In recent years, many churches have adopted popular business and leadership practices to make their operations more efficient. These practices have helped them develop stronger administrative structures, better leadership development habits, and they have increased the overall efficiency of their organizational structure.
However, there has been a well-intended and noticeable trend that may not be as helpful as desired. This trend seems to be the product of rich ecclesiology being replaced by pragmatism in the name of trying to reach more people with the Gospel. It normally involves church leaders emphasizing leadership and pragmatism over theological formation, and it can have unintended consequences that are visually subtle but spiritually significant.
Effective leadership and business practices should be incorporated in local churches, but not at the expense of robust, biblical ecclesiology. The church as a whole has a God-given design and purpose, and any human attempt, no matter how well-intended, that alters its core characteristics and practices will ultimately hurt it.
Here are three things that business leaders and practices can do for churches, followed by three things they cannot do.
What Business Leaders & Practices Can Do
Businessmen and women have skills that can be a great benefit to the body of Christ, and pastors should look for opportunities to empower these leaders in their congregations.
First, business leaders can resource local churches with financial wisdom. Many pastors do not have formal training in this area (they are not experts in every field), and men and women in the church who can provide sound advice are valuable. These people should be consulted so the expertise God has given them can be used to serve the body and advance God’s Kingdom. Pastors can provide an open door for growth in this way if they are humble and willing to invite other voices to the table.
Second, successful business leaders are often skilled in organizational leadership. They know how to build systems that produce maximum effectiveness, and there is an opportunity here for churches to take advantage of. These men and women can be invited to help strengthen administrative structures so individual ministries can operate more efficiently. These leaders can help churches grow in the areas of timeliness, social intelligence, hospitality, and networking. These skills will provide a great service.
Finally, business leaders can increase the impact of local churches in the workplace. One of the tasks for every church is identifying ways to move beyond its four walls. What happens inside these walls is important, but what happens outside is even more vital. Business leaders are already embedded in the community, and they can be a great resource to help church leaders connect with those around them. From networking to providing spaces for churches to serve, business leaders and their properties can be essential resources.
What Business Leaders & Practices Cannot Do
It is also important to emphasize that the church as a whole is not just another business. Treating it like a normal business where profits and numbers are the ultimate fixture is highly problematic and will limit its ability to flourish in its God-given design. Business leaders and their recommendations can only go so far; here is where they are limited.
First, spiritual growth cannot be manipulated or expedited. Effective administrative structures are needed to help facilitate spiritual growth in small groups, classes, and other discipleship ministries, but the spiritual growth process takes time and cannot be rushed. When biblical practices are hurried in the name of pragmatism, it will have negative consequences.
Second, business leaders and their practices are not a replacement for the sacraments. In many of our Protestant contexts, the two sacraments emphasized are water baptism and the Lord’s Supper. You can tell a lot about a church’s ecclesiology by how it treats these sacraments.
It is noticeable that many churches now increasingly hurry through the Lord’s Supper because they are trying to meet deadlines (a 60, 75, or 90-minute service). There is no doubt that these time constraints are good and well-intended, but when two of the most important practices of a local church are rushed through, it may be a sign that the emphasis is in the wrong place. We need the sacraments, and we cannot afford to sacrifice them in the name of pragmatism.
Lastly, business leaders and their practices cannot replace the need for pastor-theologians in local churches. Increasingly, many pastors are feeling the pressure to read the latest leadership books to stay relevant, and there is little emphasis on theology, church history, or ecclesiology. However, their primary role is not to be CEOs but local shepherds who are knowledgeable and skilled in the Word and its application.
Leadership books, driven by corporate and business models, are insightful. Still, they cannot be a replacement for biblically and theologically informed reading that equips pastors to serve well in their congregations.
Conclusion
To summarize, good business is good for churches. Business leaders help them practice financial wisdom, enhance administrative structures, and connect with their local communities. Pastors should look for opportunities to invite these men and women into their circles so their gifts can be used for the edification of God’s people.
While sound business practices are a great asset to the body of Christ, we cannot afford to have them alter the church’s nature and design given by God. Again, the church is the body of Christ, and therefore it is not just another 501(c)(3). The latest leadership and business trends should never be prioritized over the essential functions and calling of the church. If I may repeat a well-worn phrase, the world needs the church to be the church.
