In God’s Economy Leadership depends upon Spiritual Capacity and it’s Not Permanent

If we carefully read the Bible – especially the New Testament – we will realize that, in God’s eternal economy and in the Lord’s recovery, leadership depends upon spiritual capacity, and the leadership is not official, permanent, organizational, or hierarchical.

This week in our crystallization study of 1&2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther we come to a crucial point in Ezra and Nehemiah.

The topic for this week is, The Central and Crucial Point of the Recovery Books of Ezra and Nehemiah – the Proper and Adequate Leadership in the Lord’s Recovery.

Such a topic may be quite surprising, but this is the central and crucial point of the recovery books of Ezra and Nehemiah.

What is needed today among us in the church life is the proper and adequate leadership.

In the book of Judges, we see the terrible failures of those who became leaders in the people of Israel, but in Ezra and Nehemiah, we see the wonderful pattern of Nehemiah in relation to the proper leadership.

If we read the books of 1 and 2 Kings, and 1 and 2 Chronicles, we will not be impressed with the leaders and the leadership among God’s people, for even when there was a good leader, he failed again and again when it comes to being a proper leader.

We should not think, however, that the matter of proper and adequate leadership is something that only leaders should know, and such a topic should be only for those who want to be leaders or for the leading brothers.

Rather, we need to realize that, as saints in the church life who live before the Lord and are learning to live the life of the Body of Christ, we have a responsibility to properly follow those who are proper leaders.

It is not only those who take the lead who have responsibility but even more, those who follow the leading ones bear a great responsibility.

We should not blindly follow others, nor should we just follow those who are leaders or say that they are leaders; rather, we need to be right in following others. We need to be right in following the saints.

The matter of leadership and proper leadership has been a source of problems since the very beginning.

In the Old Testament, we see that the proper leadership brought in much blessing, but improper leadership brought in a curse.

In the New Testament, we are not taught leadership as a doctrine but we have patterns and also negative examples of leaders.

For example, the apostle John tried to write something to a church, but Diotrephes, who was the leading one there, did not agree with it and didn’t allow him to.

In the church life, in our history, some have assumed the leadership, and there have been situations in which a hierarchy was built up. Oh Lord Jesus.

If hierarchy is tolerated in the church life and is not dealt with, if the saints are not walking in the truth when it comes to following the proper leadership or those who call themselves leaders, many problems can come in, and division and sects can be manifested.

Yes, the leading ones bear the responsibility to be proper persons and be a pattern to the believers, but the saints also need to bear the responsibility in following the leading ones.

God’s Concept of Leadership is Different from man’s concept; Leadership means Slavery

According to the divine revelation in the word of God, the leadership in the church is different from the human concept of leadership.

The Lord’s concept of leadership is the opposite of the natural concept; among God’s people, there is actually no leadership in the natural sense (see Matt. 20:25-28; 28-13).

This is not what we see in Christianity today, but this is what the New Testament teaches us and clearly shows us.

Some Christians, however, when they hear that there’s no leadership in the natural sense, are happy; they just don’t want any leaders, it’s only them and the Lord, and actually, they themselves are their own leaders.

In saying that we answer only to the Lord and not to anyone else, we think we’re our own leader, our own head.

According to the concept of the Lord Jesus and in the kingdom of God, leadership is not what the natural concept is; leadership means slavery.

If anyone wants to be a leader in the church life, he needs to be willing to be a slave (Mark 10:35-45).

James and John wanted to be on the Lord’s left and right when He returns with the kingdom, and they requested this from the Lord; however, the Lord told them that they don’t know what they are asking for.

When the other disciples heard this – they were right there when James and John made this request from the Lord – they were indignant.

All the disciples had the thought that they would be the leader when the Lord leaves or when He returns as the King.

But the Lord Jesus clearly told them that, if they want to be the greatest, they need to be the slave of all, and if they want to be a leader, they need to be like a servant (Matt. 20:25-28).

There is a great need for proper leadership in the church life, but being a leader does not mean that you’re higher than others; it means that you are lower than them, even under them, and you’re their servant, serving them as a slave.

May we realize that, in God’s New Testament economy, leadership means slavery; if we want to be a leader among the Lord’s children, we must be a slave.

If we aspire to be a leader according to the New Testament economy of God, we need to have a heart to serve the saints, clean the restrooms, vacuum the floor, arrange the chairs, serve as an usher, and serve the saints in many ways.

According to God’s economy, there is just one leader among the people of God: the Lord Jesus (Matt. 23:10).

He is the unique leader, and yet He is the One serving us, entering into our situation to shepherd us, serve us, love us, and bring us to God again and again.

We drift away from the Lord so many times, but He still comes to shepherd us, care for us, and minister to us.

He really is our Slave; He is the slave of God to serve us with all that God is until we are fully mature in the divine life.

May we not desire to be a leader according to the natural concept.

May we be renewed in our mind and learn from the Lord Jesus, and may our aspiration to be a leader be purified so that we may serve the saints and not care for any position.

Just as the Lord served and is serving us, and just as the proper leading ones serve and minister Christ to us in love, we need to serve others and minister Christ to them.

May we allow the Lord to deal with our desire to be above others or be leading ones in a natural way; may we learn from the Lord to serve the saints and therefore be proper leaders in life for the building up of the church as the Body of Christ.

Lord Jesus, renew our mind. Save us from our natural concept concerning the church, the church life, and the leadership in the church life. May we see that, according to God’s New Testament economy, leadership means slavery. May we learn from You, dear Lord, to serve the saints and take care of their needs one with the Lord. May all the saints exercise to be one with the Lord and minister Christ to others according to their need. Thank You, dear Lord Jesus, for coming to us to serve us; thank You for being our serving one, our slave, to care for us according to God. We want to learn from You. Deliver us from the concept that a leading one is higher or better than others. May we all learn to serve the saints by being one with the Lord!

Leadership Depends upon Spiritual Capacity; Leadership is Not Official, Permanent, or Organizational

We really need to read the Bible and allow the word of God to renew us, changing our concept from what we naturally think concerning leadership among God’s people to what God thinks.

In God’s New Testament economy, there’s the need for leadership among God’s people, but this leadership is not official, permanent, or organisational.

Proper leadership depends upon spiritual capacity.

The one with the greatest capacity is the leader; also, leadership is manifested according to the need.

For example, on the day of Pentecost and the days following, the one with the greatest capacity was Peter, so he took the lead.

Later in Acts 15, however, we see that James was taking the lead.

A similar situation we see with Barnabas and Paul; in Acts 13:2 Barnabas is named before Paul (Saul), but later in v. 9 Paul spontaneously took the lead and was mentioned first.

Because Paul had a greater spiritual capacity, he took the lead according to the need.

Time and time again we see that the proper leadership in the church life and in the work depends upon spiritual capacity, and furthermore, this leadership is not official or permanent, nor is it organizational.

It is not about electing a leader or choosing who is to be the leading one.

The leadership among God’s people was ordained by God to be against the human concept of leadership, and it is for God to be expressed through those who are taking the lead.

In the Old Testament we see that there was just one king at one time, but in the New Testament the Lord set twelve apostles.

And later there were more apostles, including Paul and Silas, Barnabas, and others.

There is plurality in leadership, but not all leadership is ordained by the Lord; 2 Cor. 11:13 says that there were some who were false apostles.

In the church life we need to be clear concerning the New Testament economy of God and God’s ordination concerning leadership.

Leadership depends upon capacity, and leadership is not permanent or organizational.

In the church life there must be more than one elder, and there’s no fixed leadership in the church.

To consider a particular brother as the unique leader in the church is not to practice the truth.

The brothers who take the lead, on their side, should not exercise to take the lead in everything; rather, they need to allow other brothers to take the lead in many aspects of the service in the church.

And when others come to us to ask us where to move, what to do, and what to serve, instead of telling them what to do, we should simply direct them to go to the Lord, the unique Leading One, so that He would head them up.

There is no organized leadership in the church life in the Lord’s recovery; we left the hierarchy and organization of Christianity, and now we’re in the proper church life under the proper leadership.

All believers in Christ are one Body in Christ, and though there are many members, there is just one Head, who is Christ.

He gives orders to all the members of the Body, and there are no subheads.

In the Lord’s recovery we are not an organization; we are being recovered to the proper order in the Body of Christ under Christ as the Head.

Thank You, Lord Jesus, for delivering us from anything of organization and hierarchy and bringing us into the church life to live as members of the Body under Christ as our Head. Hallelujah, Christ is the Head of the Body, and He is the only One who gives orders and directs the members of the Body. We take You, Lord, as our head. We pray that there would be a proper leadership in the church life, a plurality of elders, so that the Lord may have a way. Save us from any organization and hierarchy. Save us from the natural concept regarding leadership. May we remain the divine revelation in God’s word concerning the church life and may we follow those who are proper leaders according to God’s economy!

References and Hymns on this Topic

• Inspiration for this article/sharing comes from the Word of God, the enjoyment in the ministry, a sharing by Ricky Acosta in the message for this week, and portions from, Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1978, vol. 3, “Truth Messages,” ch. 3, as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Crystallization-study of 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther (2022 winter training), week 10, entitled, The Central and Crucial Point of the Recovery Books of Ezra and Nehemiah — the Proper and Adequate Leadership in the Lord’s Recovery.
• Further reading on this topic:
  – Leadership in the Lord’s Recovery, Part 1: The Lord’s Concept of Leadership versus Man’s Concept, via, Shepherding Words.
  – Leadership in the Lord’s Recovery, Part 2: The Biblical Pattern of Leadership, article via, Shepherding Words.
  – Leadership in the Lord’s Recovery, Part 3: Applying the Biblical Pattern of Leadership, via, Shepherding Words.
  – Leadership depending on spiritual capacity, a portion from, Leadership in the New Testament, Chapter 1, by Witness Lee.
• Hymns on this topic:
  – We give ourselves to follow the followers, / By this we truly learn; / Never desiring to be the leaders, / But to the Spirit turn. / We give ourselves the flock’s steps to follow / Knowing the Shepherd’s care. / Now in the churches Jesus is leading / And He is speaking there. (Hymns #1246 stanzas 2-3)
  – Savior, lead me, this I pray, / In the Spirit all the day; / Walking in the light of life, / I would cease from all my strife. / Lead me, lead me, / Savior, lead me, this I pray; / Deeply in the stream of life, / Lead me, Savior, in Thy way. (Hymns #390 stanza 1 and chorus)
  – When the brothers are in order, / And you sense Christ is their life, / Follow them and watch for Jesus, / Ending thus your thought and strife. / Follow brothers, follow sisters, / When you sense Christ is their life, / Follow brothers, follow sisters, / Help prepare the Bride for Christ. (Hymns #1245 stanza 1 and chorus)