When Church Leaders Fail: Four Healthy Responses

Church Leader Fails

Pastor Bars Co-Pastor from Missionary Journey after Heated Argument!

Phillippi Community Church: Beloved Female Leaders Hurl Twitter Barbs. Pastor Steps In!

Can you imagine the headlines that would have been written about just these two stories of church leader failures from the Bible (Acts 15:36-41, Philippians 4:2-3)?! The twitter wars among Christians and the dog and cat fights of local congregations may be fought differently these days, but they are not original with the 21^st Century church.

As we come to the end of this (I hope) encouraging and informative series on the church, we need to consider one more crucial topic – how to respond when church leaders fail us.

Unhelpful Responses to Church Leader Failure

How do we, as the church, respond when our leaders fail – us and one another? Here are some unhelpful strategies I’ve tried in the past:

1. The ostrich response: I want to bury my head in the sand. I don’t like conflict among people I love and respect, and I just want everyone to get along.

2. The mosh pit response: I want to jump in the melee of all the tweets by favoriting witticisms that defend one party or the other.
3. The in-the-know response: I want to learn all I can about the conflict so I can share my vast knowledge and profound opinion.

4 Helpful Responses to Church Leader Failure

As the Holy Spirit daily sanctifies us and as we are led by wise gospel-breathing souls who scent the social media air with gospel aroma and godly counsel, we move to a sounder approach. Consider these four helpful ways to respond to conflict between church leaders:

1.  Begin with Scripture: Where leaders are differing over theological doctrine, study Scripture yourself to find out what it says.

• If the public dissension is about law and grace, for example, read what the Bible says about it. Find and review Scripture passages that tell about law and grace, obedience and good works, justification and sanctification.
• Pray that the Holy Spirit would enlighten your mind as you read.

2.  Pray for all parties concerned. Rather than taking sides or favoriting witty remarks or writing witty remarks, humble yourself and pray.

Here are some things to pray for your church leaders, failed or not:

• Thank God for these ministers of the gospel.
• Pray that they will work through their division.
• Pray for their personal spiritual growth.
• Pray for protection from temptation. Do you ever stop to think how many temptations must face “big-name” Christian leaders? I realized I don’t — not often enough.

 The ostrich response: one unhelpful way to respond to church leadership failures. #churchleader #church #ministry Share on X

3. Pray for yourself, for humility and repentance. Try praying Philippians 2:1-5.

• Pray for humility.
• Repent of idolatry of Christian leaders and writers. Remember that they are redeemed sinners, just as we are. Many of us tend to place unrealistic expectations on such leaders.

4. Love fallen leaders well. Let’s not forget that Satan loves to attack unity, and failure by a church leader is a prime target for the entire congregation and for each individual.

• If the harm is deep, don’t gossip or grow bitter. Talk to a wise and trusted friend or counselor about the harm. Walk with another through the process of forgiveness.
• When and if the time is right (the Holy Spirit will be your guide), tell the leader how they have harmed you, don’t accuse them. Invite them to look at their sin and to return to fellowship with you.
• Seek reconciliation, but know that you may have to wait for it. (Romans 12:17-18).

A Prayer about Fallen Church Leaders

Lord, Jesus Christ,

You are the only leader of the church who has never failed your followers. Forgive us, we pray, for our failures to love well when the church fails us. Help us to run to your outstretched arms, to hear your wise counsel, and to move toward others with your strength, mercy, and love. Amen