Strong Enough to Be Gentle

Child of the 80’s

I am a proud child of the 1980s, which boasted a litany of cartoons and toys that are still popular today. My favorite toy line and cartoon, above all, were the Transformers. And, of course, my childhood hero was the leader of the Autobots, Optimus Prime. Over the years, the man who voiced Optimus, Peter Cullen, has shared the inspiration for the character. It was none other than his older brother, Larry, who served in the Marines. Cullen greatly admired his older brother. When Cullen was headed to the audition for the cartoon character, Peter told his older brother that Prime was a leader and a hero. Larry gave his younger brother some valuable advice. He said, “Peter, if you’re gonna be a hero, be a real hero. Be strong enough to be gentle.” This advice from Larry soon became the foundational character trait of Optimus Prime.

Strong Enough

Strong enough to be gentle, I like that. Gentle strength truly is a good quality in a leader. But it is often not celebrated enough. And yet, we find this example throughout Scripture. Most notably, Jesus embodies this characteristic. In Isaiah 42:3, God tells of the coming Messiah. The prophet states, “A bruised reed He will not break, and a faintly burning wick He will not quench.” This highlights the gentle nature of Jesus, who will not discard the broken and weak. As we progress through the gospel accounts, we find this prophecy to be an exact depiction of the Messiah. Jesus continually welcomes the broken, sick, and outcasts of society. He is loving, patient, and gentle with them.

Gentleness

The apostle Paul speaks as well about the importance of gentleness. He reminds the Thessalonian believers of his gentleness in his ministry to them. And he repeatedly calls for believers to be gentle in their treatment of others. In Galatians 5:23, gentleness is mentioned as a fruit of the Spirit. In Ephesians 4:2, Paul encourages the believers in that church to treat each other with gentleness. Paul encourages Titus to instruct the believers in Crete to be gentle in Titus 3:2. In Galatians 6:1, Paul advises the Christians to use gentleness in confronting disobedience. A final example is Paul’s instruction to his protégé in 1 Timothy 6:11 to pursue gentleness as a quality of his pastoral ministry. He builds on this idea in 2 Timothy 2:25 and states that all pastoral leaders must use gentleness to correct opponents.

I was surprised to discover how often Paul references the concept of gentleness. Maybe it was because I pictured Paul as the fiery apostle and evangelist. After all, there are many examples of him attacking those who sought to distort or compromise the gospel. Moreover, there are many examples of Jesus doing the same thing with the religious rulers of His time.

Balanced

So, which is it? Should leaders be strong, overturning tables like Jesus and confronting sin? Or should they be meek and gentle?  I think the answer is both. Leaders must be strong enough to be gentle. We must be strong in our commitment to the gospel and our principles. We cannot compromise on these core convictions. And when these are threatened, we must speak up and correct them with boldness and clarity. We must be willing to speak the truth to others and hold people accountable for their actions.

But we must do so with gentleness. The goal is not for the leader to win the argument or dominate. The goal is for reconciliation, redemption, restoration, and renewal. We must lead by recognizing our desperate need for grace and a deep dependence on Jesus as our source of strength, power, and wisdom (see Galatians 6:1 and John 15:5).

So, I think it is vital that we as leaders follow the model of leadership demonstrated in the lives of Jesus, Paul, and even childhood heroes like Optimus Prime. Let us lead with a strength that allows us to be gentle.