Essay Sample on Leadership Wisdom from Proverbs: Honouring God in Leadership

Introduction

In the Bible, the book of Proverbs says a lot about Kings, authority figures and leadership. The book of Proverbs 31: 1-9 outlines several lessons on what it means to be a good leader and a Godly leader (Gregory et al., 2019). The text ascertains that a good leader is someone who truly honours God in the way that they lead. Proverbs 31: 1-9 outlines good leadership through an example of the advice of Lemuel's mother on the duties of a King. In this case, the wisdom described originates from Lemuel's mother. An essential aspect of Proverbs 31: 1-9 is the worthiness and the implications of the advice on the duties and responsibilities of Kings. The bible speaks about kings to mean civil rulers and leaders in general, applicable in all places at all times. Lemuel's mother gives his son three pieces of advice on how to be a wise king and leader (Gregory et al., 2019). This essay focuses on analyzing how to be a wise leader by discussing the book of Proverbs 31: 1-9. The essay will achieve this by explaining the verses, then give the lessons learned from the texts, and how they can apply to today's leadership.

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The first advice Lemuel's mother gives on how to be a wise king or leader is recorded in Proverbs 31: 1-3 that says, "the words of king Lemuel, the utterance which his mother taught him: Listen, son, listen to the son of my womb! Listen, my son, the answer to my prayers! Do not spend your strength on women, your vigour on those who ruin kings" (Bakare, 2018). In the context of these verses, Lemuel's mother tells Lemuel that by giving all his strength to women, he might get destroyed as a king. Giving strength to women means to collect and to get enslaved to the schemes conducted by harem women, to gain influence for themselves. Most leaders want to live a corrupt, luxuriant, life that destroys their spirit, mind and body through involving themselves with different women, instead of sticking to one Godly woman that will elevate them through her wisdom.

The second advice for leaders and kings is that on Proverbs 31: 4-7 that says, "It is not for kings to drink wine, lest they drink and forget the law, and pervert the justice of all the afflicted. Give strong drink to the one perishing and wine to the bitter at heart, let him drink and forget his worry, and remember misery no more" (Bakare, 2018). Most leaders consider themselves elites and enjoy the luxuries of drinking and parties. This verse recommends that leaders should not drink too much since it hinders them from their duties of discerning and judging fairly. Alcohol is only recommended for those perishing and those who want to forget their misery for a little while. This statement seems ironic since it tells leaders that drunkenness reflects despair and unhappy life, futility and vanity rather than a reflection of a proper purposeful life that a ruler should live. Wise leaders are advised to be sober and sober-minded all the time.

Finally, a wise leader also should speak of the powerless and the poor, and not just the elites. In Proverbs 31: 8-9, the bible says that "speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly, defend the rights of the poor and the needy" (Bakare, 2018). Most leaders tend to defend the wealthy businessmen and speak on behalf of the elites, using their power to support their interests. A good leader should help the powerless and needy, the poor and the speechless and speak on their behalf since this is the group that requires assistance the most. Most leaders are not willing to advocate for justice within their institutions and realms and are very content with their posts and benefits associated with the most connected and the most influential people. Wise leaders should focus on advocating for equity and justice.

Lessons Learnt

I Have learned that the most significant focus of Proverbs 31: 1-9 is justice, as it applies to the responsibilities of leaders and kings. Each one of us is a leader, and hence, the bible teachings in proverbs are crucial to every one of us. Justice is more about protecting and preserving the human rights that God created through creating humankind in his image and likeness, and through commanding human beings to love one another and ensuring that the value of a man is respected (Whittington, 2015).

In Proverbs 31: 1-9, the critical point is hardly about avoiding excessive drinking and women. Still, it is about a wise leader avoiding the excesses of it to serve justice properly and to be sober so that they can preserve the role of a wise king. Also, people are the most precious resources, and by serving the kingdom of God, a leader serves the people. Everyone should work hard at making others successful in attaining reasonable leadership goals, and no one should seek the spotlight or take credit for what others have done. Every person needs to exercise their God, given authority with patience and gentleness.

Applications in Today's Leadership

All kinds of leaders today are called to be responsible in protecting and preserving the rights of the people that they serve and lead, that is; leaders are called to be just in the biblical sense of the world. Leaders are supposed to respect the value of the people they influence and lead, as God, the creator wants them to do (Whittington, 2015). Also, some sins like drunkenness and womanizing prevent leaders from conducting their roles and leadership responsibilities. Leaders of today damage and impair their effectiveness and attention as leaders by engaging in such behaviours, hence robbing individuals their rights.

Deacons, pastors, and elders in churches need to heed the advice of Lemuel's mother with commitment and care, although the application is extended to all leaders. We are all responsible for each other regardless of if we are family members, students, teachers, fellow citizens or co-workers, we all influence each other's duties; hence we are called to lead. And since we are all called to be leaders, the words of King Lemuel's mother apply to each one of us.

The verses can be used by government leaders to use their authority wisely by not; using their power as a means of debauchery, by keeping their head clear from the stupid impacts of alcohol and from using their influence to support the powerful instead of the powerless (Whittington, 2015). Everyone needs to know that by Lemuel's mother using the phrases "what and son", she means to call his son to attend and listen keenly to the wise words that she is about to tell him.

Conclusion

Proverbs 31: 1-9 outlines the sins of leaders and how they behave generally. Most unwise leaders engage in sexual immorality, casual injustice and rich decadence. These forms of evil are mostly common among leaders whose responsibilities uphold constitutional standards that are weak or non-existent. Leaders need to be aware of their obligation to the people and stop serving themselves and their favourites only. Lemuel's mother gives solid advice on how a wise leader should act.

Based on the instruction given to Lemuel by his mother, it is evident that King Lemuel heeded his mother's advice, and that in the Middle Eastern Monarchs, a certain extent of the concern of ruling for the good of the people was missing. A wise leader will be able to reign over his subjects by having an overreaching interest of providing defence to the helpless, and those serving in the leadership responsibilities under him will be able to exercise their authority with equal motivation.

References

Bakare, G. O. (2018). Leadership in the book of proverbs (Doctoral dissertation, University of Birmingham), https://etheses.bham.ac.uk/id/eprint/8238/

Gregory, T., Lloyd, P., Henson, J. D., Hatch, E. W., & Kumar, S. (2019). OLD TESTAMENT PERSPECTIVES OF LEADERSHIP. Journal of Biblical Perspectives in Leadership, 9(1), https://www.regent.edu/acad/global/publications/jbpl/vol9no1/Vol9Iss1_JBPL_Full_Issue.pdf

Whittington, J. L. (2015). Images of Leadership: Biblical Metaphors for Contemporary Leaders. In Biblical Perspectives on Leadership and Organizations (pp. 95-121), Palgrave Macmillan, New York, https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1057/9781137478085_5