How Leaders and Followers Can Bear Fruit For the Kingdom Of God

How Leaders and Followers Can Bear Fruit For the Kingdom Of God

I have learned over the years after attending several Churches the importance of having good communication, good practices, and God honoring processes. Along with the daily operations that a Church must deal with, the leaders of a Church must make sure their congregation is being led well. Good leadership produces fruit because God blesses those who remain in Him:

John 15:5 NIV

I am the vine you are the branches; If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

Leaders are accountable for their level of obedience to God’s Word and principles, as well as how well they are allowing the Holy Spirit to guide and counsel them in the decisions they are to make. Jesus exhorts us in John 15:4 to remain in Him, which means we are to stay spiritually connected to Him in order to bear fruit for kingdom purpose. In a way Jesus is warning us that we cannot bear fruit for His kingdom on our own accord.   

John 15:4 NIV

 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

The question we must address is what happens to people who are not being led well? What happens when the Shepherd of a flock goes AWOL?

Where there is a void in good Godly leadership, there is an opportunity for bad, self-reliant, self-serving, self-absorbed, leadership to take over. Many people who have had bad experiences in Churches can relate to the lack of communication, lack of empowerment, bad processes, poor treatment, unwise decisions and deception that marked their Church experience. Many who have felt “beaten up” as a result of attending a poorly led Church have a hard time recovering from their experience and find it difficult to trust any Church leadership. I have heard the stories of those who have been hurt, and for many the pain continues to keep them from planting in a new Church fellowship.

On the other hand there are the devoted followers of Christ in the Church that can minister and help those who are hurting, broken, lost and skeptical about the Church. Jesus said this:

John 13:35 NIV

By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Those who demonstrate what Jesus refers to as love, create an authentic loving environment that attributes to Church health.

What is most evident about a healthy Church is the great amount of Christ-likeness evident in heart of the people. Those who serve and share their hope with others out of love and gratitude for what for Jesus had done to transform them from the inside out, tend to represent Christ as His ambassadors and are not functioning as consumers of Church benefits. Their service and ministry is out of love for Christ and others. The Church is at its best when there is unity and love for Jesus and where the interests of others are at the utmost importance. When this is done the Church fellowship, through the power of the Holy Spirit, becomes an effective community of believers for Christ. I find that God always bears fruit through those who are open to and act upon the prompting of the Holy Spirit. Devoted followers are motivated, Christ-centered and loving toward one another as well as those who come as guests to Worship. Their lives are dedicated to edify the body of Christ and help those who are lost find their way home to God.

Through personal experience as a Worship Director I have seen the evidence that when a worship team, turns their hearts over to God, they free themselves from their dependence on self and their abilities alone, opening the door to be inspired by the Holy Spirit so they themselves are being led in Worship. Through this process God is able to use the little things we bring to the table and transform them into something powerful and heart changing in us and throughout the congregation.  When we get a sense of His Glory and relish in gratitude because of His grace, we are drawn to the place where God receives His proper position of honor and glory. 

Those who have been rescued and transformed exhibit gratitude.

We need to remember that God went to great lengths to rescue us and have a relationship with us. What Jesus accomplished on the Cross and through His resurrection, fills us with the hope and promise of eternal life. With this new hope and assurance of eternal life we can live life abundantly, knowing that the time we have been given on this earth is filled with purpose in service to God while preparing us for our eternity with Him.

We understand that we have been saved through God’s grace alone through faith alone in Jesus. Followers of Jesus are grateful to be standing and worshiping the God of the universe at this place, at this time, realizing the alternative is bleak and lacks true purpose. When we take a step back and realize all that Jesus has done for us, we are grateful and express our gratitude through our love, obedience, trust and worship of Him.

What we can be grateful for:

·        Grateful for Jesus and His work on the Cross.

·        Grateful to God for His amazing love and grace.

·        Grateful for eternal life.

·        Grateful for the gift of Faith.

·        Grateful for our relationship with God.

·        Grateful we have been given the Holy Spirit as our teacher and comforter.

·        Grateful for having a Church family and toward our brothers and sisters in Christ for using their gifts and talents for God’s Glory, serving out of love and devotion to Him.  

    

The Church is really the body of believers. Being made up of those who follow Jesus,  believers gather together to celebrate what God has done and in most cases in this country, the Church is located in some kind of building which is also known as the Church. But the building is not the Church unless the people who gather in it believe in the Lordship of Christ and corporately share their love for God and worship Him.

The Church does not need to be the next best thing, nor follow the trends. The Local Church should just focus on being the hope of the world (From Bill Hybels). Churches should put their efforts in being the kind of community that produce devoted followers of Jesus that go out and make disciples. Jesus mentioned the importance of going out for the sake of the Gospel:

Acts 1:8 NIV

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

Matthew 28:18-20 NIV

Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

No matter where we are, or for that matter, what we are doing, we are Christ’s ambassadors. Those who are followers of Jesus and their leaders are to display the fruit of the Spirit:

Galatians 5:22-23 NIV

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

Here are some verses that show us some other the attributes of a leader and devoted follower of Jesus:

also read - 1 Timothy 3:1-13

Romans 12:1-2 NIV

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Matthew 16:24-26 NIV

Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?

Proverbs 3:5-6 NIV

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.

Luke 10:27 NIV 
He answered: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind' and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.

2 Corinthians 5:7 NIV 
We live by faith, not by sight.

Ephesians 3:12 NIV  
In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.

2 Corinthians 5:17-20 NIV

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God.

Ephesians 4:22-24 NIV

You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

Colossians 3:12-17 NIV

Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Good stuff to remember:

·        Apart from God we can do nothing.

·        Devoted followers produce fruit.

·        We can live abundantly by through trust and faith in God and His promises.

·        Our goal should be the desire to live a life Holy and pleasing before God.

·        Remember what Jesus said about loving God and others.

·        We must help others become disciples of Christ

·        We should consistently model the attributes of a devoted Follower of Christ, especially those who are leaders in the Church.

So, in conclusion we, the Church should strive to lead well. We have the Holy Spirit to guide our steps. We have God’s Word that speaks into every area of our lives.  The Church should be different from the world and its leaders should serve in the same way Jesus led His disciples. Jesus was a servant leader.

Matthew 20:26-28 Living Bible

 But among you it is quite different. Anyone wanting to be a leader among you must be your servant. And if you want to be right at the top, you must serve like a slave. Your attitude must be like my own, for I, the Messiah, did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give my life as a ransom for many.

Jesus came to serve and sacrifice self for the sake of others and leaders should do the same. 

Remember we have the responsibility to look out for the interests of others.

Philippians 2:3-4 NIV

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

Good leadership bears fruit for the kingdom of God! 

Just Sayin………………..Dave