Tag Archive for: christian leadership

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Christ-Centered Leaders, Position, and Power

How are you doing as a Christ-centered leader? As I have listened to congregational leaders, I have learned that pastors and congregational leaders feel weary, some even bone-tired, from all the work that needs to be done. On one hand, they feel that there are not enough hours in the day to do the work that keeps things running smoothly and effectively. 

On the other hand, some pastors feel that they are the CEOs of their congregations, and by power and authority, they recruit and tell others what to do. Pastors have put themselves under much pressure while keeping others from engaging in their gifts, talents, and strengths. Nothing gets accomplished, and everyone is frustrated.

Jesus is the Head of the Church

Maybe it is time to remember that Jesus is the head of the Church, and God has called, gifted, and commissioned each of us to be about God’s business in and through the church. It seems to me that as a Christ-centered leader, you have the opportunity to teach, train, encourage, and support those who are baptized and commissioned to be about God’s business.

Look at Jesus, while he called the disciples, trained them, and sent them out, he did not do their work for them. He commissioned them to be servants of love and peace in the places they lived and worked. 

Let’s look at one example of the work of a Christ-centered leader.

Read Luke 22:24-30

A dispute also arose among them as to which one was to be regarded as the greatest. But he said to them, “The kings of the gentiles lord it over them, and those in authority over them are called benefactors.  But not so with you; rather, the greatest among you must become like the youngest and the lead like one who serves. For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one at the table? But I am among you as one who serves.

 “You are those who have stood by me in my trials, and I confer on you, just as my Father has conferred on me, a kingdom, so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and you will sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

Reflect on Leadership

“The greatest among you must become like the youngest and to lead like one who serves.” Those words don’t fit our cultural understanding of leadership. Although we don’t like talking about it this way, most of us in the church still perceive leadership as a position of power or authority.

For Luke, the spirit that was in Jesus is the same spirit in the church. Jesus not only possessed the Holy Spirit but promised the Holy Spirit to his followers. As a Christ-centered leader, your power is centered in God and not in positions of authority.

Become Like the Least

In our story, it is the night that Jesus is betrayed. He has just finished supper with his closest friends. As he shares with them that one of them will betray him, a dispute breaks out among them. They begin to discuss which one of them is the greatest. In other words, they were jockeying for the position of authority or leadership. Who is the leader among them?

Jesus is clear when he hears their discussion. In the time in which they are living, those in power have control over those not in power. Then he offers them the way it should be, “the greatest among you must become like the youngest and to lead like one who serves.”

Power of Position

What is Luke teaching us? Could it be that wanting power and position and denying Jesus are two sides of the same coin? Only Judas literally betrays Jesus, and only Peter literally denies him, but all those seeking power and position are seeking to engage in a self-serving status. My question is, is seeking power and position another form of betrayal and denial?

Please hear me. I am not saying positions of authority are wrong, nor am I saying that having positions of responsibility or supervision is wrong. But I am saying that seeking such positions for the purpose of identity and self-worth is less than what God intends for Christ-centered leaders.

Power to Witness

When the disciples asked Jesus when he was going to restore power to Israel, Jesus responded by saying you will receive power, but it will not be the power you are looking for.  You will receive power to be my witnesses…

Christ-centered leadership is not found in the power of position but in the security that comes with knowing that you are a beloved child of God, accepted by God to be about God’s business. When you have a growing and maturing relationship with the One who has created you, gifted you, called you, and commissioned you for ministry, you don’t need to establish your status. You lead out of who you are as a beloved child of God, a follower of Jesus, secure in God’s grace.

Understanding Power

For Luke, Jesus represents the reversal of the values of our conceptions of position and authority. The difference between God’s design and purpose and a cultural design and purpose is not a matter of “external” and “inner,” as though following Jesus is only a matter of the heart. God’s kingdom has to do with external relationships and power structures. But the difference is in the understanding of power.

Jesus says, “I am among you as one who serves.” Then he says, “I confer on you, just as my Father has conferred on me…”,

Christ-Centered Leaders Model Servant Leadership

Here is the key to Christ-centered leadership. You love as God loves you, and you serve as Jesus serves. Jesus has given you the same authority to serve in which he has served. In John’s gospel, Jesus says, “Just as the Father has sent me, so I send you.” You shall receive power to serve.

As a Christ-centered leader, you will receive the power to model servant leadership. Your power is to lead the church, the body of Christ, to love and serve the community in which you are living and serving. 

Power to Follow Jesus & Facilitate Trust

You will receive power to follow Jesus, the head of the church. If people follow you, they will fall in line behind Jesus. You are leading others to become closer to Jesus.

You will receive power to trust God and to be trusted by others. People are looking for a leader they can trust. One easy, but important, way to develop trust is to follow through on what you say. You put your words, your beliefs into action.

Power to Lead with Humility and Compassion

You will receive power to lead with humility. You lead by taking the needs of others seriously before acting to meet your own needs. You lead by sacrificing for the love of others and for the good of the whole body.

You will receive the power to lead with compassion. Everyone entrusted to your care, as well as everyone you encounter have the same basic need to be taken seriously. Caring for people the way you want to be cared for is one way to model compassion.

Power to Offer Hope

You will receive power to offer hope. Remember, hope is not wishful thinking. Hope becomes a reality when you help others discover their gifts, talents, and strengths and model for them ways to address the challenges they face each day. Hope is realized when you keep your focus on God’s love and lead others to do the same, regardless of the situations and circumstances.

Power to Lead as God Created You

You will receive power to lead as God has created you to lead. You will have the power to focus upon the gifts, talents, and strengths of the people entrusted to you. When you begin to understand the resources God has given you, then you can begin to address the needs of your community. As you listen to the needs of the community and discern the gifts of the people, you will be able to say, “we are a church that does these things because this is the way God has gifted us.”

Power to Equip People to Multiply Ministries

You will receive power to equip people to multiply their ministries. In fact, you will help them understand it is not their ministry. You will help them understand that they are part of God’s business. It is God who has called them and equipped them to do what they are doing. Help them see that there are others who God has called, commissioned, and equipped to serve alongside them. Maybe you can think of it this way. When you disciple ten people who disciple ten people, before you know it you have hundreds, if not thousands, of people who have become followers of Jesus, loving others as they have been loved.

Lead Like One Who Serves

The confusion of our world demands a simple approach to ministry. Instead of adding to the clutter of the world, lead like one who serves. Receive the power of God’s holy presence and power to make a difference in the community in which you live and serve.

Your status is found in the love of God who has created you and gifted you to be a leader at this point and time in history. Trust God’s work in your life. Invite others to trust God’s love in their lives. Before you know it, the transforming love of God has permeated your community and the world.

How are you doing as a Christ-centered leader? Instead of seeking positions of power and authority, be who God has created you to be. Because who you are is how you lead.

Respond

Throughout the day, be aware of situations where you have the power to lead as a follower of Jesus. What will you do? What will you say? How will you serve others with love and compassion? Be aware of situations where you want to justify yourself and prove your worth by power and position.

Continue practicing the means of grace by using the pattern you began to develop last week. If you did not start practicing the means of grace last week, today is a great day to start by developing a pattern for growing inwardly and discovering ways you can live your faith outwardly. Remember, God is with you. As you grow in your relationship with God through Jesus, you will have the freedom and power to lead as one who serves with grace and compassion. You will become more who God has created you to be.

Prayer

O God, by your grace, I yield a little more of myself today. Put you where you want me and help me be content. If I can’t be content, make me faithful. Break my heart for the church and the church’s heart for the community. Give me the power to be an instrument of your peace in every situation. Fill me with your grace and glory so that the people around me today will experience your grace and glory through me. I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen

Return

Give God thanks for the people you encountered today. In whom did you see Jesus? In what ways did you have the power to lead as a follower of Jesus? What did you do? What did you say? How did you serve others with love and compassion? When did you try to justify yourself to prove your worth with position and power? How did focusing upon God’s love and power help you respond? What did you learn about yourself? What will you do differently tomorrow? Give God thanks for the experiences that help you become who God created you to be. Keep in mind, who you are is how you lead.

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The Character of Leadership

Being a leader is a great and honorable responsibility. It demands a certain character and behavior which requires your full attention. Although there is personal and professional satisfaction, being a leader is never easy. 

Even when things are going well, you still need to keep yourself, and the people entrusted to your care, focused on the mission and moving toward the goal. In the midst of political and social divisions, economic insecurity, inflation, and growing theological and religious bickering, leading people to focus on the mission is as difficult as it has ever been in recent history. 

So, how are you coping as a leader? 

What Do They Think?

Do you think that you have to act a certain way around the people with whom you work? Do you feel you have to say certain things to your colleagues, so you will be accepted? Instead of being yourself, are you playing a role to fit in, or to impress others?

Most of us have gone through times like this. Instead of behaving in a genuine way, we tell people what we think they want to hear and act in ways that go against our true nature. Living and working this way is confining, tiring, and depressing. It holds you back from reaching your true potential. 

Lead Realistically

On the other hand, to be a courageous and effective leader is to live and work realistically. Knowing and understanding your context, developing healthy relationships, and giving yourself permission to be yourself, provide you the freedom to choose your path for living and leading. 

Three Shifts for Leaders

Below are three shifts in becoming the leader needed for the time in which we are living. 

1. From Charisma to Character

The first shift is from charisma (personality) to character. 

Leaders want people to like them. Often, leaders think if they are liked they are trusted. With that perception, they depend heavily on their personalities. It is a fact that people are drawn to charismatic personalities, but likable personalities do not translate to trust. 

Leaders with charisma have a charming and magnetic quality about them. Whether it’s personality or appearance, they have powerful communication and persuasiveness skills. In other words, charismatic leaders have the ability to charm or influence people. 

Charisma is a great quality to have as a leader. People are drawn to charismatic personalities, but people and systems thrive where they are led by character and integrity.

The word character comes from the Greek word “charassein,” which means to “to sharpen, cut in furrows, or engrave.” The literal sense of the word is to engrave or to imprint a mark. 

Followers look for trust, compassion, stability, and hope from their leaders. I’m not saying that leaders with charismatic personalities cannot be trusted. But I am saying that if trust is not engraved or imprinted on the heart of the leader, personality does not carry the leadership needed.

To be the leader needed today, have the image of Christ imprinted on your heart so that your personality reflects the depth of character needed to navigate the complexities of the day. 

Who you are is how you lead.

2. From Aspiration to Authenticity

The second shift is from aspiration to authenticity. 

Good leaders aspire to be good leaders. They have ambition and dreams for the future as well as a strong desire to achieve something high and great. Good leaders find fulfillment in making their aspirations reality. They know how to cast a vision for the future and how to engage the people around them to live into that future. Because they are so focused on their aspirations, they sometimes depend more upon wishful thinking than upon the strengths and skills needed to lead effectively. 

Aspiration is a great quality to have as a leader. People are drawn to leaders who can cast a vision. But people and systems thrive when the leader is a person of authenticity. 

To be a person of authenticity means you are true to yourself. You might hold a position of authority, but your identity is not rooted in the power of authority. Regardless of the pressure that you are under to please others, comply with expectations, and to conform to social norms, you know who you are and hold to your values. When you are honest with yourself you can be and will be generous with others. When you are vulnerable in your relationships, you come across as being a leader people can trust. 

To be the leader needed today takes courage and demands mental, emotional, and spiritual energy. It requires stepping away from being who you think people want you to be and being who God created you to be. Your authenticity will inspire others to make the hope of the future a reality. 

Who you are is how you lead. 

3. From Arbitrary to Adaptable

The third shift is from being arbitrary to being adaptable. 

Every leader has to make decisions that affect not only themselves but the people entrusted to their care. Leaders who are trusted have developed relationships that give them the responsibility to make the decisions that work for the good of others. With the image of Christ imprinted on your heart and being the person God has gifted you to be, you are engaging the people around you to live into their potential as leaders. 

Often, leaders think that they make decisions based on what they believe or upon what they have always known. They become arbitrary in their decision-making because they feel they know what is best. Without identifying the current reality or contexts, and without checking out why they make the decisions they make, they insist on their way of moving forward. When leaders are not aware of who they are or why they think and feel the way they do, they begin to micromanage others and manipulate people and situations to get the result they want. They might know what to do, but they alienate people by demanding their own way. 

Decision-making is an important work of leaders. People are drawn to leaders who are decisive. But people and systems thrive when leaders can adapt to changing situations and cultures. 

Adaptive Leaders

Even though they might know a way to achieve a certain goal, adaptive leaders are flexible and have the ability to adjust to different situations and circumstances. They are curious. Adaptive leaders are not afraid to ask questions and are eager to explore solutions. They see every obstacle as an opportunity of hope. 

Being team players, adaptive leaders do not insist on their own way, but find ways to engage the gifts and strengths of others. And being proactive, they are creative, imaginative, and find alternative ways to make things happen. They have a capacity to care, and a tenacity for tolerance. They are encouraging, empathic, and respectful. Adaptive leaders are mission-focused, are generous with the people who think and feel differently than they think and feel. They are grateful for the opportunity to lead. 

To be the leader needed today, you must learn to adapt to changing situations and cultures. And in every situation and circumstance, you will have the opportunity to reflect upon the depth of character needed to navigate the changes, and at the same time, inspire others to make the hope of the future a reality. 

Being a leader is a great and honorable responsibility. It demands a certain character and behavior which requires your full attention. This week, take a moment to reflect upon these questions:

What am I doing to develop the character of Christ in my life?

How am I becoming more the person and leader God created me to be?

How am I working to adapt to the changes in my life, my church, and my community? 

Remember, who you are is how you lead.