God’s Instructions for Rulers
Course Content
What kind of standards does God expect in leaders?
The current U.S. presidential race is an embarrassment to the nation. The two leading contenders fall short of biblical character standards in critical areas. One has a history of multiple bankruptcies, questionable business dealings, marriages and affairs. The other supported her philandering husband for years, lied repeatedly about her e-mail communications while U.S. Secretary of State, and advocates for homosexual marriage and killing the unborn.
The sad fact is that the nation gets the kind of leadership it deserves, and regrettably that will be true in this election.
What kind of standards does God expect in leaders? And once in office, what should they focus on in fulfilling their duties? What would help them be the kind of leaders God would want them to be?
Some 3,500 years ago God set down a “constitution” of sorts for a new nation. The nation was Israel, newly freed from enslavement by the Egyptians. God laid out rules that would bring blessings and empower Israel to be an example that other nations would want to emulate (Deuteronomy 4:5-8). The key to those blessings was following their new “constitution,” God’s laws as revealed in the first five books of the Bible.
No one would be above the law or exempt from it. In fact, leaders were instructed to intimately familiarize themselves with it so they could rule humbly, wisely and righteously, leading to blessing for both themselves and the nation. Notice God’s instruction in Deuteronomy 17:18-20 that kings were to write out a copy of God’s law and to read and rule by it continuously:
“When [the new king] sits on the throne as king, he must copy for himself this body of instruction on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests. He must always keep that copy with him and read it daily as long as he lives. That way he will learn to fear the Lord his God by obeying all the terms of these instructions and decrees.
“This regular reading will prevent him from becoming proud and acting as if he is above his fellow citizens. It will also prevent him from turning away from these commands in the smallest way. And it will ensure that he and his descendants will reign for many generations in Israel” (New Living Translation, 2015).
Consider these words of wisdom. Think on this deeply. How different would any nation be if its leadership took to heart this simple and plain instruction? What an astounding difference it would make!
Scott Ashley was managing editor of Beyond Today magazine, United Church of God booklets and its printed Bible Study Course until his retirement in 2023. He also pastored three congregations in Colorado for 10 years from 2011-2021. He and his wife, Connie, live near Denver, Colorado.
Mr. Ashley attended Ambassador College in Big Sandy, Texas, graduating in 1976 with a theology major and minors in journalism and speech. It was there that he first became interested in publishing, an industry in which he worked for 50 years.
During his career, he has worked for several publishing companies in various capacities. He was employed by the United Church of God from 1995-2023, overseeing the planning, writing, editing, reviewing and production of Beyond Today magazine, several dozen booklets/study guides and a Bible study course covering major biblical teachings. His special interests are the Bible, archaeology, biblical culture, history and the Middle East.
