HEALTHY CHURCH: Five Laws of Spiritual Leadership
Henry Blackaby wrote, “God will always sanctify you before He sends you… When God’s people allow God’s truth to realign them to God’s will and God’s standard, then the power of God will be released through them the same way it was through the first disciples.” Oswald Chambers said, “I have to learn that the aim of my life is God’s, not mine.” Do not be impatient to begin your work, church plant, mission, ministry or new project before God has prepared and refined you. You are called first to be a Christ follower before engaging in anything for the kingdom. What you do for Christ should flow out of your relationship with Christ.
In Power Through Prayer, E.M. Bounds stated, “We are constantly on a stretch, if not a strain, to devise new methods, new plans and new organizations to advance the church and secure enlargement and efficiency of the gospel… Men are God’s method. We are looking for better methods; God is looking for better men.” God is looking for spiritual leaders who will face and fight spiritual warfare and resistance with spiritual weapons. Begin in the prayer closet, not just seeking God’s help but also surrendering and discovering His plan and agenda. He desires to complete the work He began in you when you began walking with Him.
John 1:6 reminds us of this truth, “There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.” We are not told anything about John’s education, pedigree or gifts in the Scriptures. It was sufficient information to know that he was sent from God. God’s way has always been to send a man. When the world was about to be judged and almost destroyed, He sent Noah. When it was time to raise up a nation that would be God’s light and a blessing to all nations, He sent Abraham. When God’s people were hungry because of a famine throughout the land, Psalm 105:17 says, “He had sent a man ahead of them – Joseph.”
Think of the men God has sent with His calling on them and how He prepared them for the task. He sent Moses to the back side of the desert for 40 years. He had Joshua shadow Moses for 40 years. God gave favor to Nehemiah in a strategic position so that, when the time came, He could send this man to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. When it was time to send the gospel to the Gentiles, God sent Paul. Galatians 4:4-5 (HCSB) gives us the ultimate Man He sent, “When the time came to completion, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.”
God’s school of leadership preparation has five laws, according to Gary Rohrmayer:
• He begins with the law of submission. J. Robert Clinton says, “Spiritual authority… is delegated by God and differs from authority that is based on position or force. Leaders who have trouble submitting to authority will usually have trouble exercising spiritual authority.” Remember, absolute authority absolutely corrupts.
• The law of integrity is next. Integrity is “the quality or condition of being whole or undivided; completeness.” Spiritual leadership requires that you are the same person in private and in public. There is no duplicity.
• The third non-negotiable trait of spiritual leaders is the law of responsibility. You reject passivity and accept responsibility by proactively taking the steps necessary for a task, project and ministry. Spiritual leaders prove themselves in front of others through humble service and faithfulness.
• Then the law of multiplication. II Timothy 2:2 is often used as a discipleship passage to the fourth generation, but, in context, it is demonstrating leadership development. Spiritual leaders are focused on mentoring other leaders and intentionally investing in them so they can invest in others.
• The fifth law is one that cannot be overlooked nor ignored — the law of resistance. Henry and Richard Blackaby define spiritual leadership as “moving people on to God’s agenda.” Gary Rohrmayer added, “Every leader is going to deal with resistance on multiple levels. Fathers experience resistance from a son. A teacher deals with the resistance of a student. Employers work through the resistance of an employee. Shepherds are reminded that sheep sometimes want to go their own way… It is not a question of if resistance will come, but how a leader will deal with resistance.” Are you prepared for handling conflict resolution?
That is why spiritual disciplines are so important. They are designed to slow you down enough to hear the affirming voice of God in your daily life. Matthew 6 has much to say about how to pray and fast. It does not say “if” you pray but “when” you pray. Then, in verse 16, after receiving the model prayer, again, it does not say “if” you fast but “when” you fast. Spiritual warfare (Ephesians 6) will require spiritual armor, spiritual weapons and spiritual prayers. Praying in the Spirit has been defined as “the means of praying the mind of God, under the will of God, by the continued assistance of the Spirit of God.”
Do not bypass the process of God building up your spiritual character. Robert Murray McCheyne stated, “For your sermons last but an hour or two; your life preaches all week!” E.M. Bounds said, “The Holy Ghost does not flow through methods, but through men. He does not come on machinery, but on men. He does not anoint plans, but men — men of prayer!” The man makes the preacher, but it is God who makes the man. Bounds continues, “Preaching is not the performance of an hour. It is the outflow of a life!” God sends a man, and everything depends on his spiritual character.
Gary Rohrmayer said this about spiritual preparation, “Prayer is a continual state of personal surrender that leaves no room for self-reliance or self-confidence.” Are you willing to surrender everything to God as He works in your life and prepares you for His assignment?
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Larry Barker
Director of Church Planting and Church Health Larry Barker submits a weekly column titled, Healthy Church Solutions, designed to strengthen and encourage the local church.
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