Much has been written on leadership. Little has been written about faith at work. Book after book after book teaches about leadership. Recently there has been a trend to talk about “servant leadership” under the premise that is the way Jesus would have us lead.

That is a paradox. Jesus did not teach that. Jesus taught something entirely different.

It is God who places us in a position of leadership because we have a servant’s heart and place ourselves last. Our goal is not to lead. Our goal is not to be first. Our Goal is always to serve.

The goal that Jesus has in mind for us to be humble and to serve others at work. Jesus wants us to follow him and his lead. Jesus clearly showed us it is all about service. That is all it is about. Jesus is not training leaders. Jesus is training servants. We are to follow his lead and in our discipling of others, train them to be servants as well.

A paradox is “a statement or proposition that, despite sound (or apparently sound) reasoning from acceptable premises, leads to a conclusion that seems senseless, logically unacceptable, or self-contradictory.”

Source: PARADOX English Definition and Meaning | Lexico.com

The way I see it: There is no such thing as a servant leader. It does not exist in the reign of God where Jesus is in complete control. Our mission, given to us by Jesus is to live out our faith at work. Our goal is not to lead. Our goal is not to be first. Our Goal is to always serve.

Why it matters: Our focus matters. If we see being a servant as a pathway to leadership, then we are focused on the wrong thing. The end game is about service always. Any other way leads to the dangerous world of hypocrisy. People will see that the only reason we are doing something is to get something for ourselves. That type of motive is transparent. That type of motive makes us a hypocrite.

The broad view: God wants us to do amazing, beautiful work. In the example in Exodus below, God does not want us design junk jewelry.

• God wants us to design artistic works.
• To make this happen, God gives us his Spirit.
• God gives wisdom.
• God gives us understanding.
• God gives us ability.

The Lord also spoke to Moses: “Look, I have appointed by name Bezalel son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. I have filled him with God’s Spirit, with wisdom, understanding, and ability in every craft to design artistic works in gold, silver, and bronze, to cut gemstones for mounting, and to carve wood for work in every craft.

Exodus 31:1–6 (CSB)

Good news: God cares about us, and God cares about our work. By fulfilling his glory, we get his bountiful worth of satisfaction in doing a great job. It is not about the work. It is about his glory.