Jesus the Ultimate Undercover Boss
As you may be aware, Undercover Boss is a reality television show where a leader at a large company works in disguise as an entry-level employee in an effort to discover faults in the company. I had the honor of being the first Undercover Boss while I served as President of Waste Management.
I spent the days of filming doing frontline jobs, such as cleaning Port-O-Lets, sorting waste at a recycling plant, working the back of a garbage truck collecting trash, and operating the scales at a landfill - jobs that are essential for the operation of Waste Management but are not necessarily the most glamorous. I learned valuable lessons of how a positive attitude and spreading the joy of Christ can make any situation enjoyable.
I actually was doing some of these frontline jobs working alongside our employees even before the Undercover Boss show (which is one of the reasons they wanted me to do the first show). I always gained insightful information on the inner workings of Waste Management and what was working and what was causing frustration for our employees, that I would not have otherwise learned about in my role as President of the company. Learning more about the people of the company and ways that I could help them, serve them, and set an example of servant leadership made me think about how Jesus, in a way, is the ultimate Undercover Boss.
Sent to Earth as a humble man, the Savior of the World was born in a stable and placed in a feeding trough (Luke 2:7), and He also rode into Jerusalem on a donkey (John 12:14). While these fulfilled prophecies in the Old Testament given hundreds of years prior, both unassuming and humble entrances are certainly not what you expect of an all powerful God and King. And while I wouldn’t want to take this too far, Jesus was certainly the ultimate Undercover Boss. Can you imagine a royal baby of today being born in a barn without the attention and media coverage making it a world event?
While He never demanded attention or sought to impress others, Jesus had influence wherever He went. He was a friend to the people viewed as outcasts and sinners. He remained loyal to His followers and stayed focused on His message of forgiveness of sins and salvation for those that knew they could not get right with God on their own because of their sin and who believed in Him as their Lord and Savior. Even though Jesus is the second person of the Godhead, He made it clear that He came to serve and not be served (Matthew 20:26). Certainly not what you would expect from an all-powerful God and King.
Jesus lived His life on earth as a servant to others, setting an example for how we should live. He made it clear that as Christians, we are not to use the typical top-down leadership style that is so prevalent in our culture today, where everyone is there to serve the leader. Jesus modeled servant leadership to us, and told us that as Christians, we are to serve those that we lead (Matthew 20:25-26) rather than utilize the top-down leadership model. Likewise, we should not seek out accolades or attention for our own glory, but be ever willing to roll up our sleeves to further His Kingdom and bring Him glory.
Jesus’ last words to us was to command us to go and make disciples (Matthew 28:19-20). Scripture tells us that it is the Pastor’s role to equip us to build up the body of Christ (Ephesians 4:11-12). So who are you pouring your life into to help them grow in their personal relationship with the Lord? Ask the Holy Spirit to help you discern what God’s intended role is for you to help carry out His plan to build His Kingdom. We should ask the Holy Spirit to work in and through us daily, to help us model our actions and behaviors after Jesus to lead others in His unending love, joy and peace. No matter what type of leader you have been up until now, tomorrow is a new day to begin to lead as a servant leader, serving others, and placing their interests ahead of your own, whether it be your coworkers, friends, family, or spouse. Give it a try, and watch your relationships blossom!