#112 Biblical Leadership vs. Secular Leadership
The difference between biblical and secular leadership often comes down to a slight difference in approach. According to Dodson it is, “Management vs. Empowerment.” Where management is more of an attempt to control your subordinates. Whereas empowerment is the act of releasing your subordinates to be as successful as possible. Dodson, uses the example of Saul as a management type of leader, and David as an empowerment type of leader. This paradigm is helpful in making a comparison of leadership styles. But it is lacking in that it is a generalization. Not all secular leaders are managers in this sense or biblical leaders empowerers.
When making the comparison between secular and biblical leadership the defining factor is how you understand the relationship between the leader and the subordinate. In a secular leadership role the goal of the leader, the employee, and the organization are generally not aligned. The organization wants productivity. While the employee wants advancement, and the leader wants to maintain power and to advance as well.
Biblical leadership ought to be something that aligns the organization, employee, and the leader in a common goal. In this case the article by Kight What is Christian Mentoring, and How Do I Do It? Is helpful. Kight says, “not only will the person being mentored grow in their faith, but the person doing the mentoring will grow as well.” This is of course in reference to mentoring, but I believe that a biblical leader is someone who has the best interests of everyone in mind. A biblical leader is in many ways someone who mentors others. A leader is someone that others willingly subject themselves to in order to grow and learn. Within an organization this might be phrases as, the goal of the organization is to accomplish a shared goal. While the leader is trying to also accomplish that goal by making their subordinates more productive, and the employee is advancing by learning to accomplish the organization's goal better.
A summary of this view is that management may generally be more selfish while leadership is more goal oriented and selfless. As it says in Proverbs 27:17 (NASB), “Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.”
"Worldly Leaders vs. Spiritual Leaders: 3 Key Differences," ChurchLeaders, accessed October 31, 2024, https://churchleaders.com/pastors/pastor-how-to/154498-wordlly-leaders-vs-spiritual-leaders-3-key-differences.html.
"Mentoring," Cru, accessed October 31, 2024, https://www.cru.org/us/en/train-and-grow/help-others-grow/mentoring.html.
