We concluded our study of the Book of Joshua. Joshua - a man born into slavery in Egypt and rose to become the leader of the nation into the Promised Land. He might have felt the the sting of the taskmaster's lash and experienced the humiliation and suffering of a slave.
He learned to submit to Divine and human authority, willing to play second fiddle for all those years. The pattern still stands today - to exercise leadership one must learn first to follow leadership.Certainly he was a great leader well respected by the nation.
We spent some time discussing the hallmark of a good leader seen in Joshua.
He walked with God. He spent his whole life interacting with the Lord through Scripture and prayer. He did not follow a certain formula, but sought God's guidance for every battle.
He was courageous. It takes courage to be a successful leader, to stand for what you believe and to do what God wants you to do. Joshua's courage involved not just fighting the enemy, he also had the courage to deal with sin in the camp of Israel. A good leader does not sweep things under the carpet and leave the problem for someone else to solve.
He followed God's plans. The conquest of Canaan was no haphazard affair. It was carefully planned and executed.
Like all of us Joshua made mistakes, for example the conquest of Ai and his dealing with the Gibeonites. But he admitted his mistakes and sought to put things right. A successful leader is not one who is always right. He makes mistakes sometimes but learns from them.
Joshua enlisted help and support of others. The conquest of Canaan was not the work of one man, but the whole nation.
He was concerned for the future of the nation. We see that in his speeches to the nation. He was burdened for the people. People who think only of what they can get today are opportunists, not true leaders. Spiritual leadership means planting the right seeds and then trusting God for harvest in generations to come.
Above all, he always sought the glory of God. So should we.
Next Sunday I move to the New Testament to the Letter to the Philippians.
I personally have benefited a lot in my preparation of Bible studies every week. I am indeed grateful to those who support and contribute to the discussions and I have learned a lot from them.
Charles Spurgeon wrote: " Nobody ever outgrows scripture; the book widens and deepens with our years."
John Flavel said, "The scriptures teach us the best way of living, the noblest way of suffering and the most comfortable way of dying."
"Know the Bible in your mind, keep it in your heart, live it in your life, and share it with the world." John Collins
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