Every effective leader has clearly defined core values. Read Mark 12:28-34.

When Jesus arrived in Jerusalem the religious leaders were determined to have Him executed but it was several days before Jesus was actually arrested. During that time the religious leaders and teachers of the law questioned Jesus often about His beliefs and values. Jesus’ answers always hit a truth that honored God and pointed to His core values.

Great leaders are not afraid to confront wrongdoing and stand up for what is right.  Read Mark 11:12-19.

Jesus was secure in His identity and mission. He had arrived in Jerusalem for what would be his last visit and when He arrived He visited His Father’s house, the Temple. While some of the business conducted in the temple’s outer courts provided traveling pilgrims with sacrificial animals for their offering, many of the people doing business in the Temple’s outer courts were doing business and hawking wares for profit and not to benefit the worshiper or to bring honor to God. Jesus did not seek permission to confront what was an obvious unfair, unauthorized, illegitimate use of the Temple’s outer court.

In every culture God-honoring leaders have universally recognized the virtue of justice and the treacherous nature of injustice. The effective leader understands that justice must be a priority and must be carried out properly and effectively. The Old Testament prophet Micah offered a simple key to leading justly. “Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of olive oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:7-8).

God demands that everyone act with justice and mercy but the stakes go up when leaders are involved. Leaders have influence and decide when customers are treated fairly and their team receives equal pay for equal work. Leaders decide who is promoted, who is transferred, who is hired and who is fired. Leaders often determine who is put in danger and must sort out the morass of ethical questions with justice and fairness. Leaders must be proactive and, like Jesus in the Temple, cannot allow obvious injustice to go unchallenged.

Do you turn your back on injustice because it may put you at risk with others in positions of authority? Leaders would do well to remember a statement by former British Prime Minister Margret Thatcher, “What great cause would have been fought for and won under the banner, ‘I stand for consensus’?” When a leader is proactive to bring justice to bear, there is seldom a consensus. God-honoring leaders are not afraid to confront wrongdoing and stand up for what is right.

One crucial message Jesus wanted His disciples to hear is that Kingdom leaders are servant leaders. Read Mark 10:35-45.

Jesus had been teaching some distance from Jerusalem. The religious leaders in Jerusalem had made it clear they intended to stop Jesus’ influence among the people, even if that meant killing Him, so Jesus’ followers were surprised when He started heading for Jerusalem. As they traveled, Jesus made it clear to His followers that their fears were valid and the chief priests and teachers of the law would have Him killed when they arrived in Jerusalem. It is against this backdrop that James and John, two of Jesus’ most trusted friends, came to Him and asked for favored positions when Jesus took up His leadership in heaven. To the other disciples their request felt like a betrayal of their friendship bond. James and John had sought positional advantage in an underhanded way.

A leader’s desire for greatness is good. It is the formula for greatness that can become a problem. Read Mark 9:33-37.

When Jesus confronted His disciples for arguing over which of them was greatest, they felt embarrassed. Jesus’ example had been that true greatness is measured by how leaders serve others not who achieves the most positional authority. Jesus’ formula for greatness did not center on pleasing other men but pleasing God. He made it clear that service to others is a measure of service we give to God. The Biblical formula to becoming a great leader is measured by how leaders serve others and thus serve God.

The wise leader seeks to move the team from leadership consumers to leadership contributors. Read Mark 8:1-21.

For the second time Jesus had fed a large crowd, this time in excess of 4,000. Jesus was teaching His disciples that God could provide a lot of food from a few loaves of bread and some small fish. A much deeper lesson came later when they realized that this miracle was just an example of how God provides for all their needs. This second level of understanding was critical for Jesus’ disciples to become leaders after His death.