Good afternoon everyone, my name is Gboyega Adedeji. I am so glad to welcome you to this week edition of Leaderview™. I hope you week has been great? To God alone be the glory. Last week, we had a break on Leadership Trip to Genesis, it was an election edition, 2019 Presidential election edition. It was such a passionate moment that we had with Brother Obayomi, he was a blessing to us you know. His passion for politics was such a blessing to us. And I believe it is important we take those words very seriously. For every action, there is a corresponding reaction. When we make choices, we also indirectly choose the consequences of our choices, because for every action, there is a consequence. If we choose bad leaders as a people, we are going to get the consequence. If we choose good leaders as well, we are going to get the consequence.
Today, we are looking at something that is very exciting. And perhaps, it could become a good yardstick for us to make the best decision at the polls on Saturday. We need to also know more about leadership. There is an aspect of leadership I want to share with us from the book of Genesis, that we may begin to use as a measure or yardstick for finding a good leader among those who called themselves leaders.
LISTEN TO PODCAST: CONFESSIONARY LEADERSHIP: HOW YOUR WORDS DESCRIBE THE FUTURE OF YOUR ORGANIZATION
Today we want to consider what has been titled "Confessionary Leadership." We want to see how the destiny of a people could be described or determined or could be designed by the words of their leaders. How you can describe or determine the destiny of your people, your team or your organization by your words. So, we are looking at confessionary leadership. Very quickly, let us go to the book of Genesis chapter twenty-two, and I would read from verse one. Genesis 22, from verse 1, the Bible says:
Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham, and said to him, “Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” 2 Then He said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.” 3 So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son; and he split the wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him.
Now, if we take a short break from that Scripture, and we go back very quickly to verse one, there is something we must not forget and note as well. Bible says "Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham." We are the ones that are quite aware that God actually tested Abraham. When he was going through the moment, it did not look like a test. It was just like he was living his life. You know, those normal day-to-day activities that we engage in, those choices we make every day, the choices of whether to travel by land or by air, of whether to follow a taxi or to drive out, the choices of whether to do this or that, those normal decisions we make on a daily basis. you know, just like Abraham, he was just in his normal daily activities or daily living.
And then, the Bible says what he was expected to make a decision on was a test from God. Now, that actually brings me to a point of realization that quite a number of things that I commit myself into, on a daily basis, which appears to me as if I am the one running the show, some of them, if not all of them, quite a good number of them are decisions that are mere test from the Lord. Now that is to keep all of us on the check. There are some things we do on a daily basis, there are some decisions we take or make, that we just go ahead with them. We make them on the spot without giving any concern or thought whatsoever, to the reasons why we have to make those decisions by the way.
Now, for Abraham, God tested him. We know now that it was a test, but for him, it was just a life decision he needed to make, a decision, as soon as he woke up, he needed to make. Now the Bible says in verse 2. God said: “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.” Now, Abraham was a shepherd, he had sheep and animals, he was a businessman. And he had offered to God sacrifices in the past. He had offered burnt offerings to God but he had never offered a human being to God. But at this point, God said; that your son Isaac whom you love, offer him up.
I am sure the instructions must have met him with great surprise, he must have been shocked. I believe that is how some of us are being shocked or are brought to a place of amazement when we are confronted with the will of God for our lives. God is asking us to do certain things and we are like shocked, thinking how can God ask me to do something like this? Why is God telling me to do this? Why is God not asking me to do this, why this? I am sure we face such moments in our journeys as leaders. But see what Abraham did. Instead of getting shocked and stopping his movement, or his progress, instead of getting to that mode of inactivity simply because of shock, he decided to take a step towards the will of God. And I don't want us to miss that.
Verse three, the Bible says: "So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son; and he split the wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him." Isaac, the subject matter, he took him along to be offered to God as a sacrifice. Not necessarily because he understood what God wanted to do or he knew that it was a mere test, and if he could succeed, he wouldn't offer his son as a sacrifice. He didn't know all that. He just responded to what God would have him do, in a positive manner. And I want us to see verse four. "Then on the third day Abraham lifted his eyes and saw the place afar off."
So, he began to go from day one. Day one, he was going, day two he was on the journey, day three, the Bible says Abraham lifted his eyes and saw the place afar off. The reason why I am noting that is because God told him that you are going to a place or a mountain that I will show you about, and on that mountain you will offer your sacrifice, that your son that you love. He did not know the place, but yet, he set out on a journey. And so, let us see his first decision, his first confessionary leadership decision as a leader. In verse five, the Bible says: "And Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; the lad and I will go yonder and worship, and we will come back to you.”
Abraham told his men to stay where they got too, and work out his leadership with fear and trembling, while himself and the lad go yonder to worship. Now, what does that suggest to you? God told him to go to that mountain, that he would show him and offer his son that he loves and offer him as a burnt offering. If you have ever offered a burnt offering before, then you would realise that whatever that is offered in burnt offering is gone. Now, let me remind you of an experience. I am sure you had had a moment that you wanted to cook, and then you began cooking rice perhaps, and maybe you slept off in the process. Waking up, you suddenly realise that the whole house is in smoke, and then the pot is completely burnt. Can you find any rice inside such pot? I guess not.
So, a burnt offering is something of value to you, that is given up. you no longer get anything of value from it. It is given up. So, when he says to those young guys, "stay here", "stay with the donkey", the boy and I will go further, and then we will worship and come back. So, he confessed that the boy is not going to be given up, even though he was obeying God, he confessed that he was going to return back with the same one that God is requesting from him. And so, if the son live afterwards, it was directly a product of the confession of the father. The father did not declare doom on him, the father did not say I am going yonder with the boy and he is perishing there, No!
The father did not declare destruction, the father declared preservation. And so, when the boy was preserved, it was not a shock to the people nor to the father. The father declared it. So, the questions we should be asking is: are you making the right confessions over your family as a leader; over your organization as a manager or leader over such organization? Are you speaking right words, declaring the end from the beginning over your team or do you declare what you see? You see, there is a difference between declaring what you are seeing and declaring what you want to see. A confessionary leader does not declare what he is seeing, he declares what he wants to see. He says it and he has it. So, until you pick on the responsibility as a leader to speak the words that you want to see, you don't become a confessionary leader. You see, you can start at different levels of leadership, but for you to get to the point of confessionary leadership, you must have become a man or a woman that says the things you want to see.
Oh, your husband beats you every day or perhaps, he is a drunk; and he behaves anyhow. And then, each time he behaves like that, or misbehaves; you abuse him instead. You see, that is all you are seeing and that is all you are saying. I think it is important for us to get to a point that we don't declare what we are seeing, we don't say what we are seeing. We say what we want to see. We declare the end from the beginning. We don't judge people by their current actions, we ask what could come out of them. Is there any treasure or precious things or future? If you see that future, even though the current state is unpalatable; you declare that future.
Now, Abraham, at the moment was confronted with death for his son. But he did not declare death, he declared life instead. And so, he got it. Let us continue with that Genesis 22, and examine other verses as well.
6 So Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife, and the two of them went together. 7 But Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” Then he said, “Look, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?”
I am sure you remember that the father didn't have any time to talk to the son about what he was going to do. And so, the son was curious. See the fire, see the wood. but where is the lamb? Because you have said we are going to worship, how come there is no lamb yet? And see what Abraham said in verse eight: " 8 And Abraham said, “My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering.” So the two of them went together." Now, so that you don't think this man is a rebellious man, whom the Lord has commanded and he is saying different things. Now, it is not that he is lying or trying to disobey God, because I want you to watch in verse nine;
" 9 Then they came to the place of which God had told him. And Abraham built an altar there and placed the wood in order; and he bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, upon the wood. 10 And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. 11 But the Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” So he said, “Here I am.” 12 And He said, “Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.”
Now, if you continue that whole chapter, you would notice that God blessed him. In fact, God said in blessing I will bless you, in multiplication I will multiply you, your descendants like the sands of the sea. In fact, God was so impressed with him that God blessed him. I am sure you remember that whenever the Bible says God blesses a man; for every blessing of God, there must be a corresponding word. That is also to show that our God is a confessionary leader. He doesn't just desire an outcome, He confesses it. God declares, God confesses. And so, if you want to become a confessionary leader, you must confess what you want to see.
While obeying God, you must continue to declare what you want to see. You must continue to declare what you want to see. Abraham continued obeying God, in fact, he was about killing his son, yet he had declared that God would provide himself a lamb. So, God needed to show up. And when God showed up, in verse thirteen the Bible says: "Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son." Can you see, exactly as he had confessed it, that became his experience.
So, the life that Isaac got afterwards, was a product of the confession of the father. Are you a father? What are you confessing over your children? Are you a leader, what are you confessing over your people? Now, perhaps as a nation, as Nigerians, we are watching and looking out, who should we choose on February 23rd as the president of Nigeria? I think we should look for the right men, the right people that are making right confessions. If a leader does not see any good in us as a people, then we should not choose him or her. We should choose men and women that see us, not as we are; but as we could be – Confessionary leaders!
I think at the national level, we don't need leaders that are like hunters, looking for something good to destroy. We need men and women that can birth new things, men and women that can nurture. We need nurturers in this nation. We need men that can nurture little things to greatness. Are you a leader? Are you a nurturing leader? Or are you somebody that takes advantage of the little that you have to the point that the little does not become great or become mighty? You must grow to become a confessionary leader, declare the end from the beginning. Don't be overwhelmed by what you are seeing, declare what you want to see and I see God taking you there together with the people, in the name of Jesus.
Thank you for the gift of you time, my name is Gboyega Adedeji, and you have been listening and reading Leaderview™. I hope to connect with you again next week, I believe by then we would have known who the next president of Nigeria is. Till then, stay blessed.
