When I began working with Dave Harvey on his book The Plurality Principle: How to Build and Maintain a Thriving Church Leadership Team, I couldn’t imagine why anyone wouldn’t want a plurality of elders. More help in shepherding and teaching and deliberation? Why not? We all have blind spots. We all need help from other perspectives. We all need more shoulders on the plow.
Fast forward to publication in 2021 from Crossway and The Gospel Coalition, and The Plurality Principle looks at least a little less plausible. Sure, maybe it’s nice to share the blame for hard decisions on pandemic policies. But what if your elders don’t agree with each other? What if they no longer trust each other? Wouldn’t a single decision-maker make more sense?
This week on Gospelbound, I checked back in with Dave Harvey, president of Great Commission Collective. Dave brings more than 30 years of pastoral ministry to this conversation, and I sought his counsel for pastors and other church leaders hoping to build thriving leadership teams. Dave argues that “the quality of your elder plurality determines the health of your church.” Hopefully this conversation will help you contribute to a healthier church, even if you’re not a pastor or elder.
The Gospel Coalition