21 QUALITIES

COURAGE The One Item Saul Forgot to Pack

1 Samuel 10 v17-13 v14

Althought Saul became king chiefly through his striking appearance, he never won the inward battles.
On the outside, he was tall, good-looking and well-built (1 Sam. 9 v2). On the inside, however, he
amounted to little more than a shrimp. Observe the leadership of Saul:

1. When the time arrives to anoint Saul as king , he hiddes among the baggage.
2. When Samuel asks Saul to lead, he excuses himself as unable.
3. When Saul’s soldiers begin to scatter, he panics and disobeys his divine orders.
4. When confronted over his sin, Saul makes excuses for himself.
5. When Saul attacks the Amalekites, he is afraid to trust God and destroy the enemy.
6. When Saul fears losing the allegiance of the people. He builds a statue of himself.
7. When the Philistines face Israel, Saul’s fear prevents him from negotiating.
8. When David gains popularity, Saul’s insecurity drives him to attempted murder.

Lessons from Saul

 Courage and cowardice are both contagious.

When Goliath challenged Saul’s men, they fled to their tents; when David’s men faced vastly
superior forces, they stood their ground, fought...and won (2 Sam. 23 v8-12).

 Without courage, it doesn’t matter how good your intentions are.

Saul had good intentions when he presented burnt offerings to the Lord. But he let his fear that
the people would desert him control his actions (1 Sam. 13 v13, 14).

 Only courage allows to do what you are afraid of doing.

Saul showed his lack of courage from the beginning, when he hid among the baggage to avoid
becoming king (1 Sam. 10 v22).

 Without courage, we’re slaves of our own insecurity and possessiveness.

King Saul momentarily repented on several occasions when confronted about his repeated
attempts to kill David. But later, captive to his fears and insecurities, he always resumed his evil
pursuit.

 If the leader lacks courage, the people will lack commitment.

Contrary to God’s command, Saul and the people spared the best of the livestock they captured
from the Amalwkites. Saul let it happen because, as he admitted,”I feared the people and
obeyed their voice” (1 Sam. 15 v24).
  A leader without courage will never let go of the familiar.

Saul employed a medium to ask counsel of Samuel’s departed spirit—in direct violation of God’s
law (1 Sam. 28 v5-20). He lacked the courage to trust Godto help him step into an unknown
future.

 Lack of courage will eventually sabotage a leader.

Saul’s lack of courage eventually cost him not only the throne of Israel, but also his own life and
the life of his faithful son, Jonathan (1 Sam. 31 v1-6).

COMPETENCE Joshua Got the Job Done

Joshua 11 v16-23

Competence rarely happens evrnight. Even the great Joshua had to be prepared over many years to
handle the enormous task given him. By the time he died, competence c ould have been his middle
name. Consider this:

1. God used Joshua over two generations.

2. God trusted Joshua to lead the military compaigns from the wilderness into Canaan.
3. God called Joshua to spy out teh Promised Land.
4. God allowed Joshua to accompany Moses up Mount Sinai.
5. God replaced Moses with Joshua when it came time to lead the people into Canaan.

Ponder the effort God invetsed in this young leader to make him competent:

1. He was a warrior (Ex. 17 v9-11).

Joshua was born to be a warrior. His first opportunity at leadership came as miliatry leader.
Gosd was preparing him for a much larger role, but all began here.
2. He was a spokesman (Ex. 17 v14). Joshua received a prophetic word from the Lord concerning
his lifetime ministry, illustrating how God works in each of us. First, we receive a personal word
from the Lord; then we become bearers of His word to others.
3. He was a servant (Ex. 24 v13).
Joshua was first known as „the servant of Moses”. No one called him a servant of Yahweh until
the time of the conquest. He proved his willingness to serve before asking anyone to serve him.
Each of us must undergo the same process.
4. He was a faithful coworker (Ex. 32 v17). Moses took Joshua with him to meet with God on
Mount Sinai, but when ordered to stop, Joshua halted halfaway up. He experienced no glory, no
cloud, no voice, and no presence, yet he remained faithful to the big picture.
5. He was an apprentice of Moses and God (Ex. 33 v11). For 40 years, Joshua served as an
undersudy. His competence grew from Moses’ tutoring and his own observations. He would not
leave Moses’ tent because he wanted to get evrything he could from his mentor.
6. He was a zelot (Num. 11 v29). One day when God’s presence came down upon the camp and
two men began to prophesy, Joshua grew concerned. He forbade them to continue, but Moses
said to him, „I wish all God’s people were prophets.” Joshua’s passion later became an asset as it
combined with experience.
7. He was a transformed leader (Num. 13 v16). Moses gave the anme Joshua to the young man
formerly called Hoshea. With that name change came a transformation in identity and
character. Joshua became a man ready to delegate, organize, and lead the nation of Israel.