Daily Devotional: Humility & Service: The Servant Leader
This is an opinion column.
TOWEL AND BASIN
“Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave — just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Matthew 20:26-28
REFLECTION
Leadership is one of those words that can mean almost anything depending on who is using it. In most organizations and in much of our culture, leadership means being at the top. Having authority. Making decisions. Being the one people look to and answer to. And there is nothing wrong with authority or decision-making. But Jesus consistently describes leadership in a way that reframes the whole enterprise from the ground up.
The request that prompted this teaching came from two disciples who wanted the best seats in the kingdom, positions of honor and authority close to Jesus. It is the kind of request that is embarrassing to read because it is so nakedly ambitious. And Jesus does not condemn the ambition. He redirects it. You want to lead? Here is what leading actually looks like in my kingdom:
- It looks like serving before you are served.
- It looks like taking the needs of others more seriously than your own position.
- It looks like using your authority for the benefit of the people under your care rather than for your own advancement.
- It looks like Jesus, who had all authority and used it to give His life away.
The servant leader is not a pushover. Jesus was not a pushover. He was one of the most decisive, courageous, and authoritative figures in all of human history. But He wielded every bit of that authority in the direction of others’ good rather than His own comfort. That is the model. And it applies not just to people with formal leadership roles. It applies to every parent, every employer, every person who has any influence over anyone else at all.
The people who lead like this are unforgettable. Not because they were the loudest or the most visible, but because the people around them felt genuinely cared for, genuinely seen, genuinely served. That kind of leadership leaves a mark that outlasts any title or position.
In the relationships and roles where you currently have influence or authority, are you using that influence primarily to serve others or primarily to maintain your own comfort and position, and what would one concrete change look like this week?
PRAYER
Lord Jesus, You are the greatest leader who ever lived, and You spent Your life washing feet and giving Yourself away. Reshape our understanding of what it means to lead. Where we have used our influence for our own comfort, forgive us. Where we have led from a place of self-protection rather than genuine service, change us. Make us the kind of leaders whose presence makes the people around them feel seen, valued, and genuinely cared for. That is the leadership that matters. Amen
This is an opinion column.
