Posts Tagged ‘leadership’


UNDER GODS COMMAND Deborah (Judges 4-5) 

Key verse: “Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, was leading  Israel at that time ” (Judges 4:4)

Wise Leaders are rare.  They accomplish great amounts of work without direct involvement because they know how to work through other people.  They are able to see the big picture that often escapes those directly involved, so they make good mediators, advisers, and planners.  Deborah fit this description perfectly.  She had all these leadership skills, and she had a remarkable relationship with God.  The insight and confidence God gave this woman placed her in a unique position in the Old Testament.  Deborah is among the outstanding women of history.  Her story shows that use was not power hungry.  She wanted to serve God.  Whenever praise came her way, she gave God the credit.  She didn’t deny or resist her position in the culture as a woman and wife, but she never allowed herself to be hindered by it either.  Her story show Great God can accomplish great things through people who are willing to be led by him.  Deborah’s life challenges us in several ways.  She reminds us of the need to be available both to God and to others.  She encourages us to spend our efforts on what we can do rather than on worrying about what we can’t do.  Deborah challenges us to be wise leaders.  She demonstrates what a person can accomplish when God isn in control.  

STRENGTHS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS:

  • FOURTH AND ONLY FEMALE  JUDGE OVER ISRAEL
  • SPECIAL ABILITIES AS A MEDIATOR, ADVISER, AND COUNSELOR
  • WHEN CALLED ON TO LEAD, WAS ABLE TO PLAN, DIRECT, AND DELEGATE
  • KNOWN FOR HER PROPHETIC POWER
  • A WRITER OF SONGS
LESSONS FROM HER LIFE:
  • GOD CHOOSES LEADERS BY HIS STANDARDS, NOT OURS
  • WISE LEADERS CHOOSE GOOD HELPERS

Under Gods Command
Disobedience and defeat

One generation died, and the next did not follow God. Each generation failed to teach the next generation to love and follow God. Yet this was at the very center of God’s law (Deuteronomy 6:4-9). It is tempting to leave the job of teaching the Christian faith to the church or Christian school. Yet God says that the responsibility for this task belongs primarily to the family. Because children learn so much by our example, the home offers the most effective place to pass on the faith to the next generation.

Judges 2:10 After the whole generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation grew up, who knew neither the LORD nor what he had done for Israel.


Under Gods Command
Luke 12:47-48 The servant who knows his master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded, and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.

Jesus has told us how to live until he comes: we must watch for him, work diligently, and obey his commands. Such attitudes are especially necessary for leaders. Watchful and faithful leaders will be given increased opportunities and responsibilities. The more resources, talents, and understanding we have, the more we are responsible to use them effectively. God will not hold us responsibly for gifts he has not given us, but all of us have enough gifts and duties to keep us busy until Jesus returns.


Under Gods Command

Proverbs 27:17 – As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.

Mental sharpness comes from being around good people. And a meeting of minds can help people see their ideas with new clarity, refine them, and shape them into brilliant insights. This requires discussion partners who can challenge one another and stimulate thought-people who focus on the idea without involving their egos in the discussion; people who know how to attack the thought and not the thinker. Two friends who bring their ideas together can help each other become sharper.


Under Gods Command
Jesus is Laid in the Tomb

John 19:38-42 Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jews. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds.

Four people were changed in the process of Jesus death.
1st The criminal dying on the cross beside Jesus, asked Jesus to include him in his kingdom (Luke 23:39-43).
2nd The Roman centurion proclaimed that surely Jesus was the Son of God (Mark 15:39).
3rd & 4th Joseph and Nicodemus, members of the Jewish council and secret followers of Jesus (7:50-52), came out of hiding. These men were changed more by Jesus death than by his life. They realized who Jesus was, and that realization brought out their belief, proclamation, and action. When confronted with Jesus and his death, we should be changed-to believe, proclaim, and act.

Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus were secret followers of Jesus. They were afraid to make this allegiance know because of their positions in the Jewish community. Joseph was a leader and honored member of the Jewish council. Nicodemus, also a member of the council, had come to Jesus by night (3:1) and later tried to defend him before the other religious leaders (7:50-52). Yet they risked their reputations to provide for Jesus burial. Are you a secret believer? Do you hide your faith from your friends and fellow workers? This is an appropriate time to step out of hiding and let others know whom you follow.