Redefining Success

When I was in college, we had a history professor who was famous for asking one question on his final exam. That meant the whole purpose of your time in that class was to find out that one question that was going to be on the final. Andy, a fraternity brother of mine, had whittled it down to two questions and after thinking about it for a few weeks, Andy was convinced he had the final question. He went all in on getting ready to answer that one question. 

And the professor asked the other question. 

Refusing to be deterred, Andy answered the professor’s question as best he could and then wrote, “Another interesting question to consider is…” and answered the question he had prepared for. The professor gave him a C on the final. Andy got an F on the question that was asked. He got an A on the question he answered and it averaged out to a C. 

I’m afraid most of us in church leadership are giving great answers to questions no one is asking. For most of my life, pastors have been judged by the “3 Bs” – budgets, buildings and  butts. Any time a pastor was introduced, the opening remarks would include the latest building project the pastor had completed at their current church, the growth in the budget and how the attendance had grown since the pastor had been there. 

Sadly, these aren’t the questions our culture is asking. Our communities are looking for their identities, meaning and hope for their lives and a purpose for their living. All of these are Jesus questions. When Jesus called us to make disciples, these are the questions He calls us to answer. Who are we? Why are we here? These are the questions that Jesus answers best. 

We are called to make disciples – men and women who have aligned themselves with the teachings of Jesus and follow Him as their Lord. This is the main thing both Jesus and Paul did in their ministries. They made disciples. They made people who could carry on the ministry when Jesus and Paul were no longer leading the earthly work of the kingdom of God. 

How did they do it?

First, they prayed. Jesus spent all night in prayer before He called His disciples. Paul told Timothy and Titus to carefully choose leaders who could be trusted. Most of the time, we choose Saul – someone who looks like a leader. Remember, Saul was tall and handsome. That’s the reason the people chose him to be the first king of Israel. He looked the part. God, on the other hand, had been working with a shepherd in the fields. The people chose Saul. God chose David. The leaders God chooses are always very different from the ones we choose. If you want to find the leaders God is already working with, then begin with prayer. 

Second, Jesus and Paul taught their disciples. They didn’t teach them everything. Jesus and Paul started small and added to the lessons over time. The first questions were of identity – do you know who you are? Paul reminded Timothy to hold on to the memory of when Paul and others had laid hands on the young minister and called out the gifts within him. Knowing who you are in Christ is a foundational requirement to a long and flourishing kingdom ministry. 

Third, the disciples were sent out at regular intervals. Jesus would tell the disciples to go to nearby cities and do the work they had been training for. The disciples would learn and train. Then, they would go and do the work they had seen Jesus do.  They wouldn’t be sent to do the whole mission. They would be sent to go and do small parts of the greater mission they would one day go and do on their own. Local churches need  to incorporate this strategy more into their discipleship processes. Most of what we learn we learn in the doing. Short teaching assignments, three day mission work trips are the stepping stones to lifetimes spent doing the kingdom work to which we’re called. 

Lastly, the disciples were brought back to continue their learning. Each trip had pushed them to the limit of their understanding and faith. Having seen what they needed to learn, the disciples were motivated to continue their training. We never graduate from learning how to be a disciple. We never have it all. We simply have all we have needed up to this moment and we’re now learning what we’ll need for the next moment. 

One of the reasons the early church survived the persecutions of the early centuries of the church’s existence is that the enemies of the church could never kill the leader. If Paul was executed, Timothy stepped up. When Jesus was crucified, He reappeared in the lives of His followers. The same reason the early church survived will be the reason the church thrives in the coming years. 

And that reason? Every Paul makes a Timothy. Every leader makes a leader. The question for pastors isn’t how many buildings have you built, but how many disciples have you made? How many young men and women has God pointed out to you? How many of these have you laid hands on to call out the gifts within them? When, as with Paul, our departure is at hand, will we be able to point to 1, 2, 10, 100 who’ve we’ve trained to take our place? 

Success isn’t about membership. It’s about disciples. It’s not about attendance. It’s about the mission. 

Let’s not end up like my fraternity brother Andy –  bringing great answers to questions no one is asking. 

This essay was first posted in Scot McKnight’s newsletter.