On Sunday I spoke about servant leadership in the church. You can listen to the whole message here.
We looked at Mark 10:35-45 (CSB)
The Request of James and John
35 Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him. “Teacher,” they said, “we want you to do for us whatever we ask.”
36 “What do you want me to do for you?” he asked.
37 They replied, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.”
38 “You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said. “Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?”
39 “We can,” they answered.
Jesus said to them, “You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with, 40 but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared.”
41 When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John. 42 Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 43 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Talk Outline
[1] Servant leadership means facing your misunderstandings
The disciples saw leadership as:
- A badge of status that indicated their value and importance
- A badge of identity that explained “who I am”
- A badge of achievement that shows how successful I’ve been
How might we discern if we’re viewing leadership through the same type of lens as Jesus’ disciples? I’ve got three questions that you might want to ask yourself over this coming week and to see how you respond:
- What happens, on the inside, when someone else gets to sit in the seat you want to sit in? Worship team leader, new small group leader, trustee, heading up a particular ministry, etc… What happens?
- What would happen, on the inside, if someone asked you to stop serving in a role that you are currently loving serving in and you know you are good at doing?
- When was the last time you stepped aside to let someone else take a lead when you could have done so?
[2] Servant leadership means embracing Jesus’ disturbing pushback
“Jesus said to them, “you don’t know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup I drink or to be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?”
What is Jesus saying here? He’s saying “so you want front row seats in this new kingdom? If so, you need to understand that in this kingdom, it’s not always going to be shiny and apparently successful. In fact, your leader is about to drink a cup of wrath and be baptised into a despair that no one else has ever experienced. Are you sure you want to sit that close to me?”
[3] Servant leadership leads us to live a different type of leadership
“On the contrary, whoever wants to become great among you will be your servant, and whoever want to be first among you will be a slave to all.” Jesus then returns to his cup and baptism and says “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and give his life as a ransom for many.”
John Stott the late English Pastor/Theologian said:
“the authority by which the Christian leader leads is not power but love, not force but example, not coercion but reasoned persuasion. Leaders have power, but power is safe only in the hands of those who humble themselves to serve.”
6 traits or characteristics of servant leadership:
- A servant leader seeks to make much of Jesus.
- A servant leader seeks the highest joy of those whom they serve.
- A servant leader will forego their rights if it means that the gospel will shine even brighter.
- A servant leader is preoccupied with loving, listening to, cherishing and doing everything possible to ensure others within the church community thrive!
- A servant leader is not preoccupied with visibility.
- A servant leader has an inbuilt obsolescence.
