Influence and Leadership
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21 And Uzziah the king was a leper unto the day of his death, and dwelt in a several house, being a leper; for he was cut off from the house of the Lord: and Jotham his son was over the king’s house, judging the people of the land.
22 But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.
Introduction
Introduction
When John Geddie arrived in the island of Aneityum in 1848, the natives wore no clothes, practiced cannabalism and infanticide, and worshipped idols.
When he left 24 years later this plaque was placed behind his pulpit:
“When he landed in 1848, there were no Christians here, and when he left in 1872 there were no heathen."
Bro. Branham deals with the subjects of influence and leadership in a series of sermons titled “Influence” and “Leadership”, from the stories of Uzziah/Isaiah and the Rich Young Ruler.
They are really tied together, because the leadership in your life is what you are influenced by.
You can’t have one without the other. Any effective leader must have influence to lead by.
(Margaret at Brill Abstract Co. Someone else had the title of president but she had the influence.)
This is the age of influencers.
influencer
one who exerts influence : a person who inspires or guides the actions of others
often, specifically : a person who is able to generate interest in something (such as a consumer product) by posting about it on social media.
Leadership is to guide someone on the way. To influence in a particular direction.
I want to challenge us to ask these questions of ourselves:
(Write it down)
Who Am I Leading?
Who Am I Leading?
Who is Leading Me?
Who is Leading Me?
Who Am I Influencing?
Who Am I Influencing?
Who is Influencing Me?
Who is Influencing Me?
The answers may surprise you.
(Turtle on a fencepost)
Now, somebody helped you, when you made your first step. And your last step you ever make in life, somebody will be leading you. See, that’s right. I want you to remember that. Your first step, somebody led you. And your last step, somebody will be leading you.
We have to be led. You know, God likened us unto sheep. And did you know a sheep can’t lead itself? He’ll wander away and stray away, and he just can’t lead himself. And he has to have somebody to lead him.
The shepherd is supposed to lead the sheep. Now that was back in the days of the Lord Jesus, He was the good Shepherd that led the sheep.
But today, you see, we’re living in another day, everything is changed and perverted. You know what man has to lead sheep today? A goat. And you know where that goat leads them? Right into the slaughter.
Them little sheep don’t know where they’re going, so the goat goes up a pen, up at the slaughter, and the sheep don’t know no more than to follow a leader, so it leads them right up into this slaughter. And then the goat jumps over the track, and the sheep goes in and gets killed. See, the goat, a wrong leader.
But Jesus, the good Shepherd Who led the sheep, He led them to Life and held their hand. See, but somebody has to lead the sheep. 65-1031A - "Leadership"
Bro. Branham had a list of four leaders:
Mother
Father
Teacher
Jesus
This does not mean that you will reject other leaders or other influence, but that you will follow them as they follow Him.
14 I write not these things to shame you, but as my beloved sons I warn you.
15 For though ye have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet have ye not many fathers: for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel.
16 Wherefore I beseech you, be ye followers of me.
17 For this cause have I sent unto you Timotheus, who is my beloved son, and faithful in the Lord, who shall bring you into remembrance of my ways which be in Christ, as I teach every where in every church.
He was using his influence to promote the leadership of Timothy.
1 Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.
2 Now I praise you, brethren, that ye remember me in all things, and keep the ordinances, as I delivered them to you.
3 But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.
He goes on to say that of the woman cuts her hair she dis-honors her head, her husband.
A woman who is not married is not without headship. She still can’t lead herself, she must submit to the headship of leadership of some kind. She needs the influence of Godly men.
Not just a woman. Every man has influence and leadership. A man who thinks he is above that will fall.
A man MUST lead in the right way.
7 Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.
Be smart about it. Lead your home by the influence of your life. Men, if you don’t put any thought into your marriage relationship your prayers will be ineffective.
The Bible says a wife should reverence her husband. That means he has to influence her in that way.
Then a husband ought to live such a life before his wife that his wife could reverence him as a son of God. And if he doesn’t live that kind of life, well, then, course, she wouldn’t reverence him, because she knows what he’s made of.
But when it is a man that is reverent man, reverent and clean, with his wife and before his family, a real servant of God, then the women, children, and all, should respect that servant of God, with reverence. 65-0822E - "A Thinking Man's Filter"
Back to Paul:
17 Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample.
18 (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ:
19 Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.)
Paul was the pattern. He led by influence.
His manner of ministering set the pattern that all future messengers were to aspire to, and actually sets the pattern for every true minister of God, though he would not attain to such heights in the prophetic realm as did Paul. Paul’s ministry had a threefold quality and was as follows:
First of all, Paul was absolutely true to the Word. He never deviated from it no matter what the cost.
(Notice that Paul was unorganized, but Spirit-led)
Secondly, his ministry was in the power of the Spirit, thereby demonstrating the spoken and written Word.
Thirdly, he had the evident fruit of his God-given ministry. (3 - The Ephesian Church Age)
Bro. Branham dealing with his church on church order:
Forgive me if I try to take the place of a boss; I’m no boss. But I feel to you like Paul said back there about his congregation once, “You’re the stars in my crown.”
When I cross over the land over on the other side yonder, and meet you in that glorified condition, I want you to stand there to shine like the stars in my crown. See? And I want you to be there, I want to be there.
And I remember in my vision when I seen the Presence of the Lord, or His people in that glorious Land yonder, I looked around, I told them…And they told me He would judge me first by the Gospel that I preach. I said, “Just exactly the way Paul preached It!”
And them millions of people screamed out, “We’re resting on that!” See? See. Now, I want it to be so. And we are going to meet there someday.
And God never sent Brother Neville and I to be bosses, not at all. We’re just your brothers, you see, instructors in the Gospel. So let’s all work together. 61-0108 - "Revelation, Chapter Four Part III"
What kind of people should have influence and leadership in our lives?
God’s Gifts
11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:
14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;
15 But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:
16 From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.
Now, God fortified His army. What with? Himself, in the form of prophets, apostles, teachers, pastors. What did He do? What was God doing? Listen, did you ever think what that offices of the Church is? It’s God’s dress, inside dress, an apostle, a prophet, a seer.
Foreseeing it before Satan ever gets to it, done told it. What is it? God dressed up in His Church, these offices is God’s dress-wear. When you see those offices, pastors, teachers, evangelists, what is that? That’s God’s dress-wear, God’s Presence, God’s Spirit, and if…working through man.
And if that office denies any of this Word, then it’s not God-dressing, you see. See? No, not that, that’s that wolf in sheep’s clothing. Watch that fellow, beware of him.
But when he just takes what the Word says, remember, that’s God, ’cause he’s speaking His Word. See? But if he says, “Well, it isn’t…” Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, my! Get going, sheep, get going! 62-0607 - "Putting On The Whole Armor Of God"
You are not bound to a pastor for life. I am not your husband, Christ is.
Don’t put your confidence in a man. When that man leaves the Word of God, you leave the man. See, you leave the man. Stay with God. God is the Word. 63-1130B - "Influence"
God hated the Nicolaitanes.
Just because a man uses authority doesn’t mean he’s a Nicolaitane.
22 And they were astonished at his doctrine: for he taught them as one that had authority, and not as the scribes.
11 If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
He has placed His church in the care of God-ordained, Spirit-filled, Word-living men who lead the people through feeding them the Word.
He has not separated the people into classes so that the masses are led by a holy priesthood. It is true that the leadership must be holy, but then so must be the whole congregation.
Further, there is no place in the Word where priests or ministers or such mediate between God and the people, nor is there a place where they are separated in their worship of the Lord. God wants all to love and serve Him together. An Exposition Of The Seven Church Ages (5 - The Pergamean Church Age)
There is a pastor somewhere who will feed you and Shepherd you.
1 The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed:
2 Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind;
3 Neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being ensamples to the flock.
Who should lead and have influence? Parents
22 Hearken unto thy father that begat thee, And despise not thy mother when she is old.
1 A wise son heareth his father’s instruction: But a scorner heareth not rebuke.
1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.
2 Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;)
3 That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.
You will influence your children.
Be a mother like Timothy’s mother, not like Herodias.
Elders should have influence.
32 Thou shalt rise up before the hoary head, and honour the face of the old man, and fear thy God: I am the Lord.
31 The hoary head is a crown of glory, If it be found in the way of righteousness.
Older folks are not always right, but they should always have our respect.
7 I said, Days should speak, And multitude of years should teach wisdom.
8 But there is a spirit in man: And the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding.
Bro. Branham uses the example of the rich young ruler, whose parents taught him to make money and be moral, but not to follow Jesus. He refused the ultimate leadership of the Word. The influence of the Word was not strong enough to overcome his desire for money and things.
Uzziah was different. He was taught correctly by Godly parents, he was a friend of prophets and a mentor of the young prophet Isaiah, but he tried to use influence to change his position of leadership.
We can only be what God made us.
Uzziah was a military genius, a financial success, a good administrator, but he wanted to be a preacher.
He had great influence, but he got to a place where he could not be led.
4 And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father Amaziah did.
5 And he sought God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the visions of God: and as long as he sought the Lord, God made him to prosper.
Jump down:
15 And he made in Jerusalem engines, invented by cunning men, to be on the towers and upon the bulwarks, to shoot arrows and great stones withal. And his name spread far abroad; for he was marvellously helped, till he was strong.
16 But when he was strong, his heart was lifted up to his destruction: for he transgressed against the Lord his God, and went into the temple of the Lord to burn incense upon the altar of incense.
17 And Azariah the priest went in after him, and with him fourscore priests of the Lord, that were valiant men:
18 And they withstood Uzziah the king, and said unto him, It appertaineth not unto thee, Uzziah, to burn incense unto the Lord, but to the priests the sons of Aaron, that are consecrated to burn incense: go out of the sanctuary; for thou hast trespassed; neither shall it be for thine honour from the Lord God.
19 Then Uzziah was wroth, and had a censer in his hand to burn incense: and while he was wroth with the priests, the leprosy even rose up in his forehead before the priests in the house of the Lord, from beside the incense altar.
While he was angry with the people who were trying to save him from himself, he got leprosy.
Leadership matters. Influence matters.
There came a time when the rich young ruler wished he had followed Jesus, and accepted the leadership of the Word.
He lifted up his eyes in hell, and saw Lazarus in Abraham’s bosom.
Uzziah spent the rest of his life as a leper. Year after year, unable to help his people, unable to sit on his throne.
This was a huge blow to Isaiah.
1 In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.
Uzziah may have been banned from his earthly throne, but Jehovah was still on the throne of heaven.
Isaiah submitted himself to the Kingship of Jehovah. His influence was from heaven.
When you’re playing a ball game, as it’s football season, the thing we want to do, is not everybody try to take the ball away from the man that’s got it. He is trying to guard that man, protect him, let him get through. We’re trying to make a goal.
But could you imagine a team so untrained as to find one man, their own man, with the ball running to the field goal, and then instead of trying to knock the enemy away from him, the opposing team, to let your own man that’s got the ball take off with it, every man trying to take the ball out of his hand? Why, you’re bound to lose.
And today we have the same thing. When we see God come on the scene and going to bless a certain thing, let’s keep all the enemies away from it.
Let’s use our influences as tackles, not runners, tackles that protects the runner, lets him pack the ball through; because there’s no opposition, all he has to do is just keep running. And we should be tackles.
(Full Gospel Businessmen)
And those businessmen was trying to preach the Gospel. He’s out of his place. We preachers have hard enough time to keep it level. And they use every little influence they can find, and every little technique this way and that way, and keeps it so scruppled up, you don’t know what to do.
Many times, in a church, a little church can have a revival going on. Someone will want to go out here and lead a prayer meeting, and then he’s got a different idea from what really the Bible says, but he believes It this way, anyhow, and he’ll start an influence and draw others away from It.
The thing to do is protect this Message, the way It’s going. Stay right with It, and knock everything away from It, if we’re ever going to cross the goal line. 62-1013 - "The Influence Of Another"
Conclusion
Conclusion
Who is leading you? Who are you influenced by? Let it be the Message of the hour. Christ the Word leading us to the rapture.