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Leadership Development Plan
Biblical Foundation of Christian Leadership (Liberty
University)
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LIBERTY UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF DIVINITY
Leadership Development Plan
Submitted to Dr. Rod Earls,
in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the completion of the course
LEAD 510
Biblical Foundations of Leadership
by
Anissa Chambers
March 3, 2019
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Contents
Introduction....................................................................................................................................2
Theology of Leadership.................................................................................................................3
Philosophy of Leadership..............................................................................................................7
Methods of Leadership..................................................................................................................5
Mission of Leadership...................................................................................................................5
Ministry Culture............................................................................................................................5
Leadership Development Plan......................................................................................................5
Conclusion......................................................................................................................................7
Bibliography....................................................................................................................................8
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Introduction
Leadership is a part of everyday life. Engstrom explains that defining leadership is
difficult, “but the one characteristic common to all leaders is the ability to make things happen.”1
There are examples from world leaders, to executives on Wall street, to Pastor’s at the local
church all the way to the family. There are examples of great leaders and examples of terrible
and wicked leaders. However, leadership from the Christian perspective stands out from the rest
of the world if done correctly and can change lives not just here on earth but for eternity. Early
explains we live with the lie that the only way to be happy, to be fulfilled, accomplish our
dreams or have a great career is to make ourselves the center of our universe.2 He continues by
saying it is bigger than then all of that because “The real business of life is glorifying God and
being used by Him to transform unbelievers into people whose great delight in life is to know
and trust Him.”3 Matt Thomas in his article The Indispensable Mark of Christian Leadership
says, “that a leader’s actions combined with an agenda to promote God’s kingdom by
influencing others marks successful and successive Christian leadership. The indispensable mark
of Christian leadership is the combined effort and action and agenda purposing to intentionally
influence others.”4 He goes on to explain that this is the kind of leadership that Jesus lived out
and presented, not from words but from actions.5
The Bible is full of people who were both good and bad leaders and men who were and
who grew into amazing leaders. Jesus was our ultimate example of what true Christian
1 T.W. Engstrom, The Making of a Leader. (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing, 1976), 25.
2 Dave Earley and David Wheeler, Evangelism is. (Nashville, TN: B&H Publishing Group, 2014),
13. 3 Ibid., 13.
4 Matt Thomas, “The Indispensable Mark of Christian Leadership: Implications from Christ’s Methods
of Leadership Development in Mark’s Gospel,” (Perichoresis 16, no. 3, 2018). 108. Accessed on March 2, 2019
from https://doi.org/10.2478/perc-2018-0019.
5 Ibid.
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leadership should look like. A Christian leader is one who is a follower of Christ and has
submitted himself to the Lordship of Christ.6 According to Forrest and Roden it is not as simple
as looking for the word “leader” in the Bible.7 God has called all of us to some form of
leadership, even as far back as creation when God gave us charge over his creation.8
John Maxwell says, “leadership…is an invitation to grow as a leader.”9 To understand
this invitation we must look at what the nature of being a Christian leader looks like. In this
paper we will discuss the theology, philosophy, methods and mission. We will also look at the
ministry culture and finish with a leadership development plan which will show how to
accomplish the purpose for our calling and fulfilling our commission of reaching the world with
the Gospel of Jesus.
Theology of Leadership
If the “Real Business of Life”10 as Early puts it is bigger than us and it always invites all
of us to be leaders in some form or fashion, we must know what the biblical pattern shows us
regarding true leadership. Jesus himself called all his disciples and gave them an invitation to
follow him in Matthew 4:19 when he said, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”11
This very invitation points to leadership. Myles Monroe says if you want to know the purpose of
something you must get into the heart of the creator for that purpose.”12 Since leadership is
something that came from God, then it stands to reason that we must get into the heart of God to
6 Aubrey Malphurs, Being Leaders: The Nature of Authentic Christian Leadership (Grand Rapids,
MI: Baker Book House Co., 2003), 15.
7 Benjamin K. Forrest and Chet Roden, Biblical Leadership: Theology for the Everyday Leader (Grand
Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 2017), 25.
8 Ibid., 33.
9 John Maxwell, 5 Levels of Leadership, (New York, NY: Center Street Hachette Book Group, 2013), 43.
10 Early and Wheeler (2014), 13.
11 Unless otherwise noted, all biblical passages referenced are in the New American Standard
Bible (Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, 2008).
12 Myles Munroe, In Pursuit of Purpose, (Shippensburg, PA: Destiny Image Publishers Inc., 2015)
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know His heart about being a Godly Christian leader and this can be done through reading His
Word.
Leadership in the Old Testament were ordinary people who were given larger than life
jobs to lead God’s people. Forest and Roden explained that the concept of leadership is more
than just the term “leader” throughout the Bible,13 but it is character and qualities which were
developed in people like Moses, Solomon, Joshua, Debra, David, Nehemiah, Gideon and
Joseph. God empowered these men to be leaders and to guide and steward the earth according to
Genesis 1:28, “God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the
earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every
living thing that moves on the earth.” God never does anything without purpose you can see this
in the world in which we live. God is the ultimate leader and has the absolute rule and
sovereignty over all the earth and His directives are to be followed.14
In the New Testament, although the word “leader” is not used, the roles came from
either calling or experience.15 As Christian leaders we know that Jesus was the greatest leader
and our pattern to follow. We also understand that a Christian leader is one who is a follower of
Christ and has submitted himself to the Lordship of Christ.16 Malphurs says “To be a Christian
Leader, one must first be a Christian.”17
In the New Testament, we see Jesus served and led his disciples through humility, love
and relationship. Jesus also showed leadership through the ultimate gift of love in His self-
sacrifice for us all. He then empowered his disciples and followers to do what he did. We see
13 Forrest and Roden (2017), 30.
14 Ibid.
15 Ibid., 305.
16 Malphurs, 2003, 15.
17 Ibid., 15.
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these same attributes in the examples like Peter, James, Paul and other first century leaders of the
church. Frances Hesselbein says, “leadership is much less about what you do, and much more
about who you are.”18
A leader is someone who has some form of influence over someone else. Leadership in
the world is all about power and gaining more. Although there is some commonality within
both Christian and Secular leadership, Christian leadership looks a lot different. “While secular
leadership may utilize moral and biblical principles in their models, Christian leadership possess
a quality beyond the implementation of principles, and distinctively emphasizes the heart and
actions of the leader.”19 Philippians 2:3-7 says, “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit,
but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely
look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in
yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not
regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-
servant, and being made in the likeness of men.” Malphurs says, “Christian leaders are servants
with credibility and capabilities, who are able to influence people in a particular context to
pursue their God-given direction.”20 Howell says, “greatness in God’s kingdom consists in
imitating the Son of man who came not to be served, but to serve.”21 1 Peter 5:2-5 says,
“shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight not under compulsion, but
voluntarily, according to the will of God; and not for sordid gain, but with eagerness; nor yet as
lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock. And when
the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. You younger men,
18 Maxwell, 2013. 45.
19 Thomas, 2018, 108.
20 Malphurs, 2003
21 Don N. Howell Jr., Servants of the Servant: A Biblical Theology of Leadership (Eugene, OR: WIPF
& Stock Publishers, 2003), Wipf..
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likewise, be subject to your elders; and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one
another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” This verse discusses
and explains servant leadership which is in the heart of God towards being a Christian leader and
especially the last part of the verse that talks about clothing ourselves the humility towards one
another. “To obey Jesus’ call to servanthood would involve a radical surrender of one’s natural
pursuit of comfort, wealth, and recognition.”22 It calls us to die to ourselves Galatians 2:20 says,
I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the
life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave
Himself up for me.”
Jesus was the ultimate leader and showed us the principles in which to walk as Christian
leaders. One of the greatest stories in the New Testament is when Jesus took the role of a
servant and washed his disciples’ feet. John 13:5 which says, “Then He poured water into the
basin, and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel with which He was
girded.” We now see this same principle being exemplified through Jesus to his own disciples
whom he was training to be the beginning leaders of the church. Jesus also said in Mark 10:45
“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom
for many.” We know and understand that leadership particularly in the gospels was “chiefly
about discipleship.”23 Mark pointed to the fact that Jesus was training his disciples for ministry.24
Mark 3:14 says, “And He appointed twelve, so that they would be with Him and that He could
send them out to preach.” Jesus was training his disciples and was showing them how to lead as
a servant.
22 Ibid.
23 Forrest and Roden, 2017, 332.
24 David Black and Thomas Lea, The New Testament: It’s Background and Message. (Nashville,
TN: Broadman and Holman Publishers, 1996), 143.
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A Godly leader is one that will disciple people and teach them how to do the same. C.W.
Perry says, “Leadership is accepting people where they are, then taking them somewhere.”25
This is what Jesus did with the disciples and what the disciples later did with others. Jesus
when
he was getting ready to leave gave the disciples some of the most important information when
he said in Acts 1:8, “but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and
you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the
remotest part of the earth.” He sent them out with the great commission and part of this
commission was to teach others to do what Jesus did. It was His example through being a
servant leader that allowed them to become the great fathers of the faith and spread the gospel to
all parts of the world.
Forrest and Roden says, “Leaders submit their authority (and responsibility) to the
sovereignty of God.” Leaders are submitted to authority and no matter what we must submit
ourselves to the sovereignty of God.26
Philosophy of Leadership
Understanding the philosophy of leadership is understanding first the theology of Godly
leadership. It is what is built out of the theology of Christian leadership and will frame the
ministry that you build as a Christian leader. Jesus taught us what leadership is, not from
speaking but from what He did. “For example, the actions of [Jesus] in the Gospel of Mark is all
important to the meaning of the Gospel, for we learn who Jesus is not so much from what he
says as from what he does. Christian leadership as modeled by Jesus, is a reflection of who he
was and what he does.”27
25 Maxwell, 2013, 16.
26 Benjamin Forrest and Chet Roden, Biblical Leadership Theology for the Everyday Leader (Grand
Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 2017), 258.
27 Thomas, 2018, 108.
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One characteristic of Jesus was that he lived out his life with the disciples, “Jesus knew
that the only way to perpetuate truth was to pass it on, so he set out to personally train his
disciples.”28 We see that it was personally investing into their lives. This investment of His life
is mentorship. “It was Jesus’ concentrated focus on the individual and the twelve that uniquely
marked his leadership.”29 Thomas goes on to explain that in Mark 3:14 which says, “And He
appointed twelve, so that they would be with Him and that He could send them out to preach,”
the word appointed there really is a term used for the “creation of something new.”30 Which
means that He was creating or making His disciples. Jesus was purposeful in His intent of
creating His disciples for the purpose of sharing the gospel and he did this by sharing his life.
Paul, like Jesus, believed in this relational style of leadership. Forest and Roden shared that
“Paul taught the bible in relationship with those who were on the receiving end of his
instruction. He apparently viewed as inseparable the cognitive and the relational aspects of
Christian leadership.”31
In Christian leadership we must be willing to share our lives with those leaders we are
training who will in turn do the same.
A Christian leader is someone who will walk out his love for those in his care and will
be strong in his faith. 1 Corinthians 16:13 says, “Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith, act like
men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love.” As a leader we must be alert that the
enemy has traps, if we are not careful it could cause us or others to stumble in their faith. We
must be strong in our faith so that we can stand and not fall during the strongest storms that life
28 Ibid., 110.
29 Ibid.
30 Ibid.
31 Forrest and Roden, 2017, 435.
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can throw at us and the ministries that God has entrusted us with. We must also be an example
of His love to those around us.
A Christian leader is also someone who is a servant. When we look at the life of Jesus
we see Jesus taking the role of a servant and washing his disciples feet. John 13:5 which says,
“Then He poured water into the basin, and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them
with the towel with which He was girded.” We know that being a servant leader was a principle
taught in the Old Testament through people like Nehemiah. We now see this same principle
being exemplified through Jesus to his own disciples whom he was training to be the beginning
leaders of the church. Jesus also said in Mark 10:45 “For even the Son of Man did not come to
be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
A good Christian leader will know how to empower his people. Mike Abrashoff states,
“In a nutshell, hard experience has taught me that real leadership is about understand yourself
first, then using that to create a superb organization. Leaders must free their subordinates to
fulfill their talents to the utmost. However, most obstacles that limit people’s potential are set in
motion by the leader and are rooted in his or her own fears, ego needs, and unproductive habits.
When leaders explore deep within their thoughts and feelings in order to understand themselves,
a transformation can take shape.”32 God did not call us to be a one man show, but instead to
release others to do the Great Commission.
Jesus was a great example of empowering his disciples to do what He did. Matthew
28:16-20 says, “And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to
Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them
in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I
32 Maxwell, 2013, 45.
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commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” He empowered his
disciples to go and do what He did on the earth.
A Christian leader will walk in persistence and perseverance. In the Old Testament this is
shown to be true through the persistence and perseverance of the leaders. The jobs they were
called to do were always bigger than they were. Moses faced Pharaoh with power from God and
later took the Israelites across the Red Sea on dry land these were unsurmountable odds that
could not have been done in his own power. Joshua marched around the city of Jericho and saw
the walls fell with a shout. Gideon leads a small army against ridiculous odds and saw the
enemy confused and destroy themselves. These leaders faced obstacles that looked impossible to
the normal eye, but with the vision of God they were able to face them, overcome and claim
victory.
A Godly leader must have a personal and real relationship with God.33 This must be the
number one place in their lives in order to accomplish and walk out the plans of God for their
lives and their ministries. In the Old Testament and the New Testament, the leaders followed
God’s vision and direction with unquestionable obedience and loyalty because of their
relationship with God. This did not mean they never made a mistake, but they repented and
moved on with God’s plans. True leadership for us today is to have a strong relationship with
God. We must encounter Him every day by spending time with Him and knowing His heart so
that we can lead and guide His people. The only way to lead others to the truth of Jesus is to
know Jesus ourselves. “If God is the source of salvation, then obedience to his word is the only
real option.”34 If we as Godly leaders do not have this foundation then we are building on sand
33 Malphurs (2003), 15.
34 Forrest and Roden (2017), 135.
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and it will fall. To know God’s direction, we must know God and have a real relationship
with Him.
Methodology of Leadership
The church has been around for a long time and has gone through many changes. A
Christian leader needs to look at where the church has been, what the Bible says about church
and to determine the type of ministry and evaluate what you feel God is calling you to as long as
you stay true to the Bible. You have churches that are strictly traditional and follow the way it
has always been done. You have churches that are trying to be so culturally relevant that they
have lost their way and have allowed seeds of deceit to grow in their midst and now they accept
everything even if it is contrary to the Bible.
A church needs to be generational in a since in order to take care of those that are aging
and meet their needs, train up the children and youth in a manner that is Godly and relevant and
reach young families so that they can be discipled. The church needs to be a place of healing for
the broken, a place of nourishment for the hungry and a family for those who need a place to be
loved and belong. It needs to be a home for the homeless, a training ground for the mission and
a place of comfort for the hurting.
Leadership based on Jesus’ model is “known as the selection and commission of the
twelve disciples….Jesus demonstrates a counter-intuitive method of focused on the few rather
than the masses.”35 If we focus on building and equipping rather than on numbers, the numbers
will come along with healthy saints who are doing the work of the ministry.
There are a lot of methods and pitfalls that a ministry can run into if not careful. The
church must always keep its eye on the prize like Philippians 3:14 says, “I press on toward the
goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” 1 Corinthians 9:24 says, “Do you
35 Thomas (2018), 109
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not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way
that you may win.” So, we must run to win the race. We must stay true to the Word of God 2
Timothy2:5 explains, “Also if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not win the prize unless
he competes according to the rules.” 2 Timothy 4:1-5 says,
“I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to
judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the
word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great
patience and instruction. For the time will come when they will not endure sound
doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for
themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires and will turn away their
ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. But you, be sober in all things,
endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.”
Methodology is to do what the Word of God has told us to do and not look back but run to
win, fight the good fight of faith and not quit so we can accomplish and fulfil the ministry that
God has entrusted to us.
Mission of Leadership
The mission of leadership is twofold. The first part is the Great Commission. The Bible
says in Matthew 28:18-20, “And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has
been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to
observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
The first part of our mission is the follow the Great Commission by making disciples. The
second part of our mission is to teach people to follow all that Jesus commanded us to do by
doing Ephesians 4:11-16 which says,
“And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and
some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to
the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of
the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which
belongs to the fullness of Christ. As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here
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and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men,
by craftiness in deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in
all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, being
fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of
each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.
The Bible gives us a clear mission for our ministries so that we can accomplish the plans and the
purposes for which we were created.
Ministry Culture
Jesus’ teaching on the kingdom of God is important to the ministry because this is what
we are building. The ministry culture should be one that represents what Jesus wanted done here
regarding building the kingdom. It should be a place that proclaims the good news of Jesus to
everyone from our neighbors to the people in line with us at the grocery store and the person
working the window at McDonalds drive through and not excluding the homeless on the street.
It is a place that partners with the power of the Holy Spirit to see God move and change lives,
for believers to see God accomplish what a person could not accomplish on their own. This
means praying for the sick, walking in signs and wonders (not for the sake of pride but for
bringing glory to God), Teaching people to step out in faith which means taking a risk and
believing that God is going to do what He said He would do. To see people set free from
demonic oppression and possession and walking in the gifts of the spirit. It will be a place of
safety for people to learn to use the gifts of the spirit. It will be a place that is real and authentic
where they can experience the presence of a dynamic, awesome, loving and powerful God. It
will be a place where the lost, the poor, the outcast, the outsider, the different can come and find
Jesus. It needs to be a place that will show the love of Jesus in practical ways and will love the
community in
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which they are placed. The ministry culture will be a place of discipleship that will reach the
lost, teach them who they are so that they can walk in passion and purpose, give them a place of
significance and worth in Christ and help them do the same for others.
Leadership Development Plan
In the leadership development plan, it is my goal to see God move in a might way. The
following are the ideas and dreams that He has placed in my family’s heart that I want to see
accomplished in the ministry. This is something my husband and I have been working on for a
long time and feel that God has given us this plan for ministry.
The plan is to entrust to others what God has entrusted to us by:
•Raise up strong leaders whose heart, character, and vision drive specific
ministries that grow and bear fruit.
•Surround these leaders with gifted support teams who can invest in one another
as they grow in mutual discipleship.
•Encourage these ministry teams to gather both the body and the un-churched and
foster an environment of were deep relationship and mutual ministry can
flourish
through the outreach strategy.
•Out of these experiences God will form deep, interpersonal relationships that
resemble the kind Jesus had with His twelve.
•The role of the pastoral and support staff is to identify, train, release and support
our lay leaders and support team members and to keep the over vision of the
church alive, and if God so grants, to allow revival to emerge.
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It is important to every mission to have an outreach strategy. We are not just looking to do
church swaps; our goal is to reach the lost so that the kingdom of God is growing not just
jumping around. The outreach strategy looks like this:
•Reach - Matthew 28:15-20 “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing
them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe
all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
oNew believers are added to the church through all members being taught to build
spiritual friendships with their neighbors, co-workers, friends and family. The
friends are then invited at some point to attend a weekend service, small group
or any other special event.
•Root - Ephesians 3:16-18, “that He would grant you, according to the riches of His
glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, so that Christ
may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in
love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and
height and depth.”
oAn invitation is given for all who desire to learn more and all new church
members to be rooted into the church by being assigned with others to a
walking mentoring partner in Christ who will build them through the basic
study on who God is and His purpose for our life, and register them to attend the
Encountering God course.
•Renew – Romans 12:1-2, “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to
present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual
service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the
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renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good
and acceptable and perfect.
oWhen they have completed the Encountering God course, each new disciple
continues his/her spiritual journey with their mentor as well as working their
way through the rest of the Discipleship track. Upon completion of the Purpose,
Passion and Purity class each student is given an assignment of being a
walking/mentoring partner in Christ with a new seeker or new church member
while continuing their track.
•Reproduce – Back to Matthew 28:15-20.
oAs the disciple continues his/her journey through the Discipleship track, he/she
develops his own team of three or more, helping them through each step of the
vision: Reach, Root, Renew and Reproduce until each one has a team of three
or more disciples who also hear the call of Christ to “go and make disciples of
all nations!”
Conclusion
In this study on leadership, it has strengthened my resolve in the fact that we need to be
doing what Jesus did and teaching others to do the same. I know that this conclusion was used
in my last paper on leadership, however this is my heart, and this is what I believe is necessary
for seeing the kingdom of God advanced. Many Christian leaders have allowed the church to be
lazy and not challenging them with the same challenge that Jesus did His disciples. They are not
equipping them to do the works of the ministry, but the fact is this is what Christian leadership is
all about. Some are afraid that it will get messy, and it will. Some are afraid they might be
embarrassed, and Jesus might not do what He said He would do. Some are afraid to take that
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step of faith, which is a risk, in their churches and are ok with them just as they are. The lost are
messy, complicated, hurt, stink and just really rough around the edges. They do not speak like
we do and sometimes add words that we do not like and to have a church full of people like that
can be scary. If we as leaders have trained our people than we are ready to do what Jesus did
and bring the lost into our churches and see their lives changed. These changed lives will than
reach out to others and so begins the transformation of the community.
Christian leadership requires leaders to walk in faith or take a risk and to trust God for
things bigger than they are. We must be servants and foster real and authentic relationships with
the people in our churches and the surrounding community. We can not be afraid of the lost and
hurting but must reach out to them and let God change their lives. Builders of the kingdom must
empower and help others become builders of the kingdom and together we can change the world.
2 Corinthians 10 14-16 says, “For we are not overextending ourselves, as if we did not
reach to you, for we were the first to come even as far as you in the gospel of Christ; not
boasting beyond our measure, that is, in other men’s labors, but with the hope that as your faith
grows, we will be, within our sphere, enlarged even more by you, so as to preach the gospel even
to the regions beyond you, and not to boast in what has been accomplished in the sphere of
another.” Let us work together and see the kingdom of God enlarged and our spheres bursting so
that revival washes over our communities just like the fathers of our faith did when the church
was first birthed. Let us do what Jesus did and empower others to do the same.
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Bibliography
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TN: Broadman and Holman Publishers, 1996.
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Habits. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishing, 2003.
Engstrom, TW. The Making of a Leader, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing, 1976.
Early, Dave, and David Wheeler. Evangelism Is. Nashville, TN: B&H Publishing Group,
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