A leader’s character is always on trial. If we do not build character and keep working at maintaining that character we will become ineffective and unproductive in our leadership. Read 1 Kings 11:1-13.
1 Kings 10:23 says, “King Solomon was greater in riches and wisdom than all the other kings on earth. The whole world sought audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom God had put in his heart.”
There has never been another leader that had the splendor Solomon had during his reign as king of Israel. Yet, at the height of his leadership, Solomon compromised his commitments to God through his marriages to foreign women.
While many of these marriages were only the means by which Solomon formalized treaties with other nations, they still represented direct disobedience to God’s law. Ironically, this wisest of men soon fell into the trap of double-mindedness and foolish idolatry. Solomon actually built temples honoring his wives’ gods and not only built temples for them but worshiped in those temples in direct violation to a promise he had made to the Lord his God.
1 Kings 11:9 says, “The Lord became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice.”
How could the wisest man in history turn away from God? How could the leader whose gifts and focus once made him the talk of the world get distracted from his calling and stop building his character? The temptations that enticed Solomon continue to attack every leader. Once we “arrive” it becomes easy to stop feeling hungry and desiring growth in character and excellence. When a leader becomes satisfied, thinks they are good enough or they have earned the right to relax, assuming good character cannot go bad, they begin a downward spiral.
Wise leaders focus on their call and don’t allow themselves to become self-absorbed.
This is too important to leave without looking at a few additional things the Bible has to say about this topic:
- Mark 14:38 "Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.”
- 1 Corinthians 9:27 "No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize."
- 1 Corinthians 10:12 "So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!"
- Colossians 2:8 "See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ."
- 2 Peter 3:17 "Therefore, dear friends, since you already know this, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position."
Bible, Jesus, Christianity, Barry Werner, Devotional, Leadership, Last Call, Michael James Stone, "Devotion with Emotion", Sharon,
