When Leaders Lead, and When They Don’t
Author: Stan Guthrie
April 11, 2024
Despite the danger of running into the occasional internet troll, I like to post Christian stuff—quotes, verses, and thoughts—regularly on social media sites such as Facebook and X. I figure the more that the Word of God gets into the public square, and the more open I am about my relationship with Christ, the better. Most of the time, the responses are pretty routine. Occasionally, however, they grab my attention. I was surprised recently when I posted what I thought was an uncontroversial, straightforward verse, Hebrews 13:17:
Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.
The response of one Christian woman I know sparked an online discussion both interesting and sad. She apparently felt that most of her leaders in the church have not been worthy of their positions. I reproduce our exchange here (slightly edited for clarity and charity) as food for thought, and prayer.
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Michelle: Honest question: How does this verse work itself out when you have a toxic leader, such as _______?
Stan: I thought about that. I think the assumption here is that the leaders are generally honest and godly (if not perfect). However, there are plenty of warnings about false teachers in the New Testament, as well as admonitions to shepherd the flock gently and with compassion.
Michelle: Some use this passage to call for unblinking obedience, and use it as a club to punish whistleblowers. sigh
Stan: I think every verse in the Bible can be twisted in one way or another. But as this verse says, they will have to give an account to God, and all the pretense, bullying, and manipulation will do them no good at all.
Michelle: Sadly, I have had very few leaders who kept watch over my soul in the four-plus decades I've followed Jesus. Perhaps that’s the point at which many of us need to grow in discernment: are these leaders keeping watch/shepherding us? Or are they building their own kingdom, using our lives as building material?
Stan: I'm very sorry that has been your experience. Christine and I have been blessed with mostly competent and godly leadership during our Christian lives. My biggest disappointment has not been leaders who are overbearing, but leaders who hung back, didn't get involved in our lives, and didn't know us or know how to help. I'd like to see more discipline in the church, not less—but given all the horror stories that have come out in recent years, perhaps that's no longer possible. It seems we cannot trust one another, which is exactly what Scripture calls us to do. We have a real problem discerning Christian character from its counterfeits, and so lives are ruined and the reputation of the church is destroyed.
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So, thank God for our leaders who are responsible to watch over our souls. May we willingly obey our leaders in the church, praying with discernment and hope that they would serve faithfully and with joy.
Stan Guthrie is minister of communications at New Covenant Church in Naperville.
Photo by Pawan Sharma on Unsplash.
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