I was born serving, serving myself. But God’s intrusion into my life freed me from serving myself through the folly of Zen Buddhism and I began the long journey of learning to be a servant. Ordination as a servant-leader was another step in the divine school. At age seventy-seven I am still under the tutelage of the Lamb. My journey of servant-leadership would not have been possible without the freedom the Lord gives through the gospel. This freedom is reflected in the Bible verse I wrote on my backpack in 1971: “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31–32). When the truth of the gospel and the entire Bible sets you free, the modern idea of freedom bears little resemblance to what our Lord calls us to. “But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life” (Rom. 6:22).

New Testament Believers Are Always Servants

As I complete twenty-one years of editing Ordained Servant, I want to reflect on the nature of what I believe this journal and our church represent. I know I have done an imperfect job as editor, but my passion for the biblical servant leadership of the title of this journal has not abated. I have included Helmut Thielicke’s (1908–86) “A Little Exercise for Young (and Old) Theologians” again because I believe that a regular reading of this important essay will help in forming us as servant-leaders.

I recently attended the graduation exercises at Phillips Exeter Academy where my grandson graduated last June. I have never experienced speeches like I heard that day. The class president spoke of the importance of suffering and perseverance; the principal spoke of the need for humility and service. This came from the legacy of the eighteenth-century founders of the Academy, John and Elizabeth Phillips. The Latin term “Non Sibi,” or “Not for Self,” adorns the Academy seal. The sentiment comes from the 1781 “The Deed of Gift,” a legally binding document establishing the Academy. Phillips was a Calvinist congregational believer who gave up preaching to work as a businessman in order to found Christian educational institutions. In the Deed we find this: “Goodness without knowledge is weak and feeble, yet knowledge without goodness is dangerous, and that both united form the noblest character, and lay the surest foundation of usefulness to mankind.” This noble sentiment is not expressed in isolation, although that context is eclipsed by the school’s present secularism. The Deed expresses a robust Christian faith which is the root and origin of non sibi.

An interesting secular example of servant leadership is the Roman military leader Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus. The reality of everyone being made in God’s image is sometimes evident in a non-Christian’s behavior. In the mid-fifth century BC, Cincinnatus had retired from being dictator of the Roman Republic to live on his family farm. Subsequently, he was called back by Roman leaders to fend off enemy attacks. He accomplished this in a little over two weeks. He again relinquished power and returned to his farm. He became a symbol of humble servant leadership seeking to serve others before himself. General George Washington followed Cincinnatus’s example and returned to Mount Vernon after the Treaty of Paris was signed in 1783. He refused the suggestion of some that he should be king. The Jean-Antoine Houdon (1741–1828) statue of him in the Virginia State Capitol displays him in his military attire, but his right hand holds a gentleman’s cane and on his left a humble plow.[1]

Sin has corrupted the human instinct for self-sacrifice as God’s image bearers; that instinct is often replaced by tyranny. Christ came to overcome our native selfishness. The proper paradigm for leadership in the church and home is the cross of the crucified Christ. Several important passages explain the servant leadership instituted by the cross.

“For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich” (2 Cor. 8:9). In John 13 Jesus does not cease being Lord and Teacher but shockingly does what no worldly leader would be inclined to do—he washes his disciples’ feet. The incarnate Lord of the universe washed the filthy feet of his disciples. Let that sink in, fellow church officers.

The beginning of servant leadership, and at its heart, is brokenness. In his superb defense of orthodox Christianity, Christianity and Liberalism, Machen insisted that “Christianity is the religion of the broken heart.”[2] He exemplified this as he set aside his Princeton prestige and served a tiny new denomination of serious Christians. Psalm 86:1 should be our posture, “Incline your ear, O LORD, and answer me, for I am poor and needy.” Servant leadership is a mindset rooted in the cross, in the character of the crucified God-man Jesus:

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. (Phil. 2:5–8)

Far from undermining authority, servant leadership enhances authority. We see this in the life of David. Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron and said, “Behold, we are your bone and flesh. In times past, when Saul was king over us, it was you who led out and brought in Israel. And the LORD said to you, ‘You shall be shepherd of my people Israel, and you shall be prince over Israel’” (2 Sam. 5:1–2). When Solomon’s son Rehaboam rejected the spiritual wisdom of the elders and heeded the harsh counsel of his peers, he lost the confidence of ten of the twelve tribes of Israel (1 Kings 12:1–24). As the exemplar shepherd-king, Jesus tells us what such leadership looks like, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (John 10:11).

In a classic passage on servant leadership, Jesus gives earth-shaking imperatives rooted in the ultimate reconciling sacrifice of the Lamb of God:

And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came up to him and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” And he said to them, “What do you want me to do for you?” And they said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” And they said to him, “We are able.” And Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized, but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.” And when the ten heard it, they began to be indignant at James and John. And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:35–45)

These would have been startling words to the disciples, who took their cue from worldly leadership models: “Whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (vv. 44–45). Even the Lord of the universe gave his human life to serve his people. Note again that servant leadership is true leadership, leading by being a blessing to others—by bearing the burdens of others. This is the authority of the cross.

For church officers, Peter gives divine wisdom crafted by the crucified Christ:

So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” (1 Pet. 5:1–5)

Notice that Peter uses the self-sacrificing image of the shepherd, “not domineering over those in your charge.” Overbearing authoritarianism has no place in Christian leadership in Christ’s church.

Nor does it have any place in the Christian home. Paul understands the sinful tendency of husbands and fathers when he counsels, “Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them. . . . Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged” (emphasis added, Col. 3:19, 21).

Husbands are explicitly called to imitate the crucified Christ in their marriage and home leadership.

Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. (Eph. 5:25–27)

All Christians are called to have servant-like lives by donning the attributes and attitudes of our crucified Savior:

Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. (Col. 3:12–15)

Fellow officers, please strive with me to crucify all domineering attitudes and ways that remain in us; let us exemplify the humble heart and service of our Lord. Biblical servant leadership navigates between the Scylla of authoritarian harshness and the Charybdis of egalitarian tyranny.

New Testament Believers Are Always Pilgrims

I have a few suggestions as to how we might put this servant leadership model into practice. Let me put it simply: We must avoid promoting an over-realized eschatology that almost erases the fourth state of man, consummation. In the secular world this is precisely what progressivism, socialism, and communism have always promoted in secular terms: a perfectly ordered state-controlled society, controlled by an elite who believe that they know best how everyone should live. This has led to untold disaster, and in the case of communism, to millions of lives lost or impoverished. In God’s Providence our particular constitutional republic takes into account the imperfection of humankind—thus its complex of checks and balances. And while it is true that probably only a few of the founders of our great republic were Christians, it is also true that there was a Christian moral consensus that understood the sinfulness of human beings, thus the founders created a system that seems to have kept wickedness in check for a quarter of a millennium.

Martin Luther’s way of understanding the pilgrim stance of servant leadership was to distinguish between a theology of glory (theologia gloriae) and a theology of the cross (theologia crucis).[3] He dealt with various political realities in his day by articulating this basic distinction. In our own tradition we have Geerhardus Vos, Meredith G. Kline, and Richard Gaffin emphasizing the Pauline eschatology of the “now and not yet.” With the wickedness of this present evil age, it is so tempting to want the not yet, now. But we must not hitch our wagon to a political party or system other than the eschatological plan of God. He calls us to be pilgrims. Our citizenship has been transferred from the kingdoms of this world to the kingdom of God:

So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God. (Eph. 2:19)

Thus, while we are no longer aliens from God’s kingdom, we have become aliens and exiles from the kingdoms of this world.

For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God. . . . These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. (Heb. 11:10, 13)

Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. (1 Pet. 2:11)

Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia. . . . And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile. (1 Pet. 1:1, 17)

Keep the Lord Jesus Christ central in your thinking, living, and preaching as the one who has been sent by our triune God into history to save us from sin and from death, remembering that the consummation of this redemption is yet future in the coming glory:

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. (2 Cor. 4:16–18)

This implies keeping secondary issues in their place, not that they are unimportant but certainly not the most important things. It also means that the church has a single mission, the worship of God, the spreading of the gospel, and means of grace ministry. PERIOD.

When it comes to culture and politics, it is tempting, given the moral and spiritual mess our culture is in, to seek secular control. But servant leadership calls us to resist such a temptation and follow the inherent call of pilgrims, which is a willingness to suffer. The nature of our office is entirely spiritual and ministerial, and it relies on the power of heavenly rule in the circumstances of our lives. The quest for worldly power to usher in God’s kingdom leads only to corruption and also, as seen in the theocracy of early New England, leads to hypocrisy. Seeking the powers of this present evil age is a dangerous project. We must not be seduced by it. Christians who are gifted for public service in civil government should seek political office, but not for the establishment of Christianity. They should exemplify humble service to the citizens of our country.

Amidst a fallen world with all its temptations and troubles, do not forget to enjoy God’s temporary blessings. They are temporary, but they are real, a balm for struggling pilgrims. Ecclesiastes has taught me this. Kohelet the preacher seasons his hebel teaching about the injustices, frustrations, and challenges of living in a fallen world under the sun with the counsel that we should eat and drink and take pleasure in our work and have joy before God, who is the giver of these things (Eccl. 2:24–26, 3:12–13, 5:18–20, 8:15, 9:7, 11:7–10). Despite the certainty of death, the believer’s hope in the resurrection is our ultimate encouragement as Paul reminds us: “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain” (1 Cor. 15:58).

We must follow the Servant who turned the world upside down through his cross. Follow the Via Crucis, the theology of the cross, not the theology of glory. Our glory is not found in this world but in the world to come, in the world above. Men who are ordained servant-leaders have real authority, but it is the authority of serving God and others, rather than ourselves. It is the authority of our crucified Lord.

*     *     *

I shall miss you, my dear readers. Your encouragements over the years as officers, and members, including a number of women, have been part of my spiritual sustenance. There has never been an endeavor in my life quite like this one. Many of you I do not know very well, but I sense that we have a camaraderie, that part where it means members of the body of Christ. I deeply appreciate the talented reservoir of godly writers that have graced the pages of Ordained Servant.

I bid you farewell.

Endnotes

[1] Collin Garbarino, “The Story He Told about Himself,” World (July 2026): 62–3.

[2] J. Gresham Machen, Christianity and Liberalism (Macmillan, 1923), 65.

[3] Luther expounded this doctrine at the Heidelberg Disputation of 1518.

Ordained Servant Online, November–December, 2026