The kingdoms of this world run on power. The Kingdom of God is different. Agents in the eschatological kingdom glory in weakness, knowing that only then can God’s resurrection power work in and through them. In Power in Weakness, Timothy G. Gombis explores Paul’s use of power in ministry. In an age when Christian Nationalism is on the rise (a movement that seeks to reclaim political power to further the Kingdom of God), this book is desperately needed.

Gombis is especially insightful when handling ‘principalities and powers’ language. Paul understood his ministry to have cosmic dimensions. The battle is not against flesh and blood. Gombis takes the power of the air seriously—the air is “the realm of mindsets, ideologies, cultural assumptions and prejudices, hopes, fears, animosities, and even national and tribal commitments” (69). Gombis’s interaction with this theme draws on the work he did in The Drama of Ephesians where he surveys Jewish thought to understand Paul’s view of principalities and powers.

There is one glaring blind spot in this book—Gombis’s animosity toward ‘leadership.’ In a section entitled “‘Leadership’ vs. Responsible Care” (138–45), Gombis writes:

I have had some growing reservations about [pastoral leadership] language . . . While pastoral ministry may involve leading to some extent, the main images Paul uses for understanding ministry in the church situate pastors as servants. Paul’s apostleship is also dramatically different than the sort of leadership we admire in our wider culture. (138, 140)

I sympathize with Gombis, but I believe he is speaking outside of his lane here. Leadership studies have changed dramatically since the trait-based studies views of a century ago. Leading leadership models like Greenleaf’s Servant Leadership, or the popular Social Change Model of leadership explicitly repudiate the violence of type-a coerciveness that Gombis (rightfully) pushes against. The main metaphor for leadership in the ancient Near East was shepherding—a metaphor found throughout the Bible, and even on the lips of Jesus. Leadership isn’t the problem—coercive leadership is. Godly leaders can and should embrace the cruciform weakness of the gospel so that resurrection power can flow.

This book is important—why not buy your pastor a copy?

Gombis, Timothy G. Power in Weakness: Paul’s Transformative Vision for Ministry. William B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2021.