Themistokles is probably the greatest man you’ve never heard of.

He lived in Athens in the 5^th century B.C. and led the Greeks to their decisive (and improbable) victory over vastly larger Persian forces. He’s the one who saw the Persians coming and urged his fellow citizens to build a navy. He’s the one who persuaded the Athenians to do the unthinkable—abandon their city to the tender mercies of Xerxes’ army and to fight at a place where they actually had a hope of winning. He’s the one whose strategy lured the Persians into the naval battle that broke their strength and destroyed their confidence.

In a word, Themistokles saved Western civilization. He preserved the language, values, and government that—along with Christianity—form the cornerstones of our culture. Because of his leadership, the Greeks sent the Persians running, Athenians returned to rebuild their shattered city, and the “Golden Age” of Athens began.

Seven years later, jealous of Themistokles’ political clout, his city sent him into exile. To add insult to injury, they convicted him of treason and condemned him to death. He spent long years running for his life—impoverished, reviled, and hunted. Finally, with every option exhausted, Themistokles traveled east . . . to Persia. He humbled himself before the son of the king he’d trounced so soundly. He begged for mercy.

This great man eventually took his own life, far from the city he loved and the people who had broken his heart.

The story is told that, when a child, his father warned Themistokles against public life. To show him how the city treated leaders who were no longer needed, his father led him down to the shore to see the abandoned hulks of old warships, ships that once fought bravely for Athens and now were left to rot.

History is littered with great leaders, used up and then discarded. The very things that make leaders—vision, strength of personality, stubbornness, persuasiveness—conspire to bring about their fall. Their successes are envied. Their failings are criticized. Their strengths are turned into weaknesses. Small men are ever eager to topple giants.

Here, as in so many other ways, the church has followed the lead of culture. Though the Bible teaches us to honor our leaders, to respect their calling, to recognize their gifts and hard work, to submit to their authority, and to be guided by their wisdom, we find such teachings hard to stomach. True, sometimes our leaders are not godly and such respect comes hard. Often, though, it is not the leaders who are flawed but ourselves. Our pride cannot tolerate the ascendancy of another. The humility required to submit and follow is beyond us. The capacity to honor, to encourage, to stand in support is more than we can muster. So we follow leaders anywhere we want to go. But let them suggest a path requiring sacrifice and discomfort, let them move in directions breaking new ground or entailing risk, and we begin to wonder if it might be time for leaders more attuned to our wishes.

The history of the church is littered with great leaders, used up and then discarded. You see them lying by the side of the road—discouraged, frustrated, disrespected, and unsung.

And what a shame that is. For the leaders themselves, certainly. But more for the church. Who of our children, having seen the way we often treat preachers, wants to preach? In my experience, many men decline the honor of serving as shepherds because they’ve seen shepherds mauled by the sheep. In the end, we get the kind of leaders we deserve . . . the kind who only tell us what we want to hear . . . the kind who will never risk our displeasure. Such, of course, are not leaders at all and the church always suffers at their hand.

But the greatest cost incurred when we treat our leaders in worldly ways is paid in character. We learn godliness when we follow differently from the world. In honor and submission and trust and encouragement, we are taught lessons needed for following God. In deference and humility and gratitude, we develop the attributes that set us apart from the world. Being “Christian” is more than morality and doctrines. It is a “life together” governed by attitudes and values that are distinct from our culture. And an important part of that “life together” involves how we treat and interact with those who answer God’s call to lead.

So: “Now we ask you, brothers, to respect those who work hard among you, who are over you in the Lord and who admonish you. Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work.”

[Copy this article and give it to a leader you respect.] |L

OTHER COLUMNS:
November 8, 2009 - Why I believe in God
October 25, 2009 - Commuting in days of evil
October 11, 2009 - Poets and don’t know it
September 27, 2009 - How Hollywood proves abortion is wrong
September 13, 2009 - Significance
August 30, 2009 - Dance alternatives
August 16, 2009 - Gluttons for gossip
August 2, 2009 - Truth from Twilight
July 19, 2009 - Visitor-friendly churches
July 5, 2009 - The Shack
June 21, 2009 - When forgiveness fails
June 7, 2009 - Re-imagining Education (Part Six)
May 24, 2009 - We are not alone
May 3, 2009 - Re-imagining education (part five)
April 26, 2009 - Conviction
April 12, 2009 - Re-imagining education (part four)
March 29, 2009 - An evangelistic proposal
March 15, 2009 - Re-imagining education (part three)
March 1, 2009 - He makes me sick
February 15, 2009 - Re-imagining education (Part Two)
February 1, 2009 - Spiritual insecurity
January 18, 2009 - Re-imagining education (part one)
January 4, 2009 - Church and politics
December 21, 2008 - Heaven’s music
December 7, 2008 - The church and marriage
November 23, 2008 - God and the president
November 9, 2008 - A time for courage
October 26, 2008 - Likes and dislikes: the Prince Caspian movie
October 12, 2008 - What’s that noise?
September 28, 2008 - Modesty matters (part two)
September 14, 2008 - All it takes is some TLC
August 31, 2008 - Modesty matters (part one)
August 17, 2008 - What would you fight for?
August 3, 2008 - Staying through the credits
July 6, 2008 - Tyler Perry and the movies you’re missing
June 22, 2008 - The peaceable kingdom
May 25, 2008 - Another generation grew up
May 25, 2008 - Technology and the Bible (part two)
May 11, 2008 - Technology and the Bible (part one)
April 27, 2008 - What is truth?
April 13, 2008 - And the geek shall inherit the earth
March 30, 2008 - A charactered God
March 16, 2008 - The college choice (part two)
March 2, 2008 - Good news can be hard to hear
February 17, 2008 - The college choice (part one)
February 5, 2008 - Ten suggestions for a godly standard of living
January 20, 2008 - Expelled: that “Bueller” guy’s pro-God movie
January 6, 2008 - Choosing a lifestyle
December 23, 2007 - Teachable TV?
December 9, 2007 - Owners or stewards?
November 25, 2007 - Christians teaching Christians to change TV and film
November 11, 2007 - My money is God’s business
October 28, 2007 - Navigating under the radar
October 14, 2007 - The things God values
September 30, 2007 - Movie moments
September 16, 2007 - God’s economics
September 2, 2007 - The best books to read
August 19, 2007 - There’s a rat in ‘separate’
August 5, 2007 - The art of reading
July 22, 2007 - Atheist chic
July 8, 2007 - Why books matter: the sequel
June 10, 2007 - Books: why they matter
June 3, 2007 - The non-impact of “The Lost Tomb of Jesus”
May 27, 2007 - The universal gospel
May 13, 2007 - Loving Muslims through culture
April 29, 2007 - Hope
April 15, 2007 - God in the dark
April 1, 2007 - The gospel goes to the movies
March 18, 2007 - What the Bible movies can teach us
March 4, 2007 - What will you hurt for?
February 18, 2007 - Why Heroes . . .
February 4, 2007 - Give peace a chance
January 21, 2007 - When fairy tales are true
January 7, 2007 - WYSIWYG lives
December 31, 2006 - What’s coming next?
December 17, 2006 - Mercy, mercy
December 3, 2006 - Proof of evolution!
November 19, 2006 - Hungering for God
November 5, 2006 - Violence and government, war and peace
October 22, 2006 - The mighty meek
October 8, 2006 - The Battlestar and the Bible
September 24, 2006 - Soap for the soul
September 10, 2006 - Right vs. cool
August 27, 2006 - The painful truth
August 13, 2006 - More Lies Hollywood Tells
July 30, 2006 - Christian counter culture
July 16, 2006 - The lies Hollywood tells