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REFLECTION

The theme for our reflection is King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. Solomon was the third King of Israel who succeeded his father, King David and was well known for his remarkable wisdom and the building of the temple. We shall reflect on the fact that God places us in positions of power to serve humanity and to glorify His name.

Beloved in the Lord, believers who seek to lead or occupy a position of power must understand that when God elevates us or places us in a position of power, He does so for the good of humanity and for His own glory. We are only instruments of God’s grace and transformation. The testimony of the Queen of Sheba about King Solomon reveals the essence of power and leadership as ordained by God. The queen of Sheba’s testimony about Solomon’s leadership teaches us three important lessons about godly leadership.

Firstly, our leadership must bring happiness to the people we lead. The queen of Sheba “…said to the king, “The report I heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true. 7 But I did not believe these things until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half was told me; in wisdom and wealth, you have far exceeded the report I heard. 8 How happy your people must be! How happy your officials, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom!” (1 Kings 10:6-8) As believers or servants of God, our leadership must bring happiness and satisfaction to the people who submit to our leadership. To bring happiness to people as leaders, we must fear God and be humble. The fear of God gives us wisdom to be able to lead according to His will. It is for this reason that we are told in Proverbs 9:10 that “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” Apart from wisdom, we need to serve with humility to make people happy. Jesus admonished us, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 26 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. (Matthew 20:25-28).  A godly leader must serve his or her people in humility and to the best of his or her ability, having their utmost interest and welfare at heart. It is these traits of leadership that bring happiness to citizens of a nation and members of our communities and churches. You are a leader if two or more people look up to you for guidance. This means that parents, senior siblings, family and clan heads, chiefs and queen mothers, pastors, catechists, presbyters or elders, ministers of state, group leaders and anyone who is put in charge of a group of people.

Secondly, our leadership as believers must always glorify God. Solomon’s leadership made the queen of Sheba remark, “Praise be to the LORD your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on the throne of Israel. (1 Kings 10:9). We must always remember that wherever we serve as leaders, we are only stewards who have been elevated by God’s grace. Every action and speech of a godly leader must give glory to God or give praise to His name. John the Baptist saw himself as a servant and gave glory to Jesus when he said, “He must become greater; I must become less.” (John 3:30). In other words, as we serve the Lord through the calling and privileged position of leadership, God must increase and be greater in us and we must decrease and be less in Him. Jesus reemphasised this fact when He admonished us, “… let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16). Beloved in the Lord, are you leading such that people see the hand of God upon your life so that praise and honour are given to God? It is our responsibility to serve according to His will so that praise and honour will be given to the Lord. Again, leaders are only instruments of grace being used by God to direct the path of those who submit to His sovereignty.

Last but not least, the hallmark of a godly or God-fearing leader is justice and righteousness. The queen of Sheba said to King Solomon, “Because of the LORD’s eternal love for Israel, he has made you king to maintain justice and righteousness.” (1 Kings 10:9). Justice and righteousness lead to integrity and respect for human dignity. Where there is injustice, corruption and dishonesty in leadership, the people suffer, and God’s love for the nation and the church will not be felt because of bad and ineffective leadership. In the discharge of our leadership responsibilities, we are required to exercise judicial roles, and this is where we must demonstrate integrity, justice and righteousness devoid of personal interests and favouritism. We are greatly guided by the caution given to tribal leaders in Israel in Deuteronomy 16:19-20,  “19 Do not pervert justice or show partiality. Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the innocent. 20 Follow justice and justice alone, so that you may live and possess the land the LORD your God is giving you. (Deuteronomy 16:18-20) There is no doubt that if we follow the perfect example of Jesus as Christians and leaders, we shall demonstrate justice and righteousness in our dealings with those we lead. As a Christian leader, Paul appealed to the Christians in Corinth, “For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved. ​ 1 Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ. (1 Corinthians 10:33 – 11:1) Let us remember that where two or more people look up to us as leaders, there is a high responsibility and expectation placed on us to demonstrate integrity, justice and righteousness to the glory of God.

In summary, we have reflected on the leadership of Solomon. We have discovered that God places us in positions of power to serve humanity and glorify His name. Again, we have discovered that godly leadership must lead to the happiness of the people we serve or lead, it must glorify God who called us into leadership to serve, and lastly, we must demonstrate justice and righteousness in leadership. We are required to spend time as parents and leaders in the various sectors of society to reflect on our leadership responsibilities to those we serve and pray for significant transformation in our leadership styles and spiritual lives. May the Holy Spirit empower us to be godly leaders wherever we are privileged and called to serve.

PRAYER

Holy Spirit, we have no power of our own to serve. We humbly ask for Your guidance, strength and empowerment to serve in the positions of power and leadership. Amen.