Do we still need leaders?

[Part 1]
Over the past number of years I have heard many arguments against leadership in Christian groups. Shall we account it to liberalism? Perhaps progressive thoughts? Or is it to be expected in post-modern Christianity? I hope this does not come as too much of a shock, but personally I think it is absurd, and hopefully many others will agree with me. But I will probably not be able to convince you, will I? Thus let us turn to the source of all wisdom and knowledge, the Bible: Let every soul be in subjection to the higher authorities, for there is no authority except from God, and those who exist are ordained by God. (Romans 13:1 WEB) Now dont seek for loopholes. Lets face it: God is a leader. He is THE leader. Even Jesus was not prepared to do anything before He heard from His Father. Is Jesus a leader? Again, lets go to the Bible: These will war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings. They also will overcome who are with him, called and chosen and faithful." (Revelations 17:14 WEB) [Emphasis by author] AND this is what it says about the Holy Spirit: However when he, the Spirit of truth, has come, he will guide you into all truth, for he will not speak from himself; but whatever he hears, he will speak. He will declare to you things that are coming. (John 16:13 WEB) [Emphasis by author] There you are: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, leaders, all of them. God is THE LEADER. You cannot be in love with God without accepting Him as your leader. Now, do we need leaders? If we want to serve God, the answer is yes. More than that, WE ARE DESTINED TO WORSHIP THE HIGHEST LEADER! Now understand this: I did not write this to disturb you. I simply did so for the sake of Biblical perspective. But should Christians be discussing this at all? Is leadership supposed to be an issue in Christianity? I believe not. Why then do Christians have a problem with leadership? I believe the problem that some Christian people are having regarding leadership is NOT about leadership, but about exposure that they have had to people filling the positions. Most people that I spoke to who had problems with leadership, had problems with the people not with the position.

Let us now look at a few basic problems concerning leadership. [Or rather the people filling leadership positions.] The following are a few generic problems that I have encountered among Christian leaders, and which had negative effects on their followers. Obviously this is not a comprehensive list, but only a few examples.

Leaders without destination

From my experience it seems to me that the leaders that cause the most problems are leaders that lack direction. Leadership as such is of no use if it does not have a following, and a destination. [van Vuuren 2004] Most followers who have problems with leaders, [that I came across] had leaders who were not pursuing a destination. [In some cases it appeared as though the leaders had no specific vision, let alone a destiny.] How do you follow a person who is not going anywhere? This is not only a problem. This is also a problem causer. What happens when a leader is not going anywhere? Think about a blindfolded person leading a group of followers. Leaders without destination are about just as ineffective. They get all worked up at the sound of anything that comes by, and when things do not work out well, they blame the followers for not sharing their vision. But what vision, you may ask? If the leader had a vision in the first place, he/she would have pursued a destiny.

Leaders that refuse to follow

You cannot be a leader if you cannot be a follower. Jesus main concern was the will of His Father. There is no text in the Bible to imply that Jesus ever did His own thing. Jesus followed the Father in the perfect sense. Jesus therefore answered them, "Most certainly, I tell you, the Son can do nothing of himself, but what he sees the Father doing. For whatever things he does, these the Son also does likewise. (John 5:19 WEB) I can of myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is righteous; because I don't seek my own will, but the will of my Father who sent me. (John 5:30 WEB)

Jesus therefore said to them, "When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, and I do nothing of myself, but as my Father taught me, I say these things. (John 8:28 WEB) Are these the words of a person doing His own thing? This is definitely not the case. These are the words of a perfect follower. Jesus, [our perfect example of Gods will], followed the Father in the absolute sense. Jesus main concern was for His Fathers will. Similarly, we as disciples of Jesus should be doing our best to find and pursue the will of the Father in Jesus. Also, a Christian leader should [as Jesus] be leading by example. What was characteristic of Jesus leadership style? Was He ever rebelling against the Father? [As were the case with some leaders I have known who were often rebelling against authority.] No, Jesus never rebelled. In fact Jesus went out of His way to please the Father. It was His primary objective. He followed the Fathers will up to the point of His death on the cross, and is still doing so. In this as in every other sense, Jesus lead by example, not only demonstrating the truth, but also explaining it in detail.

Leaders Putting Too Much Emphasis On Their Own Needs And Wants
Have you ever made a study of the amount of time that Jesus spent taking up tithes and offerings during His public performances? Have you checked for the number of times that He declared: This is what I want; or I want you to; or Lets do what I want first. Next to observing and pursuing His Fathers will, Jesus was actively caring for the followers, caring for their needs, doing His best to assist them and provide for them. An example of this is Matthew 9:36: But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion for them, because they were harassed and scattered, like sheep without a shepherd. (Matthew 9:36 WEB) This was typical of Jesus Leadership style. Next to pursuing the Fathers will, Jesus was more concerned with the needs of His followers, [meaning not only His disciples, but also the crowds], than with His own needs. In fact, it is safe to say that Jesus placed more emphasis on His followers than on His personal needs. Although Jesus was [and still is] the Son of the most high God, He never focussed his ministry upon His own needs, but rather on the needs of His followers. [Third problem]

Leaders Losing Perspective, Or Balance In Their Leadership

Jesus had a distinct balance between His Leader [Father God], His objectives and His followers. From when time began, it was Gods intention that all leadership should be leading according to His plan. Leaders were supposed to walk in the footsteps of God. Leaders, leadership, and leadership roles form an irremovable part in the history of mankind. Whenever a leader did the will of God, and led His people according to Gods purpose, God blessed him and his followers. Whenever the leader went wrong, a curse befell him and his followers. Of course, the followers can go astray, even if the leader did all he could. Even today, after Jesus paid such a great price for the salvation of mankind, people still purposefully and decisively turn their backs on God. However, this is not because of any fault or deficiency on His side. Let it never be said that God the Father, or Jesus Christ was responsible for even one lost soul. Scriptures such as John 1 verse 12, John 3 verse 16 and many others define Gods position towards mankind. Do we need Leaders? The Bible clearly says YES! [Please also read part 2 of this topic for the rest of this article.]
Dr Gerrit van Vuuren [Ph.D.] is Principal of the Shepherd Leadership Institute. Although he grew up in a sanctified Christian family [where both his parents served God with all of their hearts], he came to the realisation that he was in need of a Saviour at the age of 30. The result of a radical conversion was a radical calling, and a radical ministry. Dr Gerrit has a calling to teach the body of Christ to understand and apply the leadership style of Jesus Christ. For more information, e-mail him at gerrit@shepher.za.org