THE SERVANT OF ALL
Near the main entrance to the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas, hangs an unusual portrait of a man who, oddly enough, had nothing at all to do with that infamous battle in Texas. The portrait is actually of the nephew of one of its heroic defenders. A puzzling inscription below the painting reads as follows: “James Butler Bonham--no picture of him exists. This portrait is of his nephew, Major James Bonham, who greatly resembled his uncle. It is placed here by the family, that people may know the appearance of the man who died for their freedom. (Morgan)” What a great illustration of what Christians around the world should be; those who did not die on the cross of Calvary themselves, but are rather a true likeness of the Son of God, who did die for the freedom of all men in their place.
What did Jesus look like? Did he have a dark or a light skin complexion? Was He tall or short? We assume that He would resemble the other people in His 1st century Jewish heritage, but the Bible is almost completely silent on this subject, except that, “…He has no form or comeliness; And when we see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him. (NKJV Isa 53:2)” Regardless, it would seem that, since there are no original statues or paintings of Christ remaining, the heavenly Father did not intend for us, or need us to know what He looked like in His outward appearance. However, much is said in the New and Old Testament about what his inner character and nature looked like. So much so in fact, that He is held as the literal standard of what our inner character and nature should resemble, as Christians. Indeed, since our inner nature has been changed, and as the name implies, we are called to be, “Christ-like”!
In the same way, Christian leaders within the church should more closely resemble the servant-hearted leadership style that Jesus, for all intents and purposes, developed and implemented for the first time in human history. For thousands of years, prior to and following the life of Christ, “…those who are considered rulers over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great one’s exercise authority over them.” But Jesus was adamant about the fact that, “…it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant. And whoever of you desires to be first shall be slave of all. (Mark 10:42-44)”
This and many other verses like it, form the blueprint for this revolutionary form of leadership, that is only just now becoming somewhat accepted within the corporate world today. However, those who do not have the advantage of the Spirit of Christ living within them, find this to be an increasingly difficult task, as people gradually revert back to their carnal natures by default. Seminar speakers who advocate for the Servant Leadership model, acknowledge this challenge saying, “It is very hard to paste the behaviors of Servant Leadership on to, a hard heart or a fragile ego. You have to learn how to grow the interior of your life as leaders as well. (Stahl-Wert)” Steven Crane, speaking at a Christian Servant-Leadership Conference, and sounding eerily like the late JFK, told Christian leaders that they needed, "...to be less concerned about what you get out of it, and more concerned with what you should put into it. It’s not about what you want, it’s about what Christ wants. Be less concerned about your rights, and more concerned with your responsibilities. (Crane)”
For many of us, I think the idea of being a servant leader, conjures up all kinds of images of sacrifice, pain, and suffering, which makes us shy away from surrendering ourselves to that level of dedication. We wish we could see ahead of time, what exactly will be required of us, and how much we will suffer, prior to us signing on to the leadership role in question. We are so worried about how it is going to affect us, how it will make us look in front of others, and what is ultimately in it for us in the long run; what we will get out of it? There is no reason to think that if we had all of this knowledge ahead of time, it would make the decision to follow any easier. In fact, “…the example of Jesus in Gethsemane shows us that it would create even more angst in us. The more we know, the deeper we go into the mind of God until we lose our way in his ways... That is why in the end, Job just shut up! (Hull 1782)” That is a pretty good suggestion for us as Christian leaders; Just shut up and learn to follow, learn to serve sacrificially, learn to be humble, learn to lay down your life for others, and learn to do all of this, while not complaining or drawing attention to yourself in the process!
The greatest requirement of the servant-hearted leader is by far, humility! Someone once asked the question, “How can you tell if you have a servant attitude?” Answer: “By the way you react when you are treated like one”. This is a brilliant understanding of human nature. We all like to appear as humble creatures who are blessed to serve our fellow man, but as soon as we are treated like a servant, a slave, a doulos; the gloves come off and we are offended. Obviously, the inner transformation has not taken place yet, and we are only pretending to be humble for the sake of looking spiritual. It is this principle of inner servant-hood that we need to exert the most effort in lives usually. Like everything else in life, we need to make the choice to crucify our flesh even more thoroughly, and allow God to change us inwardly before any true and lasting outward changes can be made.
A servant must learn, as Jesus knew so well that, "Humility is something you choose; it is not something you try… [it] is a matter of personal choice. If you are humble, it is because you have decided that you will be humble. If you are not, it is because you have not decided to be humble. (Hull 1365)” In the light of eternity, "James Butler Bonham", is a nobody, and his nephew, Major James Bonham, is even more of a nobody, because he didn't even fight at the Alamo! Face it, we are all nobodies, and how strange it is to realize, that as Christians, our only true significance in this world, is determined by the degree to which we have decided to follow Jesus, by loosing our own identity, and becoming conformed into the image of Christ Himself who, "...did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many. (Mat 20:28)"
A servant must learn, as Jesus knew so well that, "Humility is something you choose; it is not something you try… [it] is a matter of personal choice. If you are humble, it is because you have decided that you will be humble. If you are not, it is because you have not decided to be humble. (Hull 1365)” In the light of eternity, "James Butler Bonham", is a nobody, and his nephew, Major James Bonham, is even more of a nobody, because he didn't even fight at the Alamo! Face it, we are all nobodies, and how strange it is to realize, that as Christians, our only true significance in this world, is determined by the degree to which we have decided to follow Jesus, by loosing our own identity, and becoming conformed into the image of Christ Himself who, "...did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many. (Mat 20:28)"
By Pastor Glen Mustian
Works Cited:
Crane, Stephen. Christian Servant-Leadership Conference. Web. April 3, 2017.
Hull, Bill. The Christian Leader. Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
Morgan, Bill. Christlikeness. Web. April 3, 2017.
New King James Version. The Holy Bible. Thomas Nelson Publishing. Nashville, TN. Print. 2002.
