“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” Matthew 4:19 NIVThe reference has also often been moved from the disciples to Jesus, with Him being called the "fisher-of-People," and the image of Jesus as a fisherman is second only to that of Jesus as a Shepherd.
We see the leadership of Jesus in all its glory at the Sermon on the Mount...When he saw the crowds, He went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to Him, and He began to teach them.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the Earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:1-10 ESV
Jesus was speaking to this large group of people at the Sermon on the Mount. He was reflecting upon the spiritual dynamics to help them grow as leaders. The call of Jesus to His disciples is to be active in a lifestyle that can only be created by following the guidelines he has previously established in the Beatitudes.
And here is how a great leader(fisherman)leads....
Great leaders invest in discipleship. Jesus offers to all His children a deep, authentic relationship. He wants us to follow Him as His disciples. To be like Him and conform to who He is. To see the world through His eyes.
“Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.“ 1 John 3:2 ESVHe wants us to be ready for any mission where He can show someone who He is--Missional Disciples. And just think, He trained His disciples in three years, and we have a lifetime to do our training. But as Jesus said, there is a price that we must pay. “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple.” As His disciples, He wants us 100% if He’s going to invest in us. It's our choice--plain and simple.
Great Leadership is truly an inside job. Your leadership skills will only take you as far as your character will allow. Jesus had a pure heart and unfailing character. The more you work on your heart and your character, the more others will want to follow you.
Great leaders lead from the inside out. Jesus focused on personal leadership first--matters of character. At the core of these matters of character is integrity. Without integrity, no one will follow you, and if no one is following you, you are not leading.
Great leaders are neither top-down nor bottom-up; they are center-out leaders. In our consumer society, we have created our own kings. It’s America’s culture; it’s who we are. But that’s how the kings of the Gentiles do things…and Jesus said, “You are not to be like that.” So we learn center-out leadership from Jesus: investing power instead of consolidating or abdicating. Center-out leadership isn’t giving hungry people fish nor is it teaching hungry people to fish. It’s training hungry people to train other hungry people to fish! To expand the “circle” as far as possible.
Great leaders balance conviction with compassion. Jesus held strong convictions and values while still showing tremendous compassion to others who did not share these same convictions. Likewise, today's great leaders are clear about their values and expectations while being sensitive to the person behind the person. This balance engages people's hearts and minds, and it motivates them to give their discretionary effort--what I call passionate performance--valuing Jesus above everything else as with the parable of the woman and the lost coin. She lost part of her wedding headdress, and it was so valuable to her that she searched relentlessly for it. Just as Jesus pursues the one sinner we see in scripture, heaven rejoices when they repent and follow Him.
“And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’ In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” Luke 15:9-10 ESVGreat leaders LOVE--with a radical, insane, scandalous, reckless, limitless and everlasting love that Jesus showed others when He walked the Earth. So be a missional disciple of Jesus. Make Him the king of your heart and experience His ultimate love.
Great leaders are great storytellers. Jesus' stories have certainly withstood the test of time. His preferred storytelling style was the parable. Stories are richer, more powerful and longer lasting than directives or instructions. Look at your own life for stories that have relevant messages for your family. We all have them. Turn your stories into coaching tools for your family and friends to build the leadership legacy that we all have in Christ Jesus. At the end of the day, no one can really influence another person. They have to make a conscious choice for themselves. So why, as Christians, do we try to influence people to our ways rather than just tell them our story in the hope that it inspires them to tell their own story.
Great leaders are great servants. Jesus washed the feet of His disciples even during his most trying time. Great leaders today see themselves as serving their teams--equipping, encouraging and coaching them to realize their potential. Leadership is about others--not you.
Great leaders are on mission. No matter what His specific mission is for us, Jesus just wants to be with us. He doesn’t care about outcomes. He cares about people - His people. As our partner on mission, He will use our personal experiences to create our mission. It’s up to us to discern what that mission is. I can guarantee it will be a sense of purpose that is close to our hearts. We cannot create it; only Jesus can. We can only be open to what that might be, and it will include people in some way, shape, or form. We are His disciples on mission.
For me, missional discipleship starts with the telling of my own story. It's about the ultimate love of Jesus that I have experienced over my 63 years on this planet. Then it quickly moved to constantly experiencing His love every single moment of my life. And then following Him no matter what His mission might be--to preach the truth, baptize, heal the sick, cure the disabled, free the oppressed, feed the hungry, provide for the widows and orphans, drive out Satan, love all sinners and then ultimately, He resurrected Himself for us, to name just a few of His missions while He was here on the Earth.
Here are a few suggestions for your own mission:
● Unborn babies
● Adoption
● Infants
● Children
● Teens
● Parents
● Singles
● Seniors
● Widows/Widowers
● Military
● Disabled
● Sick
● Mentally Ill
● Homeless
● Oppressed
● LGBTQ+
● Disaster Victims
● Cancer Patients
● Drug and Alcoholism
Remember you have your whole life to figure it out and prepare for your face to face with Jesus. For now, just start following Him with all your heart and soul by loving those closest to you. Who knows where that will lead. Maybe that's your mission!
“My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep.” John 10:10-11 NIVA great leader will sacrifice their life. As our shepherd, Jesus saved us, He sacrificed His life for us on the cross. We need to trust Him for everything--our daily needs, abiding joy and peace, and power to do these things. He was the only perfect leader to ever walk this Earth. So why wouldn’t I want to follow Him? When I call on Jesus as my liberator, Leader, Savior, Lord and my Immanuel all things are possible!
Last--Jesus did write the original book on leadership. It’s called the Bible, and you don't have to be great to get started, but you have to get started if you want to be a great leader. Start by finding the right Bible , or you can start with a daily devotional like the Daily Hope, and if you do, Jesus will be your Shepherd as He guides you, and He will never forsake you. You can trust Him, He did create the universe along with us you know!
“With upright heart, He shepherded them and guided them with His skillful hand.” Psalm 78:72 ESV------------------------------------------------------
Songs - You Never Let Go by Matt Redman Listen to song and When I Call on Jesus, All Things are Possible by Nicole C. Mullen Listen to song
Mom's Eulogy - She was a Fisher-of-Men.
Comments