A true leader is a burden bearer. He or she must know and demonstrate the ability to serve before leading. Many desire to be leaders among us, but few have what it takes to be a true leader—one who represents the Lord well and genuinely cares about the well-being of others.
Jesus is our ultimate example of leadership. He sets a high standard, a plumb line, that we can use to evaluate ourselves and the leaders around us.
Nehemiah is one of my favorite biblical leaders. Although he never met Jesus, he lived an exemplary and effective life for the Kingdom of God, even while facing much opposition.
Who is Nehemiah? Nehemiah was a Jewish cupbearer serving under the Persian Emperor Artaxerxes I Longimanus. Being a cupbearer was a trusted position. The king only drank from a cup provided by his cupbearer, knowing the drink had been tested before reaching him. However, the cupbearer was the last person to handle the drink before the king consumed it, meaning he could have poisoned it if he wished. This highlights the great level of trust the king had in Nehemiah.
When King Artaxerxes permitted the Jews to return to Jerusalem and rebuild its walls, Nehemiah played a key role in that mission.
It came to pass in the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the citadel, that Hanani one of my brethren came with men from Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews who had escaped, who had survived the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. And they said to me, “The survivors who are left from the captivity in the province are there in great distress and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire.”
So it was, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven. Nehemiah 1:1-4
Nehemiah cared enough to ask Hanani about the Jews’ condition in Jerusalem. When he heard they were in distress, he became distressed himself—an example of deep empathy. He could have simply said, “Oh, that’s too bad. I’ll pray for them.” But instead, he identified with their condition, which led him to cry out to God on their behalf. He even chose to fast for them. Nehemiah took ownership of the situation, becoming a burden-bearer for people he didn’t know personally—simply because they were his fellow Jews.
Are there times in your life when the Lord leads you to intercede on behalf of others who are not your family or friends? Have you ever fasted for situations where you had no control or power to change the outcome?
In his prayer, Nehemiah asks for forgiveness of sins, saying, “…we have sinned against you.” (Nehemiah 1:7b). He included himself in this prayer, confessing that he, along with the other Jews, had sinned and needed forgiveness. This shows Nehemiah’s great humility. He could have just prayed for them, but he chose to identify with them.
A true leader intercedes on behalf of people by identifying with their condition. This is the delicate and beautiful balance of leadership: on one hand, the leader is close to the Father, able to pray, fast, and ask for mercy and forgiveness. On the other, the leader is pained for his people, knowing the devastation that sin has brought into their lives. At this point, Nehemiah may not have thought of himself as a leader, but the condition of his heart was already shaping him to be the leader God would one day call him to be.
I will continue with this subject in the next devotional.