Christian leadership - An interview with Kate Turkington on Radio 702 / Cape Talk Radio

Yesterday I was phoned by the producer of Kate Turkington's radio program on Radio 702 / Cape Talk Radio to ask if I would be willing to do an interview on her show on some of the characters and characteristics of Christian Leadership.  You may stumble upon this page today, or in the months that follow.  Please feel free to add your own thoughts, insights and convictions in the comments below! I'd love to hear from you!

What is certain is that there are a wealth of resources on what it means to be a Christian and a Leader.  I have chosen a few points that are important to me - some of them were written up in my most recent book 'Transform your work life:  Turn your ordinary day into an extraordinary calling' (with particular reference to one of the great Christian leaders in contemporary South Africa, Graham Power of the Power Group, Global Day of Prayer and Unashamedly Ethical).

So, here are a few pointers:

An unwavering commitment to the person of Jesus and the ways of Jesus.

If one declares one's self to be a Christian in leadership he or she should naturally display a clear devotion to the person of Jesus Christ, and the ways of Jesus. I would suggest that a Christian leader should bear some resemblance to the character of Jesus (Phil 2:1-5 and Gal 5.21-23).  Moreover, a Christian leader should seek to devote his or her life to doing the kinds of things that Jesus came to do (to establish God's Kingdom of justice, mercy, grace, equality, provision and wholeness - c.f. Lk 4:33 and Lk 4:19ff).

A Christian leader should display integrity and courage.

All of the great leaders of the Bible (among whom I would count Jesus, David, Joseph, Moses and a host of others such as Esther) displayed great integrity and courage.

Let's talk about courage first - it was Christ's courage that cost his life.  It was Moses' courage that highlighted one of the central themes of the Bible (God's emphasis upon social justice), he set a nation free and courageously led them through very trying conditions in the desert.  David faced Goliath and many other enemies in his lifetime.  Esther won over a foreign King and saved her people.

Integrity is another hallmark of a great Christian leader.  The Bible is clear that we should not say 'yes, yes' with one breath and 'no, no' with the next (Matt 5.37 and 2 Cor 1.17).  Jospeh showed incredible integrity in not giving in to the seduction of Potiphar's wife. He was not swayed by the might of the King, and eventually he went on to save many nations - even his own brothers who had sold him into slavery. Of course David made a number of indiscretions in his life and faced grave consequences for that!

A Christian leader should seek to be a servant of God's will and the needs of the people.

One of the most shameful characteristics of contemporary leadership is that it is selfish and self fulfilling.  It is all about the leader.  However, the real reason for leadership is to serve a greater cause.  Christian leaders are called to live like Jesus did, as servant leaders (see Luke 9.46-50; 22.24-30; Mark 9.33-37; 10.35-45; Matt. 20.20-28).  Of course Jesus himself was a leader who recognized that his life should be lived for others - he served the will of his Father first and foremost, and sought to uplift others and bring out the very best in them (John 13.1-7).

In our time I have seen a few people like this.  Bishop Desmond Tutu was willing to sacrifice himself for what he believed God wanted for the nation of South Africa.  He would place himself in difficult situations, facing powerful groups and people, and even placing himself between waring groups, for the sake of peace and transformation.  His servanthood and sincere love for others won them over, changed first their hearts and then their minds, and later won the day!  

Nelson Mandela is another man who has done this in our nation. After all that he had been through in his lifetime he would have been justified (socially) if he was filled with revenge.  Yet, he held the needs of the nation as higher than his own.  He exemplified forgiveness and reconciliation and inspired others to do the same.

A Christian leader should be skillful, self controlled and humble.

The leaders of the Bible were all equipped for the tasks they were to take up.  Some received divine empowerment, others were trained in courts or under Godly mentors.  Some had previous life's experience that they could apply to their new tasks.

A person who is skilled and secure in what they are to do will have a powerful personal life.  They will be resolute and secure, not pandering to the needs of others, or selfish ambition and vein conceit (Phil 2:5).  I'm afraid that there are many leaders who have dismal private lives, and it shows clearly in their public life!

A Christian leader should do all that she or he can to lead first within their home, displaying the deepest and most sincere character traits in those relationships, and then from that strong base to lead in the broader community.

Some of the greatest weaknesses that we see in leaders who make mistakes in the Bible (David, Saul, Judas) etc., are mistakes that result from a lack of self-control, a lack of humility, and personal ambition and desire.  Christian leaders should have the needs of the people and the will of God as their primary motivation.

Finally, on my list, I believe Christian leaders should live by faith.

It takes faith to achieve great things for God and God's people!  A Christian leader will require faith in God's ability and God's sovereign Power and Will.  Many leaders in the Bible (Joseph and Moses, even Paul) had to rely on God to do things that seemed impossible!  Their faith in God, which arises out a deeply intimate relationship with God in Christ, gave them both courage and sustanance for the journey of leadership.

Well, that's my list for now!  I hope to be able to record the show this evening and put a copy up here after the fact.

Please fee free to add your thoughts, ideas and insights in the comments below!  I'd love to hear from you.

Comments

[Thomas]

Hello Dion,

I listened to the interview, and I thought you spoke very well.

I myself have a Master’s degree in Christian leadership, through FTS and SATS.

Your first caller rather stridently said that he wished to “dispute” what you were saying. You responded by arguing that you really were saying the same thing.

Here’s how I read it. You were arguing that humanity is morally corrupt. The caller was arguing that humanity is spiritually corrupt – with a definition of the same that he very briefly stated. And surely those two necessarily coincide. At the same time, when one thinks on the ways that one would respond to this or the other of these interpretations, the responses could be quite different.

Prof. Martha Stortz of Graduate Theological Union draws a distinction between “Jesus” and “Christ” in Christian ethics – or Jesus the model versus Christ the Object of faith. And she notes: “The demands of an ethic of imitation promise burnout...” In keeping with this – the link is my interpretation – there is up to 95% dropout from Christian leadership where there is a strong correlation between Christian leadership and Jesus the model.

That takes me to a second point, namely your section on faith (above). It is encouraging to see it there, as surprisingly few Christian leadership theorists give it any such recognition, and it has to be important.

There are several significant defintions of faith in the Christian leadership literature. which more or less equate to the following options: faith as values, faith as vision, faith as world-view, and let’s call it faith as relationship – what Don Fleming refers to as “trust in, or dependence on, God and his works”. Your usage of the word faith seems to straddle faith in vision (call it faith in outcomes) and faith as relationship.

This again tends to correlate with “Jesus” and “Christ” in ethics.

It would be interesting to have some explication.

Kind regards,
Thomas Scarborough.