SERMON TITLE: Gifts of the Spirit: Leadership
SCRIPTURE: Romans 12:4-8 (ESV)
SPEAKER: Josh Hanson
DATE: 4–27-25
Sermon Discussion Guide
Take notes here
As always it’s a joy to be with all of you this weekend at Gateway Church. And there’s one thing I want you to know — and this is true if you’re worshiping with us for the first time — if you’re joining us at our North Main Campus or are with our friends in Bucyrus — I want you to know that God loves you and that I love you too.
After a short break for Easter — we’re returning to our series in Romans this weekend — taking a look at the spiritual gifts that Paul mentions so we all understand what these gifts are and how they’re to be used in our faith family. The purpose of the spiritual gifts is something I’ve reminded us of many times before: Spiritual gifts are abilities given to individual believers by the Holy Spirit in order to equip God’s people for ministry, both for the edification of the church and for God’s salvific mission to the world. - Lexham Survey of Theology
Here’s what Paul says about the gifts — in Romans chapter twelve — beginning in verse four.
Romans 12:4–8 ESV
4 For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, 5 so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. 6 Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; 7 if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; 8 the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.
We started off by taking two weeks to explore the gift of prophecy. Then we looked at the gifts of service, teaching, and exhortation. And — just before Holy Week — we looked at the gift of giving. Which means that — today — we’re going to look at the spiritual gift of leadership, which Paul mentions next in his list where he writes…
Romans 12:8 ESV
8 the one who leads, with zeal;
So let’s begin by answering the question, “What is the gift of leadership?” The definition of this gift that I shared with you a few weeks ago is…
Leadership
The gift of leadership is the divine strength or ability to influence people at their level while directing and focusing them on the big picture, vision, or idea.
Now — in the original language of Greek — the word that we translate as “leads” — similar to other gifts we’ve looked at — has both a general application in Scripture — meaning — regardless if you have the gift there’s some “leading” that God expects you to do — and — the word also has specific uses that would appear to be for those who have this spiritual gift. Let’s briefly look at the general application — ways that leading applies to all who follow Jesus.
Paul — who wrote Romans — wrote many of the letters in the New Testament. One of his letters was to a man named Titus who was pastoring on the island of Crete. After reminding Titus of the ways sin had control over us — before we had faith in Jesus — Paul writes…
Titus 3:4–8 ESV
4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. 8 The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people.
A few verses later — Paul writes…
Titus 3:14 ESV
14 And let our people learn to devote themselves to good works, so as to help cases of urgent need, and not be unfruitful.
Now — you probably noticed that you didn’t hear me say the word “lead” anywhere in those verses. That’s because a different English word was used to convey a similar idea: the word “devote”. So here’s the general principle: Because of all that Christ has done for his people — in saving us not by our works — but by his perfect work — those who believe in him are to devote themselves — or lead themselves — to do good works — which Paul repeats a few verses later.
So again — in a very general sense — all Christians are leaders because — at the very least — we’re to be leading ourselves in living a life that’s a proper response to all that Christ has done for us. We’re not to live life on auto-pilot. We’re not to be passive and “let go and let God.” We’re to be actively engaged in putting our faith into practice. For that’s what it means to follow Jesus — we follow the One who intentionally and actively lived his life in love for us and calls us to intentionally and actively live our lives in love for him in return.
Here’s another general application for all of us — even those who don’t have this spiritual gift. To the Christians living in Thessalonica, Paul writes…
1 Thessalonians 5:12–13 ESV
12 We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, 13 and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work.
Another case where we don’t explicitly see the word “lead” but the same Greek word is used — but here it’s translated as “over”. So the general application here is to respect those who are over us — those who lead us. We’re to hold them in high regard because — in leading us — they’re displaying care for us — even when they admonish or warn us.
For many years — and it’s still a bit of a struggle for me today — allowing others to hold me in high regard was hard. I don’t like attention. I prefer to disappear in a crowd. But this is an area that God has — and continues to — grow me in. Especially to not dismiss or prevent you from obeying this biblical principle. So — thank you for your patience with me. And I’m still gonna be awkward — when you hold me in high regard — but hopefully less awkward than I once was.
One last general application — still Paul — but this time we’re looking at his letter to Timothy who’s pastoring the church in Ephesus. Paul writes…
1 Timothy 5:17–18 ESV
17 Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching. 18 For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain,” and, “The laborer deserves his wages.”
The word “rule” is the same Greek word as “lead” in Romans. Here — similar to what we just read — the application for all of us is to honor those who lead us. For those who rule — or lead — well — and this is specifically referring to leading in the church — should be considered worthy of double honor — a reference to the financial pay they receive — as made evident by Paul quoting something Jesus said in Luke chapter 10.
So to recap: All Christians are to — one — lead themselves in doing good works in response to being saved by Jesus — two — respect and hold in high regard those who lead us and — three — honor those who lead by taking care of them financially.
Now let’s look at a few potential examples of this spiritual gift at work in Scripture. We’re going to look at two passages from the Old Testament. First, we’ll look at a woman named Deborah. This is her story as found in Judges chapter 4.
Judges 4:1–10 NLT
1 After Ehud’s death, the Israelites again did evil in the Lord’s sight. 2 So the Lord turned them over to King Jabin of Hazor, a Canaanite king. The commander of his army was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth-haggoyim. 3 Sisera, who had 900 iron chariots, ruthlessly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years. Then the people of Israel cried out to the Lord for help. 4 Deborah, the wife of Lappidoth, was a prophet who was judging Israel at that time. 5 She would sit under the Palm of Deborah, between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim, and the Israelites would go to her for judgment. 6 One day she sent for Barak son of Abinoam, who lived in Kedesh in the land of Naphtali. She said to him, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, commands you: Call out 10,000 warriors from the tribes of Naphtali and Zebulun at Mount Tabor. 7 And I will call out Sisera, commander of Jabin’s army, along with his chariots and warriors, to the Kishon River. There I will give you victory over him.” 8 Barak told her, “I will go, but only if you go with me.” 9 “Very well,” she replied, “I will go with you. But you will receive no honor in this venture, for the Lord’s victory over Sisera will be at the hands of a woman.” So Deborah went with Barak to Kedesh. 10 At Kedesh, Barak called together the tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali, and 10,000 warriors went up with him. Deborah also went with him.
So Deborah goes with Barak into battle. And things happen just as Deborah said they would. At one point in the battle she has to urge Barak on with the words…
Judges 4:14 NLT
14 “Get ready! This is the day the Lord will give you victory over Sisera, for the Lord is marching ahead of you.” So Barak led his 10,000 warriors down the slopes of Mount Tabor into battle.
Being in a position of authority doesn’t mean someone’s a leader — that’s one lesson we learn. Barak’s a cowardly man in a leadership position — while Deborah — who definitely had the spiritual gift of prophecy — and likely leadership as well — led Barak — and his army — into a victorious battle.
I bring up Deborah as an example to make it clear that — though we’re a church that holds a complementarian view of the office of elder — that’s a fancy theological word that means we believe that the office of elder is reserved for men only — though we’re complementarian — we do believe that women are empowered by the Holy Spirit with the gift of leadership. And we need women — who are empowered by the Spirit in this way — to use their gift of leadership for our good as a congregation.
Now — you may wonder, “Why are you complementarian? If you believe that women can be empowered with the gift of leadership why don’t you allow them to serve as elders — the highest office of leadership in the church?” Here are two reasons why but — for more information — I suggest grabbing a copy of the booklet on leadership that’s available at your campus resource center.
Why don’t we allow women to be elders at Gateway — and I know that our friends in Bucyrus hold a different position — so feel free to put me on mute for the next minute or so. And — by the way — this is one of the characteristics of the EPC — our denomination — that I so appreciate. That churches can hold different views on this topic and not go their separate ways. Because — no matter our view on this topic — we all hold a high regard for Scripture — its authority, sufficiency, inerrancy, and so on — yet come to different interpretive conclusions.
So back to why Gateway doesn’t have female elders — I’ll give two reasons. First, nowhere in the New Testament do we see a woman referred to as an elder in a local church. Though the reason why we have female deacons is because we do see Phoebe — in Romans 16 — referred to as a deacon.
Second — and most compellingly — Jesus chose twelve men to be his apostles who originally held the highest office of leadership in the church. Some argue that Jesus chose only men because he was a man of his time — and rabbis didn’t pick women to be their followers. This argument always baffles me because…Jesus was not a man of his time! Jesus allowed women to financially fund his ministry, allowed a woman who was a prostitute to wash his feet — which was scandalous — had no problem having a private conversation with a Samaritan woman — just as equally scandalous — and so on. Jesus did not conform to the cultural expectations when it came to his relationship with women. Yet he only chose men to be his apostles — something we have to seriously consider when thinking through this topic.
But — here at Gateway — we honor women. We encourage women who have the spiritual gift of leadership to use their gift for God’s glory and our good — as we do our best to apply what we see in the New Testament when it comes to who God calls to the highest office in the church.
And — if you don’t know — on staff — three of our six departments — worship, connect, serve, go, next gen, and business/ops — three of the six departments are led by women — Lindsay, Kristi, and Ashely. And — our executive director — “the boss” as we like to say — is as well — Laura — who’s heart is filled with joy every time I call her the boss. I kid. You see — we believe that God gifts women with the gift of leadership for our good — as we hold a complementarian view of the office of elder.
Now let’s look at a moment from the life of Moses. As you may be aware, Moses was called by God to lead the Israelites out of their enslavement in Egypt. But — if you know their story — the people left Egypt only to become a grumbling, complaining, distrusting in God’s ability to provide for them — kind of people. And — a people like this — end up with all kinds of disputes, disagreements, and arguments among themselves. And Moses — because he was the leader — found himself being the judge for all of the disputes, disagreements, and arguments going on among the — wait for it — few million Israelites! Talk about a never-ending, exhausting job for Moses.
Thus — in one of the few positive in-law stories in known history — I kid — Moses’ father-in-law — a man named Jethro — has an idea. This is what we read in Exodus chapter 18.
Exodus 18:13–27 NLT
13 The next day, Moses took his seat to hear the people’s disputes against each other. They waited before him from morning till evening. 14 When Moses’ father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he asked, “What are you really accomplishing here? Why are you trying to do all this alone while everyone stands around you from morning till evening?” 15 Moses replied, “Because the people come to me to get a ruling from God. 16 When a dispute arises, they come to me, and I am the one who settles the case between the quarreling parties. I inform the people of God’s decrees and give them his instructions.” 17 “This is not good!” Moses’ father-in-law exclaimed. 18 “You’re going to wear yourself out—and the people, too. This job is too heavy a burden for you to handle all by yourself. 19 Now listen to me, and let me give you a word of advice, and may God be with you. You should continue to be the people’s representative before God, bringing their disputes to him. 20 Teach them God’s decrees, and give them his instructions. Show them how to conduct their lives. 21 But select from all the people some capable, honest men who fear God and hate bribes. Appoint them as leaders over groups of one thousand, one hundred, fifty, and ten. 22 They should always be available to solve the people’s common disputes, but have them bring the major cases to you. Let the leaders decide the smaller matters themselves. They will help you carry the load, making the task easier for you. 23 If you follow this advice, and if God commands you to do so, then you will be able to endure the pressures, and all these people will go home in peace.” 24 Moses listened to his father-in-law’s advice and followed his suggestions. 25 He chose capable men from all over Israel and appointed them as leaders over the people. He put them in charge of groups of one thousand, one hundred, fifty, and ten. 26 These men were always available to solve the people’s common disputes. They brought the major cases to Moses, but they took care of the smaller matters themselves. 27 Soon after this, Moses said good-bye to his father-in-law, who returned to his own land.
Moses was wearing himself out by not delegating leadership to others. He apparently mistook God’s calling on him to lead the people to mean that he alone was to do all the leading. And God has never intended leadership to be an individual endeavor — and Jethro understood this. So he gave his son-in-law some good, godly advice. Using language we find throughout the Bible — about the kinds of characteristics we’re to look for in those who lead in the church — Jethro tells Moses to select some capable, honest men who fear God and have integrity and appoint them as leaders over groups of various sizes. Because — again — one man — Moses — can’t do all the leading. And he’s not the only one gifted to lead. For the Spirit of God uses many to lead the people of God.
But notice the structure and hierarchy. Some are gifted to lead ten people. Others fifty. Others a hundred. Others a thousand. The leader of ten isn’t less significant than the leader of a thousand — both are needed! Just ask people who are in the group of ten if the one who leads them is important. But — at the same time — those being led have to understand that structure and hierarchy are needed because one man can’t handle the responsibility and time it takes to lead and care for every single individual when a group — apparently — gets bigger than around ten people. We’ll see how this plays itself out at Gateway in a moment.
But this story in Exodus — is very similar to what we read about those who led the church in the New Testament. For example, to Timothy Paul writes…
1 Timothy 3:1–13 ESV
1 The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. 2 Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, 3 not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. 4 He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, 5 for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church? 6 He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. 7 Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil. 8 Deacons likewise must be dignified, not double-tongued, not addicted to much wine, not greedy for dishonest gain. 9 They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. 10 And let them also be tested first; then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless. 11 Their wives likewise must be dignified, not slanderers, but sober-minded, faithful in all things. 12 Let deacons each be the husband of one wife, managing their children and their own households well. 13 For those who serve well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and also great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.
We’ve looked at these verses in previous sermons on the spiritual gifts — but we return to them now looking at the importance of the spiritual gift of leadership among those who are in positions of authority in the local church. Both elders and deacons are to be good managers of their homes. Manager is the same word translated as lead in Romans — so managing in your homes — or leading in your homes — is a prerequisite for leading in the church.
And selecting capable individuals — who have the character to match — reminds me of how the church chose the first deacons.
Acts 6:1–7 ESV
1 Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution. 2 And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. 3 Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. 4 But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” 5 And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. 6 These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them. 7 And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.
Did you notice the similarities in the situation Moses found himself in and the apostles situation here in Acts? And how a similar solution is agreed upon? I bring this up to remind us of the different leadership roles in our church, what they do, and how we all benefit when each of these groups are leading in the way God has gifted and called them to lead. Again — you can read more about this in the booklet on leadership that’s available at your campus resource center.
But here at Gateway — we’re blessed with a group of faithful men and women who serve in leadership. There are the elders — men who spiritually protect and shepherd the congregation. There’s the staff — whose role is to equip, train, and resource the members of Gateway to do the work of ministry. And there are our deacons — our lead servants. The elders, staff, and deacons all have a leadership role to play in our church.
Let’s begin with elders. Elders spiritually protect and shepherd the congregation. The way we elders describe our role is in a vision statement we have for ourselves.
Our primary responsibility, as elders, is to represent the mind of Christ as we spiritually lead Gateway Church. We’re to collectively discern his will for Gateway in all our decisions. Additionally, we’re called to be men who…
1) study, learn, and teach the Word of God,
2) shepherd the sick, lonely, elderly, and those in need,
3) disciple the children and adults of the church and seek after those who become inactive,
4) guard against dangers to the faith and life of those under our care,
5) warn, admonish, and reclaim those who stray and, when necessary, enact church discipline,
6) and seek out and raise up new leaders within the church.
We didn’t come up with this on our own — this is what our church constitution — what’s called the Book of Order — tells us is our role as your elders.
The elders — collectively — represent the mind of Christ for this church.
Together — we seek Christ’s vision for what we’re to be doing.
This isn’t a one man at the top of the org chart kind of team — the vision and direction of Gateway isn’t any one person’s responsibility or authority — it’s the responsibility of the elders together.
As is the teaching of God’s Word, and the shepherding of the people — that’s why we’ve divided our members into shepherding groups — and the discipleship of the next generation, and the guarding against false doctrines, and the disciplining of those who are ensnared by sin, as is the raising up the next generation of church leadership.
What about the church staff? The church staff are to equip, train, and resource the church members to do the work of ministry. The staff’s primary role is not to do the ministry work, but to serve the church members by resourcing and equipping them — making sure church members have what they need to do the ministry work of the church.
Now we turn to the deacons. The deacons are our lead servants. They assist the staff and elders to make sure the ministry work — that the staff has equipped the congregation to do — gets done. Deacons are key in both freeing up the elders — so we can focus on our role of shepherding and protecting — while also freeing up the staff so they’re able to equip, train, and resource the church members to do the ministry work of the church.
But there’s one more important leadership role in our church — our Life Group leaders. Those who lead a small group of people — helping them spiritually grow and follow Jesus more faithfully — so they love God and each other more passionately.
And when elders are fulfilling their leadership role, and staff theirs, and deacons theirs, and Life Group leaders theirs — and when we all see the beauty of having leaders responsible for tens, and fifties, and hundreds, and thousands — we’ll all be better served and cared for and led by those the Spirit has empowered with the gift of leadership. We’ll feel the intimacy of being led by our Life Group leaders — of course we’ll need to be in a Life Group to experience this leadership — and — as we serve we’ll be led by the staff — of course we’ll need to be serving to experience this leadership — and we’ll be shepherded by our elder — of course we’ll need to be a member to be part of a shepherding group — some gentle reminders that the care that we often desire comes by means of submitting to those who serve in a leadership role in the church.
That’s how care and discipleship work at Gateway — it can’t really work any other way. Which takes us back to where we began — and those general principles of leadership that we saw earlier. How each of us is responsible to lead ourselves — to devote ourselves to good works — including the good work of being a fully engaged member of the local church that we’re part of. Worshipping, connecting, serving, and going are what you hear us say around here a lot. And how each of us is responsible for growing as a follower of Jesus who’s a Word and Spirit Christian, who’s generous and Kingdom-minded, who makes disciples, and who makes it clear that they’re a member of this faith family.
If you’re in leadership — whatever your role may be — thank you for leading. Thank you for allowing the Spirit of God to empower and use you for our good. And to those of you who — your only leadership responsibility is that of leading yourself well — thank you for doing so. And may we all grow in our thankfulness to God for the leaders he’s appointed over us. Let’s pray.
Heavenly Father, thank you for the way you lead your people. You lead us through your Word — the Bible — where you tell us what to do, how to live, and what to believe. You lead us through those you’ve called to serve in roles within the church. And you lead us through the presence of the Holy Spirit.
Holy Spirit, thank you for empowering many with the gift of leadership. For those you’ve called to lead thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens — all are needed for us to be the church you’ve called us to be. Empower more — we ask — for the glory of our great Savior and for our good.
And — Jesus — we thank you for not abandoning us when you ascended to Heaven — but you called men and women to be the leaders of your church. And you — with your Father — sent the Holy Spirit to empower these leaders. Jesus — as we follow you as a church — may we follow you faithfully in whatever role we’ve been called to. For then we’ll grow in our spiritual maturity — and will care well for one another — and be a church that sees even more lives changed by the good news of the gospel. And we pray all of this in your name. Amen.
May you go grateful to God for those he’s called and gifted to lead his church. Amen.
God loves you. I love you. You are sent.
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