The Greatest Leader: 5 easy steps to getting outsiders to participate
In high school, it was the poor kid who never showered.
On the softball team, it was the girl who always struck-out at the bottom of the ninth.
At church, it’s the gossiper.
At work, it’ the annoying guy that stops at your desk and rambles on and on about his missing stapler.
You know who I’m talking about, right? The outsider. Outcast. Loner. Call her what you want, she’s the person everyone goes out of their way to avoid. We’ve all experienced it — and chances are, we’ve been that person a time or two.
So what do we do when we’re stuck on a team with one of these ‘black sheep’? It’s easy to feel like there’s no way you can succeed with someone like that on your team. They’ll mess something up for sure, right?
Outsiders have been around for a long time. I think even Adam & Eve’s son, Cain, felt a bit rejected. In fact, there were many people in the Bible that were outcasts in their society — many of them because of their physical appearance, especially those with leprosy.
But there was one man who didn’t have a repulsive appearance; in fact he was presumably pretty rich. He probably wore colorful robes and the highest-quality sandals. Ironically, it was his career that labeled him an outcast. Levi was a tax collector.
Let’s be honest — that job title comes with baggage even now. But back then, these tax collectors would collect money from the Jews to give to the Roman government. they were allowed to collect more than the allotted amount to keep for themselves, and many of them took advantage of this. So it’s not hard to see that the Israelites were not fond of these guys.
Levi (a.k.a. Matthew by the Romans) recorded his interaction with The Greatest Leader.
Read Matthew 9:9-13
I can imagine Matthew was pretty bored, sitting at his booth all day. He probably didn’t have many visitors. In fact, I picture most people crossing to the other side of the street to avoid him. What if when Jesus walked by, his big entourage following him crossed to the other side even while Jesus approached Levi! It’s funny how many people will only follow Jesus so far…
When Jesus told Matthew to get up and follow him, there was no hesitation — Matthew jumped up and followed him! Part of me wonders if he even left behind his money bag. It makes sense to me; I imagine if everyone went out of their way to avoid me, and a man being followed by a large crowd told me to follow him too, I’d do the same thing! He was longing for companionship. He was hungry for community.
It’s no surprise that it didn’t take Matthew long to invite Jesus and his followers to his home for a feast. I imagine it was quite a feast too. I’m sure Matthew was ready to impress! He even invited his colleagues to the party, other tax collectors and “sinners” (a.k.a. people, because we all fit that category).
Were they the only ones who would accept his invitation other than Jesus and company? Did Matthew specifically seek this type of crowd out, knowing that they needed to meet this most-interesting man? I guess we’ll never know.
Regardless, there were some who were less impressed that Jesus would hang out with such a crowd. I bet we can liken the scene to that of a middle-school dance: “sinners” on the left, “perfect people” on the right. These self-acclaimed models of perfection were known as pharisees, or teachers of the law.
In their time, they weren’t necessarily bad — they only tried to teach people to follow the Scriptures as they new them. There hadn’t been a Messiah yet to fulfill the law, therefore they knew it needed to be followed.
When these pharisees saw the crowd waiting for them at the dinner party, they were less than impressed. “Why does your teacher eat with such scum?” the NLT reads. That’s what they asked Jesus’ disciples. As a teacher, he should probably be eating with other teachers. That’s what they did.
It’s interesting that they asked them instead of Jesus Himself. Maybe he was busy chatting with one of the other guests. Maybe they didn’t want another guest to hear their insult. Maybe they were jealous that the disciples were following Him instead of one of them. Either way, it sounds ironically like what we might hear in one of our circles today (i.e. heard in the high school cafeteria: “Why is Jackson eating with the nerds?”)
Jesus heard them. Oops. His response probably made them think: “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do.” But before they could respond, he paraphrased a quote they were very familiar with from the prophet Hosea; “I want you to show love, not offer sacrifices” (Hosea 6:6).
When Hosea wrote it, it was a basic plea for goodness and kindness. Jesus took it a small step further in Matthew: “I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices.” It’s not much of a difference, but there’s a slight change that is actually pretty significant. By adding this word ‘mercy’ (eleos in greek), Jesus literally meant to show kindness to the miserable and afflicted.
Jesus goes on to say that he didn’t come to call those who thought they were ‘perfect’; He was calling and inviting those who knew they were sinners. In other words, He’s not there for the pharisees. He’s there for the prostitutes and tax collectors. Wow.
You see, Jesus knew that the sinners in the room — including Matthew — were hurting. They were miserable. They absolutely knew that they were enslaved in sin and filth, but didn’t know how to get out of it. For many, this might have been a last resort — to risk everything, go to a tax collector’s home, and meet a very unusual Teacher who just might have an answer for them. Boy, does He ever.
So as we look at this story that’s packed with all kinds of lessons for everyday life, what can we learn about teamwork? I know it’s tough to see it, but it’s there. Take a minute and think about your team. Think about that oddball that no one seems to get along with. Think about the girl who is so shy, it’s nearly impossible to get them out of the corner at the company parties. Think about the guy who always messes up the project and angers everyone. Picture them in that room broken and afflicted, sitting at the feet of Jesus.
How to make the outcast in your team feel like he is a vital member
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Recognize/acknowledge them
Jesus saw Matthew sitting at his table and approached him when others would deliberately avoid him.
Don’t ignore or forget those on the fringe of your team. Don’t count out someone as a potential team member just because they are different. Acknowledge them and get to know them. They’re probably desperate to get to know you, too.
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Invite them to participate in the team’s tasks.
Jesus extended an invitation to Matthew, and Matthew dropped everything to follow Him. Eventually Matthew would become one of the pillars of carrying the message of Christ to the ends of the earth.
If you see a teammate standing on the sidelines, don’t let them get away with it. Invite them in. When a member of your team isn’t adding to the discussions, don’t chastise them. Invite them to be a part of the group.
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Encourage their strengths.
Matthews obviously loved hospitality. He threw a great party. This wasn’t just a quite dinner for a select few; it was a bash with “many” people invited, not to mention Jesus and His growing entourage! It would have been easy for Jesus to toss His invitation aside. There were more important things to do, right? Nope. Jesus did the unthinkable: He showed up. Just by showing up, He was showing Matthew that he mattered.
Show that duckling in your group that he matters, too. be intentional at spotting their strengths. So they aren’t great at public speaking? Maybe they’re great artists. Not the best athlete? Maybe she’s better at strategy. Think he’s no good at project managing? Maybe he has an awesome eye for detail.
You may not find anything they excel at right away. Just look for something they enjoy, or seem to do pretty well. Then help them develop that as a strength.
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Stand up for them.
When The other teachers of the law began discreetly tossing insults around about the “oddballs” of the party, Jesus confronted them. He exposed their pride, and challenged their knowledge of the very literature they spent their lives studying and discussing. In doing so, He stood up for the ones He was really there for.
It’s easy for gossip and complaining to grow in teams when not everyone is alike. Negativity in a team will spread like wildfire. Don’t let it continue. The instant you hear anyone speaking or acting in a negative way about one of your teammates, confront it. Stomp that fire out.
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Get rid of the hater, not the hated.
Jesus called those who knew they were sinners, not those who thought they were righteous. There’s nothing Jesus can do with someone who is full of pride. A proud person sees through a filter; he only believes what he wants to believe.
When you discover that someone in your team is so prideful that he can’t work with a certain teammate, then she’s no longer useful to the team. Cut her off. If you oversee multiple teams and want to see how she’ll work with one of the others, be my guest. But don’t be surprised if this peacock in your group is too proud of herself to be any good.
Jesus Acknowledged Matthew, invited him, encouraged his strengths, stood up for him when others attacked, and made it known that He was there for Matthew, and not them. So what about you? Is there someone on your team that needs someone to notice them?
Maybe it’s time you stopped going with the rest of the crowd ignoring the outsiders, and began inviting them to be involved. Who knows, they may run away screaming. But maybe they’ll have a good time. Maybe they’ll actively participate in their own way, and really contribute. Maybe — just maybe — they’ll write a book about you that will be read by millions.
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