The emerging leadership in the church

Since the days of Jesus, we have wrestled with a different kind of leadership. In the kingdom of God, leadership is vastly different than in the world. Jesus had the following to say about leadership. (from Mark 10)

But among you it should be quite different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be the slave of all. For even I, the Son of Man, came here not to be served but to serve others, and to give my life as a ransom for many."

As God begins to restore the church to the Biblical patterns, a new (for us) kind of leadership will emerge. Leaders will no longer work at building their own kingdom. Instead they will work toward building God's kingdom. In so doing, they will follow Jesus' example. Jesus never demanded a position or privilege. Look at His example in the midst of the disciples arguing about who was the greatest among them:

Jesus knew that the Father had given him authority over everything and that he had come from God and would return to God. So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, and poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel he had around him.

Jesus was fully aware of His authority, of His relationship to the Father. Yet instead of demanding that He be honored by having His feet washed, He took the position of a servant, choosing to be the one supporting the disciples. Jesus never demanded that His disciples submit to His authority and position.

Even today, Jesus' power and authority is not for His benefit. He exercises that authority for our benefit. Paul, in His letter to the Ephesians, makes note of this:

And God has put all things under the authority of Christ, and he gave him this authority for the benefit of the church.

In the past, leaders in the church have far too frequently acted more like the world than like Jesus. They have demanded submission. They have protected their position. Some tasks are seen as too menial for leaders. Many times, the people have existed to serve the leader and his/her vision.

The role of leadership in the kingdom of God is to facilitate the building of the kingdom of God. Jesus rebuked the Pharisees for not allowing people to enter the kingdom of God. As I leader I must be careful to not hinder people from engaging with God. I don't think leaders consciously hinder people, however over the years I have consistently observed it happening. When a church member comes to a leader and expresses a desire to follow Jesus into a new venture, all too frequently the leader squashes the initiative because the person is needed in the leader's sphere. Instead of exploring what God may be doing and how His kingdom may be expanded by this new venture, the leader simply assumes that this idea cannot be from God because it doesn't fit with the building of his/her personal kingdom.

There is a new (or old, depends on how you look at it) kind of leadership emerging. Leaders will facilitate the expansion of God's kingdom by blessing and releasing people into the dreams they may have. Leaders will use their anointing to call people into a deeper walk with God, instead of using their anointing to self-fulfill their own desires for their own kingdom. Authority will be used to benefit those being led. Since the kingdom of God is within people, leaders will recognize the movement of God's Spirit in the hearts of those they lead. They will freely choose to wash feet, serving those they lead in whatever way is best for those being led. As a result, the kingdom of God will grow exponentially.