Melissa Curran's Leadership Essay

Week 1: Leadership Essay

Leadership is influence. It is the ability of a person to influence others. “A biblical leader is a person with God-given capacity and God-given responsibility to influence a specific group of God’s people towards His purposes for the group.” (J. Robert Clinton, The Making of a Leader) A leader knows where they are going and they are able to persuade others to go along with them. They work to build a team that can achieve the common vision.

There are several kinds of leadership in the Bible and a variety of examples of each. Throughout Scripture there is the leadership of Christ. This is shown in Mark 3:13 when Jesus personally picks those that he wanted to work with. Then in Luke 11:1-13 Jesus leads through demonstration as he shows his disciples how to live. In Matthew 10:1-8 Jesus leads by getting involved in the practical needs of those around him. Then in Mark 6:30 Jesus shows leadership through accountability. Nehemiah is a great example of a leader from the Old Testament. In 1:3-4 he identifies with the people and then he has a vision. Peter and Paul are other key leaders in the book of Acts that take bold actions after having visions. In Nehemiah 2:6-9 readers learn that he leads from developing a plan or strategy. The Early Church did this by setting up a council of leadership to handle church matters. Nehemiah inspires those around him and encourages them. Then in chapter 3 he leads the people through delegating specific things for them to do. A great leader always enlists the people around them. In chapter 5 Nehemiah is always communicating with the people, much like the prophets throughout the Old and New Testament did. He doesn’t take advantage of his position but places himself as a servant to the people around him, like Jesus did.