Book Review: Jesus on Leadership (Essay Sample)

Book Review: Jesus on Leadership by Gene Wilkes and Lead Like Jesus by Gene Wilkes and by Ken Blanchard, Phil Hodges and Phyllis Hendry
Name
Institution
Introduction
It is human nature to desire and pursue personal gratification; an instinctive and natural habit that philosophers characterize as the pleasure principle. It seeks to maximize pleasure and minimize pain. I got thinking about this idea after reading Gene Wilkes’s Jesus on Leadership: Timeless Wisdom on Servant Leadership (1998) and Lead Like Jesus: Lessons from the Greatest Leadership Role Model of All Time by Ken Blanchard, Phil Hodges and Phyllis Hendry (2016). The two books explore a similar theme about leadership; both argue that the best model of leadership is servant leadership, which is characterized by commitment to serve others rather than to be served. This approach to leadership is a stark contrast to what we are used to in today’s materialistic society. For many, especially in the civil service and in politics, servant leadership is an alien concept. People seek leadership not to serve others or make a positive difference in society, but as a means to achieve self interests such as social status and recognition, wealth, power, and influence. Self-seeking is in fact the common denominator across the public civil service and the corporate sector. At work, senior employees want to be recognized through symbolic gestures such as formal titles, personal office spaces and secretaries, authority over junior employees, and all the perks and privileges that come with their position. They are infected with the big man syndrome, which motivates people in leadership positions to demand better treatment that others. These were the kind of leaders that Jesus was talking about when he cautioned his disciples against the imitating leaders of the Gentiles, “who lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them” (Mark 10:43-44). The two books provide a leadership framework that seeks to create leaders who are committed to serve and benefit others through their leadership, as opposed to the achieving personal interests.
PART ONE
The central argument in the two books is that leadership is a calling, and not a choice that people make in the same way they choose careers. Leaders who acknowledge this fact always seek spiritual formation to give them a clear vision of their mission and the motivation to pursue that vision. I aspire to work with my church as a youth leader, and the lessons from these books provide valuable insights on the kind of leadership that I should aim to adopt- servant leadership.
The starting point for any leader, therefore, is to have a mission by articulating what one wants to achieve through their leadership. Through his teachings, Jesus provided three examples of missions that can guide leaders. While preaching in His hometown synagogue, he read a passage from Isaiah 61:1-2 a passage that read: “The spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor.” This passage demonstrates Jesus’ recognition of his mission on earth (proclaiming the good news of salvation to the world’s inhabitants) and by whose authority he was carrying out that mission (God). This is the hallmark of a servant leader; he or she acknowledges that the position one occupies is given and not earned, and that their mission is to fulfill the will of those being served (Wilkes, 1998). Likewise, worldly leaders, whether in the church or in the civil service, should define their leadership by recognizing the source of their authority-the followers they lead- and why they were given that authority- to serve the needs of the followers. Sadly, people in leadership positions are often persuade themselves that their positions were earned either through their academic qualifications or popular election. This reasoning leads many to feel that they are entitled to their positions and should enjoy the privileges that come with the positions.
There is a danger in adopting this attitude among leaders. The first and obvious one is that it directs them away from servant leadership and towards a self-seeking leadership style, which in turn alienates leaders from their mission. As Wilkes observes in Jesus on Leadership, a leader must not only have a mission, but also have the passion to pursue that mission (Wilkes, 1998, p. 19). Leaders lose their sense of mission when they get distracted by personal interests and the entrapments of material pursuits. The second danger of feeling entitled to positions of authority is that it encourages pride. Jesus taught his disciples to be humble in their quest to lead. He told them that whoever wants to lead must humble himself by becoming a servant to his followers. This idea would make leadership unappealing to those who seek leadership so as to be recognized and influential. Our secular institutions are filled with such people as exemplified by leader’s obsession with protocol and the chain of command. For instance, it is unheard of for a head of state to invite a lesser being to deliver a speech. The big man speaks last, and he is the one who is invited with exalting titles such as “his excellence, honorable,” etc. Jesus himself never demanded recognition, but tried to direct attention away from himself. This is evident from several instances in the bible where he healed people and told them to tell no one about it. In contrast, secular leaders desire recognition and praise for their achievements. The pride that comes with the desire for recognition prevents one from offering servant and people-focused leadership because it transforms the mission into what leadership can achieve for them, rather than what it can achieve for their followers.
The act of washing the disciple’s feet was a symbolic gesture through which Jesus intended to teach his disciples about humility and servant leadership. By washing their feet, Jesus demonstrated the responsibilities that awaited anyone who wanted to be a leader. He showed them that leadership is about leaving the head table to serve others. Jesus says in Mark 10:45, “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.” This means that becoming a servant leader is sacrificing personal interests for the sake of the mission. It also means getting down from the high perch of the head table to mingle and work among the lowly. Gene Wilkes states that many leaders are blinded by the high-table mentality which makes them to believe that their position is one of privilege and entitlement. Consequently, leaders expect to be treated well and respected by their juniors and followers, thereby missing the opportunity to understand their true mission and calling into leadership.
Blanchard, Hodges and Hendry extend the ideas of Wilkes about servant leadership in their book Lead Like Jesus. The authors advise readers that in everything they do, “whether in word or deed,” to do it all “in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (Blanchard, Hodges & Hendry, 2016, p. 24). Like Wilkes, they caution against the “about me” approach to leadership. People are attracted to leadership positions by the promise of monetary rewards, power, recognition, and other benefits that their positions entail. Instead, they advise, leaders should be inspired by loving care, self-sacrifice, openness and mutual respect when seeking high office. The authors identify four beliefs that form the basis of leadership. First, leadership is a means of influencing the thinking and development of others. This means that leaders should aim to have a positive impact in the lives of others. Second, Jesus is the role model of good leadership. Accordingly, leaders should draw from the example set by Jesus to shape their leadership style. Third, servant leadership is the model of leadership that Jesus asked his followers to follow. This means that leaders should be prepared to assume the role of slaves rather than masters. Wilkes highlights this point when he asks leaders to discard their head table mentality and join the lowly kitchen workers to serve others. Fourth, effective leadership should begin from the inside, with one’s heart. Individuals who want to lead others must first begin with personal transformation in the way they view leadership. In Jesus on Leadership, Gene Wilkes illustrates personal transformation with a personal anecdote in which he took a towel and wiped the shoes of those he wanted to lead. This gesture is a sign that a leader has fully understood and accepted the role of servant that they will assume in their leadership position. It is a living example of Jesus’ words in Mark 10:44 when he told his disciples that anyone who wanted to become great among them was to become the servant, and whoever wanted to be first “must be slave of all.”
Practical Application
As an aspiring youth leader in the church and community, I will apply the concepts learned from the two books to model my leadership around the example provided by Jesus. Jesus’ mission on earth is a big lesson for leaders who desire to adopt servant leadership. He had a clear vision of his mission through his understanding of “what things would be like” at the completion of his mission. That vision was for the world to be saved from sin, and he knew the price he will pay to achieve that vision- laying down his life as a sacrifice. The lesson from this example is that servant leaders must be prepared to give up personal interests as well as be prepared to loss and sacrifice opportunities for...