Conviction, Commitment, Courage

Good afternoon—no, not afternoon. Good morning, brethren. I'd like to say thank you to all the children that provided that music and very much of the volunteers who prepared and worked with them. I'd say I'd rather give a dozen sermons than work with a children's choir.

Just because it takes a very special talent. I think it was the comedian W.C. Field who said, never share the stage with dogs or children. But I'm not worried—I was just thinking about the potential and the destiny of those children. I have to say it's an honor to share the stage with them because of what God has in mind and plan for them. But I can't match the positive upbeatness they had, so I'll go the opposite direction. In a sense, a couple of days ago, Mr. Kubik in a sermon mentioned the events in the Ukraine. They're sadly in the midst of being gradually overtaken and reconquered by the nation of Russia. They're experiencing somewhat of a civil war. And so we hear about it in the news fairly often. The current crisis is enough to make us even forget when the Ukraine more—I shouldn't say more recently—when it first appeared on the scene in the news a few years ago, there was a popular revolution politically that drove the president and many of his top advisors from office. There was President Yanukovych. During the time he ruled the country, for many years he lived in a walled, guarded estate about an hour away from the capital city of Kiev. But after he was driven from power, I saw news reports where some of the people living in Kiev and in the surrounding areas were curious about what had gone on inside that estate. And so hordes of people went and stormed the gates, went inside the estate, and they were shocked to find what opulence and luxury their former president had been living in. At a time when the average Ukrainian lived on a salary of about $500 a month, President Yanukovych lived in an estate that had exotic gardens flowing fountains and waterfalls, his own private golf course, even a private zoo, and a garage full of luxury sports cars. And it leads to the thought, is that why the government created the office of president? Certainly not. I thought it was interesting he was actually booted from office for corruption and poor ruling rather than for the embezzlement that was discovered then. It was only after he was gone that people discovered how much he'd been stealing from his country.

President Yanukovych, though, has been far from the worst at stealing from his people. During the 1980s and 90s, President Mobutu of Zaire amassed a personal fortune of more than $5 billion dollars. That's billion with a B. During a time that his country was experiencing massive currency devaluation, hyperinflation, people living in abject poverty. But Mobutu kept his fortune safe because he'd moved it to overseas banks. When I was reading about this and preparing the sermon, I discovered a new term that I had not experienced, not come across before, that of kleptocracy. Kleptocracy is defined as the rule by thieves. People sometimes wonder why the nations of Africa and their people are so poor when they have such an abundance of natural resources. So much so that the people there should be quite well off. It's sad that through most of their history they've been led by men who have been more interested in amassing power and wealth for themselves than in seeking the good of their people. Of course, seeking after personal fortune at the expense of the people was far from the only way leaders have abused their position. Going back a little further in history, Joseph Stalin is known as one of the premier leaders of the world during the 1930s and 40s. He rose to power in the USSR through political intrigue and violence, including multiple murders. And once he attained office, he continued to use those techniques, along with fear and intimidation, to consolidate his hold on power so that he could not be driven from office for the rest of his life. Now, during World War II, the USSR served as our ally. We were willing to cooperate with almost anyone who would help us defeat Hitler. But we learned afterwards, when we got a glimpse at some of their records, that Stalin was responsible for the deaths of more Russian people than Hitler had been. And as rise to power, and early in his years, Stalin had had about 800,000 political prisoners executed. Nearly 2 million more sent to prisons in Siberia, where many of them died. And then, to force many of the new economic and agricultural policies that he wanted the nation to adopt, when there was resistance, he stopped food shipments and trade in certain parts of the country. This is another thing that Mr. Kubik mentioned in his sermon that his parents lived through. Stopping those food shipments and freezing the transportation caused the deaths of millions of people through malnutrition and starvation.

There are others we could cite. For instance, Mao Zedong of China forced similar policies to those of Stalin. Stopping food shipments, preventing trade. Some estimates say that he was responsible for the deaths of 40 million Chinese people.

And that's modern history. If we look further back, over the years we can see that kings, pharaohs, emperors, and caesars have likewise used the power of their position, their position as leaders, to brutally subjugate people. Men have taken for granted that their authority was licensed to appropriate wealth and comfort for themselves while their subjects suffered. The reason I'm discussing this this morning is because it applies to us as much more than a history lesson. We're here keeping the Feast of Tabernacles. We're part of God's church because he has called us to be leaders. He's called us to be rulers, each one of us, not just the ministers, not only those who have some advanced education or training, particular talents. It's important for us to remember God did not call any of us because we already were well suited for leadership. Rather, he requires us to learn, to grow, to build the relevant traits that we will need. He calls us to build the character of leaders.

I spent some time thinking about this this summer because in the summer camp program this past summer, and actually for the winter camp that will be happening in a couple of months, we adopted the theme leaders, people of character. And we spend some time thinking about that and looking for examples in Scripture. But I want to consider that that doesn't just apply to the youth at summer camp or to the staff there. It does apply, and it will apply to all of us.

During the Holy Days, we often turn to scriptures that show that we're called to be spirit-born children of God. That is our destiny, or as we used to say, our incredible human potential.

It's good for us to think, though, that our understanding of the Second Resurrection, the meaning of the eighth day that we'll be keeping here very soon, shows that for all those who will accept God's way and accept Jesus Christ's sacrifice as payment for their sins, and we hope that will be almost everyone. We know that for those people, being born as a spirit-born child of God is also their destiny, something God wants for everyone who will accept it.

But that fulfillment is a long way off for some. It might not seem like such a long way when it happens, sort of like for us when the Feast of Tabernacles seems to be over and we didn't hardly realize it started. But we know God's great plan of salvation is one of multiple steps, which the Holy Days are designed to help us to understand. The Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15 that the resurrections occur in order. He says, Christ the firstfruits, then those who are His when He returns, then, which we could say later, and perhaps much later for some, then comes the end.

And the reason I'm describing this and the reason it pertains to this sermon, the reason it matters to us, is that we are called by God now, not later, not much later. We are called ahead of most people. There's not a lot of people in here. You've noticed a lot of empty seats. Wouldn't it be great if it were filled with all the people that are here on Jekyll Island because God had called them? But we're called now instead of later because God has work for us to do. He has responsibilities for us. As a well-respected leader in the Church, used to tell us, you are not called just for your own salvation. No. If we were called just for our own sakes just to be saved, God may have just as well waited until the Millennium, when He would be calling everyone else who's alive. Or that Great Resurrection, that Second Resurrection, where many will rise and Satan's influence will be removed and they'll have God's Spirit available. Why didn't He wait to call us then? Why did God call you now in this age? If you will, turn with me to Revelation 5. We'll see that. Revelation 5, verse 9.

I believe we know why, but I want to review it a little at the beginning of this sermon. Revelation 5, verse 9.

John saw in vision a large number of people, and he heard this. They singing a new song, and they say, You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, speaking of Jesus Christ, and have redeemed us to God by your blood, out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God. And we shall reign on earth. We can see other references in Revelation if you turn forward a few pages to chapter 2, Revelation 2 and verse 26. We're seeing the reason why God called us now and didn't wait for the millennium. And the message to the churches, he often lets them know of the reward ahead. Revelation 2 and verse 26. And he who overcomes and keeps my works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations. He'll rule them with a rod of iron. They'll be dashed to pieces like the potter's vessel. Of course, that dashing to pieces will only be as necessary. I don't think he calls us to go beating people up or wielding power brutally. Let's turn the page to chapter 3 and verse 21. Revelation 3, 21, says, To him who overcomes, I will grant to sit with me on my throne, as I also overcame, and sat down with my father on his throne.

Now, I'm reading select verses here out of Revelation to make my point. There is much more that I'm not reading that we discuss in other holy days. Revelation describes the great calamity to come on this planet at the time of the end. It discusses famine, disasters, plagues, and eventually the return of Jesus Christ to rule the entire earth.

From what we understand of God's plan, from the time of Adam and Eve onward, God allowed humans to live their own way, develop their own educational systems, their own religion, their own culture, their own forms of government. And through thousands of years of mankind trying every system we could conceive of, every style imaginable, it's been shown that we can't do it.

The sad history of the human race will show that only God's way of life works. Only God's laws and God's government will be successful. And what will complete this lesson for mankind is when, after getting to try everything else but God's way, the government of Jesus Christ will be established during a thousand-year reign on earth, which we are celebrating and representing right now during the Feast of Tabernacles. That reign will be successful. Under God's government and laws, people will be happy, healthy, and prosperous. But to come back to my main point, Jesus Christ is not going to work alone to do that. He's going to have help. Turn with me to Daniel 7, if you will, to reinforce that point. Daniel 7. I'll begin in verse 13. Daniel was given many visions, essentially showing the course of government and the world from his time until the time of the end. We like to focus on those prophecies of the end. So Daniel says, I was watching in the night visions, and behold, one like the Son of man, coming in the clouds of heaven. That's Jesus Christ. He came to the ancient of days, who we call God the Father, and they brought him near before him. Then to him, that is Christ, was given dominion and glory and a kingdom that all peoples and nations and languages should serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom, the one which shall not be destroyed. But as I said, Christ will not rule alone. If you'll drop down a few verses to number 17, we see some explanation of some of the visions Daniel saw. Those great beasts, which are four, are four kings which arise out of the earth. But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever. I've been talking about some pretty big goals here, about us becoming spirit-boring children of God, reigning with Jesus Christ over the whole earth.

It occurs to me, if someone were to have walked in here, who was just on vacation at Jekyll Island, or perhaps if the convention staff were listening in, I wonder if they might break out laughing. Look, those people think they're going to rule the earth!

It's pretty obvious that right now we are not kings and priests. We certainly are not powerful spirit beings. Look at us, we're not even powerful physical beings. You might wonder, are these prophecies supposed to be about someone else? Other people? No, I think they're not about someone else. This is about us. But God didn't call us because we were well qualified to be leaders already. He makes the people whom he calls into leaders. He makes them into people fit to rule his kingdom. I don't like to use cliches too often, but there's one well-known that says, God doesn't call the qualified, he qualifies the called. And that's true. And that relates to why we're called now. God calls us now and he gives us time, time in this life to grow, to develop into our destiny. And that's something I think it's good for us to remember. The Feast of Tabernacles is often when we bump into people that we might have met years ago. Sometimes if that person made an unfavorable impression years ago, we might keep that impression in our minds. But we should remember, God called us to grow and develop and change. You meet that person years later, they should be a different person, a better person. And so should you. So should I. God occasionally gives us very special opportunities for us to practice some of those things we need to do. I mentioned the Summer Camp program, and I've been blessed to be able to be a part of it for several years. And that's one of those opportunities that's like a little laboratory for young adults and teenagers to really get to try to live God's way of life. But we get to practice it here at the Feast of Tabernacles, too. We have special events and opportunities. We have to cooperate together, and it's a chance for us to practice God's way.

I want to turn to a scripture that might not be the first one you think of when it comes to thinking of developing character and leadership ability. This is relating to the last Passover that Jesus spent with His disciples. He told them many things, and much of which He knew they wouldn't really understand until later when they would be given the Holy Spirit after He was crucified and resurrected. But during that time, He said something fairly unique to Peter. It's in Luke 22, if you'll join me in looking there. Luke 22, beginning in verse 31.

Luke 22.

This is where I'm glad I brought the glasses with me this time. And the Lord said, Interestingly, it was not long after that that Peter would tell Christ that I'm ready to be imprisoned and even to die with you. And Christ said, I don't know if He chuckled, but He said, you willing to die for me? You're going to deny you even know who I am three times before the rooster. Roosters finished crowing twice in the morning. Jesus knew in advance the weakness that Peter had, but He was planning on, and He was counting on, a change. He knew that Peter would become different. And that process of developing and growing is very important to all of us. I know in Mark's Gospel account, it says that when Jesus called Peter and Andrew to leave their careers as fishermen, He said, come with me and I'll make you to become fishers of men.

I wanted to cite that one because that's where He doesn't say, I'll make you fishers of men. You'll become fishers of men. But when Jesus called His disciples, He didn't seek out men who were powerful preachers or scholarly theologians, great leaders of men. He called tradesmen, craftsmen, fishermen, perhaps some herdsmen or farmers. We don't know the occupation of all of them.

And if you look around this room, God hasn't changed his style, has He? He calls the humble, the basic. We might live in the richest, most powerful country on earth, and we do, but we're not the rich and powerful. We're not the elites, we're not the most talented, not the most highly educated. We are what Paul described in 1 Corinthians chapter 1. If you'd like to turn there in verse 26, or I could cite, tell you to turn in your hymnal. I don't remember which page that's on, but we sing it often. 1 Corinthians 1 and verse 26.

Paul said, For you see your calling, brethren, not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world, to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world, to put to shame the things which are mighty, and the base things of the world, and the things which are despised, God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are. It's a good thing to remember when you're suddenly put into position when you are in charge of something. As I said, at summer camp, we put young people in charge of a group of teenagers and say, okay, you're in charge, but I like to remind them, remember, not many mighty are called. Be small in your own eyes. That's a lesson I remember when I was first hired into the ministry. A good friend of mine reminded me of that story of Saul, that he was in trouble when he stopped being small in his own eyes. We need to remember our origin. God didn't call us because he needed us so badly because we were so good, but he wants us to become something. I know some people have been tempted to use this passage as an excuse. He said, well, I'm just common and weak. I make mistakes. What can you expect? What we should expect is what God expects. He might call us in a state of being weak or common, even foolish. He doesn't call us to remain that way.

With God working in us, we're to become those who will confound the mighty. He calls us to become something that's not foolish, weak or base. We're to grow and change. That same Peter that Jesus told him, you know, when you're converted, strengthen your brethren. Jesus said he would return. He would be converted. That same Peter, though, who had earlier denied that Christ even knew who he was, he's the one that wrote in 2 Peter 3 18 to us that we are to grow in grace and knowledge. Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. I'm not turning there. It's in 2 Peter 3 18. But there's no doubt Peter knew an awful lot about growing, about developing character. I'm sure he never forgot where he'd been, that he was a common fisherman. Remember, when he was first called, when Christ sent him out to first draw that draft of fish, and it was so big his nets were breaking, and he fell down saying, Lord, get away from me. I'm a sinner. Christ knew that he was a sinner. He wanted to work with him, and he knew that he was still paralyzed by fear at times, but he knew he could grow and change. Too often, we doubt our ability to become something different, something better. But you know what's worse than that doubt is to not even try. We need to try. We need to be motivated. I want to think back to one of my favorite movies, and I can't believe it's been 20 or more years since this came out. It's a movie called Dead Poets Society. I don't know how many of you saw that when it came out. We've been reminded of it recently because, of course, the lead character was played by Robin Williams, who left this life recently. But that movie, although not perfect by any means, it had its faults. But it inspired me at a time when I was deciding what to do with my life, and it helped solidify my goal of becoming a teacher. It helped me to think, yeah, I want to help young people to grow and become something better. Most people who saw that movie, if they remembered nothing else, remembered one phrase that became common in our society from that, the Latin phrase, carpe diem. Not long after the movie came out, I started seeing that on bumper stickers back when cars had bumpers, and on t-shirts and such. Many people remember that, carpe diem is Latin for seize the day. I think it's sad, though, a lot of people picked up on the slogan and thought, this means go do something crazy, jump out of an airplane, or learn how to fight fires, or some things that might be okay to do. But it's good to remember the context in which the main character, his name was John Keating, played by Robin Williams. When he said that, he was at the start of working with a group of young boys, and he wanted to encourage them to become something. So what he did is he took them out in the hallway of this very old prep school where they were enrolled, a boarding school, and he looked at the trophy cases, all these trophies and pictures of former students. And as it turns out, he makes the point that those men were all dead by this time. They'd lived their lives, but this showed them those pictures of young men, and he tells them, but their legacy lives on, and if you lean in close, you can still hear their message. And it's a very humorous scene in the movie in some ways. It's one of those that's humorous, but inspiring, because he leans in, and then behind them he whispers. He says, if you listen real close, you can hear their legacy. Go on, listen, do you hear it? Carpe! And the kids go, what? What's this guy doing? He says, look, look, carpe, carpe diem. Seize the day, boys. Make your lives extraordinary.

Make your lives extraordinary. I wish more people had seized on that, rather than just carpe diem. We are to make our lives extraordinary. After a certain point, it's not a matter of hoping that something special happens to you. It's about making your life really special. And when it comes down to it, all of us are here because something special has happened to us. God the Father spoke your name. No one could come to Jesus Christ unless the Father draws him. So you're here because the Father drew you. That is extraordinary and special. But we need to continue from there. We need to continue from that point and make our lives extraordinary. In the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5.48, Jesus said, you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect. Now that is a high goal. You shall be perfect. I'm glad he said, shall be, and not... why aren't you already perfect? Now we don't get that way instantly, and we absolutely do not get that way on our own. All the effort of our own in the world will not accomplish that. If you'll turn to Luke 24. Luke 24 and verse 49. I want to just read one Scripture that reminds us of something very important. Luke 24.49. Of course, this is after Jesus Christ had been crucified, lied in the tomb for three days and three nights, and then rose again. And he appeared to the disciples on and off over a period of 40 days, and he was about to leave them. But of course, he told them, don't leave here. Well, let me read. He says, Behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you, but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high.

Endued with power from on high. God calls us for the purpose of changing and growing to become perfect. And he promises to give us the power to do it. That power is actually nothing less than God living in us. I want to turn also to Galatians chapter 2 and verse 20. There are a number of places we could read this, but I like the phrasing in this one. Galatians 2.20.

One of the memory Scriptures that I needed, I had to commit when I was a student at ambassador.

Paul writes that I've been crucified with Christ. It's no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.

Christ lives in me. And the life that I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. That's terrific! We have that power. We can become mighty and great. What should we do with that power? In what way should we be growing and developing? We're to become kings and priests, prepare for rulership in the world tomorrow. What type of leaders will we be? If you'll indulge me, I want to cite one more of my favorite movies.

I've been on a kick this summer. I've been doing pop culture references. But this one is a movie entitled Braveheart. It's another one I think many have seen. Back in the Middle Ages from Scottish history, it tells the supposed story of William Wallace. And I say supposed because various histories dispute how it actually happened. But in this movie, of course, Scotland is fighting for freedom from England's rule. And the man, William Wallace, who was played by Mel Gibson, becomes a leader, even though, if you remember the beginning of the story, he didn't really want to be.

He said he wanted to raise crops and children if he could. But, of course, he's pushed into a leadership role. And there's one scene where he'd led his ragtag army in a battle to victory. They fought off the English army and won. And soon afterwards, the Scottish nobles and aristocrats have gathered in a room and they give him a special title, I think, Guardian of Scotland, and his men as aide de camp. And very soon afterwards, the nobles begin arguing.

They say, now it's time to declare a king, and some want this one and some want that one, and they start putting out papers and saying they're forgeries. And Wallace gets disgusted and he walks out of the room. And Robert de Bruz, who's one of those who's a leading contender for the throne, follows him. And they start having a discussion about the position of these nobles and aristocrats.

And Wallace says, what does it mean to be noble? Because Robert de Bruz said, these nobles, they risk much, they have much to lose. And he says, does that matter any? And Wallace says, what does it mean to be noble? I would do it in a Scottish accent if I could. But my Scottish accent... well, it never sounds Scottish. He says, what does it mean to be noble? Your title gives you claim to the throne of our country, but men don't follow titles. They follow courage. Now our people know you, noble and common, they respect you.

And if you would just lead them to freedom, they'd follow you. Now, this speech is pure fiction. I don't know, there were no digital recorders in the pockets when William Wallace spoke that, but it rings somewhat true, doesn't it? And the point I want to make is, people will not follow us just because we're declared to be kings and priests in God's kingdom.

We need to build the character to make us into good leaders. Just being said, this man is a king, do what he says, that's not enough. We need the character of leaders. And as I said, that fits with that theme that I thought about a lot this summer.

Leaders, people of character. What are the character traits that a godly leader should develop in practice? I mentioned courage. Is that one? If so, is that all? Of course, for our answers, we should look to the foundation of God's church.

At least, that's one place we can look. Paul wrote that the church was built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets. Of course, with the understanding that the rock that is Jesus Christ was the very foundation. God's church is built upon that. But we've seen, of course, that Christ intends others to reign with Him.

If you'll turn to Matthew 19, we'll begin to see one of the characteristics that I believe is fundamental to being a leader. At least, a godly leader. Matthew 19 will begin in verse 27. Here in verse 27, Peter will pose a question to Jesus. Peter was always the one doing this.

Peter answered and said to him, that is to Jesus, Well, see? We've left all and followed you. Therefore, what shall we have? Jesus said to them, Assuredly I say to you that in the regeneration, when the Son of Man sits on the throne of His glory, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands for my sake shall receive a hundredfold and inherit eternal life.

This not only shows that these men were destined, and they were not only destined, but they were well trained for future leadership. Okay, and I said we are destined for that and want to be trained for that also. But we almost could have read over without noticing one of the character traits that was essential for them to be able to be those leaders. Back up in Peter's question, he said, we have left all and followed you. That's an important characteristic for someone who would be a godly leader, leaving everything else and putting God first. We could call that devotion to God. Peter said we've left all and followed Christ. And Jesus, did He then say, well, you didn't really need to do that. No, He expected that. And He had already set an example in doing that. He had formerly been the Word who was with God and was God, existing eternally with the Father, with great power, with eternal life within Him, and He divested Himself of that.

And He was preparing then to give up even the physical life that still remained to Him. He would be a sacrifice so that humankind could have life. Jesus Christ put God's will first, above all else. That's a commitment that we made or will make at baptism.

And we're always counseled that. In Luke 14, I'm not going to turn there, but Jesus said, if any man following Me doesn't love Him, that is Jesus, more than father, mother, wife, children, brothers or sisters, even his own life, he can't be my disciple. So I would say the first, the most basic characteristic of a godly leader is making devotion, loyalty, and the love of God the overriding force in our life. That love of God. Doing that would require living by God's Word. God's Word explains who and what God is. And of course, it means staying in close contact with Him through regular daily prayer and Bible study and fasting. Not necessarily daily, I don't recommend that. But we need to live by God's Word, be in close contact with Him. Let's turn ahead, if you will, in the book to the book of Luke to see another vital characteristic of godly leadership. Luke 22. We read a different version of this in the sermonette. I want to read Luke's version beginning in verse 28 of chapter 22.

Here Jesus told the disciples, Now this is reiterating the point we've already made, but I wanted to read that to show where their destiny was, but then back up to see what Christ said before that. Because before that, He made one of the most fundamental statements about godly leadership that we can ever learn. In verse 24, there was also a dispute among them as to which of them should be considered the greatest. And He said to them, The kings of the Gentiles exercised lordship over them, and those who exercise authority over them are called benefactors. This is how worldly leaders do it. Stalin, Mobutu, Yanukovych, they all called themselves benefactors, but they lorded power over their subjects. They benefited themselves. Jesus wants something different from His leaders. In verse 26, He says, Not so among you. On the contrary, He who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger, and He who governs as he who serves. For who's greater, He who sits at the table, or He who serves? Is it not He who sits at the table? Yet I am among you as one who serves.

Godly leadership is a position of service.

And I didn't originate that phrase, but I think it can't be said too often. Godly leadership is a position of service. It's a service to God, of course, but also it consists of serving the people that you lead, not them serving you.

Jesus says here that He served, and we've noted He gave up everything for the sake of His creation.

His service goes beyond that, though. Jesus was and is, I believe, the one who continually serves. He's still doing His job as King of kings and Lord of lords. He's our high priest, making intercession for us. And Paul wrote to us that we should imitate Him as He imitated Christ.

To be godly leaders and people of character, we need to imitate Christ.

So let's read another statement he made on that point, on John chapter 13. In John chapter 13, I know we read this as part of our Passover service, but I'd like to read it now, reminding us that we're training to become spirit-born sons of God, kings and priests in the world tomorrow. We're going to have tremendous power. What should we do with that power?

In John 13 and verse 3, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hand, that He had come from God, that He was going to God, rose from supper and laid aside His garments, took a towel and girded Himself. After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded. If you'll drop down with me to verse 12. And verse 12, So when He had washed their feet, taking His garments and sat down, He said to them, Do you know what I've done to you? You call me teacher and Lord, and you say, Well, for so I am. Jesus Christ never lost track of His position in the universe. But He said, If I then, your Lord and teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's. For I've given you an example that you should do as I have done. The big point here is that Jesus did not just say a leader should serve His followers. He lived it. He did it and then taught us to do it. He set an example, and He did it in the most menial service. We follow His example very specifically as part of the Passover service. But when will we have an opportunity to do that in some unplanned way? We refer to that as having a We refer to that as having a foot-washing attitude all the time. I like to refer again back to our summer camp experience, because we've had a very strong young adults, young and vibrant, and you know, a confident, sometimes be called upon to serve the campers who have accidents, perhaps an upset stomach, and their dinner comes out again. And it takes, you know, they need help. They need to be cleaned up. That's a pretty menial service. Sometimes we have pretty young campers who are still dealing with, you know, to be frank, bedwetting issues. It's a menial service to help someone discreetly, not make fun of them, not laugh, keep it private and help them get cleaned up, serve them in a very menial way.

I'm sure we'll have opportunities here. Probably many of you have had opportunities like that that I wouldn't know about, and you wouldn't broadcast.

During the millennium, when we're spirit beings, what opportunities will we have to serve our people that we're leading by doing menial service? Menial service to these frail and weak human beings. When we'll have the power to force them to do anything we want, will we decline to use that power for vain or selfish purposes and instead serve and give loving guidance in patience and mercy?

It's funny, I should have underlined that word, patience, because it's funny how sometimes when you get confident in a particular area, God will show you how much you don't have room to be conscious. I used to be so bold as to think, I'm a pretty patient fellow. And then I learned, and God is showing me time and again, and one way to learn that is to have a young child.

I'm not patient, and I need to grow in patience. So I try to underline that whenever I make mention of it, because I'm not here telling you, become patient like me. I'm up here saying, all of us need this. This sermon is for me, as much as for all of you. And we have the chance now to practice what we will be like, what we want to be like, in God's kingdom. We can't wait for the kingdom of God and then start developing these character traits. Our life now gives us the chance to practice and develop. And we're in a laboratory where we can make mistakes and overcome them, but we do need to overcome them. And it's nice here at the feast, we strive to create conditions such as it will be in God's kingdom. That's a very special thing. And of course, those fundamentals to leadership, putting God first, serving, putting ourselves last. But there's more to it.

And that quote from Braveheart, William Wallace said, men don't follow titles, they follow courage. I don't disagree with that, but I didn't want to talk about courage first. Matter of fact, in the traits I want to discuss, courage comes last. I wanted to consider the leadership traits that Christ taught and exemplified, but then come back. Courage alone is insufficient. Men will follow courageous leaders, but possibly in pursuit of a faulty goal. I started off noting that the world has given us many powerful and influential leaders who were bad leaders. If you study World War II, you'll see that Mao Zedong, for one, was a very courageous man, and he accomplished a lot. He was not a godly leader, though, and we could say the same of many others. That's why we need to focus first on living God's way of life and humble service to others. And then the elements I want to add next are what we can call the three C's, conviction, commitment, and courage. And before I go further, I want to admit that I learned this from Dr. Ward many years ago, and I've heard him teaching it most of my adult life. So, actually, I was a little trepidatious about speaking on the subject, knowing he'd be in the audience, but I'm giving him credit for having taught me most of what I know on it. But it starts with conviction. Conviction is what you could call that weight on your mind and your heart that compels you to not only believe God's word, but to live by God's word. If you'll turn to John 16—it's just a few pages over if you're still open in John—John 16, beginning in verse 7, we'll see where conviction comes from. Jesus told the disciples, "'Nevertheless, I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away. For if I do not go away, the helper,' and Greek, that's the paraclete, "'will not come to you. But if I depart, I will send it to you.'" And I'm going to use the pronoun it because him is not a proper translation. When it has come, it will convict the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment.

There is that conviction. Jesus didn't leave his disciples wondering what this helper, this paraclete, was, though. If you'll go to verse 13, "'However, when the Spirit of truth has come,'"—that's God's Spirit, is what we'll convict— "'it will guide you in all truth. It will not speak on its own authority, but whatever adheres it will speak and tell you of things to come.'" And I should mention, of course, it says, "'He will guide you into all truth.'" In John 17, 17, a little bit later, Christ would say, "'Thy word is truth in his prayer to God the Father.'" God's word is truth. We could say that God's Holy Spirit gives us understanding of God's word, and together, those two things convict us. We're convicted by God's word and by God's Spirit. And as I said, when we know it, we know that we know it. It becomes more than just some information. It becomes a motivating force in life, one that you can't ignore. As I said, it's like a weight in your heart that I have to do this. I'm spending the feast here with my wife's parents, and I've heard the story many times of when her father first came to understand the truth. At one point, he had to tell his wife, I have to do this. I have to start keeping the Sabbath. He became convicted. It was that weight that he couldn't just know the seventh day was the Sabbath. He had to live that way. And I think all of us have been to that point. You're here because you've been convicted. And when we have that conviction, it becomes that motivating force, then we make a commitment. We make a commitment to that way that we've come to understand. We make a commitment to the God whose way it is. And coincidentally, then, to the people whom God is also called. A leader who is committed is one that people want to follow, partly because they know he won't waver. He won't turn back. We've often in the past cited Matthew 24 verse 13, He that shall endure to the end shall be saved. That's commitment. I'm reminded of a quote by Winston Churchill. He made many great quotes, but he's also known as saying, never give up. Never, never, never. I like that. Never give up. Be committed to the end and beyond. And to me, that's a good thing. And we'll find that courage then will be a product of the conviction and the commitment. Those two together will make courage. And to me, that's very encouraging. I don't think of myself as someone who just naturally has a lot of courage. And you don't have to. If you have that conviction and you're committed to it, that will produce courage. And we might even wonder, well, what is courage? Is it the ability to fearlessly charge into danger? I don't think necessarily. A complete lack of fear, I don't consider courage. I've heard it said that only the foolish or the ignorant never know fear. Courage is an ability to master one's fear, to control it, rather than letting it control you.

Some sources break it down into two types. Physical courage is the ability to face pain or injury, even death. I would submit that moral courage is even more important. Moral courage is that ability to face ridicule, to withstand peer pressure, insult, or embarrassment. Any other mental or emotional pressures, moral courage will help you stand up to that. We can find an example of both of these types of courage in the original apostles. And it's not hard to see that their courage came as a result of their conviction and commitment. Remember, before the Holy Spirit dwelt in them, their courage failed. They all fled from the Garden of Gethsemane. Peter, in his fear, denied that he even knew who Jesus was. But the power of the Holy Spirit, which combined with God's Word, convicted them in their hearts. And that led to a firm commitment to live God's way and to preach the gospel, to fulfill the commission that Jesus gave them. If you'll join me in Acts chapter 5 beginning in verse 27. This is one of my favorite passages of Scripture.

Acts 5 and verse 27. Now, this is after the disciples had been meeting and preaching in the temple and raising the ire of the priests and those in authority. So they seized them, they arrested them. And it says in verse 27, when they brought them, they set them before the council. Now, high priests asked them, saying, did we not strictly command you to not teach in his name? And look, you filled Jerusalem with your doctrine and intend to bring this man's blood on us.

Peter and the other apostles answered and said, we ought to obey God rather than men.

That's long been one of my favorite Scriptures. We ought to obey God rather than men. When we have the courage that comes from conviction and commitment, that's what we'll say and feel, and that's what we'll do. They had that courage, courage that people followed.

And of course, they followed that up with actions themselves. If you'll drop down to verse 40, as the Sanhedrin put them out, and it says, they agreed with him. They listened to one of their leaders. They called for the apostles and they beat them. They called them in and they brutally punished them. And they commanded them that they should not speak in the name of Jesus and let them go. So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name. That is, they counted it joy to suffer for Jesus Christ. And daily in the temple and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ. Now they'd just been threatened with their lives and brutally beaten and told, don't preach in his name. They went out and they celebrated and they did not cease. They obeyed God rather than men. As I said, they had the courage that grew out of their conviction and their commitment. These are traits that are vital to godly leadership. These are aspects of the character of leaders. Courage, conviction, and commitment. Those fit very well with humble service. Service to God and to his people. And all of that follows from a devotion to putting loyalty and obedience to God above everything else. So we've been taking a brief look at some of the traits needed for godly leadership. We'll do well to continue focusing on and developing the character traits that are required of us to be good leaders because that is our calling. We are to be sons and daughters of God Almighty. We are to reign with Jesus Christ as kings and priests in the kingdom of God. But our calling is one of service. When we feel inadequate to fulfill such a great purpose, which I suspect we pretty much all do at times, we should remember that God did not call any of us because we were so well qualified or suited to lead as kings and priests. He called us because we were not. He called us because we were so ordinary. And he will use us to show that he can make great leaders of the common folk. God will work in us to make our lives extraordinary.

And what's most required for being a leader is character. Let's strive to build that character so that we can be in God's kingdom in the millennium, so that we can serve God and serve the people of God.