174 Sermon Illustrations on Leadership

During the Revolution, a commander of a little squad was giving orders relative to a stick of timber they were endeavoring to raise to the top of some military works. The timber went up hard; and, on this account, the voice of the commander was often heard in regular vociferations of "Heave away!" "There she goes!" "Heave ho!" An officer, not in military costume, was passing, and asked the commander why he did not take hold and help a little. The latter, astonished, said, "Sir, I am a corporal!"—"You are, are you?" replied the officer: "I was not aware of that." Upon this he dismounted, and lifted till the sweat stood in drops on his forehead; and when finished turning to the commander, he said, "Mr. Corporal, when you have another such job, and have not men enough, send for your commander-in-chief, and I will come and help you a second time." The corporal was thunder struck. It was Gen. Washington.

Moses Stuart was pastor in New Haven when he was nominated for the Professorship of Sacred Literature in Andover Theological Seminary. Rev. Dr. Samuel Spring of Newburyport visited New Haven to make inquiries touching the candidate. Among others whom he interrogated relative to the qualifications of Mr. Stuart was Pres. Dwight. "He is the very man for the place," said Pres. Dwight; "but we cannot spare him." — "Sir," responded Dr. Spring, "we do not want a man that can be spared."

Life of Dr. Spring.

It was the custom of Peter the Great to visit the different workshops and manufactories, not only to encourage them, but also to judge what other useful establishments might be formed in his dominions. Among the places he visited frequently, were the forges of Muller, at Istia, ninety versts from Moscow.—The Czar once passed a whole month there; during which time, after giving due attention to the affairs of state, which he never neglected, he amused himself with seeing and examining every thing in the most minute manner, and even employed himself in learning the business of a blacksmith. He succeeded so well, that on one of the last days of his remaining there, he forged eighteen poods of iron, and put his own particular mark on each bar. The boyars and other noblemen of his suite were employed in blowing the bellows, stirring the fire, carrying coals, and performing the other duties of a blacksmith's assistant. When Peter had finished, he went to the proprietor, praised his manufactory, and asked him how much he gave his workmen per pood. "Three kopecks, or an altina," answered Muller. "Very well," replied the Czar; "I have then earned eighteen altinas." Muller brought eighteen ducats, offered them to Peter, and told him that he could not give a workman like his majesty less per pood. Peter refused. "Keep your ducats," said he; "I have not wrought better than any other man; give me what you would give to another; I want to buy a pair of shoes, of which I am in great need." At the same time he showed him his shoes, which had been once mended, and were again full of holes. Peter accepted the eighteen altinas, and bought himself a pair of new shoes, which he used to show with much pleasure, saying,— "These I earned with the sweat of my brow."

One of the bars of iron forged by Peter the Great, and authenticated by his mark, is still to be seen at Istia, in the forge of Muller. Another similar bar is preserved in the cabinet of curiosities at St. Petersburg.

Peter the Great frequently surprised the magistrates by his unexpected presence in the cities of the empire. Having arrived without previous his hat and bowing, "I ask your pardon, Mr. Corporal." Upon this he dismounted, and lifted till the sweat stood in drops on his forehead. And when finished, turning to the commander, he said, "Mr. Corporal, when you have another such job, and have not men enough, send for your Commander-in-Chief, and I will come and help you a second time." The corporal was thunderstruck! It was Washington.

There is a story in the Old Testament which says that once upon a time the trees gathered together to choose a king to rule over them. First they invited the olive-tree; but the olive-tree said it was too busy bearing fruit. Then they asked the fig-tree to be king; but the fig-tree had its work to do, and also declined. Next they waited upon the vine with an invitation; but, like the others, it did not wish to be their king. Finally the trees asked the bramble to accept the position, and the bramble gladly agreed. The first order it gave was for all the trees to take shelter under its branches or be burned with fire. That sounds just like a prickly, thorny, little bramble, does it not? That is usually the way of people who like to lord it over other people when they have no ability for it. There are some who want to do so when they are at a party. They want to be the hitching-post to which all the people are tied when they talk. If the bramble takes the form of a boy, he wants to be captain of his team, or he will not play. If it happens to be a girl, she insists upon everybody playing the game she wants, or she will go home in a sulk. These people cannot agree long with anybody. They are quarrelsome and peevish. Some boys and girls are like horses: they make good single-drivers, but they will not work with anyone else. Some horses go well enough alone, but when you hitch them with another horse they crowd, or bite, or kick it. They cannot "go double," as we say. That is the bramble-nature showing out in a horse. This is a bad trait, whether you find it in a horse, a man or woman, a boy or girl. Christ says: "You know the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them. Not so shall it be among you; but whosoever would become great among you shall be your minister; and whosoever would be first among you shall be your servant." Jesus also said, "I am meek and lowly in heart." So must all His followers be. If you are getting any of the bramble-nature, and want to lord it over everybody, you had better give it up. Some of the unhappiest people in the world are bramble-bush kings.

Pyrrhus, King of Epirus, was kind and courteous to his army, both to officers and soldiers. He shared the toils and hardships of those who were under his command. He gave them, too, their share of the glory which he acquired, by attributing his success to their courage and fidelity. At one time, after some brilliant campaign in Macedonia, some persons in his army compared his progress to the flight of an eagle. “If I am an eagle,” replied Pyrrhus, “I owe it to you, for you are the wings by means of which I have risen so high.”

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A story is told by Colonel William Conant Church, of the _Army and Navy Journal_, which illustrates how unshaken was the President’s confidence in Grant’s ability to march the army of the Potomac against the army of northern Virginia and capture the stronghold of the rebellion. The incident took place just before Grant established his headquarters in the field.

When he called upon the Secretary of War, the latter said:

“Well, General, I suppose you have left us enough men to garrison the forts strongly?”

“No, I can’t do that,” was the General’s quiet reply.

“Why not? Why not?” repeated the nervous Secretary.

“Because I have already sent the men to the front, where they are needed more than in Washington.”

“That won’t do,” said Stanton. “It’s contrary to my plans. I will order the men back.”

Grant maintained a quiet determination, and replied:

“I shall need the men there, and you can not order them back.”

“Why not? Why not?” cried the Secretary.

“I believe I rank the Secretary of War in this matter,” remarked Grant.

“Very well, we will see the President,” sharply responded the Secretary.

“That’s right; he ranks us both.”

Going to the President, Secretary Stanton, turning to Grant, said:

“General, state your case.”

But the General calmly replied:

“I have no case to state. I am satisfied as it is.”

When Stanton had given his view of the matter, Lincoln crossed his legs, leaned back in his chair, and like the wise philosopher that he was, said:

“Now, Mr. Secretary, you know we have been trying to manage this army for nearly three years, and you know we haven’t done much with it. We sent over the mountains and brought Mr. Grant, as Mrs. Grant calls him, to manage it for us, and now I guess we’d better let Mr. Grant have his own way.”

The winter of 1863 was a trying time for General Grant. It was a winter of floods in the South, and a winter of discontent among the people of the North. He could not move his army, and many began the old cry after Donelson, “idle, incompetent, and unfit to command in an emergency,” and again arose a clamor for his removal. It was a season of false alarm and sensational rumors.

But there were two men in the land from whence came words of cheer. One was listening quietly in a store in Cincinnati to a great deal of rambling and grumbling talk about the way General Grant was trying to take Vicksburg. When all others present had given vent to their feelings, this man said in a moderate tone: “I think he’ll take it. Yes, I know he’ll take it. ’Lis’ always did what he set out to do. ’Lis’ is my boy, and he won’t fail.”

The other man who believed in General Grant was in the White House. He was too good to be unkind, and too wise and prudent to err. While men of large political influence were urging General Grant’s removal for the good of the country, the philosopher at the White House said: “I rather like the man; I think we’ll try him a little longer.” By these thirteen words the fate of Vicksburg was sealed.--Col. NICHOLAS SMITH, “Grant, the Man of Mystery.”

Society is curst with young men and women who are driven and tossed by every wind. I would as soon think of anchoring an ocean-liner to a fog-bank instead of a rock as to anchor a reform, a useful club, a great movement or church to their lives and leadership.

— N. D. HILLIS

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Training counts, culture adds strength. Sixty per cent of our Congressmen have been college men; 79 per cent of our Senators have been college men; 90 per cent of our supreme judges have been college men; 92 per cent of our presidents have been college men. Training counts; training makes leadership.

— N. MCGEE WATERS

See LIFE, THE SIMPLE.

WASHINGTON’S GENIUS

Brilliant I will not call him, if the brightness of the rippling river exceed the solemn glory of old ocean. Brilliant I will not call him, if darkness must be visible in order to display the light; for he had none of that rocket-like brilliancy which flames in instant coruscation across the black brow of night, and then is not. But if a steady, unflickering flame, slow rising to its lofty sphere, dispensing far and wide its rays, revealing all things on which it shines in due proportions and large relations, making right, duty, and destiny so plain that in the vision we are scarce conscious of the light--if this be brilliancy, then the genius of Washington was as full-orbed and luminous as the god of day in his zenith.

— JOHN W. DANIEL

John Keegan, in "The Mask of Command," analyzes various leadership styles down through the ages. In 323 BC Alexander the Great led his Macedonian Army into battle against the fortified city of Multan. At the head of his troops, he climbed to top of wall, ladder broke, he leaped to the fray and slaughtered the enemy, even with an arrow in his lung, until his troops reached him.

Adolf Hitler in fall of 1942 was on train going to new headquarters. His army was endangered at Stalingrad. On Nov. 7, 1942, as he was sitting down to supper in the rosewood paneled diner of his special train, a freight car chanced to stop on an adjacent track. The car contained a throng of starving and wounded soldiers from the eastern front, who naturally stared in astonishment at the Fuhrer in his diner just two yards away. "Without as much as a gesture of greeting in their direction," recalls Albert Speer, Hitler "peremptorily ordered the servant to draw [close] the shades."

In modern armies a clear mind and self-control are often better than bravery. Ancient extolling of bravery is dangerous in the nuclear age.

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Version used on August 12, 2012:

In 323 B.C., Alexander the Great’s army had made it all the way to what is now Pakistan. They came to the fortified city of Multan and decided it had to be captured. Alexander put himself at the front of his troops. They broke through a gate in the outer walls and poured in. When the reached the next set of walls, his engineers tried to undermine them so a portion would collapse. Alexander thought it was taking too much time so he grabbed a ladder and began climbing to the top of the wall. Other soldiers followed him up the ladder to protect their great leader. So many jumped on, the ladder broke.

Alexander was left alone on the wall. His soldiers held out their arms to him so he would jump down. Instead, he jumped down the other side and began fighting furiously, even killing the leader of Multan. But an enemy arrow penetrated Alexander’s lung, severely wounding him.

By now his desperate troops had broken through and rescued Alexander. His personal example inspired them so much, they ended up conquering much of the known world.

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An adaption of the top illustration and material in the article, "Mallian Campaign," Wikipedia.org,

During World War II, critics praised Winston Churchill as a magnificent war leader, but felt he failed to provide England with the spiritual guidance it needed. Upon hearing his criticism, Churchill retorted, “Since I became prime minister, I have appointed no fewer than six new bishops. What more do they want?”

Churchill’s reply exposes a mistake that leaders can make. We think if we provide the sufficient tools, methods, and personnel for a group task, we’ve done our job. But this is management, not leadership. Managers hover over details, ensuring that operations run smoothly; leaders provide the direction and motivation to pursue an overall mission. Managing produces immediate results; leading operates more in the futuristic world of ideas, strategies, and inspiration.

A sea captain and his chief engineer were arguing over who was most important to the ship. To prove their point to each other, they decided to swap places. The chief engineer ascended to the bridge, and the captain went to the engine room.

Several hours later, the captain suddenly appeared on deck covered with oil and dirt. "Chief!" he yelled, waving aloft a monkey wrench. "You have to get down there: I can't make her go!"

"Of course you can't," replied the chief. "She's aground!"

On a team we don't excel each other; we depend on each other. (1816)

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Sermon in Ephesians series: Diversity in the Church. Eph 4:7-16

I. The need for diversity.

A. Christians are different.

B. Grace and gifts.

C. By combining our unique gifts, the whole church grows.

II. The giver of gifts is the ascended Jesus. 4:7-10

A. Psalm 68:18: God wins a victory and receives gifts from men.

B. Ascension vs. descending of Christ.

III. Jesus gives different kinds of gifts.

A. Five lists in New Testament list 20 different spiritual gifts.

B. Ephesians 4 emphasizes gifts of leadership in the church. 4:11-13

1) Apostles.

2) Prophets.

3) Evangelists.

4) Pastors and teachers.

C. Are only leaders given gifts?

IV. Purpose for gifts in the church.

A. Twofold: prepare and build up.

B. Prepare God's people for works of service.

C. Building up the church. 4:13

V. A view of the whole church.

A. Christ is the focus, we are the supporting parts.

B. Everyone has a gift.

C. Example from foreign missions.

D. Church growth principles.

VI. What is your gift for our church? [1656]

Sermon in 1 Peter series. Leadership. 1 Peter 5:1-4

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TO GET OUT FRONT, GET BEHIND

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I. What kind of boss do you have?

A. Annual "Worst boss" contest.

B. What does it take to be a boss?

II. God's view of leadership.

A. Not limited to church.

B. Image - shepherd.

C. Experience. (elders)

III. Marks of a Christian leader. 5:2

A. Attitude.

B. Motivation.

C. Method.

IV. Reward of a leader.

A. Jesus is ultimate example of a Shepherd.

B. At second coming, unfading crown of glory.

Nehemiah's example:

Genuine concern.

a. He wept. (General Booth tells discouraged leader, "Try tears!")

b. He mourned certain days.

c. He fasted.

d. He prayed.

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from www.yateleybaptist.com:

Nehemiah's Prayer in a Crisis:

a. Appeal to God’s character (1:5)

b. Accept responsibility for sin (1:6-7)

c. Claim God’s promises (1:8-10)

d. Call for success (1:11)

Questions to think about:

1. What sorts of situations might we want to pray this sort of prayer? Are we facing any today? If so, what?

2. Why are we not bolder in our praying, more like Nehemiah?

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www.yateleybaptist.com

Lyndon Johnson once observed, "The presidency has made every man who occupied it, no matter how small, bigger than he was - and no matter how big, not big enough for its demands."

#595

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Many years ago there was a huge oil refinery fire. Flames shot hundreds of feet into the air. The sky was thick with grimy black smoke. The heat was intense - so intense that firefighters had to park their trucks a block away and wait for the heat to die down before they could begin to fight the fire. However, it was about to rage out of control.

Then, all of a sudden, from several blocks away came a fire truck racing down the street. With its brakes screeching, it hit the curb in front of the fire. The firefighters jumped out and began to battle the blaze. All the firefighters who were parked a block away saw this, and they jumped into their trucks, drove down the block and began to fight the fire, too. As a result of that cooperative effort, they were just barely able to bring the fire under control.

The people who saw this teamwork thought, "My goodness, the man who drove that lead fire truck - what an act of bravery!" They decided to give him a special award to recognize him for his bravery in leading the charge.

At the ceremony the mayor said, "Captain, we want to honor you for a fantastic act of bravery. You prevented the loss of property, perhaps even the loss of life. If there is one special thing you could have - just about anything - what would it be?"

Without hesitation, the captain replied, "Your Honor, a new set of brakes would be dandy!"

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Copyright 1996 by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Maida Rogerson, Martin Rutte & Tim Clauss

#620

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Christian pastors who fall should be restored to fellowship upon repentance, but not allowed to be leaders again. Gordon MacDonald's case is brought up, though he is not named. The traits in 1 Timothy 3 are expounded, then other Scriptures. In 1 Timothy 5:9, widows are required to have been faithful to their spouses; how much more pastors.

Details Rev. Jack Hyles' attitude toward loyalty. He expects absolute loyalty, once told an associate to stand, then sit, then stand. This was in response to a question of how he obtained absolute loyalty; he then answered, "That's how." [Full text in 7/8/90 sermon]

Other former workers have compared his style to Jim Jones.

#833

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The story of James and John asking for positions of leadership in the Kingdom is put in a modern framework, making them sound like junior executives. Shows how timeless the struggles for position are.

TV evangelists are accused of sloppy theology, especially on health & wealth, Trinity, and salvation. Kenneth Hagin maintains even Jesus needed to be born again. Swaggart gives God a spirit body and neglects the unified "substance" of the Godhead. Michael Horton is editor of book and wants Evangelicals to clean up their theology.

Sermon for Rev. Wetzel's installation as Pastor Emeritus.

1. How churches fall apart.

a. Quarrels.

b. Cliques.

1> Corinthians were spiritual babies.

2. How churches can stay together and grow.

a. Role of leaders.

b. Role of God.

c. Role of church.

3. Jesus as Lord.

A West Virginian farmer died and left his 17 mules to three sons. (He was wealthy by West Virginian standards.) His will stated that his oldest son would get half of the mules, the middle one would get one-third and the youngest would get one-ninth.

They wracked their brains to figure out how to do it, but couldn't.

Soon after this their [area] minister came to help them in their grief and heard their predicament. He added his mule to the lot, making 18 mules.

The oldest got half, or 9.

The middle got one-third, or 6.

And the youngest got one-ninth, or 2.

Then the minister got on the remaining mule and rode home.

Leadership is about creatively adding an extra mule. Everyone is satisfied with the results and the leader still has something to ride home on.

What is a dysfunctional church?

This term has become used in recent years to describe a type of church which has abnormal, dysfunctional characteristics. There are scores of people who have been deeply wounded by an experience with such a church. It seems that most communities have a congregation that fits in this category. They identify themselves as Christians and may have good intentions of practicing scriptural ideals, but they seem to continually strive with combined elements of unbalanced or unorthodox doctrines, controversial government, disciplinary problems, irresponsible leadership — which result in explosive turmoil, division, wounded and confused sheep, and a derogatory reputation in their community.

A dysfunctional church has sometimes been mislabeled as a cult. The difference is, a cult is on a course of heresy based on misguided beliefs. However a dysfunctional church may theoretically be based on the right course of Christianity, but for the main part does not function the way it should. Keep in mind, every church has its share of problems — that does not make it dysfunctional. But it's when such problems dominate the church and actually cause its influence to become ineffectual or negative for the cause of Christ.

I regret to say that over my years of ministry I have come across situations in churches that seem almost unbelievable. One such church was widely reputed in the area for its continual controversy. The congregation was constantly fighting and contending with each other — the turmoil had produced several splits over a period of years. Every few months they would go on a tangent of promoting some new revelation or doctrine, which would often be refuted later as heresy. There were repeated occurrences of immorality among the leadership and congregation. Divorce within the church occurred 10 times more frequent than the rate of marriages. There were numerous financial scandals, alleged embezzlements by the pastors, and scores of church creditors left unpaid. Rumors, accusations, and slander were commonplace, causing injury and devastation to scores of individuals. The mere mention of the church name to local merchants or residents would invoke ridicule. Some might have presumed this to be some kind of weird cult, but it was not. In reality this was a dysfunctional Christian church.

A dysfunctional church will usually manifest several or all of the following symptoms:

1. Unethical or immoral behavior tolerated in either leadership or laity.

2. An absence of teaching or correction in matters of sin.

3. Dictatorial or unethical church leadership or government.

4. A failure to recognize practical spiritual priorities.

5. Too much emphasis on esoteric thought or theory rather than

practical ideals and application.

6. Unscriptural or unbalanced preaching and teaching.

7. Too much emphasis upon the superficial or sensational.

8. Irresponsibility in business matters or in public relations.

9. Isolation from the rest of the body of Christ.

10. A sense of confusion and a lack of purpose by the congregation.

11. An absence of spiritual fruit (Gal. 5:22-23).

A dysfunctional church must be brought in order, otherwise it will cause irreparable harm for the cause of Christ in a community. If such a church has denominational affiliation, experienced ministers and officials may be sent to try to restore the fellowship back into scriptural order and stability. However, if the chaos is severe enough and resists repeated remedies, they might find it necessary to actually the close the church, temporarily or permanently.

In many cases, a church of this kind can be put in order by:

(1) MATURE, GODLY, STABLE LEADERSHIP. I regret to say that the problem of a dysfunctional church usually begins with a problem in the leadership. A congregation cannot rise above the level of their leaders.

(2) SCRIPTURAL, BALANCED PREACHING AND TEACHING. The healthy church must get back on track with scriptural order. They need to hear the whole counsel of God's Word, not merely pet doctrines or narrow minded opinions (2 Tim. 2:15).

(3) A PATIENT APPLICATION OF LOVE AND CORRECTION. Just like parents, spiritual leaders must show the encouragement of love toward their flock. And they must be willing to confront sin with correction or discipline when necessary. (Eph. 4:15, 2 Tim. 3:16, 2 Tim. 4:2).

(4) BREAKING OF SPIRITUAL STRONGHOLDS. A stronghold can usually be identified when the same troubling characteristics continue year after year, although the faces within the congregation change. This problem has to be dealt with through intensive prayer and spiritual authority (2 Cor. 10:4-5).

(5) CONGREGATIONAL REPENTANCE AND REVIVAL. Some of the problems in a church cannot really be resolved until the people are willing to humble themselves before God and seek repentance and revival: “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land” (2 Chron. 7:14).

If you find yourself in a dysfunctional church, it is important for you to recognize it for what it is. If you can remain without impairing the spiritual progress of you or your family, do so that you can pray for and support the needed remedies listed above. But if your spiritual well-being begins to suffer, it may be best to cut your ties and move on to a healthy fellowship.

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From the book, “What People Ask About The Church,” by Dale A. Robbins

This article is copyrighted © by Dale A. Robbins, 1995, and is a publication of Victorious Publications, Grass Valley, CA 95949. Unless otherwise stated, all scripture references were taken from The New King James Bible, © Thomas Nelson Inc., 1982.

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[Original illustration at this number was deleted for being obsolete]