Social Qualifications
A spiritual leader is expected to be integral outside of the church. I was always taught to live a way that anyone can see Jesus in me. If we walk in our daily lives the same as we live on Church days we give no naysayer's any opportunity to call us out. The healing miracle on the Sabbath in Mark 3:1-6 caused the Pharisees to plot on how to kill Jesus because the Sabbath is a day of rest. Jesus said "Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?" Jesus healed the man because it was right.
Moral Qualifications
Morals are in short supply these days when it comes to relationships. The spiritual leader should be pure and blameless with faithfulness to his mate. Another biggie this section offers up is that one should not drink to become drunk. I've been to many churches and heard many different viewpoints that drinking alcohol period is a sin or that drinking to become drunk is a sin. Ephesians 5:18 says "Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit." I will leave this up for debate on the interpretation of this verse.
Mental Qualifications
Leaders of course must have a solid head on them and are able to make quick decisions while exercising self-restraint. Decisions sometimes can be the easy part, but seeing the bigger picture before making those decisions can sometimes land you between a rock and a hard place. If you decide to go down Path A, this this and this can happen. If you choose Path B another set of variables happen. Using sound judgment and weighing all options will help you choose the the right option or combination of options. The long term big picture thinker will pass on short term success in order to obtain a long term success.
Spiritual leaders are also teachers. It takes time for preparation, prayer and study in order to deliver God's message. I go through this every week preparing my blog post. I was not born with the gift of 'gab' so I have had to educate myself to the point where I can talk about subjects fluently. By no means is my Biblical knowledge anywhere close to that of a bible scholar, pastor or minister. Google is my friend and I have found a website called Bible Gateway that have been a valuable resource.
Personality Qualifications
If you would rather pick a fight than fix the issue, leadership is not for you. Leaders should be compassionate, empathetic and able to diffuse escalated situations. Those seeking monetary gain should look elsewhere. Matthew 5:11-12 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you."
Domestic Qualifications
1 Timothy 3:4 says, "He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him, and he must do so in a manner worthy of full respect." Paul implies that a persons ability to lead at home is a good indicator of being able to lead in ministry. Looking back through my childhood days, the preachers children were always well behaved. Then there are the so called preachers kids that are wild and out of control. I have seen both sides of this. Some preachers kids are good as gold until they leave the proverbial nest. then they are loose cannons to a point where you would stop and question yourself. Really? sigh.
Maturity
Just like a baby, nurturing needs to take place until the baby is able to develop and grow. One should not be expected to lead spiritually without being nurtured and developed. It reminds me of a song that I grew up singing in church called "He's Still Working on Me" by Bill and Gloria Gaither. It talks about God is always working on us to make us what he wants us to be. Just like a potter molding the clay, we are always being contorted and refigured as mentioned in Isaiah 64:8.
Paul warns in 1 Timothy 3:6 that we should not put a person into leadership that is new or not ready to handle it and is destined to fail. There is not enough spiritual stability to lead with wisdom and growth. I see this practice in workplace and it did not make much sense to me until here recently. I was in a leadership stretch role last year and thought that I was ready for that big promotion. It did not happen. Was I discouraged, YES, but I took the feedback that I received and put the feedback in motion. I worked on my weaknesses and continued showing leadership among my peers. I also worked on increasing my visibility at the site. I did get a promotion, although not the one I was expecting. It was God's plan to have me in this new position. He's still working on me and I will continue to humble myself down to His service.
Reflection
1. For the Apostle Paul, time and experience were tools God used to prepare leaders. How long have you been aware that God has you in spiritual leadership training?
I grew up in the church. My mother was the piano player for the churches we attended. I can remember she always had me singing solos and singing with the youth choir. I was in elementary school when I wanted to learn how to play the guitar. The obliged and got me a guitar for Christmas. I took several years of lessons, My first solo with guitar happened in Church the following Christmas. I sang and played chords for Silent Night. So, it was at an early age that I noticed I was in spiritual training. Was this training in the teaching of the gospel, no, but the gospel was being presented through song.
2. Which of the training areas in this chapter has God been emphasizing lately? In what ways?
God has been working on maturity in my life. As I mentioned above, just because I thought I was ready for the leadership but there are areas I still need to work on.
Chapter 7 - Insights on Leadership From Peter - Pre-Reading Questions
1. What deficiencies and failings do you mos often notice in leaders?
2. Is it important for someone to fail as badly as Peter did in order to develop a humble heart? How have people you know learned humility?
3. Who do you prefer as a model of leadership, Peter or Paul? In what ways?
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