I think this happens more than people realise, and the first thing I would say is that this answer is really for the lead pastor. What do you do when someone you appointed to lead starts behaving as if the position has given them authority beyond what you actually gave them?
There can be many reasons for it.
Some people love titles. The moment you give them a title, they carry the title on their head, and they begin to see it as an opportunity to lord over people—and sometimes even to lord over the pastor who appointed them.
Then there is the issue of staying too long in one position without proper accountability or transition. When someone has occupied a position for many years, they can gradually become very influential. They know everybody. They have built relationships. They know how things work. People trust them. And because they are very active—always here, always there, doing this, doing that—they can become more connected to the people than the pastor is.
That is not necessarily bad. In fact, you want your leaders to be trusted by people. The danger is when that influence is no longer accountable.
Because if you are not careful, a leader can begin to build a personal following inside the church. They can start controlling information, influencing people’s opinions, making decisions they shouldn’t make, or gradually creating the impression that “Without me, this church cannot function.”
And that is where the pastor needs to pay attention.
One practical thing I believe churches should do is rotate positions where appropriate. Don’t allow people to occupy certain positions indefinitely simply because they are doing well in them. Sometimes you need to move someone to another responsibility, give someone else an opportunity, and prevent one person from becoming permanently attached to a particular position and the influence that comes with it.
And let me be clear: rotation is not because you suspect everybody. It is because healthy leadership should not depend on one person having permanent control.
But before you get to that point, the pastor needs to do something even more important: train the people you appoint.
Don’t appoint someone simply because they can pay some bills, they have money, they are well connected, they can bring their rich friends to church, or because they are very active.
No.
Spiritual responsibility should be given to people who are spiritually prepared to carry it.
Because if we keep promoting people based on what they can give us materially or what they can do for the church, we can unconsciously communicate something dangerous to them: “We need you.”
And once someone begins to believe that the church cannot function without them, carnality can enter the picture. They can begin to feel entitled to their position, and correction becomes difficult.
That’s why prayer must come before appointment.
Jesus spent the night in prayer before choosing His twelve disciples (Luke 6:12–13). If Jesus prayed before choosing people to work closely with Him, we shouldn’t treat leadership appointments casually.
Then, after appointing them, train them, watch their character, give them accountability and correct them early.
And if the person has already become too powerful, don’t ignore it because “He’s doing a lot for the church.” Address it.
Have a private conversation. Clarify the authority you actually gave them. Find out what has changed. If necessary, restructure the responsibility, reduce their access, introduce stronger accountability, or move them into another role.
And don’t wait until they have already gathered people against you before you act.
At the same time, be careful not to label every strong leader as rebellious. A leader can be confident, influential and respected without being a threat to the pastor. The question is whether their influence is still submitted to the vision, structure and authority of the church.
Because leadership is not about how many people you can control.
A leader’s influence should make the church stronger, not make the leader indispensable.
And perhaps the biggest lesson for a pastor is this:
Never confuse someone’s usefulness with their qualification to control the work.
Someone can be extremely valuable and still need boundaries. Someone can be gifted and still need correction. Someone can be trusted and still need accountability.
The goal is not to suppress people’s influence. The goal is to make sure their influence remains under Christ, under healthy leadership and under the purpose for which they were appointed.
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