FOR JESUS’ LOVE 5
Leadership Traits
By
Dr. Gale A. Ragan-Reid (July 9, 2017)
“So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs. He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep. He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep.” (St. John 21:15-17, King James Version [Christ’s charge to Peter]}
Greetings in the Holy Name of Jesus,
My sisters and brothers, leadership traits that increase opportunity to rise to the top as the cream of the crop notably so far have been love of Jesus, integrity, goodly and proper, blessed and power. Of course, initially we spoke of disloyalty and disobedience that contributed to the downfall of King Saul along with rebellion, stubbornness and rejection of the Word of God, quite a lot of negative performance to say the least and down right opposition to Prophet Samuel and God Almighty, to speak to the most of his behavior in performance. Most of us, I feel would like to know why God chose King Saul? Did King Saul have any positive leadership traits since now we know the negative leadership traits that forced him and his lineage out of reign over Israel?
Yes, King Saul like Moses was goodly and there were none among the children of Israel that were goodlier than he. For he also was a choice young man who was taller than any of the people (I Samuel 9:2, KJV [Israel desireth a king]). What happened to a goodly young man, tall in stature to force him to stand opposed to God’s will? Well, it was public opinion---the will of the men who served under him that caused King Saul to disobey, rebel, show stubbornness, reject the word of God---the face of disloyalty outside of faith, for faith was not in him to wait on the LORD, to come to the end of a matter, to know the truth of God’s leadership with his children---he just rebelled and rejected as if he were God over God Almighty. Well, there was to come a Godman---a man with power of God and a man with power with men---Jesus. We witnessed this to be truth when Jacob wrestled with God and received power with God and power with men because through Jacob came Judah and through Judah came David and through David came our Lord and Savior, Christ Jesus.
Did not God when he wrestled touch the hollow of Jacob’s thigh and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint; the sinew of Jacob’s thigh shrank [Genesis 32:25, 32, KJV] just as he took the rib of Adam to make Eve: “And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. And Adam said, this is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called
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Woman because she was taken out of Man.” (Genesis 2:22-23, KJV)---all to create a God man through Jacob which changed Jacob’s name to Israel---a name of a nation---so, that Jacob’s seed would have power with God and God wrestled also for Jacob’s seed to have power with man, until day break?---man born of woman, woman created from the rib of man---God man created when God and man wrestled giving Jacob power with God and power with man so that his seed was a Godman. Do we think of the angels that created giants of men before the great flood and those giants’ seeds with the children of the world? We understand that mankind is not flesh and blood only---there are those of mankind that are Godly---supernatural beyond the natural man, power with God and power with men, like Jesus and above all with faith to wait on the LORD, like Jesus---able to finish the business of God. Did not the Holy Scriptures say, “And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh; yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.” (Genesis 6:3, KJV)---which answered Job’s need to know the life expectancy of man, God giving man more years than what Moses said, for Moses said in Psalms 90:10, “The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labour and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, until we fly away” [ The Book Of Psalms, A Prayer of Moses the man of God, The happy state of the godly.] . We understand that the sinew of the thigh is not eaten by the children of Israel because God touched the hollow of Jacob’s thigh in the sinew that shrank [Genesis 32:32], but most of us have seen some folks eat--- crack the bones with their teeth and suck out the marrow and eat the sinew known as the physical strength or the tendon which is a tough cord of dense tissue that unites a muscle with the bone with barely any residue of the bone left—not of meat, not of sinew and not of bone---that’s just how some folks eat but the children of Israel eat not of the sinew that shrank [Genesis 32:32]. So the Lord giveth and the LORD taketh away---here, in Holy Scriptures when God wrestled with Jacob he took his physical strength when he touched the hollow of his thigh which shrank his sinew only to give him power with God and power with men, in return. How great thou art? The battle is the LORD’s.
In closing, we look to the leadership traits of men of God: love of Jesus, goodly above all in his generation, choice young man, tallest of all the other men, integrity, goodly and proper, blessed, and power. Therefore, we see that the leadership trait: goodly is an important leadership trait identified in both King Saul and Moses yet both leaders struggled with their goodliness, King Saul in relentless rebellion, stubbornness and rejection of God’s Word and Moses with murder of an Egyptian whom he caught offending his Israel. Faith, by faith, we see the forefathers made it through, not seeing our Lord and Savior, Christ Jesus as witnessed in Hebrews. Yet, in modern times we find ourselves in the struggle for our lives over faith---our faith in Jesus---not the leadership traits that strengthen us up for the challenge but our actual faith is the challenge, dying for our faith, dying for not knowing the truth of the Word of God, dying for our ignorance of the truth of the faith of Christ Jesus, dying for not denying Jesus---our struggle is now faith so we need all the leadership traits of the men of times gone by---our forefathers, our ancestors ---their spiritual connection to Jesus, to God---to inspire us to pray more so that we might receive what Jesus came to give us—‘life, more abundantly [“The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.’ St. John 10:10, KJV, Christ is the door.”).
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More importantly, we know through our gospel readings, in particular we look to Apostle John—Jesus’ disciple John, for he witnessed the Word of God, ”Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” [St. John 14:6]. “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” [8:32]. “And Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: and whosoever liveth believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this? [11:25-26]. “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.” [10:9]. In the Name of Jesus, we pray for life, more abundantly and life everlasting, “of life and peace’ (Malachi 2:5, KJV [The priests and people reproved]). Amen.
