Reading the Gospels makes it clear that much of what Jesus taught was
highly radical. Time and again He tore
up the rule book of conventional wisdom and replaced it with something very
different.
One area in which He did this was in His teaching about leadership. What the Lord had to say on this subject
turned the world’s values on their head.
The typical nature of
leadership
It can hardly be doubted that in every culture throughout history
a large majority of people in leadership positions have used their status for
their own advantage. In all walks of
life, people tend to want to have power and authority so that they can get
their way. It also means that they can
delegate unpleasant tasks to others. So
people typically use leadership to make their own lives easier at the expense
of others.
It is true that most leaders are not so selfish that they are only
interested in themselves. There is
usually some give and take. But on
balance most leaders use their authority to gain more than they give. This is what happens today and it was surely what
happened in the time of Jesus’ ministry.
Christ’s teaching
about leadership
Jesus totally rejected this whole attitude, however.
In Matthew 20:25-28 He states:
‘25 . . . You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them and that their officials act like tyrants over them. 26 It must not be this way with you. Rather, whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave, 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many.’
In this passage Jesus doesn’t explicitly mention Christian leadership. But it must be at least part of what He is
talking about. He is teaching that
Christian leaders must act like the servants and slaves of those under their
authority.
In the similar passage in Luke 22:25-26 Jesus explicitly mentions
leaders:
‘25 . . . The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them. And those who have authority over them are called benefactors. 26 But it must not be this way with you. Rather, the one who is greatest among you should become like the youngest, and the one who leads like the one who serves.’
This passage is crystal clear that Christian leaders need to serve
those under their authority.
Often those of us who have been Christians for many years can lose
sight of some of the astonishing things that the Bible teaches. We can become numb to the radical nature of
what is being said through over-familiarity with the words. But if we stop to think about Christ’s
teaching in the passages I have quoted, it really is amazing. He is saying that Christian leaders must act
in a way that is in some key respects the exact opposite of how society expects
leaders to act.
Note too how in Matthew 20:28 , cited above, the
Lord draws a comparison between Christian leadership through service with His
own ultimate act of service. He was God
incarnate, yet He chose to humble Himself and die on a cross for us. Although He was in a position of enormous
authority over us, He chose to serve us sacrificially. So it makes sense that His followers in
leadership positions should try to imitate His service, albeit very weakly.
Pastors must serve
their flocks
It is essential, then, that church leaders act like the servants of
those under their authority. They must
give, give and give some more to the Christians in their churches.
It must often be quite tempting for pastors not to behave in this
way. But a good church leader should
always be known for his service of the Christians he leads. He must not be afraid to get his hands dirty.
Of course, no Christian has an infinite amount of time or energy. So pastors need to use their resources wisely. There are occasions when certain types of
service should be delegated to others.
Acts 6:1-6 provides us with an example of this from the very early
days of the church. The apostles were
spending a lot of time meeting the practical needs of Christians. So they put seven men of good reputation in
charge of this work so that their own prayer and teaching ministries wouldn’t
suffer.
Christian leaders do need to carefully pick and choose what they
do. But every leader without exception
should be known as a servant of his flock.
Husbands must serve
their wives
Christian husbands too must act as the servants of their wives. God’s created order is for husbands to be leaders
in a marriage and to have authority over their wives. But again, this is not leadership as the
world understands it. Instead, it involves
acting as a servant of the person under authority.
Look at what the apostle Paul says on this topic in Ephesians
5:22-25:
‘22 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as you would to the Lord. 23 For the husband is head of the wife, as Christ is also the head of the church . . . 24 But as the church is subject to Christ, so also wives should be to their husbands in everything.
25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for it . . .’
Mainstream modern Western culture rejects the idea that husbands
have authority in marriage. But in doing
so they are rejecting what God has designed.
To be fair, however, I think one reason why mainstream Westerners oppose
a leadership role for husbands is because husbands so often abuse that role. All over the world men can be found using
authority in marriage to take advantage of their wives.
If a husband persists in doing this, it would surely be better for
him not to have authority over his wife.
Abusing authority to manipulate anyone is a serious matter indeed.
But if a husband does not abuse his authority, then it is good
that he has it. And when a husband uses
his authority to serve his wife, it works out very well for her. Look again at what Paul says in Ephesians
5:25. He tells husbands to love their
wives as Christ loved the church and gave Himself for it. How did Christ do this? He volunteered to be crucified! In other words, Paul is saying that husbands
should be enormously self-sacrificial in the way that they love and serve their
wives. This is hardly something for
wives to complain about!
Servant leaders are
not weaker leaders
It is important to understand clearly that when a Christian leader
serves the person or people under his authority, this does not make him a
weaker leader for doing so. He is still
in charge. Where appropriate, he is
still calling the shots. It is just that
when he calls those shots, instead of making other people work for his
advantage, where possible he makes himself work for their advantage.
Actually, a servant leader will often want to give way to the
views of others. So there is a sense in
which Christian leaders should often draw back from telling people what to do. But even this is really a use of authority.
And when an important matter in the will of God is under
consideration, a servant leader will be as forthright and insistent as anyone
about what should happen. Christian
leaders should not be shrinking violets when things need to be said and done.
But as a rule Christian leaders should spend and be spent in the service
of those who are under their authority. This
is what Christ did, and His example should be followed.
See also:
