Satan’s strategy to destroy the Church is not unlike the turning point in America’s fight for independence.

In the Battle of Saratoga of 1777, the British had more weapons, more gunpowder, more soldiers and more ammunition.

A certain American military officer, Daniel Morgan, told his men – farmers: “Save your bullets. Don’t shoot just any soldier. Shoot the officers.”

The British officers were easy targets because of the special epaulettes they wore.

On the second day of the war, the British still had more gunpowder, more soldiers, more weapons and more ammunition. But they surrendered.

Why? Because their officers were decimated.

It was a brilliant military strategy.

Do you realise, the Church is in warfare?

Satan has a target. His target are leaders. So don’t be surprised when our leaders are attacked left and right.

Research shows one in three church leaders fail due to four common mistakes. Photo by Keng San.

4 reasons why church leaders fail

Years ago, my professor told me that  75% of Christian leaders will not finish well. The research was done by Bobby Clinton.*

According to two years of research done by the late Professor Howard Hendricks (from the Dallas Seminary) on 246 full time ministers,  leaders fail because of the following reasons:

1. Neglecting personal time with God

This happens when you get so busy with ministry and you neglect your time with God. That means you are no longer dependent on Him. So be careful with your time with God. Guard it and maintain dependence on God.

2. No boundaries with opposite sex 

… (or the same sex in some cases).

In our movement, we don’t want our pastors to have private meals or travel alone with members of the opposite sex.

I tell our pastors, it may be more expensive to bring your wife, but the church does not mind paying for it, because it is more costly if you fall. So always travel with your wife.

3. No accountability

Accountability is where a group of men who love you have permission to confront you, to ask you questions if something is not right.

Our discipleship structure has a 360-degree evaluation every year, where our peers, subordinates and our own family members evaluate us, and send the report to another pastor.

These accountability partners are more than just friends.

Rev Dr Peter Tan-Chi spoke to a capacity crowd, revealing how church leaders fall to attack and what can be done about it. Photo by Jonathan Tan.

Because friends don’t have to listen to each other. Whereas accountability partners – people you meet with often or work closely with – do. (The one exception, of course, is if your leader asks you to do something against the Bible.)

Because as a leader, I cannot see my own weaknesses, and sometimes I will say things that hurt people.

I praise God that in our movement, we have pastors who are willing to correct me. We meet once a week. My accountability partners include my family and my group members.

If you don’t have an accountability system in your church, I suggest you get some good friends and say: “Since we work together closely, let me give you permission to tell me what is wrong with me.”

I found having accountability partners very useful because there are things I may be doing that I am not aware of.

4. A pride issue 

… also known as: “It won’t happen to me”.

Satan’s strategy is to mislead leaders into thinking that they do not need to follow guidelines.

Members of the opposite sex want to talk to the pastors, especially the ones that are a bit handsome. By the grace of God, we have a culture where women know that the ones who will counsel them are the wives of pastors.

So it is important to have “buy one, take two”; that is, the wife of a pastor ministers with him. 

This ensures that the principle of “men discipling men, and women discipling women” is always followed.

3 important passions for finishing well

My whole discipleship paradigm changed when I realised why many leaders do not finish well.

I decided I wanted to focus on discipling leaders from another perspective: No longer knowledge, no longer just transfer of information, head knowledge. We need to disciple people in the head, the hands, skills and the heart.

In order to not just start but finish well, leaders need to nurture three passions.

The Bible offers guidance on this through verses like 2 Timothy 2:15: “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a worker who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.”

“Make it your ambition to do God’s will,” exhorted the speaker. Photo by Erik Nam.

1. Passion to please God

The first simple observation from 2 Timothy 2:15 is to be diligent to present yourself approved to God.

Jesus Christ is the best example of one whose passion was to please God.

In Matthew 3:17, God says about His Son: “… This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.”

My heart’s desire is that God will say that to me.

God is not just “pleased”, but I am “well-pleased”. Why was God so happy with His Son, Jesus?

The Bible tells us that Jesus’ life ministry is the outflow of His heart’s desire.

That is found in Psalm 40:7 and repeated in Hebrews 10:7-8: “… I delight to do Your will, O my God; your Law is within my heart”.

If you want to live a life pleasing to God, make it your ambition to live your life pleasing to God, to do God’s will. Why is it so crucial?

Because the reality is, your ministry, your life will be tested and challenged by circumstances, by people.

For example, have you been disappointed by church leaders? By family members? 

This is the reality: No one is perfect. So I tell people: “I will sooner or later disappoint you.”

However, I’ve told myself and all our leaders: Let us fix our eyes on pleasing God.

Because people will disappoint us, but God will not disappoint us.

There are three passions a church leader must possess in order to run the race and finish it well. Photo by Jonathan Tan.

Satan’s strategy is not just to get us to commit blatant sins like cheating, sex or money.

Satan’s technique is very subtle – he wants us to be discouraged. And we are most discouraged when our leaders or people we love, fail to live up to our expectations.

When we get discouraged, we open our heart to Satan and may no longer say, “I want to continue serving God”.

This shows that something is wrong with our primary motivation (to please man).

So if our motivation is to please God, it’s okay if you disappoint me.

If you are discouraged, compare your life to Paul’s (2 Corinthians 11:23-28). Have you had 39 lashes, been beaten with rods three times, shipwrecked three times, stoned, and been in danger if at all, or as much as he?’

2 Corinthians 5:9 says: “Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him.” 

May I suggest we each examine our ambitions – whether it is in building a church or business – to ensure that our primary motivation is pleasing to God?

Because in 2 Corinthians 5:10, we are warned: “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.”

Many Christians are not taught the reality that all of us, even though we are saved through faith, will still be held accountable for how faithful we have been in doing what our ultimate boss – God – has assigned us.

2. Passion for excellence

The second observation from 2 Timothy 2:15 is to “be diligent”. Be conscientious. Do your best.

It is a command to make yourself “as a worker who does not need to be ashamed”.

It means, Christians, we should have a passion for excellence. Don’t be ashamed of your work.

The Bible tells us in Colossians 3:23-24: “Whatever you do, work heartily (that is, do your best), for Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve.”

Photo by Jonathan Tan.

God has something special that only you can do that I cannot do.

If you put in your mind that you want to finish well (and not just survive), have a passion to please God in everything you do. 

God told us: “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10)

Poiema is the Greek work for workmanship. You are God’s masterpiece.

God made You special to do special work. God has something special that only you can do that I cannot do.

Michelangelo, who painted the Sistine Chapel, was first a sculptor. One day, his teacher Bertoldo di Giovanni noticed him playing around while sculpting – he was not giving his best. His teacher took a hammer and broke whatever Michelangelo was toying around with.

His teacher said: “Talent is cheap; dedication is costly. God has gifted you; you better work hard to develop your talent.”

Excellence requires dedication. 

In one movie, it took Jackie Chan 2,900 takes in 40 days to perfect one sequence – for one scene that lasted only a few seconds. 

If Hollywood pursues excellence for a movie, what about us? 

Pursue excellence: If you’re a mother, be the best mother. If you are a pastor, be the best pastor. Do it for the Lord. 

3. Passion for God’s truth

… and sharing the truth in love.

Today, truth is compromised. Even many sincere pastors are not willing to preach hardcore truths on controversial topics.

My advice is: Balance truth and love.

Many from the LGBTQ community come to our Bible studies, where they know that they are loved. Secondly, they are also taught the Word of God. It’s painful. But they listen and their life is transformed. They know that we don’t compromise on the truth.

You have to balance truth and love. They know they are loved, they are transformed, and by the grace of God, they are inviting their friends. Truth is powerful. But you have to declare it properly.

Truth is not truth because the majority of people believe it. Truth does not cease to be true even if you don’t believe it.

Truth doesn’t depend on how one feels. That is the problem today: We gauge truth based on what the majority are thinking or how we feel. That’s not the way to judge truth.

Truth must correspond with facts, with reality.

Why do you insist that 4×4 = 16? Why not 15.3 or 16.5? Because truth matters.

Imagine you are an accountant applying for a job, and the boss asks you what is 4+4.

If the applicant says: “Boss, it depends on you, what number do you like?” He will never hire that accountant.

Common sense tells us that two contradictory claims cannot be true at the same time.

We have to teach people critical thinking.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 says: “All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.”

Scripture is not just for teaching, it’s also for reproof, for correction. It is not enough to declare the truth; you and I must live in accordance to the truth. It’s easier to speak and teach the truth. It’s harder to live out the truth.

So when the Bible says to “accurately handle the word of God”, don’t just limit it to teaching. You’ve got to live it out as a follower of Jesus. It’s called modelling.

Church leaders must achieve balance of truth and love. Photo by Jonathan Tan.

You also have to guard yourself, that you do not deceive yourself and compromise the Bible truth, by adding something else to it. For example, Christians can look at one verse and twist it if they are not careful. I’ve seen people using Bible verses to cancel other Christians.

My wife was counselling a woman who said: “I’ve forgiven. But give me time.”

My wife said: “Time will not cure. It is obedience.”

This woman obeyed (and hugged the person who had hurt her).  

A simple principle for us to practice every time we are faced with a hard choice is to ask ourselves: “What would Jesus do?”

The founder of a drug rehabilitation centre in the US told me that heroin addiction is the hardest to cure. About 90% of those in recovery relapse.

But their success rate is 90%. Their secret? 

The founder said: “People get into drugs and alcohol to numb their pain; many have been abused by parents and other people. They have a lot of hurts.

“We ask them to write a letter to their father, for instance. Then we fly them (to read it to the person who has hurt them). Or if the father is dead, we fly them to the cemetery, where they will leave the letter.” 

Unforgiveness is a real problem. 

God’s truth tells us “you have to forgive people”. They will disappoint you. They will wrong you. And that is Satan’s ploy.

In my experience, in casting out demons, in many cases, is because of bitterness and unforgiveness.

My prayer is that all of us will finish well.

In 2 Timothy 4:7-8, Paul is saying: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day – and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.”

The race for a church leader is not a hundred-yard dash, it is a marathon, Dr Tan-Chi pointed out. Photo by Keng San.

Finish the marathon

The implication is: Finish well.

Like the Olympic runner John Stephen Akhwari from Tanzania, who joined the 1968 Olympics in Mexico.

At the 19km point into the 42km marathon, someone bumped into him and he fell and hurt his shoulder and knee.

Most people would have stopped. But this guy continued running even though he was limping, and finished the race one hour later. He became a hero.

When asked why he continued, he said: “My country did not send me 5,000 miles to start the race, but to finish the race.”

You have started a wonderful race. Your race is not a hundred yard dash. It’s a marathon.

I want all of us – five, 10, 20 years from now – to be excited, to be thriving.

But you cannot last if you don’t depend on the Lord for His power.

What is your part?

Ask God to give you a passion to please him, a passion for excellence, a passion for God’s truth. 

Japanese runner Shizo Kanakuri holds the world record for taking the longest time to complete a marathon, with an official time of 54 years, 8 months, 6 days, 5 hours and 32 minutes and 20.3 seconds. He ran the 1912 Stockholm Olympic marathon, but collapsed from exhaustion and quietly withdrew from the race, leaving him as “missing”. But he was located more than 50 years later and flown back to the Olympics where he finished the race. 

Sometimes some of you might fall.

But I encourage you to get up, because Jesus is waiting at the finish line. His arms say “come”. He is never going to say “No, no, no”.

Even when you don’t feel like running anymore, I want you to think: “The arms of Jesus are waiting”.

If you fall, get up. Just finish the race well.

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