Paul said in the Bible, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.” This is collaboration work between God and humans. The development of a church relies on both God’s work and human efforts. So, what role does a church leader play in the growth of a church?
“Management models evolving with the church’s development”
A pastor once mentioned four common church management models: corporate business model, activity center model, social service model, and school model. Each model has its own focus and attracts different groups. Regardless of the models, the key is to make it suitable for your own church. That requires the pastor to have a clear understanding of the church’s positioning. As emphasized in the book Purpose-Driven Church, a good church should be one with a purpose.
Pastor L, who has 24 years of pastoral experience, shared her management philosophy. “There is no fixed model for church management; it must evolve with the church’s development,” she said.
She took over a church of a dozen members and led it to become a church with a thousand members. In the early stages, when there were fewer than 50 believers, Pastor L could personally visit all the members who needed help. As the number grew to over 100, she realized the importance of coworkers and began cultivating and establishing them. When the congregation reached 300-400 members, the pastoral model shifted from large-scale gatherings to a cell-group model. When the church reached a thousand members, they adopted a school management model with enrollment periods, breaks, opening ceremonies, and graduation ceremonies. The message imparted to believers was that the church was a theological training base to learn and understand God. Her church fostered a strong learning atmosphere.
In her leadership role, Pastor L always maintains a learner’s mindset. When the number of believers grew to 400, they decisively created cell groups. Considering the church’s situation, they initially did not adopt the Bible study but focused on supplementing and reinforcing the messages from sermons, helping believers apply the word of God in their lives, and meeting believers’ needs, gradually forming a stable system and structure.
“Healthy succession relying on cultivating young successors”
From leading a dozen believers alone to serving a congregation of thousands with a team, Pastor L realized that a crucial aspect of church development is talent cultivation, but not all pastors can realize this aspect and be willing to do it.
There was the head of a church who was an elderly pastor in his eighties and had not been to the church for years. However, when a fifty-year-old pastor graduated from a Bible training school and returned to take over the church, the elderly pastor claimed he was still in charge and wanted to manage the church. Due to differences in perspectives between the two generations, under the elderly pastor’s management, the new pastor struggled to carry out his work. Over ten years’ time, the church that originally had a small number of members dwindled to only five or six people. It eventually disappeared after a three-year lockdown due to the pandemic. A similar experience was encountered by Pastor Y, who served at another church in the same area. Although the church often has explicit regulations specifying the retirement age for leaders, some often delay their retirement, citing a lack of successors.
Pastor Y believes that a significant reason why older pastors and fellow workers are reluctant to let go is that their perspectives are rigid and out of touch with the times. Therefore, the concepts of reform and church development advocated by younger fellow workers are perceived as unsafe factors that exceed their comprehension. Locally, there was Pastor C, who was invited by an elderly pastor to serve in his hometown’s church after graduating from theological studies. However, upon returning, he found himself constrained in all aspects of preaching and ministry by the elderly pastor. Pastor C served under the elderly pastor for seven years and only took over the church’s management when the elderly pastor became bedridden.
Pastor B, who serves a church in City C, also had a similar experience. In his initial years as a fellow worker, he had no involvement in delivering sermons. Now, his church has over 5,000 believers, and he believes in providing opportunities for younger people to give sermons. Pastor B also teaches at a theological seminary and invites seminary students to participate in weekly sermons, as he believes the best training is through practical experience.
“Pastors must cultivate their brothers and sisters as they would children, allowing them to grow,” Pastor L urged. She called on older pastors to guide their fellow workers with the heart of a parent.
“Utilizing sermons to convey the vision of the church’s mission and nurturing believers”
Pastor L likens the Sunday sermons to a showcase of exquisite automobiles, emphasizing the need to present all the best aspects. Every design element in the worship service should be imbued with the anointing of the Holy Spirit, but the most crucial aspect is the message delivered from the pulpit, carrying the vision of the church’s mission. During her 24-year ministry, the church has experienced remarkable growth in terms of the number and quality of believers as well as in its construction, all of which is attributed to the sermon’s effective messages of the church’s mission vision to the congregation.
Pastor L believes that the atmosphere of a church worship service and the state of its believers are largely determined by the church’s leaders. She said that the atmosphere of a church is set by the lead pastor, and a healthy church begins with healthy leaders. Therefore, pastors must pray daily to maintain a harmonious relationship with God, be friendly with people, and maintain a healthy spiritual state. This will enable them to be full of vitality, and naturally, the church they lead will also be vibrant.
- Translated by Charlie Li
圣经中保罗说，我栽种了，亚波罗浇灌了，唯有神叫他生长。这是神与人的同工。教会的发展是神藉着人同工完成离不开神的作为，也离不开人的工作。那么对于一间教会的领袖来说，在教会的成长当中起着怎样的作用呢？
“管理模式应随教会发展而更新”
一位牧者在总结目前常见的教会管理模式时提到四种：企业工商模式，活动中心模式，社会服务模式，学校模式。每一种模式有其侧重点，吸引到的群体也是不同的。不管借用哪一种管理模式，最重要的是可以适用在自己教会里,这就需要教会的牧者清楚本教会的定位。正如《直奔标竿》（Purpose-Driven Church）一书中所强调的：一个好的教会应该是有导向的教会。
一位拥有24年牧会管理经验的L牧师讲述了她的管理理念。“教会管理没有固定的模式，它一定是随着你教会的发展而更新的。”
她曾接手一间十几人的堂会，带领发展到千人的教会。教会初期，信徒不到50人时，L牧师一个人就可以探访到教会中有需要的全部信徒。人数增长至100多时，她意识到同工的重要，开始培养建立同工。信徒人数到三四百人时，牧养模式从大堂会的方式转向了小组模式。当教会达到千人时，他们使用了学校管理模式：有招生期，有休息期，开学典礼，毕业典礼。给信徒传递的理念就是，教会就是神学培训基地，学习认识神。她所带的教会学习氛围浓厚。
在带领者的位置上，L牧师始终保持学习者的心态。在信徒增长至400人的时候，他们果断开始了细胞小组（cell group）。结合教会自身情况，他们一开始并未采用查经学习，而是围绕主日讲台的信息查缺补漏，帮助信徒在生活中践行话语，慰问关怀信徒的需求，并逐渐形成了自己的稳定系统和结构。
“健康传承离不开培养年轻接班人”
从一个人带领十几个信徒到团队服侍千人的体量，L牧师意识到，教会发展很重要的一点是培养人才，但这并不是所有牧者都能意识到并愿意去做的。
有间教会的负责人是位八旬老传道，数年没去教会，但当一位五十岁左右的传道人从圣经学校毕业回去接手教会时，这位老传道又说自己是负责人，要管理教会。因为两代人观念不同，在老传道的管理之下，新的传道人很难开展工作，十年当中，原本人数就不多的教会最后只剩下五六个人，经历疫情教会关门三年，一个教会就这样没了。在同一地区服侍的另一间教会的负责人Y传道也有过类似的经历。虽然教会多有明文规定负责人退休的年龄限制，但其常以没有接班人为借口迟迟不退，延长退休时间。
Y传道觉得，老一辈牧者同工不愿意放手，很大一部分原因是观念的固化，与时代脱节，因此年轻同工口中讲的改革、为了教会发展好等这些观念，在他们看来都是不安全的因素，因为超出了他们的认知。当地有位C牧师，神学毕业后被老牧师邀请回老家教会服侍，但回去后却是讲台与事工开展各方面都被老牧者管束，C牧师就一直在老牧师身边服侍了他7年，直到老牧者上了病床才接手教会管理。
在C市一间教会牧会的B牧师也有过类似经历，刚成为同工几年的时间里与讲台服侍毫无关系。如今他所在的教会有5000多信徒，他认为把讲台服侍的机会提供给年轻人们。B牧师也在神学院授课，邀请神学生过来参与周间讲道，因为最好的操练就是实战。
“牧者对弟兄姐妹一定要像对孩子那样培养他，让他成长。”L牧师呼吁老牧者要带着为父为母的心去带领同工们成长。
“以讲台话语传递教会使命异象、造就信众”
L牧师对形容主日讲台是一场精美的汽车展商，要把所有好的一面都呈现出来，礼拜环节中的每个设计都要充满圣灵的恩膏，但最重要的就是讲台传讲的信息，要带出使命异象。在其牧会的24年时间里，教会不管是在信徒数量、质量、还是建设方面，都有显著的成长，而这一切离不开讲台上将教会的使命异象传递给信徒。
L牧师认为教会礼拜的氛围、信徒的状态，很大程度上是取决于教会牧者。她说，教会的气氛是主任牧师带出来的，一间健康的教会首先要有健康的牧者。因此牧者要每天祷告与神保持和好的关系，与人友好，保持灵魂健康的状态，这样才会充满活力，自然所带领的教会才能充满活力。
经验谈：从管理、传承、讲台三方面看牧者的重要角色
Paul said in the Bible, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.” This is collaboration work between God and humans. The development of a church relies on both God’s work and human efforts. So, what role does a church leader play in the growth of a church?
“Management models evolving with the church’s development”
A pastor once mentioned four common church management models: corporate business model, activity center model, social service model, and school model. Each model has its own focus and attracts different groups. Regardless of the models, the key is to make it suitable for your own church. That requires the pastor to have a clear understanding of the church’s positioning. As emphasized in the book Purpose-Driven Church, a good church should be one with a purpose.
Pastor L, who has 24 years of pastoral experience, shared her management philosophy. “There is no fixed model for church management; it must evolve with the church’s development,” she said.
She took over a church of a dozen members and led it to become a church with a thousand members. In the early stages, when there were fewer than 50 believers, Pastor L could personally visit all the members who needed help. As the number grew to over 100, she realized the importance of coworkers and began cultivating and establishing them. When the congregation reached 300-400 members, the pastoral model shifted from large-scale gatherings to a cell-group model. When the church reached a thousand members, they adopted a school management model with enrollment periods, breaks, opening ceremonies, and graduation ceremonies. The message imparted to believers was that the church was a theological training base to learn and understand God. Her church fostered a strong learning atmosphere.
In her leadership role, Pastor L always maintains a learner’s mindset. When the number of believers grew to 400, they decisively created cell groups. Considering the church’s situation, they initially did not adopt the Bible study but focused on supplementing and reinforcing the messages from sermons, helping believers apply the word of God in their lives, and meeting believers’ needs, gradually forming a stable system and structure.
“Healthy succession relying on cultivating young successors”
From leading a dozen believers alone to serving a congregation of thousands with a team, Pastor L realized that a crucial aspect of church development is talent cultivation, but not all pastors can realize this aspect and be willing to do it.
There was the head of a church who was an elderly pastor in his eighties and had not been to the church for years. However, when a fifty-year-old pastor graduated from a Bible training school and returned to take over the church, the elderly pastor claimed he was still in charge and wanted to manage the church. Due to differences in perspectives between the two generations, under the elderly pastor’s management, the new pastor struggled to carry out his work. Over ten years’ time, the church that originally had a small number of members dwindled to only five or six people. It eventually disappeared after a three-year lockdown due to the pandemic. A similar experience was encountered by Pastor Y, who served at another church in the same area. Although the church often has explicit regulations specifying the retirement age for leaders, some often delay their retirement, citing a lack of successors.
Pastor Y believes that a significant reason why older pastors and fellow workers are reluctant to let go is that their perspectives are rigid and out of touch with the times. Therefore, the concepts of reform and church development advocated by younger fellow workers are perceived as unsafe factors that exceed their comprehension. Locally, there was Pastor C, who was invited by an elderly pastor to serve in his hometown’s church after graduating from theological studies. However, upon returning, he found himself constrained in all aspects of preaching and ministry by the elderly pastor. Pastor C served under the elderly pastor for seven years and only took over the church’s management when the elderly pastor became bedridden.
Pastor B, who serves a church in City C, also had a similar experience. In his initial years as a fellow worker, he had no involvement in delivering sermons. Now, his church has over 5,000 believers, and he believes in providing opportunities for younger people to give sermons. Pastor B also teaches at a theological seminary and invites seminary students to participate in weekly sermons, as he believes the best training is through practical experience.
“Pastors must cultivate their brothers and sisters as they would children, allowing them to grow,” Pastor L urged. She called on older pastors to guide their fellow workers with the heart of a parent.
“Utilizing sermons to convey the vision of the church’s mission and nurturing believers”
Pastor L likens the Sunday sermons to a showcase of exquisite automobiles, emphasizing the need to present all the best aspects. Every design element in the worship service should be imbued with the anointing of the Holy Spirit, but the most crucial aspect is the message delivered from the pulpit, carrying the vision of the church’s mission. During her 24-year ministry, the church has experienced remarkable growth in terms of the number and quality of believers as well as in its construction, all of which is attributed to the sermon’s effective messages of the church’s mission vision to the congregation.
Pastor L believes that the atmosphere of a church worship service and the state of its believers are largely determined by the church’s leaders. She said that the atmosphere of a church is set by the lead pastor, and a healthy church begins with healthy leaders. Therefore, pastors must pray daily to maintain a harmonious relationship with God, be friendly with people, and maintain a healthy spiritual state. This will enable them to be full of vitality, and naturally, the church they lead will also be vibrant.
- Translated by Charlie Li
Three Vital Roles of Pastors in Management, Succession, and Preaching
