Leadership DM803
Leadership and the Missio Dei
RTS-Charlotte, July 22-26, 2013
John R. Sittema, D. Min., Professor
Course Summary:
Unlike many contemporary evangelical studies of “leadership”, this one-week seminar
course will not focus primarily on spiritual character traits, techniques or methodologies.
Instead, participants will wrestle with the Biblical missio dei, the missional shape of the
church and related ministries, and the role of a servant leader within it.
Course Description:
Through a combination of pre-course readings, classroom presentations, seminar
discussions, and an integrated paper, you will:
 Engage the Biblical Missio Dei with a holistic (Reformed) and missional
understanding of the nature of the church
 Grapple with the Biblical leader/servant paradox
 Develop a Biblical understanding of gospel strategy within a post-Christian culture
and within your own context
 Engage a Biblical understanding of power and authority.
 Demonstrate peer leadership competence
 Develop a plan for his/her own ministry from a missional perspective
Course Readings:
1. Before reading any other assigned books, read this article first.
David Kilcullen, “Twenty Eight Articles: Fundamentals of a Company-Led
Counterinsurgency” (11 pages, pdf).
2. Read the following prior to the start of the course, fully engaging with the
argument(s) of the author. Each student will be expected to reflect mature reflection on
these arguments in the daily seminars and in the content of the final course paper.
Dan B. Allender, Leading With a Limp (Colorado Springs: Waterbrook Press, 2006).
206 pp.
James Davison Hunter, To Change the World: The Irony, Tragedy, and Possibility of
Christianity in the Late Modern World (New York: Oxford University Press, 2010).
345 pages.
Tim Keller, Center Church: Doing Balanced, Gospel-Centered Ministry in Your City
(Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2012), 395 pages).
John P. Kotter, Leading Change (Boston: Harvard Business Review Press, 1996), 186
pages.
Lesslie Newbigin, Foolishness to the Greeks: The Gospel and Western Culture
(Grand Rapids: Wm B Eerdmans, 1986), 156 pages.
____, The Gospel in a Pluralist Society (London: SPCK, 1989), 252 pages.
____, The Open Secret: Introduction to the Theology of Mission (Grand Rapids: Wm B
Eerdmans, 1995), 192 pages.
____, Signs Amid the Rubble: The Purposes of God in Human History (Grand Rapids:
Wm B Eerdmans, 2003), 121 pages.
____. Truth to Tell: The Gospel as Public Truth (Grand Rapids: Wm B Eerdmans,
1991), 90 pages.
Noel M. Tichy and Warren G. Bennis, Judgment: How Winning Leaders Make Great
Calls (New York: Portfolio Group, 2007). 392 pp.
Robert Webber, Who Gets to Narrate the World?: Contending for the Christian Story
in an Age of Rivals (Downer’s Grove: IVP Books, 2008) 137 pages.
Course Paper:
Paper of 15 pages (minimum) is due October 31, 2013 at the D. Min. office of RTS-Charlotte.
Based on the course readings and material, prepare a paper in which you:

Fully exegete your current ministry situation (demonstrating diagnostic awareness
of your cultural setting, spiritual climate, available resources, and other missionrelevant data, including past strategies), and

develop a missional ministry plan that:
1. engages all the Biblical, theological, and strategic materials encountered in
the course,
2. clearly defines the mission,
3. exhibits stewardship of the resources God has entrusted to your ministry
4. identifies change to be navigated in the plan implementation, and
5. describes your role as servant-leader in the pursuit of the plan.
Course Objectives Related to DMin* Student Learning Outcomes
Course: DM 803 Leadership (Core)
Professor: John R. Sittema
Campus: Charlotte
Date: July 22-26, 2013
DMin* Student Learning Outcomes
In order to measure the success of the DMin curriculum, RTS has defined
the following as the intended outcomes of the student learning process.
Each course contributes to these overall outcomes. This rubric shows the
contribution of this course to the DMin outcomes.
Rubric




Mini-Justification
Strong
Moderate
Minimal
None
Biblical/
Theological
Foundations:
Significant knowledge of biblical and
theological foundations for pastoral
ministry. (This includes interaction with
Biblical texts, as well as awareness of
Reformed Theology.)
Historical/
Contemporary
Practices:
Significant knowledge of historical and
contemporary practices of pastoral
ministry.
Strong
Integration:
Ability to reflect upon and integrate
theology and practice, as well as
implementation in a contemporary
pastoral setting.
Strong
Sanctification:
Demonstrates a love for the Triune God
that aids in the student’s sanctification.
Moderate
Strong
Course is built on a strong Reformed
Biblical Theological hermeneutic of
Kingdom and Covenant, and a decidedly
Reformed missiology and view of office
and leadership
This course examines many trends in
contemporary leadership material,
explores contemporary culture as target
of gospel ministry, and engages
contemporary trends in mission.
The course is designed to be an
integrational seminar course, in which
each student must present materials in
class, and write major paper at end of
course, demonstrating integration.
While personal piety is not the course,
objective, intimacy with Christ is
cultivated, discussed, and modeled in
daily prayer and worship. Honest
accountability is cultivated during and
after the course.