28/01/2025
What does it mean to be a servant leader?
John 13:4-5, 14-15
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 . . . And since I, the Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you.
Philippians 2:5-9
Though he was God, he did not demand and cling to his rights as God . . . in human form he obediently humbled himself . . .
Jesus revolutionizes our understanding of leadership by teaching “downward mobility.” In a most striking picture of servanthood, Jesus humbles himself through practical obedience. By performing the task of a slave, Jesus models how far we are to go in serving one another.
Matthew 20:32
Servant leaders listen and respond to the needs of those around them.
Matthew 20:27-28
and whoever wants to be first must become your slave. For even I, the Son of Man, came here not to be served but to serve others . . .
Mark 10:43-44
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.
Luke 22:24-26
And they began to argue among themselves as to who would be the greatest in the coming Kingdom. Jesus told them, “In this world the kings and great men order their people around, and yet they are called ‘friends of the people.’ But among you, those who are the greatest should take the lowest rank, and the leader should be like a servant.”
You must learn to follow before you can learn to lead. A self-serving leader is not a leader.