Dirty Feet & Leadership

The sun is barely above the horizon this morning as I read this passage of Scripture found in John 13:13-17:

13 You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and you are right, because that’s what I am. 14 And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. 15 I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you. 16 I tell you the truth, slaves are not greater than their master. Nor is the messenger more important than the one who sends the message. 17 Now that you know these things, God will bless you for doing them.

The setting for this Scripture is Jesus and His disciples celebrating the passover just before He is arrested. He knew that His time with them was very short, yet He stops everything and washes the disciples feet. And as He is explaining to them what He has just done, He states in verse 15 that He has given us an example to follow.

This can be viewed from various angles, but the way I saw this today was in the light of leadership. Jesus was and is the best example of what a true leader should be. And if He takes the time to tell us that this is an example to follow, then perhaps we should take the time to stop and see what He was showing us.

If you've lived any time on this planet and been a part of any type of organization or business, then you have had the opportunity to see different leadership styles. Regardless of what you have been exposed to however, there really are only two styles of leadership; serving and self-serving.

Leaders who are self-serving, are concerned mostly with how others can help them become more or do more for them. Servant leaders help those around them to become more than they are, or help them to become something more than they can see.

A true servant leader is confident in who he or she is enough that they are able to help others to reach and achieve their goals. They know that if they are able to help those they are leading to become successful, then they in turn will be successful as well. The servant leader is not worried that they will lose their position in the orginzation, but they are willing to lead by example in order that the person they are leading may grow, consequently causing the organization to grow as well.

Everyone of us is suppose to be a leader. Whether we are leading a fortune 500 company, a ministry or our family, we are called to lead. Jesus showed us by His example in this Scripture how a true servant leader should behave. He didn't think that He was better than those He was leading, but He was willing to abase Himself and serve them, placing their needs above His, and in doing so, truly demonstrated how leaders in His Kingdom are to act. Let's learn this and begin to serve those around us and become the leaders that Jesus needs us to be.

Strength and honor for the Kingdom and the King!