Today is Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Throughout the nation, this great man will be remembered with honor for the leadership he gave the Civil Rights Movement. That Movement exposed the longstanding legal injustices, as well as the social and economic inequities, faced by black Americans. Through Dr. King, it articulated the vision of a better nation, a country where equality would a matter of fact not aspiration, a “beloved community.”  It is thus appropriate to take this day to remember the man and the Movement, to reflect on how far our nation has come since his time, and to consider how far it has yet to go. 

Because many others will do these things far better and more eloquently than I, I want to focus your attention on the topic of leadership by looking at a sermon Dr. King preached two months before his assassination. Titled “The Drum Major Instinct,” it is based on Mark 10:35–45, in which James and John say to Jesus, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory” (v. 37). In response to this request, Jesus articulated a new understanding of leading: “Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all.” 

Dr. King pointed out that we, like the disciples, quickly condemn James and John, but the truth is that we all, like them, have “a kind of drum major instinct—a desire to be out front, a desire to lead the parade, a desire to be first.” This desire runs “the whole gamut of life,” from a baby’s first cry to our desire to join clubs to our tendency to live beyond our financial means in order “to outdo the Joneses.”

The problem is that the Drum Major Instinct becomes “destructive” if it is not “harnessed.” How so? Dr. King lists various examples of the destructive path of the Drum Major Instinct. It distorts the personality, causes a person to do things just to get attention, leads us “to push others down in order to push [ourselves] up,” and generates “snobbish exclusivism.” But it also promotes “race prejudice” and “the struggle between nations.” Dr. King explained, “what is wrong in the world today is that the nations of the world are engaged in a bitter, colossal contest for supremacy.” And he didn’t exempt America from this analysis: “I am sad to say that the nation in which we live is the supreme culprit.” 

This morning, you can be on his right hand and his left hand if you serve. It’s the only way in. ~Martin Luther King Jr.

The Drum Major Instinct, then, explains the behaviors of individuals, communities, and even nations—including our own. Why did Dr. King say that it should be “harnessed,” though, if it is so destructive? The answer, he explained, is because that is what Jesus did:

He said in substance, “Oh, I see, you want to be first. You want to be great. You want to be important. You want to be significant. Well, you ought to be. If you’re going to be y disciple, you must be.” But he reordered priorities. And he said, “Yes, don't give up this instinct. It’s a good instinct if you use it right. It’s a good instinct if you don’t distort it and pervert it. Don’t give it up. Keep feeling the need for being important. Keep feeling the need for being first. But I want you to be first in love. I want you to be first in moral excellence. I want you to be first in generosity. That is what I want you to do.”

In saying these things, Jesus gave a new definition of greatness: 

If you want to be important—wonderful. If you want to be recognized—wonderful. If you want to be great—wonderful. But recognize that he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. That’s a new definition of greatness.

Indeed, Jesus exemplified this very greatness.

Nineteen centuries have come and gone and today he stands as the most influential figure that ever entered human history. All of the armies that ever marched, all the navies that ever sailed, all the parliaments that ever sat, and all the kings that ever reigned put together have not affected the life of man on this earth as much as that one solitary life. His name may be a familiar one. But today I can hear them talking about him. Every now and then somebody says, “He’s King of Kings.” And again I can hear somebody saying, “He’s Lord of Lords.” … He didn't have anything. He just went around serving and doing good. 

And the application to us? 

This morning, you can be on his right hand and his left hand if you serve. It’s the only way in.

The only way in.

For me, those four words express the challenge of Christian leadership in the Church and in the society at large. There is only one way to lead, according to Dr. King. Well, actually, there is only one way to lead according to Jesus: “whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all” (Mark 10:43–44). No Christian, no minister, no denominational leader is exempt from this command. “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (v. 45). As the Master, so His disciples.

I noted above that Dr. King preached “The Drum Major Instinct” just two months before his assassination. Interestingly, he concluded the sermon with a reflection on how he wanted to be remembered after his death. And this is what he said:

Yes, if you want to say that I was a drum major, say that I was a drum major for justice. Say that I was a drum major for peace. I was a drum major for righteousness. And all of the other shallow things will not matter. I won’t have any money to leave behind. I won’t have the fine and luxurious things of life to leave behind. But I just want to leave a committed life behind. And that’s all I want to say.

…

Yes, Jesus, I want to be on your right or your left side, not for any selfish reason. I want to be on your right or your left side, not in terms of some political kingdom or ambition. But I just want to be there in love and in justice and in truth and in commitment to others, so that we can make of this old world a new world.

Today, on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, I encourage you, as Christian leaders, to reflect on Dr. King’s message. You have the Drum Major Instinct. That’s part and parcel of leadership, to be honest. The only question is whether in your life and ministry that instinct will be “destructive” or “harnessed” to productive ends. Dr. King left a Christian legacy of leading in order that “justice [would] roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream” (Amos 5:24).

What will your legacy of leadership be?