So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith (Galatians 3:24 NIV).

The Christian message shows us a pattern that applies to leadership. First, because people could not control their inclinations, God gave us the law. The law was given by God through Moses, and was meant to govern the outward actions of the Israelites. Second, God provided transformation through Jesus Christ, which changed our inclinations into a desire to please God, without the need for outward laws and consequences. This provided freedom from the law and freedom from the inclination to sin. Third, God entered into partnership with us, as laborers for him. We serve God because we desire to. God partnered with us by supplying his Holy Spirit to live and work in us.

Your pattern of leadership should follow a similar pattern. When leading someone who requires significant development of skills and knowledge, your first task is to provide clear directions on what to do, when to do it, and what not to do. This is very similar to the law in the Old Testament.

Moving from observance of specific instructions, your job as the leader is to develop the follower and bring about a transformation of his or her abilities, so that the specific instructions are not needed. As a result the follower develops skills, knowledge, and most importantly the ability to make decisions without clear instructions. You help in this transformation by inspiring followers with what they can become, by providing coaching, by making training available, and by giving constructive feedback.

You don't have the transformational power that God has in saving people, but you should use what gifts you have as a leader to work towards transformation of people. The leader is not just someone who gets others to follow, but is instead someone who brings about a positive change, or transformation, in the followers' lives. God is in the business of transformation, so spend time in prayer for the development of the people God has entrusted to you.

After transformation, followers become partners with the leader, and the working dynamic is enriched as the follower becomes a leader. This is the ultimate end of leadership -- to transform people to become leaders themselves.