“being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”

One of Paul’s most extraordinary leadership qualities was his ability to trust his charges into the hands of the Lord.  This is much like a parent that is asked to trust their newly minted 18 year old into the hands of the Lord as they launch into adulthood.

And it wasn’t because there wasn’t issues.  False teachers were circulating in the area preaching salvation through circumcision instead of salvation through Christ.  There were some people really struggling to get along, people he had worked with.  Just normal church issues.

But the temptation of a parent is to hover and smother and protect.  What Paul did was instruct, warn, correct, bless and encourage.  But at the end of the day he was very much involved, but he also surrendered and released them into the hands of the Lord.  He understood that it was the work of the Lord to carry this work to completion.  That’s leadership at its best.