“But select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, the fifties, and tens.”Exodus 18:21
What is Christian Leadership
Christian leadership, in its simplest definition, is serving others by leading and leading others by serving. It is not in any way bossing people around and selfishly using them for one’s own benefit. Instead, Christian leaders are the ones who take the first step, who leads the pack, bringing them closer to God and not to themselves.
One thing that sets apart Christian leaders from secular leaders is that they must lead under the influence and guidance of the Holy Spirit. They must be fully dependent on God’s will, God’s higher purpose, and knowledge —and, not their own.
What it Takes to be a Church Leader
While there are lots of things a Christian leader needs to be, here are some of the important characteristics of a true Christian leader.
1) Working in love, not in greed.
“Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, serving as overseers—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not greedy for money, but eager to serve;”1 Peter 5:2 (NIV)
Just as God has dearly loved us, He wants us to reflect that love in our work. He does not want us to feel compelled to take care of others. Nor, to be inspired about what we can gain from leadership or how much money we can earn. Instead, he wants us to lead and serve with eagerness and passion for those people entrusted to us.
2) Acts in humility.
“But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves.” – Luke 22:26 (ESV)
Just because God has chosen us for a special calling does not mean we should feel superior to others. God reminds us in this verse that in order to become a true Christian leader, we must not think too highly of ourselves. We must always walk in humility.
3) Upholds God’s righteousness.
“It is an abomination to kings to commit wickedness: for the throne is established by righteousness.” – Proverbs 16:12 (KJV)
God is a righteous God. We can never call ourselves representatives of God if we tolerate wickedness. In fact, the reason we are called to serve is to lead people towards God and not away from Him. We do have to remember though, that God hates the sin but not the sinner.
Church Graphics on Leadership
Graphics 1
This first graphic uses a picture of leaves placed against a white wall. To complement, the text uses green colors and two different font styles. This quote is perfect to use for leadership sermons on humility or servant leadership.
Graphics 2
This graphic shows a long straight road in the background that perfectly fits the message of this leadership quote. The text uses two colors and two contrasting font types to show emphasis. This graphic is helpful for sermons or themes related to Leading by Example.
Graphics 3
The background in this graphic is a glowing man icon surrounded by other non-glowing ones. To complement, the font used is large and is in a golden metallic hue. This graphic is useful for Growing in Leadership themes.
Graphics 4
This next graphic shows a bright yellow text to emphasize “Education” and “Leadership” in the greyish background. This is a wonderful quote for topics such as Important elements of Leadership, God’s Wisdom in Leadership, and etc.
Graphics 5
This next graphic also uses bright yellow text to highlight the main points of the graphic, “Obey”. The background picture shows a man walking leaving footsteps layered with a purple filter to contrast and highlight the text.
Graphics 6
This next graphic uses a stone-like grey texture as a background. It complements the yellow text and emphasizes the main message of the quote. This graphic is a wonderful reminder for all leaders at different levels.
Graphics 7
This graphic shows an office table and chair in the background that perfectly fits the message of the quote. The background picture is predominantly using white colors, so the text uses grey to black hues with an added yellow accent on the word “is”.
Graphics 8
This graphic uses an illustration of a man walking on a red pathway. To complement, a red ribbon was used in-between “Leadership” and “Influence”. This graphic is useful for topics about the definition of leadership or characteristics of leadership.
Graphics 9
The background of this graphic is a monochrome illustration of a king chess piece being knocked off. On the right side, the text is written in green and white.
Graphics 10
This graphic uses a paper-like texture as a background. For the text highlight, this graphic uses a large and happy cursive font in the color blue. This quote is useful for topics about Passionate Leadership, Qualities of a Leader, and etc.
Graphics 11
The background image used in this graphic is black with an image of a chessboard on the bottom. The text is placed on top using yellow and white colors using large and cursive fonts to emphasize the main keywords.
Graphics 12
The background of this graphic is simple and only has a man wearing formal clothing. What’s striking is the text that says leaders create more leaders.
Sermon Graphics on Leadership
While general church graphics on leadership are already a great resource, we have also compiled three of the best sermon graphics on leadership that you can use during your sermons, bibles studies, or preachings.
Sermon Graphics 1
The first sermon graphic talks about the kind of leaders that empower those around them by giving the people a shared vision. If you have the passages listed below in your sermons, feel free to use this graphic as part of your visual presentation.
“He also told them this parable: “Can the blind lead the blind? Will they, not both fall into a pit?” Luke 6:39
“17 Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in: Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned with fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace.” 18 I also told them about the gracious hand of my God on me and what the king had said to me. They replied, “Let us start rebuilding.” So they began this good work.”Nehemiah 2:17-18
Sermon Graphics 2
Christian leadership is earned by having continuous surrender of one’s own life to God, living a righteous life, and serving God by serving His people. Use this graphic, along with our suggested Bible passages, if you want to portray a Christian leader’s journey to earning leadership every day.
“The one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.” Romans 12:8
“In everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness, and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned, so that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us.” Titus 2:7-8
“Whoever loves instruction loves knowledge, But he who hates correction is stupid.” Proverbs 12:1