This is from the address by Dr Noel Vose at the opening of Vose Leadership in Perth; first published in The Advocate.
For many years I have been interested in, and concerned about the ” what and how” of leadership. I wish to offer a brief comment on its meaning.
In his book “Intelligent Leadership” Alistair Mant heads the first chapter with what looks like, at first glance, the words of a small boy in a primary school playground.
It reads like this:
I want to be the leader
I want to be the leader
Can I be the leader?
Can I? I can?
Promise? Promise?
Yippee! I’m the leader!
OK, What shall we do?
With these words Mant puts his finger on the enigma of leadership. Desired by many, misused by many and understood by few.
On the making of many books on leadership there is no end. Models of leadership are legion in politics, the military, business and sport. And some are very good indeed.
But for Christians there is only one model, and his name is Jesus Christ.
An essential component of leadership is AUTHORITY, which may be defined as “the right and power to compel obedience in the context of responsible freedom.”
Our Lord said little about leadership but he lived it, for he spoke as one having authority and not as the Intelligentsia (the scribes).
There were, however, occasions when Christ was quite explicit. Mark chapter 10 is one. It records his final journey to Jerusalem. James and John take him aside to ask a favour: “Master, when you become Prime Minister, may I be the assistant Prime Minister and my brother, the treasurer?”
We see how Jesus handled the request (in verse 45), which I believe to be the keynote of the whole of Mark’s Gospel where he says: “For even the son of man came not to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many”.
With those words Christ turns the whole concept of leadership on its head.
Another occasion where Christ is also specific is in the remarkable words in John’s Gospel, where he states with quiet authority, “I am the good shepherd”. In Latin this word is rendered ‘pastor’.
The good shepherd leads the sheep, not driving them. The shepherd knows each one and calls them by name. They are set free to go in or out for pasture. The shepherd guards against the thief, whose only interest in the sheep is the value of the wool and the taste of the meat. Against such a predator, the shepherd is prepared to stake his life.
Summed up, the work of the good shepherd/ pastor/ leader is to GUIDE, GUARD, and FEED, at whatever personal cost,
To conclude:
The formation of Vose Leadership is, I believe, a significant venture in Western Australia with ramifications beyond denominational interests.
Wherever the leader has Christ as the model, the Church will be healthy. I shall follow the development of this project with keen interest. I wish its leaders well.