September 20, 2024
Leadership
Pt. 3, When Leaders Fall
This month we are talking about “Leadership”. In our first installment, we considered the concept of vision. A leader must have a goal or vision to work toward. Solomon wrote, Where there is no vision (meaning a Divine instruction or revelation), the people perish… (Proverbs 29:18).
Next, we considered the importance of implementation. A leader may know what they want to accomplish, and where they want to go, but do they know how to get there? Successful leaders need to know how to implement their vision. Jesus not only had a vision (a Divine plan or mission), but as The Creator, He knew how to implement His vision.
This week I want to look at the grave fallout produced when leaders fail. It has been said, “Everything rises and falls on leadership.” I believe that maxim is 100% correct.
FIRST, this maxim is correct because God’s Word teaches that it is correct. SECOND, it is correct because reality teaches us that it is correct. If you have not yet stopped to consider the fact that God is into reality, you might consider that now. Let’s consider some of those historical realities taught in God’s Word.
• Adam, God’s leader of the family, followed Eve’s lead in disobeying their Creator. As the leader, Adam failed, and humanity was plunged into sinful chaos.
• At Kadesh, Israel followed the majority, when 10 of the spies said NO and only two said GO. Israel failed to trust God, Who had just weeks earlier parted the Red Sea, and Who was even then leading them with a pillar of cloud by day and pillar of fire by night. The unbelieving nation sided with 10 unbelieving, ungodly leaders, and rejected the urgent counsel of their godly spiritual leadership: Moses, Joshua, and Caleb. Consequently, God consigned the entire nation to 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, during which a whole generation died. The only men of that generation to enter Canaan were faithful Joshua and Caleb. Ten leaders failed, and it cost an entire generation.
• Another obvious lesson on the importance of godly leadership is the record of Israel’s and Judah’s Kings. When the nation’s kings were godly, and led out in the worship of their Creator, God blessed them. But when the leaders were evil and idolatrous, the people suffered greatly, even finally being given over into captivity. The 10 Northern Tribes—called “Israel” or “Ephraim”—NEVER had a godly king; every leader was wicked and idolatrous! Consequently, God gave them over into the hands of the wicked Assyrians. God granted the southern Kingdom, Judah, a little more space for His servant David’s sake, but eventually, their leaders all led wickedly, and He had to give them up also. He used Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians to judge the Southern tribes of Judah and Benjamin.
And we could go on, and on, and on with Biblical examples that warn us to follow godly leaders and to shun evil, wicked, and unbelieving leaders. But, unfortunately, humanity has still not learned its lesson. Generally, our World’s secular—i.e., PURPOSEFULLY godless—societies continue to reject godly principles and godly leaders, in exchange for secular, humanistic, God-hating leadership. These kinds of base men and women are guaranteed to fail and fall… BECAUSE THEY ARE LED AND EMPOWERED NOT BY THE HOLY SPIRIT OF GOD, but by their base and carnal desires, by their corrupt secular philosophies, and bottom line, by the Spirit of the Age, i.e., the god of this world, Satan, and his demonic hierarchy.
So, if you are looking at the big picture, you will recognize that our vision, and then our implementation of that vision, must be God-authored and then God-empowered,
• IF it is to be of any eternal value,
• IF it is to bring blessing, and
• IF it is going to lead to spiritual righteousness (which comes by repentance and faith in the work of Jesus Christ on the cross).
Human beings can come up with all kinds of ideas, strategies, and visions, but as the Psalmist wrote, Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain (Psalm 127:1).
God bless and consider!
Leadership, Pt. 2
September 13, 2024 • Central Baptist Church
September 13, 2024
Leadership
Pt. 2, The Implementation of the Vision
This month we are talking about “Leadership”. Last week I introduced the theme with step one: Vision. Any leader that doesn’t have a vision, i.e., doesn’t know where he is going or what he wants to accomplish, is worse than no leader at all. He (or she) will simply drag their following through the same maze that they are in. Solomon said it like this: Where there is no vision (meaning a Divine instruction or revelation), the people perish… (Proverbs 29:18). So first, to be good leaders, we must have a vision of where we need to go.
Jesus Christ was and is the World’s greatest Visionary Leader; He provided the Divine vision (revelation) that this sinful World needs to avoid certain condemnation. His Vision, even before the beginning of the Creation, was to harvest human souls, souls that in His foreknowledge, He knew would rebel! And “whosoever will” was welcomed to come into His Spiritual Kingdom.
But good leaders need more than just a “vision”! In addition to knowing where they are going, they also need to know HOW TO GET THERE! Successful leaders need to know HOW to implement their vision. Jesus not only had a vision (a Divine plan or mission), but as The Creator, He knew how to implement His vision. In the fullness of time, He first sent John the Baptizer to preach repentance and to prepare a following, at TEAM. Jesus then took that TEAM of 12 men and personally trained them for over three years. After Jesus’ substitutionary payment for sin on the cross, and His resurrection from the dead, He commissioned His Holy Spirit to implement a new role: the role of “Comforter” (meaning Advocate, Intercessor, and Guide). In His role of Comforter, the Holy Spirit would…
1) testify of Jesus (John 15:26),
2) He would guide born-again believers into all truth (John 16:13),
3) He would reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment (John 16:8), (convict the lost), and He would
4) administrate and empower a brand-new institution for this new dispensation, the Local New Testament Church.
God’s vision has always been to redeem his Creation: all of it! But this redemption focused especially upon humanity, upon men and women who were and are created in His image, with eternal spirits, that will never die. Jesus’ vision was to rescue those who are perishing in sin and He implemented that vision at the Cross of Calvary. He died as our perfect substitute, totally paying the sin debt of every human being. All that a person must do to appropriate God’s gift of redemption is…
1) admit to God (agree WITH God) that he/she is a sinner (Romans 3:23), and as such, totally lost, undone, and separated from God,
2) believe (have complete faith) in the efficacy of Christ’s substitutionary death, burial, and miraculous resurrection, AND understand that it is Christ ALONE that saves by grace, and that it can never be by works (Ephesians 2:8, 9), and finally…
3) call out FOR that salvation (For whosoever shall call upon the name of the LORD shall be saved, Romans 10:13). We appropriate God’s free gift of salvation by asking for it! The dying thief on the cross asked in this manner, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom (Luke 23:42). The praying publican in the parable of the Pharisee and Publican asked like this, God be merciful to me, a sinner (Luke 18:13).
Christ’s implementation of his Vision was made possible by the Cross. He then implemented a 3-part battle plan called “The Great Commission”, and he gave this commission to the institution of the Local, Visible, New Testament Church. Empowered by the Comforter, local churches are to 1) preach the Gospel (good news) and evangelize the fields which are white unto harvest, 2) then they are to baptize (immerse in water) those who repent and believe, and finally they are to train (disciple or teach) converts to join in the battle for souls.
Jesus had The Vision, and He implemented His Vision. And His Local, Scriptural, New Testament Churches have been carrying on this implementation by the power and authority of the Holy Spirit for nigh on 2000 years. So the big question is, “Are you a part of His Team?”
God bless and consider!
Leadership, Pt. 1
September 6, 2024 • Central Baptist Church
September 6, 2024
Leadership
Part 1, The Vision
Leadership! “Leadership” has been the buzzword in the corporate and political arenas for decades, maybe centuries, and in military arenas for millennia. Corporations spend a lot of money and time attempting to train and groom their officers, managers, supervisors, and bosses in leadership philosophies. And, of course, our military is all about leadership.
One of the most controversial figures in recent military leadership was General George S. Patton. Called “Old Blood and Guts” by his men, Patton was the epitome of swagger and political IN-correctness. He said it as he saw it (usually to the dismay of his commanders), and he often gave boisterous, rousing, and very “frank” speeches to those in his command in an attempt to motivate and inspire. There may have never been an American military leader who was more hated and, at the same time, more respected by his soldiers.
But, with all the baggage that came with General Patton, there also came an amazing quality: vision! Patton was a brilliant military strategist; he had read and studied virtually every major military battle waged since the Persians and Greeks. He was also one of the most assertive Type-A personalities that has ever existed! One of his most famous quotes was, “Lead me, follow me, or get out of my way!” Consequently, when this cocky, boisterous visionary was placed in charge of a fighting force, he was truly a man to be reckoned with.
Bible-believers understand that God raises up men and women, …for such a time as this (Esther 4:14). And I am convinced that God used George Patton, even as profane and coarse as the man was, to contribute to an Allied Victory in WWII. You see, a commander, a supervisor, a boss … a leader… may have lots of training, schooling, classes, and grooming, but unless they have a genuine VISION of what needs to be accomplished, they are ineffective and even a detriment to the cause of their organization. God says through the inspired writings of Solomon: Where there is no vision, the people perish… (Proverbs 29:18).
The word “vision” here in Proverbs 29:18 refers to a revelation from God. George Patton may have had a superior military “vision”, but the vision that men and women have always needed more is a Divine vision, a Divine directive, and a Divine direction and goal. Because without it, people will truly perish! Jesus Christ, the Eternal God-Man, was the greatest visionary who has ever lived. He was and is the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End, and as such, He did and still does offer the greatest leadership that has ever been offered to human beings. For about 3 ½ years Jesus led and trained just 12 men, and when sent out, the Holy Spirit used these men to change our world.
Do you have a vision? Do you know where you are going? Do you know what REALLY needs to be done? And do you know how to accomplish what REALLY needs to be done? If you don’t, you are just part of the problem; you are just a part of this World’s chaos and confusion! Humankind manically fights cultural and ideological battles. Many believe that global warming and ecological issues are our most dangerous threats. Still, others divide and hate each other over religious tenets and the possession of strategic pieces of land.
Jesus Christ, the Eternal God-Man, was and is the greatest leader and visionary that has ever lived. Jesus is the Greatest Leader because His prescription for humanity is the only Truth, and consequently, it is deadly urgent. His mission was to offer His own perfect, sinless blood as a universal solvent for mankind’s sinful nature and then to point humanity to a re-born relationship with God, through repentance and faith IN His sacrifice. Jesus cried out, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me (John 14:6).
Friends, our only choice is to follow Jesus’ Divine VISION… or perish. Even plain-speaking George Patton could not have made it clearer and more urgent.
God bless and consider!
