Compassionate use of power and influence characterize God-honoring leaders. Read Matthew 8:5-13.

Jesus was becoming well known throughout Israel for His power to heal every sort of physical infirmity and illness. Even the occupying army of Rome could not avoid hearing of Jesus’ authority over powers that caused sickness. As Jesus entered Capernaum, a city which housed a Roman garrison, an officer sought out Jesus to ask Him to heal a household servant that had become paralyzed and who was living in terrible pain. When Jesus agreed to go with the solider to heal his servant, the man simply stated that he was not worthy to have Jesus to his house, but if Jesus simply spoke a command, the servant would be healed. He believed that Jesus had power and authority over every aspect of life and could command sickness to leave his servant and the spirit holding the servant in bondage would have to obey. This story clearly demonstrated a healthy use of power by both the Roman solider and Jesus.

The wise leader develops and empowers other leaders to insure their leadership is not limited. Read Nahum 3:18-19.

In chapter 3, Nahum offers a lengthy proclamation of judgment and destruction on Nineveh. He begins in verse 1 by saying, “Woe to the city of blood, full of lies, full of plunder, never without victims.” At the end of chapter 3, God offers insight into one of the fatal weaknesses when He says, “O king of Assyria, your shepherds slumber; your nobles lie down to rest. Your people are scattered on the mountains with no one to gather them.” The leaders at the top of the Assyrian society had not developed other leaders, therefore the people were “scattered” with “no one to gather them.”

Personal success minus God-honoring character ultimately leads to spiritual bankruptcy. Read Nahum 1-3.

Nineveh was the capitol of the massive, powerful Assyrian Empire. Nahum was an obscure prophet to Judah whom God directed to announce judgment against the people living in the city of Nineveh. Slightly over a century earlier, through the prophet Jonah, God had called the people of Nineveh to repent and they did.

Every leader will ultimately reap what they sow. Read Obadiah 15-18.

The Edomites hated their distant cousins, the Israelites, stemming all the way back to the twin brothers Jacob and Esau, the founders of the two nations. Edom’s hatred generated actions against Israel that came back to haunt them in their day of need. The Edomite leaders chose to misuse their power to harm the Israelites in their moment of need and because they misused their power they ultimately reaped the terror and destruction brought on them by an even more powerful nation.

An important part of a leader’s responsibility is to create structure and organization so their team knows how they fit into the big picture and why they do what they do. Read Ezekiel 40-44.

In the 25th year of exile in Babylon, God appeared to Ezekiel and gave him a vision concerning the structure, organization and operation of the temple when the people returned to Jerusalem. God went into great detail as He described the order and organization that He designed into His temple. This, like many other scriptures, shows just how important structure and organization are in God’s design for leadership. Effective leaders create structure that enhances productivity and nurtures the emotional health of those they lead.