Jesus did this so well. He was missionally minded and understood his time on earth was for a purpose. He stewarded His mission to completion and didn’t let anything get in the way.
“Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more…” – Luke 12:48
Leading like Jesus means seeing leadership as a stewardship.
9. Lead Like Jesus – He modeled curiosity.
Jesus was the king of asking questions. Sure, many of his questions were intended to make a point (see most of his interactions with the Pharisees). In a way, that is a point for us to mimic.
Asking great questions not only positions us to learn, but it places the receiver of the question in a position to think more deeply. You’ve heard it said over and over that great leaders ask great questions. This is true because great questions help leaders learn more and help followers think more.
Leading like Jesus means asking more questions and giving fewer directives. In the end, the results may be equal, but the process through questions gains more buy-in and generates more insight.
10. Jesus encouraged the heart.
Jesus was never concerned with behavior modification over heart transformation. Again, just look at his interactions.
Take Zacchaeus, for example. You can read the full story in Luke 19:1-10. Zaccheaus was a hated tax collector. When Jesus stopped in front of him, with a crowd watching and waiting for a chastising of biblical proportions, Jesus instead spoke to his heart. Zaccheaus’ behavior certainly needed to change, but that change began with his heart.
To lead like Jesus means leaning toward people’s hearts more than their heads. Christ-like leaders will need to change behaviors, but behavior modification (what) never elevates above heart transformation (why).
In Summary … Humility
There is a common thread throughout these individual leadership lessons: HUMILITY.
In humility, Jesus thought of others more than himself. In humility, Jesus opted to speak the truth in love, serve others, ask questions, display immense compassion, model curiosity, and encourage the heart. In everything Jesus did, humility was at the forefront.
Christ-like leaders are humble leaders.
Humility is lost in too many leadership circles these days. We rarely see it, so we struggle to model it. In a world full of power and platform-hungry people, humility is the answer to better leadership. And the answer to more Christ-likeness.
Humble leaders don’t think less of themselves but think of themselves less. Humility means others first. That is Jesus in summary. And, to be a Christ-like leader, we must become more humble.
Which means we resist pride. We confront anything that promotes us over others. We refuse to seek personal power over our greater purpose. We admit our mistakes. We ask for forgiveness. We are honest about our shortcomings and surround ourselves with complementary leaders.
If you want to lead like Jesus, lead from a place of humility. It’s not simplistic, but it is that simple.
This article on how to lead like Jesus originally appeared here, and is used by permission.
