Understanding Divine Empowerment
Webster University
Luke's understanding of the Divine Empowerment of Christian Leadership provides essential understanding into shaping the values of spiritual leaders. God prepares leaders with a specific purpose and task in mind. Luke, in Acts 2, utilizes the Old Testament to highlight the importance of the divine empowerment of leaders. Acts 2 underscores principles such as Vision, Inspirational Power, and humility. The pages that succeed will construe the role that Divine Empowerment plays in personal leadership formation for modern Christian Leaders.
Luke wrote the third Gospel as an account of Jesus' earthly life and Acts continues that story. The New Testament divides into two equal sections: The first being the Gospels that tell about Jesus' life on earth. The second, beginning with Romans, concerns the establishment of churches after Jesus left. In the town is the book of Acts. Acts creates the transition from Jerusalem to Rome. With Acts, the New Testament transitions from the history of one man, Jesus, to the new church. The framework for this book was shape by Jesus in Acts 1:8 "...ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth." Acts follows that outlined: The first seven chapters show the church in Jerusalem, the next five centers on Judea and Samaria, and the rest of the book follows the gospel to the outposts of the Roman Empire.
The foresight of God's Kingdom At-Hand
Acts records a series of stages through which Peter's speech in chapter 2 offers an exquisite example of adapting the gospel message to a singular audience. Preaching to Jews gathered in Jerusalem to celebrate Pentecost, he relied heavily on quotations from the Old Testament. Though his main intent was to tell them about Jesus, he referred to the prophet Joel and David - the Bethlemite sheppard anointed to be King.
"Afterward" in Joel 2:28 is referring to the period beyond restoration. In Joel 2:25 the recovery is from the plague of insects. However, in Acts 2:17 "afterwards" was substituted with "in the last days it will be" to signify the eschatological conception of Joel in that the new compact does not abolish the old but supersedes it in the sense that through the new compact the old is fulfilled and its purpose realized. "The last days" began with the first arrival of Christ and was fulfilled with his second coming.
Inspirational Power
Joel's conception of the outpouring of God's spirit was quoted by Peter in Acts 2:17-21. Adding the clause "...they shall prophecy" (Acts 2:18) suggests that the conception that Joel prophesied had been fulfilled in Jesus Christ, indicating that God would retort to Jews and non-Jews alike. Paul continues this conception in 1 Corinthians 11:10-11 by referring to the woman's authority as co-ruler with man. They make the point that God will confer the spirit upon every person regardless of age, sex, race, or rank.
Joel 2:30 purports there will be wonders in the form of cosmic events. Blood from war; fire, and pillars of smoke are all signs of God's proximity (Joel 2:10, Isaiah 13:9-10). Acts 2:19 presents a clear spatial contrast in the middle of the "wonders in heaven above" and "signs in the earth beneath." The author immediately follows this contrast by identifying who will be saved in Acts 2:21, "...whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord." This call to worship includes faith and response rather than merely words while the separation of actions "above" and those "beneath" indicates that those above will gawk the wonders of God but only those below will be subject to the devastation.
After establishing that outpouring of the spirit was to be for every person that called on the name of the Lord, the author of Acts emphasizes that this promise came from the top authority. "Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost..." (Acts 2:33). Paul also testifies "For there is one God, and one mediator in the middle of God and men, the man Christ Jesus" (1 Timothy 2:5).
A Humble King
Generally, the Old Testament offers petite understanding into life after death. The apostle Peter portrayed David's prophetic voice with his recitation of Psalm 16 in Acts 2:25-28 by reconfiguring the text and changing the meaning of the "Holy One" to refer to Jesus. Peter also re-contextualized Psalm 110 to give a deeper meaning to David's Psalm of God's Priest-King, "The Lord said unto my Lord" (Acts 2:34). The initial reading of the Psalm, leads us to believe that David is speaking of the coronation of his son Solomon. However, reading it in the context of Acts, the second "Lord" is not referring to a mere descendant but rather someone that would be greater than David himself - the Messiah - and because of Jesus' resurrection, David and all God's citizen would come to new life after death.
Values of Divine Empowerment
When God sent Samuel to Bethlehem to find a transfer for Saul, each of the sons of Jesse was rejected, except David - the youngest whom Samuel is told to anoint (1 Samuel 16-17). 2 Samuel 7:12-16 states that God was so pleased with David that He promised that the Davidic line would endure forever; Therefore many believed that the Messiah would be a direct descendant of King David.
When most citizen dream empowered leaders, they envision leaders such as Presidents and Prime Ministers or leaders of great armies. History is filled with strong personalities, but none more customary than King David. We can only image the confidence that David felt when he had been chosen by God to lead. The Old Testament gave numerous examples of the Divine Empowerment of King David. When we think of David we see the young man who left the battlefield at Shochoh to feed his father's sheep at Bethlehem but later returned to defeat the Philistines, not with a distinguished army but with a sling and a stone. We see David on a roof top, lustfully gazing down at Bathsheba. We hear David's suffering as he cries to God for the life of his child child. We see David as he danced before the Lord with all his might and as he stumbles out of Jerusalem, pursued by his rebellious son.
The Old Testament does not chronicle David as a exquisite character or as a exquisite model of strength and confidence. He had striking weaknesses, yet he appeals to us as a leader who survived a dozen crises by maintaining a passionate trust in God. Living by faith is not easy, nor was it so for David. Though the bible offers no magical formula to solving daily problems, it does speak to the formation of principles for modern Christian Leaders. Specifically, Acts 2 suggests that Christian Leaders have been given the Divine Empowerment of Vision, Inspirational Power, and Humility.
The basal capability of Leadership: Vision
Merriam-Webster defines foresight as a supernatural appearance that conveys a revelation or the power of imagination. All efficient leaders have a foresight of what they must accomplish. That foresight becomes the vigor behind every effort that drives the organization. In Psalm 110, David's prophecy of the arrival of Jesus as the Messiah confirmed the reign of Jesus as Lord and Savior but is also validated the teachings of the disciples. When asked to chronicle the ideal leader, nobody ever stated that he should be a great planner. The capability they recognize in the ideal leader is vision, the enhanced capability to chronicle the gift situation and the desired hereafter in a way that inspires action. foresight involves insight, foresight, and wisdom.
Insight is empowering to the leader who has it. The leader with understanding believes that not only what he envisions can be done, but that it must be done. "There will all the time be a point where the environment changes, the competition changes, something essential changes, and you must comprehend this and take the important role in meeting change." (Farkas and Wetlaufer, 1998, p. 122). understanding includes optimism, trust, and hope. Before citizen trust your insight, they must believe in you - they must you know that you care. Maxwell (1993) believed you should "Let them see your heart before they see your hope" (p. 154).
Foresight involves the leader's capability to visualize the end succeed of the policies and methods he advocates. The leader looks to understand how the policies will sway hereafter generations. "[Foresight] is a clear photograph of what the leader sees his or her group being or doing" (Maxwell, 1993, p. 149). This implies nothing about how the understanding was obtained but, under the banner of vision, one would expect that this knowledge was obtained through the leader's wisdom.
Wisdom gives the leader equilibrium and helps to avoid recklessness. Maxwell (1993) maintained "A foresight should be greater than the someone who has it" (p. 148). Wisdom helps the optimistic leader to be realistic, it gives understanding into the heart of things, and adds foresight to commonplace thinking and experience. The foresight must be defined by the leader's wisdom. But it is the subordinates who must define the objectives that move the assosication toward the desired outcome. "[Vision] accomplishment must be the succeed of many citizen bringing many resources to the job" (Maxwell, 1993, p. 148).
If knowledge comes by study then wisdom comes by the Holy Spirit. Paul's prayer for the Christians at Colosse was that they "be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding" (Colossians 1:9).
The Authority of Leadership: Inspirational Power
God's leader is marked by the power to inspire others into assistance and sacrifice. Spiritual leadership requires spirit-filled people. The book of Acts is the story of citizen who build a church and led the missionary enterprise. In Acts 2 God tells us that even the lay persons shall be filled with "my Spirit; and they shall prophesy" (Acts 2:18). A someone can have exquisite managerial skills but without spirituality he or she is incapable of spiritual leadership. This power of inspiration is obtained through prayer and moral courage.
Prayer can help us focus our spiritual life on what God is willing to offer us in our times of need. These prayers open us to God's free and loving grace. We can be made aware of God's peace in the midst of fear and God's forgiving love in the midst of resentment. These prayers help us bring faith into every aspect of our lives and relationships. We cannot pray without faith, faith that God exists and that it pays to seek Him. Spitzer (2000) asserts "Faith and prayer can help bring about the higher viewpoints" (p. 156). Faith is not the feeling that something is going to happen in retort to our prayers but rather the obedient response on our part of who God is. This obedience requires that we open our hearts to God daily.
The obedient response of faith and prayer is what gives Christian leaders the moral courage to lead without conviction. White (1986) argued "the Holy Spirit is all the time ready to show us what needs to be dealt with and will never ignore us" (p. 22). Moral Courage is that capability of mind which enables citizen to encounter danger or difficulty without fear or discouragement. Paul admitted to knowing fear, but it never stopped him. "I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling" (1 Corinthians 2:3). However, the key is that he did not stay home out of fear for the journey. Moral courage is an important virtue in various areas of life, including religion, faith and ethics. It is called for during times when doing the right thing goes against the status quo.
The Hallmark of Leadership: Humility
Humility is the least admired leadership quality. When we think of leadership presence, we think of confidence and charisma - not humility. However, humility is the trademark for Christian leadership. A humble someone is ordinarily conception to be unpretentious and modest: someone who does not think that he or she is best or more important than others. In Psalm 110, David demonstrated exceptional humility in acknowledging that it would be his descendant that would rise to the right hand of God and not himself. Humility is not thinking highly of yourself nor is it thinking lowly of yourself. Humility is naturally not thinking of yourself at all. Among the outcomes of humility are the potential qualities of integrity and sincerity.
Integrity is being what you claim to be and doing what you promise to do. It would be easy for leaders to say what others want to hear instead of what they easily feel or believe. We are all faced with conflicting desires. No one, no matter how spiritual can avoid this battle, integrity and sincerity is what determines which desires prevail. In 2 Corinthians 2:17 Paul wrote "For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ." Paul is referring to false teachers who had infiltrated the Corinthian Church - themselves insincere and dishonest - presented themselves in a persuasive manner with the chief interest of making money. Paul, by contrast, had preached the gospel with integrity and sincerity, and free of charge. Paul spoke of his failures and successes with an openness few of us are prepared to duplicate. However, the two leadership qualities of integrity and sincerity were part of God's law (Deuteronomy 18:13). God wants His citizen to show a transparent and open character.
Decisive Determination
Christianity is often referred to as a race (Ecclesiastes 9:11, 1 Corinthians 9:24, Hebrews 12:1). If this be the case, then Christian life should be viewed as a long-distance race rather than a short sprint. Some Christians are tempted to drop out of the contest because of persecution, others because the conflict in the middle of the flesh and the spirit is too demanding. However, a good runner all the time begins a race with the last lap in mind. Just as the runner considers the halt line, Hebrews 12:2 directs Christian leaders to "look unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith." By enduringly finding to Jesus, their thoughts will enlarge holy affections. Acts 2:42 demands that we continue "stedfastly in the apostle's philosophy and fellowship, and in breaking bread and in prayers." These verses emphasize the purpose of Christian estimation in remaining focused on what Jesus taught - especially those with the Divine Empowerment of leadership.
Conclusion
Wisdom, Foresight, and understanding come together to supply the leader with a foresight which is the basal capability of Leadership. Moral courage is to speak out for what is right when excellent forces desire alternative actions. And it is humility that gives God the clear view into the heart of Christian Leaders. From God, to Jesus, to the first disciples, we stand in the direct line of heritage of Divine empowerment to embrace, encourage, and enlighten. Christian Leaders were blessed with Divine Empowered when they received the Holy Spirit from Jesus - "Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you" (John 20:21).
References
Holy Bible. (1997). King James Version. Zondervan Publishing, Grand Raids Michigan
Farkas, Charles M. And Wetlaufer, Suzy (1998). Harvard firm chronicle On Leadership: The Ways Chief executive Officers Lead. Boston, Ma. Harvard firm School Press.
Maxwell, John C. (1993). Developing the Leader within You. Nashville, Tn. Thomas Nelson, Inc.
Merriam-Webster (2006). Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Merriam-Webster.com
Spitzer, Robert J. (2000). The Spirit of Leadership: Optimizing Creativity and convert in Organizations. Provo, Ut executive Excellence.
White, John. (1986). Excellence in Leadership. Reaching Goals with Prayer, Courage & Determination. Downers Grove, Il. Inter Varsity Press.
Divine Empowerment of Christian Leaders
No comments:
Post a Comment