Southwestern Union Record

In a business it’s called the bottom-line, in sports, it’s a score, in school it’s a grade or a GPA, SAT or ACT, but in the church, what does it mean to win?

What is the difference between success as defined by the world and success in the Bible? In the world, it almost invariably comes down to a number. Most of us function in environments where the "win" is clearly defined. In a business it’s called the bottom-line, in sports, it’s a score, in school it’s a grade, a GPA, SAT, or ACT, but in the church and our spiritual lives, what does it mean to win? How we handle this important question will impact the way we lead our world. 

Whatever the goods or services being provided, in business, the primary focus is to create a profit. Nothing is wrong with this; wealth creation, in itself is not a sin. It often leads to jobs that positively impact the quality of life and fuel the economy. We also know that failing to be profitable in business will eventually lead to extinction. It’s not complicated, winning and losing, are not difficult concepts, in general. The challenge for Christians is that this familiar way of understanding our world often shapes the way we think about church and our spiritual lives as a whole. How we define success can enhance or degrade our entire faith experience.

The problem is that we are tempted to apply the same way of thinking to the church as we do to other pursuits, such as businesses. Although seemingly rational, this can be a serious mistake. There are critical differences; one example is how we think about money: in business, financial investment is a necessary “input.” Money is invested with the express intent to create more money. Therefore, it is not just an “input,” but an expected “output.” However, in the church, finances are a necessary input, and similar to the business world, it fuels essential operations, but the similarity ends there. Money is not an expected “output” of the church. The primary objective of the church (unlike businesses), is not financial profit, but “transformed lives.” This is investment and wealth creation as seen from God’s perspective.

Unfortunately, when we cannot reconcile the operation of the church with familiar business practices, we may be tempted to see the church (or those who lead it), as ineffective at best or negligent and incompetent. Author and business researcher Jim Collins provides some insightful commentary on the issue. In his 2005 monograph, Good to Great and the Social Sectors, Collins is emphatic that, “we must reject the idea, well intentioned, but dead wrong, that the primary path to greatness in the social sectors (churches), is to become ‘more like a business.’” Christians should never blindly assume that adopting business practices is the key to success. Although good administration is necessary in the church, the purpose, objectives and environment are dissimilar to those of the business world.

The parable of the talents illustrates it best. (See Matthew 25:14-30.) One servant had ten talents and one had four, and both faithfully developed what they had, and each received exactly the same commendation and the same reward. Faithfulness with all your abilities therefore, and not numbers is at the core of God's concern. While God is not obsessed with numbers, He does care about fruitfulness. But in God’s economy, results come as an outgrowth of faithful living from a vital a connection with Christ. Jesus was not oblivious to numbers or results either. He was the one asking for an analysis of what was at hand at the front-end of the miraculous feeding, and then asked for an inventory at the end of the exercise. (See Matthew 14:13-21.)

How do we know what winning looks like in our spiritual walk and our churches? It looks like you at your best; being faithful in all aspects of your life. Giving the best of who we are and what we have: our time, talent, and treasure. We also look to our leaders for evidences of faithfulness. Let’s remember that we, too, are called to demonstrate faithfulness.

Most people define success by a number, and let’s face it, monetary wealth is a universal standard of success. But can we be happy, successful and not wealthy? It's worth thinking about. Our faithfulness at work, school, or home is a great sign of spiritual maturity. Importantly, it brings honor to God and inspires others. So, whatever your life may look like, God calls you to “Lead Your World” faithfully and experience true success!