Element Church Insider

I don’t think there is anything more powerful on earth than God’s Church, united together with a “Unified Purpose”.  One of my main prayers lately has been “Lord, protect us from division.  I pray for unity around YOU and around the VISION you’ve given us.”  I keep a prayer journal and Bible study journal each day.  I felt led, and I started praying that prayer specifically on July 28th of this year.  On August 2nd  my devotional reading brought me to the book of Ezra, and I don’t think the timing was just ironic.

Ezra was a Jewish priestly scribe who led a remnant of Jewish people back to Jerusalem to rebuild the Temple after their captivity. I read this in Ezra 3:1 “…all the people assembled in Jerusalem with a unified purpose.”

Then just a few days ago as I was praying about “unity in purpose” I noticed something.  I was looking at the word “division” in my journal and realized that division has two parts to it:  “Di” (divided, two or double) “vision” (the ability to think about or plan the future with imagination or wisdom).   One of the reasons the people of Jerusalem were unified in purpose, was because there was a SINGULAR vision.  To REBUILD THE TEMPLE.  In fact, in Ezra 1:5 it says “Then God stirred the hearts of the priests, and Levites and the leaders of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin to go to Jerusalem to REBUILD the Temple of the Lord.”

In leadership, whether you are leading a church, a team, a company an organization, or just a small group of people, their must be ONE vision if there is to be a unified purpose.  There isn’t room in the church for TWO visions.  There isn’t room in ANY group for two visions.  If there is more than one vision, there will NEVER be unity in purpose.  That doesn’t mean people won’t oppose you or the vision (just read Ezra and Nehemiah to find that out).  It doesn’t mean people will ALWAYS agree.  It doesn’t mean someone won’t want a different vision.  And It doesn’t mean that you won’t make mistakes trying to implement the vision.  What it DOES mean, is there will be NO question WHERE you have been called to go and WHAT you have been called to do.

I then realized that being unified in purpose has as much to do with the ONE casting the vision, as it does the many who you want to follow it. So I added to my prayer list.  “Lord, may YOU give me YOUR vision for my family, my life and your church.”  When there is ONE vision it sure helps foster the potential of a unified purpose.

Seeking vision,

Jeff

You can read yesterday’s post HERE with a link to the others.

Deuteronomy 17:18-20 says ¹⁸ “When he sits on the throne as king, he must copy for himself this body of instruction on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests. ¹⁹ He must always keep that copy with him and read it daily as long as he lives. That way he will learn to fear the Lord his God by obeying all the terms of these instructions and decrees. ²⁰ This regular reading will prevent him from becoming proud and acting as if he is above his fellow citizens. It will also prevent him from turning away from these commands in the smallest way.  And it will ensure that he and his descendants will reign for many generations in Israel.

The third reason a leader needs to take responsibility to daily study God’s Word is:  It keeps the future in focus

God here is talking about future descendants reigning on the throne for generations.  While “reigning” doesn’t apply to spiritual leadership today, the principle remains the same.  I think sometimes in leadership, we don’t keep the future in focus.  We fail to remember…to see that the decisions I make today, affects my church, my family, my organization, my ministry for YEARS to come.  Generations if you will!

I don’t want Element Church to succeed today if it doesn’t succeed after I’m gone!  I hope I am leading in a way that sets up Element Church to continue helping people experience LIFE to its fullest and IMPACT our community LONG after I am gone.  My leadership doesn’t just affect today, 5 years or 10 years from now.  That daily study of God’s Word helps keep the future in focus!  You see, vision is NOT just about seeing what God can accomplish through us NOW, but seeing what God can accomplish AFTER we’re gone!

In 2 Kings 20:16-19 this is said about King Hezekiah.  ¹⁶ Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Listen to this message from the Lord: ¹⁷ The time is coming when everything in your palace—all the treasures stored up by your ancestors until now—will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing will be left, says the Lord. ¹⁸ Some of your very own sons will be taken away into exile. They will become eunuchs who will serve in the palace of Babylon’s king.” ¹⁹ Then Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “This message you have given me from the Lord is good.” For the king was thinking, “At least there will be peace and security during my lifetime.”

King Hezekiah wasn’t concerned with the future, because everything was good in HIS lifetime.  Man, That is a HUGE warning for me.  My leading doesn’t just affect today, or even MY lifetime.  If the Lord chooses not to return before I’m gone, my leadership extends to GENERATIONS.  It affects my family, our church, and our community.  YOURS does too!  I don’t ever want to have the attitude of “At least there will be peace and security in my lifetime.”  I hope the decisions I make and the things I do in leadership are CONSTANTLY run through the filter of Scripture so that I keep the FUTURE in focus.

Looking ahead,

Jeff

You can read Part 1 HERE.  As I said, I’m amazed at the simplicity of leadership when looked at it through the lens of Scripture.  There are some GREAT books on leadership out there and I highly recommend ANY leader taking time to learn from other successful leaders…HOWEVER, there isn’t a better leadership book than the Bible.  And there isn’t a better leadership voice than the Holy Spirit.  Leadership is as simple as listening to the Holy Spirit and doing what He says.  One of the GREATEST ways to hear the Holy Spirit is through reading Scripture.

Deuteronomy 17:18-20 says ¹⁸ “When he sits on the throne as king, he must copy for himself this body of instruction on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests. ¹⁹ He must always keep that copy with him and read it daily as long as he lives. That way he will learn to fear the Lord his God by obeying all the terms of these instructions and decrees. ²⁰ This regular reading will prevent him from becoming proud and acting as if he is above his fellow citizens. It will also prevent him from turning away from these commands in the smallest way.  And it will ensure that he and his descendants will reign for many generations in Israel.

The first reason a leader needs to take responsibility to study God’s Word is:  He will learn to FEAR the Lord and OBEY His commands.

I would say that this reason is the TOP reason a leader needs to be in God’s Word.  I pound this into our team constantly, it has become the foundation on which I stand as a leader.  “Obedience IS success”  I think sometimes as leaders, especially as Christian leaders and pastors, we view obedience as a leveraging tool against God.  That somehow, if I obey God, He will bless my leadership or ministry and make me successful.  We view success as how many attend church.  How much money comes in.  How great a building we have.  When in reality, ALL those “successes” mean NOTHING if I don’t learn to OBEY Christ! Obedience doesn’t BRING success it IS success.

In 1 Kings 2:2-3 David is passing the leadership baton of King to his son Solomon.  He says “Take courage and be a man.  Observe the requirements of the Lord your God, and follow all his ways.  Keep the decrees, commands, regulations, and laws written in the Law of Moses so that you will be successful in all you do and wherever you go.”

I have to wonder, that while YES Solomon experienced great “worldly” success, if David wasn’t saying “Solomon, obedience IS your success”?  Was David emphasizing and reminding Solomon that with ALL the accolades leadership can give…all the fulfillment we might experience from it..all the STUFF we might gain, that NONE of it matters unless we follow Christ?  NONE! ZIP! NODDA! ZERO!

Leader, stop pursuing SUCCESS and start pursuing CHRIST and you’ll have found your success.  Get into the WORD daily so you will learn to fear the Lord and obey His commands.  Obedience IS your success.  It’s YOUR responsibility.  It’s only in God’s Word that we are able to find God’s will.

In the Word,

Jeff

I’m amazed at the simplicity of leadership when looked at it through the lens of Scripture.  There are some GREAT books on leadership out there and I highly recommend ANY leader taking time to learn from other successful leaders…HOWEVER, there isn’t a better leadership book than the Bible.  And there isn’t a better leadership voice than the Holy Spirit.  As Perry Noble says “Leadership is as simple as hearing God’s voice and doing what He says.”  With that said, there is a passage of Scripture that I think is KEY to a leaders responsibility:

Deuteronomy 17:18-20 says ¹⁸ “When he sits on the throne as king, he must copy for himself this body of instruction on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests. ¹⁹ He must always keep that copy with him and read it daily as long as he lives. That way he will learn to fear the Lord his God by obeying all the terms of these instructions and decrees. ²⁰ This regular reading will prevent him from becoming proud and acting as if he is above his fellow citizens. It will also prevent him from turning away from these commands in the smallest way.  And it will ensure that he and his descendants will reign for many generations in Israel.

Now, I understand this was written to the King, and is referring specifically to this book, Deuteronomy, or quite possibly to the whole Torah (Genesis – Deuteronomy).  However, I don’t think I’d be straying too far to say that the principle remains the same.  It is the leaders responsibility to develop a DAILY study and reading of God’s Word (Genesis – Revelation) as an integral part of their growing relationship with Jesus! I say Genesis – Revelation because the WHOLE of Scripture determines the WHOLE of me.  It’s too easy to go back to passages or books that I LIKE and that make me feel good.  But I don’t need to feel good, I need ALL of God’s Word to permeate ALL of me, and that can only happen from Genesis – Revelation (in some form reading all of Scripture).

This reading and study of God’s Word needs to go BEYOND preparing for a sermon, studying for small group, 0r looking for verses that you can pull out of context to prove your position on a non essential doctrine that really doesn’t effect anyone’s eternity.  This reading needs to sink in to WHO you are and HOW you live because WHO you are and HOW you live will determine WHAT kind of leader you will be.  I find it interesting that of ALL the guidelines for a King (leader) in this passage, the most is said about the leaders involvement in God’s Word.  There are 3 reasons why a leaders responsibility is to study God’s Word daily.  We’ll look at those the rest of this week.

In His Word,

Jeff