Was Jesus a Coach or a Boss?

When I look at the Gospels, I see Jesus embracing a coach-like ministry with his disciples. He didn’t simply sit in the synagogue all day, sending the disciples out to perform duties. That would be a very boss-like role. Instead, Jesus brought the disciples along and showed them how to live out ministry, coaching them along the way.

There were times of joy, sadness and even rebuke; all shared within the team of disciples. Seemingly in all aspects of ministry, Jesus was the perfect example of what a coach should be to His team. In turn, we should be very careful to follow a coach-like persona with staff and/or volunteers to which we lead. I’m not saying that I’ve arrived by any means, but I’m trying.

What about the captain of the team?

To look into this metaphor further, sometimes we might have to be the captain of the team as well as the coach. Again, looking at Jesus’ example, though He spent a lot of time coaching His disciples, He was a key player as well. Jesus’ constant communication with the Father proved His submission to be coached.

Depending on our area of ministry, we may find ourselves in a situation where we need to move from the position of coach to the position of captain. There may come a time when we have to step out on the field and put ourselves under the council of a coach.

What about assistant captains?

The last perspective is to look at the role of assistant captain. Yet again, going back to Jesus’ example, Scripture seems to indicate Peter, James and John as an inner circle of disciples. Keeping with our team metaphor once again, these were Jesus’ assistant captains.

To look at Peter specifically, Jesus ended up passing His ministry on to Peter. Essentially Peter was moved up to the roster, to the position of captain. Later in Acts, we find him establishing the church in a coach-type role.

All of this considered, for those of us who are embracing a boss-like approach within our business or ministry; we might want to look at Jesus’ approach and rethink our leadership style.

Join the Conversation; Share Your Thoughts

What other team perspective parallels do you see in Jesus’ life and ministry?