The Nebuchadnezzar school of leadership
Daniel 3: Anyone who does not kneel and worship shall be thrown…into a…furnace.
Any pollster will agree that an opinion freely given is more valuable than one that starts with, “If you don’t say this I’ll kill you.” One response of Nebuchadnezzar to his dream is to build a statue of himself and then command everyone to worship it. Can’t you imagine him watching this show and commenting, “See how they love me!” The truth of the matter is that there’s a lot more self-preservation than love going on in that event. This is leadership at its worst. A boss who says, “Do it or I’ll fire you” or a parent who says, “Do it or I’ll whip you” or a pastor who says, “Do it or God will get you” is a graduate of Nebuchadnezzar’s school of leadership. In this case, what the king wants is wrong in the first place, but even if what he wanted people to do was clearly the right thing he’s going about it in the wrong way. Real leaders lead by vision and example. People follow because they’ve made that vision their own and believe that the leader is the person who can help them get there. Jesus doesn’t say, “Follow me or you’re going to hell.” Instead, he says, “Follow me and I’ll make you fishers of men.”
Take Away: Real leaders lead by vision and example.