The United States Marine Corps defines leadership as, “The sum of those qualities of intellect, human understanding, and moral character that enables a person to inspire and control a group of people successfully. This is a beautiful and succinct definition. Everyone either is a leader or follows one. These same qualities are present in spiritual leadership. D. L. Moody said, “A holy life will produce the deepest impression. Lighthouses blow no horns; they only shine.”
The Bible is replete with many examples of great leaders. Abraham. Moses. King David. The Apostle Paul. All of them exhibited the qualities of great leadership, inspiring and shining. However, in the absence of strong leadership is the dark truth that many will grasp at anything. The Israelites vividly illustrated this. Moses was on Mt. Sinai for forty days while God was giving him the laws and commandments to guide and instruct His people.
When the people saw how long it was taking Moses to come back down the mountain, they gathered around Aaron. “Come on,” they said, “make us some gods who can lead us. We don’t know what happened to this fellow Moses, who brought us here from the land of Egypt.”
So Aaron said, “Take the gold rings from the ears of your wives and sons and daughters, and bring them to me.” All the people took the gold rings from their ears and brought them to Aaron. Then Aaron took the gold, melted it down, and molded it into the shape of a calf. When the people saw it, they exclaimed, “O Israel, these are the gods who brought you out of the land of Egypt!”
Exodus 32:1-4 (NLT)
It was only forty days that Moses left his people alone. With God’s power, he miraculously led them out of slavery in Egypt. Yet, in this briefest of time intervals, when they perceived they did not have a leader, the people turned away from God, willing to follow anything that could provide spiritual leadership, even a golden calf. While it may be easy to criticize the Israelites, the history of the world is littered with people blindly following leaders who step up to fill a power vacuum. Napoleon. Hitler. Mao Tse-Tung.
Our lives do not have to follow this tragic course. Even if it appears that God is no longer leading us, He is always there. We can trust Him because He is not a man or an inanimate object, powerless to save us. This is His promise to us and God cannot lie.
This is what the LORD says: “Cursed are those who put their trust in mere humans, who rely on human strength and turn their hearts away from the LORD. They are like stunted shrubs in the desert, with no hope for the future. They will live in the barren wilderness, in an uninhabited salty land.
Jeremiah 17:5-6 (NLT)
We do not follow men. We follow the Living God, Jesus Christ.
Love and trust in the Lord; seek His will in your life.
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