See Potential to Increase Capacity
Scripture provides us with more leadership wisdom and principles than any other book available. Our greatest example of leadership is found in Christ Jesus and the model in which He set before us. The Bibles says in Hebrews that Jesus experienced temptation in every way and remained without sin and so He can sympathize with humanity. God knows our potential better than we do. When we have doubts about ourselves we should seek scripture and read the promises He declares over our lives.
Leaders see the potential in others and help cultivate capacity and growth.
When Jesus called Matthew and the other eleven disciples to follow Him, He saw their un-tapped potential. Not only their potential, but their capacity to change the world with His command to “go and make other disciples.”
“As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him. While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
The Gospel of Matthew opens with these words: The book of the genesis of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. While all the gospels have a Christocentric focus, each of them also have their own flavor. Because of Matthew’s Jewish perspective and focus in writing His gospel, many scholars believe that Matthew (also known as Levi) was a Levite by birth. As a Levite, he would have been expected to carry on the family line. This meant he would become a servant in God’s temple. There was no more respectable job for anyone in Israel. At a young age, he would have learned the Hebrew scriptures with his father, preparing for the day when he too would minister in the temple.
Life doesn’t always turn out as we plan it.
We are not sure what happened in Matthew’s life to knock him off course, but he went from aligning himself with the most respected position in Israel to one of the most hated. Matthew became a tax collector. The people of that day hated tax collectors because they not only betrayed their own people and collected money for Rome, but charged over and above to make themselves wealthy by lining their own pockets.
He was accountable for collecting taxes in the busy town of Capernaum, situated on the north-west shore of the Sea of Galilee. Thus, his main source of income would have been from fishermen.
Choose a team and empower them for partnership.
If we had put together a group of twelve disciples, Matthew would not even have been an option. He was a traitor and a sinner. At least four of Jesus’ disciples were fishermen, the very people Matthew had robbed. Simon another of the disciples was a Zealot. They had declared war on the tax collectors. Calling Matthew into the group didn’t make any sense, it was as if Jesus was looking for disruption and distrust among the group. Once again, God reminds us that He doesn’t look at our present circumstances, but at exalting Himself through sinners like you and I.
Jesus said to Matthew, “Follow me.” Those two words radically changed his life and he did as Jesus commanded and left his sinful nature, job and everything he owned to become a follower of Jesus. He responded the way all people should when they meet Jesus and wanted everyone he knew to meet him also. Matthew invites all the tax collectors and sinners he knows to come and have dinner with Jesus. He knew that if Jesus could change his life, He could also change theirs.
Hand picked potential called to lead.
Matthew spent the next three years of his life following Jesus and His teachings. He walked all over the promised land. With his own eyes, he saw the miracles Jesus performed, including the ones not recorded in Scripture. Jesus healed the lame, deaf, blind and demon possessed. He saw Jesus walk on water and raise the dead. He took detailed notes as Jesus preached so that he would not forget his words and that other could hear them too. Out of nearly 1100 verses in Matthew’s gospel, 644 contain actual words of Christ. Three-fifths of the words in Matthew’s gospel are actually Jesus’. Matthew watched the way Jesus loved people and loved his Father in Heaven. He even saw Jesus Christ after He Himself raised from the dead as He said he would. Matthew was a first-hand witness to all that Jesus said and did.
The Holy Spirit inspired Matthew to write these words and invites us to participate in a deeper and wider understanding of the Gospel. He wants the world to recognize Jesus and follow Him.
Jesus is the role model we all must fix our gaze. It is His leadership principles we need to learn and put into action. We can follow His lead both in our life roles at home and our organizational roles at work.
When we follow His example of leadership it will change our families, church, friends, city, nation and world.
If you are interested in further readings on leadership found in scripture here are a few of my earlier post.
