Communication is like a double-edged sword. Our words and actions hold great power, but people can also misinterpret them easily. Likewise, communication can be challenging for many of us. Nonetheless, the ability to communicate well is an essential component of our obligation as leaders. And if we wish to lead as Jesus led, we must also learn how He communicated.
In this episode, Tim shares three big things we can learn from the way Jesus communicated. He delves into the foundational principles of communication and explains why Jesus is the best example of a good communicator. He then shares some powerful tips, techniques, and philosophies that can help us emulate the way of communication that Jesus modeled for us.
Listen to this episode if you want to learn how to become better at communicating!
3 Reasons to Listen:
- Understand what it means to communicate well.
- Discover the three big categories you can learn from how Jesus communicated.
- Learn the different languages Jesus used to communicate with His audiences.
Resources
Episode Highlights
[01:08] The Challenge of Communicating
- Many of us deal with the great challenge of communicating well.
- Communicating well means having the ability to listen and share our thoughts and ideas.
- We need to be better at communicating regardless of our roles.
- We need to look for powerful examples of good communicators.
[04:30] The Best Example of Good Communication
- The best example lies within the Gospels, which show how Jesus walked on Earth.
- Jesus modeled good communication for us. When He ascended to heaven, He left the Holy Spirit to guide us.
- Even non-followers of Christ would acknowledge the impact of Jesus’s words and actions on our culture and society.
[05:33] “Even if you are not a follower of Christ... there is no one that really compares to what Jesus Christ did, and so we can at least try to learn from him.” - Click Here To Tweet This
[05:53] The Three Big Categories of How Jesus Communicated
- Over time, Tim has identified trends and categorizations from reading and studying about Jesus.
- Even if we can’t do exactly as He did, we can still learn a lot from studying Him.
- These three big categories are the attitude Jesus had, the audience He identified with, and authority.
[07:26] #1: Attitude in Interactions
- Jesus adopted an attitude of love and compassion even when He was speaking harshly or strongly.
- Love involves a lot of empathy and compassion, but it’s also correcting people when needed.
- Love is focused and intentional.
- It’s powerful to get on people’s level when we interact with them.
- We need to communicate with love and compassion, but we also need to be direct and to the point.
[09:43] “Love is actually being very intentional and very focused.” - Click Here To Tweet This
[10:40] #2: Jesus and His Audiences
- First, He interacted with the sheep as a shepherd whose role was to lead and guide.
- Second, He interacted with the wolves — the Pharisees and hypocrites — and protected the sheep against them.
- In modern times, there are still a lot of wolves in religion and politics.
- The third group Jesus interacted with was His disciples. His role was to teach, educate, and encourage — to duplicate himself.
[12:58] What We Can Learn from Jesus and How He Communicates
- With the sheep: Tim used Jesus’s encounter with the woman at the well as an example. The world needs more of the “woman at the well” language, filled with love and compassion.
- With the wolves: Jesus used stories and parables founded on truth in a very firm tone.
- Many leaders often confuse the “woman at the well” language and wolf language. You can see people in power use wolf language with the sheep, sometimes to take advantage of them.
- With His disciples: Jesus used soft and gentle language similar to the woman at the well. There were also times when He had to be firm with them.
- The biggest learning point from Jesus’s interactions with His disciples is to spend a lot of time with the people you’re teaching.
[17:14] "One of the best things we can learn about communication . . . is it takes time. We've got to be patient." - Click Here To Tweet This
[18:17] #3: Authority
- Many people in leadership roles have said the line, “Just do as I say.” Jesus, the only one who has this kind of power and authority, never did this.
- Jesus only did and said what the Heavenly Father God told Him to do and say.
- Titles don’t matter.
[20:09] “Titles don't really matter so we need to stop throwing our titles around.” - Click Here To Tweet This
- Rarely should we respond quickly. Take the time to pause, reflect, and take a breath to seek what God wants us to do.
- There’s power in stillness and quiet. It will allow us to understand our authority so that we can become better communicators.
[22:21] “I believe there's power in that stillness and quiet. It just allows us to not respond harshly, to not respond using our own ‘authority’ that we have.” - Click Here To Tweet This
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To growing and becoming all we are created to be,
Tim