Expositional Leadership: Shepherding God's People from the Pulpit

By R. Scott Pace, Jim Shaddix

... Show All

Expositional Leadership: Shepherding God's People from the Pulpit

By R. Scott Pace, Jim Shaddix

... Show All

Practical Wisdom to Effectively Lead, Preach, and Pastor

Shepherding a congregation comes with many responsibilities. In addition to preparing weekly sermons, pastors manage church teams and minister to a variety of people with different needs. Attempting to tackle these roles separately can be exhausting and may eventually affect the health of the church. How should leaders integrate their roles to effectively shepherd their congregations?

This guide shows pastors how to simplify and strengthen their ministry work by integrating leadership, preaching, and pastoring in biblical exposition. Authors Scott Pace and Jim Shaddix clearly lay out 6 categories of leadership—scriptural, spiritual, strategic, servant, situational, and sensible—and explain how to leverage them through sermon development and delivery. Offering practical advice and biblical wisdom related to each role, they help readers find balance in their ministries while nurturing their congregations in healthy, sustainable ways.

  • Biblical and Applicable: Shows pastors how to integrate leadership, preaching, and pastoring to effectively lead congregations
  • Practical: Offers biblical advice for healthy church leadership and expository sermon design and delivery
  • A Great Resource for New and Veteran Church Leaders: Practical manual for vocational and academic training

Read Chapter 1


Authors:

R. Scott Pace

R. Scott Pace (PhD, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary) serves as provost and associate professor of preaching and pastoral ministry at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. He is the author of Preaching by the BookPastoral TheologyExalting Jesus in Colossians & Philemon in the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series; and Calling Out the Called.

Jim Shaddix

Jim Shaddix (PhD, New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary) serves as senior professor of preaching at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, occupying the W. A. Criswell Chair of Expository Preaching, and also serves as senior fellow for the Center for Preaching and Pastoral Leadership. He is the author of several books, including The Passion-Driven Sermon and Decisional Preaching. Jim and his wife, Debra, have three grown children and eleven grandchildren.

Product Details

Title: Expositional Leadership
Subtitle: Shepherding God's People from the Pulpit
Published: January 09, 2024
ISBN-10: 1-4335-8802-1
ISBN-13: 978-1-4335-8802-0
Category: Church Ministry
Christian Living
Retail Price: $17.99
Binding: Paperback
Trim: 5.5 in x 8.5 in
Page Count: 160

Table of Contents

Introduction: Leaders, Preachers, and Pastors

Chapter 1: Scriptural Leadership from the Pulpit
Chapter 2: Spiritual Leadership from the Pulpit
Chapter 3: Strategic Leadership from the Pulpit
Chapter 4: Servant Leadership from the Pulpit
Chapter 5: Situational Leadership from the Pulpit
Chapter 6: Sensible Leadership from the Pulpit

Conclusion: Follow-Through and Final Thoughts
General Index
Scripture Index

Endorsements

“What an invaluable book! Every pastor experiences challenges in trying to do it all: leading the church, preaching week by week, and helping people amid the ups and downs of life in a fallen world. Scott Pace and Jim Shaddix provide explicit biblical wisdom and immense practical help for every pastor who wants to do all of the above with faithfulness, joy, and love for God and the people he calls us to lead.”
David Platt, Pastor, McLean Bible Church, McLean, Virginia; Founder, Radical; author, Don’t Hold Back

“In Expositional Leadership, Jim Shaddix and Scott Pace combine experienced pastoring with years of training others for the pastorate to give insight into how the ministry of the word contributes to the fulfillment of the local church’s leadership, preaching, and pastoring responsibilities. This needed book shows how congregational ministry empowers the pulpit and how faithful pulpit ministry is integral to congregational leadership and health. What many only discover from decades of ministry is captured and treasured here.”
Bryan Chapell, pastor; author, Christ-Centered Preaching

“What a timely and much-needed work. I do not know of another book like it. Bringing together in beautiful balance the work of leading, pastoring, and preaching, Pace and Shaddix show us how we can fulfill our holy assignment with integrity, competence, and joy.”
Daniel L. Akin, President, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary

“The sermon is by far the pastor’s most influential leadership opportunity. In Expositional Leadership, Scott Pace and Jim Shaddix demonstrate how preachers can steward that opportunity in a manner that is spiritually beneficial to the congregation and consistent with the biblical calling of the pastor-teacher. This rewarding book is, in equal parts, a pastoral theology, a biblical rationale for expository preaching, and a solid philosophy of church leadership. Expositional Leadership offers valuable guidance for both the beginner pastor and the experienced leader.”
Stephen Rummage, Senior Pastor, Quail Springs Baptist Church, Oklahoma City; Professor of Preaching and Pastoral Ministry, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary; author, Planning Your Preaching

“A biographer once said of John Calvin that the hardworking pastor and theologian assumed his whole ministerial labor was all about the exposition of Scripture. Everything centered on and flowed from exposition. In a similar spirit, Pace and Shaddix demonstrate how the numerous facets of pastoral ministry can and should be integrated by such a commitment. Expositional Leadership offers a model of pastoral ministry that allows the word of God to be the primary way a preacher leads, loves, and feeds the church. While there are many books on church leadership, homiletics, and pastoring, there aren’t many that demonstrate how all three should work together. I highly recommend this book and plan on using it in future events and courses.”
Tony Merida, Pastor for Preaching and Vision, Imago Dei Church, Raleigh, North Carolina; author, The Christ-Centered Expositor 

Expositional Leadership presents a threefold approach to pastoring, teaching, and preaching wherein leadership and pastoring are servants of preaching—not masters. This volume reenergizes leaders to respond to the actual needs of the church’s present-day challenges with powerful tools, and it does so without compromising the integrity of the eternal word or diminishing its authority. Jim Shaddix and Scott Pace’s Expositional Leadership is a book whose time has come for those dedicated to efficient and effective kingdom work.”
Robert Smith Jr., Charles T. Carter Baptist Chair of Divinity, Beeson Divinity School, Samford University

“Many books on preaching today wrongfully separate preaching from the primary call of a pastor to ‘shepherd the flock of God that is among you’ (1 Pet. 5:2). What we need are trusted voices to push against this trend and skillfully demonstrate how preaching is a primary task of the pastor’s central calling. Pace and Shaddix are two of those voices. In Expositional Leadership they biblically and practically show how the preaching task is threaded through the shepherding call, not separated from it. Their insights are wise, helpful, and pastoral. Every pastor who desires to shepherd well through preaching should read this book.”
Brian Croft, Executive Director, Practical Shepherding

"This needed book shows how congregational ministry empowers the pulpit and how faithful pulpit ministry is integral to congregational leadership and health."

Bryan Chapell

pastor; author, Christ-Centered Preaching