The Leadership Paradox: A Ransom for Many

God could have chosen to disdain man, to create other creatures who would serve Him, or to abide alone in all His glory. Instead, He chose to take on the form of man and to dwell among us in the person of Christ (John 1:14; Phil. 2:5-11). He did this in order that He might lead us out of bondage into freedom. Because Christ was willing to suffer and to die, He will reign as King of Kings and Lord of Lords!

Several points stand out. One, Christ, the Second Person of the Godhead, was ultimately worthy to be the sacrifice for sins. He was without sin! Two, Christ paid the ultimate sacrifice. He emptied Himself and became man. He took upon Himself the form of a slave or bond-servant (doulou, slave). Then, He suffered and died for us. Three, Christ is the ultimate leader. He rose from the grave and is the head of the church. He is coming back in power and in glory to be the King.

Christ was unique! We cannot match Him in any way, but we can follow His example. Paul exhorts us to: “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 2:5). When we have the attitude of Christ, we will be willing to pay any price to tell the story of redemption.

The apostle Paul is an example for us. He said, “I bear on my body the brand-marks [stigmata] of Jesus” (Gal. 6:17). Paul bore the literal scars on his body of his many beatings. In addition, he bore the marks in a figurative way. The word “brand-marks” is a translation of the Greek word stigmata. ?We take our English word stigma from this Greek word. Paul accepted the stigma of the cross and was a faithful witness.

Our Lord calls upon us to invest our lives in redemptive service. Through our service, people are blessed and their lives are changed. Sometimes this service demands a price, but we can be confident that our Lord will reward us. We have a great future! The apostle Paul, who was both a leader and was great, declared: "If we endure, we shall also reign with Him" (2 Tim. 2:12).