Lead with justice and righteousness in difficult times

The 21st century church needs apostolic leaders for chaordic times when elements of chaos and order converge, Randel Everett told attendees of the 2024 Christian Leadership Summit at Dallas Baptist University.

“We are immigrants in a brand new world,” said Everett, a former executive director of the Baptist General Convention of Texas who recently retired as founder and president of the human rights organization 21Wilberforce.

Rapid technological advances and mass global migration are creating extraordinary opportunities and challenges for the global church, he noted.

The current context calls for apostolic leaders in the church – those who believe that they have been sent by God into the world with the message of hope in Christ, he asserted.

Everett contrasted the crowd in Jerusalem to whom Peter preached in Acts 2 – Jews who shared a common religious background and understanding of the Bible – and those to whom Paul addressed on Mars Hill in Acts 17 – Athenians who represented a wide variety of philosophies.

“We live in Athens, not Jerusalem,” he said.

Many people today do not share a Christian worldview, but they are spiritually hungry and longing for meaningful relationships in a world where they often feel isolated, he noted.

Rather than presenting logical evidence in a linear fashion, non-Christians from diverse backgrounds in a chaotic age respond better to narratives – personal stories, Everett noted.

Recognize citizenship in God’s kingdom

Apostolic leaders in the current context must be involved in society and seek to have a positive influence in their communities and countries, he said.

However, they must recognize that they are sojourners whose primary identity is that of citizens of God’s kingdom, he added.

“Our ultimate authority is in Christ. Our ultimate instructions are in God’s word,” Everett said. “We must never forget that our first loyalty is to Jesus Christ.”

Church leaders today need a Christian worldview that is historically grounded and global in scope, he said. Christians in the West can learn profound lessons from fellow believers in other parts of the world living under oppression and persecution, he asserted.

“The Bible makes sense to them because the Bible was written by persecuted people, for persecuted people,” said Everett, senior fellow for religious freedom at DBU’s Institute for Global Engagement. “We have to listen and we have to learn. … We are part of a global family.”

Moreover, apostolic leaders in the 21st century must be willing to take risks and “travel light” so that they can respond freely and flexibly to rapidly changing circumstances, he said.

“We need leaders who will persevere,” Everett said. “We need leaders who are determined, whose eyes are on Jesus.”

‘Execute righteousness and justice’

Christian leaders have a responsibility to lead with justice and justice, says Raymond Harris, an architect and entrepreneur who has used his profits to invest in the lives of others committed to justice and promoting sustainable community development in Africa and Asia.

“I believe that righteousness and justice are sisters of the Bible,” says Harris, senior fellow in entrepreneurship at DBU’s Institute for Global Engagement. “When justice prevails, people flourish around leaders.”

Scripture provides examples of righteousness among “the least,” such as a widow who gave everything she had to the temple treasury and a woman who showed “righteous extravagant generosity” when she anointed Jesus, he noted.

Leaders must consider not only how their decisions benefit the poor and vulnerable, but also how they can learn from the poor about what really matters in God’s economy, he said.

“We can learn a lot about justice from the most unlikely people,” Harris said. “Those who are poor in society and low in society have a lot to teach us about leadership. You see, in God’s upside-down economy, he uses the least and the poor to demonstrate true eternal righteousness.”

Practice the Golden Rule

Guiding by principles of fairness and justice – especially in the marketplace – means the Golden Rule must govern decision-making and business deals, Harris said.

“Think about the contract negotiations you’ll have to do one day and do it from the other side of the table,” he said. ‘What is really best for the other person? And can you live with that?”

All interpersonal transactions in the marketplace “must be characterized by God’s righteous love,” he said. “And this can be demonstrated very simply by gratitude and generosity.”

Righteousness is a gift that God gives to those who submit to the lordship of Christ and allow their lives to be guided by the Holy Spirit, he explained.

“Our works on earth develop our righteousness, but do not create our righteousness,” he said.

Harris explored the relationship between “doing and becoming” as it relates to justice and justice.

“The more we do good works, the more we develop a character of righteousness,” he said. “Righteousness is truly a gift from God and we must work to integrate it into our daily lives by living closely with the Holy Spirit. (…) Right actions produce fruits that develop right character, and right character motivates us to do good deeds.”

Leaders have a responsibility to empower others to pursue justice and equity, he asserted.

“We must achieve justice and equity. We must establish justice so that those around us can prosper, and we must establish justice to care for those who cannot care for themselves so that they too can experience abundant life,” he said.

“Building your leadership around justice and righteousness will provide a light to those in darkness, to those who need to be saved, and to those who need to be lifted up.”

Stories have the power to promote empathy

In a world of “selfies” and a narcissistic preoccupation with oneself on social media, leaders have a responsibility to instill empathy in themselves and those who follow them, says Mary Nelson, director of the Ph.D. program in leadership studies at DBU’s Gary Cook School of Leadership.

“Leaders need empathy,” Nelson said, noting how compassion fatigue and psychological numbing can contribute to a sense of hopelessness.

Jesus modeled “the power of story” and leaders have a responsibility to be open to learning from stories, she said.

“How can we lead diverse populations if we don’t take the time to learn their stories?” she asked. “As leaders, we cannot afford to be callous.”

Research shows that employees thrive when they work with empathetic leaders who are person-centered and sensitive to different cultures, she says.

“Reading can expand our awareness of the world beyond our phones and beyond ourselves and deepen our empathy,” says Nelson, a professor of English.

Literature can “expand the scope of our empathy” by introducing readers to people, cultures and experiences beyond their own lives, she noted.

Fiction offers the opportunity to “plunge into the unknown,” and it “humanizes experiences” that may be personally unknown to the reader, she noted.

“I really believe that fiction helps you read the world better,” she said. “It helps you to be more sensitive to the world around you.

“Let us never forget that we are called to ‘weep with those who weep.’ We need to find ways to break compassion fatigue. The hurting world needs love, and it needs Christ so much.

“So I would encourage you to let fiction awaken the empathy within you and show you people and worlds you have yet to explore.”