Church Administration

Creating Efficiency for Effective Ministry

Robert H. Welch

• Publisher: B&H Academic
• Year: 2011
• ISBN:
  9781433676284
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Christian Church

For churches and religious nonprofit operations, the business of business is not business - it is ministry. Still, such institutions have to make plans. Because skilled organization is needed to accomplish specific tasks, a leader must train and motivate workers in progress and effectiveness. This second edition of Church Administration helps pastors and church staff become effective and efficient leaders, managers, and administrators. Among the topics discussed are: Adminstration Documents, Organizing the Church, Administering Personnel Resources, Financial Resources, Physical Resources, and Administering Risk Management.Writing for students as well as those already in this line of work, author Robert H. Welch promises, "If you understand the tenants of general administration and the techniques of ministerial leadership your job will be made significantly easier."

CHAPTER 1

An Introduction to Administration

But you should select from all the people able men, God-fearing, trustworthy and hating bribes. Place them over the people as officials of thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens . . . they can bring you every important case but judge every minor case themselves. In this way you will lighten your load, and they will bear it with you.

EXODUS 18:21–23

A Biblical Foundation for Organization

One day Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, came up over a sand dune and looked down on a long line of people. It was an interesting group, and it was apparent that all were not happy wanderers. Fights, arguments, discord, and disenchantment are good words to describe this group of Israelites. Every once in a while an individual just got disheartened and left the line.

Jethro noted that at the head of the line was his son-in-law, sitting under a tent listening to the various people who made their way to him. So he went down to see what was going on. “Mo,” he said, “what is going on here?”

“Well, honored father-in-law,” Moses responded, “God made me these people’s leader. They have disputes, and I am here to listen to them and settle the problems. I sit here day in and day out listening to all these gripes, solving personal and marital problems, and trying to explain theological issues.”

Jethro was astonished. Had not Moses read Drucker during his years in the Pharaoh’s palace? In the kind words of a father-in-law, Jethro responded, “You’re crazy!” Having expressed his true sentiment, he went on to explain, “If you keep this up you are going to experience burnout in ministry. What will become of my daughter if you go over the deep end? But worse yet, what will become of the people? God has made you their leader. If you are not able to lead because of fatigue, then they will suffer tremendously and God’s purpose for them will not be achieved.”

Now Jethro was a Midianite priest, which made him a leader. Good leaders know you do not pose a problem without providing a resolution. So he told Moses, “Select some men who are prominent in the nation. Look for quality men who are moral in character and righteous in virtue. Place these individuals in charge of portions of the nation. Don’t overwhelm them. Assign the most capable person to groups of 1,000, then give them two lieutenants who can lead 500 each of that group. Keep dividing the group into smaller units with leaders of each subgroups of 100, 50, 10 or whatever. Now each subgroup leader is to be responsible to the leader above him. Let these various leaders solve problems at their level. If they can’t solve the problem, then they have someone over them who they can take it to. That way, you can reserve your decision making responsibilities to the biggies—responding only to the issues the leaders of the thousands bring to you, or, issues that God directs you. Now if you listen to my sage advice, not only will it be easier for you, but you will develop some leaders in the meantime.”

If you will excuse this author’s transliteration of Exodus 18 above, some interesting facts may be drawn from the passage:

• God appoints leaders.
• God expects those leaders to function effectively.
• No leader can do the entire job alone.
• Leaders who try to do the job alone either burn out themselves or wear out the followers.
• God often provides advisors to assist us in leadership.
• By delegating portions of the job, a leader can focus on the main issues.
• Delegation does not relieve the leader from responsibility, but it does remove them from carrying out the mundane and routine issues.
• Individuals who are delegated tasks must be qualified to do the job.
• Individuals who are delegated tasks must be given responsibilities to their level of ability—the more qualified, the higher the responsibility.

In the letter to the church at Corinth, Paul wrote to them about how the conduct of the affairs of the body would or should be carried out: “How is it then, brothers? Whenever you come together, each one has a psalm, a teaching, a revelation, another language, or an interpretation. All things must be done for edification” (1 Cor 14:26). Then Paul addressed the confusion that follows whenever all of these are being done at the same time, or whenever there is no order to the activities: “God is not a God of disorder but of peace” (1 Cor 14:33).

Vines in his Complete Dictionary of New Testament Words says that the word that has been translated “peace”—eirene in the Greek—means quietness, a harmonized relationship, a sense of rest and contentment.¹

Paul continued his instructions in 1 Corinthians 14 to speak to other issues that disrupt the orderliness and function of the church. While he encouraged a variety of forms of Christian expression, he cautioned in v. 40, “But everything must be done decently and in order.” The New International Version translates this phrase, “Everything should be done in a fitting and orderly way.” The Living Bible says, “done properly in a good and orderly way.” The Berkley transliteration says, “with propriety and in orderly fashion.” And the New Living Translation renders it, “Be sure that everything is done properly and in order.”

What Paul is saying is that when we “do church,” we are to do it in a proper and fitting manner. There should be order, not chaos. There should be sensibility, not insensitivity. There should be consistency, not discord. There should be guidance, not irresponsibility.

In the development of two major organizations of the Bible—the nation of Israel beyond the era of the patriarch fathers from Abraham and the local church beyond the era of the ministry of Christ—God chose significant leaders who were prepared for the task of leadership and organization. Moses, though born a Hebrew, was brought up in the household of the pharaoh of Egypt. At the time of Moses, Egypt was the ruler of the world. Thus, in his development in the court of the pharaoh, Moses had access to the literature, history, and languages of virtually the known world of his day. Egypt was a highly organized society with sophisticated systems of commerce, transportation, and government. Its military was next to none. Moses was taught all this as part of his preparations for leadership.

Paul (known before his conversion as Saul), like Moses also had a dual citizenship. Paul was a Hebrew, but he was also a Roman citizen. Saul was from Tarsus, the capital of the Roman province of Cilicia and home to a significant Roman university and school of philosophy. The Roman culture in the time of Paul was highly organized, much as Egypt was in the time of Moses. The Romans revered knowledge, skill, and craft. They embraced the academia of Greece, the science of the Mesopotamians and Egyptians, and the art of their own culture. As Rome conquered the world, they absorbed the best of each culture and organized it around Roman philosophy. It is obvious from his writing and later experiences that Paul received a significant education from the University of Tarsus.

Both Moses and Paul received divinely appointed calls from God to carry out His mission of leadership. From the burning bush, God called Moses to lead the Israelites from Egypt to the promised land. On a Damascus road, Christ blinded Paul and told him to form the ekklesia into the body called the church. Both received significant preparatory religious education—Moses from Jethro, a Midianite priest; and Paul from Gamaliel, one of the most important rabbis at the time.

And both were ordained of God to record God’s instructions in written form—Moses, drawing on his access to vast historical context and revelation; and Paul from his research, eyewitness account, and revelation. The documents these men wrote provided the foundation for the order and operation of the priesthood and the sacrificial worship system of the Old Testament as well as the organization of the church and the integration of the ministries (gifts) of the body of Christ in the New Testament.

In 1 Cor 12:28 we read, “And God has placed these in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, next, miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, managing, various kinds of languages.” Many other translations render the word managing as “administrations.” It comes from the Greek kubernetes, which has as its root the context of a helmsman steering a ship. Kubernetes is used uniquely in 1 Corinthians 12 and in Romans 12 in the listing of spiritual gifts.

Consider a sailing vessel. It is a hollow object with buoyancy that allows it to carry a cargo. It has a keel on the bottom that gives it stability. Sails give it mobility and power. Yet, for the vessel to be functional, it needs a rudder that is used to give it direction. The rudder is useless, though, without a helmsman moving it to provide direction and steering the ship to the desired objective. But the helmsman does not take the ship where he wants it to go; there is direction given by someone over him, the captain of the ship. The captain receives his direction from some superior authority who tells him that this is the strategic position that his ship will play in the overall objective of the fleet. The commanding officer of the ship consults his officers and directs the helmsman to move the rudder left and right to take the ship on course to meet the objectives set before them.

With this ship metaphor, as we consider the church, we see that the use of the term kubernetes is apropos for the context. The leadership of the church (the pastors) receives sailing orders from God through the Holy Spirit and Scripture. Pastors consult others in the leadership of the church and then direct certain individuals whom the Holy Spirit has empowered to carry out the mission and objectives of the church. All are not helmsmen, but each has unique responsibilities in meeting the goals set before the church.

In the New Testament significant passages relate to this description of administration in the church:

1. Administration is not practical versus spiritual (2 Cor 9:12–15).
2. Administration concerns the minister’s total task (Titus 1:5–9).
3. Administration is brought about by scholarly study (2 Tim 2:15).
4. Administration is an art to be practiced (Jas 2:14–18).
5. Administration is primarily concerned with persons, not processes (1 Cor 12:18–28).
6. Administration is the means to an end, the process that leads to a product (Phil 3:13–17).
7. Administration is an orderly process (1 Cor 14:40).
8. Administration is a preserver of peace, not a producer of conflict (1 Cor 8:7–13).
9. Administration is a source of fellowship (Acts 2:42).

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