By Kent Hunter
Did you ever hear the Christian hymn, “Onward Christian Soldiers,” at church? What it doesn’t say implies something the church today needs to re-learn: Generals do not win a war; armies do. Likewise, pastors will not “win the world;” Christians will. Their marching orders are to introduce the benefits of Christianity to as many people as possible. It’s not a war of “death” but of “life.” But the strategy is very similar.
Every good army needs leaders. They’re called generals. They give direction, provide strategy, and equip the troops. These generals are highly trained, very experienced, and especially called to the role of leadership. But, without the masses—the troops—they accomplish very little.
The modern Christian church has drifted from the biblical model. It is one of the reasons Christianity is losing ground—losing the war. Churches focus almost entirely on highly trained generals. They are called pastors. They are important. I know; I have been one. I have also trained many of them. But, alone, they, (we), will never get the job done.