March 13, 2005
“Our God Empowers Us”
Various Scriptures
Principles of Renewal: The
Leadership Principle
B.
We
all suffer from the disease of “small-itis.”
When we start new ministries or even new projects at home, we want them
to be fully developed and functional right from the start. But even great things always start out
small. And good leaders will help them
grow. Today we’re finishing up our
series on principles of renewal with the Leadership Principle. The Leadership Principle states that
throughout history, God has always used a leader as a change agent. We have to remember that leadership and
management are not the same, with the purpose of the leader being to understand
and articulate the why, what, and how of the church. Let’s start out by looking at 1 Timothy 4:14-16 from the New
Living.
C.
1
Timothy 4:14-16 – Do not neglect the spiritual gift you received through the
prophecies spoken to you when the elders of the church laid their hands on
you. 15 Give your complete attention to
these matters. Throw yourself into your
tasks so that everyone will see your progress.
16 Keep a close watch on yourself and on your teaching. Stay true to what is right, and God will
save you and those who hear you.
Slaughter writes, “There is a tendency to downplay the importance of
leadership in the institutional church and to invalidate models of success in
which a person is clearly identified as a catalyst.” He points out an important truth. Paul reminds Timothy of the leadership gift that the Spirit
placed in him, and then tells Timothy to use it for God’s glory with everything
he’s got. That runs so contrary to our
bias in the American Church today. We
want consensus. We want leadership by
committee. We want those who have the
loudest voices or who go along with our preference to be in charge, even if
they are not gifted in leadership by the Holy Spirit. We want God to do big things, but we want Him to do them our
way.
D.
The
problem is that leadership means change, and the system we’ve always used,
whether official or unofficial, resists change. God wants us to get past our small-itis and move forward with Him
under the leadership of those He has so gifted. As Slaughter writes, “Throughout church history, there has been
no example of renewal without a leader functioning as the catalyst. God has always used a human instrument as
the agent for change.” That’s a truth
we struggle with, yet it is truth.
Throughout the Old Testament, God used people like Moses, Deborah,
Samson, and Samuel to bring times of renewal.
He used kings and prophets as well.
Listen to what 2 Kings 18:2a and 3-6 says about one such king, Hezekiah.
E.
2
Kings 18:2a, 3-6 – He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he
reigned in Jerusalem twenty-nine years…
3 He did what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight, just as his ancestor
David had done. 4 He removed the pagan
shrines, smashed the sacred pillars, and knocked down the Asherah poles. He broke up the bronze serpent that Moses
had made, because the people of Israel had begun to worship it by burning
incense to it. The bronze serpent was
called Nehushtan. 5 Hezekiah trusted in
the Lord, the God of Israel. There was
never another king like him in the land of Judah, either before or after his
time. 6 He remained faithful to the
Lord in everything, and he carefully obeyed all the commands the Lord had given
Moses.
F.
If
there was ever an example of one man who made a difference with his leadership,
it was Hezekiah. God worked through
Hezekiah to bring renewal to Judah during a time when idol worship was running
rampant. Hezekiah inspired people to
return to their first love for God.
Jesus did the same. In Matthew
5:17 He said, “Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses
or the writings of the prophets. No, I
came to fulfill them.” Jesus showed
the people the inner law of the renewed heart, where all they had before was
rigid adherence to outward appearances through legalistic behavior. Jesus is the greatest renewal leader of all
time, and yet He keeps calling leaders to bring renewal to His people. Paul went from being one of the most
legalistic Jews around to writing this in Romans 10:12-13 – Jew and Gentile
are the same in this respect. They all
have the same Lord, who generously gives his riches to all who as for
them. For “Anyone who calls on the name
of the Lord will be saved.” What a
powerful statement from a former bigot against all non-Jews!
G.
God
continues to choose to act and speak through human instruments. The history of the church is filled with
examples of this. In the fourth
century, Augustine wrote a systematic theology that gave doctrinal stability to
the Church during a time when many heresies were attacking the truth. In the sixteenth century, Martin Luther
brought new life and faith to working-class people with his emphasis on
salvation by grace instead of works.
Also in the sixteenth century, Ignatius Loyola, St. John of the Cross,
and Teresa of Avila led the Counter Reformation – renewing the spiritual life
of the Catholic Church. John Calvin’s
emphasis on the sovereignty of God brought renewed life to the Church. John Wesley’s focus on individual
responsibility and a disciplined approach to discipleship renewed tens of
thousands. Jonathan Edwards, Charles
Finney, Billy Graham, and Mother Teresa are all agents used by God to further
His kingdom. There has been a leader
behind every spiritual awakening, or time of renewal.
H.
Slaughter
writes, “For the church, the result [of lacking effective leadership] is
critically clear. Lack of leadership
means decline and death.” He goes on to
write, “Not all leaders are equal, and even more significantly, most people in
positions of leadership are not leaders!”
That’s not a slam on anyone.
It’s a recognition that God has gifted a limited number of people with
the spiritual gift of leadership, just like a limited number have the gift of
evangelism or prophecy or mercy or hospitality. We could go on. God has
gifted some with the spiritual gift of leadership, and we’ve got to let them
lead.
I.
Warren
Bennis and Burt Nannis, in their book Leaders: The Strategies for Taking
Charge, write, There is a profound difference between management and
leadership, and both are important. “To
manage” means “to bring about, to accomplish, to have charge of or
responsibility for, to conduct.”
“Leading” is “influencing, guiding in direction, course, action,
opinion.” The distinction is
crucial. Managers are people who do
things right and leaders are people who do the right thing. Again, that’s not a slam on anyone. Both leaders and managers are important in
the life of the church.
A.
Last
Sunday we talked about God-given burning bushes. Slaughter writes, “Leaders are people who have seen burning
bushes. They have heard God’s voice… Vision enables the leader to discern God’s direction. It gives clarity of purpose. The leader is able to articulate clearly the
‘why’ and ‘where,’ and speaks with the authority of God.” One of the best contrasts between a leader
and a manager in the Bible is Moses and Aaron.
Exodus 19:3 and 7 from the NIV – Then Moses went up to God,
and the Lord called to him from the mountain and said, “This is what you are to
say to the house of Jacob and what you are to tell the people of Israel”…So
Moses went back and summoned the elders of the people and set before them all
the words the Lord had commanded him to speak. Moses gives a powerful mandate to the people from God, and nobody
gets any idea that it’s up for a vote.
It’s God’s mandate. But the
burning bush experience isn’t as clear for a manager. Aaron became more of a facilitator of group
processes, as in when he made the golden calf for the people to worship because
they wanted it.
B.
The
problem is that the group facilitator role doesn’t take into account one very
critical issue – it’s in the nature of people to want to go back to Egypt. We’re always longing for the good old days,
even though truth be told they weren’t any better than today. Slaughter writes, “It doesn’t matter that
Egypt represents slavery. Egypt is all
we have ever known. Here, Egypt
represents the way we have always done it in the past. There is no freedom or opportunity in Egypt,
but life there carries minimal risk and is predictable. After all, none of us have ever seen this
‘promised land’ that Moses keeps talking about.”
C.
When
I first read that, it hit me like a ton of bricks. Why? Because I tend to be
too much of a people pleaser. I have
the spiritual gift of leadership, but too often I want to please people instead
of just calling it like God sees it.
And I know all of us struggle with the same thing, whether it is from a
leadership perspective or simply not wanting to follow because of wanting to
please people. The problem is that, if
we put God’s will up to a vote, we’ll all vote to go back to Egypt! Or we’ll bring Egypt to us by making a
golden calf in the wilderness and therefore missing out totally on the promised
land. So one question we’ve got to ask
ourselves today is: are we ready for the promised land? Aaron, with very good intentions, brings
Egypt to the people. He’s a
manager. As Slaughter writes, “The
manager does the expected thing. The
leader is concerned with doing the right thing.” Haddon Robinson wrote, In any given
situation, what you are determines what you see; what you see determines what
you do (as cited on PreachingToday.com).
Those among us who are followers and managers have got to let the
leaders lead, because God has given them a burning bush for the ministry of our
church.
A.
Lest
we get the idea that a leader is a Lone Ranger, listen to 1 Kings 19:19-20 – So
Elijah went and found Elisha son of Shaphat plowing a field with a team of
oxen. There were eleven teams of oxen
ahead of him, and he was plowing with the twelfth team. Elijah went over to him and threw his cloak
across his shoulders and walked away again.
20 Elisha left the oxen standing there, ran after Elijah, and said to
him, “First let me go and kiss my father and mother good-bye, and then I will go
with you!” We know from reading
further in the Old Testament that Elisha went on to become a powerful man of
God. But first he had to learn from
Elijah. God uses leaders to shape the
dreams of other leaders. Sometimes
those leaders are within the church.
Sometimes the influence comes from leaders’ books or tapes or
conferences. But leaders allow
themselves and their dreams to be shaped by other leaders, because God uses the
wisdom they’ve learned for His glory.
B.
Slaughter
writes, “The church is the community that shows people what it is like when
Jesus is in control.” That’s a powerful
truth, and one that shows us the potential we have when we follow godly
leadership in the life of our church.
That potential can only be reached as leaders allow other leaders to
shape their dreams. God uses the
Elijahs of the world to shape the dreams of the Elishas. When leaders hang out with other people who
are sold out for Christ and for His vision for their church, we’re enabled to
dream God’s dream much more clearly. 2
Kings 2:1-2 shows how much Elisha understood this truth – When the Lord was
about to take Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were
traveling from Gilgal. 2 And Elijah
said to Elisha, “Stay here, for the Lord has told me to go to Bethel.” But Elisha replied, “As surely as the Lord
lives, and you yourself live, I will never leave you!” So they went on together to Bethel. Elisha wanted what Elijah had. Leaders allow their dreams to be shaped by
other leaders. So seek out people of
vision. Read whatever you can read on
the subject. Ask as many questions as
you can. Go to seminars or
conferences. If you’ve got the
spiritual gift of leadership, do whatever it takes to allow God to use other
leaders to shape your dreams!
A.
Leaders
are very results-oriented people. They
start out with the end in mind. They’ve
got a clear picture of what the destination looks like before they even start
out on the journey. Throughout church
history, leaders have been able to see past the immediate barriers to sense
God’s purpose and direction. Slaughter
writes, “Vision and the fortitude to accomplish God’s purpose grow out of our
willingness to wade out across the stream and wrestle with God. We need a willingness to wrestle and not let
go until we have a sense of resolve about God’s direction: ‘God, show me. I will not let go or turn back, if you
assure me that you are with me.’”
B.
Are
you a leader or a follower? In our
society, nobody wants to be a follower, especially since it has connotations of
weakness and indecision. But in God’s
economy, there is nothing wrong with being a follower – in fact, even the
leaders among us are Christ’s followers.
S. I. McMillen, in his book None of These Diseases, tells a story
of a young woman who wanted to go to college, but her heart sank when she read
the question on the application blank that asked, "Are you a
leader?" Being both honest and
conscientious, she wrote, "No," and returned the application,
expecting the worst. To her surprise, she received this letter from the
college: "Dear Applicant: A study of the application forms reveals that
this year our college will have 1,452 new leaders. We are accepting you because
we feel it is imperative that they have at least one follower" (as cited
on PreachingToday.com by J. R. Love).
God gives everyone a burning bush for their particular ministry within
the church, but God gives leaders the burning bush for the whole church.
C.
Slaughter
writes, “When a leader has a clear picture of God’s destination, the people
begin to articulate and live that vision.
Over a period of time, that vision begins to penetrate the surrounding
culture, and even the secular newspapers can identify and articulate the
vision’s objective.” Again, a powerful
truth. God has made me leader of this
church. In His wisdom that’s what He
has chosen, and it’s a responsibility that I don’t take at all lightly. Well, folks, I’ve said it before and I’ll
say it again. It’s time to move on. Nothing can change the past. I’ve built safeguards of spiritual
disciplines and accountability into my life and my work to make sure that I
don’t become another sad statistic. I’ve
been treading rather lightly because of the past. But God is calling us forward.
God is calling us to get over our past and move forward with Him. God is speaking to my heart and the hearts
of other leaders in our church about our need to move forward with Him.
D.
I
wrote a note in the margin of Slaughter’s book. This is what I wrote: “I’ve been allowing myself to put much of
the vision on the back burner for the sake of not rocking the boat. No longer.”
That’s what I wrote, and that’s what I mean. God is calling us to a bright new future for our church. God is calling us to devote ourselves to
prayer, Bible study, and outreach, incorporating accountable relationships so
that we keep on track with what God wants to do. As I am led by the Holy Spirit I will share more and more of what
God has placed on my heart for our church.
I will talk with you and with our leaders about it. I will expect that the managers in our
church will do their thing and allow the leaders to lead. Now, I’m not trying to sound harsh with
that, but it is true – we need the managers to handle the day-to-day methods for
getting things done, while the leaders focus on doing the right thing – God’s
thing. That’s what God is calling us
to.
E.God has something so much
greater for us than we could ever imagine!
Too often we allow ourselves to be caught up in small-itis and miss out
on God’s best for us as a church. God
has a plan for our church to be powerful and effective in reaching our area for
Jesus Christ. Let’s play “follow the
leader” in allowing Him to work through those He has empowered with the Romans
12:8 gift of leadership to lead. Then
look out, because God is going to bust loose on this place!
A.
Please
bow your heads and close your eyes out of respect for each other’s
privacy. These are difficult
issues. Spend a few moments sorting
these things out with the Lord, then when you’re ready, come forward, take the
bread and the juice, kneel at the altars if you are physically able to, and
take them when you’re ready. But spend
a few moments sorting these issues out with God and then surrendering yourself
to His will first.
B.
Let’s
pray.