An investigation of Paul's perspectives on leadership in 2 Corinthians chapter 4:1-6: a case for the pastoral ministry of the Church of Central Africa Presbyterian (CCAP) Blantyre Synod's Mulanje Presbytery in Malawi
Dublin Core
Title
An investigation of Paul's perspectives on leadership in 2 Corinthians chapter 4:1-6: a case for the pastoral ministry of the Church of Central Africa Presbyterian (CCAP) Blantyre Synod's Mulanje Presbytery in Malawi
Subject
Master of Theology (New Testament)
Description
This research thesis was aimed at investigating the leadership perspectives of Paul as revealed in 2 Corinthians 4:1-6 and applying those perspectives to the CCAP Blantyre Synod’s pastoral leadership practice of Mulanje Presbytery. The researcher argues in this research that leadership as revealed in the Bible and the church documents of the CCAP Blantyre Synod is servant leadership and that is the leadership as founded by God. That being the case there are confessions made both in the church and in the secular political contexts of Malawi of the need to exercise leadership as servant hood. However, despite every leader confessing that leadership ought to be servant hood, but none is ready to be a servant leader in practice. The overall problem is that there is a gap between the claims to servant leadership both in the Bible and the church documents and the real practice of the same leadership on the ground of the Malawian church context and specifically in the Mulanje Presbytery of the CCAP Blantyre Synod.
From the study of available literature and the use of both oral and written interviews with church ministers both active and retired and church members, the research has found out that this has been the case because: leaders are much concerned about grabbing power and enriching themselves with money, lack of leadership mentors, hypocrisy among the leaders, lack of humility amongst the leaders themselves and the compromised selection and election processes of church leaders and ministerial students.
The research has revealed that in the CCAP Blantyre Synod the pastoral leadership is exercised contrary to the claims of the Bible and her church documents and as such there is a need to go back to the Biblical principles of leadership as founded by God through Jesus Christ and Paul and the same has been enshrined in the Church’s denominational documents. Furthermore, the researcher has indicated that Jesus Christ and Paul are the perfect models of Biblical leadership that is servant leadership. Influenced by Jesus Christ who emptied Himself to die for the people on the cross, Paul foregoes his apostolic authority and humbled himself in 2 Corinthians 4:1-6 to the point of referring himself to as a slave or a servant of the Corinthians under the Lordship of Jesus Christ for the sake of Christ. Paul's leadership perspective in this case is a practical and a confessional one, that is to say that Paul did not just confess servant leadership but he actually demonstrated by living it and that qualifies him to be a role model for the church leadership.
Chapter six has summarized Paul’s leadership that is recommended from this research in a diagrammatic form.
The last part of the last chapter (chapter seven) of this research project has put forward some recommendations for the solution of the problem on how the church (CCAP Blantyre Synod) pastoral leaders of Mulanje Presbytery can move away from just confessing servant leadership to doing servant leadership as a solution to the research problem statement. The researcher has recommended that:
1. Ministerial conferences and shot-term refresher courses be conducted.
2. Modeling the humility of Jesus Christ to be emphasized in the Synod.
3.Discipleship,mentorship and leadership empowerment to be encouraged at all levels of church ministry.
4. Monitoring and evaluation reviews to be frequently made.
5. Further research on leadership to be encouraged and promoted.
6. Proper study, interpretation and understanding of the Bible and church documents to be upheld.
7. Selection and election processes of ministerial candidates and church leaders to be reviewed and reconsidered.
8. The theological training curriculum to be reviewed.
9. The lordship of Jesus Christ to be appealed to at all time.
From the study of available literature and the use of both oral and written interviews with church ministers both active and retired and church members, the research has found out that this has been the case because: leaders are much concerned about grabbing power and enriching themselves with money, lack of leadership mentors, hypocrisy among the leaders, lack of humility amongst the leaders themselves and the compromised selection and election processes of church leaders and ministerial students.
The research has revealed that in the CCAP Blantyre Synod the pastoral leadership is exercised contrary to the claims of the Bible and her church documents and as such there is a need to go back to the Biblical principles of leadership as founded by God through Jesus Christ and Paul and the same has been enshrined in the Church’s denominational documents. Furthermore, the researcher has indicated that Jesus Christ and Paul are the perfect models of Biblical leadership that is servant leadership. Influenced by Jesus Christ who emptied Himself to die for the people on the cross, Paul foregoes his apostolic authority and humbled himself in 2 Corinthians 4:1-6 to the point of referring himself to as a slave or a servant of the Corinthians under the Lordship of Jesus Christ for the sake of Christ. Paul's leadership perspective in this case is a practical and a confessional one, that is to say that Paul did not just confess servant leadership but he actually demonstrated by living it and that qualifies him to be a role model for the church leadership.
Chapter six has summarized Paul’s leadership that is recommended from this research in a diagrammatic form.
The last part of the last chapter (chapter seven) of this research project has put forward some recommendations for the solution of the problem on how the church (CCAP Blantyre Synod) pastoral leaders of Mulanje Presbytery can move away from just confessing servant leadership to doing servant leadership as a solution to the research problem statement. The researcher has recommended that:
1. Ministerial conferences and shot-term refresher courses be conducted.
2. Modeling the humility of Jesus Christ to be emphasized in the Synod.
3.Discipleship,mentorship and leadership empowerment to be encouraged at all levels of church ministry.
4. Monitoring and evaluation reviews to be frequently made.
5. Further research on leadership to be encouraged and promoted.
6. Proper study, interpretation and understanding of the Bible and church documents to be upheld.
7. Selection and election processes of ministerial candidates and church leaders to be reviewed and reconsidered.
8. The theological training curriculum to be reviewed.
9. The lordship of Jesus Christ to be appealed to at all time.
Creator
George Lyton Jankens
Publisher
Submitted to: Justo Mwale University
Date
2021
Contributor
Supervisor: Prof. Davison T. Banda
Rights
Justo Mwale University. All rights reserved
Format
Physical
Language
English
Coverage
An investigation of Paul's perspectives on leadership in 2 Corinthians chapter 4:1-6
- Date Added
- June 16, 2022
- Collection
- Theses and Dissertation [2021]
- Item Type
- Text
- Citation
- George Lyton Jankens, “An investigation of Paul's perspectives on leadership in 2 Corinthians chapter 4:1-6: a case for the pastoral ministry of the Church of Central Africa Presbyterian (CCAP) Blantyre Synod's Mulanje Presbytery in Malawi,” Justo Mwale University, Repository , accessed May 8, 2024, https://repository.justomwale.net/items/show/60.