"We don't have just a pastoral crisis; I am convinced from conversation after conversation with pastors and their leadership that we have a leadership crisis." Written for those in church leadership, the author presents 12 gospel principles for leadership communities, encouraging them to foster healthy communities, to hopefully avoid damage control scenarios and to also facilitate leaders as models of the Gospel.

My favourite quote is "spiritual maturity in the life and ministry of a ministry leader is about being humbled by the gospel, made courageous by the gospel, and infused with sturdy hope by the gospel."

While this book is written for those in church leadership, it helped me, as a lay person - and pastor's wife - to think through the gospel in my own relationships, maturity, and spiritual growth.

Tripp, Paul David. Lead. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2020. $26.99

For Paul Tripp, the redemptive realities of the gospel and resulting worldview create his purpose in penning a pastoral approach leadership in Lead. Tripp desires to convey, first and foremost, a call to view leadership in light of the gospel of Jesus Christ (14). Each chapter covers a relational principle that can be summarized into titles such as “Achievement,” “Limits,” “Identity,” “Restoration,” and “Presence.”

The introduction begins describing the crisis in which the church finds itself. Churches have faults; one of them is the nature of its leadership. Tripp does not excuse the failures of pastors, celebrity or unknown, who have had failures of pride or immorality. However, he writes to address “very often, behind the failure of a pastor is a weak and failed leadership community” (17). Houston, we have a leadership crisis. We fail often and are not prepared for failure. Where do you turn? What should it look like? The gospel of Jesus Christ is the model for the church community, and especially its leadership (22). The reader should not skip over the introduction because Tripp provides a wonderful, concise expository reflection on Ephesians 4:1-3 and suggests six characteristics for gospel formed leadership.

No special arrangement is used for the 12 principles, though they occasionally follow an application delivered in the prior chapter. The author expounds on the principles using various methods. There is typically an underlying narrative before expositing on a Scripture text or principle. Each chapter provides a list of Scripture citations, indicators for self-evaluation, or applications of the principle. Chapter 3 surveys “limits” and extends four ways in which a leader is limited. “Balance” is the subject of chapter 4 and Tripp offers 49 (if I counted correctly) sample statements of a heart in balance and then 13 examples of a heart out of balance. Chapter 9 focuses on identity and the author references 14 relevant passages and five characteristics of a leader who has exchanged their identity in Christ for an identity in ministry.

There are some cases of minor repetitiveness; something stated under one application restated under another. This is no fault, but a result of the applicable nature of the principles. Tripp writes well and the book is not a struggle to read and relatively short. Nevertheless, I would highly recommend taking the time to process through each application. Perhaps it would be helpful to respond to each question Tripp offers in a group discussion or by journaling. Take your time and thoroughly engage, the church’s leadership is worth taking 30 minutes of your time 3-4 days a week for the next few weeks and truly wrestling with the current state of your local church’s leadership.

I was greatly encouraged while reading Lead, and I realized I was only in the introduction! Tripp presents in a pastoral manner that does not reduce sin but certainly lifts up grace. I am particularly thankful for Tripp’s careful coverage of restoration in Chapter 10.

"Restoration never minimizes the damaging reality of sin, but while it takes sin seriously, it also believes in the power of restorative grace. It believes in God’s power to turn a heart and rebuild a life. Restoration isn’t motivated by seeing how fast we can get a leader back into the ministry saddle, it’s longing that the lapsed leader would know spiritual health of heart and life." PAUL DAVID TRIPP, LEAD (WHEATON, IL: CROSSWAY, 2020), 189.

Achievement, instead of being something that is good, can become the ruling guide to ministry; it no longer bows to the lordship of Jesus Christ. Can you encourage your leaders to have a balanced life? The gospel community can become goal-oriented rather than patient. Do you know how to encourage your pastor to have a long and productive ministry? Do you know how to graciously encourage them to recognize their limits? Have you seen leaders struggle with identity?

Because sin still exists we will experience these issues. No leader is exempt from temptation or even falling into sin. We are unable to keep these things from happening in our current redemptive period of the already and not yet. However, because of the already we can be proactive and prepare ourselves, leaders, and churches to respond. Over and over again Tripp points the reader to the glorious riches we have in Christ and the restorative power of God’s grace. Leaders need to prepare themselves to help lead others at the same time as they are being led themselves.

Any person in a position of formal/official or lay leadership needs to read this book. If you like to read one book a year on leadership, let this be the one. If you are a member of a Christian, but not a member of the leadership, consider picking up this book so that you might have more ways to pray for and encourage leaders.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this book from the publisher for review purposes. My comments are independent and my own. Quotations could change in the finished book.

Lead by Paul David Tripp combines Spirit-filled wisdom with keen ministry insights. Repeatedly, I found myself nodding and highlighting paragraph after paragraph as Tripp framed the challenging and beautiful work of ministry within the context of the grace and beauty of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. His heart for pastoral leaders pours out in his encouragement for them to cling to Jesus and his challenge to not let sin disrupt and distort their calling.
As a pastor myself, I continually found joy and grace in Tripp’s words. This book invited me to reflect more thoughtfully and prayerfully about my own ministry setting and leadership culture. How can we better serve God and each other? I am grateful for the opportunity to read this book and will be processing its many insights slowly and carefully for some time. Highly recommended!

If I would have enough money to buy this book and gift it to all my friends who are Pastors and their teams, I would. I can´t bless them all, but I can start with one. This book (as every Paul David Tripp´book I have read goes direct to hard topics, issues that everyone faces. I grew up in a Christian home, so I have all my life going to church... and I have served in almost every role there is in the church (obviously never as pastor) so I have seen everything he shares in those pages. Reading moved me a lot. It was like having flashbacks and also like he was describing my last months. I just pray the Lord will glorify in the middle of everything people in ministry face. This book is very timely since this quarantine new problems have arisen, escalated, or exploited. There is a lot of things to deal with. I´m sure if you get this book and read it with your team you will be confronted, exhorted, and animated to keep going. Paul goes to the root of things and points you to the important things, the gospel, JesusChrist, and the work he wants to do in our lives while serving. There is a long long road to go. I´m glad to read in the USA happens exactly the same that every part in the world... sin is universal. Latin America follows almost every single thing that is considered modern or interesting in the north, so I wish we can see that or action and example matters. I really enjoy the deep lines Paul David Tripp writes, is like he is describing what you see, feel or think, He makes this to feel so easy to write, but I´m sure it is not that easy, it is a gift. I want to underline every single page. I´m glad there are people out there with that kind of brain, heart, and ability to write, communicate while pointing you to Christ, His Word, and what it is important. I wish there is a translation available soon to also gift to my Spanish speaking friends. I would love to translate books like this one. I hope to have the opportunity someday to have a book club with other people in ministry and learn together about this, share ideas, and pray to be found faithful.