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DAVID'S EMAIL BIBLE STUDY:
Servant LEADERSHIP
A. BACKGROUND... Four weeks 'till we elect leaders who will govern us, locally and nationally. With "leadership" on our minds we have looked to the Bible for qualities and characteristics exhibited by good leaders. By and large, they approached their work with humility and reluctance that morphed into focus and determination. In each instance they developed clarity of purpose built on the belief that God needed them to lead.
C. SUMMARY ... Jesus gathers his disciples for the LAST SUPPER before he is arrested and crucified. To their shock the gets down on his hands and knees and washes their feet, a task usually done by a servant. Peter protests, as if it is beneath Jesus' dignity. Jesus tells them that he expects them to follow his example of humble service. In Matthew 7:12 we hear the famous GOLDEN RULE, to "do unto others as you would have them do unto you." This comes from Jesus' "Sermon on the Mount" where he lays out the life he wants his followers to lead. Note that phrase, "followers to lead". As St. Paul says (Romans 6:22), we are all followers, slaves, servants of something. Addiction, money, a political leader, career, family, God. The key is what or whom we choose to follow. That will determine what kind of leader we are.
D.
KEY POINTS:
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SERVANT leadership. Good leaders serve others (clients, customers, citizens, patients, employees). Bad leaders are in it for themselves. Jesus says bluntly to his disciples, "I have set you an example" by literally humbling himself and serving them. Yet, he declares, "I am your Lord and your teacher (Rabbi)," two terms of superiority, leadership. He's not denying his role or their leader. But he offers a stunning change from the norm of leadership. Throughout history leadership has been about power, dominance, and control. Jesus' approach has been rightly called "the Upside Down Kingdom", a new paradigm of leading by putting others first.
2. The GOLDEN RULE is one of the rare "universal truths" on which the world (mostly) agrees. It makes sense; it is simple, ethical, and doable. Treat others, talk about others, do unto others AS you want to be treated, talked about, done unto. Jesus expands on this Golden Rule, reminding us in The Lord's Prayer to ask God to "forgive us our debts/trespasses AS we forgive our debtors". In other words, for all of us there comes a time when we need something (help, grace, forgiveness, patience, a second chance), so we should act NOW the way we hope others (including God) will act LATER.
3. The FUTURE. So often elections refer to our children our future, etc. Jesus' "servant leadership" and "Golden Rule" are both investments in the future, expecting a good return. The better we are now, the better the future will be. Christianity, "the followers of Christ", has gone off the tracks whenever they/we have chosen domination over servant hood.
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