#380 The Price of Serving Leadership: Release Power

Issue #380, August 21, 2024

Serving leadership produces thriving in people, organizations, communities and nations. But serving leadership is costly! Leaders who seek to serve consciously and consistently need to release things that are difficult to give up. Jesus talked about the “kings of the Gentiles” as typical leaders but called His disciples to a radically different form of leadership which we call serving leadership. In the previous issue we focused on how the disciples, like most leaders, were looking for positions. Jesus called His disciples to release that to serve. Power is the second area Jesus calls His disciples to release.

²⁴A dispute also arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest. ²⁵Jesus said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors. ²⁶But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves (Luke 22:24-26, NIV).

Jesus’ observation that the Gentile leaders “lord it over them” and “exercise authority over them” highlights their desire for power and authority.

Serving leaders release power as a right.

All leadership roles come with power and authority. The Gentile leaders assumed they had every right to this power. They had likely worked hard to get into the position they occupied and so were not hesitant to use their power for their own advantage. As leaders they were “over them.” They expected people to instantly obey their every command and were ready to remind everyone of the power they possessed. So they lorded it over those they led and exercised authority over them. Power was their right. To this leadership approach Jesus tells His disciples, “You are not to be like that.” Jesus was not telling the disciples that they would not have power, in fact He strategically gave them power and authority (see Matthew 28:19-20). But He was calling them to release their right to have power. They were not called to “lord it over” but to serve. Some leaders see power as their right but serving leaders see power as a gift to serve others.

Serving leaders reject power as a measure.

Typical leaders see their level of power as a measure of their success. The more they have, the better they feel. They are quick to ask others, “Did you see how people moved when I told them….?” But Jesus says, “the one who rules” should be like “the one who serves.” Serving leaders reject power as a measure of their success or worth. Instead, they measure how well they are serving those they lead.

Serving leaders receive power as stewards.

The Gentile leaders saw their power as something to be exercised for their own advantage, it was their right. They had worked for their power and would now use it to further their own objectives. But serving leaders see power as a gift given to them for a greater purpose, to serve the organization, their teams, their customers and others. Their role is to properly steward the power entrusted to them. They do not focus on power over others but power for others. Paul is a great example of this attitude when he writes in 2 Corinthians 10:8, “the authority the Lord gave us for building you up rather than tearing you down…” As a steward of the power received from the Lord, he focused on using that power to build others.

For further reflection and discussion:

What power do I have in my current role? (Reflect on the power your role carries with it and how your power is different than those under your leadership.)
What is my heart attitude towards my power? Do I see it as something I have earned or as a gift? Am I ever tempted to let others know the power I hold by asking, “Don’t you know I am the boss?” How has this impacted my ability to influence others?
If I view my power as a gift entrusted to me to serve others, how will that be reflected in the way I lead this week? How will it be reflected when I face opposition to my leadership?
As a serving leader am I ever tempted to not use power because I’m afraid I might misuse it? What might Jesus say to me about that?

Until next time, yours on the journey,

Jon Byler

In the next issue, we’ll examine how serving leaders pay the price of giving up prestige.

David and Absalom: Power

All leaders have power, but not all leaders handle power the same way. David and Absalom demonstrated two very different ways that leaders gain and use power. They saw the power of the kingship in very different ways.

David accepted power; Absalom sought power. The difference between how David and Absalom came to power could not be more distinct. David was a shepherd who was busy tending his sheep when he was anointed to be the next king. He accepted the call of God to leadership, but he never sought power. When he was in power, he marveled that God chose him for that position. Then King David went in and sat before the Lord, and he said: “Who am I, Sovereign Lord, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far?” (2 Samuel 7:18)

Absalom’s intention from the beginning was to get power at any cost. He grew up in the palace as a child of the king. But he wanted to do more than be close to power; he wanted to be the king!

Leaders who humbly accept power can use their influence for the good of others. They can identify with the powerless and those with no voice. Leaders who are in positions of authority because they want to have power tend to abuse those they lead. They take advantage of the poor and weak. It is not wrong to desire to have influence or lead. But servant leaders guard their hearts against the temptation to be motivated by a desire for power. Servant leaders accept power; subversive* leaders seek power.

David waited for power in God’s timing; Absalom wanted power in his own timing. David waited for years on God’s timing to become the king. He was anointed as a young man and knew his destiny. But for years King Saul sought to kill him. Twice David had a chance to kill Saul and gain power quickly. Both times, David refused. “As surely as the Lord lives,” he said, “the Lord himself will strike him, or his time will come and he will die, or he will go into battle and perish (1 Samuel 26:10). As David waited, God developed his character so that he became a man after God’s own heart.

In contrast, Absalom couldn’t wait to become king. He didn’t wait for his father to hand over power or die; he wanted power now! Absalom waited only for as long as it took to build enough influence to overthrow his father’s authority. Instead of using this time to develop his gifts and relationship with God, Absalom used the time to develop a following.

Leaders who wait for God’s timing to bring them to positions of power develop character that shapes their leadership. As they wait, they also develop skills which they can later use to influence those they lead. Those who are in a hurry to become leaders substitute charisma** for character. They desire power over others before they have learned to lead themselves. Servant leaders wait for God’s timing to gain power; subversive leaders work to get power as quickly as possible.

David shared power with others; Absalom seized power for himself. David saw himself as a steward of power. As king, he recognized that God gave him a position of influence to use for God’s purpose. His power was a gift to share, not something to keep for himself. So David developed other leaders. He raised up many giant killers (2 Samuel 21:18-21). David developed a team around him to accomplish God’s purposes for the nation.

Absalom desired power for himself. He used people to make himself look good, not for the good of the nation. “In the course of time, Absalom provided himself with a chariot and horses and with fifty men to run ahead of him” (2 Samuel 15:1). He used people only to increase his power, and those who did not help him accomplish his dreams received his wrath. When Joab would not respond to his request, Absalom burned his fields (2 Samuel 14:29-33).

Leaders who seize power for themselves see their position for their own advantage. They focus on what they will get by being a leader and they use others for their own goals. But godly leaders recognize that their position is a gift from God, given to be shared with others. They focus on what they can give to those they serve. They develop others for the common good. Servant leaders share power; subversive leaders seize power.

Servant leaders learn from the examples of David and Absalom to handle power carefully, as a gift given to them by God to serve the good of others. There is power in your leadership, use it well!

Until next time, yours on the journey,

Jon Byler

*Subversive means to seek to undermine or destroy an established system. A leader who is subversive intends to overthrow the established authority to take power for themselves.

**Charisma is focusing on personal giftedness to win favor with others.

For further reflection and discussion:

• Did I come to my current role as a leader because I was seeking power or because I accepted the call of God and others to lead? How does that shape my leadership?

• Did I wait for God’s timing on my own leadership journey, or did I rely on my own plans to gain power? Am I currently willing to wait on God’s timing to have more influence, or do I seek to make it happen on my own?

• Do I primarily see my position as an opportunity to share power with others or as a way to gain power for myself? What leadership decision have I made in the past week that illustrates this? What leadership action should I take to share power with others?

In the next issue, we’ll examine how David and Absalom used influence differently in their leadership.

David and Absalom: Intimacy

David is a servant leader that we admire in many ways. He is known as a man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22). And David led well. “And David shepherded them with integrity of heart; with skillful hands he led them” (Psalms 78:72).But David’s son Absalom provides a very different picture of leadership.

Absalom was the third born son of David and his name means “father of peace.” But his leadership was not peaceful! Absalom was a subversive* leader, working to undermine the authority of the king and take power by force. Absalom killed his own brother, Amnon, and for some time was separated from his father as a result. Later, he plotted to undermine his father’s authority as a king and led a rebellion that forced David to flee from Jerusalem. Absalom’s life ended on the battle field where he was killed by David’s men. His story, found in 2 Samuel 13-19, provides the context for this series.

We will consider the differences between David and Absalom’s leadership in six different areas. First, let’s examine the difference in their intimacy with God, expressed in how they worshipped.

David pursued intimacy in worship; Absalom pretended to worship. David, as a man after God’s own heart, danced in worship and pursued a relationship with God (2 Samuel 6:14-22). Absalom, as a young boy, likely witnessed this event. But in the story of Absalom there is no indication of any intimate relationship with God.

The only time it is recorded that Absalom worshipped is when he asks his father to go to Hebron to worship. David agrees, not knowing that the plan of Absalom is not to worship but to rebel. “While Absalom was offering sacrifices, he also sent for Ahithophel…, David’s counselor, to come…. And so the conspiracy gained strength, and Absalom’s following kept on increasing” (2 Samuel 15:12).

Absalom only pretended to worship. It made him look good. But he was filled with hatred. He was estranged from his earthly father and it appears that he had no relationship with God as father. Absalom used worship as an instrument to gain power; David saw worship as a gift of God’s presence.

Servant leaders don’t worship to look good; they worship because God is good. Servant leaders pursue intimacy in worship; subversive leaders only pretend to have intimacy.

David surrendered pride in worship; Absalom sought power in worship. David understood that in true worship surrender is required. Worship is not to manipulate God to do what the leader wants, it is to surrender the heart of the leader to what God wants. David says, “Let him do to me whatever seems good to him” (2 Samuel 15:26).

Absalom used worship to get power. He only wanted God to grant him what he wanted. Servant leaders surrender to God’s will in worship; subversive leaders seek power in worship.

David exalted God in worship; Absalom exalted only himself in worship. When David worshipped he exalted God. “David built an altar to the Lord there and sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. He called on the Lord, and the Lord answered him with fire from heaven on the altar of burnt offering” (1 Chronicles 21:26).

In contrast, “During his lifetime Absalom had taken a pillar and erected it in the King’s Valley as a monument to himself, for he thought, “I have no son to carry on the memory of my name.” He named the pillar after himself, and it is called Absalom’s Monument to this day” (2 Samuel 18:18).

Servant leaders exalt God; subversive leaders exalt themselves.

Intimacy with God, or the lack of it, shapes how every leader leads. Servant leaders, like David, pursue intimacy with God in passionate worship, surrender of self and a genuine desire to exalt God through their leadership. Like David, they become leaders after God’s own heart.

Until next time, yours on the journey,

Jon Byler

*Subversive means to seek to undermine or destroy an established system. A leader who is subversive intends to overthrow the established authority to take power for themselves.

For further reflection and discussion:

Read the entire account of Absalom’s life in 2 Samuel 13-19. What do I learn about leadership from his life?
In what way am I tempted to pretend to worship? What happens to me as a person when I do this? What impact does it have on my leadership?
Do I pray to get from God what I want or do I pray to hear from God what He wants? How does this impact my leadership?
When I report what has happened through my leadership, do I exalt God or draw attention to myself? Are the monuments I spend my life building devoted to God or self?