Luke 22:25-26 (ESV)
[25] And he said to them, “The
kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those in authority over
them are called benefactors. [26] But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest
among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves.
The disciples had just been
debating which of them would betray Jesus. Now the conversation turns to the
other side. Which one is greatest? Jesus’ response turns everything they know
about leadership on its head. In the world, leaders command. They exercise lordship.
They are respected for their authority. But in the kingdom, and in the church,
leadership is not about commanding and demanding. It is about serving. Much of
the abuse I have observed in churches comes from a worldly view of leadership.
The leader demands loyalty. The leader demands respect. The leader cannot be
challenged or questioned. That is viewed as unfaithfulness, duplicity, or even
treachery.
Pastors and church leaders are
not called to lead with a firm hand. They are called to serve God’s church. They
are not called to be Moses speaking from the mountain. They are called to be Daniels
and Esthers serving with influence not authority. The apostles learned that. A
quick read of Acts will show that they served the church rather than commanded
the church. When they were challenged about widows not being fed, they didn’t appoint
those they wanted to serve as deacons. They appointed the ones chosen by the
congregation. When a debate arose over whether Gentiles could be a part of the
church without converting to Judaism, they didn’t say, “We’re apostles. We were
with Jesus. Here is the answer.” Rather, they convened a council, heard
testimony, and the entire council came to agreement. The decision was verbalized
not by an apostle, but by James the brother of Jesus.
As pastors and church leaders we
must stop demanding respect and loyalty and start serving the church as Jesus
taught. Peter must have been paying attention to what Jesus said. He was the
first one to speak in every conversation with Jesus, yet he echoed Jesus’ words
in 1 Peter 5:2-3 (ESV)
[2] shepherd the flock of God
that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly,
as God would have you; not for shameful
gain, but eagerly; [3] not domineering over those in your charge, but being
examples to the flock.
How might the church be
transformed if our leaders had that attitude!
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