The Four Faces of 'Leadership'

Ezekiel 1, Ezekiel 10, and Revelation 4 - Paralleled by the Four Gospels

Bruce E. Winston, PhD
This article provided by the Engstrom Institute

Scriptural concepts help leaders understand who to be (the ontological) and what to do (the axiological). I believe that all of us are leaders in one area or another, whether that is in the home, in the workplace, in the neighborhood, in the church, or in the government, and as such this article is helpful for everyone to understand the complexity of leadership.

Ezekiel in Ezekiel 1 and 10 as well as John in Revelation 4 describe the four faces of the 'living beings' that they saw. While there are some differences between these three accounts there are sufficient similarities to allow us to consider them as a complete description. By 'sufficient' I mean that in Ezekiel 10, Ezekiel records that the living beings that he sees are " . . . the living beings that I saw by the river Chebar" (Ez 10:15). We find in Ezekiel 1:1 that Ezekiel was by the river Chebar when he described the four 'living beings.' John, in Revelation 4, describes 'four creatures' and the Greek that we translate 'creature' (zoon) means 'living being." It is my premise for the article that the four faces of the living beings represent four modes of 'being' and 'doing' in how we should represent Christ in our leading others.

The Four Faces of the Living Beings

Although Ezekiel and John's descriptions of the four faces do not match exactly there are strong similarities. When we consider the variances in the Hebrew and Greek, the similarities of the passages outweigh the differences. In each of the following four sections I will present the similarities and differences of the four faces found in the three passages: (a) lion, (b) ox, (c) human, and (d) eagle.

The Face of a Lion

Ezekiel and John describe one of the faces as that of a lion. Scripture refers to lions metaphorically as a depiction of Judah itself (Genesis 49:9); strength (Judges 14:18, Job 10:16) hiding and waiting for an opportunity (Psalms 10:9, 17:12, Hosea 13:7), confidence in the face of adversity (Proverbs 30:30, Amos 3:8), and for Jesus (Revelation 5:5). The image of a lion brings to mind (a) royalty (the King of the Jungle), (b) a sense of order and process, (c) power, and (d) unwavering focus. We see these same elements in the Gospel of Matthew. We see Jesus' royal lineage (Mat. 1:1), the process of preparation (Mat 3:13-14), His unwavering focus on God's calling (Mat 11:27), and the power of God's elect (Mat 8:8, 8:27, 10:1).

There will be times when each of us will need to operate in the 'Lion-mode' of leadership in which we will need to base who we are and what we do on the authority given to us by our superiors and to use the power that we possess to accomplish what God has called us to do. Collins, in his book Good to Great, wrote about 'great leaders' maintaining a 'fierce resolve' in their approach to the organizations that they lead in both task and the vision/purpose. When the 'lion' in the organization speaks – people listen (Mat 8:27).

The lion's strength gives a sense of security to those whom the lion leads and allows the followers to be and do as needed without fear of outside attack. The next time you read the Gospel of Matthew, look for Jesus' admonitions to his disciples to do what they need to do irrespective of the 'storms' or the 'soldiers' they might encounter (Mat 8:23-27).

All of you, as members of the church are a royal people. You have a lineage from the church as well as from your individual families.

The Face of the Young Bull Ox

In Ezekiel 1, 10, and Revelation 4 we see references to the faces of a bull, a Cherub, and a calf, respectively. Remember that Ezekiel recorded in chapter 10 that the faces were the same as he saw the first time (Chapter 1) thus we can assume that the terms used in Chapter 1 (showr) and Chapter 10 (keruwb) imply the same image of a 'young being' as keruwb can be used for and since Ezekiel implied that the faces were the same we should look at John's account in Revelation 4 for clarity. John's account of the face uses the Greek moschos, which we can translate as calf, bullock or heifer. Moschos implies a young animal, hence the use of 'calf' that might also explain why Ezekiel used the word keruwb in that there is a connotation of 'young animal' in the deeper Hebrew meaning. Note that in Psalms, Proverbs, and Isaiah the word Showr is used to mean an ox that works or is sacrificed. The general sense of the three references is a young bull ox, an animal that is referred to in scripture as being fit for service (Ex. 23:12, Deu. 22:10, 25:4, Job 39:9-10, Prov 14:4, Amos 6:12, Isa 30:24 Luke 14:19) and sacrifice (Lev. 4:10, 9:4, 9:18, 2 Sam 6:13, 1Kings 18:23) and so it is that we, in our role of leadership and ambassadorship for Christ, will have to serve and sacrifice.

The value of an ox's service lies not in its lineage or authority but in its actual service and work. This shift from lineage to service applies to the Gospel of Mark, in that Mark's audiences, the Romans, were not concerned about lineage but about accomplishment and service. Sacrifice was an important factor to the Roman audience in that it was the highest form of service as long as the sacrifice was in service to the 'master.' As leaders we will serve our followers and we will, at times, sacrifice ourselves as needed in service to our 'Master.' The oxen-mode of being and doing is different than the lion-mode and requires a different set of values and desires. This does not negate the lion-mode but augments it.

Consider these elements of evidence about Jesus from the Gospel of Mark. We see the first reference to Jesus' work in Mark 1:14 showing Jesus preaching – no reference to his lineage, just a reference before this passage that John prepared a way for Jesus. Mark 1:22 shows that people were amazed at the quality of Jesus' teaching. In Mark 1:26 we see Jesus casting out demons and the people were amazed at His work. Later in the first chapter of Mark we see Jesus acting with compassion as he healed the leper. Service should be done with compassion – the next face.

The Face of a Man

Ezekiel and John both record that they saw among the four faces the face of a man. In the Hebrew the word Adam and in the Greek the word Anthropos both convey an image of human but not specifically male or female. Thus, we could interpret Ezekiel's and John's images as the image of humanity. The face of humanity ties well to the Gospel of Luke in that Luke's audiences were the Greeks who appreciated the totality of human-ness and Luke focused on Jesus' humanity. In the first chapter of Luke we see the description of John the Baptist where John is said to be merciful, holy, and righteous. In Luke 2:40 we find "[t]he Child continued to grow and become strong, increasing in wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him" that exemplifies the body, mind, and spirit of Christ. In Luke 4:1-14 we find the account of the temptation of Christ in which Luke presents Jesus as a whole person who withstands the temptations of the body, ego and self-aggrandizement.

In addition to the power/protection of the lion-mode and the service/sacrifice ox-mode, the human face calls upon leaders to be humane and compassionate. This is not in place of the first two modes but in addition to – all the modes are to be in use at the same time. As leaders we will need to demonstrate our humanity and compassion. There must be a sense of mercy and grace to the power and the service in our leadership and ambassadorship. Colossians 3:12 provides an excellent overview of this concept "[s]o, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience." In Luke 15:20 we see the father of the prodigal son showing humanity for his son and in Luke 10:33 we see the compassion of the Good Samaritan.

As leaders we should be known by our humanity and our compassion. There will be times when we make decisions that have the best interest of our followers in mind even to the detriment of the organization. Will we greet our prodigal employees with open arms and sacrifice our belongings to have a celebration? Will we stop along our journey and demonstrate the compassion of the Good Samaritan? Will we 'be' and 'do' the metaphor of the face of humanity?

The Face of an Eagle

The three accounts of the faces agree on the fourth face as the face of an eagle or as some might translate the Hebrew nesher and the Greek aetos as either an eagle or a vulture, but most uses of these two words usually refer to an eagle. The Old Testament image of an eagle includes reference to nesting on high (Job 39:27, Obediah 1:4), renewed (Psalms 103:5), flies toward the heavens (Prov 23:5), and swift (Jer. 48:40). The eagle, like the Gospel of John reaches far beyond the immediate territory, as contrasted to the journeys of the lion that remain close to small territory. The eagle's vision is far-reaching but narrow-focused and sees the details, which is similar to the message of the Gospel of John that focused on the details of the truth of who Jesus is.

In addition to the power of the lion, the service of the ox, and the compassion of the human, you will be called upon to rise to new heights, see the details of truth and hunt out what is important in your organization. As you find the truth you will bring it back to your nests on high and share it with those who are in your charge. This is the base of the Gospel of John where the message of Truth was conveyed to the broad audience of the Gentiles. Even in the opening of John (Chapter 1: verse 1) we see the reference to the 'Word' (used to refer to Jesus), which is the Greek Logos that is used to convey a sense of truth or doctrine. John 1:7 continues this theme when John writes that Jesus came as a witness to testify about the light (light here is a metaphor for the Truth). In John 1:50 Jesus indicates that he has 'seen' the truth.

The eagle is visible to all as it soars, which is in contrast to the lion, which uses the grass of the Savannah to provide cover as it hunts. In the second chapter of John we see Jesus' visibility in the miracle of turning water into wine. The eagle's call, like the lion's, is clear and distinct, known by all, thus your message as a leader should be clearly recognized by all. This clarity of message can be seen in John 4:19 when the woman at the well recognized Jesus. So it is in our leadership that what we do must be seen by all.

Operating in all Four Modes

In conclusion, to be complete you will need to operate in all four modes of leadership in every way and every time. While the modes may be greater or lesser to each other in every action you will still find all four working together. Stand firm in the excellence that comes from Christ Jesus. I encourage you to contemplate the four faces each day that you lead and seek to be all the faces all the time.

Dr. Bruce Winston is the Dean of Regent University's School of Global Leadership and Entrepreneurship. His research and writing interests include scripturally-based leadership, servant leadership, and entrepreneurship. He has lectured and consulted in the USA, Canada, and South Africa. Prior to his academic career he worked in the commercial printing industry. You can find more details and contact information at: http://www.regent.edu/acad/global/facultyandstaff/winston/home.shtml