Spirit Of Godly Leadership

4 February 2022

By Rev Dr Kenneth Mtata

Today’s readings:

• Psalm 138

• Numbers 27:12-23

• Acts 9:26-31

Verses of the day:

“May the Lord, the God who gives breath to all living things, appoint someone over this community to go out and come in before them, one who will lead them out and bring them in, so the Lord’s people will not be like sheep without a shepherd.” (Numbers 27:16).

After God had delivered the people of Israel from Egypt through the Leadership of Moses, it was time for Moses to leave. God said to Moses, “Take Joshua son of Nun, a man in whom is the spirit of leadership, and lay your hand on him" and present him before “Eleazar the priest and the entire assembly” so that they would approve of him and “commission him.” (Numbers 27: 18-19). Moses responded by saying: 

"May the Lord, the God who gives breath to all living things, appoint someone over this community to go out and come in before them, one who will lead them out and bring them in, so the Lord’s people will not be like sheep without a shepherd.”

 This statement from God and Moses' response say three important things about Godly leadership needed in the home, at work, in the church,  in the community and at national level. 

First, that leadership must be understood from the perspective of submission to “God who gives breath to all living things.” Leadership must have a spirituality~it needs the Spirit of God. Leadership must derive from God on whose behalf everyone must exercise their ministry of leadership. This is true whether one is leading a small or large entity. A leader who is conscious of representing God, humbles him- or herself in their exercise of leadership because they realize that the people they lead are not their possessions. They will also feel accountable to God in discharging their duty.

The secondly important revelation from Moses’ response is that even though people choose other people to lead them, it is actually God who appoints those who can inspire the “community to go out and come in.” The leader is one who enables people to “go out and come it”. This Hebrew expression ( go out and come in) is used many times in the Old Testament to refer to a range of conditions of security, victory, and overall flourishing of society. In the context of Jerusalem, the people were supposed to have the liberty to move about outside the city gate without any threat of hostility. Such freedom was necessary to allow them to grow crops successfully outside of the city walls. Great leadership inspires and releases maximum productivity among the people.

Third point is that the real purpose for leadership is so that “people will not be like sheep without a shepherd.” A people without leadership do not know how to belong together. They don't understand why they exist together. They don't know where they should go together. They are miserable. Leadership inspires and mobilizes followers towards a common vision or target. Without that, everyone does as they will. One example of such inspirational and visionary leadership in today's readings is Barnabas. When Saul had believed the gospel after his encounter with the Lord on the road to Damascus, he tried to join the church but the church could not welcome him because they were afraid of his past life of persecuting the church. There was one person who had leadership eyes. It was Barnabas who took Saul, now called Paul, and brought him to the fellowship. Paul went on to be the leading apostle among the gentiles.

We are operating in a world desperate for spiritual leadership. God is looking those with the Spirit of God to take up this role. Leadership starts by leading yourself. If you are not inspired, you cannot inspire others. 

Prayer

Thank you, God, for calling all of us into different roles of leadership. We pray that we may discharge our duties as those accountable to you. We pray that you Holy Spirit may awake those we lead to greater heights of productivity and effectiveness. May we take someone’s hand today and support them to their next level of leadership responsibility. In Jesus’ name we pray. AMEN