Original Entry: April 24, 2007
McMinnville, Or
8 The elders of Gilead said to him, "Nevertheless, we are turning to you now; come with us to fight the Ammonites, and you will be our head over all who live in Gilead." Judges 11:8
In the classic movie Braveheart Mel Gibson’s character, William Wallace, makes the classic statement about leadership, “People don’t follow titles. They follow courage.” John Maxwell defines leadership simply as, “Influence”. Bill Hybels in referring to Romans 10:8 says, “Let the leaders lead.”
Obviously we need more followers than leaders (who would the leaders lead) who must possess the courage to follow a vision into a land that they have not seen. They are the true champions of courage.
Unfortunately, I have met many courageous people who simply were not leaders. They had everything needed to be a leader except the ability to lead. They remind me of the statement I once heard that, “A leader without followers is only taking a walk.” Looking like a good leader is not the same and being one. Leadership does more than looks good on paper.
Furthermore, I have met even more with the title of “leader” that did not know how to lead. They possessed the position yet lacked the ability to lead. I believe we all have influence over others but that does not equate to leadership. Leadership is taking a certain group on an “influence journey”. Leadership is not a stagnant pool but a flowing river. Hybels hits the closest to the mark in my opinion with his understanding that leadership is a (spiritual) gift. Leadership “skills” can be developed, but a leader is more born that created, more nature than nurture, more created than called. The most dangerous scenario I see is when followers try to lead leaders. This is a recipe for disaster, dissension and division. This, however, is just one man’s opinion.
Jephthah was not only a “mighty warrior” (ESV), but a naturally gifted leader. Humanly speaking his leadership ability was masked by the fact that his mother was a prostitute, but he was a natural leader nonetheless. Leaders rise to the occasion in a crisis. According to this passage the same people who will cause you to flee from leadership will be the same who will call you back in a moment of crisis.
“So Jephthah fled from his brothers and settled in the land of Tob, where a group of adventurers gathered around him and followed him” (Judges 11:3).
Here is what I know about leaders; they lead. They can’t help it. It is who they are.
Recently I spoke to a man who wanted to leave his church to start a new church so that he could influence others to grow closer in fellowship. Upon questioning him he confessed that he did not have a small group that he could lead with his new passion. Of course, I admonished him to lead a small group before he tried to lead anything else. He still attends his church. He still refuses to lead.
David led men even in his exile (1 Samuel 23:13). Jephthah lead men in his exile. In verse 3 we read that “worthless fellows collected around Jephthah.” Being the son of a prostitute and having been run out of town, his confidence must have caused the quality of men he led to be less than ideal.
But he still led.
A leader has to lead someone, anyone. They simply must lead. I know my grammar is horrible but a leader cannot not lead. It is simply not in their nature to do anything but lead and even when they take a season from leading, people continue to be drawn to follow them. A true leader leads even when it is not part of their job description, role, or title. Subsequently a non leader struggles to lead even it is a part of their family heritage, job description, role, or title.
I believe the majority of people are definitely followers and not leaders so we must ask, “Who am I following into battle? Am I following a leader or a non leader?” Build your life around, and array for battle with, the leaders not the followers. Let the leaders lead us into battle. I leave you with this quote.
"Of every hundred men, ten shouldn't even be there, eighty are nothing but targets, nine are real fighters; we are lucky to have them, they make the battle.....Ah, but one. One of them is a Warrior...He will bring the others back." -Heraclitus, c. 500 B.C.
