Editor’s note: Joe Johnson is executive editor of Business Reform Magazine. This article is one of a continuing series in the magazine on Business by Covenant. Start your subscription with a free trial issue and begin enjoying practical business counsel today!
For years people have wondered about the United States and our success. Although our nation is continually criticized and degraded in the foreign press, these same countries have attempted to set up many of their governmental institutions in imitation of us. Most countries, for example, have a federal banking system modeled on ours. This concept was new as of the last century, but after we adopted it, most others followed suit. So, have you ever wondered why other countries copy the US? Or even why God continues to prosper this nation so much? Well, we know that our Christian roots and our free market approach has something to do with it, as Max Weber points out in his classic treatise The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism. Since the Civil War, however, we have seen this country turn from a Christian nation to a pagan nation. Yet, why are we still so economically successful?
God says in Deuteronomy 28 that if a nation obeys God, He will bless them, but if a nation disobeys God, He will curse them. While I am sure it will take time for this nation to start experiencing some of the curses for moving away from our godly roots, I do believe that this “time” will be slower than most Christians would suspect. The reason for this slow deterioration process is that this nation has a secret. The secret that no one else likes to talk about is the managing structure of our civil government, which happens to be part of the 2nd point of the covenant.
Our nation’s government (management) structure was founded upon biblical principles and it has been our subsequent adherence to that model that has kept many of God’s curses from falling upon this post-Christian nation. In fact, in my research I have found credible articles that clearly show that the founders of this nation utilized three Christian principles of government.
Even Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin, who are not known for their staunch belief in orthodox Christianity, felt that they must implement Christian principles of government in order for this nation to succeed. And succeed it has. Unfortunately, the reason for its success has been kept secret for most of recent history, and has done so for no better reason than our tendency to suppress the truth and not give glory to God (Rom. 1:18).
The beauty of this secret is that these governing principles are just as applicable to a church, business, or nation. In fact, most of them were borrowed from biblical church government, which was rooted in God’s very nature.
If you want to get the edge in your business – if you want to truly prosper – learn what our founding fathers did and apply them to your business’s governing or management structure.
Trinitarian Management
As I mentioned before, there are three key aspects to the success of this nation’s governing system. The first part is that this nation established three key bodies of government – administrative, legislative, and judicial. This principle is taken from God Himself, the Triune God. God governs this world in three persons, each of which has a specific function.
This concept is also taken from Isaiah 33:22: “For the Lord is our Judge [judicial], the Lord is our Lawgiver [legislative], the Lord is our King [administrative].” This model is also found in orthodox church government. The three main official positions in a church are the office of a pastor (lawgiver), an elder (judge), and a deacon (administrative).
It is no accident that our founders established this nation’s government in a way that incorporates these three categories. God manages the universe in a Trinitarian way; our nation governs our people in a Trinitarian way; and the orthodox church governs in a Trinitarian way. It follows, then, that we should manage businesses and other organizations in the same way.
In a business there are three bodies of management: executive/administrative, marketing, and operations. This is called Trinitarian Management (for more on how this concept actually works, go to Vol. 1, No. 2 for my article on Trinitarian Management). If your business can be broken up into these three different parts, and you can then take steps to ensure first that each of these parts works independently, and then that together they work as a unified whole, success will follow.
Tiered Management Structure
The 2nd secret is that our nation is governed by the three-tiered approach laid out in Acts for the government of a nation. In Acts we see that the church appointed elders to oversee local congregations (Acts 14:23). These elders of local congregations assembled together as one regional church (Acts 20:17; 21:18). Both Acts 18 and Revelation 2, for example, talk about the church in Ephesus, referring to one church, while we know that there were many churches in Ephesus.
Then, we have what is called “the general assembly” (Hebrews 12:22), which refers to the whole church. For another example, in Acts 15 and 16, we see how the elders or representatives of the different regional churches got together in Jerusalem. These representatives constituted the general assembly organized to settle the issue of circumcision. The end result was that their decision was binding and the regional churches of Syria, Cilicia, Derbe, and Lystra submitted to that decision.
They derived this organizational system from the governing principles that Moses applied in Exodus 18:22-26. Centuries later, our founding fathers, likewise, set up a system of local (city), regional (state), and national (federal) government.
This system is not a top-down system, where a king makes all the decisions, but a system of elected representatives as shown in the government of the early church. The original structure was designed for the purpose of accomplishing three things. First, local governments, under this system, govern themselves (self-government). Secondly, regional governments (which were made of local representatives) were constructed in order to handle issues outside of the limits of local government – which in turn holds all those involved accountable. Thirdly, the general assembly or the national government is placed in authority above that in order to deal with constitutional or foreign matters.
Most businesses don’t have to deal with this tiered management structure because they have not grown enough. As your business gets larger and larger, however, you will need to set up a governing system that can properly handle all the issues that arise. If you fail to set up this system, you will wear yourself out from trying to hold it all together yourself. Your first step as a business owner or manager of a business, then, is to set up a constitution or the law of your business.
Republican Business
Another reason for the success of the United States is because it was established as a republic. A republic is defined by its being ruled by law through representatives elected by the people. A republic is not ruled directly by the people or majority, as a democracy is, nor by a few or one, as constitutes a monarchy. Now, we have moved away from the republic model in practice, but the original intent of our founding fathers was to preserve that representative structure. Why? Because it’s biblical.
The first trace of republicanism was found in the Hebrew Republic, when Moses selected leaders. They were to judge the people, but not by what they thought was right and wrong, but what the law of God said. They were to interpret the law (the Ten Commandments) and then apply it to specific cases (case law).
This republican concept was even more fully developed in the church as we see in Acts, then even more developed as the church has developed – first, with a people called the Waldensians in the 12th century; later during the Reformation with John Calvin and John Knox; and then, by the government of the United States of America.
If the civil government adapted the biblical principals of church government and have since experienced the blessing of God, how much more will you experience the blessing of God by applying these universal management principles to your business? Your business will certainly become a lot more efficient, since you will not have to micromanage people. They have the law or the constitution, which allows them to work within the framework of unity and self-government. Instead of every problem being solved by the leadership, which will lead to major inefficiencies causing loss in profit, problems are instead solved by the local self-governed proprietors.
Bringing It All Together
If you want to honor God as well as become more profitable, follow these three secrets:
1. Divide your organization in three different parts or offices. Executive/administrative is more the financial and strategic planning aspect that keeps the other two parts on course. The marketing side focuses completely on bringing in revenue by selling and marketing the products or services produced by the production or operational side. The production/operations aspect must produce good products and services that are marketable.
The levels of quality production from each of these three areas are the vital signs of your organization. If one area is poor, the whole organization will suffer. You need revenue to pay the bills, but you need good products to bring in revenue, and you need good administration to keep focused on the right things in order to be profitable. If possible, make someone responsible and accountable to each area. (In the last issue, I showed how distinct parts of the company must focus on their individual responsibilities, yet work in unity as a whole organization.)
2. Develop a general constitution of your organization and make your business a republican business. Start with your mission statement, which must contain the summarized vision, purpose, and ethics standards of your business (for more on writing a biblical mission statement, go to Vol. 2, No. 3 for my article, entitled “What’s Your Mission?”). Then, lay out the ethical guidelines or laws for the members of your organization to follow. You may also focus on specific covenants that vary from member to member, depending on their role and function. (Stay tuned for future issues to understand how to apply this concept better.)
3. As your business starts growing, keep splitting your business in different regions or divisions so they can manage themselves and you can focus on other things, such as growth and expansion. Clearly lay out the limits of each branch and region so there is less chaos. When issues arise, use a biblical court system. Don’t get involved in minor aspects that local branches and regions can solve themselves. Give the guidelines, mentor them, and show them how to solve their own issues. Of course, remember that none of this will work if you have the wrong compensation and accountability structure.
All this will bring more efficiency and self-government to your business. Plus, it will also act as restrainer of evil, in case you get the wrong people in your organization over time. Just as the sins of this nation have escalated to an all time high over the years, even within the government, much evil plans have been restrained due to the biblical structure of our civil government. Over time, the biblical structure of any aspect of government (civil, church, or organizational government) will erode if you have the wrong people governing or managing. Nonetheless, their evil plans and changes will be decelerated by a biblical government structure, which will allow more time for you to make the right alterations within the governing officers or management team.
In the next issue, we will discuss the 3rd point of covenant by business.
Joe Johnson is founder of the Business Reform Foundation and executive editor of Business Reform Magazine. By applying Biblical truth to real-world management challenges, Business Reform helps business owners and the men and women who work for them to bring their work back into alignment with the moral and ethical principles on which this great nation was founded. But more than that, God’s wisdom provides the absolute best foundation for operating businesses for profitability, success and sustainability. Subscribe today!.
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