Introduction

Good morning, family. I'm so glad to see each of you here today. I love Sundays, don't you? It's our special time to gather together, to share in fellowship, and most importantly, to open up God's Word together.

Today, we're going to talk about something that touches every area of our lives - leadership. Now, when I say 'leadership', I don't just mean the kind you see in the boardroom or the battlefield. I'm talking about the kind of leadership that we see in our homes, our communities, and yes, our churches. It's the kind of leadership that makes us better friends, better neighbors, better parents, and better followers of Jesus.

I want to share a quote with you from Charles Colson. He once said, 'The true mark of a Christian leader is trying to build up other people. Raise up other leaders!' Isn't that something? It's not about being the boss - it's about looking after the people God has entrusted to you.

That's a perspective that we're going to see echoed in our Scripture reading today. We're going to be looking at two passages. The first is from Judges 4:9, where we read, 'And she said, 'I will surely go with you. Nevertheless, the road on which you are going will not lead to your glory, for the Lord will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.' Then Deborah arose and went with Barak to Kedesh.'

The second passage is from Ephesians 4:11-16, 'And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.'

Let's pray together before we get started.

Dear Heavenly Father, we thank You for bringing us together today. We ask that You open our hearts and minds to Your Word. Help us to understand Your teachings on leadership, and guide us in applying these lessons in our daily lives. May we always strive to be leaders who care for those in our charge, just as You care for us. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.

Alright, friends. Let's get down to it. We've got three main points to talk about today: Understanding Cooperative Leadership, Roles in Goal Oriented Leadership, and Enhancing Spiritual Growth through Leadership. Let's see what God has to say to us about these things.

Understanding Cooperative Leadership

In the book of Judges, we find the story of Deborah and Barak. This story is a great example of cooperative leadership. Deborah was a prophetess and a judge. She was the one who received the word from God. Barak was a military leader. He was the one who would lead the troops into battle. But neither of them could fulfill their mission alone. They needed each other.

Deborah could have said: 'I'm the one who hears from God. I'm the one in charge.' Barak could have said, 'I'm the one with the army. I'm the one who's going to fight.' But they didn't. They worked together. They recognized that they each had a role to play, and they each respected the other's role.

A lesson for us: In our homes, in our workplaces, in our churches, we need to work together. We need to respect each other's roles. We need to recognize that we each have something to contribute. And we need to remember that we're all on the same team. We're all working towards the same goal.

A closer look at the story of Deborah and Barak: Deborah was a prophetess. She was the one who received the word from God. But she didn't keep that word to herself. She shared it with Barak. She didn't try to take his role as the military leader. She didn't try to lead the troops into battle herself. She recognized that Barak had a role to play, and she respected that role.

Another lesson for us: When we receive a word from God, we need to share it. We need to communicate it to others. We need to recognize that others have a role to play, and we need to respect their role. We shouldn't try to do everything ourselves. We shouldn't try to take over other people's roles. We should work together.

Barak was a military leader: He was the one who would lead the troops into battle. But he didn't try to take over Deborah's role as the prophetess. He didn't try to receive the word from God himself. He recognized that Deborah had a role to play, and he respected that role.

The outcome of Deborah and Barak's cooperative leadership: They were successful. They defeated Sisera and his army. They achieved their goal. But they didn't achieve it alone. They achieved it together. When we work together, when we respect each other's roles, when we recognize that we each have something to contribute, we can achieve our goals. We can be successful. But we can't do it alone. We need each other. We need to work together.

Roles in Goal Oriented Leadership

As we continue to delve into the heart of our discussion today, we find ourselves turning our gaze towards the idea of roles within goal-oriented leadership ... View this full PRO sermon free with PRO