A couple of years ago I had a private dinner with a prominent African bishop who was involved in a mighty national awakening in Uganda. This dinner, and the fact that a week prior to this dinner there was the National Day of Prayer in my nation, the United States, made me think of the subject of revival, awakening and how it could happen again in my nation.
One day I was pondering why all the leaders I know with much influence all seem to have one thing in common: they have all suffered much in their lives. In fact, every one of them has a particular cross to bear, or they have gone through horrendous seasons of pain and suffering that were part of a divine process that made them and continues to mold them into the highly effective leaders they are today. (These challenges can be relational issues with their spouses, children, other leaders, etc. or they can be personal issues related to their spiritual, emotional or physical wellbeing.)
Truly the greatest discovery I ever made in the Bible was when my eyes were opened to understand how the gospel relates to the Kingdom of God!
Most people agree that the nations of the West are headed in the wrong direction regarding morality and culture. While it is very popular in some circles to blame presidents, congresses (or parliaments), as well as local elected officials, the word of God makes it clear where to place the blame.
To quote Evangelist Charles Finney:
“The error that lies at the foundation of this decay of individual and public conscience originates, no doubt, in the pulpit….Brethren, our preaching will bear its legitimate fruits. If immorality prevails in the land, the fault is ours in a great degree.
There is presently a revolution taking place among those on the leading edge of change in the Evangelical Church. The result is a transition from a church mindset to a kingdom mindset in which the walls of church buildings are no longer able to contain the raw creative energy of Christ-followers who are committed to preaching and applying the Gospel of the Kingdom to all the world, including its systems and structures.
It is my intention in this article to show the relationship between theological formation in the church, particular cultures, and contemporary movements. By culture I mean the language, arts, habits, values, currency, and aspirations of a people group, community, city or nation.
Every week it seems there is another scandal breaking out with a high-profile person, whether in politics, sports, media or the church. A person could have done much good their whole life but with one act of passion destroy everything they have built.
Proverbs 22:1 teaches us that a good name is worth more than riches. One of the things I have found out through the years is that a person’s name and reputation are their greatest capital in regards to opening up doors and having influence in the world; this is a quality people look for even more than gifts, talents, or leading a successful enterprise or ministry. This is because people know success built upon gifts and talents and not on the foundation of character and integrity will not last in the long run. All of us are tempted to fall and have capacity to fail because of our sin nature.
Can you imagine a time when key apostolic leaders—both in the church and marketplace—would come together to exert strong influence over cities, communities and nations, with or without the cooperation or partnership of local church pastors and congregations? A time when the local church would almost be irrelevant when it comes to societal transformation because leaders would form their own ecclesia that would be mobile and not nuclear in nature? A time in which the local church would be relegated merely to shepherding our families, pastoral counseling, and Sunday school for our children?
Scripture is replete with examples of how leaders rise and fall. One of the reasons why I believe the Bible is the inspired word of God is because it so honestly and accurately portrays the plight of human beings regarding their reasons for success and failure. It adequately portrays the dark side of the saints of old and is not like the common biographies of great people in history that are more hagiographic in nature than historic (that is, they don’t reveal the failures of the person).
