I believe Jesus is the most powerful and perfect example of leadership, period! His followers were so moved with love for their leader that they unswervingly gave their whole lives in full devotion to His cause and vision, with many of them even dying in sacrificial loyalty. They were faithful to spread His message with passion to all parts of the earth. What is it about His leadership that evoked such loyalty? What can we, as leaders, learn from the study of His leadership with its extraordinary breadth and depth? It is like discovering a vast diamond mine under the earth with a lifetime of mining opportunities, where even the smallest diamond discovered is of great value.
Jesus’ leadership embodied such beautiful and inspiring qualities for us as leaders. He was a man with great compassion, a strong sense of justice and righteousness, personal vulnerability, and a keen sense of self-awareness. He was certainly a spiritually fit leader with great favor with God and with man. I believe He is prophetically described in Psalm 19:5 “as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoices as a strong man to run a race.” He was fully prepared to step into the mantle of authority in ministry that God had given Him and also steward well the chosen disciples.
Burning in Jesus’ heart was an all-encompassing vision to transform the whole world. His short-term goal was to choose and raise up a leadership team in 3 years and then leave them to perpetuate the fire of His vision. So how many do you think He would choose to train up and entrust? Perhaps He should choose several hundred to carry out such a task? But of course, he only chose 12. And so much hung in the balance with His ability to pass the baton to His disciples! What can we learn from this choice of only twelve? Perhaps it could be stated in this manner: Choose a few key people to trust, and pour into them fully so that they can in turn invest in others in the same manner.
Dave Ramsey in his book EntreLeadership recounts the story of how he built his successful global organization from a small beginning by training three future Executive Vice Presidents in his garage. “…I began to pour hours and hours into the three men… The process of mentoring them into the young leaders we needed, was slow and thorough. But my trust in those men has grown every day for twenty years, and today, as we have fought and bled together, they are some of my best friends and most trusted advisors.” (Page 4, EntreLeadership- Howard Books publisher)
Foremost in the priority of training the disciples was simply time in close proximity to the Master. Time spent with the Lord was priceless. They spent 17,000 hours with the Lord in their three-year internship. He taught them, prayed for them, lived before them and died for them. In the atmosphere of empowerment that He set, there was a transfer of His very own DNA into their hearts. His teachings, demonstrations and prayers were transformational to be sure, but probably the greatest thing was the time just spent with Him. And we as leaders have this same accessibility to be close and intimate with Him. I love Peter’s response of love and commitment when others turned away. “Where would we go, Lord, for you have the words of life!” (John 6:68)
Of the many attributes of the Lord’s leadership that could be considered, I would like to briefly look at three:
- Intimacy
- Authority
- Favor
Intimacy with the Father
The Lord’s leadership style was supported by His life of complete intimacy with the Father. When we as leaders follow this example of giving time to personal encounters with the Lord, soaking in His presence and feeding in the Word then we begin to step into a whole new field of fruitfulness. The instruction and revelation we get from God in those times is priceless in the focus and grace it gives our leadership. Time and again He was all night in prayer drawing aside for what He knew was His strength and time of personal refreshment.
Authority
When the Lord spoke the people noted that he taught with authority (Mark 1:22.) He took authority over storms, sicknesses, and even death itself! His powerful authority was the outworking of knowing His own identity (“I know who I am…”) and His confidence in His father’s love. (John 17.) The Lord longs for us to follow His pattern and align ourselves with our identity and the ensuing authority that He has given to us.
Favor
The disciples noted and were amazed at the favor that seemed to follow the prayers and footsteps of Jesus. It is a critical factor in leadership for us to have favor upon our lives and vision. It encourages us and those that follow by building faith and commitment in their hearts. Can you imagine Moses leading Israel without the miraculous favor he demonstrated? If Jesus grew in favor with God and man so must we, as we follow Him. Set your heart for this. Be thankful for the favor you have been having and in childlike faith, hunger for more.
The Lord’s life is an example to us all of inspirational servant leadership. And His heart is still the same for us today where He beckons us to come unto Him and to follow Him. He is the Way of Life and Leadership. I pray the revelation of His great leadership be awakened in you afresh and ignite your heart to influence those in your domain with His life, love and favor!
Martin Flack, Riverstone Coaching & Consulting
Edited by Mollie Flack, Cherie Cobb & Elizabeth Woning