Let’s just say it out loud: most churches don’t need a leader leading the church … because they’ve already decided where they want to go.
They’ve made up their minds. They like what they like. Don’t mess with it. Don’t change it. Don’t challenge it. Just keep the spiritual vending machine stocked with sermons that soothe, programs that pacify, and rituals that reinforce their preferences.
If that’s the case, then the so-called “lead pastor” isn’t actually leading. They’re catering. They’re providing customer service in a congregation that long ago traded mission for maintenance.
And yes, I’ve heard the argument: “The word leader only shows up twice in the New Testament.” Sure … depending on your translation and what Greek words you’re choosing to ignore. If that’s your excuse to abdicate leadership, you might want to explain how Jesus, Paul, Peter, and even Timothy managed to rally movements, mobilize teams, and reshape history … without leading.
Right.
Let’s get clear on something: leadership in the church isn’t optional. It’s the determining factor in whether your church is going to make disciples or keep making excuses.
What Leadership Really Means (and What It Doesn’t)
I define leadership simply: a leader is someone who moves people from where they are to where they would not have gone without them.
That’s it. No corporate buzzwords. No leadership seminars needed.
So let’s be honest. If your congregation has already decided where they want to go and they’re just looking for someone to affirm their direction, bless their preferences, and keep things familiar. They don’t want a leader. They want a chaplain. A concierge. Someone to manage their spiritual comfort cruise.
That’s not leadership. That’s compliance.
And to be clear, this blog post isn’t for pastors in those congregations. Why? Because those churches don’t need a gentle leader. They need a Moses — someone with a sword, a plague, and a call to repentance. But that’s not this conversation.
This post is for the pastors who are leading churches that haven’t locked in their golden calf. The churches that are uncertain … aimless … or open but unclear. The ones that are still asking the right questions, even if they don’t have the answers.
Those churches need a true leader. Someone who can hear from God, cast a compelling vision, and help the congregation move together into a future they wouldn’t have reached on their own.
Because real leadership in the church today isn’t about managing the flock. It’s about guiding them into God’s preferred future – one bold, uncomfortable, Spirit-led step at a time.
Three Kinds of Lead Pastors
Let’s break it down. In today’s church, there are three kinds of pastors filling the lead role.
1. The Congregation-Pleaser
These pastors take their marching orders from the congregation.
If the people want comfort, they preach comfort. If the people want deep dives into Greek verbs that never touch a soul, they give them that. If the people want a social club, they hand out the name tags and the Doritos.
These pastors aren’t leaders. They’re managers. They’re caretakers. They’re chaplains to a church that’s slowly dying of spiritual apathy. And let’s be honest: the congregation loves them for it … right up until the money runs out, the sanctuary’s half full, and the board decides to “go in a new direction.”
2. The Matched Leader
This is rare, but it’s glorious when it happens.
These are pastors who have the vision, the clarity, and the spine to lead a church that actually wants to be led. A church that knows the mission is to make disciples, but they’re not quite sure how to get there. They’re open. They’re ready.
And when that leader steps in, the church grows by conversion — not transfer. Households become faith-centered. The irreligious become followers of Jesus. The community begins to change. Lives start getting transformed.
That pastor isn’t wasting time on hospital visits or planning meetings that should’ve been emails. That pastor is out in the community, building relationships with the unchurched. They’re preaching sermons that speak to real problems: marriages on the rocks, money running out before the month runs out, kids slipping through the cracks, lives unraveling at the seams. And Jesus and the New Testament have commands, directions, and inspiration to answer ALL of these (and every) life crisis.
They’re not worried about coddling the spiritually stagnant. They’re chasing after the lost. Like the Good Shepherd, they leave the 99 — not because the 99 don’t matter, but because the 99 were supposed to be mature enough to stand on their own.
That’s leadership. And it works.
3. The Unmatched Leader
Here’s the reality: most pastors with strong leadership instincts aren’t matched with churches ready for it.
They’re in congregations that aren’t hell-bent on comfort, but they’re not fired up about the mission either. They’re aimless. Not hostile. Not rebellious. Just … uncertain. Wandering.
Think of them as sheep without a shepherd. Not lost. Not wayward. Just waiting.
These churches need a pastor who discerns God’s vision and then casts that vision so clearly, so powerfully, and so relentlessly that people get in line … or get out of the way.
This is where most of the opportunity lies in the American church today. Not with the rebellious. Not with the ready. But with the waiting.
The Problem with “Pastoral” Leadership
Let’s make one thing very clear: Pastoral leadership and strong leadership are not the same thing.
“Pastoral” leadership, the kind that’s been taught and reinforced in most seminaries and churches for the last 75 years or more, is about taking care of the flock. Making sure everyone’s okay. Running the programs. Visiting the sick. Babysitting the saints.
But that’s not what Jesus modeled.
The Good Shepherd doesn’t hover. He equips. He sends. And he goes after the one who’s still outside the fold.
Strong leadership prioritizes disciple-making. It organizes its calendar around outreach. It holds people – especially the church members – accountable for their behavior, not just their beliefs. That kind of leadership expects transformation, not just attendance.
And it does very little of what the status quo demands from a “good pastor.”
So What?
If you’re a lead pastor or a solo pastor today, you’re sitting in one of these three roles — whether you like it or not.
You’re either:
Catering to the crowd’s preferences because they’ve made it clear that’s what they want.
Leading a church that’s mission-aligned and ready for transformation, and you’re the right leader to take them there.
Stuck with a church that doesn’t know what it wants, but you’ve got the vision and guts to lead them anyway.
Which one are you?
Because the church doesn’t need another round of meetings. It doesn’t need another theological deep dive. It needs pastors who understand the role of leadership and who will actually lead.
Ready to Step Up?
If you’re ready to step into strong, mission-centered leadership, or if you’re in a church that’s open but unclear, I’ve got something for you.
Download “The Five Essentials of the Lead Pastor.” It’s a free resource built specifically for pastors like you: the ones in categories two and three … the ones who are ready to stop playing church and start making disciples.
Who’s Really Leading the Church?
Let’s just say it out loud: most churches don’t need a leader leading the church … because they’ve already decided where they want to go.
They’ve made up their minds. They like what they like. Don’t mess with it. Don’t change it. Don’t challenge it. Just keep the spiritual vending machine stocked with sermons that soothe, programs that pacify, and rituals that reinforce their preferences.
If that’s the case, then the so-called “lead pastor” isn’t actually leading. They’re catering. They’re providing customer service in a congregation that long ago traded mission for maintenance.
And yes, I’ve heard the argument: “The word leader only shows up twice in the New Testament.” Sure … depending on your translation and what Greek words you’re choosing to ignore. If that’s your excuse to abdicate leadership, you might want to explain how Jesus, Paul, Peter, and even Timothy managed to rally movements, mobilize teams, and reshape history … without leading.
Right.
Let’s get clear on something: leadership in the church isn’t optional. It’s the determining factor in whether your church is going to make disciples or keep making excuses.
What Leadership Really Means (and What It Doesn’t)
I define leadership simply: a leader is someone who moves people from where they are to where they would not have gone without them.
That’s it. No corporate buzzwords. No leadership seminars needed.
So let’s be honest. If your congregation has already decided where they want to go and they’re just looking for someone to affirm their direction, bless their preferences, and keep things familiar. They don’t want a leader. They want a chaplain. A concierge. Someone to manage their spiritual comfort cruise.
That’s not leadership. That’s compliance.
And to be clear, this blog post isn’t for pastors in those congregations.
Why? Because those churches don’t need a gentle leader.
They need a Moses — someone with a sword, a plague, and a call to repentance.
But that’s not this conversation.
This post is for the pastors who are leading churches that haven’t locked in their golden calf. The churches that are uncertain … aimless … or open but unclear. The ones that are still asking the right questions, even if they don’t have the answers.
Those churches need a true leader. Someone who can hear from God, cast a compelling vision, and help the congregation move together into a future they wouldn’t have reached on their own.
Because real leadership in the church today isn’t about managing the flock.
It’s about guiding them into God’s preferred future – one bold, uncomfortable, Spirit-led step at a time.
Three Kinds of Lead Pastors
Let’s break it down. In today’s church, there are three kinds of pastors filling the lead role.
1. The Congregation-Pleaser
These pastors take their marching orders from the congregation.
If the people want comfort, they preach comfort. If the people want deep dives into Greek verbs that never touch a soul, they give them that. If the people want a social club, they hand out the name tags and the Doritos.
These pastors aren’t leaders. They’re managers. They’re caretakers. They’re chaplains to a church that’s slowly dying of spiritual apathy. And let’s be honest: the congregation loves them for it … right up until the money runs out, the sanctuary’s half full, and the board decides to “go in a new direction.”
2. The Matched Leader
This is rare, but it’s glorious when it happens.
These are pastors who have the vision, the clarity, and the spine to lead a church that actually wants to be led. A church that knows the mission is to make disciples, but they’re not quite sure how to get there. They’re open. They’re ready.
And when that leader steps in, the church grows by conversion — not transfer. Households become faith-centered. The irreligious become followers of Jesus. The community begins to change. Lives start getting transformed.
That pastor isn’t wasting time on hospital visits or planning meetings that should’ve been emails. That pastor is out in the community, building relationships with the unchurched. They’re preaching sermons that speak to real problems: marriages on the rocks, money running out before the month runs out, kids slipping through the cracks, lives unraveling at the seams. And Jesus and the New Testament have commands, directions, and inspiration to answer ALL of these (and every) life crisis.
They’re not worried about coddling the spiritually stagnant. They’re chasing after the lost. Like the Good Shepherd, they leave the 99 — not because the 99 don’t matter, but because the 99 were supposed to be mature enough to stand on their own.
That’s leadership. And it works.
3. The Unmatched Leader
Here’s the reality: most pastors with strong leadership instincts aren’t matched with churches ready for it.
They’re in congregations that aren’t hell-bent on comfort, but they’re not fired up about the mission either. They’re aimless. Not hostile. Not rebellious. Just … uncertain. Wandering.
Think of them as sheep without a shepherd. Not lost. Not wayward. Just waiting.
These churches need a pastor who discerns God’s vision and then casts that vision so clearly, so powerfully, and so relentlessly that people get in line … or get out of the way.
This is where most of the opportunity lies in the American church today. Not with the rebellious. Not with the ready. But with the waiting.
The Problem with “Pastoral” Leadership
Let’s make one thing very clear: Pastoral leadership and strong leadership are not the same thing.
“Pastoral” leadership, the kind that’s been taught and reinforced in most seminaries and churches for the last 75 years or more, is about taking care of the flock. Making sure everyone’s okay. Running the programs. Visiting the sick. Babysitting the saints.
But that’s not what Jesus modeled.
The Good Shepherd doesn’t hover. He equips. He sends. And he goes after the one who’s still outside the fold.
Strong leadership prioritizes disciple-making. It organizes its calendar around outreach. It holds people – especially the church members – accountable for their behavior, not just their beliefs. That kind of leadership expects transformation, not just attendance.
And it does very little of what the status quo demands from a “good pastor.”
So What?
If you’re a lead pastor or a solo pastor today, you’re sitting in one of these three roles — whether you like it or not.
You’re either:
Which one are you?
Because the church doesn’t need another round of meetings. It doesn’t need another theological deep dive. It needs pastors who understand the role of leadership and who will actually lead.
Ready to Step Up?
If you’re ready to step into strong, mission-centered leadership, or if you’re in a church that’s open but unclear, I’ve got something for you.
Download “The Five Essentials of the Lead Pastor.”
It’s a free resource built specifically for pastors like you: the ones in categories two and three … the ones who are ready to stop playing church and start making disciples.
Click here to get your copy now.
Because leadership isn’t optional. And your congregation won’t reach their Promised Land without it.
Recent Posts
Christians Behaving Badly … And Why It Matters More Than Ever
May 30, 2025When is it Okay to Not be Okay?
May 29, 2025There’s Power in the Plate
May 28, 2025Categories