Power and Decision Making in the Early Church

Abstract

Abstract In this article, there is the intersection of biblical principles into the teaching and learning of organizational behavior. It examined the crisis in the early Church, as told in the Luke account of Acts of the Apostles Chapter six, and how the leaders decided to resolve the conflict. The exegetical analysis method revealed the lessons learned from the apostolic leaders’ decision-making strategy and the power play in their leadership style. The results included the need for decision making for conflict resolution, decision and empowerment, power distance advantage, and power-sharing advantage in the early Church. The decision-making style for resolving the conflict in the Church was then recommended for contemporary church leaders, in teaching organizational leadership behavior in Christian schools, and in practice in other organizations. The study results suggest that the Bible is a rich source of data for teaching organizational behavior. Keywords: Low-power distance, conflict resolution, decision making, church, power-sharing.