Corruption Runs Rampant in the Church. Who Should We Hold Responsible?
The recent

 Christianity Today podcast, The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill, chronicles the skyrocket to pastoral fame of Seattle-based leader Mark Driscoll, and the church’s just as quick demise: Mars Hill unraveled due to his tyrant-like leadership tactics. What we find in the podcast is a common theme in many of these stories: charisma outpaced character.

When ministry leaders with amazing talent and best-practice skills in communication are placed on pedestals, podiums, and in pulpits before their spiritual and emotional depth has had time to mature, it is always a recipe for disaster. In a day and age when pastors are confused for (or confuse themselves for) celebrities, the American evangelical church needs to experience a new conversion—our own come-to-Jesus-moment—around the kinds of leaders we esteem.

What is our responsibility as churchgoers and fellow sojourners in these stories? Are we choosing leaders who are striving for the next viral soundbite instead of those who humble themselves? Are we allowing sin to slide by, in the name of Instagram likes? And most importantly, how do we do the hard work of changing?That said, it is all too easy for us to the point the finger at certain big personality leaders, when we aren’t in their (fancy) sneakers. But what we also find in these stories is a magnifying class—we all have to ask ourselves how we have contributed to the creation and rise of such leaders.

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