We are beginning a process of electing a new Elder in our congregation. And this is significant, because Elders are important leaders in a Christian congregation.
To help you as you think and pray about nominations for this, and to also help you more broadly on the topic of Christian leadership – I want us to focus in this morning on “The Kind of Leaders Jesus is Looking For.”
Our Focus Text – Mark 10:42-45
“And Jesus called them to him and said to them, ‘You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.’”
Now in this passage Jesus lays out . . .
Two distinct patterns of leadership
. . . two different understandings of authority and power. We have a contrast between:
- how the world works on the one hand and
- how Jesus and his community is to work on the other hand:
I want to point out three contrasting differences between the world and Jesus that we find in these verses:
First, according to the way of the world, leadership is about raising yourself up. In the story just before our text, James and John asked to be seated at the right and left hand of Jesus in his kingdom. They were looking to be above the other disciples and indeed everyone else (Mark 10:35-41). They had ambition. They wanted to be over other people; to have power and authority and control over others. They had a worldly view of things. So this is what causes Jesus to respond with some teaching on Christian leadership.
The worldly pattern shows up in the language Jesus uses – “rulers” and “great ones” – v. 42. These are those who are at the top of the heap in the world, with power and control, with everyone else below them.
This worldly pattern also shows up in the language Jesus uses of “lording it over” and “exercising authority over” – v. 42. The emphasis here is on being over others. You raise yourself up over others.
In contrast to this, according to the way of Jesus, leadership is about lowering yourself below others. This comes out clearly when Jesus talks about being a “servant” and “a slave” – vs. 43-44. To be a slave is to be below others, at the bottom of the heap. Even though you have authority and power, it is seen in a different light from below.
Second, according to the way of the world, the focus of leadership is on yourself; your own self interests. Oh there may be lots of talk about the good of the country or the community or the company. But ultimately in this pattern, leadership, having power and authority, has to do with what you can get out of it. It’s about you being in charge, about you getting recognition, about getting your needs met.
Jesus sums up the worldly pattern nicely in v. 45 under the phrase – “to be served” by others. Worldly leaders use power and authority to be served by others. The focus is on them.
In contrast to this, according to the way of Jesus, the focus of leadership is on others; the needs of others.
You are a servant, a slave of others. And a slave focuses on meeting the needs of other people, not themselves. And so here, leadership has to do with what you can give to others.
Jesus sums up this kind of leadership in v. 45 when he talks about the need “to serve” others. Its not about being served, but about serving. The focus is on others.
Third, according to the way of the world, you use your power to continue to raise yourself up and meet your desires. Again the language Jesus uses is important:
- To “lord it over” is to dominate others – v. 42.
- To “exercise authority over” or as some translations say, to be “tyrants over” is to use power to get your way – v. 42.
Depending on the person this can include manipulation, coercion, force, threats and worse.
In contrast to this, according to the way of Jesus, you use your power to empower others and to meet their needs. A slave harnesses his/her power and skills for someone else’s benefit – v. 43-44. And as Jesus says, this includes self-sacrifice for others – v. 45.
If worldly leaders ask others to lay down their lives for them so that they can be lifted up, Christian leaders lay down their lives for others in order to lift them up and help them.
So these are three contrasts which help us to have a Christian understanding of leadership and authority. And Jesus embodied this kind of leadership as we see in – v. 45:
- He “came” – he lowered himself to come to us.
- He came “not to be served, but to serve” – the focus is on others.
- He “gave himself as a ransom for many” – he sacrificed himself that we might be whole. He used his power for our benefit, to lift us up and to set us free.
Now I want us to look even more closely at our text and see more specifically the contrast Jesus is making between –
Rulers and Great Ones vs. Elders and Deacons
What I want to say here is that, in this passage, Jesus is alluding to Elders and Deacons, the chief leaders in his community.This can be seen in the structure of the text, which is an inverted outline:
A. Rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them
B. Their great ones (or benefactors – Luke 22:25) exercise authority over them
C. But it shall not be so among you
`B. Whoever would be great must be your servant
`A. Whoever would be first among you must be slave of all
In this inverted outline, in A – ‘A , Jesus compares Rulers or kings with the “first” among his community, which would be the Elders. So there is a comparison between the world’s top leaders and the top leaders of Jesus’ community.
In B – ‘B, he also compares “great ones” or benefactors to those who are great in his community, whom he calls “servants” – which means literally “Deacons.” So there is word play going on here.
Now, these benefactors were significant, wealthy people who gave out resources to help people, but with strings attached for self-serving reasons. To promote their own rise to power.
So there is a comparison between these important worldly patrons who give out resources and Deacons in the church who give out resources to help others.
And in both cases, the pivot point in the middle – C, makes the point to Elders and Deacons: don’t be like the world, be like me.
The rulers of the Gentiles embody the worldly pattern. They seek to be on top, “to be served” and to use their power for this. They lord it over others, pushing others down in order to get themselves to the top and to meet their needs.
Jesus is specifically teaching that Elders are not to do this. They are to lower themselves, “to serve” and to use their power for this.
Mark 10 is alluded to in 1 Peter 5:2-3 talking about Elders. It says, “Shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock.” This last part is a reference to the teaching of Jesus. Elders, don’t lord it over others.
The great ones also embody the worldly pattern. They seek to be on top, “to be served” and to use their power and wealth to do this. They give out resources, but use this to exalt themselves, not really to help others.
Jesus is specifically teaching that Deacons are not to do this. They are to lower themselves, “to serve,” and to use their power for this. Not giving and receiving favors to promote themselves, but truly helping others.
[If it is true that the “young” ones of I Peter 5:5 refer to Deacons (it is the same root word that comes from Luke 22:26 “the youngest” which is an alternate wording for our teaching in Mark 10:42-45 – “servant”) then I Peter 5 not only talks about Elders from this teaching from Jesus, he also talks about Deacons from this teaching.]
Finally this morning, even though there is an allusion to the roles of Elders and Deacons in this teaching in Mark 10, the principles Jesus gives applies to . . .
Christians in any position of leadership
This certainly applies to other leadership positions in the church. It applies to any role of leadership you have in your family as husband or parent. And it applies to any other role of leadership you might have in the world – business, work, school or other social groups.
And so there is a word from Jesus for all of us – put his teaching and example on leadership into practice.
- Let us not exalt ourselves, serve our own needs and lord it over others.
- Rather, let us lower ourselves, serve others and give of ourselves to lift others up.
So I hope this teaching is helpful to you as you think about our upcoming Elder election, but also for you to put into practice these principles in any position of leadership you might find yourself in. Be yourself the kind of leader that Jesus is looking for.
William Higgins
Christian teaching 