Leadership and Ministry
1. THE PRINCIPLE OF LEADERSHIP – MINISTRY
- Ministry isn’t just about actions and words. It’s an impartation of life. This should be the one aim of all leadership ministries.
- What we “have” goes out from us to another person.
- Godly character originates in the Presence (literally = “face”) of God.
- It’s from the “secret place” that true leadership and motivation spring. Our unction to lead arises out of abiding in this place. Anything that substitutes this will bring death! Don’t feed them knowledge (Gen. 2:17), people need, and want, Life!
- When others submit to our leadership, when they receive “ministry” from us it can effect their spirit, soul, body or a combination of 2 or 3 of these.
- This is why leadership is an act of Serving. You are giving of yourself to others. You actually “serve them up” a portion of yourself! Do you really want to give someone else a part of what you’re really like inside?
- Who we are in the Secret Place with God determines our ministry destiny. People subconsciously (or consciously!) are looking to see Jesus in us.
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2. TOUCHING THE HEART
- Our leadership must touch the heart if it is to bring life to others. Leadership is not about “leading” people; it’s about bringing them to a place of life in Christ ( = life in the Anointing).
- The quality of our leadership is determined by what deposit of spiritual life we leave behind after we’ve gone. It isn’t always the case we’ll be recognised as good leaders while we’re still in the position of Leader!
- God’s life flows between people in the realm of our spirit man. If there’s no such flow happening between hearts, even though there might be a genuine impartation of help and assistance to the recipient’s body or soul, there has been no spiritual life imparted.
- Aim always to do this. No matter how often you fail in it, aim for it. See it as your goal; to be remembered as a leader who imparted life to others.
- Like it or not, our ministry will reproduce itself in the life of others! A sobering thought. Each ministry tends to reproduce itself in others.
- Some ministries and leaders actually try to duplicate themselves in others; they knowingly or unknowingly produce clones.
- Always be on guard that you’re not out to duplicate yourself in others. Reproducing what life you have in others is acceptable, but don’t clone yourself.
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3. IT IS GOD’S HOUSE
- As we lead God’s people we must realise that the House of God is being built in the Heavens.
- It’s expression will be manifest on the earth, but the reality of it is in the Heavenlies.
- We are to learn to minister from a position of being seated with Christ. We must have a perspective, authority and a sense of destiny established in the heavens if we are to build successfully on the earth. (1 Cor. 3:10 – let each one take heed how he builds ).
- We are servants and builders. Our heart attitude is vital. A sign of Godly leadership is when we see lives built and joined together through the Holy Spirit.
- Man’s ability to lead will bring people into bondage and eventually destroy them. Godly leadership builds and strengthens. This can be used as a thermometer to check the validity of our leadership.
- As we are faithful and obedient to God’s call on our lives, He will extend our sphere of leadership. Recognise your boundaries at each stage of growth as a Leader. Do not go beyond them until God has released you into that new level. One sign of mature leadership is practical wisdom!
- Aim for quality of leadership; avoid the desire to want to be recognised as someone who is important, has a calling, is a good leader, etc.
- Sadly, it’s pride or the lack of recognition that’s the greatest fault of Christian leadership today.
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4. THE PRICE!
- Everything that we do as leaders will be tested by God. He will do this to see whether our work is good or bad, fruitful or barren. He does this for our benefit, so we can see if we’ve built properly or not.
- God wants something that will stand. There is darkness ahead of us, so He will test and refine what we do as leaders. Only what He approves of will stand in that day (Heb. 12:26-27 – “Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.” Now this, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain.)
- So there is a price to pay. No-one should even think of becoming a leader of God’s people unless they’re willing to lay down their own ambition and pay the price. If you don’t it will catch up with you and haunt your ministry all the days of your life!
- In the end there is one basic, eternal and life imparting truth that stands out above all other leadership qualities and principles; we can only pass on to others what we have experienced in our own lives through the grace of God.
- We can only pass on to others what we have experienced in our own lives through the grace of God.
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Teaching by Peter McArthur
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Tags: Prophetic Message, Prophetic Teaching, Prophetic Voice, The Prophetic in Leadership
