Portrait of a King: Leadership By Example

2015-10-04 
Pastor Jonathan Falwell 

Memory Verse:
Psalm 24:3-4a
Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? Or who may stand in His holy place?  He who has clean hands and a pure heart.

“clean hands” = implies pure actions
“pure heart” = implies pure motive

I Kings 6:11-13 NLT 
Then the Lord gave this message to Solomon: 12 “Concerning this Temple you are building, if you keep all my decrees and regulations and obey all my commands, I will fulfill through you the promise I made to your father, David. 13 I will live among the Israelites and will never abandon my people Israel.”

Joy of God’s Promise

I Kings 6:12b NLT
“…I will fulfill through you the promise I made to your father, David…”

Joy of God’s Presence
I Kings 6:13 NLT
“…I will live among the Israelites and will never abandon my people Israel.”

II Chronicles 5:13b-14 NLT 13b
At that moment a thick cloud filled the Temple of the Lord. 14 The priests could not continue their service because of the cloud, for the glorious presence of the Lord filled the Temple of God.

Leadership By Example: Good leadership is really nothing more than good “followship”

1 Cor. 11:1 Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ.
Can you be a good leader without Christ? Yes, but what are you leading others to….

Solomon proved that to be a good leader, you must be a great follower of God.

Solomon’s Words of Praise. 
Solomon focused on God, Who dwells with His Own, Gives them His Word, and Keeps His Promises…and God always had a providential plan in play!

I Kings 8:14-15a NLT
Then the king turned around to the entire community of Israel standing before him and gave this blessing: 15 “Praise the Lord, the God of Israel…”

Solomon’s Prayer of Praise
I Kings 8:22-23a NLT 22 
Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the entire community of Israel. He lifted his hands toward heaven, 23 and he prayed…

Notice “Lifted hands” (v.22) which, in the OT, was an expression of “poverty (spiritual impoverishment)” & “earnest expectation for an answer or reply from God.”
To follow Him properly, we must thank Him! Solomon did…

1. Thank You For Who You Are
I Kings 8:23 NLT
“O Lord, God of Israel, there is no God like you in all of heaven above or on the earth below. You keep your covenant and show unfailing love to all who walk before you in wholehearted devotion.”

– Recognizing that there is no God but Him. Put Him first!

2. Thank You For Your Promises
I Kings 8:24 NLT
24 You have kept your promise to your servant David, my father. You made that promise with your own mouth, and with your own hands you have fulfilled it today.

– Recognizing that God is the source of all of our hope and dreams

3. Thank You For Your Forgiveness
I Kings 8:30 NLT
May you hear the humble and earnest requests from me and your people Israel when we pray toward this place. Yes, hear us from heaven where you live, and when you hear, forgive…

– Recognizing that His forgiveness is our hope
– Jesus is the “way, truth and the life, no man comes unto the Father but by Him!”

4. Thank You For Your Provisions
I Kings 8:37-40 NLT 37 
“If there is a famine in the land or a plague or crop disease or attacks of locusts or caterpillars, or if your people’s enemies are in the land besieging their towns—whatever disaster or disease there is— 38 and if your people Israel pray about their troubles, raising their hands toward this Temple, 39 then hear from heaven where you live, and forgive. Give your people what their actions deserve, for you alone know each human heart. 40 Then they will fear you as long as they live in the land you gave to our ancestors.”

– He is our provider.
– When we have nothing left, He takes care of us

5. Thank You For Your Protection
I Kings 8:44-45 NLT
44 “If your people go out where you send them to fight their enemies, and if they pray to the Lord by turning toward this city you have chosen and toward this Temple I have built to honor your name, 45 then hear their prayers from heaven and uphold their cause.”

– When the world is out to destroy us, our God protects us in ways we can’t understand

– John 10:10 – “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”

Model for Christian Leadership

– Christ-centered in all aspects of life (a voluntary servant of Christ)

– Committed to serve the needs of others before their own,

– Courageous to lead with power and love as an expression of serving,

– Consistently developing others into servant leaders, and

– Continually inviting feedback from those that they want to serve in order to grow towards the ultimate servant leader, Jesus Christ.