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CHRIST AS A PERFECT LEADER TO FOLLOW

Christ as a Perfect Leader to Follow

            The biblical truths of Jesus’ teachings as well as the leadership style implemented by Christ as he was ministering to the people is considered as valuable to any leader. The model utilized by Jesus as a leader can effectively be demonstrated by servant leadership framework. This paper explores how Jesus is the perfect example to follow when considering the five leadership foundation areas such as power, passion, purpose, pacing, and priorities.

Jesus as a Leader

Power as a Foundational Aspect

            Jesus exercised his leadership power with love for the people, thus making him an effective leader to emulate.  Christians should be servant to those who fall under their leadership. ^[1]Christ is considered as a leader since he is a perfect example to follow when it comes to aspects such as power. Jesus was regarded as a servant leader. As a result, he showed his undeniable service to God and to others despite being considered as a leader. If a person is regarded as already committed to the service of others and God, they are required to implement their leadership gift by acting on the service of others while rightfully using their power with love. Leadership skills training, continuous feedback and encouragement are some of the processes which can support a servant leader within the management process.^[2] When it comes to power as a foundational aspect of leadership, Jesus taught the disciples that his leadership was neither founded on control and command. Neither did Christ’s leadership be defined by power and status. Jesus emphasized on servant leadership whereby his followers had power over him despite him being the leader. Christ modeled servant hood and challenged the disciples that they had a role of following the example he set forth on desirable leadership.

            The world operates on a conception that the people who lead are considered better than the followers. This has resulted in the failure of most people in the leadership position as some of them quit or become disqualified before achieving their mission.^[3] However, this is not the case when it comes to the example set by Jesus. Evidently, in the world today, people gain status since they exercise their power over the other to ensure that their goals are effectively achieved. The power as implemented by the leaders in the world today results to preferential treatment, benefits and rewards. These aspects are undesirable to Jesus. According to Matthew 23:1-11 (KJV), it is evident that spoke against the Pharisees and the Scribes who relied on the authoritative form of leadership. Christ maintained that behavior provided a reflection of a person’s heart (Luke 6:43-45).  Notably, Jesus taught his disciples that in the Kingdom of God, greatness is offered to the servant (Matthew 18:4). Moreover, Christ also maintained that leaders have a responsibility of serving others rather than required them to be in their service. This is a great consideration and lesson for Christians in the leadership position on how to utilize their power when managing others.

The Purpose of a Leader

            Jesus communicated a message that any effective leader has a purpose to ensure that the lives of the subordinates become better, hence making him an effective leader to follow. Notably, Christ is considered the Jewish messiah and leader who was prophesied in the Old Testament. Jesus’ primary purpose entailed making the lives of the people better. It is believed that by Christ’s crucifixion and later his resurrection, God made the lives of the people better by saving the humans and ensuring their eternal life. This was achieved after Christ died to ensure that the people died for the human sins to be atoned and the humanity right with the creator be safeguarded.^[4] According to John 2:17, it is evident that the purpose of Jesus was already clear to him by the time he was 12 years old. His sense of purpose grew further as he aged. Jesus was intended to meet the purpose of God in leading the people towards his Kingdom and cleansing their sins. Notably, in Luke 2:48-50, as Jesus’ parents were looking for him, Christ mentioned that, “Why did you have to look for me? You should have known that I must be where my Father’s (God’s) work is!” But they did not understand the meaning of what he said to them” (Luke 2:48-50).

Passion as a Foundational Leadership Area

            Passion is a foundational leadership area as taught by Jesus, a value which Christians should consider as a guide while in leadership. Notably, desirable leaders should be passionate towards pushing the followers to excel by enhancing their motivation. ^[5]Jesus showed passion in guiding the people towards becoming better to meet the requirements to be in God’s Kingdom.  Luke 2: 48-50 provides that Jesus desire to serve the lord was his purpose which he had passion in achieving. Even his young age was not a hindrance factor suggesting how he was a passionate leader focused on achieving his set goals for the people and God’s will.  The point where Jesus opted to cleanse the temple during his ministry shows how he was passionate in ensuring that his role is achieved. Leaders can be as passionate as Jesus to ensure that they make positive impact to the environment where they are leading. Through exercising their passion in doing well, despite their leadership position, they should strive to provide the subordinates with a sense of belonging and purpose.^[6]

Leadership and Priorities

            Jesus taught his disciples that Godly leaders should have the power and ability to prioritize worship. As a leader, Jesus had the mission of ensuring that the people remained true to God’s word also worshipping him only. Besides worship, Jesus also prioritized preaching God’s word. Through his time on earth, Jesus allocated his time towards discipleship to ensure that he could train people about how to become better in meeting God’s requirements. Jesus’ priorities were focused on discipleship, evangelizing and achieving his mission. However, the power of Jesus’ ministry was attained through his independence and God’s will.^[7] It is a fact that Jesus prioritized preaching and worship as evident in his action in the Synagogue during the Sabbath with a focus of making the people better for God’s kingdom. ^[8]

Pacing as a Leadership Quality

            Jesus relied on pacing as an effective element of his servant leadership model. Notably, Jesus undertook the responsibility of caring for his followers since he has immense love for them. Despite his young age, Jesus did not waiver from showing his love to the people. According to Matthew, Jesus shared the qualities of a mother hen. This is depicted by the fact that he was always willing to protect his followers in the same way the chicken protect the chicks by covering them under her wings. This is reflected in Matthew 23:37 whereby it is outlined, “Just as a mother hen protects her chicks and covers them with her wings” (Matt 23:37). This is a perfect example for leaders to follow suggesting that they should lead by example and also consider safeguarding the interests of the subordinates at all times. Evidently, Jesus loved his people to the end as outlined in John 13:1.

Conclusion

            Conclusively, using the servant leadership model, Jesus acts as a perfect leader for the Christians to emulate. For instance, Jesus used his power for the better good of his followers.  Jesus was also a passionate leader focused on ensuring that he delivered God’s will and work. As a leader, Christ focused on ensuring that the he fulfilled his intended purpose without quitting and also focused on achieving his priorities such as preaching God’s word. Through pacing, Christ also motivated his followers to achieve God’s will despite him being young when he learned about his purpose to the people.