Worth Repeating - April 21, 2017

I Samuel 14: 52 All the days of Saul there was bitter war with the Philistines, and whenever Saul saw a mighty or brave man, he took him into his service. (NIV)

No combination of natural abilities can compensate for a lack of personal holiness in the leader’s life.*

Being the boss has its good points but it can also be very frustrating. I remember saying (often) that if I could do it all by myself, I would. But I couldn’t. So I tried to surround myself with talented and trustworthy people who could do what I couldn’t do myself. Saul seemed to understand that a good leader needs good followers. He was looking ahead and preparing for the days that he would need a strong army.

Saul may have displayed some good leadership skills but as time went on his actions began to reveal his character flaws. Follow his career from I Samuel chapter 9, when Samuel anointed the new king; to chapter 16 where verse 14 tells us that the Spirit of the Lord had left him; to his suicide in chapter 31. You will see examples of his disobedience, his misuse of power, his lies and his jealousy.

The Kingdom of God needs dynamic leaders; we should use caution, however, in putting our faith in another human. Leadership skills can be accompanied by destructive characteristics such as arrogance, abuse of power and narcissism. It is good to have someone wiser, stronger and more charismatic to look up to in our Christian walk, but be careful about joining his army. Read the training manual for the Lord’s army. Only follow leaders who follow Jesus Christ. 

Humans are the only species that follows unstable pack leaders.*