How Shall We Lead the Church?

In this Pneuma Review conversation, church planter Victor Cuartas asks, what do Spirit-empowered leaders look like?

There is an urgent need for equipping leaders in global missions. Leadership is about service and influence. We found in Jesus the best example to follow in global missions. This article will focus on the example of Jesus in training and releasing others for ministry. This paper will conclude with different perceptions in regards to power.

The Kingdom of God in the Scriptures

When analyzing the teachings of Christ, one can see clearly throughout the Gospels the theme about the Kingdom of God. Jesus’ theme was the good news of the Kingdom of God, which was presented clearly by Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Luke records Christ’s own words to describe His purpose with “I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, for I was sent for this purpose” (Luke 4:43, NASV). “The kingdom of God in the Gospels means, God in His sovereign grace invading history in order to save His people from their sins and woes.”¹

Without a doubt the central theme of the teaching of Jesus is the coming of the kingdom of God. This expression is found in sixty-one separate sayings in the Synoptic Gospels.² Counting parallels to these passages, the expression occurs over eighty-five times. It also occurs twice in John 3:3, 5. It is found in such key places as the preaching of John the Baptist, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt 3: 2); Jesus’ earliest announcement, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”³ The prayer Jesus taught his disciples, “Thy kingdom come” (Matt 6:10); in the Beatitudes, “For theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matt 5: 3-10); at the Last Supper, “I shall never again drink of the fruit of the vine until that day, when I drink it anew in the kingdom of God” (Mark 14:25); and in many other of Jesus’ parables.⁴

One can also consider the kingdom of God in terms of the importance for Israel. In fact, “The symbol of the kingdom evoked in Israel the remembrance of God’s activity, whether as Creator of the Cosmos, the creator of Israel in history, or ultimately as agent of God’s final intervention at the end of history.”⁵ Thus, the relevance of the kingdom of God is very important.

There are two important aspects of the kingdom of God. Many scholars refer to the kingdom of God as “the already but not yet.” These are the present (already) reality and the future (not yet) of the kingdom. Every believer is already enjoying God’s kingdom, however the fulfillment of the kingdom will take place with the second coming of the Lord (John 14:3).

How should we lead the church? In this Pneuma Review conversation, Dr. Victor H. Cuartas describes how to expand the vision of the local church to reach the world.

Introduction

God’s plans for His beloved Church are marvelous. One of the most important aspects in the life of the church is leadership. Leadership is about serving and influencing people to advance God’s kingdom. This article will focus on important principles to lead missional congregations. What are the characteristics of a missional church? This article will begin with a brief description of the importance of the Trinity in both global and local (glocal) missions. Then, the author will describe significant principles of a missional church. Next, we will look at some considerations in regards to the life of the missional leader. This paper will conclude with some practical recommendations to lead churches glocally.

The Importance of the Trinity in Mission

God has a Missional Plan

God loves the families and nations of the earth. He has a missional plan with His creation. That is the reason why He sent His only Son to die for us on the cross. His plan was about redemption and salvation. “He sent His Son for this purpose and He sends the Church into the world with the message of the gospel for the same purpose.”¹

Jesus’ Missional Leadership

Jesus is our great example to follow in missional leadership. “One of the challenges that we may face is to be driven by personal interest rather than kingdom principles.”² There are several accounts in the Bible that describe Jesus’ urgency to meet the needs of the people. He always was willing to go and bless the needy regardless of the circumstances. Jesus went out and saw the needs of the people. Thus, every believer needs to follow Jesus’ example. “But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd” (Matt 9:36, emphasis added).

Jesus called the disciples to fulfill His Father’s will. The verb “called” in the Greek is proskaleomai, which means (1) to call to, (2) to call to one’s self, or (3) to bid to come to one’s self.³ The NKJV translates the word as “called” (Mark 3:13; 6:7a). Jesus invited “those He Himself wanted” (Mark 3:13). The initiative lay not with the disciples but with the Master. Jesus chose and prepared normal people to change the world. Therefore, the disciples were called by Jesus for a specific purpose: “to preach the message of Christ and His love locally and globally.”