Yesterday’s devotional looked at the respect generated by Deborah’s character and actions. With respect comes authority. Read Judges 4.

In general leaders exercise authority on five levels:

A built in question for a Christian leader is “When does human planning get in the way of trusting God for results?” Or conversely, “When does faith become a leader’s presumption on God, expecting God to do for us what He expects us to do for ourselves?” Read Joshua 8:1-29.

In Chapter 7 we read of the debacle that took place in the first attack of Ai. In Chapter 8 Joshua demonstrates a balance between faith and human planning as the Israelites prepare to attack Ai a second time. God ordered the attack and instructed Joshua to “Set an ambush behind the city,” but gave few other details of the attack. Once God had given Joshua the green light, Joshua planned and carried out the particulars of the attack. Once Joshua knew he had God’s blessing on the project, he gave clear orders to his army in obedience to God’s instruction. There was no hint of uncertainty or indecisiveness; instead, his commands were clear, authoritative and specific.

Not all leaders have pure motives. Korah was a talented Levite, set apart to serve in Israel’s worship of God. His important position gave him both prestige and respect among the people. Read Numbers 16:1-11.

Korah’s gifted leadership and persuasive speaking abilities earned him the backing of 250 other leaders. Yet his desire for more power and authority led to the demise of his followers and their families. Leaders with rebellious hearts always bring harm into their own life and the life of their followers and families.

Aaron, Moses’ brother, lived the leadership experience of most leaders. Like Aaron, most leaders will not be the final authority; most will lead from within the organizational chart not the top. Most won’t have a perfect track record of performance, but take courage in that position because God used Aaron to accomplish critical leadership functions for His kingdom and Aaron’s leadership left a mark that can still be seen today. Read Exodus 4:10-17; Exodus 32:1-6 & 19-29; Numbers 12:1-3; Leviticus 8:1-9.

Aaron was not God’s choice to lead the Hebrew nation from captivity in Egypt. He was selected by God to assist Moses. Aaron did not always understand the vision and he did not always perform in support of Moses but Aaron had key roles to play as God accomplished His vision for the Hebrew people. Most leaders, like Aaron, will serve in the middle of an organization and must learn to have maximum influence without having the final authority in either the vision or the process.

There is a tendency by leaders, who by nature are achievers, to personally do the work or micro-manage others through a project. Even Christian leaders who believe they were called to a specific task, who believe God staffed their team and who trust that the same God that leads them leads each member of their team often micro-manage decisions. This is a false form of godliness that deceives and puts the trust in our own abilities rather than the sovereign God. Read Exodus 18.

The Hebrews had left Egypt under Moses’ leadership and Moses had settled into his leadership role enough to send for his wife and sons to join him. His father-in-law, Jethro, brought them and spent some time with Moses before going home. During his time with Moses, Jethro had an opportunity to watch Moses serve in one of his leadership roles as a judge of the people. At the end of the day Jethro asked Moses, “What is this you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around you from morning till evening?”