The God who Condescends: Leadership in the Gospel of John

In accordance with its etymology, the Oxford English Dictionary defines "condescend" as follows: "to stoop voluntarily and graciously." In the Gospel of John, Jesus leads by condescending physically, mentally, emotionally, culturally, and socially; the Son of God stoops into human history so that others "may believe that Jesus is the Christ" and "have life in his name" (20:31). And, because Christians are to embody the life of Christ, they, too, should lead by condescension.