SERMON NOTES :: Sunday, June 2, 2013 - Godly Leadership in Difficult TImes

Mars Hill Fellowship Church Jun 03, 2013

 

MESSAGE |

Godly Leadership in Difficult Times

SERIES |

Ask

SCRIPTURE |

1 Samuel 8:1-9

SPEAKER |

Pastor Joseph Ardayfio

KEY THEME |

  

I.      Samuel had the responsibility of leading the nation of Israel as a judge, prophet and priest. The Lord favored Samuel because of his obedience to the Lord’s instructions. 1 Samuel 3:19 The Lord was with Samuel as he grew up, and he let none of his words fall to the ground.

II.     As Samuel grew old, he ran into the same problem that Eli had with his sons. Samuel appointed his sons to serve as judges, but “his sons did not walk in his ways. They turned aside after dishonest gain and accepted bribes and perverted justice. “

III.    The actions of Samuel’s sons were so egregious because the Lord had explicitly forbidden this type of behavior.

    1. Deuteronomy 16:18-20 Do not pervert justice or show partiality. Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous. 20 Follow justice and justice alone, so that you may live and possess the land the LORD your God is giving you.

IV.    The absence of righteous leadership in Israel was devastating, but the lack of wisdom from the remaining leadership was also disheartening.

V.     We can learn some important lessons about the importance of Godly leadership and how to lead in difficult times.

VI.   1.   Leaders have a responsibility to lead and to correct

    1. All of us will be called to lead others at some point in our lives.  We may be called to lead in our families, with our children, at our church, at our jobs, in civic organizations, or in our neighborhood.
    2. Leadership is a privilege and responsibility. We don’t become leaders simply because we tell others what to do, we are leaders because we have influence. Our influence must be utilized to get people to follow the right path. Godly leadership always influences people towards the ways of God. With influence comes the privilege of respect and with respect comes the responsibility of correction.
    3. In Hebrews 12:5-11, the Lord highlights the importance of discipline and correction.  11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.
    4. 2 Timorhty 4:2 instructs Pastors and leaders to, “Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.”

VII.    2.   Unrighteous leadership will cause those under our leadership to be blinded by our immaturity.

    1. How we lead affects more than ourselves; it impacts everyone who is under our leadership.
    2. When we lead from a place of immaturity, selfishness, or personal gain, those traits will filter those under our leadership.
    3. In Samuel’s time, the elders of Israel made rash decisions ultimately because those who were positioned by God to lead neglected their responsibilities and followed after dishonest gain.
    4. 1 Samuel 8:7 And the LORD told him: “Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. 8 As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you.

 VIII.     3.   When we ask God for divine intervention, we cannot forsake Godly precepts for the sake of immediate comfort.

    1. We’ve heard it said that two wrongs don’t make something right and similarly, fleshly reactions to ungodly circumstances don’t make us Godly.
    2. We must be careful that we are not simply asking for things to eliminate the immediate problem but never deal with the underlying issue.
    3. In Israel, the issue wasn’t the military or political structure; their real issue was an underlying spiritual issue.
    4. God confirmed this issue to Samuel in verse 7-8, “Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. 8 As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you.”