Section 9: The Leaders Schedule

Section 9 - The Leader’s Schedule

Group Activity: Create a one-
page visual summary of the
leader’s schedule.
Study chapter 9 in Blackaby
Study chapters 17-19 in Sanders

Saturday 21 January 2012

TESTS OF
LEADERSHIP
J. Oswald Sanders,
Spiritual Leadership
Chapter 17


Matt 4:1
Then Jesus was led by the
Spirit into the wilderness to
be tempted by the devil.

Genesis 22:1
Some time later God tested
Abraham. He said to him,
“Abraham!”
“Here I am,” he replied.


Compromise
Can we, should we, compromise
in order to reach an agreement?
Compromise almost always
requires a negative, backward
step.
Moses and Pharaoh is a classic
example of the temptation to
compromise. Pharaoh realized
that Moses meant to lead the
Hebrews out of Egypt, so he
used cunning and threats to
frustrate him.

Compromise
Can we, should we, compromise
compromise |ˈkämprəˌmīz|
in order to reach an agreement?
- an agreement or a always
Compromise almostsettlement of
a dispute negative, backward
requires athat is reached by each
side making concessions
step.
• a middle state betweenclassic
Moses and Pharaoh is a
conﬂicting opinions or actions
example of the temptation to
reached by mutual concession or
compromise. Pharaoh realized
modiﬁcation
that Moses meant to lead the
• the acceptanceEgypt, so he
Hebrews out of of standards
that cunning than is desirable
used are lowerand threats to
frustrate him.

“Worship God if you will,” was his
ﬁrst overture, “but don’t leave Egypt
to do it.” A Modern equivalent
would be: “Religion is okay, but don’t
be narrow about it. No need to let
religion isolate you from the rest of
the world.”
When that approach failed, Pharaoh
tried something else: “If you must go
out of Egypt to worship, don’t go
far.” Religion is ﬁne, but there is not
need to be fanatical about it. Stay as
close to the world as you can.

Yet the third attempt played on
natural aﬀection: “Let the men go
and worship, and the women and
children stay here.” If you must
break with the world, don’t force
such a narrow lifestyle on
everyone else in the family.
Pharaoh’s last attempt was an
appeal to greed: “Okay, go. But the
ﬂocks and herds stay. Don’t let
your odd religious commitments
get in the way of business and
prosperity.”

With clear spiritual insight Moses cut through each
evasion: “Not a hoof is to be left behind,” he said
(Exodus 10:26). So Moses passed with honors a great test
of his leadership of God’s people.


Ambition
Moses faced this too—all
leaders do. During Moses’
absence on Mount Sinai, the
people of Israel turned to
idolatry, and God became very
angry, saying, “I wi# strike them
down with a plague and destroy
them, but I wi# make you into a
nation greater and stronger than
they”
Num. 14:12.

Moses had heard the
people’s constant
complaining and frequent
trying of paganism. Why not
accept God’s proposal as a
way to give the people their
due, and start afresh with
smaller group that Moses
could control.
What a test from the mouth
of God himself.


Instead of personal ambition, Moses showed selﬂess
nobility, genuine concern for God’s glory, and
compassion for the misguided people.
Moses refused the chance and prayed for them,
seeing them saved from God’s judgment.


The Impossible Situation
“How does the leader face
impossible situations?”
John R. Mott encouraged leaders
to deal with impossible task rather
than easy ones in order to foster
personal competence, teamwork,
and faith. A true leader rises to face
mysterious circumstances and
complex problems. Mott said,
“I long since ceased to occupy myself
with things that can be done by others”

Many situations leaders face are
complex, made even more so by
modern technology.
Moses faced an impossible
situation when Israel reached the
Red Sea. On one side was the
desert and Pharaoh’s army; on the
other side was water, and Israel
had no boats. The people
complained but Moses, man of
faith, focussed on God “Stand out
and see the deliverance of the
Lord.” He said to them.

The people of God saw
their God in action that
day. God led his people - he
might have used Moses, but
ultimately God led them
through - and continues to
do today.
Hudson Taylor is said to
have faced many difficult
tasks as he served God in
China - he counted them
off in three ways:
impossible, difficult, done.

The Red Sea Place
Have you come to the Red Sea place in your life,
Where in spite of all you can do,
There is no way out, there is no way back,
There is no other way but through?
Then wait on the Lord with a trust serene
Till the night of your fear is gone;
He will send the wind, He will heap the ﬂoods,
When He says to your soul, “Go on.”
And His hand will lead you through–clear through–
Ere the watery walls roll down,
No foe can reach you, no wave can touch,
No mightiest sea can drown;

The tossing billows may rear their crests,
Their foam at your feet may break,
But over their bed you shall walk dry shod
In the path that your Lord will make.
In the morning watch, ‘neath the lifted cloud
You shall see but the Lord alone,
When He leads you on from the place of the sea
To a land that you have not known;
And your fears shall pass as your foes have passed
You shall be no more afraid;
You shall sing His praise in a better place,
A place that His hand has made.
Annie Johnson Flint, 1866-1932

Failure
Many people who appear to be at
height of their careers hide a great
inner sense of failure. How a leader
handles failure will set much of the
agenda for the future. Most Bible
characters met with failure and
survived. E.g. Moses, Peter, etc.
Often a leader might feel a failure
after preaching or after facing a
certain situation - how this is handled
is important for your future.

Peter denied Christ - yet
through repentance and love the
door was reopened for him.
Many other biblical leaders
faced great failure - but they did
not lie down and give in - they
found grace and a 2nd, 3rd or 4th
chance..
The historian Froude wrote:
“The worth of a man must be
measured by his life, not by his
failure under a singular and
peculiar trial.”

Successful leaders have
learned that no failure
need be ﬁnal, whether his
own failure or someone
else’s. No one is perfect,
and we cannot be right at
all time.
Failure and feelings of
inadequacy make us realise
who is in charge.


Jealousy
Most leaders at some time face the
problem of a jealous rival. Jealousy is
very common weapon by the devil.
Even Moses encountered this test
from within his own family - Aaron
and Miriam.
Neither of them remembered Moses
courageous leadership in bringing
the Israelites out of Egypt.
Miriam, as an older woman, gossiped
about Moses marrying an Ethiopian.
“Has the Lord only spoken through
Moses...?”

Moses was deeply wounded, but
he said nothing to vindicate
himself. His main concern was
God’s glory, not his own position
or privilege. “Now Moses was a very
humble man, more humble than
anyone else on the face of the earth”
Numbers 12:3.
God did defend Moses - Miriam
got leprosy - and Moses prays for
her.
Note what God says to Miriam -
Num 12;8 -

Moses was also challenged by
Korah - and again Moses
refused to vindicate himself.
God defends Moses, who
remains humble - and the
people learn more of walking
in the fear of the Lord.
We must remember God will
protect, vindicate and honour
His leaders - you don’t need to
worry about defending your
rights or position.

THE ART OF
DELEGATION
J. Oswald Sanders,
Chapter 18


Exodus 18:25-26
He chose capable men (om
a# Israel and made them
leaders of the people, officials
over thousands, hundreds,
fi*ies and tens. They served
as judges for the people at a#
times. The difficult cases they
brought to Moses, but the
simple ones they decided
themselves.

Leaders need the ability to
recognise the gifting and
limitations of people along with
the skill to ﬁt them into the
position where they will function
best. This is vital in church life
and all forms of ministry.
To succeed in getting others to
work is one of the highest forms
of leadership - DL Moody said,
“I would rather set one thousand
men to work than do the work of
1000 men”

Being thoughtful about
delegation stops you putting
square pegs in round holes.
However it is not always easy:
- leaders often do not like to let
power slip through their own
hands
- leaders can feel threatened by
brilliant people working for
them and so do not release jobs
to them
The result in each case is that
the subordinate is unhappy and
usually the job is not done as well
as it should be.

In eﬀect a lack of delegation
shows a lack of trust and is poor
stewardship of resources.
Some leaders fear people doing a
poor job - this might happen -
but how can people improve
without being given a chance to
“fail”?
As long as power and authority
have been given there is a good
chance the job will be done well
enough and will improve each
time it is completed.

The degree to which a leader is
able to delegate work is a measure
of their success - a one person
oﬃce can grow no larger than the
load one person can carry alone.
If you do not delegate then you
get caught up a mass of smaller
issues which should not have your
attention - in fact it can show
pride and contempt to not be
prepared to delegate.
You have to show conﬁdence in
those you have asked to lead - and
even consider their failures as
your own.

For someone who has a task
delegated to them to feel
good you need to show
conﬁdence in them and also
know the boundaries of the
job and their authority, thus
avoiding any
misunderstanding. Poor
communication here can led
to many unhappy problems.


The most quoted biblical
example of delegation comes in
Exodus 18 with Jethro and
Moses.
Having led the Israelites out of
Egypt Moses then became the
“go to man” for almost
everything - Jethro suggested 2
results of such a situation:
1. Moses would burnout - v. 18
2. The method was slow and
people were becoming unhappy
about it - v.23

Jethro suggested;
- Moses continued to teach and
exercise legislative leadership,
deciding hard cases in court.
- much work would be delegated
to trustworthy subordinates.
In doing this a plan for
leadership succession was also
implemented - avoiding potential
chaos on Moses’ death. Men
with ability got used, and got
good experience.
Exodus 18:23 tells us this avoided
Moses dying prematurely.

Note that Moses might still have
been the best judge - but he
didn’t die before his time.
The qualiﬁcations for the job
seemed to be high - 18:21
We have to know what we can,
and should do, working to an
early grave is not heroic in the
kingdom of God! You have to
sleep - so get Jethro’s around you
to counsel and advise in what you
should be doing.

Delegate as soon as you can, be
ready to help but not to
intervene, guide through trial
and error. Be wise and watchful
but try not to interfere. A sense
of being watched can lead to a
loss of conﬁdence.
It is a wonderful gift to be able
to see the potential in people, to
release them into their tasks, and
to stand in such a way as to oﬀer
help and security but not being a
burdensome pressure.

What are the positive
and negative
experiences you have
had of work being
delegated to you? Think
about how you felt, and
why you felt like that.
Are you comfortable in
delegating to jobs to
others, do you look for
these opportunities?

REPLACING
LEADERS

J. Oswald Sanders,
Chapter 19


Joshua 1:2, 5
2 “Moses my servant is dead.
Now then, you and a# these
people, get ready to cross the
Jordan River into the land I
am about to give to them—to
the Israelites.
5 No one wi# be able to stand
against you a# the days of your
life. As I was with Moses, so I
wi# be with you; I wi# never
leave you nor forsake you.

Yucca brevifolia is a plant
Joshua 1:2, 5
species belonging tois dead.
2 “Moses my servant the genus
Yucca. It is tree-like in habit,
Now then, you and a# these
which is reﬂected in its
people, get ready to cross the
common names: Joshua tree,
Jordan River into the land I
yucca palm, tree yucca, and
am about to give - native to
palm tree yucca to them—to
southwestern North America
the Israelites.
in the states of California,
5 No one wi# be able to stand
Arizona, Utah and Nevada
against you a# the days of your
between 400 and 1,800 meters
life. Asand 5,900 ft) elevation.
(1,300
I was with Moses, so I
wi# be with you;open never
It thrives in the I wi#
grasslands. forsake you.
leave you nor

“The ultimate test of a person’s
leadership is the organisational
health after they have gone”
In Acts 5:38-39 Gamaliel seems
to be suggesting the same.
Build a work on God and his
principles and it will outlast any
leader.
God is never surprised by the
death of a leader - he appoints
them and knows when they shall
pass on to be in his presence -
Mk 10:40.

“No man, no matter
however gifted and
devoted, is
indispensable to the
work of the
kingdom”


God is at work in an organisation
long before the “crisis” which
appears to take place when a
leader dies - God has been
directing things, and will bring
the replacement into place in the
time and way he has chosen.
God’s greatest gifts are always
greater than the “land” he has
promised to a church or
organisation - they are the
servants through whom he
works .

Israel could not imagine a time
without Moses leading them - he
had done it for 40 years,
standing between God and them,
interpreting His will, leading and
guiding them under God’s hand.
Elders had served but there was
no one like Moses - and now as
they prepare to enter the PL
suddenly Moses departs to his
reward - and in steps the leader
God (and Moses) has been
preparing.

Sanders suggests that it was only
after the death of Moses that the
people really saw all the Lord
had accomplished through his
leadership. However we also see
after a great leader moves on that
he was not indispensable - a new
leader has a chance to develop
new ways, show diﬀering gifting,
and we have to assume has better
qualities to move ahead (as we
assume Joshua was better
equipped to take the PL)

New leaders also give a chance for
other leaders to emerge and
develop - and we see the grace and
gifting of God, after all He has
planned things so that we have to
depend upon Him - the new people
might have “lesser” gifting but it
gives all the more chance for God
to get the glory.
1 Cor 1:26-29
God loves to use gifted people - but
most do not follow Paul in giving
their gift without reservation or
restriction

Sanders cites the example of AB
Simpson: in the year after he
stopped leading the Missionary
Alliance, giving was greater than in
any year previously. He suggests this
is a tribute to the leadership of
Simpson.
Only Jesus, the Leader, remains
forever - no replacement was ever
sought for him after he moved
upwards. Jesus continues to lead the
Church today, even if we fail to seek
his presence in the way that is right.
We are never leaderless even if
earthly leaders change!

Who is easier to
replace - an effective,
or an ineffective
leader? Why?
If you had to take over
from a successful
leader what would be
the ﬁrst steps you
took?


Section 9: The Leaders Schedule

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Section 9: The Leaders Schedule