This is an excerpt from chapter six of "How The Mighty Have Fallen."  Follow this link to order your copy.

So the women sang as they danced, and said: "Saul has slain his thousands, And David his ten thousands. Then Saul was very angry, and the saying displeased him; and he said, " Now what more can he have but the kingdom?" 1 Samuel 18:7-11
 
No matter who you are or how great your success, there will always come another who seems to be better, smarter, and more talented. But what do you do when that person is one of your own workers? And what do you do when the people in your church or organization praise and admire him or her more than they do you?

Young David had accomplished an incredible feat. He boldly confronted Goliath and rid Israel of a terrible menace. Through this, he demonstrated his loyalty to God and country as well as his own greatness as a leader. It’s not that he made Saul look bad. He simply looked “better” than Saul. He did what Saul could not—or would not do—and all Israel knew it. “Saul has slain his thousands, but David his ten thousands,” the women sang as they praised David in a celebration of dance. It would seem, at least it did to Saul, that the people believed David was a better man than him. 

So what is a leader to do? How should one react when a subordinate receives more praise and applause then the one in charge? If you are like Saul, the choice is clear. You simply pick up a spear and throw it at him. You ruin that “usurper” before he or she steals your kingdom from you.

 Absurd? Outrageous? Indeed, it sounds extreme but this is exactly what many leaders in the Kingdom of God are doing to the aspiring and talented workers under them. Subordinates who take initiative and succeed, whose special gifts and abilities are praised by fellow workers and church members, are often met by the suspicion and resentment of the leaders they serve. Their fear is that these young “Davids” will not only steal their popularity, but they could steal the “kingdom” that the authority believes is his by right.
 
THE MANDATE OF LEADERSHIP

A leader throwing spears is an offense to kingdom leadership. Imagine Peter being so envious of Paul’s success that he forbids him from planting a church. Or picture Paul being so threatened by Timothy’s popularity that he spreads rumors about him. Or imagine John the Baptist labeling Jesus a fraud because he is afraid of losing his followers. This is not leadership, it is self-preservation. It is not advancing the church for the glory of God; it is expanding an empire for the glory of self.

In the world, leaders aspire to greatness by achieving positions of power and authority. They measure success by the amount of people under their control and the largeness of their popularity. Unfortunately, many “Christian” leaders have come to define greatness in similar terms. To them it is building big churches, commanding huge crowds, and achieving fame. Their attitude is also the same as the world’s regarding people—especially subordinates. They are seen as objects to manipulate and control for the leader’s own benefit. In fact, followers who show promise or have some better quality than the leader are perceived as threats to be suppressed and are denied opportunity for promotion.

This was a great failure of King Saul just as it is for many church leaders. The mandate of kingdom leadership is to raise others up and release them rather than hold them down and repress them. Ephesians 4:11-12 says apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers are to equip the saints for the work of Christ’s ministry, not suppress them for the sake of one’s own popularity. Clearly, scripture requires spiritual authorities to identify and prepare potential leaders for future ministry office. Failure to do this is a  serious betrayal of leadership. In fact, it is a betrayal of the very mandate given to leaders through the Word of God.

THOSE WHO LEAD MUST HAVE A VISION GREATER THAN THEMSELVES

Moses is one of the Bible’s greatest leaders whose achievements are still impacting the world today. His success remains, not only because he led Israel to the Promised Land, but because he was a leader who raised up other leaders. In Exodus 18:25-26, Moses “Chose able men out of all Israel, and made them heads over the people: rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens. So they judged the people at all times.” Furthermore, in Numbers 11, Moses rejoiced to learn that seventy of his subordinates had received the same anointing he had and prophesied among the people. When others expected him to be threatened and put a stop to it, Moses declared, “Are you zealous for my sake? Oh, that all the LORD’S people were prophets and that the LORD would put His Spirit upon them!” Why did Moses have such a passion for raising, training, and releasing leaders? Because he had a vision greater than himself.

On the contrary, leaders who are threatened by their apprentices have a weak and limited vision. By suppressing or attacking subordinates they reveal how small-minded and inferior their caliber of leadership truly is. They care only for their specific interests in the here and now and no vision for advancing the Kingdom of God by advancing those He calls. 
 
THOSE WHO LEAD MUST HAVE A HEART TO MENTOR FOLLOWERS

In 2 Timothy 2:2, Paul told Timothy, “…the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.” The biblical model of leadership is concerned, not only with influencing the masses, but also on mentoring the few. 

Almost every great leader in God’s Kingdom was first entrusted to a mentor before released into ministry. Paul had Barnabas and Timothy had Paul. And Timothy, in turn, was instructed to raise up elders in his church. Kingdom leaders must understand the sacred trust they have in recognizing, training, and elevating the aspiring leaders under them. God’s plan for preparing, conditioning, and training future pastors, teachers, and missionaries begins with an established leader who is willing to pour himself or herself into up and coming protégés. Those who fail to do so could be preventing the rise of another David or depriving the world of the next great Joshua.

THOSE WHO LEAD MUST BE WILLING TO LET GO OF STATUS

John the Baptist said, “He must increase and I must decrease” (John 3:30). The crowds were curious that people were being drawn to Jesus and leaving John behind. John was losing his status and popularity. But to his credit, he did not feel threatened. John realized his purpose was not to establish himself but to prepare the way for another. His purpose was to recognize, raise up, and release the next leader who would bring the next great anointing.

In a very similar way, all leaders carry the mantle of John the Baptist. We all exist to prepare the way for another; to seek and search for the next one to lead, to raise him up, and release him into leadership. Even more, we should realize that part of that preparation is to decrease our own status or importance in order to increase the status and importance of the one we are raising up.

Leaders must be willing to let go of control and give it to others. We must allow them to have authority and make decisions and enjoy the success and praise of those decisions. Kingdom leaders are not to grow in popularity and prestige like kings and heads of state, pulling more power and control to themselves. Instead, they should delegate and diminish. People should become less dependent on us and more dependent on those we are raising up. We should be decentralizing our power, decreasing our influence, and shifting it to others who will grow and learn from it and take it further.

Raising great leaders doesn’t just happen. It happens because one is an intentional mentor. Our role as leaders is not just to promote a vision for an organization and manage its operations efficiently. Our role is also to raise up other potential leaders for that organization so its survival will surpass our own influence. The greatest compliment to your leadership is the legacy of leaders that you have raised up to follow you. Do not limit the scope of your ministry by focusing only on the organization that is here and now. Have a long-term vision that transcends the present by raising up leaders whose influence will extend into the future. Sow into your church, ministry, or organization’s tomorrow by raising up leaders today.

“The worst thing that can happen to a man is for him to succeed before he is ready.” - Dr. Martin Lloyd Jones

“Give us king!” demanded Israel. Saul was not what God wanted for Israel, but He gave them their king anyway.

It begs the question: Does God place people in leadership before it is His perfect timing to do so? Will God anoint someone even though their character has not been prepared to support that anointing? Unfortunately, it happens all the time. Both history and scripture are filled with examples of those who, despite lack of preparation or maturity, were elevated prematurely and, consequently, were ruined by that promotion.

THE ENAMOR OF ANOINTING

The people made an assumption about Saul. Undoubtedly they supposed that because he was anointed by God, he must be credible. They supposed, “If he wasn’t good, God wouldn’t anoint him. So let’s give him a crown, sit him on a throne and bow to his authority.” Big mistake.

Simply stated, the “anointing” is nothing more than God putting His hand upon someone or something and using them to fulfill His purpose at a given time.  It implies no validation of character or proof of credibility except that God willed to use it to serve His purpose for that moment. In fact, God has been known to anoint some rather dubious things despite their questionable character. He anointed a donkey and made it preach.  Balaam was anointed and he had Moab in his heart. Samson was anointed and fornicated with Philistines. Judas was anointed while he was stealing money from Jesus’ purse. Caiaphas was anointed to prophesy while plotting the crucifixion. Even the rocks can be anointed to cry out if God so desires.

The longer I live, the less impressed I am with the anointing.  What I’m more impressed with is character. Why? Because more and more, we are seeing gifted, talented, anointed leaders who, because of their “anointing,” are promoted beyond what their character can sustain.

THE LURE OF CHARISMA

Saul was promoted for one reason: he looked good. Scripture describes him as being “choice and handsome” and “there was not a more handsome person among the children of Israel. From his shoulders upward he was taller than any of the people.” Israel wanted a king who had strong outward appeal who could legitimize them before other nations.  Sadly, God gave them what they wanted: a king whose only good quality was how he looked on the outside.

Israel’s infatuation with Saul betrays a disturbing truth of what humanity often values in leadership. More often, we admire leaders for their charisma and style rather than their character and substance.

Character? Integrity? Ethics? These don’t really matter. All that matters is “Can you make me feel good? Can you affirm me, meet my need, tell me happy stories and make me laugh? If you have that kind of charisma, you’ll go right to the top!”

What we need is revival. Not a revival of healing or prophesy or supernatural signs. Nor do we need a televised pseudo-revival that fosters hyped-up spiritualism driven by celebrities and techno worship. What we need is a revival of character—a genuine move of God that returns the church to simple values like integrity, humility, and holiness—especially in leaders.

THE CRY OF THE CROWD

Like Saul, good leaders will have many good opportunities to be promoted. There will always be a group of people in search of a new leader who offers them the hope of a better future. The challenge for the leader is to distinguish a “good” opportunity from the “right” opportunity. Just because the crowd is cheering and an offer is appealing, does not mean it is right. In fact, these offers can often be ploys of the devil to move one out of God’s will.

Good opportunities are not always right opportunities. Each person must be able to look past the cry of the crowd and hear the leading of God. Missing this can be devastating. For if it is true that the will of God never leads you where the grace of God cannot keep you, then it is also true that moving out of God’s will also moves you away from that grace that sustains you. There will be conflicts God never intended you to confront, temptations for which God never planned a way of escape, threats, attacks, and dangers for which you have never been prepared to encounter.

DOES THE DEVIL HAVE AN INTEREST IN YOUR PROMOTION?

 If you are eager to be promoted, if you feel that your gifting or ability entitles you to a higher office, I offer this word of caution: The devil may have in interest in your promotion. The enemy may have a foothold on something in your life and he knows that as you are enlarged, his foothold will become a stronghold that he can exploit to ruin the work of God.

Knowing this, the devil may be manipulating circumstances and urging you to canvass for promotion. But don’t outrun the perfect timing of God! While it is true that you have great abilities, there may be things in your heart that God is trying to purge. He may be holding you down in humility to cleanse your heart of pride, or exposing areas of impurity to rid your mind of lust. He may be keeping you in want to drive away covetousness. Remember, whatever greatness you are destined for, God must first enlarge your character to support that greatness. Too many, having been promoted prematurely, have been top heavy in their success only to fall and bring destruction on themselves, their families, and the Kingdom of God.

Therefore, I hope you will have the courage to pray the prayer of the humble. Rather than pleading for promotion, our prayer should be: “Lord do not allow me to be promoted beyond what my character will be able to support. Lord, prevent my advancement, shut the door on my ambitions until my heart has been prepared to withstand the temptations, struggles, and pressures that such advancement will certainly bring. Amen.”

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