Sermon Central
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Leadership Series
Contributed by James Chandler on Oct 20, 2003 (message contributor)
Summary: First in a series looking at how Christ has built His house, the Church
The House That Jesus Built. Leadership
24Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would
come after me, he must deny himself and take up his
cross and follow me.
Leaders:
A.) Know it all starts with attitude.
Before God can use a Christian as a leader, the Christian must have the right attitude.
5Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
6Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
7but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
8And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death--
even death on a cross!
9Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
10that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
What was the attitude of Christ?
Servant. Humble. Compassionate.
These are things that make great leaders. The right attitude.
B) Have purpose and direction.
Too many times, Christians are well meaning, they want to grow. They want to do something for God. But they have no idea how to grow. They have no plan for growing. They don’t even know exactly what their purpose in Christ is.
Jesus knew his purpose in life- To seek and save the lost.
Anyone here know “This is my purpose in life” ?
How do we find our purpose in life?
A purpose statement for life-
Summarizes what you think God’s purpose is for you in life.
It gives you direction in life.
It defines success and failure in your life.
It helps you realize your role and shape in life.
Jesus knew his purpose in life was to seek and save the lost.
When Satan tempted him, he didn’t let temptation distract him.
When the people wanted to make him king, he didn’t give in to their wants.
C) Are willing to pay the price.
Jesus said if you want to be my disciple-
Deny yourself
Take up your cross
Follow me
Leadership is not free. It costs. It may cost everything. Jesus knew there was a price to pay to fulfill his purpose.
In 1914, Irish explorer Ernest Shackleton set out to cross Antarctica
by
foot -- 1,500 miles, north to south. He intended to use 39 sled dogs
to
lead him -- dogs that were eventually butchered and eaten by his
desperate crew that at one stretch had not set foot on land for 497
days.
They lost their ship, the Endurance, on crushing ice floes and for
months lived on the ice. When the floes began to crack and melt in the
summer, they boarded three life rafts to sail 800 miles on open sea to
Easter Island.
How did Shackleton get men to volunteer for such a hazardous voyage?
They signed up in response to an advertisement he placed in the London
Times, which said: "Men wanted for hazardous journey. Small wages,
bitter cold, long months of complete darkness, constant danger. Safe
return doubtful."
In spite of this warning, brave men came from all over to sign on for
the crew.
Shackleton pledged that no man would die on this voyage, later saying
to
his crew, "Follow as I lead, do what I say must be done, and I’ll get
you home." Incredibly, two years later, he did.
D) They are great followers.
Godly followers are available to serve.
Godly followers pay attention to needs.
Godly followers do every job with dedication.
Godly followers are faithful.
Godly followers are okay with being “behind the scenes.”
Jesus made it clear- Before you can be a leader, you must be follower.
Jesus followed his “Father’s Plan” to the detail.
In the garden of Gethsemane Jesus chose followership over leadership.
E) Lead by example
Some leaders lead by authority of position.
Some leaders lead by vocally letting everyone know they are leading.
Some leaders lead by fear or manipulation.
Real leaders lead by example.
What are some ways that leader lead by example?
Jesus set the example in everything for us to follow.
He did not have to shout from the rooftops who he was.
He set example in action and speech.
When God uses you and I to lead and help change lives, we must realize that people will be watching us and looking at our lives. If our actions are not consistent with our message, they will not follow us.
A leader who has no followers, is only a man taking a walk.
Life comes down to one simple question- Is Jesus the leader of your life? Is he your Savior?
