The Problem with Christian Leadership Books

I wholeheartedly agree with Chris Blumhofer, Associate Editor for BuildingChurchLeaders.com, who wrote a recent piece in the Out of Ur blog on the misrepresentation of Jesus as merely a leader in many well-meaning but theologically flawed Christian leadership books.

I have written elsewhere that the Christian leadership literature is replete with three kinds of authors: (1) Academically rigorous but theologically flawed; (2) Academically weak but theologically sound, (3) Both academically weak and theologically flawed. Sadly, category #3 abounds in the crowded leadership shelves in many Christian bookstores.

What we need is the fourth category: Academically rigorous and theologically sound. I have a copy of the book "Jesus CEO" referred to by Blumhofer; which I think is not only theologically flawed, but very anthropocentric in its treatment of Christ Jesus, the Gospel, and the Word of God.

Here is a portion of Blumhofer's piece. The complete text can be read here.

The major problem with the books that get him wrong occurs in the area of interpretation. Take John 10:10, Jesus saying, “I came that they might have life and have it abundantly.” Let’s evaluate the reflection on that verse published in Jesus, CEO: Using Ancient Wisdom for Visionary Leadership:

Many times leaders and managers expect their employees to leap through the flames for them but do not define what the purpose or reward will be. Then they wonder why nobody is leaping…. As Harry Pickens, a marketing seminar leader, said, “People are tuned in to one station: WIFM. And those letters stand for “What’s in it for me?”
Jesus clearly defined his staff’s work-related benefits.

No. Jesus was not demonstrating any principle about the year-end bonus, revenue sharing, or 401(k) matching. In the cosmic battle between God and Satan, John 10:10 sets up Jesus, the sacrificial Good Shepherd, against Satan, the thief. Jesus wasn’t talking about—and never meant to imply—anything about “work-related benefits.”

Reading the Gospels for leadership principles like team building, vision casting, or “seeing the potential in others” makes a mockery of authorial intent and historical-cultural backgrounds. Such readings appear to take the Bible seriously, but they don’t do it justice; they simply create anachronistic interpretations. Could Jesus-as-leader book be flirting with recreating Jesus as one of us (or one of who we hope to be)?

Jesus has much to say to leaders, but we (especially those of us who lead) can only hear him clearly when we remember that Jesus is not primarily a leader. He is God’s Anointed One, the Suffering Servant, the prophet greater than Moses.