Pt. 10b The Responsibilities of Leadership
![The Responsibilities of Leadership
Pt. 10b, The Biblical Story - Samuel and Saul
By Pastor Dan Kennedy
© March 30, 2014
www.pastorkennedy.com
No one can effectively begin to adequately review both the recorded lives of the Prophet Samuel and the first king of Israel – King Saul (as suggested in the outline format), within the time limitations of a Sunday morning message, so I will approach the lives of these two distinguished leaders in a different way. Anyone can read the book of 1 Samuel and discover for themselves the historical account of these two men.
Today, we will look instead at several aspects of the responsibilities of leadership through the lens of their lives. These expectations and accountabilities for leadership seem to be consistent whether one is serving as tribal leader 1,000 years before Christ, or the President of the United States in the 21st Century; whether he or she is the Secretary General of the United Nations, or a father or mother responsible for the smallest unit of any society – the “home”.
Everyone is a leader in his or her own way, when someone else follows their leadership – whether their leadership is for one child, or for a whole nation.
Samuel was a prophet, chosen by God to lead His people in troublesome times. Saul was a king appointed by God to initiate generations of kingdoms for Israel.
Scripture Reading:
1 Samuel 7:12–8:3
7 When the Philistines heard that Israel had assembled at Mizpah, the rulers of the Philistines came up to attack them. And when the Israelites heard of it, they were afraid because of the Philistines. 8 They said to Samuel, “Do not stop crying out to the Lord our God for us, that he may rescue us from the hand of the Philistines.” 9 Then Samuel took a suckling lamb and offered it up as a whole burnt offering to the Lord. He cried out to the Lord on Israel’s behalf, and the Lord answered him.
10 While Samuel was sacrificing the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to engage Israel in battle. But that day the Lord thundered with loud thunder against the Philistines and threw them into such a panic that they were routed before the Israelites. 11 The men of Israel rushed out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines, slaughtering them along the way to a point below Beth Car.
12 Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far has the Lord helped us.” 13 So the Philistines were subdued and did not invade Israelite territory again.
Throughout Samuel’s lifetime, the hand of the Lord was against the Philistines. 14 The towns from Ekron to Gath that the Philistines had captured from Israel were restored to her, and Israel delivered the neighboring territory from the power of the Philistines. And there was peace between Israel and the Amorites.
15 Samuel continued as judge over Israel all the days of his life. 16 From year to year he went on a circuit from Bethel to Gilgal to Mizpah, judging Israel in all those places. 17 But he always went back to Ramah, where his home was, and there he also judged Israel. And he built an altar there to the Lord.
8 When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as judges for Israel. 2 The name of his firstborn was Joel and the name of his second was Abijah, and they served at Beersheba. 3 But his sons did not walk in his ways. They turned aside after dishonest gain and accepted bribes and perverted justice.
Samuel was a godly judge, who blessed the people of Israel with honorable justice and judgment, but he appointed his sons as judges to come after him and they did not walk in Samuel’s ways:
• They turned aside after dishonest gain
• They accepted bribes
• They perverted justice.
Samuel succeeded in his lifetime, but failed in raising his sons to duplicate the principles required of spiritual leadership responsibilities. This failure of Samuel’s sons gave Israel the excuse to demand a king, so they could be like all the nations around them.
Saul failed in his leadership because of his pride, self-reliance, and his unreliability to be responsible to do what He knew God wanted him to do.
Key Responsibilities in Leadership
Samuel’s sons and Saul failed in key critical areas in responsibilities of leadership:
¬ Truth
¬ Justice
¬ Protection
• Are these three key areas primary qualities we would expect in sound leadership?
• Are there other critical areas of leadership you add or subtract?
Remember all of us lead someone else.
When we lead we can either bring blessing, encouragement and comfort, or we can bring confusion, dysfunction and future liability.
Let’s look at these three principles of leadership.
1. Truth: Honorable Leadership seeks out the truth and leads those who listen, to individually follow sound truth and wisdom.
Truth is affirmed in lifelong healthy benefit and fruitfulness to those who follow it.
Psalm 15:1–2, 5b
1 Lord, who may dwell in your sanctuary?
Who may live on your holy hill?
2 He whose walk is blameless
and who does what is righteous,
who speaks the truth from his heart
5b He who does these things
will never be shaken.
Proverbs 23:23
23 Buy truth, and do not sell it;
buy wisdom, instruction, and understanding.
• Samuel Spoke Truth as a Child
Most of us remember the story when God called the boy Samuel as he was going to sleep in the temple… “Samuel, Samuel!” And, of Eli’s advice to him to answer God’s Voice… “Speak Lord, for you servant is listening.”
God told Samuel of His coming judgment on Eli’s disobedient family.
As a child, Samuel spoke the truth to Eli – his “father figure”, mentor and High Priest of Israel, the next morning, even though he was afraid. Samuel faithfully recounted what God had told him the previous night, regarding the serious judgment God was bringing on Eli’s family because of the sin of Eli’s sons – the acting priests of the land who had perverted justice and godliness.
1 Samuel 3:15–18
15 …Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli. 16 But Eli called Samuel and said, “Samuel, my son.” And he said, “Here I am.” 17 And Eli said, “What was it that he told you? Do not hide it from me. May God do so to you and more also if you hide anything from me of all that he told you.” 18 So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him…
• As a faithful and godly Judge of Israel, Samuel spoke clearly to all of the Israelites about their falling away from God by serving idols, and their need to return to Him.
1 Samuel 7:3–4
3 And Samuel said to all the house of Israel, “If you are returning to the Lord with all your heart, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth from among you and direct your heart to the Lord and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.” 4 So the people of Israel put away the Baals and the Ashtaroth, and they served the Lord only.
• Samuel told the Israelites the truth about what it would be like to have the king they so longed to enthrone – to be like the other nations.
1 Samuel 8:10–18
So Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people who were asking for a king from him.
He said, “These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you:
He will take your sons as charioteers.
He will appoint some for his army.
He will make some his farmers.
He will make some craftsmen for war.
He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers.
He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give them to his servants.
He will take the tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and to his servants.
He will take your male servants and female servants and the best of your young men and your donkeys, and put them to his work.
He will take the tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves.
“There will come a day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves, but the Lord will not answer you in that day.”
Samuel told the truth to the Israelites – though it was not an easy task.
Samuel told the truth to King Saul – though it was difficult.
Several times Samuel communicated the Word of the Lord to King Saul, but Saul refused to comply fully with God’s Word given to him.
One such time is recorded in 1 Samuel 15.
Background: Remember that God allows time for people to repent before He requires destruction because of their sin. God waited 400 years, with Israel in forced slavery most of that time, to give those whom Israel was to conquer and destroy because of unrepentant sin, time to repent, or to have “their cup [of sin] to reach its full measure”), before God poured His wrath out upon them (Genesis 15:5–8; 12-16; 2 Peter 3:9–10; 1 Thessalonians 2:16). Ritual sacrifice, and debilitating and deadly sexually transmitted diseases with all manner of abuse associated with the worship of cultic gods, such as burning their children in the fire to their gods, unrestrained immorality, bestiality, etc., was common place in these spiritistic and satanically depraved societies.
Remember that God is not partial. It would be only a matter of time, when the Israelites assimilated these pagan idolatrous cultures to itself, and these gross sins eventually brought Israel to their own devastating destruction (2 Kings 21:10-16; Ezekiel 22).
God allowed Amalek two hundred more years (not including the 400 preceding years Israel was in Egypt) before He sent King Saul to judge them for their sins against Him – and against each other.
1 Samuel 15:2–3
2 Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘I have noted what Amalek did to Israel in opposing them on the way when they came up out of Egypt (some 200 years later – almost as long as the US has been a nation). 3 Now go and strike Amalek and devote to destruction all that they have. Do not spare them….’ ”
But Saul did not obey. He kept all the best livestock…auspiciously, so he later told Samuel, for “offerings to the Lord”. He also spared, as a trophy, the king of Amalek. God told Samuel to confront King Saul with his disobedience, and Samuel told Saul the hard truth – “God has rejected you from being king of Israel”.
1 Samuel 15:22–23
22 And Samuel said,
“Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord?
Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice,
and to listen than the fat of rams.
23 For rebellion is as the sin of divination,
and presumption is as iniquity and idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the Lord,
he has also rejected you from being king.”
Samuel (and Israel) reaped the personal benefit of Samuel’s healthy relationship with God, but sadly, Samuel was not able to transfer his relationship with God and values of leadership, to his sons.
Today, we have the Truth of God’s Word, the Bible.
Those who follow the Biblical Precepts are guided in Truth for a life that pleases God, and that offers a purpose and meaning, which is most fulfilling, beneficial, and eternally rewarding.
Do we live in a pattern of truth or self-serving deception?
2. Justice: Honorable Leadership makes unbiased decisions when people come to him or her for help. These leaders are not swayed from justice by deceitful friendship, prejudice or bribery.
Eli’s sons were priests who were immoral and dishonest (1 Sam. 2:12-17; 22-25; 30-36; 3:11-14; 4:1-4). God judged Eli’s sons and Israel for their sin.
Samuel’s sons did not honorably judge the nation as their father had…
They made different personal self-benefiting choices and decisions, which adversely affected all of Israel.
• They turned aside after dishonest gain
• They accepted bribes
• They perverted justice.
King David and Justice
King David is considered by God to be a man after His own heart (Acts 13:22).
Here are his last words before he died:
2 Samuel 23:1–7
The Last Words of David
23 Now these are the last words of David:
2 “The Spirit of the Lord speaks by me;
his word is on my tongue.
3 The God of Israel has spoken;
the Rock of Israel has said to me:
When one rules justly over men,
ruling in the fear of God,
4 he dawns on them like the morning light,
like the sun shining forth on a cloudless morning,
like rain that makes grass to sprout from the earth…
6 But worthless men are all like thorns that are thrown away,
for they cannot be taken with the hand;
7 but the man who touches them
arms himself with iron and the shaft of a spear,
and they are utterly consumed with fire.”
God hates injustice. Those who are involved in taking advantage of others, God will judge.
People hate injustice. Injustice always becomes evident because it brings with it corruption. Justice and injustice are revealed to those whose eyes are not blinded by their own carnality. When justice flourishes in the land there is great joy; when it does not, there is great sorrow, discontent, distortion of Truth, and eventually anarchy.
3. Protection: Honorable Leadership healthily protects those who are under its accountability.
As we read in the Scripture reading at the beginning of the message, because of Samuel’s honorable relationship with God, He protected Israel and gave them peace instead of war.
1 Samuel 7:13-14
13 So the Philistines were subdued and did not invade Israelite territory again.
Throughout Samuel’s lifetime, the hand of the Lord was against the Philistines. 14 The towns from Ekron to Gath that the Philistines had captured from Israel were restored to her, and Israel delivered the neighboring territory from the power of the Philistines. And there was peace between Israel and the Amorites.
Healthy leadership protects those under its leadership from that which would hurt them – physically or spiritually.
Jesus’ Description of Spiritual Wolves
Jesus taught His disciples about false teachers who were really ravenous wolves (greedy for their own benefit) – they would be recognized by the fruit they produced.
Matthew 7:15–16
A Tree and Its Fruit
15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. 16 You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
Paul’s Description of Spiritual Wolves
Paul taught the church leaders to be vigilant against spiritual and theological self-serving fraud.
Acts 20:28–31
28 Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. 29 I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; 30 and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them. 31 Therefore be alert, remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish every one with tears.
Healthy leadership protects those under its leadership from that which would hurt them – physically or spiritually.
Conclusion
Key Responsibilities in Leadership
¬ Truth – Do we seek Truth, especially from God’s Word, and are we truthful to those whom we lead? Do we live in a pattern of Truth or self-serving deception?
¬ Justice – Are we Just in our relationship with decisions that we make?
¬ Protection – Do we honorably Protect those under our care from the many diverse “wolves”, which would destroy them?
Each of us has influencing roles of leadership. Those who effectively honor God with these three critical aspects of honorable leadership will be blessed with a fruitful and benefitting life… and eternal reward by Almighty God.
I pray each of us will strive to be honorable to God as we influence those around us every day!
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Addendum
The Authority of Leadership
God has ordained Leadership to have certain authority.
There is visible leadership and invisible leadership and both have been given an appropriate amount of authority by God. There is healthy authority and there is demonically destructive authority.
• Rulers – the person who holds the position of authority
• Authorities – the power the ruler has been given (by God and the people) to exercise his will
• Dominion – the areas over which the ruler’s authority extends
• Thrones – the place from which the ruler chooses to govern (Samuel chose to have four cities to which he traveled and from which he judged the people’s concerns.)
[Visible and Invisible]
Cosmic Powers
This Present Darkness
Spiritual Forces of Evil
Scriptural References to Supernatural Authorities
Ephesians 6:12 (ESV)
12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
The rulers,
The authorities,
The cosmic powers over this present darkness,
The spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
Colossians 1:16
16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.
…visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—
Ephesians 1:21
21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.
…rule and authority and power and dominion
Ephesians 2:1–2
2 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—
The Messiah’s (Jesus’) Eternal Authority
Daniel 7:14
14 And to him was given dominion
and glory and a kingdom,
that all peoples, nations, and languages
should serve him;
his dominion is an everlasting dominion,
which shall not pass away,
and his kingdom one
that shall not be destroyed.
Daniel 7:27
27 And the kingdom and the dominion
and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High; his kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom,
and all dominions shall serve and obey him.’
1 Corinthians 15:24
24 Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule (dominion) and every authority and power.
1 Peter 1:10–12
10 Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, 11 inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. 12 It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.
Ephesians 3:8–11
8 To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9 and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things, 10 so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. 11 This was according to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord…](Pt._10b,_The_Biblical_Story_-_The_Responsibilities_of_Leadership_files/shapeimage_1.png)
