Leadership : Not What You Think

One of the greatest problems facing the Church today is our attitude toward leadership. It goes beyond our expectation of perfection from leaders, even though we make allowances for such imperfections in others. No, it goes to the very foundation of understanding leadership in the body of Christ. Let's start where we should, with Jesus:

“You know that those who rule the Gentiles show off their authority over them and their high-ranking officials order them around.  But that’s not the way it will be with you. Whoever wants to be great among you will be your servant.  Whoever wants to be first among you will be your slave— just as the Human One didn’t come to be served but rather to serve and to give his life to liberate many people.” (Matthew 20:25-28)

Here we find our first problem with leadership in the Church that is modeled after the world. Those chosen by the Spirit to be "leaders" are chosen to be servants. They aren't CEOs or small governors. Instead, they are modeled after Jesus, leading as he led, by serving. We see this clearly in Ephesians 4:

He gave some apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers. His purpose was to equip God’s people for the work of serving and building up the body of Christ  until we all reach the unity of faith and knowledge of God’s Son. God’s goal is for us to become mature adults—to be fully grown, measured by the standard of the fullness of Christ. (Ephesians 4:11-13)

The purpose of apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers is not to set up a group of elite priests so everyone else can sit back and take it easy. No, these individuals are set aside for some of the toughest and dirtiest work in the Church, to help babies become mature adults, so that s mature adults they can be busy with the Kingdom work. These "leaders" are nursemaids, tutors, examples, mentors. They are those the Lord sends to walk with people for a while on their journey, helping them to understand and to grow. They are not the heads of the Church. There is only one head and his name is Jesus. They are not businessmen or managers. They are diaper changers and hand-holders. They are prayer warriors and those who are able to instruct with the Word, to correct, admonish, warn, encourage, lift up, cheer on.

These people deserve our respect and support because they pay a very high price for their calling, or at least the ones who are being servants are paying a high price. It is a privilege to have them in our lives even if they are a pain in the neck because we don't always like what they say. Scripture tells us:

Obey your leaders and do what they say. They are watching over you, and they must answer to God. So don’t make them sad as they do their work. Make them happy. Otherwise, they won’t be able to help you at all. (Hebrews 13:17)

The sense of leadership here is the same as Jesus conveyed. What good is a teacher if you are unwilling to learn? What good is a councilor if you are not willing to follow the council given? What good is an apostle, evangelist and such if you are not willing to trust?

We get too caught up with perfection for those called to serve in these callings, but they are people like all the rest of us. They will mess up and we must trust that Jesus will correct and restore as he does with all of us. I am tired of seeing us running our churches as people in the world run their businesses. We are missing the mark and we need to seek the will of our Lord in these matters.

If you are tempted to criticize your pastor, keep in mind what happened to Moses. The elders misunderstood Moses and could not understand the cost of his calling, the price he paid all the time to advocate for them with Yahweh. They came against him:

"You’ve gone too far, because the entire community is holy, every last one of them, and the Lord is with them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the Lord ’s assembly?" (Numbers 16:3)

O Lord, forgive them, they don't know. How often have our pastors prayed that over us? We criticize what we do not understand. We don't know how many nights of interrupted sleep they have had. We have no idea how many crisis they are walking through with people. We have no idea the weight of the many activities that they carry. They are servants and they do not need us to make their load any heavier. How much better for us when we make their service a thing of joy.

We need a better understanding of spiritual leadership in the Kingdom of God.

Learning To Serve

All I hear these days is about leadership in the Church. One would have to be a millionaire to attend all the various seminars and conferences on developing leaders. Leaders, leaders, leaders. What about learning to be a disciple, one who follows?

Jesus spent a bit of time on leadership, only he taught us that the Kingdom does not function like the world. In fact, he turned our idea of a leader on it's ear. My little blog is not adequate to deal with all the scripture so I am going to choose one as an example.

“The kings of the Gentiles rule over their subjects, and those in authority over them are called ‘friends of the people.’ But that’s not the way it will be with you. Instead, the greatest among you must become like a person of lower status and the leader like a servant." (Luke 22:24-26)

It is strange how we have managed to hold on to these words while doing the complete opposite. We quote the world's standards when it comes to what is owed to our leaders, while shutting off our brains. I am not saying we should not trust the leaders only that we should understand the Kingdom character of leadership.

Servanthood sounds so "sexy" according to what is taught today but the life of a servant was void of any personal needs. It was all about the one being served. We look at this and consider that it is God we are serving but that is not what Jesus was saying. Leaders in the Kingdom set aside their personal affairs to serve the people:

So which one is greater, the one who is seated at the table or the one who serves at the table? Isn’t it the one who is seated at the table? But I am among you as one who serves. (Luke 22:27)

I love how Jesus pointed out that we set the example for those called to leadership. Yes, called. Leaders do not make that decision themselves but instead are selected by the Spirit, called out as the apostles were, to lay down their lives in service to the members of the Body of Christ.

It is not the leaders who sit at the table but the members of the Body. Servants get abused, taken advantage of, some are even killed. That is the position and consequences of being a servant, a lowly one. It is not employment, a job or a career. It is a responsibility to which people are assigned. If you are in this position, do you think you should be better respected, better treated, better paid? Wow! There is so much wrong with that mental picture. Just the pay aspect. Who is our provider? Yes, Scripture tell people to support those who serve them but does that mean you stop serving if they don't? If this is your mentality you aren't really paying attention to the example Jesus set and what we did to him.

Today's blog is only to point you in a direction I believe it is worthwhile investigating. Take a closer look at what Jesus instructed was the position and responsibility to which some of us are called. Maybe fewer of us would volunteer if we knew the full price.

The Popularity Game

True leadership is hard to find in the game of popularity these days. There is no place where this is truer than in the Church. In the age of celebrity leaders, where people get what they want, it is difficult for true leaders to make the hard decisions, to stand by the Word of God. But this is not as new a phenomena as you might think.

King Saul had received specific instructions from Yahweh concerning the destruction of a certain people. But instead of obeying those instructions King Saul chose to please his army. When he was called out on it his reply was quite telling:

“I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice." (1 Samuel 15:24)

Saul asked for forgiveness but something about his heart was not right. Perhaps it was only lip service. This was the result of the popularity game:

“I will not return with you, for you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.” (v. 26)

It doesn't matter how unpopular the truth is, we cannot operate outside of it. This is true as a pastor, parent, neighbour or friend. We have received clear instructions and cannot use popularity as an excuse for doing our own thing. Decide if you are a servant-leader of the Lord Jesus Christ and avoid the popularity game by standing with his truth regardless of the cost. That is what he expects of us; that is what he has called us to do.

When Is A Leader Not A Leader?

What makes a leader? What do we look for in his qualities? There are certain types of personalities that we gravitate to, who we look up to, who we admire; but does that make them a leader? I once heard it said that if you turn around and find that no one is following you, you are not a leader. This implies that you must have followers to qualify as a leader. However, the Kingdom of Yahweh operates on different statutes and a much different perspective. It does not measure by appearance but my content, and a leader in the Kingdom leads by example, whether it is popular or not. A leader in the Kingdom leads by the righteousness of Jesus Christ, with no compromise, even if they must stand alone on the mountain and shout out the way of the Lord to a people who refuse to listen. He must still lead.

The people of Israel cried out for a leader, a king, just like all the other nations. If we look close enough we will see that Yahweh gave them exactly what they were looking for in appearance:

There was a man of Benjamin whose name was Kish the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bechorath, the son of Aphiah, a Benjamite, a mighty man of power. And he had a choice and handsome son whose name was Saul.There was not a more handsome person than he among the children of Israel. From his shoulders upward he was taller than any of the people. (1 Samuel 9:1-2)

Saul came from a wealthy and powerful family. He himself looked to be a mighty man, handsome, standing a head taller than anyone around him. He certainly looked the part, but he was a reluctant king. When it came time for his inauguration he hid among the baggage. They actually had to go looking for him. There were flaws in this man's character which began to show under the strain of leadership. It got to the point where Yahweh had to reject him as the king and he warned Samuel the prophet:

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7)

Then Yahweh turned around and chose the opposite to Saul; a shepherd boy of no great standing, the youngest of all the sons. But he knew David's heart which was one of trust and praise. David was not afraid to trust the Lord with his life as he stepped out to do his duty as a shepherd and this held true for him as the king. David blew it many times as a leader but Yahweh knew his heart and covered him by grace.

There is a huge emphasis on leadership training in the Church but much of it is based on the standards of this world. The first quality of a leader in the Church must be the same quality of David, to be in love with Jesus to the point of trusting him with your life enough to fearlessly step out to do your duty. From this love springs obedience and a desire to please Jesus. There are a lot of stresses to being a leader of people but none greater than when people refuse to follow. Sometimes as a leader in the Church we have to stand against the sin and incorrect thinking of the people. We have to be willing to bring correction and refuse to go with the flow, the popular opinion. It probably means you will never have a church of 10,000 people but that isn't our purpose anyway.

We have to stop judging who qualifies as leader by mere appearances. We have to stop looking for education degrees, leadership degrees, business degrees, good looks, charm, and clothing. There are a lot of poor leaders who are investing in the right clothes, shoes, cars so they can have the appearance of success, but the only success that matters is our love, trust and obedience to Jesus Christ, Saviour and Lord. If you have been called then you have been equipped and you have a word to share with the nations. Trust the Lord, walk in obedience, serve him with all you have, and everything else will follow.

Just Like Jesus Did It

I hear it every day: "You are such a patient man". Not really a sentence I would have used to describe me. I used to be a short tempered man when I was young. My anger came from my self-centeredness. Sure, I cared about people and loved doing nice things for them but I had yet to mature spiritually. I did not yet understand how to see people with the eyes and heart of Jesus.

When we consider Jesus we see that he taught with patience. He was not concerned with being honoured and gladly took on the role of a servant. Being in the place of a servant he did nothing for himself and concentrated on what he could do for others. Although he came to "cast out demons and preach the good news", his heart of compassion also moved him to heal the sick, bring sight to the blind and cause the lame to walk. Even in his deepest distress he placed others before his own wants, needs and desires. A person like this does not have anger issues.

Leadership in the Church is based on Jesus' teaching of servant-leader. Leaders can have no personal vested interest in anything, must be empty of self and see themselves as servants of God, to the Church. If a leader has any self-centeredness it is going to show in the way he or she deals with the "sheep". Paul wrote to Timothy:

You must correct people and point out their sins. But also cheer them up, and when you instruct them, always be patient. (2 Timothy 4:2)

Leaders have been called to lead. They lead by example and in instruction but leadership also means correction. However, when a leader takes a person's sin as a personal insult they will end up dealing with it in anger. But sin is not an offense against a leader; sin is an offense against God and all God wants is it to be confessed and forgiven. Leaders must be patient in instruction and gentle in restoration. You can't cheer them up if you have taken the offense personally.

It is unfortunately that too much of leadership training these days is based on man's model instead of God's. It is too bad we chase after seminars based on business teaching instead of biblical teaching. It is too bad that pastors are too busy building a corporation instead of the Kingdom. It is too bad because we are missing the mark and "sheep" are being slaughtered in the process.

Personally, the Spirit is taking me through a re-processing as he strips away ideologies that I have allowed to be built in my life. Much of it has to do with man's thinking of the Church and leadership. As the Spirit does this I realize how easy it is to take on man's thinking instead of God's thinking. It is so easy to fall into that trap, just as easy as it is to fall into the trap of financial dependency on this world. Servant-leadership takes as much faith as trusting the provision of God. We have to trust that the Spirit is working on the hearts of those we must correct so that when we speak, our gentle word is a confirmation of what God is already doing.

I grew out of my anger issues the day I realized it wasn't about me. The day I realized it was about Jesus and my neighbour, all that anger drained from my heart. The reason I am a patient man is because I serve a patient God. The reason I don't take offense is because I realize I am not the one being offended. The reason I can correct is because I know it is about that person's good and not about my wound. Leadership in the Church is a cool thing because it is all about serving Jesus by serving others, and I mean really serving where all the benefit is for them and none for yourself. Just like Jesus did it.