Control Issues

     In over forty years of experience with Christians groups in the US, I have interacted with many "leaders." Almost all had "control issues." Simply defined, control issues are a need, sometimes bordering on mania, to control one's environment, which means the people around you. I am not saying that there is no authority exercised by people in the Church. Rather that it is all too common for that authority to be exercised in an unhealthy and unproductive way.
     What causes this misuse of legitimate authority? Usually this stems from a problematic childhood where the person suffered in some way that they do not want to repeat. As a child they did not have control over what was or wasn't done to them, sometimes with horrific results. As the child becomes an adult there is a conscious or unconscious desire to stop this from ever happening again. The result is someone who has to control others.
    Many tend to accept this control to one degree or another either because they want someone else to take responsibility or because of a strong lack of self worth or dependence. Typically this won't last forever which provokes conflict. Many Christians accept the idea of authority coming from God as Romans 13 teaches and are reluctant to buck the one in authority. Unfortunately this often produces spiritual casualties.
     How can we avoid or alleviate this scenario? One Biblical antidote is the plurality of leadership taught in the New Testament. There are sixteen different references to elders of the church in the NT. All are plural. Only when an individual is referring to himself alone is it singular. Another is insuring that elders/pastors are truly Biblically qualified. A third is seeking healing for our problematic childhoods. No one had perfect parents. A fourth is cultivating humility including a willingness to step away from positions of authority.