Leadership

For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many 

(Matthew 10:45, NKJV)

Leaders are seen and known as those in the forefront with responsibilities for others.  We therefore tend to view leadership as elevated positions and the individuals holding the positions are either revered or loathed in equal measure, depending on one’s relationship with the leader.  I however consider the perspective that we are all leaders in our different spheres.  There are those who lead in the corporate or professional areas, others lead in their homes and others provide leadership even among friends and colleagues.  Wherever individuals connect to discuss or work on something, there is one who emerges as a leader even if it is just for that moment.  Beloved, with this perspective, I invite us all to see ourselves as leaders, whether we lead a multitude of people of only one person, what is important is that we lead.  Some leaders are elected, others appointed, others nominated while others just emerge in a situation.  Regardless of how one becomes a leader, it is important that one looks deep within his heart to establish his motivation for leadership and therefore his attitude as a leader.  For most people, leadership positions are important to amass wealth, to be respected and to get others to serve them.  My observation is that we tend to understand leadership as an avenue for self-gain and self-aggrandizement but beloved, this should not be so.

Our reference verse above, draws us to the attitude of Jesus the Son of God.  He came to earth humbling Himself to be like one of us yet He remained God.  Jesus did not abdicate His position as God but remained all powerful and mighty, yet His life demonstrated that He was not to be served but to serve others.  That my beloved is the purpose and the appropriate attitude of a leader, to serve others.  It has to be about the people that one leads.  The motivation of any leader should not be about his own benefit but for the well-being and advantage of those that he leads, he should seek to serve their interests.  This kind of leader does not take pride in the service that he receives from others but is humbled by it.  He understands that he is to serve others and when others serve him, he accepts it with humility.  This is servant leadership, a spoken of concept but rarely applied or even recognized in our world.  Jesus was the best example of a servant leader, as we see Him washing His disciples feet and He asked them to serve others too (John 13:13-15).  Beloved, as believers we cannot lead others in any other way but how our Lord showed us.  He not only gave a challenge of our understanding of being leaders but went a step further to demonstrate it.  We note that just as we find it difficult to accept being served by our leaders, even the disciples found it strange that Jesus washed their feet, Peter specifically protested against it but Jesus corrected Him.  Brethren, we need to rise above our natural tendencies and allow the Spirit of God to give us perspective on not only how we relate with others but also how we lead.   Again Jesus said, that if anyone wanted to be great in the Kingdom of God, he must humble himself as a child (Matthew 18:4).  Our greatness as leaders and believers is determined by our humility.  It is about meeting the needs of others and not commanding others to meet our needs.  That is the believer’s view of leadership, contrary to the world but one that carries eternal perspective.  May the Holy Spirit teach us to be humble especially in situations where other seek to elevate us.

Thoughts

What kind of a leader are you or have you been?

How dothe concept of servant leadership with you?

Do you know any servant leader?  What is different about the individual?