How Wicked Leaders Can Motivate People to Make Ungodly Demands
Why the leader you want may further complicate your problems.
The nation’s leaders were unfit to lead.
It hadn’t always been this way. The previous leader was a godly man who did what was right and put what was best for the people before his own interests. However, his sons were nothing like their father.
But his sons did not walk in his ways; they turned aside after dishonest gain, took bribes, and perverted justice. (1 Samuel 8:3)
The nation was fed up with Samuel’s sons abusing their leadership positions. The people approached Samuel and demanded a change that would ultimately further complicate their problems.
The lesson for us is that if we demand leadership changes that exalt our desires over God’s will, we will get more than we bargained for.
“We need a leader who is better with the law.”
Israel wanted a king to judge their legal cases fairly (1 Samuel 8:20).
Samuel’s sons were accepting bribes and perverting justice. They weren’t concerned with upholding the law. All they cared about was lining their pockets with the riches of the wealthy.
You and I would quickly grow frustrated with corrupt leaders who subverted the law for their own purposes. Perhaps some of us would even take to the streets, marching in protest against the corruption of the law. It’s disheartening to observe the law being set aside in favor of the wealthy.
In the church of Christ, godly leaders ought to be able to rightly handle the law (or word) of God (Titus 1:9). However, when God’s people demand changes that ignore the will of God, their problems will only get worse.
Israel would discover this with Saul - who wanted to kill his own son because of a selfish, foolish vow (1 Samuel 14:43-45).
“We need a leader who is better with people.”
Samuel’s sons were so consumed with their own interests that they ignored what was best for the people.
Israel desired a king who would lead them with the people's best interests in mind (1 Samuel 8:20). They wanted a king they could be proud of and compare to all the nations around them.
In Saul, they thought they were getting what they wanted. Saul was “a choice and handsome” man who was head and shoulders taller than anyone else (1 Samuel 9:2). No one stood out in a crowd more than Saul. Finally, they had the king they needed and thought they deserved.
And yet, Saul's problems as a leader grew from his insecurities. He always wanted to make people happy. He ended up making decisions that were wrong to try to please the people (1 Samul 13, 15). He was a “people-pleaser” at heart.
Leaders - either of the Lord’s church or a nation - who are more concerned with pleasing people than doing what’s right are doomed from the start, no matter how much potential they have.
Truth and the right thing trumps popular opinion (2 Timothy 4:1-5).
“We need a leader who is better with the military.”
Manipulative, corrupt leaders - like Samuel’s sons - are usually cowards.
They only care about themselves and will run at the first sign of any real danger. The “hireling” shepherds Jesus spoke of in John 10:12-13 were cut from the same cloth. They didn’t care about the sheep - they only cared about themselves.
Saul initially showed great promise as a military leader (1 Samuel 11). However, he grew into a paranoid coward who trembled behind the front lines (1 Samuel 17:11). Why? Because he didn’t draw courage from God - unlike David, Saul’s successor, and God’s choice as king (1 Samuel 17:33-37).
God’s people are in a spiritual war - a war between good and evil (Ephesians 6:10-12). Leading people into war requires courage. If a nation’s leader or the leaders of the Lord’s church lack courage, they will fail as leaders.
Godly leaders must depend upon the strength that comes from the Lord and the protection provided by the Almighty God (Ephesians 6:13-18).
Wicked, ungodly leaders in either a nation or the Lord’s church are repugnant.
People are right to desire a change - but their demands must submit to the will of God, not oppose it.
Otherwise, the result of the change will only complicate matters further.
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