Why Jesus Refused to Be a Peacekeeper

Are you a peacekeeper? Do you run around trying to make sure everyone is happy? I bet that is a pretty exhausting way to go through life. The truth is that even though Jesus is the Prince of Peace, He wasn’t a peacekeeper. Rather, He was a peacemaker. Peacekeepers are governed by wanting to please people and make sure that everyone is always happy. The problem with this kind of thinking is that peacekeepers put bandages on broken hose pipes, which is only a symptomatic cure and never actually fixes the roots of problems.

Jesus wasn’t afraid to do things that would offend people. He knew He was on a mission, and He did what His Father told Him to do, which sometimes meant upsetting the crowd. He lived out the truth that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Prov. 9:10). I want to propose to you that the fear of men is the beginning of a person’s downfall. If we want to be good leaders, whether that means in our ministries, our families or our businesses, we must learn how to lead people without being afraid of them.

Leaders Fear God, Not Men

Check out today’s Monday Motivation that I took from one of my Facebook Live videos for more on breaking out of the fear of man:

In a nutshell:

• Great leaders are peacemakers, not peacekeepers.
• Jesus refused to make peace by making everything and everyone equal. He had boundaries.
• Being a good leader means not always having to explain yourself, because leaders can’t always share every piece of information on sensitive subjects.
• If you fear people, you’re not leading them but rather they are leading you.
• Realize that, if you’re going to be a great leader, there will be times when your followers will misunderstand you.

Takeaway for the Week

Let’s be the kind of leaders who want to please God over pleasing man, who lead others into trusting God in every situation and who love our congregation enough to prioritize leading them over pleasing them. This is one of the most difficult parts of being a leader, but it’s part of what comes with the responsibility. I want to reiterate and leave you with this verse for the week: Proverbs 9:10 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” How can you be a leader who fears God over man this week? Let me know in the comments! {eoa}

Kris Vallotton is the senior associate leader of Bethel Church in Redding, California and cofounder of Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry (BSSM). Kris travels internationally, training and equipping people to successfully fulfill their divine purpose. He’s a best-selling author, having written more than a dozen books and training manuals to help prepare believers for life in the kingdom. He has a diverse background in business, counseling, consulting, pastoring and teaching, which gives him unique leadership insights and perspectives. Kris has a passion to use his experience and his prophetic gift to assist world leaders in achieving their goals and accomplishing their mission.

This article originally appeared at krisvallotton.com.