Leadership Development Plan

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Liberty University *

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Philosophy

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Feb 20, 2024

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LIBERTY UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF DIVINITY Leadership Development Plan Assignment Submitted to Dr. James Wood In partial fulfillment of the requirement for the completion of LEAD510 – D08 by Elizabeth Roh December 9, 2023

1 Introduction When attempting to define the word “leadership,” most would assume that the term is a position of authority, initiative, and influence. All levels of leadership, in general focus on a leader’s character, motives, and the agenda pursued. 1 However, when we view leadership from a biblical standpoint, we focus not on what we can bring to the table but rather on prioritizing and looking to how Jesus led His ministry here on earth. Through the perfect leadership that Jesus carried out when He was on earth, Christians can differentiate between how Jesus carried out His mission versus what modern-day culture and society would say otherwise. Not only was Jesus a perfect and sinless man, He also did not use His position of authority to demand fame and honor. He had the business of extending his lordship over the hearts of people who responded with faith and repentance to his offer of forgiveness. 2 His purpose, or motives were to bring others to Himself, so that they may be saved and have the same authority to bring others into the light. 3 The purpose of creating a leadership development plan is to practically apply the concepts and values of being a healthy Christian leader in any given environment. Although creating a leadership plan is not biblical, it is wise to spend time considering the theology, principles, methods, culture, and missional connection of a biblical leader. It is also useful since there will be specific passages and values of a Christ-like leader to always refer to when forgotten. This plan can be very effective since the Bible offers much wisdom to include in the developmental part of the plan. Everything must be backed up from Scripture because that is the ultimate contrast between a secular leader versus a biblical leader, who desires to serve and advance God’s kingdom. 1 Don N. Howell Jr., Servants of the Servant: A Biblical Theology of Leadership (Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock Publishers, 2003), 2. 2 Ibid., 2. 3 1 Peter 2:9

2 Theology of Leadership Throughout all the books of the Bible, from the beginning of time, and through the New Testament, there are a vast number of leaders that God had appointed. This is not a coincidence, as Christians view the Bible as basically a life manual, to understand more of what God desires and wills for His people. Since the Bible is meant to be a guideline for all, the different leaders of Israel throughout the Old Testament, for example, reveal the strengths and weaknesses of each servant. There is also always a key principle when we compare the different leaders in the Bible, where it cracks the code in understanding how to become a godly leader versus how easy it is to exploit a God-given leadership position. However, the main point is to show that God is our ultimate leader, whom we need to rely on and emulate so that we do not easily stray away from His words. As mentioned previously, God appointed leaders throughout all generations, starting from when He first created Adam and Eve. Although the Bible doesn’t label Adam as a “leader,” the position that was given assumes Adam as a leader, the head of the family. As mentioned in the New Testament, “For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body. Therefore, as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should in everything to their husbands.” 4 It is not a coincidence since Eve was created from Adam’s rib, and we see that before Eve was given her name, the term “woman” came to be, which means “taken out of man.” 5 Adam also had the responsibility to care for and nurture the land, including naming all the animals. 6 4 Ephesians 5:23-24, English Standard Version 5 Genesis 2:23, New International Version 6 Genesis 2:19-20, New International Version

3 When looking at the New Testament, when Jesus was actively pursuing His ministry, He got much pushback, mainly from the Pharisees because of how countercultural His teachings were. For example, we see Jesus speaking to His disciples in Mark 10, saying, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all.” 7 The Pharisees were notoriously known to be rebuked frequently by Jesus, because of their shallow religious practices. Everything they learned and knew only made them more puffed up in knowledge; the teachings and principles were never translated into their hearts and lives. Although those were the same people who crucified Jesus on the cross, that did not stop Jesus from carrying out the mission that was given to Him. Time and time again, the consistency of Jesus’s model of leadership through His beautiful and perfect character proves that there is no one like Him and no one can and will never compare to Him. Although there are other biblical leaders mentioned in the Old Testament, including John the Baptist and even the Apostle Paul, they were all brought up through Jesus, since they also desired to follow Jesus’s model of servanthood. Biblical Principles of Leadership Although there are many important biblical principles of leadership, the most important principles that need to be followed by all leaders are love and humility. The first principle of biblical leadership is love for God and love for His people. Christians understand that the greatest commandments that need to be practiced are to love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love your neighbor as you love yourself. 8 These commandments are 7 Mark 10:42-44, New International Version 8 Matthew 22:37-39, New International Version

4 backed up by the consequences of not practicing love, which are stated in 1 Corinthians 13. The Apostle Paul makes it clear that without the foundation of love, you are nothing and you cannot gain anything and everything that you do will be in vain because it is all a religious act. The love that we have for God and others naturally stirs us to serve others well. Another key principle of being an effective, Christ-like leader is to be humble. There is a difference between serving to benefit others versus serving to benefit yourself. We understand that the Bible says that we must “not look to your own interests but to the interests of others.” 9 Everything that leaders say or do must be aligned with the Christ-like desire to serve others, not to self-serve. If indeed the Christian life is costly, then the way we ought to lead and serve is also going to be difficult and uncomfortable, because serving requires sacrifice. And we see that Jesus sacrificed His life as the propitiation for the sins of humanity. The overriding biblical perspective on leadership is service, or in Greek terms, “Diakonia.” The actual word for leader in Greek, which is “hodegos” is seldom used in Scripture and never about Jesus. 10 The reason to not use the term “leader” when referring to Jesus is because this word alludes to ruling and dominating- a leadership style that Jesus strongly opposes. Therein lies the importance of having a servant- like mindset, simply because that is what God requires, and that is how Jesus approached his leadership position. Another passage to emphasize the importance of humility is when Jesus said, “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.” 11 This is a difficult concept to comprehend, even for strong, mature Christians, because we are all weak; therefore, we need the help of the Holy Spirit to continuously guide us in the right direction. 9 Philippians 2:4, New International Version 10 Knud Jørgensen. Biblical Models on Leadership: The Theology of Servant Leadership. In Equipping for Service: Christian Leadership in Church and Society (1517 Media, 2012), 24. 11 Mark 10:45, New International Version

5 Methods and Models for Biblical Leadership Because countless leaders were appointed by God throughout all generations, there are also that many leadership styles. However, the most important methods and models that all leaders should follow come from the life that Jesus lived during His short life. Jesus’s leadership style was mainly characterized by servanthood, love, and compassion. Because Jesus perfectly embodied a servant-leader, means that He also was perfectly humble. We see accounts of Satan attempting to tempt Jesus, and each of the three temptations attempted occurred when Satan led Jesus to higher ground. Satan understands that the dangerous air of exaltation deepens our thirst for the pride of life. 12 Satan points us up, yet God points us down, which sounds very countercultural, because whatever culture deems valuable, God considers worthless and perishable, and vice versa. Just as Jesus was able to overcome all temptations, we also ought to not allow the pride of life to consume our lives, especially when it comes to wanting to be faithful servants of Christ. Love is another model and method that Jesus always practiced. The term “love” seems ambiguous because people have differing opinions as to what love is and what love could be. However, through the Bible, we do not lack this understanding of love, although we will not perfectly comprehend this kind of love. The person of Jesus is a plumb line to which we may align our lives and He satisfies our hunger for a hero- someone who is both good and strong- to change this world. 13 On top of consistently loving others well, Jesus showed the ultimate act of love through death on a cross to pay the price of the sins that we should have paid for. Not only does His sacrifice allow any person to receive the gift of salvation, but we are also able to 12 Bill Robinson, Incarnate Leadership: 5 Leadership Lessons from the Life of Jesus . Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2009. Accessed December 7, 2023. ProQuest Ebook Central, 21. 13 Paul E. Miller, Love Walked among Us: Learning to Love Like Jesus . Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress Publishing Group, 2014. Accessed December 8, 2023. ProQuest Ebook Central, 11.

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