Day 18 – Building Others Up

The Shepherd Calls Us to Build Others Up

A godly leader does not simply accomplish things.

A godly leader develops people.

Leadership is not measured only by what we build, manage, organise, or accomplish.

It is also revealed in what happens to the people entrusted to our influence.

Are they becoming stronger?

Are they becoming more confident in serving God?

Are they growing in wisdom and character?

Are they becoming increasingly dependent upon Christ rather than upon us?

The world often celebrates leaders who stand above others.

Christ calls His followers to serve others.

A biblical leader uses their influence, words, experience, and opportunities to help others grow.

They encourage people when they are discouraged.

They strengthen those who are weak.

They correct when correction is necessary.

They create opportunities for others to develop.

They do not need to be the most important person in the room.

They are willing to help others become all that God has called them to be.

This is what it means to build others up.

Leadership Is About People

Every responsibility God gives a leader ultimately involves people.

A leader may manage a project, lead a ministry, oversee a team, carry responsibility within a family, or guide others in a workplace.

But behind every responsibility are people who need encouragement, guidance, patience, and care.

Paul tells the believers in Ephesus that their words should be used for building others up according to their needs.

This means biblical leadership pays attention to people.

Not everyone needs the same encouragement.

Not everyone needs the same correction.

Not everyone grows at the same pace.

A wise leader learns to recognise what people need and responds in a way that helps them mature.

Leadership is not simply directing people.

It is helping people grow.

Instead of asking only, “What can this person accomplish?” we should also ask, “How can I help this person grow?”

What does this person need? What gift might God be developing in them? What responsibility can I entrust to them? How can I correct them without discouraging them?

The Shepherd teaches us to see people not merely according to their present ability, but according to what He may be doing in their lives.

Barnabas: A Leader Who Encouraged Others

One of the clearest examples of this kind of leadership is Barnabas.

His name means “son of encouragement.”

When others were uncertain about Saul after his conversion, Barnabas stood beside him and helped the apostles recognise the work God had done in his life.

Later, Barnabas went to Tarsus to find Saul and brought him to Antioch.

Barnabas was not threatened by another person’s potential.

He recognised it.

He encouraged it.

He helped create an opportunity for Saul to serve.

This is an important lesson for leaders.

A secure leader does not need to keep everyone beneath them.

A secure leader is willing to help others rise.

Barnabas invested in someone whose ministry God would eventually use to influence the early Church and proclaim the Gospel widely.

He understood that leadership is not about protecting our position.

It is about helping others faithfully respond to what God is doing in their lives.

Jesus Invested in People

Jesus could have completed His earthly ministry without involving others.

Yet He deliberately chose twelve disciples and invested His life in them.

He taught them.

He corrected them.

He encouraged them.

He answered their questions.

He allowed them to serve.

He patiently developed them over time.

The disciples were not perfect when Jesus called them.

Peter was impulsive.

Thomas struggled with doubt.

James and John sought positions of honour.

The disciples argued about who was greatest.

Yet Jesus did not abandon them.

He patiently shaped them.

He saw what they could become through God’s work in their lives.

This is the heart of Christlike leadership.

A leader does not only see people as they are.

A godly leader can see what God may develop them to become.

Words That Give Life

Ephesians 4:29 places particular emphasis on our words.

Words can destroy confidence.

Words can create division.

Words can discourage someone who is already struggling.

But words can also bring courage.

They can restore hope.

They can strengthen faith.

They can give someone the confidence to continue.

They can help someone see a possibility they could not yet see for themselves.

This does not mean that a leader should constantly praise people or avoid correction.

Sometimes the most loving words are difficult words.

But even correction should have restoration as its purpose.

Before we speak, we should ask:

Will these words help this person grow?

That question can transform the way we lead.

Building others up does not mean telling people only what they want to hear.

Sometimes building someone up requires encouragement. Sometimes it requires correction. Sometimes it requires clarity. Sometimes it requires reminding someone of God’s truth when they have become discouraged.

The purpose is not to make people feel good for a moment. The purpose is to help them grow.

Before we speak, we should ask: Will these words help this person grow?

That question moves us away from speaking simply because we are frustrated, impatient, or eager to prove a point. It teaches us to consider what the other person actually needs.

What will encourage faithfulness? What will help them? What will point them toward Christ?

Building Others Through Opportunity

Encouragement is not only verbal.

Sometimes the greatest way to build someone up is to give them an opportunity.

Give someone responsibility.

Allow them to make decisions.

Teach them what you know.

Let them try.

Give them room to grow.

A leader who does everything personally may accomplish more in the short term, but they may prevent others from developing.

Jesus gave His disciples opportunities to serve.

Paul invested in Timothy.

Barnabas invested in Paul.

Mature leaders reproduce what God has developed in them by helping others grow.

The goal is not to create dependence upon the leader.

The goal is to develop maturity in the people being led.

Building Others Without Creating Dependence

There is an important distinction between developing people and making people dependent upon us.

A leader can become so central to someone’s life that the person begins to believe:

“I need my leader to make every decision.”

“I cannot do this without them.”

“I need their approval before I act.”

That is not the ultimate goal of biblical leadership.

The goal is maturity.

Paul did not invest in Timothy so that Timothy would remain permanently dependent upon Paul.

He equipped Timothy to serve faithfully.

Jesus did not develop His disciples so that they would remain helpless without His physical presence.

He prepared them to carry responsibility and proclaim the Gospel.

Healthy leadership therefore helps people learn to:

• think biblically
• pray
• make wise decisions
• take responsibility
• serve others
• handle correction
• use their gifts
• follow Christ faithfully

The goal is not to make ourselves indispensable.

The goal is to help others become mature.

The strongest leader is not necessarily the person everyone depends upon.

It is the person who helps others learn to depend upon Christ.

Our influence should eventually help people become more confident in following Jesus, not more dependent upon following us.

Building Without Needing Recognition

One of the greatest tests of leadership is whether we can celebrate someone else’s growth.

If another person succeeds, can we rejoice?

If someone we trained becomes better than us in a particular area, can we thank God?

If another leader receives recognition, can we celebrate without jealousy?

John the Baptist demonstrated this beautifully when people began following Jesus instead of him.

He said:

“He must become greater; I must become less.”

That is the heart of Christlike leadership.

The leader does not need to remain at the centre.

Christ must remain at the centre.

Our greatest success may sometimes be seeing someone we helped become stronger, wiser, and more faithful than they were before.

Sometimes we may help someone develop a gift that eventually becomes more visible than our own.

Sometimes we may train someone who receives recognition that we never received.

Sometimes we may prepare someone to take responsibility that we once carried.

How will we respond?

With jealousy?

With competition?

With control?

Or with gratitude?

A mature leader can say:

“Thank God for what He is doing through them.”

We do not need to protect our importance.

Our identity is not found in being needed by everyone.

Our identity is found in Christ.

God may allow someone we have helped to go further than we ever imagined.

That does not diminish our faithfulness.

It may actually be evidence that the investment was fruitful.

We are not called to build a legacy around ourselves.

We are called to be faithful with the people God places in our hands.

The Invitation

Jesus did not build a ministry around Himself alone.

He invested in people.

He developed disciples.

He entrusted responsibility to them.

He prepared them to continue the work after He returned to the Father.

Barnabas did the same.

He recognised potential in Saul and helped him grow.

Paul then invested in Timothy and others.

This is how godly leadership multiplies.

A leader’s legacy is not only what they accomplish personally.

It is also what continues through the people they have strengthened.

May we become leaders who encourage rather than discourage, develop rather than control, and strengthen rather than weaken.

May our words give life.

May our actions create opportunities.

And may our influence help others become more faithful followers of Christ.

For a leader who builds others up is helping people become stronger and more faithful followers of Christ, so that God may use their lives for His purposes.