Leadership Styles by Len
B1
There are 2 styles of leadership in the Bible.
C1
The shepherd
D1
The greatest example is the Lord Jesus
E1
Mark 14:27 MKJV And
Jesus said to them, All of you will be offended because of Me this
night. For it is written, "I will smite the Shepherd, and the
sheep shall be scattered."
E2
Hebrews 13:20 MKJV Now
may the God of peace (who brought again our Lord Jesus from the dead,
that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the
everlasting covenant.
D2
The word shepherd is ποιμαίνω poimainō (verb) ποιμήν
poimēn (noun).
D3
A shepherd feeds, gathers, carries, and gently leads. Isaiah 40:11
NKJV He
will feed His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs with
His arm, And carry them in His bosom, And gently lead those who are
with young.
D4
He provides. Psalms 23:1 GNB The
LORD is my shepherd; I have everything I need.
D5
He lets us rest. His provisions are the best. Psalms 23:2 GNB He
lets me rest in fields of green grass and leads me to quiet pools of
fresh water.
D6
He gives us strength. His leading is always the best and good. He
keeps His promises. Psalms 23:3 GNB He
gives me new strength. He guides me in the right paths, as he has
promised.
D7
He comforts and goes with us even in the scariest, most fearful
moments imaginable: Psalms 23:4 GNB Even
if I go through the deepest darkness, I will not be afraid, LORD, for
you are with me. Your shepherd's rod and staff protect me.
D8
He makes us feel honored. He protects us from our enemies even when
they are near. Psalms 23:5 GNB You
prepare a banquet for me, where all my enemies can see me; you
welcome me as an honored guest and fill my cup to the brim.
D9
His goodness is to us. He loves us. Our home will be with him
forever. Psalms 23:6 GNB I
know that your goodness and love will be with me all my life; and
your house will be my home as long as I live.
D10
If we lose our way, He seeks for us. Matthew 18:12-14 GNB "What
do you think a man does who has one hundred sheep and one of them
gets lost? He will leave the other ninety-nine grazing on the
hillside and go and look for the lost sheep. 13 When he
finds it, I tell you, he feels far happier over this one sheep than
over the ninety-nine that did not get lost. 14 In just
the same way your Father in heaven does not want any of these little
ones to be lost.
D11
He is willing to die for us. John 10:15 NKJV As
the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My
life for the sheep.
D12
Wants us to imitate His lifestyle. 1 Timothy 4:12 NKJV Let
no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in
word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity.
C2
The hunter
D1
The greatest example is Nimrod. Genesis 10:8-9 NASB77 Now
Cush became the father of Nimrod; he became a mighty one on the
earth. He was a mighty hunter before the LORD; therefore it is
said, “Like Nimrod a mighty hunter before the LORD.
D2
Keil & Delitzsch state in their commentary of Genesis 10:8-9:
Nimrod
“began to be a mighty one in the earth.” גִּבֹּר
is
used here, as in Gen 6:4, to denote a man who makes himself renowned
for bold and daring deeds. Nimrod was mighty in hunting, and that in
opposition to Jehovah (ἐναντίον κυρίον, lxx); not
before Jehovah in the sense of, according to the purpose and will of
Jehovah, still less, like לֵאלֹהִים
in
Jon 3:3, or τῷ Θεῷ in Act 7:20, in a simply superlative
sense. The last explanation is not allowed by the usage of the
language, the second is irreconcilable with the context. The name
itself, Nimrod from מָרַד,
“we will revolt,” points to some violent resistance to God. It is
so characteristic that it can only have been given by his
contemporaries, and thus have become a proper name.
D3
This is the leadership style of satan—rebellious, dictatorial,
psychopathic, murderous, etc. He wants to control
everything including thinking, actions, speech, work, etc. in every
area of life. There is no free will; it is not allowed. Those who
disagree will be hunted down and dealt with.
D4
Church leaders of this sort are called out and by name by the Apostle
John. 3 John 1:9-11 NKJV I
wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to have the
preeminence among them, does not receive us. 10 Therefore,
if I come, I will call to mind his deeds which he does, prating
against us with malicious words. And not content with that, he
himself does not receive the brethren, and forbids those who wish to,
putting them out of the church. 11 Beloved, do not
imitate what is evil, but what is good. He who does good is of God,
but he who does evil has not seen God.
D5
All of which is fueled by pride.
D6
An overriding trait is CONTROLL.
E1
Self-interest: Philippians 2:3-4 WPNT Do
nothing out of selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard
one another as being better than yourselves. Let each of you
look out not only for his own concerns, but also for what concerns
others.
E2
Pride in one’s position: James 3:1 WPNT My
brothers, not many of you should become teachers, knowing that we
shall receive a stricter judgment.
[Alford comments: The
more the idea prevailed, that faith, without corresponding obedience,
was all that is needful, the more men would eagerly press forward to
teach: as indeed the Church has found in all ages when such an
opinion has become prevalent: for then teachers and preachers of
their own appointing have rapidly multiplied]
E3
Love of worldly things: 1 John 2:15 WPNT Do
not love the world, neither the things in the world; if anyone loves
the world, the Father’s love isn’t in him.
[Pickering comments: The
crucial issue is the values that the surrounding culture seeks to
impose on us—materialism, relativism, humanism; these values are
directly opposed to the Father’s values, and therefore to His
love.]
E4
Follow the crowd and/or pervert justice: Exodus 23:2 NIV - Do
not follow the crowd in doing wrong. When you give testimony in a
lawsuit, do not pervert justice by siding with the crowd.
E5
Worldly thinking: Romans 12:2 NLT - Don't
copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform
you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will
learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and
perfect.
[See also Colossians 3:2, 2 Timothy 2:4, Titus 2:12, and James 4:4]
E6
Desire for money: 1 Timothy 6:9-10 NIV - Those
who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many
foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and
destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.
Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and
pierced themselves with many griefs.
E7
Find pleasure in wicked things: 2 Thessalonians 2:12 NIV - and
so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but
have delighted in wickedness.
E8
Following false gods of any type or form: Deuteronomy 12:30-31 NIV -
and
after they have been destroyed before you, be careful not to be
ensnared by inquiring about their gods, saying, "How do these
nations serve their gods? We will do the same." You must not
worship the LORD your God in their way, because in worshiping their
gods, they do all kinds of detestable things the LORD hates. They
even burn their sons and daughters in the fire as sacrifices to their
gods.
D7
God judges these types. Note how these types of leaders hurt the
sheep in every way possible. They are abusers.
E1
Ezekiel 34:17-22 GNB Now
then, my flock, I, the Sovereign LORD, tell you that I will judge
each of you and separate the good from the bad, the sheep from the
goats. 18 Some of you are not satisfied with eating the
best grass; you even trample down what you don't eat! You drink the
clear water and muddy what you don't drink! 19 My other
sheep have to eat the grass you trample down and drink the water you
muddy. 20 "So now, I, the Sovereign LORD, tell you
that I will judge between you strong sheep and the weak sheep. 21
You pushed the sick ones aside and butted them away from the
flock. 22 But I will rescue my sheep and not let them be
mistreated any more. I will judge each of my sheep and separate the
good from the bad.
E2
Jeremiah 23:1 GNB How
terrible will be the LORD's judgment on those rulers who destroy and
scatter his people!
E3
Zechariah 10:2-3 NKJV For
the idols speak delusion; The diviners envision lies, And tell false
dreams; They comfort in vain. Therefore the people wend their way
like sheep; They are in trouble because there is no shepherd. 3
"My anger is kindled against the shepherds, And I will
punish the goatherds. For the LORD of hosts will visit His flock, The
house of Judah, And will make them as His royal horse in the battle.
B2
Which one are you?
