Leadership

Insular spirituality is one of the greatest threats to flourishing churches. Although many PAOC churches are prioritizing outreach, evangelism and social justice, many more are bound by insular spirituality. Churches bound by insular spirituality are hesitant to step out into their communities with the redemptive message of the gospel. Satisfied with maintaining the status quo, these churches serve their congregations but fail to share Jesus with their neighbours and meet the needs of their communities. Insular churches neglect evangelism, disregard whole-life discipleship, overlook human needs, and rationalize unjust social structures. For churches looking to break out of insular spirituality, I propose four biblically-shaped leadership strategies: 1) Spirit-empowered gospel proclamation; 2) Christ-centered whole-life discipleship; 3) Community-driven response to human needs; and 4) Racially-sensitive awareness of unjust social structures.

1. Spirit-empowered Gospel Proclamation

When Pentecostals read the Book of Acts, they consider the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost to be empowerment for gospel proclamation. Contrary to Frank Macchia, who incorrectly regards the Day of Pentecost as the “birthday” of the church, a Spirit-informed reading of Scripture identifies the primary purpose of Pentecost as the outpouring of power for missional witness (Luke 24:49; Acts 1:8).¹ According to Craig Keener, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost was not a unique event but a normative and expected activity of the Spirit in the early church.² Through the outpouring of the Spirit, Jesus empowers His followers to continue His ministry of reconciliation throughout the world until His return.

Although we have historically prioritized proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit, Tara Beth Leach argues that the contemporary church has neglected its essential role of Spirit-empowered gospel proclamation. In her assessment, Leach rightly asserts that most Christians are rooted in individualism or a “privatization of one’s personal faith.” The notion that faith is a private matter and that Jesus is a “personal Savior” is a form of spiritual narcissism that creates a distorted vision of the Christian life.³ This distorted view replaces Spirit-empowered gospel proclamation with a more self-centred form of therapeutic spirituality. Reawakening a passion for lost people requires prioritizing Spirit-baptism in our churches, especially among emerging generations craving authentic biblical experiences. Suppose it is true that the Holy Spirit empowers gospel witness. In that case, we must elevate the empowering work of the Spirit as a normative and expected activity in our ministries.

2. Christ-centred Whole-Life Discipleship

Churches suffering from insular spirituality often determine their success according to the ABCs: attendance, building and cash. Effective disciple-making may not be as easily quantifiable, yet producing believers who conform to the image of Christ is where real transformation takes place. As Pentecostal leaders, we must recognize there is no higher calling than to teach and train people to display the character of Christ in all dimensions of their lives.

Nigerian pastor Emmanuel Egbunu has witnessed a considerable expansion of Christianity in the developing world. However, he admits that the spread of the Christian faith through foreign missionaries has failed to nurture young converts in developing their relationship with Christ. Described as a “travesty of biblical discipleship,” he considers these new believers as “abandoned babies” who have been neglected and left vulnerable to return to traditional African religions, magic and the occult.⁴ Egbunu believes the situation can be reversed if indigenous church leaders are willing to train new believers through natural, interactive and non-threatening learning environments. He recommends that pastors not only teach Christian doctrine but also provide life-skills coaching such as how to succeed in school and at work, who to marry, how to parent, and how to live a victorious Christian life; in other words, a whole-life discipleship model where Christ infuses every dimension of life.⁵

One helpful resource for pastors interested in reprioritizing discipleship is Life in 5D: A New Vision of Discipleship by Charlie Self, Johan Mostert and Jamé Bolds. Seeking to produce believers who display the character of Christ in all dimensions of their lives, the book and online assessment tool focus on five inter-connected dimensions of life: 1) Spiritual formation, 2) Personal wholeness, 3) Healthy relationships, 4) Vocational clarity, and 5) Economics and work.⁶ Within these five dimensions, the authors generate 35 specific biblical outcomes that inform participants regarding their level of discipleship towards personal wholeness and social flourishing. Holistic, empowering and versatile, each outcome is described with real-world practicality to help believers in their discipleship journey of becoming more like Christ.

3. Community-driven Response to Human Needs

Breaking out of insular spirituality requires a biblical and substantive response to human needs in the local community. Too many Christians have prided themselves on being “mission-minded” by writing cheques to support humanitarian causes while overlooking the needs in their own backyards. As a pastor in Toronto, I continue to see a missional imbalance that prioritizes overseas funding projects while neglecting the escalating levels of food insecurity in our own neighbourhoods. Such a distorted perspective is symptomatic of a failure to develop disciples with kingdom-shaped worldviews. An essential strategy for holistic and transformative Pentecostal leadership requires a profound concern for people experiencing food and housing uncertainties and the whole range of human needs, whether spiritual, physical or social. When kingdom-shaped churches operationalize a consistent and compassionate outreach to the poor and marginalized, they authenticate their verbal witness of Christ in the community.

To find a workable and effective strategy for meeting human needs, Robert Woodson argues that poverty alleviation begins with looking for solutions among the people facing food insecurity.⁷ Those who are embedded in the community and have managed to survive and thrive can provide honest assessments of their daily barriers and challenges. Convinced that people must be agents of their own uplift, Woodson recommends providing people experiencing poverty with the tools to empower self-determination and a supportive environment.⁸ Although this approach to poverty alleviation requires long-term community engagement, when churches break out of insular spirituality and come alongside the poor, those suffering can experience economic independence and self-sufficiency.⁹

Furthermore, as the Halo Project has shown, the socio-economic benefits are exponential when churches intentionally invest resources in their local communities. For every dollar an urban congregation spends serving their community, the local economy receives $3.32 in economic benefit. For rural churches, the median value is even higher at $5.02. Across Canada, the value of local church investment in their communities is currently estimated to be $18.2 billion, demonstrating the immense value of the local church to the community it serves.¹⁰ If government-funded social service agencies had to replace what the local church provides, they would be incapable of shouldering the financial burden. For PAOC churches involved in the Halo Project, their multi-faceted local missional priorities make them invaluable resources to their communities, and people's lives are being changed for the better. For more information on the Halo Effect and how it can impact your church, check out haloproject.ca.

4. Racially-sensitive Awareness of Unjust Social Structures

Breaking out of insular spirituality requires overturning unjust social structures in the form of poverty, family and intimate partner violence, mental health issues and addictions, racism and social exclusion.¹¹Among Black and Indigenous people groups, these deeply-rooted social systems produce inequalities based on racial discrimination. According to Ontario's racial justice education and advocacy network, 40% of inmates in segregation in Toronto were Black adults but only represented 7.5% of the population. Black students represented only 12% of the Toronto District School Board student population but 48% of all expulsions. Individuals with Indigenous identity were more than twice as likely to experience hidden homelessness than their non-Indigenous counterparts.¹² According to Amnesty International, the homicide rate among First Nations, Inuit or Métis women and girls is 4.5 times higher than that of all other women in Canada.¹³Unjust social structures of racism and sexism have deadly consequences. For a holistic and transformative ministry, Pentecostal leaders must create awareness of unseen social injustices and advocate for change.

Breaking out of insular spirituality and transforming unjust social structures begins with changing attitudes toward people from diverse cultures. In The Beautiful Community, Irwyn Ince exposes how white superiority is embedded in the policies and processes of institutions, resulting in a system that advantages white people and disadvantages others. He invites readers to contemplate three independent dimensions of white racialized identity: 1) white structural advantages, where whites disproportionately control or influence political parties, the legal system, government agencies, industry and business; 2) white normativity, where anything divergent from the dominant culture is considered deviant; and 3) white transparency, where whites lack awareness regarding their white-specific behaviours, experiences or perspectives. To counter these dimensions of white dominance, Ince calls for churches to break out of their cultural “ghettos” and develop deeper cultural self-awareness.

In my church in the heart of the GTA, our congregation is vastly multicultural, serving people from the Caribbean, South America, Eastern Europe, Africa, Iran, China and the Philippines. Many of them have personally experienced tribal warfare, religious and gender oppression, social and economic marginalization, and human trafficking. As a white Pentecostal pastor, it is imperative for me to cultivate a more profound cultural awareness that requires me to die to some cultural norms, acknowledge privileges, examine preferences, become more curious about other cultures, and learn to listen to a non-majority culture.¹⁴ Trying to communicate using hockey references just doesn’t cut it. We must shift narrow-minded attitudes and stand with the oppressed, advocate for change, and confront unjust social structures. When we build authentic relationships with those outside our familiar social circles, we break the power of insular spirituality, our eyes open to injustice, and we create holistic and transformative visions for our Pentecostal communities.

William Sloos is a D.Min. student at the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary in Springfield, Missouri, and the lead pastor at Richmond Hill Pentecostal Church in Toronto, Ont.

This article appeared in the July/August/September 2024 issue of testimony/Enrich, a quarterly publication of The Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. © 2024 The Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. Photo © istockphoto.com.

1. Frank D. Macchia, Jesus the Spirit Baptizer: Christology in Light of Pentecost (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2018), 6, 304, 308, and 317.
2. Craig S. Keener, Spirit Hermeneutics: Reading Scripture in Light of Pentecost (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2016), 43.
3. Tara Beth Leach, Radiant Church: Restoring the Credibility of Our Witness (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2021), 37-40.
4. Andrew Walls and Cathy Ross, eds., Mission in the 21st Century: Exploring the Five Marks of Global Mission (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2008), 34.
5. Walls, Mission in the 21st Century, 32.
6. Charlie Self, Johan Mostert, and Jamé Bolds, Life in 5D: A New Vision of Discipleship (Minneapolis, MN: Bronze Bow Publishing, 2022), 36-37.
7. Robert L. Woodson, Lessons From the Least of These: The Woodson Principles (New York, NY: Bombardier Books, 2020), 7.
8. Woodson, Lessons from the Least of These, 69.
9. Ibid., 104.
10. “Welcome to the Halo Project,” HALO, accessed May 29, 2024, https://haloproject.ca.
11. “The Complex Social Issues Facing Canadians,” Family Service Canada, accessed April 10, 2023, https://familyservicecanada.org/about-us/key-social-issues.
12. “New Fact Sheets Show Growing Racial Disparities in Canada,” Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants, accessed April 10, 2023, https://ocasi.org/new-fact-sheets-show-growing-racial-disparities-canada.
13. “Missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls: The Facts,” Amnesty International, accessed April 10, 2023, https://amnesty.ca/blog/missing-and-murdered-indigenous-women-facts.
14. Irwyn L. Ince, Jr., The Beautiful Community: Unity, Diversity, and the Church at Its Best (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2020), 80-81.