Read James 1:1

James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes scattered among the nations: Greetings. (James 1:1)

This letter may have been written by James, the brother of Jesus Christ. “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas?” (Matthew 13:55). The Risen Christ appeared to James (1 Corinthians 15:7). James later became leader of the church in Jerusalem (see Acts 12:17; 15:13 and 21:18). This letter was written primarily for Jews who had become Christians and its date is uncertain.

Note the humility of James. He merely called himself “a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ” on his call card. He was following the example of his Master, Jesus Christ who was called to be a servant and who chose to be a servant. Isaiah’s prophecy (Isaiah 42:1) was fulfilled by Jesus Christ: “Here is my servant whom I have chosen, the one I love, in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him and he will bring justice to the nations.” (Matthew 12:18)

Jesus Himself said: “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45)

After He had washed His disciples’ feet, Jesus said to His disciples: “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord’, and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet.” (John 13:13-14)

All of us are leaders in some area of our life – even if our leadership is only over one person. How do we perform our leadership? Do we stress the fact that we are in authority and therefore demand obedience? Or do we realize that, as Christians, we are under authority and that we should demonstrate servant leadership, respecting and caring for those under our charge?

‘Boss’ or ‘Servant’ which sort of leadership do we demonstrate?

This meditation is extracted from “Transformation from Belief to Behaviour: 39 Lenten Meditations on the Letter of James” by Peter Young and used with permission by the author. It may be used solely for personal, noncommercial, and informational purposes. Republication or redistribution of this devotional is prohibited.

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