[The articles I post on ChurchCentral are drawn from recent issues of Christian Coaching Magazine
and represent a wide array of leaders and coaches as the authors. Thanks for reading! -Jerome]

What is the Biblical Basis for Coaching? Part 2, from ChristianCoachingMag.com
by Phil Newell

Last month we considered the "coaching" practices of Barnabas and Paul...but what about Jesus? Was Jesus the ultimate Master Coach?

It is true that the definitions for a coach, particularly the ones from a Christian perspective, would have been admirably filled by Jesus during his earthly ministry. Take, for instance, this definition presented by Gary Collins:
At its core, coaching is the art and practice of guiding a person or group from where they are toward the greater competence and fulfillment they desire. Coaching helps people expand their vision, build their confidence, unlock their potential, increase their skills, and take practical steps toward their goals.

If we view our Lord's ministry to his disciples through the lens of this definition, we find that Jesus fulfilled each and every phrase. After the twelve had spent three years with him, their vision had been expanded, their confidence built up, their potential unlocked, their skills increased, and their action steps accomplished.

It is also true that Jesus was a master at asking penetrating and powerful questions. At the age of twelve, he and his family traveled to Jerusalem for the Passover festival. When his parents lost track of him on the trip home, they headed back to Jerusalem and finally found him three days later in the Temple, listening and asking questions. Conrad Gempf points out that this habit of asking questions appears to have stayed with Jesus all his life. In the gospel of Mark, there are 67 episodes in which there is any sort of conversation at all. Even when you are careful to count double questions as one, we have 50 questions of Jesus in those 67 episodes. And the pattern seems to hold throughout the gospels.

Obstacles to "Jesus as Coach"
The ability to ask powerful questions was certainly evidenced in the ministry of Jesus, and is a basic skill that must be continually developed by every coach. However, a reference to Jesus as a coach presents at least a couple of concerns. One, it raises the possibility of some thinking of Jesus as being synonymous with coach. Miller and Hall highlight the problem when they note that, "Jesus did much more than coach. He mentored. He taught. He healed. He atoned for our sins. After all, the world needed a Savior, not a coach."  It would certainly be more appropriate and accurate if we stay with Peter's assertion: "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Matthew 16:16). 

Two, titles influence perception. They can frame a person's life by putting them in a box with that particular title as the label, and it isn't always easy to break away from that perception. For instance, a number of coaches that I have known have wrestled with the title "coach" because of the baggage that comes with it. If you ask any group to identify characteristics of a coach, many of the first attributes identified will be ones unique to the sporting world. In order to work around this problem, most coaches refer to themselves as a life coach, executive coach, or some other specialty that can help to address the perceptions held by the general public regarding coaching.

In the same way, speaking of Jesus as a coach, even the best of coaches, has the possibility of hindering some from embracing the full breadth of our Savior's ministry in their life because, in their mind, the term "coach" frames the limits of his ministry. An actor or actress can be labeled a comedian, not because that represents the full extent of their acting potential, but because that was the scope of their jobs early in their career. Years later, it's difficult for patrons to see them in any other role.

Identifying Jesus as a coach carries the risk of limiting his ministry in our life. The Bible gives us no other option but to always honor Jesus as the Son of God who, while on earth, incorporated into his life and ministry many of the attitudes and skills that we have now come to know and appreciate as coaching. This approach helps us retain the full scope of Jesus' deity and simultaneously honor the role of coach so richly modeled by him. 

The Holy Spirit as Coach
The Bible points out that it is the Holy Spirit who is the empowering force that makes life-changing ministry possible, including Christian coaching. He comes alongside the coach to develop a genuine compassion and care for the PBC, creating a connection that helps to develop an environment for powerful, impacting dialogue. The Bible affirms this "coming alongside" stance as being a primary role of the Holy Spirit (John 14:26). The parakletos, translated "Comforter" (KJV), "Helper" (NAU), "Counselor" (NIV, NLT), speaks of the advocacy role of Jesus in 1 John 2:1, but in John's gospel account all uses of the word address the work of the Holy Spirit who is summoned or called upon to give us aid.

The word was used in the legal field for someone who would plead another's case, but more often, it was used to refer to the exhortation given to soldiers who were about to go into battle. With that as its background, Barclay points out that it is...
the word for exhorting men to noble deeds and high thoughts.... Life is always calling us into battle, and the one who makes us able to stand up to the opposing forces, to cope with life and to conquer life is the parakletos, the Holy Spirit, who is none other than the presence and power of the risen Christ.

Coaching that ends up being life-altering takes place as a direct result of this work of the Holy Spirit in both the coach and the PBC. For coaching to be truly Christian, the Holy Spirit will need to be intentionally invited into the conversation. Skill and technique can never stand alone as the distinguishing characteristics of a Christian coach, regardless of how refined those skills might be.

Christian coaches will be humbled by knowing that the Holy Spirit is working in them to raise their level of compassion and confidence so that the possibility of life change can be realized. When honesty reigns, every Christian coach will admit to having walked away from a coaching conversation with the full knowledge that the positive end result was a direct reflection of the gracious work of the Holy Spirit.

Biblically modeled coaching skills:
➢    encouragement to address issues and confront barriers
➢    powerful questions that generate deeper reflection
➢    direct communication that leads to greater awareness
➢    development of accountability that sustains growth
➢    support to investigate new ideas and options that create forward movement,

Through these Christ-like skills a Christian coach can be used by the Spirit to assist the PBC in the development of a growing relationship with God and a greater understanding of their place and purpose in life. And through the example of Christ and other Biblical leaders, we can attest to the worthwhile and biblically-supported endeavor of coaching for any Christian ministry.

Dr. Phil Newell is a pastor and coach, specializing in empowering leaders for church planting and church revitalization, and a student advisor/coach at George Fox Seminary. www.crmleaders.org

©2009 ChristianCoachingMag.com, Used by permission.