Dr. Jack L. Arnold

Lesson 10

UNCHANGING LAWS OF LEADERSHIP

I. The Law of Ability: (2 Sam. 5:6-23; 8:15-18). Leadership ability determines a person’s level of effectiveness. A person can never rise above his ability to lead. This is seen in the contrast of King Saul and King David.

II. The Law of Influence: (Num. 13-14). The true measure of leadership is influence. Ability to influence may take time. This is clearly seen in Joshua, who could not influence the people to take the land at first, but after being mentored by Moses, he became God’s man to lead the people into the new land (Joshua 1:16-18).

III. The Law of Process: (Gen. 37:45). Leadership develops daily, not in a day. Preparation for leadership is a process, not an event. This is seen in the life of Joseph who spent 23 years in preparation before he became Pharaoh’s assistant.

IV. The Law of Navigation: (Neh. 1-6). Anyone can steer the ship but it takes a leader to chart the course. A leader sees a need, makes a plan, and recruits a team to implement it. This is seen in the life of Nehemiah—he saw a need, made a plan and recruited a team to get Jerusalem’s wall built.

V. The Law of Authority: (Dan. 5). When a leader speaks, people listen. A leader is a person whose words mean something. He says what he means and means what he says. This trait is seen clearly in Daniel who spoke and the King listened, because he knew Daniel’s motives were pure and he did not speak to please men.

VI. The Law of Trust: (Judges 15:1-20). Trust is the foundation of leadership. No one follows a leader who cannot be trusted. This is seen in Sampson, a good example of a bad leader. He was impetuous, volatile, lustful, moody, emotional and unpredictable. Because of deception, he could not control himself.

VII. The Law of Respect: (Judges 4:4-16). People naturally follow leaders who are stronger than themselves. People want to be led by someone, and will be led for good or bad. Deborah is a good example of this principle. Men in Israel did not naturally or culturally follow women. Barak, the military commander of the northern tribes of Israel, sought her help to defeat an enemy, even though it may have made Barak look bad. He sought Deborah’s help because she was a better leader.

VIII. The Law of Intuition: (Exod. 18:17-27). Leaders evaluate everything with a leadership bias. Some people view everything through the spectrum of what needs to be done to solve the problem. This is seen biblically in Jethro, who intuitively knew that Moses had to change some of his methods and elect elders in Israel to judge matters in Israel.

IX. The Law of Magnetism: (2 Kings 2:1-14). Who you are is who you attract. True leaders attract others who want to be like the leader. A biblical example is Elijah. He attracted people to himself whether it be the false prophets of Baal or a small group of true prophets (“school of prophets”). Elijah also drew Elisha to himself, mentoring him and finally passing the mantle to him.

X. The Law of Connection: (1 Kings 12:1-16). Leaders touch a heart before they ask for a hand. True leaders know where people are emotionally and spiritually and seek to reach them where they are. This is illustrated in Rehoboam, who took over for King Solomon when he died. He was power hungry and did not want to be a rubber-stamp of his father. So, against all counsel, he burdened the people with excessive work. The result was a revolt by ten tribes who split off. Rehoboam failed to connect with his people and the result was disastrous.

XI. The Law of the Inner Circle: (1 Chron. 11:10-25; 12:16-22). A leader’s potential is determined by those closest to him. A leader’s success is largely due to his loyal, committed and gifted inner circle. This can be seen in David and his mighty band of several hundred soldiers. They protected David and served David’s needs even to the point of risking their lives.

XII. The Law of Empowerment: (Acts 9:26-31). Only secure leaders give power to others. True leaders know how to give away their power. This is seen in the example of Barnabas, who took young Saul of Tarsus and mentored him. Barnabas, a powerful man, gave away his power to Paul, mentoring him until they became peers as missionary church planters. Paul even surpasses Barnabas, but this was a joy, not a threat, to Barnabas. Seeing Barnabas as an example, Paul became a mentor to many your pastors—Mark, Timothy, Titus, Silas, etc.

XIII. The Law of Reproduction: (Num. 27:15-23). It takes a leader to raise up a leader. Older leaders are constantly looking for and raising up new leaders, some who may even take his place. This is shown in Moses and Joshua. Moses reproduced himself in Joshua, so Joshua could finish the job Moses could not do—take the people into the Promised Land. Moses mentored Joshua, giving him quality time, insights and an opportunity to prove himself. Ultimately, Moses gave Joshua his own authority by anointing Joshua to the task of taking Israel to Canaan.

XIV. The Law of Alligience: (Judges 6:33-35; 7:1-25). People buy into the leader first, then the vision. The leader must be loved, respected and appreciated before the people will listen to his vision. People are attracted first to the man and then what he has to say. This is seen in Gideon, who had warriors follow him even before they knew the plan of attack. God called Gideon first—one whom the people could follow—then He clarified the vision. NOTE: If people don’t buy into the leader and don’t buy into the vision, it’s time for a new leader and a new vision. If people don’t buy into the leader but do buy into the vision, it’s time for a new leader. If people do buy into the leader but don’t buy into the vision, it’s time for a new vision. If people do buy into the leader and also into the vision, it’s time to get behind the leader!

XV. The Law of Victory: (2 Chron. 34-35). Leaders find a way for the team to win. A leader is committed to find a solution to any problem and to solve it. This is seen in King Josiah who came to power when the nation of Judah was in spiritual decline. He followed the Lord God, turning from the wicked ways of his grandfather and father (2 Kings 23:25). He broke the downward cycle of failure, sin and defeat in his family and nation. He freed the nation of pagan idolatry and issued orders to rebuild the Temple. He brought spiritual and social reform to Judah. Renewal and revival broke out and the people served Jehovah (2 Chron. 34:33). Josiah found a way to lead to victory for the throne and for the nation.

XVI. The Law of Momentum: (1 Kings 3:6-14; 4:20-34). Momentum is the leader’s best friend. Leaders learn how to build on the past and go with the flow. This is seen in King Solomon and King David. Before Solomon became King of Israel, David, his father, had built great momentum for the nation—great military, respect from other kings, example of David’s love for God and a heart for justice, etc. Solomon capitalized on this momentum in the beginning, asking for wisdom to continue what David started. For years, he did. Yet, by the end of his reign, Solomon became distracted and lost it, and the Hebrew nation was divided.

XVII. The Law of Priorities: (Acts 6:1-7). Leaders understand that activity is not necessarily accomplishment. A leader chooses priorities for himself and his followers. He also evaluates the giftedness of people, the strategic importance of the task and the ability to delegate activities to the appropriate people. This is seen in how the Apostles solved the problem of giving physical tasks of the local church to men of faith, mediation skills and organization (probably deacons). The Apostles needed to give themselves to prayer and the ministry of the Word, so they delegated responsibility to others. Everybody was able to keep their priorities straight.

XVIII. The Law of Sacrifice: (Exod. 2:10-15; 3:7-12 cf. Heb. 11:24-27). A leader must give up to go up. Every leader must sacrifice things to become an effective leader. This is seen in Moses, who was a prince in Egypt. He had power, prestige and wealth. Yet, God called him to lead the people out of Egypt. At age forty, Moses went into preparation for forty more years. It was this time he surrendered to God and gladly embraced the principle that a leader must give up to go up. Once he put the prestige and power of Egypt behind him, he found great favor with God. At age 80, after 40 years of preparation in the desert, Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt.

XIX. The Law of Timing: (Esther 4:13-14). When to lead is as important as what to do and where to go. A leader knows how to seize the right moment to lead. This is seen in Queen Esther, who was Jewish. At the precise moment, she went before the unbelieving King and made her request to save her people from genocide. She was given her position of leadership “for such a time as this” (Esther 4:14). Right timing was everything to make this request a reality.

XX. The Law of Explosive Growth: (2 Tim. 2:2; Acts 19:8-10). To add growth, lead followers. To multiply, lead leaders. It takes a leader to raise up a leader, and it takes a great leader to raise up many leaders. This is clearly seen in the Apostle Paul. His greatest gift to the early church (outside of writing scriptures) was the training of pastors and church leaders, like Titus, Luke, Apollos, Timothy, Silas, Priscilla and Aquila. His method for explosive growth was leadership training.

XXI. The Law of Legacy: (Matt. 4:19; 28:19). A leader’s lasting value is measured by succession. The most important thing a leader can do is to leave other trained leaders on this earth to carry on the world of Christ. The supreme example of this principle is Jesus Christ. He trained twelve disciples, bringing three into his closest thoughts (James, Peter, John), and gave Himself without reservation to Peter. He instructed the Twelve to mentor others, following His example. Jesus spent the majority of His time with the Twelve, not with the masses. He was committed to developing men who would lead the church into the next generation—men you and I might not have wasted our time on. Jesus was committed to the ministry of multiplication.