WILL THE REAL LEADER PLEASE STAND UP!
Mark 10-42-43 Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 43 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant,
I A REAL LEADER SERVES the Lord
President Reagan had just been shot by John Hinckley.and Washington DC was shocked and stunned. Vice-President George Bush was not immediately available.
Even at the White House no one was sure what was going on.
That’s when Gen. Alexander Haig, who was at the White House, stepped in & confidently asserted to the press--"I’m in charge here!"
He’s never been able to live those four words down.
What HE thought he was doing was providing crisis leadership.
What the country saw was a man hungry for power.
I’m in charge here!" Those words never fell from Jsus’ lips!
They didn’t have to.Something about Jesus made people KNOW he was a leader.
A.When you lead Jesus style you have the interest of others at heart
Luke 22:42 Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but
yours be done."
1. Remember the words of John F. Kennedy in his aunagrual address? He said, “say
not what this country can do for you –but what you can do for this country.
2. A leader is in the church do be a blessing to the people of God. . He has one
agenda. His heart is advancing the cause of Christ not seeking how the church can
serve his personal agenda.
3. The leader understands the that God has placed the church in the world and the
leader is keenly aware of the value and eternal purpose for which the body of
Christ exists. God did not put the church here to serve you but for you to serve
Jesus and follow his mandate in leading the people of God!
Philippians 2:4 “Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also
to the interests of others.”
B. A leader serves the Lord!
1. The leader serves God’s people but gets his orders from the Lord.
2. Anytime we’re afraid to do what’s right for fear of others, we are no longer leaders people we
fear are.
Colossians 3:23 command us, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as
working for the Lord, not for men”.
Someone once called a preacher to say he wanted to become a church member.
But, he went on to explain that he did not want to: commit to coming to worship every week, study the Bible, visit the sick, or serve as a leader or teacher.
The minister commended him for his desire to be a church member,
but told him the church he was looking for was located in another part of town.
The man wrote down the address and hung up.
When he arrived at that address, the man came face to face with the result of his own attitude of not wanting to be involved. There stood an abandoned church building
boarded up and ready for demolition.. YOU CANNOT BE A REAL DISCIPLE WITHOUT SERVICE AND YOU CERTAINLY CANNOT LEAD WITHOUT SERVING!
II.A REAL LEADER IS AN EXAMPLE To others
There was this parrot who lived in a bar. Well the barkeeper decided to sell the bar and a group of church people who needed a new church bought it to convert it to a place to meet for worship. So the bar was open it’s last night for business. After midnight when the bar closed down and the parrot was sleeping, people came in and redecorated the bar to look like a church. On Sunday morning the parrot woke up and saw the people coming in for church. The parrot squawked, “Same old crowd, just a different décor.”
A. A leader leads by example! What does that mean?
1. Hebrews 13:7 “Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you.
Consider the outcome of their way of life and IMITATE THEIR FAITH.”
2 “I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you” (John
13:15).
3. Suicide bombers are willing to give their lives in order to kill people that goes
against their religion. The terrorists on September 11 were willing to fly those
planes into the Word Trade Towers knowing they would kill themselves in an
act of hatred.
It is amazing that people are willing to die for a cause like that
when so many Christians are afraid to let it be known that they are followers
of Christ.
B. You cannot lead where you will not go!
1.How can you lead others to pray if you do not pray?
2.How can you lead others to tithe if you do not tithe?.
3.How can you lead others to be kind and hold your anger?
4.How can you lead the church to teach if you do not teach?
C. Every leader needs a Paul to be mentored and a Timothy to mentor! In the
corporate world, this is called “mentoring” or “coaching.”
III. A REAL LEADER REACHES the seekers. Peter 3:1“But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.
A.Luke 19:10 tells us what the business of the church is. “Jesus came to seek and
save the lost. The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing!
B. God is in the relentless pursuit of finding lost people
It was Dec 7 1988. Armenia. They called it the earthquake of 1989
This quake was off the rector scales. Altogether 30,000 people died in 4 minutes.
Father looks for his son, Armond! Armond was at school when the deadly
earthquake hit. The father gets to the school and he climbs a tree he scans the
skyline. He studies the layout of the rubble of a once thriving school. He tries to
locate where his son’s class would be. He begins to pull rock after rock, desk
after desk, looking for his lost son. His hands became bloody and torn by the sharp
rock. Others resurers said, Its no use however the father kept digging.
After 38 hours he pulled a rock back and heard his son’s voice. They were faint
cries of papa , papa, papa ,papaya His passion for what was lost finally paid off.
“You found me, you found me!”…
Jesus found me, aren’t you glad he found you? A leader is about finding lost
sheep.
IV. A REAL LEADER VALUES the Word John 8:31 to 32 Jesus said, ‘If you
hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and
the truth will set you free
A. One area where we can gauge if we really value the Word is when we make
decisions. The Bible teaches us to ask, “What is the wise thing to do?”
1. John 17:17 "Sanctify them by your word…"
2. Hebrews 4:12 "For the word of God [is] quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and [is] a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart."
3. James wrote “the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it-- he will be blessed in what he does. (James 1:25)
4. BUT you know, there’s a book in most everyone’s home that even some Christians read more than the Bible?
ILLUS: On the table side by side;
A Holy Bible and the TV Guide,
One is well worn but cherished with pride,
(Not the Bible, but the TV Guide).
One is used daily to help folks decide,
No! It isn’t the Bible; it’s the TV Guide.
As pages are turned, what shall they see?
Oh, what does matter, turn on the TV.
So they open the book in which they confide
(No, not the Bible, it’s the TV Guide
The Word of God is seldom read,
Maybe a verse ere they fall into bed.
Exhausted and sleepy and tired as can be,
Not from reading the Bible, but watching TV.
So, then back to the table, side by side,
Is the Holy Bible and the TV Guide.
No time for prayer, no time for the Word;
The plan for salvation is seldom heard.
Forgiveness of sin so full and free
Is found in the Bible, not on TV!!
Hosea 4:6 "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge
V A REAL LEADER ADORES God in worship He learns humility by
sitting at the foot of the cross
A. True worship also focuses on God. This is where many of us make a mistake. We
assume that worship focuses on us. I’ve heard many times people talk about how
they are struggling in their worship life because they aren’t being fed. Have you
ever heard anyone say that? “I’m not being fed. I’m not getting anything out of
worship. I’m not being nurtured by worship. I don’t get a blessing out of worship
Well, that is a legitimate question with some people, but what concerns me is that I
never, ever hear people say anything about whether or not God is being blessed in
the worship service. I never hear anyone concerned about whether or not GOD is
enjoying worship.
We ought to worship PRIMARILY so that GOD can get something out of it.
Until God gets something out of our worship, we never will. Until God is blessed
by our worship, we won’t be blessed.
In recent years, theology and worship have emphasized the personal nature of God,
We’ve forgotten that our God is also an awesome God. We have almost reformed
God into a “little buddy” or someone to pal around with. We forgotten that God is
such an awesome holy God that to be in His presence is to be filled with wonder.
VI. A REAL LEADER NETWORKS with believer
2 Timothy 2:2 tells us, “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.”
A leaders spends time with his flock. a person who actively builds relationships with fellow believers through mutual encouragement
VII. A REAL LEADER THRIVES in prayer
James 5:16 commands us, “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.” When our Lord Jesus cleansed the Temple, He said, “My house shall be called a house of prayer”.The word says, is any sick let him call for the elders.
Prayer brings the Spirit’s filling.
Prayer brings God’s wisdom.
Prayer accesses God’s power.
Prayer relieves stress
Prayer reveals God’s agenda
Conclusion: I have just given you an acrostic message of a real leader
Serves others Example Reaches seekers Values the word Adores God in worship
Networks with believers Thrives in Prayer
F. B. Meyer once said, "I used to think that God’s gifts were on shelves one above the other; and that the taller we grew in Christian character, the easier we could reach them. I now find that God’s gifts are on shelves one beneath the other. It is not a question of growing taller but of stooping lower; that we have to go down, Before we can go up!
