Contents
ABSTRACT....................................................................................................................................1
RESPONSE....................................................................................................................................3
REFLECTION...............................................................................................................................3
ACTION.........................................................................................................................................4
BIBLIOGRAPHY..........................................................................................................................7
1
Abstract
The three-dimensional leader begins by defining what Christian leadership is. From the
beginning, the definition is laid out as a style of leadership that wishes to emulate Christ and how
he led.1 The book's authors attempt to look at this more profoundly and examine what Jesus
practiced as a leader specifically. From the physical world, they established that all tangible
things have three dimensions, and just as tangible things have three dimensions, so does
Christian leadership. The three dimensions of Christian leadership are biblical character, spiritual
power, and practical methods.2 The book is divided into three sections with four chapters each.
Beginning in the first section, the authors expound on the first of three dimensions that
focus on Biblical leadership. The first chapter is about answering the call to leadership,
understanding motives, and keeping motives pure. Leadership becomes respectable through
living the virtues outside the institution and inside the home.3 Chapter two affirms that the
Christian leader must live an integral life in their intimacy and home life, practicing what they
espouse in public in their private affairs. The testimony of a leader is impacted by what non-
Christians think of them as well. The Christian leader is called to consider that the world is
watching for consistency of character and to see if the leader's confession matches their
character.4 The section ends with the last two chapters discussing the leader's temperament and
ability to use God's word. The leader's temperament should be welcoming, even-tempered, and
free of addictions and sinful habits. The leader should be able to use and interpret scripture
1 Rod Dempsey, Dave Earley, and Adam McClendon. The Three-Dimensional Leader: A Biblical,
Spiritual, and Practical Guide to Christian Leadership. (Bellingham, WA: Kirkdale Press, 2023), 1.
2 Dempsey, Earley, and McClendon, Three-Dimensional Leader, 1.
3 Ibid., 19.
4 Ibid., 33.
2
rightly, showing maturity and faithfulness to Christ. The leader's character is not spotless
perfection; instead, it is a consistent commitment to be conformed to Jesus.
Section Two focuses on the Spiritual Power of the leader. The leader's power comes from
cooperating with the Holy Spirit, seeing God perform in ways that humans cannot in their
power.5 The power-filled leader must live the word of God, taking care of their soul and planning
to assimilate the word of God. Christian leaders must have a life centered on God's word.6
Finally, this section ends with a call to advance God's Kingdom and engage in spiritual warfare.
The advancement of God's Kingdom happens by understanding the realities of the Kingdom of
heaven and committing their life to the service of God's Kingdom. To prioritize God's Kingdom
and their own lives, an organization, and their lives, they look for ways to share the gospel.7
The book's last section focuses on practical methods, vision, goals, planning, and
teamwork.8 Once the leader has identified their personal goals, it is time to make goals for
disciple-making. These goals should be specific, measurable, Awe-inspiring, relevant, and
timed.9 The last two chapters encouraged leaders to join Jesus on his mission and train a team
that will live for Christ's mission. When developing a team for Christ, the leader must ensure
they are not using the world's methods but building a team that works together to make disciples
for Jesus.10
5 Dempsey, Earley, and McClendon, Three-Dimensional Leader, 79.
6 Ibid., 98.
7 Ibid., 118.
8 Ibid., 141.
9 Ibid., 173.
10 Ibid., 205.
3
Response
As I read, many sections of this book resonated with me. I am a relatively new pastor with just
over five years of full-time ministry. In that time, I made a significant number of mistakes. One
of those mistakes was when I took something that was said to me in a very personal way. The
way that I reacted was scorched earth. I broke many of the principles in the chapters about
temperament and a welcoming attitude. Instead of trying to resolve the problem diplomatically
and negotiate, I took it personally and alienated many people with my reaction. As a result, I
wrote a letter to the church board dictating what I would and would not do, basically sending the
message that they do not owe me. Though this was an unfortunate reaction on my part, I learned
from it. I was able to be humble, go back to the table, apologize for my actions, and work with
the leaders so that we can come to an understanding of what is expected of me as the pastor and
how we can work together as a team for the advancement of God's mission in our community.
Another conviction I received from reading this book is that I need to bolster my
devotional life. Maybe my reaction above came from the lack of sitting at the feet of Jesus daily.
I consider myself able and skilled in interpreting the word of God, but it is my time with him that
often suffers. I need to develop the discipline to always come to the master and drink of his well
profoundly daily so that my leadership can function on the overflow of time spent with Jesus.
Reflection
As a leader, it is hard to identify anything this book did not address. This book provides the
service of being an appropriate introduction to spiritual leadership. I needed to ensure that I was
clear on many of the ideas expanded upon in this book. How the ideas were laid out in the book
helps look at different dimensions of leadership. The questions at the end of the chapters helped
with the recall and application of the ideas and life of the reader. The assessment in the appendix
4
of the book is something that can be used to reflect daily. Reviewing each question will help me
ensure I am ready to lead every morning. One of the issues that I have encountered in ministry
and was dealt with in the introduction to the book is that churches have been using leadership
models in corporate America. This has been an issue in my experience with the church I pastor.
Some elders have been successful in Business, which does not always translate to the church's
work.
Another of the ideas that I rarely considered in spiritual leadership is the idea of spiritual
warfare, maybe because it has been abused by televangelists so often that pastors tend to dismiss
it together. The authors analyze the idea of spiritual warfare. Instead of focusing on the
mysticism of spiritual warfare, they even outline ways to know if Satan is battling against the
plans that the Holy Spirit laid on the leader's heart. I appreciate the inventory one can review to
see if spiritual warfare is happening in one's ministry.11
Overall, the authors treated the different aspects of the three dimensions of leadership in a
very detailed and practical way. The topics they chose were timeless but relevant to the modern
struggles that have put leaders out of commission. Among them are sexual purity and the love of
money; these things have cast a shadow on the gospel because they are abused by leaders who
have not taken the time to seek the spiritual power that they need from the Holy Spirit.
Action
In forming my action plan, I want to make sure that I form a plan that will address each
dimension of Christian leadership. The first dimension of Christian leadership addresses the
Biblical character of the leader. I would not describe myself as a hothead. However, there are
buttons that certain people can push that make me forget the proper way that a leader should
answer those struggles. When it comes to personal criticism or anything that has to do with my
11 Dempsey, Earley, and McClendon, Three-Dimensional Leader, 125.
5
family, whether it be from teachers at school or parishioners' critical opinions about my wife,
these things have been able to set me off in the past. For this class, I will be working on being
even-tempered and gentle in my dealings with others. This goal will start with being mindful of
the situations that I know can be triggers for me. When that situation arises, I will have
developed the plan to step back and recognize that this situation traditionally triggers me. Then, I
will proceed to handle this situation in the way that a leader does instead of taking things
personally while at the same time defining the boundaries that need to be set, especially when it
comes to my family.
The second dimension of spiritual leadership is spiritual power. By the end of this class, I want
to have developed a robust personal devotional life with God. One of the unfortunate things that
happens to ministers is that they forget that they need to drink from the well of living water
themselves. Beginning immediately, I will take the first part of my day to read through a Bible
reading plan to hear God speak to me before anything else. Through that Bible reading plan, I
will reflect and apply the scriptures to myself and learn the lessons the Holy Spirit wants me to
learn. After reading, I will take some time in prayer to speak back to God and be charged for the
day so that I can be the husband, father, and pastor of the people who depend on me.
The third dimension of leadership is practical methods. In Chapter 9, the authors dissect
the great commissioner of Jesus. One of the things that I need to improve upon is personal
evangelism in my community. I invest much time in evangelism at our grade school and
participate in felt needs evangelism, but I have neglected to ensure that I am reaching out to the
community in a Biblical manner. So, for the class, I will start 5 Bible studies with adults in my
community seeking to learn scripture and give their lives to Jesus and baptism. I will start by
reaching out to these community members through our church's database, and I will contact them
6
to set up a time to see if they would like to continue to study the Bible and become members of
our church. Not only will this allow me to practice the Great Commission, but it will also be an
opportunity to model to my church that we need to share scripture with people in our community
who want to learn the Bible and become Christians.
