal freedoms more personal holiness are coming to an end.  A new Christian leadership model which so many have felt intuitively was needed but could not put into words is now emerging.

“Leadership in and of itself is not the end-game in the church world.  There is a higher calling, even higher than leadership… A shepherd is the highest calling in the pastoral world and in the ministry world.”

These are the words of one of NewSpring Church’s four lead pastors Brad Cooper.  Brad recently sat down with INJOY Stewardship Solutions’ Matthew Garrison for a revealing interview in the company’s The Ship Podcast.  NewSpring has been rethinking their entire leadership structure from a biblical model.  As Brad said above, the team is settling in on the highest leadership calling in the pastoral and ministry world is that of a shepherd.

You can listen to their full interview by clicking HERE.  Trust me, it is a must-listen to.

Brad’s thoughts are also incredibly refreshing but at the same time convicting and will challenge many long-held beliefs.  After listening for 40 minutes, I think you will agree with me Shepherding will be The Christian Leadership Model Everyone Will Be Talking About One Year From Now!

The following are 30 statements on being a shepherd – the highest calling for a Christian leader I captured from Matthew’s interview with Brad:

1. “We are trying to engage and contextualize the Gospel, right here and right now.”
2. “Leadership in and of itself is not the end-game in the church world.  There is a higher calling, even higher than leadership.”
3. “A shepherd is the highest calling in the pastoral world and in the ministry world.”
4. “Biblically, what does it look like to be a leader in the local church and Peter calls that in I Peter 5 a shepherd of the flock among us.  Not a leader but a shepherd.”
5. “The leadership for GE, or the leadership for Boeing, or the leadership for Home Depot is going to fall short of what God has called leadership to be in His church.”
6. “Peter, when he’s trying to establish the paramount office of what a leader in the church should be, he chooses the word ‘Shepherd’.  He chose it because Jesus chose it because that’s what Christ asked him to do.”
7. “How do we create shepherds?”
8. “Psalm 78:72 – ‘So he shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart, And guided them with his skillful hands.'”
9. “What does it look like to have integrity of heart and skill of hands?  That’s what we’re really focusing in on.”
10. “There is something about the fountain of the heart that God wants us to lead people out of.  So we’re not just going to use skill and technique.  Skill and technique are important but we’re not going to lean on those foundationally…  There is an integrity of heart necessary prior to leading with skill of hands.”
11. “This is such a conversation about stewardship because we are God’s shepherds of His people.”
12. “When we talk about a theology of leadership at NewSpring Church we want to uphold the idea of being a good shepherd as the ultimate theology of leadership and that biblically, we feel that is the argument that can made.  Over the course of all the meta-narrative of Scripture, God shows Himself to be a shepherd and He uses shepherds.”
13.  “What is the best example (in America) of real-life shepherds?  Coaches come close… Really good moms and dads are really good shepherds but that’s so rare.”
14. “Here’s what shepherds do – they are with the sheep.  They live with the sheep.  They can be touched.  They can be found.  They can be present.”
15. “There is a difference between a hireling and a shepherd.  The hireling had all the tools the shepherd had but the hireling ran because he did not have the right heart when the wolf showed itself.  God is looking for shepherds, not hirelings.”
16. “I’m not a hireling.  I have a calling from the Lord and I’m called to shepherd His flock.”
17. “When the sheep are in danger, when the wolf shows up and wants to scatter the sheep, that’s when you really know the right heart that is found in the shepherd.  Everyone can look the role or play the part until danger shows up.”
18. “Hirelings run and shepherds stay.”
19. “With a staff you do a few things.  The first thing is you direct.  A good shepherd is always directing, leading, pointing people in the right direction.  The 23rd Psalm said the Good Shepherd led to green pastures and still waters.”
20. “Sometimes makes the sheep lie down. The 23rd Psalm says He makes me lie down.”
21. “A good shepherd defends…  They put themselves in harm’s way in order to protect the sheep.”
22. “A good shepherd disciplines.”
23. “The tendency of a leader is to respond and react.  A good shepherd has a plan and idea of where we’re going and what we’re doing.”
24. “(Many pastors) just settle for being a hireling.  I’ll do the minimum and I won’t do the hard work because it’s easier just to take the paycheck.”
25. “There is no such thing as ministry professionals… Every believer is a part of the Body of Christ and every believer has a role.”
26. “It’s got to cascade out of the heart of the leaders.  Period.  If the leaders don’t want that to occur, don’t want that culture to exist, aren’t convicted it should through Scripture, it won’t.  But if it is a conviction of the leaders, it will.”
27. “There are two twin engines at NewSpring – the gatherings that occur and the groups that occur.”
28. “If you’re going to have a home group, which is our Sunday School, in your house, you’ve been trained and understand your calling is to be a shepherd.”
29. “We’ll play the long game.  We’re not trying to build a church for next year in Outreach Magazine.  We’re trying to build a church for our grandchildren which will be thriving and flourishing and carrying the Gospel, the Good News, forward beyond us.  Whether we get any credit for that doesn’t matter.”
30. “I don’t care if my name is elevated as long as the name of Jesus, the Good Shepherd, is elevated and we model that in our leadership because He modeled that for us.”

Wow!!!  This is the leadership narrative Christian leaders need to be talking about.  Shepherds need to be our model.  Your thoughts?

Once again, to hear their full interview on The Ship Podcast, click HERE.  This is a must-listen to episode.

Click HERE or on the image to the left and as a free gift for subscribing to this site, you can receive my new Ebook 1269 Leadership Quotes: Timeless Truths From 2016’s Top Christian Leadership Conferences.  Featured are the Johnny Hunt Mens Conference, ReThink Leadership, Orange and Leadercast Conferences among others.  If applied, these insights will make you an exponentially better leader.  Enjoy!!!