Peter calls Jesus a living stone.

Then he says you are one too.

That is a strange picture. Stones are usually dead. You can pick one up today, leave it somewhere for twenty years, and come back to find essentially the same stone.

But Jesus is a living stone. He died, rose again, and lives forever. When you came to Him, you received His life. So Peter says, “You also, as living stones.”

But that is only the beginning of the metaphor.

God does not intend to leave His stones lying around.

God Is Building Something

Peter says you “are built up into a spiritual house.”

Think about a building site. A truck can deliver a thousand blocks and dump them beside the road. You now have plenty of building material, but you do not have a house.

The blocks must be arranged.

They must be joined.

Each one must occupy its proper place.

That is what God is doing with believers.

Christianity is personal, but it is not private. God saved you as an individual, but He did not save you to remain isolated from everyone else.

He is building you together with other believers.

Paul uses almost the same picture.

Ephesians 2 (KJ2000)
19 Now therefore you are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God;
20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone;
21 In whom all the building fitly framed together grows unto a holy temple in the Lord:
22 In whom you also are built together for a habitation of God through the Spirit.

Notice the words.

“Fitly framed together.”

“Built together.”

“A habitation of God.”

God is not merely gathering people. He is building a house.

Jesus Determines Where Everything Goes

Peter calls Jesus the living stone. Paul calls Him the chief cornerstone.

The cornerstone mattered enormously in ancient construction. Once it was properly positioned, the rest of the building took its alignment from it.

That tells you something important about the Church.

Jesus does not fit into our plans. We fit into His.

We do not decide what Christianity should become and then ask Jesus to bless it. He is the cornerstone. Everything must take its direction from Him.

Your beliefs must align with Him.

Your ambitions must align with Him.

Your relationships must align with Him.

Your ministry must align with Him.

If the wall disagrees with the cornerstone, you do not move the cornerstone. You correct the wall.

You Need Other Stones

There is another lesson here that Christians sometimes resist.

A stone by itself cannot be a house.

You may be wonderfully shaped. You may be polished. You may even be an extremely expensive stone.

You are still not a house.

The picture Peter gives us makes independence impossible.

God joins believers together.

This means other Christians will sometimes fail to align with you in the way you would prefer. They may disagree with you. They may have different personalities, backgrounds and levels of maturity.

Welcome to the building.

You cannot say, “I love Jesus, but I have no need for other believers.”

That is like one block announcing that it does not need the rest of the building.

God designed the Church to be corporate.

You need other believers, and other believers need you.

Sometimes God Has to Shape the Stone

Anyone who has watched a mason work knows that building materials sometimes need adjustment.

Something does not fit.

Something sticks out.

Something must be trimmed.

The same thing happens as God builds us together.

Relationships expose things private Christianity can hide.

You may think you are wonderfully patient until you have to work with difficult people.

You may think you are humble until someone else gets the position you wanted.

You may think you walk in love until someone in church annoys you every Sunday for six months.

Then the hammer comes out.

God begins dealing with attitudes, pride, selfishness, offence and stubbornness.

Do not run from the building site every time another stone rubs against you.

God may be shaping you.

The House Has a Resident

The most important thing about this house is not the stones.

It is who lives there.

Paul says we are being built together “for a habitation of God through the Spirit.”

That connects this metaphor directly to the mystery of indwelling.

God lives in you individually.

But Scripture goes further. God also dwells among His people corporately.

The Church is not sacred because of stained glass, pulpits, microphones or expensive buildings.

The people are the building.

You are the living stones.

God is the resident.

That should change the way you think about other believers.

That brother beside you is part of God’s house.

That sister you find difficult is part of God’s house.

That believer who seems less impressive than you is part of God’s house.

Handle God’s stones carefully.

Know What You Are

You are not a spectator standing outside watching God build.

You are part of the building.

Christ is the cornerstone. You have His life in you. God has placed you among His people. He is fitting you together with them into something He intends to inhabit.

So do not live like a loose stone.

Find your place.

Submit to the Builder.

Stay aligned with Christ.

Allow God to shape you.

Learn to live with the other stones.

God is building a house.

And you are one of His living stones.

Continue in grace!

That matters.

He was not simply explaining the difference between children and adults. He had spent the chapter describing how love behaves. Then he spoke about putting away childish things.

1 Corinthians 13 (KJ2000)
4 Love suffers long, and is kind; love envies not; love vaunts not itself, is not puffed up,
5 Does not behave itself rudely, seeks not her own, is not easily provoked, keeps no record of evil;
6 Rejoices not in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth;
7 Bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Then Paul writes:

1 Corinthians 13 (KJ2000)
11 When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.

Paul identifies three areas in which maturity should become visible.

How you speak.
How you understand.
How you think.

For a leader, all three must increasingly come under the control of love.

Speak Like Someone Who Walks in Love

Children often say what they feel.

“I don’t like him.”
“That’s not fair.”
“I want it now.”
“She started it.”

There is usually very little distance between the emotion and the words.

That may be normal for a child. It is dangerous for a leader.

Love changes how you speak.

You may be angry and still choose your words carefully.

You may be disappointed and still refuse to humiliate someone.

You may have every right to correct someone and still choose to do it privately.

You may know something is true and still ask whether saying it now will help anybody.

Love “does not behave itself rudely”.

A mature leader therefore does not measure his speech merely by whether it is true.

He also asks whether it is loving.

Some leaders boast that they “say it as it is”.

That is not necessarily maturity.

A five-year-old also says exactly what he thinks.

Maturity is being able to say something and deciding whether you should.

Understand People Through Love

Paul also says, “I understood as a child.”

Children can interpret almost everything through themselves.

Daddy said no; therefore, Daddy is wicked.
Another child received something, therefore somebody has cheated me.
A teacher corrected me, therefore she does not like me.
Someone did not invite me, therefore they deliberately excluded me.

Adults can behave the same way.

A member of your team questions your decision. You conclude that he is rebellious.
Your boss rejects your proposal. You conclude that she does not respect you.
Someone else gets the opportunity you wanted. You conclude that somebody is working against you.
A colleague does not praise your work. You conclude that he is jealous.

Love gives you another way to understand people.

Paul says love “keeps no record of evil”. It “believes all things” and “hopes all things”.

That does not mean a leader should be gullible.

It means you should not automatically choose the worst possible explanation for another person’s behaviour.

That is childish understanding.

Mature leaders learn to distinguish between what happened and the story they have told themselves about why it happened.

Someone disagreed with you.

That is what happened.

“They don’t respect me” is an interpretation.

Someone did not return your call.

That is what happened.

“They are deliberately ignoring me” is an interpretation.

Love makes room for another explanation.

A leader who constantly assigns bad motives to people will eventually create enemies who never knew they were enemies.

Think Beyond Yourself

Paul also says, “I thought as a child.”

Children naturally think first about themselves.

What do I want?
What do I like?
What do I get?
What will make me happy?

Paul gives us a very different description of love.

Love “seeks not her own”.

That is a demanding standard for leadership.

A childish leader thinks mainly about how a decision affects him.

Will this make me look good?
Will I get the credit?
Will I keep my position?
Will people recognise that this was my idea?
Will I get what I want?

A mature leader thinks beyond himself.

What is good for the people I lead?
What is good for the organisation?
What will this decision do to the weakest person affected by it?
What precedent am I creating?
What happens after I get what I want?

The ability to think beyond yourself is one of the clearest signs of maturity.

The child sees the sweet.
The parent sees what happens after the sweet.

The child sees the money.
The adult sees the bills.

The childish leader sees the opportunity.
The mature leader sees the responsibilities that come with it.

Love Changes Your Reaction to Provocation

Paul says love “is not easily provoked”.

Leadership will give you many opportunities to be provoked.

People will misunderstand you.

Some will disagree with you.
Others will disappoint you.
Somebody will speak to you in a way you do not like.
Someone will fail after you gave him an opportunity.
Someone you helped may even turn against you.

The childish response is immediate.

Respond.
Fight back.
Send the message.
Call the meeting.
Remove the person.
Prove the point.

The mature leader can feel the same emotion and refuse to let it drive the decision.

This does not mean mature leaders never confront people.

Love is not weakness.

Paul himself confronted people.

Jesus rebuked people.

But mature leadership does not allow irritation to decide when, how and why confrontation happens.

There is a difference between correcting someone because they need correction and correcting them because you need relief from your anger.

A mature leader learns the difference.

Love Does Not Mean You Ignore the Truth

Paul says love “rejoices in the truth”.

This is important.

Walking in love does not mean pretending that everybody is right.
It does not mean avoiding difficult conversations.
It does not mean tolerating incompetence.
It does not mean refusing to discipline someone who is damaging the organisation.

A leader who never confronts wrongdoing is not necessarily loving.

Sometimes love requires a difficult conversation.
Sometimes love requires saying no.
Sometimes love requires removing someone from a responsibility he can no longer handle.

The difference is motive.

Childish leadership asks, “How do I punish this person for what he has done to me?”
Mature leadership asks, “What response is right, truthful and helpful?”

Putting Away Childish Things Is Deliberate

Paul does not say that childish things disappeared.

He says:

“I put away childish things.”

That sounds deliberate.

Some things will not disappear merely because you become older.

You must put them away.

You may have to put away the need to have the last word.
You may have to put away the need to prove that you were right.
You may have to put away the habit of assuming the worst about people.
You may have to put away the desire to embarrass someone who embarrassed you.
You may have to put away the need to win every argument.
You may have to put away the habit of making decisions while angry.
You may have to put away the instinct to ask first, “What is in this for me?”

Growing older happens automatically.

Growing up does not.

The Bible Shows Us What Mature Leadership Looks Like

God teaches us leadership throughout the Bible, but much of that teaching comes by example rather than by precept.

We watch people speak.
We watch them misunderstand others.
We watch them react in anger.
We watch them put themselves first.

Then we see what those decisions produce.

1 Corinthians 10 (KJ2000)
11 Now all these things happened unto them for examples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages are come.

God preserved their successes and failures so that we could learn from them.

Romans 15 (KJ2000)
4 For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

This is one reason the Bible is such a rich leadership textbook.

It does not merely tell us what leaders should do.

It lets us watch leaders behave.

Then it lets us see the consequences.

Maturity Looks Like Love

A leader can become more experienced without becoming more mature.

He can become more powerful without becoming more mature.
He can become more knowledgeable without becoming more mature.
He can even become more successful without becoming more mature.

Paul gives us a harder test.

Does love increasingly govern the way you speak?
Does love increasingly govern the way you interpret other people’s actions?
Does love increasingly govern the way you think about your decisions?

You may know more than you knew ten years ago.
You may manage more people.
You may control more money.
You may occupy a bigger office.

But the question remains.

Have you put away childish things?

Because in Paul’s argument, maturity is not merely becoming cleverer.

It is becoming more capable of walking in love.

Continue in grace!

God lives in you.

Read that again.

Paul does not say God occasionally visits you. He does not say God comes around when the worship is good enough, the prayer meeting becomes intense enough, or the preacher finally gets everyone shouting.

He says believers are being built together for a habitation of God through the Spirit.

A habitation is somewhere you live.

You are God’s dwelling place.

God Has Moved In

The Old Testament trained Israel to think about God's presence in connection with physical places.

First there was the tabernacle. Later there was the temple.

There was a Holy Place. There was a Most Holy Place. There were priests, sacrifices, curtains and restrictions.

God certainly dealt with individuals, but the great visible centre of His presence among Israel was the sanctuary.

Then Jesus came.

And something changed.

God’s great New Testament building project is no longer primarily made of stone.

It is made of people.

Peter calls believers “living stones”. Paul calls the Church a temple. And here in Ephesians, Paul says we are being built together into a habitation of God.

The building is alive.

And God lives in it.

You Are Not Trying to Get God to Come Near

This matters because Christians sometimes pray and talk as though God lives several million miles away.

We ask Him to come.

We beg Him to draw near.

We speak as though His presence has to travel to wherever we happen to be.

But listen to Paul.

Romans 8 (KJ2000)
9 But you are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
10 And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also bring to life your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwells in you.

Paul keeps saying it.

The Spirit of God dwells in you.

Christ is in you.

The Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you.

You do not need to persuade Him to move into the neighbourhood.

He already lives there.

Your Body Is His Temple

This truth is also personal.

1 Corinthians 6 (KJ2000)
19 What? know you not that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have of God, and you are not your own?
20 For you are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.

Paul uses indwelling to teach holiness.

Notice his argument.

He does not say, “Behave yourself so that perhaps one day the Holy Spirit will come and live in you.”

He says the Holy Spirit already lives in you; therefore glorify God in your body.

Identity comes before conduct.

You do not live holy so that your body can become God’s temple.

You live holy because it already is.

There are things you would not comfortably do in a church auditorium because you consider the place sacred.

Paul pushes the argument much further.

Your body is the temple.

You carry the sacred space around with you.

The Church Is Also His Temple

There is another side to this metaphor.

God lives in you individually, but God also dwells among us corporately.

1 Corinthians 3 (KJ2000)
16 Know you not that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
17 If any man defiles the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.

Here Paul is speaking to the congregation.

Together, they were God’s temple.

That should affect the way you treat other believers.

You cannot claim to honour God while casually damaging the people among whom He dwells.

Strife matters.

Division matters.

Slander matters.

The Church is more than an organisation you attend. It is a habitation of God.

God takes His house seriously.

Jesus Said the Father Would Make His Home With Us

Jesus prepared His disciples for this.

John 14 (KJ2000)
23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man loves me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

“Abode” means dwelling place.

Home.

Jesus was describing a relationship far closer than many believers imagine.

God is not merely above you.

God is not merely around you.

By His Spirit, God is in you.

This should change the way you pray.

Prayer is not trying to get the attention of a distant God.

It is fellowship with the God who has made His home in you.

Learn to Live With This Consciousness

Imagine somebody gave you a house and you later discovered that the King had taken up residence in one of the rooms.

You would probably become very conscious of how you behaved in that house.

Something greater has happened.

The Spirit of God lives in you.

That truth should produce reverence, confidence and holiness.

When you feel alone, remember who lives in you.

When you feel weak, remember who lives in you.

When temptation comes, remember whose temple you are.

When you pray, remember that you are not shouting across an enormous distance.

You are God’s habitation.

Christianity is much more than God helping you from heaven.

God came to live in you.

Continue in grace!

We have seen his extraordinary reputation. We have examined his remarkable counsel. We have seen Scripture compare his advice to consulting the oracle of God. We have watched him correctly assess Absalom’s rebellion and propose the exact strategy that would likely have secured victory.

Yet his story ends in tragedy.

As we have seen throughout this series, the Bible teaches leadership through examples.

1 Corinthians 10 (KJ2000)
11 Now all these things happened unto them for examples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages are come.

Romans 15 (KJ2000)
4 For whatsoever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

The final chapter of Ahitophel’s life was preserved for our learning.

And the lesson is not what many people assume.

The Day Ahitophel Saw the End

After hearing the counsel of Ahitophel and Hushai, Absalom chose Hushai’s advice.

Scripture records what happened next.

2 Samuel 17 (KJ2000)
23 And when Ahithophel saw that his counsel was not followed, he saddled his ass, and arose, and got him home to his house, to his city, and put his household in order, and hanged himself, and died, and was buried in the sepulchre of his father.

Many readers conclude that Ahitophel killed himself because his advice was rejected. They suggest that he felt so humiliated that he opted for suicide.

The text never says that.

In fact, the actions that follow suggest something else.

He went home.
He settled his affairs.
He put his household in order.

These are not the actions of a man having an emotional outburst.

These are the actions of a man rationally preparing for an outcome he believed was inevitable.

Ahitophel Understood What Others Did Not

Remember what we learned in the previous article.

Ahitophel’s strategy was correct.

Scripture itself calls it “the good counsel of Ahithophel.”

He knew David was vulnerable.
He knew delay would help David.
He knew Hushai’s strategy would give David time to recover.

The moment Absalom rejected his advice, Ahitophel could see the future.

David would survive.
David would regroup.
David would return.

Absalom would fall.

The rebellion was finished.

Others celebrated Hushai’s speech.

Ahitophel saw a funeral procession.

The Wrong Side of History

One of the most sobering truths in the entire story is this:

Ahitophel was right. Absalom was wrong. Hushai’s strategy was weaker and doomed for failure.

Yet Ahitophel still lost.

Why?

Because he had attached himself to the wrong cause.

His analysis was correct.
His strategy was correct.
His conclusions were correct.

But he was working against the man God had chosen.

That is a frightening thought.

A person can possess wisdom and still find himself opposing God’s purpose.
A person can correctly read the situation and still be on the wrong side.
A person can understand strategy and completely misunderstand what God is doing.

Wisdom Cannot Replace Alignment

Many people assume wisdom is the highest leadership virtue.

The story of Ahitophel says otherwise.

Wisdom is powerful.

But alignment with God is more powerful.

A brilliant strategy that opposes God’s purpose is still a losing strategy.

A wise counsellor who joins the wrong cause is still on the wrong side.

Ahitophel reminds us that wisdom alone is not enough.

You must also ask:

“What side am I helping to advance?”

Ahitophel, Balaam and Judas

Scripture contains several gifted men who used their gifts in service of the wrong cause.

Balaam possessed genuine spiritual insight. Yet he aligned himself with those opposing God’s people.

Judas spent years walking with Jesus. Yet he ultimately sided against Him.

Ahitophel possessed extraordinary wisdom. Yet when the defining moment came, he cast his lot with Absalom rather than David.

All three men had gifts.
All three men possessed unusual abilities.
All three men ended tragically.

Their problem was not a lack of ability. Their problem was alignment.

The Danger for Leaders

This lesson applies directly to leadership.

Leaders often admire intelligence.

They admire competence.
They admire strategic thinking.
They admire results.

All of those things matter.

But none of them answer the most important question.

Is this person helping advance what God wants done?

A brilliant adviser can still lead you into trouble if his wisdom is disconnected from God’s purpose.

The most dangerous counsel is not foolish counsel.

It is wise counsel directed toward the wrong objective.

That was Ahitophel’s tragedy.

Solving The Wrong Problem

Management thinker Peter Drucker once observed:

“There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all.”

Ahitophel illustrates that principle perfectly.

No one could fault his strategy.
No one could fault his analysis.
No one could fault his understanding of the situation.

His problem was not competence.

His problem was the cause he had chosen to serve.

He was helping Absalom accomplish something that God had already determined would fail.

In that sense, Ahitophel may be one of the greatest examples in Scripture of a man solving the wrong problem.

He was trying to remove David. God was preserving David.

He was trying to secure Absalom’s throne. God had already rejected Absalom’s claim.

Every step of Ahitophel’s reasoning was logical.
Every step of God’s purpose was irresistible.

Leadership lessons do not get much more sobering than that.

It is possible to be efficient, effective, intelligent, strategic, respected, and completely wrong about the objective.

The first question a leader should ask is not, “Can this be done?”

The first question is, “Should this be done?”

And for believers, the question goes even deeper:

“Is this aligned with what God is doing?”

The Greater David

There is another lesson hidden in this story.

David was God’s chosen king.

Ahitophel joined a rebellion against him.

In doing so, he found himself fighting against God’s established purpose.

Many years later, the Son of David would be rejected, opposed, betrayed, and abandoned.

Yet God’s purpose would still stand.

The kingdoms of men rise and fall.

The plans of men succeed and fail.

But God’s purpose always prevails.

That was true in David’s day.

It remains true today.

Conclusion

The life of Ahitophel begins with one of the greatest compliments ever given to a counsellor.

His advice was like consulting the oracle of God.

It ends with one of the saddest scenes in Scripture.

A brilliant man goes home and prepares for death.

His tragedy was not that he lacked wisdom.

His tragedy was that he placed his wisdom in service of the wrong kingdom.

That is the final lesson of Ahitophel.

It is not enough to be wise.
It is not enough to be gifted.
It is not enough to be right.

You must also be aligned with what God is doing.

Because the wisest man in Israel still lost when he found himself fighting against God’s purpose.

Continue in grace!

The New Testament makes an astonishing statement about you.

You are the temple of God.

Paul does not say you are trying to become His temple. He does not say you become His temple when you pray enough, worship long enough, or finally become spiritual enough.

He says, “which temple you are.”

God lives in you.

God Has Changed His Address

Under the Old Covenant, the temple was a place.

Solomon built a magnificent temple in Jerusalem. The presence of God filled it. Priests ministered there. Sacrifices were offered there. Certain places within it were restricted. Only the High Priest could enter the Most Holy Place, and only once each year.

If you wanted to speak about the dwelling place of God, you pointed to a building.

Then Jesus came.

Something changed.

Paul writes to ordinary Christians in Corinth and tells them that they are now the temple of God because the Spirit of God lives in them.

This is the reality behind the metaphor.

A temple is a dwelling place for deity. When the New Testament calls you God’s temple, it is teaching you something about the mystery of the indwelling Spirit.

God has made His home in you.

Your Body Is His Temple

Paul makes this even more personal a few chapters later.

1 Corinthians 6 (KJ2000)
18 Flee fornication. Every sin that a man does is outside the body; but he that commits fornication sins against his own body.
19 What? know you not that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have of God, and you are not your own?
20 For you are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.

Notice the context.

Paul is talking about sexual conduct.

His argument is not merely, “Fornication is against the rules.”

His argument is, “Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit.”

That changes the conversation.

Your body matters because God lives in you. What you do with it matters. Where you take it matters. What you use it for matters.

You were bought with a price.

You belong to God.

And the body that belongs to God has become the dwelling place of His Spirit.

Holiness therefore begins with identity.

You do not live holy so that God will move into you. You live holy because He already has.

Stop Looking for God in the Wrong Place

This truth should change the way you relate to God.

Many Christians keep looking for God outside themselves.

They go to church hoping God will “come down”. They travel to special meetings hoping to find His presence. They look for a particular preacher, atmosphere, song, mountain or prayer ground.

Thank God for church meetings. Thank God for ministers. Thank God for places where you can withdraw and pray.

But none of those places is where God lives.

He lives in you.

This does not mean God is absent from the church gathering. It means He arrives with His people.

You do not leave God at home and meet Him at church.

You carry Him there.

You Are Part of a Bigger Temple

There is also a corporate side to this metaphor.

Ephesians 2 (KJ2000)
19 Now therefore you are no more strangers and sojourners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God;
20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone;
21 In whom all the building fitly framed together grows unto a holy temple in the Lord:
22 In whom you also are built together for a habitation of God through the Spirit.

Individually, your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit.

Collectively, believers are being built together into a holy temple.

Both truths matter.

Christianity is personal, but it is not solitary.

You are a living stone in something God is building. Other believers matter. Fellowship matters. The local church matters. Your relationships with other Christians matter.

God is building us together “for a habitation of God through the Spirit.”

That also gives you a reason to treat other believers with care.

They belong to the same temple.

Learn to Be God-Inside-Minded

If the Holy Spirit lives in you, you should become conscious of His presence.

When you need wisdom, remember who lives in you.

When you feel afraid, remember who lives in you.

When temptation comes, remember whose temple you are.

When you feel weak, remember that you are not empty.

You have spent enough time thinking about what you lack.

Begin thinking about Who you carry.

The Holy Spirit is not a visitor who occasionally comes when you create the right atmosphere. He did not move into you for weekends and special services.

He dwells in you.

You are His temple.

This is one more picture the New Testament gives you of the mystery of your new life in Christ. You are in Christ. Christ is in you. You are part of His body. He is your Head. And now Scripture gives you another picture.

You are God’s dwelling place.

Do not spend your Christian life searching outside for the God who has chosen to live inside you.

Continue in grace!

Now we come to the evidence.

Was Ahitophel really as good as the Bible says?

The answer is yes.

In fact, the Scriptures present two examples of his counsel during Absalom’s rebellion, and both reveal an extraordinary understanding of politics, leadership, strategy, and human nature.

As we have seen throughout this series, the Bible teaches leadership through examples.

1 Corinthians 10 (KJ2000)
11 Now all these things happened unto them for examples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages are come.

Romans 15 (KJ2000)
4 For whatsoever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

The story of Ahitophel was not preserved so that we could admire his brilliance.

It was preserved so that we could learn from it.

The Problem Facing Absalom

Absalom had achieved what many rebels never achieve.

He had taken Jerusalem.

David had fled.

The throne appeared to be within his grasp.

But appearances can be deceptive.

David was still alive.

David still had loyal supporters.
David still had mighty men.
David still had military experience.

As long as David lived, the war was not over.

Absalom understood this.

That is why he asked for counsel.

2 Samuel 16 (KJ2000)
20 Then said Absalom to Ahithophel, Give counsel among you what we shall do.

It was a wise request.

And Ahitophel gave a wise answer.

Counsel Number One - Burn the Bridge Behind You

Ahitophel’s first recommendation shocked many readers.

2 Samuel 16 (KJ2000)
21 And Ahithophel said unto Absalom, Go in unto thy father’s concubines, which he hath left to keep the house; and all Israel shall hear that thou art abhorred of thy father: then shall the hands of all that are with thee be strong.

At first glance, this advice appears immoral, offensive, and unnecessary.

It was certainly immoral.

But Ahitophel was not discussing morality.

He was discussing politics.

Absalom’s greatest danger at this point was hesitation.

People needed to know whether this rebellion was temporary or permanent.

• Would father and son eventually reconcile?

• Would David return and forgive him?

• Would the rebellion collapse after a few weeks?

Ahitophel’s advice was to take an action that would remove all uncertainty.

Once Absalom publicly took possession of the royal household, there would be no turning back.

Everyone would understand that reconciliation was impossible.

The rebellion would be seen as permanent.

Supporters who were sitting on the fence would be forced to choose a side.

Politically, it was brilliant. Cruel. Sinful. But brilliant.

Counsel Number Two - Kill David Tonight

The second piece of advice was even more impressive.

2 Samuel 17 (KJ2000)
1 Moreover Ahithophel said unto Absalom, Let me now choose out twelve thousand men, and I will arise and pursue after David this night:
2 And I will come upon him while he is weary and weak handed, and will make him afraid: and all the people that are with him shall flee; and I will smite the king only:

Notice how carefully Ahitophel had analysed the situation.

David was exhausted.
David was vulnerable.
David was running.

David’s forces had not yet regrouped.

Every hour increased David’s chances of survival.
Every day strengthened David’s position.

The solution was obvious.

Attack immediately.

Kill David.

End the war before it truly begins.

Even more remarkable was Ahitophel’s restraint.

He did not propose a massacre.
He did not propose a civil war.
He did not propose the destruction of David’s supporters.

His plan was simple.

Remove one man. Restore peace. Bring the country under Absalom’s sole rule without a real civil war.

The Bible records the reaction.

2 Samuel 17 (KJ2000)
4 And the saying pleased Absalom well, and all the elders of Israel.

Of course it did.

It was excellent advice.

Enter Hushai

Unfortunately for Absalom, David had anticipated this very problem.

Before leaving Jerusalem, David sent Hushai back into the city with a specific assignment.

Frustrate Ahitophel.

David understood something many leaders understand.

If he could neutralise Ahitophel, he had a chance.
If he could not, he was probably finished.

Hushai’s advice sounded impressive.

It appealed to Absalom’s pride.
It appealed to his ego.
It appealed to his desire for glory.

Gather all Israel.
Lead the army yourself.
Attack later with overwhelming force.

It sounded grand.
It sounded heroic.
It sounded kingly.

It was also the wrong advice.

Every day of delay was a gift to David.
Every day allowed David to regroup.
Every day allowed David’s experienced warriors to prepare for battle.

Ahitophel understood this.
Hushai understood this.
David understood this.

The only person who did not understand it was Absalom.

Hushai’s advice made it look like Ahitophel was looking to gain glory and become “the slayer of David“ at Absalom’s expense. It made Ahitophel look like a cheap schemer who wanted to get the credit for killing David. Absalom wanted to be king, but he also wanted to have the glory of killing a great man like David. He did not see that if he had delegated this task to someone like Ahitophel, the very throne he coveted would have easily been his.

Many times, an organisation fails because stakeholders within it are too focused on internal politics rather than external results. They forget that in a football team, who scored the goal is not as important as the fact that the goal was scored.

When The Wrong Advice Wins

One of the most fascinating verses in the entire story follows.

2 Samuel 17 (KJ2000)
14 And Absalom and all the men of Israel said, The counsel of Hushai the Archite is better than the counsel of Ahithophel. For the LORD had appointed to defeat the good counsel of Ahithophel, to the intent that the LORD might bring evil upon Absalom.

Notice what Scripture says.

It does not say Ahitophel’s counsel was bad. It does not say Hushai’s counsel was better.

It says God defeated the good counsel of Ahitophel.

The Bible itself acknowledges that Ahitophel was right.

The issue was not wisdom.
The issue was God’s purpose.

David was returning to the throne whether Absalom liked it or not, whether Ahitophel wanted it or not.

“Lord, Make Their Counsel Like the Counsel of Ahitophel”

Many Nigerian Christians have heard this prayer.

Some have prayed it themselves.

“Lord, make their counsel like the counsel of Ahitophel.”

The intention is usually clear.

They are asking God to frustrate the plans of their enemies.

But that is not actually what happened in Ahitophel’s story.

Ahitophel’s counsel was not foolish counsel.

It was not bad counsel. It was not confused counsel.

The Bible says exactly the opposite.

God called it good counsel.

Ahitophel was right.

His analysis was right.
His strategy was right.
His recommendation was right.

The problem was not the quality of the advice.

The problem was that God had already determined the outcome.

David would return to the throne.

Absalom would fall.

A more accurate prayer would be:

“Lord, frustrate every counsel that opposes Your purpose for my life.”

That is exactly what happened in this story.

God did not make Ahitophel foolish.

God simply refused to allow his good counsel to succeed.

When you ask God to make someone’s counsel like the counsel of Ahitophel, you’re asking God to make their counsel good.

A Lesson for Leaders

This is where the story becomes deeply practical.

Sometimes you can receive excellent advice and still not succeed because God is against your course of action.

Sometimes a plan can be flawless on paper and still fail because it opposes God’s purpose.

Sometimes the smartest person in the room can correctly analyse a situation and still lose.

Ahitophel teaches us the value of wisdom.

David teaches us the value of wise counsellors.

But the story also teaches something else.

Wisdom is powerful.
Counsel is powerful.
Strategy is powerful.

But none of them outrank the plans and purposes of God.

The wisest adviser in Israel could not save Absalom from a decision God had already made.

And that brings us to the final chapter of Ahitophel’s story.

What happens when a man whose counsel is almost never wrong discovers that he has been ignored?

The answer is tragic.

Continue in grace!

Paul makes an astonishing statement. He does not merely say that Christ was crucified for him. He says, “I am crucified with Christ.”

That is union with Christ.

The New Testament teaches that what happened to Christ becomes part of your spiritual history because you are in Him. His death was your death. His burial was your burial. His resurrection was your resurrection.

You did not physically hang on the cross with Jesus. This is a metaphor describing a spiritual reality. God identifies you so completely with Christ that His death marks the end of your old life.

Paul explains this further in Romans.

Romans 6 (KJ2000)
3 Know you not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?
4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that just as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
5 For if we have been united with him in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:
6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that we should no longer serve sin.

Notice Paul’s language.

You were crucified with Him.
You were buried with Him.
You were raised with Him.

These are different pictures describing different parts of the same reality.

You Were Crucified With Him

The cross tells you what happened to your old man.

Paul says, “our old man is crucified with him.”

God did not set out to repair the old man. He crucified him.

This matters because many believers still define themselves by who they were before Christ. They say, “I have always been like this.” “This is just my nature.” “People from my family are like this.”

But the Gospel gives you another way to describe yourself.

Your old man was crucified with Christ.

That does not mean temptation disappeared. It means sin no longer has the same claim over you. The person you were in Adam is no longer the person who defines you before God.

You Were Buried With Him

Paul goes further.

He says you were buried with Christ.

Burial speaks of finality.

We do not bury someone because we expect him to return to his former life. Burial says that an old chapter has ended.

Colossians 2 (KJ2000)
11 In whom also you are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:
12 Buried with him in baptism, in which also you are risen with him through the faith of the working of God, who has raised him from the dead.
13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, has he made alive together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;

Your old life is not something God expects you to keep dragging around.

It has been buried.

You may remember your past. Other people may remember it too. But your past is no longer the final authority on who you are.

God says something happened to you in Christ.

You died.

You were buried.

You Were Raised With Him

The Gospel does not stop at death and burial.

You were raised with Christ.

Ephesians 2 (KJ2000)
4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love with which he loved us,
5 Even when we were dead in sins, has made us alive together with Christ, (by grace you are saved;)
6 And has raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

You are not merely the old person with your sins forgiven.

You have been made alive with Christ.

This is why Romans says you should “walk in newness of life.”

Your behaviour should begin to reflect your new history.

You died with Christ, so sin should no longer rule you.

You were buried with Christ, so you should stop digging up the old man and introducing him as your true identity.

You were raised with Christ, so you should expect to live differently.

Learn To Think From Resurrection Ground

Many Christians spend their lives trying to become what God says they already are.

They are trying to kill the old man.

God says he was crucified.

They are trying to bury their past.

God says they were buried with Christ.

They are trying to obtain a new life.

God says they were made alive together with Christ.

Faith begins by agreeing with God.

When temptation comes, remember that the old man was crucified.

When your past tries to define you, remember that he was buried.

When you feel powerless, remember that you were raised with Christ.

These metaphors tell you how God wants you to see yourself.

Your story did not merely change when you believed in Jesus. In God’s reckoning, you became part of Christ’s story.

He was crucified.

You were crucified with Him.

He was buried.

You were buried with Him.

He was raised.

You were raised with Him.

Now walk in newness of life.

Continue in grace!

The Bible does not tell us how Ahitophel developed such extraordinary wisdom. It does not tell us how old he was when David first began listening to him. It does not tell us whether he held any official office in the kingdom.

What it does tell us is that his counsel was remarkably accurate.

This raises an important leadership question.

If God were to place an Ahitophel in your life, would you recognise him?

And if you did recognise him, would you know how to handle him?

As we have already established in this series, leadership is taught in Scripture primarily through examples.

1 Corinthians 10 (KJ2000)
11 Now all these things happened unto them for examples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages are come.

Romans 15 (KJ2000)
4 For whatsoever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

The story of Ahitophel was preserved for our learning.

Not merely to admire his wisdom.

But to learn how leaders should relate to unusually gifted advisers.

Recognizing an Ahitophel

Most Ahitophels do not announce themselves.

They rarely walk into a room and declare, “I am the wise counsellor God has sent.”

You discover them over time.
You discover them by watching patterns.

The first thing you notice is usually their accuracy.

Again and again they call situations correctly.
Again and again they see problems before others do.
Again and again they offer solutions that later prove right.

Everybody gets lucky once.

An Ahitophel gets it right repeatedly.

Not because he knows everything.
Not because he is always right.

But because he sees things that other people miss.

They Usually Speak Up

Many leaders make a mistake at this point.

They expect wise people to be quiet.

Ahitophels are rarely quiet.

Counsellors counsel.

That is what they do.

They have opinions.
They have observations.
They have recommendations.

Sometimes they speak when nobody asked them to.
Sometimes they volunteer advice.
Sometimes they interrupt discussions because they can already see where things are heading.

This can be irritating.

Especially for leaders who like being the smartest person in the room.

But it comes with the territory.

You cannot ask God for a counsellor and then complain when he counsels.

Do Not Punish Them for Missing It

One of the quickest ways to lose an Ahitophel is to humiliate him when he gets something wrong.

Even the best advisers miss it occasionally.
Even the best doctors make incorrect diagnoses.
Even the best lawyers lose cases.
Even the best investors make bad investments.

Nobody gets everything right.

The problem is that leaders often become accustomed to a counsellor’s accuracy.

When he finally gets one wrong, they react disproportionately.

A sarcastic comment.
A public embarrassment.
A dismissive response.

The wise adviser notices immediately.

And often becomes much quieter afterwards.

You may think you have solved a problem.

In reality, you have silenced one of your greatest assets.

Silence Is Often a Warning Sign

When an Ahitophel suddenly becomes quiet, pay attention.

Something has changed.

Perhaps he no longer feels welcome.
Perhaps he no longer feels heard.
Perhaps he has concluded that giving advice is pointless.
Perhaps he is now giving his best thinking elsewhere.

One of the lessons from David’s life is that Ahitophel’s wisdom did not disappear when he joined Absalom.

The gift remained.

Only the recipient changed.

Wise leaders understand this.

They know that gifted people cannot stop being gifted.

If their contribution is no longer valued in one place, it will often become valuable somewhere else.

Explain Yourself

No leader should blindly follow advice.

Not even advice from an Ahitophel.

There will be times when you decide to go in a different direction.

That is your responsibility as a leader.

But when you do, explain why.

An Ahitophel can handle disagreement.

What he struggles with is being ignored.

A simple conversation can preserve years of trust.

“Thank you for your advice. I understand your position. Here is why I have chosen another path.”

That conversation keeps the relationship healthy.

Without it, resentment can quietly grow.

Get the Counsel Before the Meeting

One of the most useful lessons I have learned is this.

The best place to receive counsel is often before the meeting, not during it.

If your Ahitophel always corrects you or disagrees with you publicly, eventually people will notice, and begin looking to him instead of to you.

That is not healthy for the leader, or for the organisation, or for the counsellor.

David had private access to Ahitophel. Notice the Bible does not contain any record of advice Ahitophel gave to David, suggesting his advice was always given privately.

Most wise leaders throughout history have had trusted advisers behind the scenes.

Public meetings are usually not the best place to discover what your adviser thinks.

You should already know.

Keep Them Close

Absalom understood something many leaders miss.

He understood Ahitophel’s value.

One of the first things he did after launching his rebellion was secure Ahitophel’s support.

He knew that winning Ahitophel to his side gave him a major advantage.

Wise leaders think the same way.

They do not take gifted advisers for granted.

They value them. They honour them. They listen carefully when they speak.

They understand that replacing a position is easy.

Replacing wisdom is not.

They Are Not the Holy Spirit

This may be the most important lesson of all.

An Ahitophel is not the Holy Spirit.

No matter how accurate his counsel may be.
No matter how impressive his track record may be.
No matter how often he gets things right.

His words are still human words.

His wisdom is still human wisdom.

His counsel should be weighed, considered, and prayed over.

The gift is valuable. The gift is powerful. The gift should be treasured.

But it should never replace your personal walk with God, or your need to hear from God.

Looking Ahead

In the next part of this series, we will examine Ahitophel’s actual counsel.

• What exactly did he tell David and Absalom?

• Why did people trust him so completely?

• Was his advice truly as good as Scripture suggests?

The answers may surprise you.

More importantly, they reveal why leaders throughout history have searched for their own Ahitophel.

Continue in grace!

One of the great truths of the New Testament is this: you are in Christ, and Christ is in you.

This is not a small doctrinal detail. It is one of the clearest ways the Bible explains salvation. God did not merely forgive you from a distance. He joined you to His Son. He placed you in Christ. He also caused Christ to dwell in you by the Spirit.

If you miss this, you may think of Christianity as mere forgiveness, or moral effort, or religious duty. But the New Testament presents something deeper. It presents shared life. It presents union.

You are not merely a person who believes certain facts about Jesus. You have been brought into Him. His life now defines your life.

You are in Christ

Paul states this plainly:

2 Corinthians 5 (KJ2000)
17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creation: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
18 And all things are of God, who has reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and has given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
19 That is, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and has committed unto us the word of reconciliation.

Notice where the change happens. It happens in Christ. Paul does not say, “If any man improves himself,” or, “If any man turns over a new leaf.” He says, if any man be in Christ.

This means your new identity is found in Him. Your acceptance before God is in Him. Your righteousness is in Him. Your standing is in Him. God does not deal with you as a man outside Christ trying to make yourself acceptable. He deals with you as one who has been brought into His Son.

Paul says the same thing elsewhere:

Ephesians 2 (KJ2000)
13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off are made near by the blood of Christ.
14 For he is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of partition between us;
15 Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; to make in himself of two one new man, so making peace;
16 And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:

You were once far off. Now you are near. The change is described with these words: in Christ Jesus.

That is your position. That is where grace has placed you.

Christ is in you

The New Testament also gives the other side of this truth. You are not only in Christ. Christ is also in you.

Paul writes:

Colossians 1 (KJ2000)
27 To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:
28 Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus:
29 For which I also labor, striving according to his working, who works in me mightily.

This is part of the mystery now revealed. Christ is in you. That means the Christian life is not merely external guidance. It is inward life. The One who saved you now dwells in you.

Paul says it even more personally:

Galatians 2 (KJ2000)
20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

This is not a special truth for apostles alone. It is the pattern of Christian living. The old man has been judged in the death of Christ. The life you now live is a life shaped by His indwelling presence.

Christ lives in you.

Jesus taught both sides of this union

This truth did not begin with Paul. Jesus Himself taught it.

John 14 (KJ2000)
20 At that day you shall know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you.

That verse is simple, but it is full of meaning. Christ says, you in me, and I in you. He does not present salvation as mere association. He presents it as union.

Jesus then gives the picture of the vine and the branches:

John 15 (KJ2000)
4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can you, except you abide in me.
5 I am the vine, you are the branches: He that abides in me, and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit: for without me you can do nothing.
6 If a man abides not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall be done unto you.

A branch has no life in itself. Its fruitfulness depends on its union with the vine. In the same way, your fruitfulness depends on your union with Christ. You do not produce spiritual life by strain. You bear fruit because His life is at work in you.

This helps you understand holiness. Holiness is not you trying to copy Jesus from a distance. It is Christ’s life expressing itself in you as you abide in Him.

Joined to the Lord

Paul gives one more striking statement:

1 Corinthians 6 (KJ2000)
17 But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit.

That is strong language. It does not mean the believer becomes Christ. It does not mean the distinction between the Lord and His people disappears. But it does mean that union with Christ is real, deep, and spiritual.

You are joined to the Lord.

This is why the Christian life cannot be reduced to rules. The Christian life is the outworking of a living union.

Why both truths matter

You need both sides of this truth.

If you only think about Christ being in you, you may become too inward and unstable. You may keep measuring your standing with God by your present feelings. On good days, you may feel close to God. On bad days, you may feel abandoned.

But Scripture teaches that you are in Christ. Your standing rests in Him, not in your changing emotions.

If you only think about being in Christ, but neglect that Christ is in you, then the Christian life may become distant and theoretical. You may speak of doctrine, but not of present life, present help, present power, and present fellowship.

The New Testament gives you both. You are in Christ, and Christ is in you.

Christ in you changes how you live

This truth affects daily life.

When temptation comes, you are not facing it as a man left to his own strength. Christ is in you.

When you pray, you do not pray as one outside the family trying to gain access. You are in Christ.

When you feel weak, you are not empty. Christ is in you.

When the accuser reminds you of your past, you do not answer from your past. You answer from your position in Christ.

When you seek to bear fruit, you do not begin with self-effort. You begin with abiding.

This truth also brings assurance. Many believers spend years asking God to bring them near, while Scripture says they have already been made near in Christ. Many cry for Christ to come close, while Scripture says Christ is in them.

You must learn to speak in agreement with the Word of God.

Jesus prayed for this union to be seen

Jesus prayed for those who would believe on Him:

John 17 (KJ2000)
21 That they all may be one; as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that you have sent me.
22 And the glory which you gave me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
23 I in them, and you in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that you have sent me, and have loved them, as you have loved me.

Notice those words again: I in them. This is the heart of union. Christ does not merely teach His people. He indwells them. He shares His life with them.

That is why the Christian faith is more than religion. It is more than ethics. It is more than belonging to a church community. At the centre of it is this miracle: the believer is in Christ, and Christ is in the believer.

What you should do with this truth

You should believe it.
You should meditate on it.
You should speak from it.
You should refuse to define yourself by your past, your weakness, or your feelings.

When Scripture says you are in Christ, believe it.
When Scripture says Christ is in you, believe it.

Let this truth shape your prayers.
Let it shape your worship.
Let it shape the way you resist sin.
Let it shape the way you endure trials.
Let it shape the way you think about identity.

You are not outside Christ trying to get in.

You are in Him.

And He is not far away, watching from a distance.

He is in you.

Continue in grace!

1 Corinthians 10 (KJ2000)
11 Now all these things happened unto them for examples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages are come.

Paul tells us that the events recorded in Scripture happened as examples for us. They are not merely historical records. They are leadership lessons.

Romans 15 (KJ2000)
4 For whatsoever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

The stories were written for our learning. If we pay attention, they can save us from costly mistakes and help us make wiser decisions.

One of the most fascinating leadership figures in the Bible is a man who rarely receives much attention. His name was Ahitophel.

Most people remember David, Goliath, Jonathan, Joab, Bathsheba, or Absalom. Ahitophel often remains hidden in the background. Yet his influence on the affairs of Israel was enormous.

The Bible describes him in terms that are almost unbelievable.

2 Samuel 16 (KJ2000)
23 And the counsel of Ahithophel, which he counselled in those days, was as if a man had enquired at the oracle of God: so was all the counsel of Ahithophel both with David and with Absalom.

That is one of the strongest endorsements any adviser has ever received in Scripture.

His counsel carried such accuracy, wisdom, and insight that listening to him was compared to seeking guidance directly from God.

Notice that Ahitophel was not a prophet. He was not a priest. He was not a king. He was a counsellor.

Yet he possessed a gift that made him one of the most influential men in the kingdom.

God Gives Leaders People

When leaders pray for wisdom, they often expect God to give them an idea.

Sometimes He does.

But often God answers that prayer by sending a person.

He sends someone who sees what others cannot see. Someone who can identify risks before they become disasters. Someone who can bring clarity when everyone else is confused.

That was Ahitophel.

Many leaders can point to people like this in their own lives. They may not occupy the highest office. They may not be the most visible people in the organisation. Yet their contribution is priceless.

Scripture repeatedly emphasises the value of wise counsel.

Proverbs 11 (KJ2000)
14 Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.

God never intended leaders to carry the burden of leadership alone.

No matter how gifted you are, there are things you cannot see. There are dangers you cannot detect. There are perspectives you do not possess.

Wise leaders understand this.

Foolish leaders do not.

Why Every Leader Needs an Ahitophel

Leadership creates blind spots.

The higher a person rises, the fewer people feel comfortable correcting them. As authority increases, honest feedback often decreases.

That is dangerous.

An Ahitophel can help a leader avoid costly mistakes.
An Ahitophel can see weaknesses in a plan before it is implemented.
An Ahitophel can recognise threats before they become crises.
An Ahitophel can provide perspective when emotions threaten good judgement.

David understood the value of Ahitophel’s counsel.

Absalom understood it too.

When Absalom rebelled against his father and attempted to seize the throne, one of the most important victories he achieved was winning Ahitophel to his side.

That tells us something significant.

Both David and Absalom understood that influence often follows wisdom.

Whoever had Ahitophel gained a strategic advantage.

Are There Ahitophels Today?

The title of this series was inspired by Tony Cooke’s book In Search of Timothy.

Just as leaders should be looking for faithful Timothys, they should also be looking for Ahitophels.

Not men who seek attention.
Not men who collect titles.
Not men who constantly remind everyone how wise they are.

But people whose judgement has been proven over time.

People whose words consistently bring clarity.

People whose counsel repeatedly proves sound.

They may not be famous.
They may not have a platform.
They may not even be among your closest friends.

Yet God may have placed them near you as one of His greatest gifts to your leadership.

The question is whether you will recognise them

Looking Ahead

In the next parts of this series, we will explore several important questions.

• How do leaders identify people with this gift?

• How should leaders manage and relate to them?

• What made Ahitophel’s counsel so effective?

• How did a man with such an extraordinary gift end his life in tragedy?

The story of Ahitophel contains lessons for leaders, advisers, pastors, executives, and anyone who influences decisions.

Before we continue, take a moment to reflect.

• Who are the Ahitophels in your life?

• Who are the people whose wisdom has repeatedly protected you from mistakes?

• Have you learned to value them?

• Or have you overlooked one of God’s greatest gifts to your leadership?

The leaders who succeed are not always the leaders with the greatest talent.

Often, they are the leaders who listen to the right voices.

Continue in grace!

The New Testament gives many pictures of your union with Christ. One of the clearest is this: Christ is the Head, and the church is His body.

This is not mere imagery. It is doctrine. It tells you how Christ relates to His people now. He is not distant from the church. He is not merely watching from heaven. He is joined to His people as the head is joined to the body.

When we say Christ is the Head, some immediately relate to that as saying He is in charge, or He is our leader. That is true, but that is not all there is to it. Christ is your Head the same way your boss or the President is your head, but he is your Head in a way that your boss or the President is not your head.

He is not just in charge. He is not just our leader. His life, His authority, His direction, and His supply are all bound up with the church, all connected to the church in a living way.

When Scripture says Christ is the Head, it is teaching you that the church does not exist on its own. The body does not invent its own purpose. The body does not direct itself. The body does not live independently from the head. In the same way, the church has no life, order, or true growth apart from Christ.

Christ Has Been Given as Head to the Church

Ephesians 1 (KJ2000)
20 Which he performed in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,
21 Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in that which is to come:
22 And has put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,
23 Which is his body, the fullness of him that fills all in all.

Paul begins with the exaltation of Christ. He was raised from the dead. He was seated at God’s right hand. He was lifted far above every principality and power. Then Paul says that this Christ was given to the church as Head.

That is a remarkable truth. The One who rules over all is the One joined to His people. The One who has all authority is the One from whom the church receives life and direction.

This means the church does not need another head.

No pastor is the head.
No bishop is the head.
No denomination is the head.
No tradition is the head.
No trend is the head.

Christ is the Head.

That sounds obvious, but many churches live as though the real head is human personality, habit, culture, or ambition. A church is only healthy when it is responding to Christ Himself.

The Head Must Have First Place

Colossians 1 (KJ2000)
17 And he is before all things, and by him all things are held together.
18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.
19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fullness dwell;
20 And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.

Paul says Christ is the Head of the body, the church. Then he explains what that means. It means that in all things He must have the preeminence.

Christ is not one important part of your life. He is not meant to be one influence among many. He is not there to support your plans while you remain in charge. If He is the Head, then He must have first place.

This is where many believers need to stop and think.

You may like Christ as Saviour, but resist Him as Head.
You may want comfort from Him, but not correction.
You may want blessings from Him, but not rule.
You may want help from Him, but not government.

But the head directs the body. If Christ is the Head, then He has the right to command.

If He says forgive, you must forgive.
If He says go, you must go.
If He says stop, you must stop.
If He says love, you must love.
If He says speak truth, you must not cling to lies.

Union with Christ is not sentimental. It has authority in it.

The Body Cannot Thrive Apart from the Head

A body cut off from its head may still look complete for a moment, but it has no life. Its condition is already settled. Separation from the head means death.

That is also true spiritually.

A church may have crowds, programmes, budgets, buildings, and noise. It may look active. But if it is disconnected from Christ in reality, it is already in decay. Motion is not the same as life.

A believer may also keep up appearances while living independently of Christ. But strength, clarity, and fruitfulness do not come from appearance. They come from living union with the Head.

This is why self-will is so dangerous. The Christian life was never designed to be lived independently. You were not saved to direct yourself. You were saved into union with Christ.

Growth Comes from the Head

Ephesians 4 (KJ2000)
15 But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, who is the head, even Christ:
16 From whom the whole body being fitly joined together and knit together by that which every joint supplies, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, makes increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

This passage shows that Christ is not only the ruler of the body. He is also the source of its increase.

The body grows from the Head. The supply comes from Him. The coordination comes from Him. The increase comes from Him.

That matters because many people speak of growth while thinking only of numbers, visibility, or activity. But New Testament growth is deeper than expansion. It is the increase that comes from proper connection to Christ.

When the body is rightly joined to the Head, each part begins to function as it should. Truth is spoken in love. Supply flows through the joints. Every part works in its measure. The whole body is built up.

This also means your place in the body matters. You are not meant to live as an isolated believer. You receive from the Head, and you contribute to the rest of the body. Union with Christ does not make you passive. It makes you responsive. It gives you a living place in something larger than yourself.

Christ’s Headship Is Loving, Not Harsh

Ephesians 5 (KJ2000)
23 For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the savior of the body.
29 For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourishes and cherishes it, even as the Lord the church:
30 For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones.

Some people hear the language of authority and think only of harshness. But Scripture does not present Christ that way.

He is the Head of the church, and He is the Saviour of the body. He nourishes and cherishes the church. His rule is not cold. His authority is not cruel. His leadership is full of wisdom, care, and life.

He does not exploit His body. He sustains it.

That should steady your heart. When Christ claims authority over your life, He is not trying to diminish you. He is leading you in truth. He knows what the body needs because He is the Head.

His commands are not hostile to your good. They are part of His care for you.

What This Means for You

If Christ is the Head, then several things follow.

1. You cannot live independently

Self-direction is not maturity. Independence from Christ is not strength. The body must remain under the head.

2. You must give Christ first place

He does not compete with other loyalties. He must have the preeminence in all things.

3. Real growth comes from union with Him

Lasting spiritual increase does not come from appearance, energy, or method alone. It comes from Christ.

4. You belong to something larger than yourself

You are not merely a private Christian having private experiences. You are a member of Christ’s body.

5. Christ cares for what belongs to Him

He nourishes and cherishes His body. He does not neglect His people.

The Church Must Stay Connected to Christ

This metaphor is simple, but it is searching.

The body exists to express the head. The church exists to express Christ.

That means the church must submit to His rule, depend on His life, receive His supply, and follow His direction. When the body stays connected to the Head, things work as they should. When that connection is ignored, confusion follows.

You do not need a substitute head. You do not need another source of life. You do not need another centre.

Christ is the Head.

That is union with Christ. He is above all, yet joined to His people. He rules the church, supplies the church, and cares for the church. The body belongs to Him, responds to Him, and grows from Him.

So do not treat Christ as a distant figure in heaven while you manage your own life below. Remember who He is to you now.

He is the Head.
You are joined to Him.
Your life is meant to remain under His direction.

Continue in grace!

Why did it take ten plagues before Pharaoh let Israel go? Why not one? Why not two? The answer is simple - pride. And if we are honest, we see the same traits in leaders today.

1. Pride resists until destruction

Every time Moses came with God’s word - “Let my people go” - Pharaoh resisted. After each plague, instead of yielding, he hardened his heart. He thought it was a contest between himself and Moses. He did not realise he was wrestling with the Almighty.

By the time he finally let Israel go, Egypt was devastated. Blood in the rivers, frogs, lice, flies, hail, locusts, darkness, and finally the death of every firstborn. Pride will never allow a quick surrender; it drags a man all the way to ruin.

2. Pride is dogmatic

When Pharaoh first heard Moses, his reply was: “Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the LORD, neither will I let Israel go” (Exodus 5:2).

That is the dogmatism of pride. It refuses to admit there might be another truth, another perspective, another God. Pharaoh’s problem was not lack of evidence; it was that he had already decided what could and could not be true.

Leaders fall into this trap when they cling to pet doctrines, unexamined assumptions, or “the way we’ve always done it.” Pride shuts the door to learning. Humility keeps the heart teachable.

3. Pride tends to assume the worst is past

Pride also carries a false bravado. It says, “The worst is over. If we survived that, we can survive anything else.”

That was Pharaoh’s mistake. After each plague lifted, he believed Egypt could weather the next one too. Frogs, lice, boils, hail - he thought, “We’re still standing. Nothing can break us.”

But pride mistakes survival for victory. Humility hears the warning in every crisis. Jesus said, “Go and sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you” (John 5:14). Each escape is a call to repentance, not a license for arrogance.

Pharaoh’s pride kept him thinking Egypt was invincible - until Egypt was broken.

4. Pride dismisses those sent to bless you

Pharaoh also despised the messengers of God. To him, Moses and Aaron were nobodies - irrelevant voices making demands in the name of an unknown God. He did not realise that Egypt’s survival depended on how he treated them.

Pride still does the same today. It makes pastors despise correction from younger ministers. It makes executives scorn the staff member whose advice could save the company. It makes husbands and wives ignore each other’s counsel, only to regret it later. It makes the wealthy look down on those of lesser means.

God often sends His blessings through people who do not look impressive. Rejecting them is rejecting Him.

5. Pride puts you against God Himself

Finally, the greatest tragedy of pride is this: “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6).

If a man resists you, you may overcome him. If devils resist you, you may overcome them. But how can anyone succeed when God Himself is resisting them?

That was Pharaoh’s true problem. He thought he was resisting Moses. In reality, he was up against God. And no leader, no matter how powerful, can win a contest against the Almighty.

The lesson for leaders

Pharaoh’s story is not preserved in Scripture to entertain us. It is written for our admonition (1 Corinthians 10:11). Leaders today must examine themselves:

• Am I resisting God’s will because of pride?

• Am I so dogmatic that I cannot hear fresh truth?

• Am I mistaking survival for victory?

• Am I dismissing the very people God has sent to bless me?

• Worst of all, is God Himself resisting me?

The way of pride leads only to ruin. The way of humility receives grace.

Pharaoh’s name lives on as a warning. Moses’ name lives on as a blessing. The difference between them was not just power, strategy, or history. It was humility versus pride.

May we learn the lesson well: God gives grace to the humble, but He resists the proud.

Continue in grace!

One of the clearest ways the New Testament explains this is through the metaphor of the body. The church is called the Body of Christ. That is not poetic flourish. It is a spiritual reality. It tells you something vital about Christ, about the church, and about your place in God’s purpose.

To understand your identity in Christ, you must pay attention to the metaphors the New Testament uses. They help you see different sides of the same reality. Christ is the Head. Believers are members. Together, we are His body. This metaphor explains union, order, function, dependence, and growth.

The Church is Christ’s Body

Ephesians 1 (KJ2000)
22 And has put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,
23 Which is his body, the fullness of him that fills all in all.

This is the starting point. The church is His body. Christ is the Head over all things to the church. That means the church is not a mere human society. It is not a voluntary association held together by common interest. It is the body of a living Christ.

When Scripture calls the church His body, it is showing you living union. A body is not separate from its head. It is joined to it. It receives direction from it. It expresses the life of it. In the same way, the church exists under the authority of Christ, by the life of Christ, and for the expression of Christ.

You must never think of the Christian life as a private arrangement between you and God with no serious connection to other believers. If you belong to Christ, you belong in His body.

Christ Alone is the Head

Colossians 1 (KJ2000)
17 And he is before all things, and by him all things are held together.
18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.

The metaphor of the body begins with the supremacy of Christ. He is the Head of the body, the church. The head governs the body. The head directs the body. The head gives coherence to the body.

This means Christ is not merely the founder of Christianity. He is not a historical teacher whose ideas we try to preserve. He is the living Head of His living body.

That has practical force. No pastor is the head of the church. No bishop is the head of the church. No denomination is the head of the church. No gifted minister is the head of the church. Christ alone is the Head.

Where this truth is ignored, trouble follows. Men begin to build around personality, office, or platform. But the body can only be healthy when it responds to the Head. A church is healthy to the degree that it lives under the rule of Christ.

You Are Joined to Other Believers

Romans 12 (KJ2000)
4 For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office:
5 So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.

This takes the truth further. We are not only joined to Christ, we are joined to one another in Christ. Scripture says we are members one of another. That is a strong statement. It means your life as a believer is connected to the lives of other believers.

The modern habit of detached Christianity does not fit this metaphor. You cannot rightly think, “I have Christ, so I do not need the church.” If you are in Christ, you have already been joined to His people.

This should shape your thinking. It should humble you. It should correct your independence. It should make you careful about how you treat other believers. To despise another member is to forget the nature of the body. To isolate yourself from the body is to act against your own identity.

Different Members, One Body

1 Corinthians 12 (KJ2000)
12 For as the body is one, and has many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.
13 For by one Spirit were we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.

A body has many members. That is the point. Unity does not mean sameness. The Spirit did not produce a church in which every believer has the same function, temperament, or emphasis. He produced one body with many members.

This matters because believers often fall into one of two errors. Some are tempted by envy. They wish they had another person’s grace, visibility, or role. Others fall into contempt. They look down on believers whose function seems less public or less impressive.

But a body needs variety. The eye is not the hand. The hand is not the foot. Difference is not disorder. Difference is part of the design.

1 Corinthians 12 (KJ2000)
18 But now has God set the members every one of them in the body, as it has pleased him.
21 And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of you: nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you.
25 That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another.
26 And whether one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honored, all the members rejoice with it.
27 Now you are the body of Christ, and members in particular.

God set the members in the body as it pleased Him. That means your place is not an accident. It also means you must not measure value by visibility. The body is meant to have mutual care, not rivalry. Shared suffering. Shared honour. Shared concern.

Every Member Has Supply

Ephesians 4 (KJ2000)
15 But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, who is the head, even Christ:
16 From whom the whole body being fitly joined together and knit together by that which every joint supplies, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, makes increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

This passage shows how the body grows. Growth comes from Christ, the Head. But the growth is worked out through the whole body as every joint supplies and every part works in its measure.

That is a needed correction. Many believers think church life is meant to be carried by a few visible people while the rest attend, observe, and consume. But that is not how a body works. A healthy body depends on the proper working of every part.

You should not ask only, “What am I getting?” You should also ask, “What am I supplying?” Your grace may strengthen another believer. Your encouragement may steady a weary saint. Your service may help hold a local assembly together. Your prayers may support work you never see.

You are not in the body as decoration. You are in the body as a living member with real supply.

The Body Must Hold the Head

Colossians 2 (KJ2000)
19 And not holding the Head, from whom all the body by joints and ligaments having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increases with the increase of God.

This is the final safeguard. The body must hold the Head. It is possible to have motion without life, structure without nourishment, activity without increase from God. But true increase comes from Christ.

That is why union with Christ remains central even when the focus is on the body. The body has no independent life. Its health depends on its connection to the Head. The church does not sustain itself by tradition, routine, or organisation. Its life comes from Christ.

This metaphor teaches two concepts at once. Look upward to Christ your Head. Look outward to the members of His body. Stay submitted to Him. Stay connected to them.

What This Means for You

If you are in Christ, you are not alone. You are part of His body. That means you must think beyond private spirituality.

It means you should care about the health of the church.
It means you should honour other members.
It means you should reject envy, pride, and contempt.
It means you should value your own place without trying to become someone else.
It means you should stay joined to the Head and faithfully supply your part.

This is part of the mystery now revealed in the New Testament. Christ did not save a people who are to have nothing in common. He formed a body. He is the Head. We are the members. Together, we are the Body of Christ.

Continue in grace!

But why are these stories preserved for us? Paul answers in Romans 15:4:

Romans 15 (KJV)
4 For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.”

The Spirit inspired Luke to record these parallels between Peter and Paul not for curiosity’s sake, but for our instruction.

The Mirrored Ministries of Peter and Paul

Luke seems deliberate in setting the two apostles side by side, almost as if to say: whatever Peter did, Paul also did. Their ministries run in parallel, and the pattern is impossible to miss:

• Healing the lame:

  • Peter and John healed the lame man at the Beautiful Gate (Acts 3:1–10).

  • Paul healed the lame man at Lystra (Acts 14:8–10).

• Healing the sick:

  • Peter healed Aeneas, bedridden for eight years (Acts 9:32–34).

  • Paul healed Publius’ father of fever and dysentery (Acts 28:7–8).

• Miraculous overflow:

  • Peter’s shadow healed the sick (Acts 5:15).

  • Paul’s handkerchiefs and aprons healed and drove out demons (Acts 19:11–12).

• Raising the dead:

  • Peter raised Dorcas/Tabitha (Acts 9:36–41).

  • Paul raised Eutychus (Acts 20:9–12).

• Confronting sorcery:

  • Peter rebuked Simon the sorcerer (Acts 8:18–23).

  • Paul rebuked Elymas the sorcerer (Acts 13:8–11).

• Deliverance from prison:

  • Peter was freed by an angel (Acts 12:6–11).

  • Paul and Silas were freed by an earthquake (Acts 16:25–26).

• Pronouncing judgment:

  • Peter declared judgment on Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1–11).

  • Paul declared temporary blindness on Elymas (Acts 13:8–11).

• Laying on of hands / Spirit received:

  • Peter and John laid hands on the Samaritans, who received the Spirit and spoke in tongues (Acts 8:14–17).

  • Paul laid hands on the Ephesian disciples, who received the Spirit and spoke in tongues (Acts 19:1–7).

• Leading Gentiles to Christ:

  • Peter led Cornelius and his household to Christ (Acts 10).

  • Paul led the Philippian jailor and his household to Christ (Acts 16:25–34).

• Preaching powerfully:

  • Peter’s sermon at Pentecost brought 3,000 to Christ (Acts 2:14–41).

  • Paul’s sermon at Pisidian Antioch brought multitudes of Jews and Gentiles to faith (Acts 13:44–48).

• Confronting Jewish authority:

  • Peter declared to the Sanhedrin, “We must obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29).

  • Paul declared to the council, “It is with respect to the hope of the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial” (Acts 23:6).

• Visions and divine guidance:

  • Peter’s vision of clean and unclean animals opened the gospel to Gentiles (Acts 10:9–16).

  • Paul’s vision of the Macedonian man opened the gospel to Europe (Acts 16:9–10).

• Dramatic calling:

  • Peter was called from fishing to follow Jesus (Luke 5:1–11).

  • Paul was called on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:1–6).

• Confronting wrongdoing:

  • Peter rebuked Simon Magus (Acts 8:20–23).

  • Paul rebuked Peter himself at Antioch (Galatians 2:11–14).

• Trials before rulers:

  • Peter was arrested, tried, and beaten by Jewish leaders (Acts 4–5).

  • Paul was arrested, tried before governors and kings, and sent to Caesar (Acts 21–26).

• Martyrdom tradition:

  • Peter was crucified in Rome.

  • Paul was beheaded in Rome.

The symmetry is so precise that a reader might conclude Luke’s motive was to elevate Paul to Peter’s level. But Paul does not leave that conclusion ambiguous — he declares it himself:

Galatians 2 (KJV)
8 For he that wrought effectually in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, the same was mighty in me toward the Gentiles.

From Rivalry to Recognition

Think about the timeline. While Peter was standing before the Sanhedrin, boldly saying, “We ought to obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29), Paul was still breathing threats and dragging Christians to prison (Acts 8:3). While Peter rejoiced that he was counted worthy to suffer shame for the name of Jesus, Paul was the church’s fiercest persecutor.

Yet God transformed Paul, raised him up as a preacher, and gave him a ministry that paralleled Peter’s step for step. Sometimes it even seemed to overshadow it. That could have been difficult for Peter to accept. Add to this the fact that Paul, in Galatians 2, recounts rebuking Peter to his face for hypocrisy.

Most men in Peter’s shoes would have bristled. Most leaders would have grown defensive. But Peter chose a higher road. He looked at Paul — the latecomer, the former persecutor, the sharp critic — and still called him “our beloved brother Paul.” More than that, Peter placed Paul’s writings on par with Scripture itself (2 Peter 3:15–16).

Lessons for Leaders

1. Celebrate grace in others. If God raises another voice alongside ours, let us rejoice rather than compete.

2. Respect even when corrected. Paul rebuked Peter, but Peter still honoured Paul. True greatness is not defensive.

3. See beyond the past. Peter could have judged Paul by his history as a persecutor. Instead, he saw God’s grace at work in his present.

4. True greatness is humble. Peter’s humility in affirming Paul may have been his greatest act of leadership.

Conclusion

The story of Peter and Paul is not just about two apostles. It is about grace, humility, and the Spirit’s power to unite different men in one mission. One was an early follower, the other a latecomer. One preached to Jews, the other to Gentiles. One walked with Jesus in Galilee, the other met Him on the road to Damascus. Their ministries often ran in tension.

But in the end, Peter looked at Paul and said, “our beloved brother… his letters… as the other Scriptures.”

And that is why their story is preserved for us. As Paul writes elsewhere:

1 Corinthians 10 (KJV)
11 Now all these things happened unto them for examples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.

Leaders, take note. Rivalry has no place in the kingdom. The way of Christlike leadership is humility — the kind Peter showed when he honoured Paul.

Continue in grace!

Paul wrote these words to the church at Corinth.

That matters.

Corinth was not a perfect church. They had divisions. They had strife. They had disorder. They had moral issues. They had confusion about spiritual gifts. Yet Paul did not begin by calling them failures. He called them sanctified in Christ Jesus. He called them saints.

That should get your attention.

Many believers hear the word saint and think of a special class of Christians. They think of a few exceptional men and women who lived far above everyone else. They think sainthood belongs to people with rare discipline, long prayers, unusual sacrifice, and spotless records.

But that is not how the New Testament uses the word.

In the New Testament, saints are believers in Christ. Ordinary believers. Growing believers. Corrected believers. Believers who still need teaching. Believers who still need discipline. Believers who still need to renew their minds.

A saint is not a spiritual celebrity.

A saint is one who belongs to God.

Saint Means Holy One

The word saint speaks of one who is holy. It points to someone set apart for God. It does not first describe your achievements. It describes your belonging.

Paul says the Corinthians were “sanctified in Christ Jesus.” That is the key.

They were not saints because they had behaved perfectly. They were saints because God had set them apart in Christ. Their identity came from union with Christ. Their conduct now needed to agree with that identity.

This is how the Gospel works.

God does not wait for you to become perfect before He names you. He names you in Christ, then teaches you to live according to that name.

You are not trying to become God’s property. You are God’s property.

You are not trying to become holy enough for God to claim you. God has claimed you in Christ, and because He has claimed you, holiness now fits you.

The New Testament Calls Believers Saints

Paul did not use the word saint in one isolated verse. He used it again and again when he wrote to churches.

Romans 1 (KJ2000)
7 To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 1 (KJ2000)
1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints who are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus:
2 Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

Philippians 1 (KJ2000)
1 Paul and Timothy, the servants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons:
2 Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

Paul addressed believers as saints in Rome, Ephesus, Philippi, and Corinth. These were real churches with real people. They had leaders, members, needs, questions, weaknesses, and pressures.

Yet heaven’s language over them was clear.

They were saints.

So, when you read the word saints in the New Testament, do not push it away from yourself. If you are in Christ, the word includes you.

You may still be growing.
You may still need correction.
You may still need your mind renewed.

But if you are in Christ, you are a saint.

You Are Set Apart in Christ

Holiness begins with God’s claim on you.

In Scripture, holy things were things set apart for God. Holy vessels were not common vessels. Holy places were not common places. Holy people were not common people. They belonged to God in a distinct way.

That is the idea behind sainthood.

You are not common anymore.

You have been brought into Christ. You have been separated from the world’s ownership. You have been joined to the Lord. God has placed His name on you.

This does not mean you are better than other people. It means you are no longer your own.

That truth should affect your choices.

You cannot carry your body anywhere you like. You cannot feed your mind with anything you like. You cannot build your life around every desire that rises in you. You are a saint. You belong to God.

The Father Has Made You Fit

Colossians 1 (KJ2000)
12 Giving thanks unto the Father, who has made us fit to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:
13 Who has delivered us from the power of darkness, and has translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:
14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:

Paul says the Father has made us fit.

That is strong language.

He does not say the Father is waiting for you to make yourself fit. He does not say the Father may accept you if you try hard enough. He says the Father has made us fit to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light.

How did He do it?

He delivered us from the power of darkness. He translated us into the kingdom of His dear Son. He redeemed us through the blood of Christ. He remitted our sins to us. He forgave our sins.

This is why you are a saint.

Your sainthood rests on the work of God in Christ. It rests on redemption. It rests on remission. It rests on the Father’s act of deliverance.

You did not crawl into the kingdom by personal effort. God translated you into the kingdom of His Son.

Stop speaking as though darkness still owns you.

You are one of the saints in light.

Saints Still Need Correction

Some people struggle with this teaching because they know believers still fail.

That is true.

Saints can behave wrongly. Saints can think wrongly. Saints can speak wrongly. Saints can sin. Saints can need strong correction. The church at Corinth proves this.

But Paul did not correct the Corinthians by denying their identity. He corrected them by appealing to it.

He did not say, “Because you failed, you are no longer saints.”

He said, in effect, “Because you are saints, this behaviour does not fit you.”

That is the pattern of New Testament correction.

God tells you who you are in Christ. Then He calls you to live in line with it.

This protects you from two errors.

The first error is pride. You do not boast as though you made yourself holy. God set you apart in Christ.

The second error is shame. You do not sink into the thought that failure defines you. Christ defines you. Now rise and walk according to who you are.

Holiness Should Fit Your Life

Ephesians 5 (KJ2000)
1 Be you therefore followers of God, as dear children;
2 And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us, and has given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling fragrance.
3 But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becomes saints;
4 Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not fitting: but rather giving of thanks.

Paul says certain things should not be named among believers, “as becomes saints.”

That phrase is important.

There is behaviour that fits saints. There is behaviour that does not fit saints.

Fornication does not fit saints. Uncleanness does not fit saints. Covetousness does not fit saints. Filthiness does not fit saints. Foolish talking does not fit saints. Sin is not merely wrong because it breaks a rule. It is wrong because it contradicts who you are in Christ.

This is where identity becomes practical.

You do not reject sin because you are trying to audition for sainthood. You reject sin because you are a saint.

A police officer should not dress like a robber. A judge should not speak like a criminal. A married person should not live like a single person. A single person should not live like a married person. Identity places a demand on conduct.

In the same way, a saint should not live like someone who does not belong to God.

God’s Call Produces Holy Conduct

1 Peter 1 (KJ2000)
14 As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance:
15 But as he who has called you is holy, so be holy in all manner of conduct;
16 Because it is written, You will be holy; for I am holy.

Peter speaks to believers as obedient children. Then he gives them a clear command. Do not shape your life according to your former lusts. Be holy in all manner of conduct.

Why?

Because the One who called you is holy.

Christian holiness is not imitation without relationship. It is family resemblance. God is your Father. You are His child. He is holy, so holiness should show in your conduct.

You cannot claim the Father and despise the family likeness.

This does not mean you become holy by pretending. It means you take your identity seriously. You stop dressing old desires in new excuses. You stop calling former lusts normal. You stop making peace with what Christ died to deliver you from.

You are a saint.

Live like one.

You Belong to a Holy People

Ephesians 2 (KJ2000)
18 For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.
19 Now therefore you are no more strangers and sojourners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God;
20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone;

You are not a saint in isolation.

You are a fellow citizen with the saints. You are part of the household of God. You belong to a people built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Jesus Christ Himself as the chief cornerstone.

This means your identity also affects how you treat other believers.

The believer beside you in church is not a random attendee. He is one of the saints. The sister who is still learning is one of the saints. The brother who needs correction is one of the saints. The young believer who does not yet know how to speak, serve, or stand is one of the saints.

This should shape church life.

We should correct one another with honour. We should serve one another with patience. We should forgive one another with understanding. We should not treat lightly what God has set apart.

The saints are God’s people.

Handle them with care.

God Has an Inheritance in the Saints

Ephesians 1 (KJ2000)
17 That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:
18 The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of his calling, and what is the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,
19 And what is the exceeding greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,

Paul prayed that believers would know the riches of the glory of God’s inheritance in the saints.

Think about that.

God speaks of an inheritance in His people. He sees value in the saints. He sees glory in what He has made us in Christ. He is not ashamed to claim us.

Many believers speak of themselves in smaller language than Scripture uses. They speak as though they are still outside. They speak as though God barely tolerates them. They speak as though Christ has not washed them, claimed them, and joined them to Himself.

You need to let Scripture correct your speech.

If God calls you a saint, do not keep calling yourself common.
If God calls you accepted, do not keep calling yourself rejected.
If God calls you light, do not keep speaking as though darkness still owns you.

Do Not Use the Word Carelessly

There is another side to this.

If you are a saint, do not use that word as a slogan. Do not use it as a religious label while ignoring the life it demands.

A saint belongs to God.

That means your body belongs to God. Your time belongs to God. Your money belongs to God. Your speech belongs to God. Your relationships belong to God. Your ministry belongs to God.

You cannot say, “I am a saint,” and then live as though God has no claim on you.

Grace does not make holiness irrelevant. Grace makes holiness possible.

You are not holy because you never failed. You are holy because God set you apart in Christ. Now your life must agree with His claim.

Say What God Says

The Christian life begins to change when you learn to agree with God.

Do not wait for your feelings to confirm what Scripture has said. Feelings can be slow students. Your mind must sit under the Word of God.

When Scripture calls the believer a saint, agree with it.

Say it with reverence.
Say it with humility.
Say it with faith.

“I am a saint in Christ.”

That is not pride. Pride says, “I made myself holy.” Faith says, “God has set me apart in Christ.”

That confession should steady you. It should sober you. It should call you upward. It should make sin look strange. It should make holiness look normal.

You are not trying to become God’s property.

You are His.

You are not common.

You are set apart.

You are not auditioning for sainthood.

In Christ, you are a saint.

Continue in grace!

A leader may never say it aloud. He may even appear humble. Yet deep inside, he begins to believe that he is indispensable. He sees himself as the only one who truly understands the vision. He struggles to trust others with responsibility. He feels that if he steps away, everything will fall apart.

This was one of Elijah’s greatest mistakes.

Leadership Is Taught by Example

The Bible is God’s leadership handbook. Yet it does not primarily teach leadership through commands, formulas, or management theories. It teaches leadership through the lives of men and women whose successes and failures have been preserved for our learning.

Romans 15 (KJ2000)
4 For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

Paul tells us that the stories recorded in Scripture were written to teach us. We are meant to study them and learn from them.

Likewise:

1 Corinthians 10 (KJ2000)
11 Now all these things happened unto them for examples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages are come.

The Bible teaches leadership largely by example, not by precept. When we study the lives of biblical leaders, we discover principles that apply just as much today as they did thousands of years ago.

The story of Elijah in 1 Kings 19 contains one such lesson.

After Great Success Came Great Discouragement

Elijah had just experienced one of the most dramatic victories in the entire Bible.

On Mount Carmel, God answered his prayer by fire. Hundreds of false prophets were exposed. The nation witnessed the power of the living God. Soon afterwards, rain returned to the land after years of drought.

From a leadership perspective, Elijah was at the peak of his ministry.

Then Jezebel threatened him.

Instead of celebrating victory, Elijah fled into the wilderness. There, discouraged and exhausted, he began to see himself in a way that God did not.

1 Kings 19 (KJ2000)
10 And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.

Notice Elijah’s assessment of the situation.

“I, even I only, am left.”

Elijah believed he was the last faithful servant of God in Israel. In his mind, the future of God’s work rested entirely on his shoulders.

That was not true.

The Danger of Thinking You Are Indispensable

Many leaders fall into exactly the same trap.

A pastor begins to believe the church cannot function without him.

A business owner becomes convinced that nobody else can make decisions correctly.

A ministry leader refuses to delegate because he assumes everyone else will fail.

A department head insists on approving every detail because he trusts nobody else.

At first glance, this may look like commitment. In reality, it often reveals a lack of trust, both in people and in God.

Whenever a leader begins to think that everything depends on him, he has started developing a Messiah complex.

He has forgotten who the real Messiah is.

God Has More People Than You Know

God’s response to Elijah was both gentle and corrective.

1 Kings 19 (KJ2000)
18 Yet I have left me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him.

Elijah thought there was one faithful servant.

God said there were seven thousand.

Elijah was judging the situation based on what he could see. God was looking at realities that Elijah knew nothing about.

This remains true today.

You may know the people who disappointed you.

You may know the people who left.

You may know the people who failed.

What you do not know is whom God is preparing. You do not know whom God is training in secret. You do not know whom God intends to raise next.

God’s resources are always greater than your awareness of them.

God’s Work Is Bigger Than Any One Leader

After correcting Elijah’s perspective, God instructed him to anoint Elisha.

The message was unmistakable.

The work would continue.

The ministry would continue.

The purposes of God would continue.

God was reminding Elijah that His plans are not dependent upon any one individual.

Every leader is temporary.

Every position is temporary.

Every assignment is temporary.

Only God’s purposes are permanent.

One of the healthiest realisations a leader can have is this: God was accomplishing His purposes before you arrived, and He will continue accomplishing them after you leave.

Great Leaders Build Successors

One reason many organisations struggle is that leaders build dependence instead of developing successors.

They become the centre of every decision.

They keep knowledge to themselves.

They refuse to mentor emerging leaders.

They feel threatened when capable people appear.

Such leaders may remain important for a season, but they weaken the organisation they lead.

Great leaders do the opposite.

Moses prepared Joshua.

David prepared Solomon.

Paul prepared Timothy and Titus.

The greatest proof of leadership is not how much depends on you today. It is how well the work continues tomorrow.

A Leadership Lesson from Elijah

Elijah’s mistake was not his passion. His mistake was believing that he was the only person God could use.

Many leaders still make the same mistake.

Whenever you begin to think that nobody can replace you, remember God’s answer to Elijah.

You may see one person.

God sees seven thousand.

You may see scarcity.

God sees abundance.

You may think the future depends on you.

God knows better.

The Kingdom belongs to Him, not to us. Our responsibility is not to become indispensable. Our responsibility is to be faithful, develop others, and leave the work stronger than we found it.

Continue in grace!

Paul begins with grace before he speaks of works.

That order matters.

You are not saved by works. You are saved by grace through faith. Salvation is not your achievement. It is God’s gift. No man can boast before God as though he saved himself, changed himself, or made himself acceptable.

Then Paul says something powerful.

You are God’s workmanship.

That is the metaphor in this passage.

Workmanship is the product of someone’s skill, labour, design, and intention. It points to the maker. It reveals the mind behind the work. It carries the mark of the one who made it.

When Scripture says you are God’s workmanship, it is teaching you how to see yourself in Christ.

You are not self-made.
You are not man-made.
You are God-made in Christ.

God Made You New in Christ

Many believers still think of Christianity as self-improvement.

They think God took the old man, cleaned him up, and gave him better habits.

That is not what the New Testament teaches.

2 Corinthians 5 (KJ2000)
17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creation: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

The believer is a new creation.

That means God did more than forgive your sins. He gave you a new life in Christ. He changed your identity. He brought you into union with Christ and made you alive unto God.

This is why you must stop defining yourself by your past.

Your old sins do not have the final word.

Your old failures do not have the final word.

Your family background does not have the final word.

Your feelings do not have the final word.

God does.

And God says you are His workmanship.

Workmanship Speaks of Design

God does not work by accident.

He does not save a man and then wonder what to do with him.

Paul says you were created in Christ Jesus unto good works. That means your new life has direction. God made you new for a way of life that agrees with His nature.

Good works do not save you.
Good works flow from the life God has given you.

That distinction matters.

Religion says, “Do good works so that God will accept you.”

The Gospel says, “God has accepted you in Christ, now walk in the good works that fit your new life.”

If you reverse that order, you will live under pressure.

You will try to earn what God has already given.

You will turn obedience into payment.
You will turn service into proof.
You will turn holiness into fear.

But when you see the order in Ephesians 2, peace returns. Grace comes first. New creation follows. Good works then become the fruit of God’s workmanship in you.

Grace Does Not Make You Idle

Some people think grace makes believers careless.

Paul does not teach that.

The same passage that says salvation is not of works also says you were created unto good works. Grace does not remove purpose. Grace gives purpose its proper foundation.

You do not work for life.

You work from life.

You do not serve God so that you can become His workmanship.

You serve God because you are His workmanship.

This is a major difference.

A servant who is trying to earn acceptance will soon become tired, proud, bitter, or afraid. But a son who knows he is accepted can serve with joy. He is not trying to buy love. He is responding to love.

This is how grace trains the believer.

It teaches you to live from what God has done, not from what you are trying to prove.

God Prepared a Walk for You

Paul says God has before ordained that we should walk in good works.

He does not say we should occasionally visit them.

He says we should walk in them.

A walk speaks of a pattern. It speaks of daily life. It speaks of steady movement in a particular direction.

The Christian life is not a performance on special days. It is not a Sunday identity. It is a walk.

You walk in love.
You walk in truth.
You walk in forgiveness.
You walk in patience.
You walk in holiness.
You walk in service.

These things do not make you God’s workmanship. They show that you are God’s workmanship.

A mango tree does not bear mangoes to become a mango tree. It bears mangoes because it is a mango tree. In the same way, the believer does not produce good works to become new. He produces good works because God has made him new in Christ.

The Workmanship Points to the Worker

A work of art points to the artist.

A building points to the builder.

A song points to the composer.

The believer points to God.

This should cure pride.

If your life bears fruit, thank God.
If you are growing in character, thank God.
If you are walking in wisdom, thank God.
If you are useful in ministry, thank God.

The workmanship does not boast over the Maker. The workmanship displays the Maker.

That does not mean you have no responsibility. You must yield to God. You must renew your mind. You must obey the Word. You must walk in the Spirit.

But even your growth must not become a reason for boasting. God began the work. God sustains the work. God receives the glory.

God Does Not Abandon His Work

This truth also gives comfort.

If you are God’s workmanship, then God is not careless with you.

He did not begin His work in you so He could abandon it halfway.

Philippians 1 (KJ2000)
6 Being confident of this very thing, that he who has begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:

God began the good work.

God will perform it.

That does not make you passive. It makes you confident.

You may still need to grow. You may still need to renew your mind. You may still need to deal with wrong habits, wrong thinking, and wrong speech. But you are not hopeless. You are not a failed project in God’s hands.

You are His workmanship.

This means your growth is not proof that God failed. Your growth is proof that God is at work.

A young believer is God’s workmanship.
A growing believer is God’s workmanship.
A mature believer is God’s workmanship.

The difference is not identity. The difference is expression.

The mature believer has learned to walk more fully in what God has already made true in Christ.

This Truth Kills Comparison

Comparison becomes weaker when identity becomes clearer.

You do not need another believer’s gift to have value.
You do not need another believer’s platform to have purpose.
You do not need another believer’s personality to have usefulness.

God knows His work.

He did not make every believer the same in function. But He made every believer new in Christ. Your place in the body may differ from another person’s place, but your identity is not inferior.

You are God’s workmanship.

Stop trying to be a copy.

Learn Christ.

Renew your mind.

Serve faithfully.

Walk in the good works God prepared for you.

A person who understands workmanship stops competing with other workmanships. He starts asking, “Lord, what have You made me in Christ, and how should I walk in it?”

Workmanship and the Mystery of Christ

This metaphor helps us understand the mystery of Christ.

The mystery is not that God helps bad men behave better. It is that God creates a new man in Christ.

He takes Jew and Gentile and makes one new man in Christ.

He takes sinners and makes them saints.

He takes those who were dead in sins and makes them alive together with Christ.

He does not merely change your conduct from the outside. He gives you a new identity in Christ and teaches you to walk in line with it.

That is why the New Testament uses many metaphors.

You are a new creation.

You are born of God.

You are a temple of the Holy Spirit.

You are a member of Christ’s body.

You are God’s workmanship.

Each metaphor shows one part of the same reality. In Christ, God has done something real, deep, and lasting.

You must learn to see yourself through what God has said.

See Yourself Correctly

Many believers try to change before they learn who they are.

But identity comes before conduct.

If you see yourself wrongly, you will live wrongly. If you see yourself mainly as a failure, you will struggle to rise above failure. If you see yourself mainly as your past, you will keep returning to your past.

But when you see yourself in Christ, faith rises.

You can say, “I am God’s workmanship.”

That statement is not pride. It is agreement with Scripture.

You are not saying you made yourself.

You are saying God made you new.

You are not saying you have arrived.

You are saying God has begun a good work in you and He will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.

Live from this truth.

You are His workmanship.

You were created in Christ Jesus unto good works.

God has prepared a walk for you.

Now walk in it.

Continue in grace!

That is a serious leadership lesson.

Sometimes, delay does not come because you are wrong. Sometimes, delay comes because you are joined to the wrong people.

Joshua and Caleb were ready for Canaan. Their team was not. They had the right report. Their team had the wrong spirit. They had faith. Their team had fear. They were prepared to move. Their team wanted to return to Egypt.

So, Joshua and Caleb waited.

The delay was not personal failure. It was team failure.

That should make every leader careful.

The Story Was Written for Our Learning

1 Corinthians 10 (KJ2000)
11 Now all these things happened unto them for examples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages are come.

The wilderness story is not a tale for children. It is instruction for leaders.

It teaches us how people respond to pressure. It teaches us how fear spreads. It teaches us how reports shape culture. It teaches us how a whole people can stand near promise and still turn back.

Israel had seen God’s power. They saw the plagues in Egypt. They saw the Red Sea open. They ate manna. They drank water from the rock. They followed the pillar of cloud by day and fire by night.

Yet, when they reached the border of Canaan, they believed fear more than they believed God.

That is the danger of wrong voices.

They Saw the Same Land

Moses sent twelve men to search the land of Canaan. These were not random men. They were leaders.

Numbers 13 (KJ2000)
3 And Moses by the commandment of the LORD sent them from the wilderness of Paran: all those men were heads of the children of Israel.

That detail matters.

The wrong people were not outside the structure. They were inside it. They had office. They had access. They had influence. They had the trust of the people.

They all saw the same land. They all saw the same fruit. They all saw the same cities. They all saw the same giants. But they did not return with the same report.

Ten men saw giants and forgot God. Joshua and Caleb saw giants and remembered God.

Numbers 13 (KJ2000)
30 And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.

Caleb did not deny the facts. He did not say there were no giants. He did not say the cities were not walled. He did not pretend the assignment was easy.

He simply refused to interpret the assignment without God.

That is faith.

Faith does not deny reality. Faith gives God His proper place in reality.

A Wrong Report Can Poison the Room

The ten spies gave an evil report.

Numbers 13 (KJ2000)
31 But the men that went up with him said, We are not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.

That sentence changed everything.

They did not only say the land was hard to take. They said Israel could not take it.

That is where many teams fail.

It is one thing to say, “This will be difficult.” It is another thing to say, “This cannot be done.”

The first may be wisdom. The second may be unbelief.

Leaders must know the difference.

A good report does not hide problems. A good report tells the truth without killing faith. A bad report can poison the room. It can make strong people weak. It can make ready people afraid. It can make a whole team retreat from what God has already given.

This is why leaders must be careful who writes the report.

Reports are not neutral. They carry spirit.

The Congregation Chose Fear

Israel believed the wrong report.

Numbers 14 (KJ2000)
1 And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night.

They were close to Canaan, but they cried like defeated people.

Fear changed the atmosphere.

Fear made them forget deliverance. Fear made Egypt look safe. Fear made slavery look better than promise. Fear made them speak against Moses. Fear made them question God’s purpose.

They even wanted a new leader who would take them back to Egypt.

Numbers 14 (KJ2000)
4 And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.

That is what fear does.

It does not only resist the future. It romanticises the past. It makes people prefer familiar bondage to unfamiliar obedience.

Many teams do this.

They say they want growth, but they resist the decisions growth requires. They say they want change, but they defend the culture that keeps them small. They say they want Canaan, but their hearts still trust Egypt.

You cannot build the future with people who are emotionally tied to the past.

Joshua And Caleb Tried to Correct the Culture

Joshua and Caleb did not keep quiet.

Numbers 14 (KJ2000)
6 And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were of them that searched the land, tore their clothes:
7 And they spoke unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land.

They tried to correct the atmosphere. They reminded the people that the land was good. They reminded them that the Lord was able to bring them in. They warned them not to rebel against God.

Numbers 14 (KJ2000)
8 If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it to us; a land which flows with milk and honey.
9 Only rebel not you against the LORD, neither fear you the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defense is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not.

Joshua and Caleb were not reckless. They were not noisy optimists. They were not ignoring risk.

They simply knew that God was with them.

That was the difference.

The ten spies interpreted the land from fear. Joshua and Caleb interpreted the land from covenant.

The people did not receive it.

Numbers 14 (KJ2000)
10 But all the congregation said to stone them with stones. And the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of meeting before all the children of Israel.

This is a hard leadership lesson.

Sometimes the people you try to help will attack you because you refuse to agree with their fear.

They may call your faith pride. They may call your courage foolishness. They may call your obedience insensitivity.

But if God has spoken, do not let the crowd edit your obedience.

They Were Right, But They Still Waited

Joshua and Caleb were right.

God confirmed it.

Numbers 14 (KJ2000)
24 But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and has followed me fully, him will I bring into the land in which he went; and his descendants shall possess it.

Caleb had another spirit.

That phrase matters.

He did not merely have a different opinion. He carried a different spirit.

The ten spies carried fear. Caleb carried faith. The ten spies saw themselves as grasshoppers. Caleb saw Israel as able. The ten spies saw giants as the end of the story. Caleb saw giants as the next victory.

Joshua also survived.

Numbers 14 (KJ2000)
38 But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were of the men that went to search the land, lived still.

They lived. But they waited.

They did not die in the wilderness, but they walked in it. They did not lose the promise, but they lost time. They did not miss Canaan, but they had to wait for a generation that should have entered with them to pass away.

That is sobering.

A man can be right and still be delayed by the people he is joined to.

A leader can be ready while his team is not ready. A vision can be valid while the people carrying it lack faith. A promise can be real while the company around it lacks courage.

Wrong Team Members Waste Time

The wrong team can turn a short journey into a long wilderness.

They waste time. They drain strength. They create needless battles. They turn obedience into debate. They turn movement into meetings. They turn instruction into argument. They turn faith into endless analysis.

They make leaders spend years solving problems that should never have existed.

Joshua and Caleb should have entered Canaan much earlier. But they belonged to a nation that refused to move when God said move.

This is why team selection matters.

This is why leadership appointments matter.

This is why culture matters.

This is why you must not give influence only because a person is gifted, senior, available, familiar, or popular.

The ten spies were leaders. That made their unbelief more dangerous.

A fearful leader does not fear alone. He spreads fear. A doubtful leader does not doubt alone. He multiplies doubt. A leader with an evil report can turn a whole people against the will of God.

Be Careful Who Gets A Voice

Every team has voices.

Some voices build faith. Some voices spread fear. Some voices make people bold. Some voices make people small. Some voices clarify the assignment. Some voices confuse the people. Some voices prepare people to obey. Some voices prepare people to retreat.

Be careful who gets a voice in a critical season.

The person who explains the problem can shape how people respond to it. The person who presents the report can determine whether people see the future with faith or fear.

The ten spies did not merely give information. They gave interpretation.

Their interpretation was wrong. Their wrong interpretation delayed a whole nation.

Leaders must watch this.

Do not allow people who lack faith for the future to define the future for everybody else.

The Giants Were Not The Real Problem

The giants did not stop Israel.

The walled cities did not stop Israel. The sons of Anak did not stop Israel. The land did not refuse Israel.

Their unbelief stopped them.

That should make every leader tremble.

Many times, the greatest threat to a vision is not outside the camp. It is inside the team.

It is not the economy. It is not the opposition. It is not the size of the assignment. It is not the strength of the competition.

It is the unbelief of the people who should carry the vision.

God had already given the land. The people refused to enter it.

So a promise can be available and still not be possessed. A door can be open and still not be entered. A season can be ready and still be wasted.

Not because God failed.

Because people refused to believe.

Ask Hard Questions About Your Team

Leaders must ask hard questions.

Can this person believe God? Can this person carry pressure without spreading panic? Can this person tell the truth without killing faith? Can this person see problems without surrendering to them? Can this person disagree without destroying confidence?

Can this person interpret difficulty correctly? Can this person follow fully? Can this person say, “We are well able,” when others say, “We cannot”?

You do not need reckless people. You do not need noisy people. You do not need people who deny problems.

You need people who see God clearly enough to interpret problems correctly.

That is different.

Caleb was not careless. Joshua was not foolish. They saw the land. They saw the giants. They saw the risk.

But they also remembered the God who sent them.

That is the kind of person you want on your team.

Caleb Still Wanted The Mountain

Forty-five years later, Caleb still wanted what God promised him.

Joshua 14 (KJ2000)
10 And now, behold, the LORD has kept me alive, as he said, these forty and five years, even since the LORD spoke this word unto Moses, while the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness: and now, lo, I am this day eighty and five years old.
11 As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in.
12 Now therefore give me this mountain, of which the LORD spoke in that day; for you heard in that day how the Anakim were there, and that the cities were great and fortified: if so be the LORD will be with me, then I shall be able to drive them out, as the LORD said.

Caleb did not spend his old age complaining about the delay.

He still wanted the mountain.

His faith did not expire. His courage did not reduce. His appetite for inheritance did not die.

That is powerful.

But forty years is still forty years.

Delay has a cost.

Even when God preserves you, time wasted by wrong people is still time you cannot recover.

That is why you must be careful who you build with.

Choose People with Another Spirit

Do not only ask if a person is talented.

Ask what spirit they carry.

Do not only ask if they are experienced.

Ask what report they give under pressure.

Do not only ask if they are available.

Ask whether they can help the assignment move forward.

Do not only ask if they have been around for years.

Ask whether they still believe God for the future.

Some people have experience, but no faith. Some have titles, but no courage. Some have history, but no hunger. Some have access, but no alignment. Some have position, but no obedience.

You need people with another spirit.

You need people who follow God fully. You need people who do not forget God’s promise when they see giants. You need people who can face facts without bowing to fear.

The Right People Help You Enter

The wrong people can make you wait outside what God has already given.

The right people help you enter.

Choose carefully. Pray carefully. Appoint carefully. Listen carefully.

Do not give strategic influence to people who reduce faith in the room. Do not build the future with people who still trust Egypt. Do not enter a critical season with people who interpret every giant as a reason to retreat.

The Promised Land was real. The fruit was real. The giants were real.

But God was also real.

Joshua and Caleb knew this.

The tragedy is that they waited forty years because the people around them refused to believe it.

Sometimes, Joshua and Caleb wait, not because they lack faith, but because they have the wrong team members.

Continue in grace!

That matters.

The New Testament does not merely say that light is around you, or ahead of you, or available to you. It says something far stronger. It says light is now part of who you are in Christ. This is not just guidance for your path. It is identity language.

Many believers still think of themselves mainly in terms of weakness, struggle, and limitation. They know they have been forgiven, but they do not yet think of themselves the way the apostles described them. Yet the New Testament repeatedly uses metaphors to define the new creation, and one of those metaphors is light.

You are not trying to become light by effort. You are light already, and your life is meant to agree with that reality.

Light Is Not Just Around You; It Is What You Are

Paul says it plainly.

Ephesians 5 (KJ2000)
8 For you were once darkness, but now are you light in the Lord: walk as children of light.

Notice the force of that statement. Paul does not merely say you were in darkness and now you are in light, though that is also true. He says, “You were once darkness, but now are you light in the Lord.” This is not only a change of location. It is a change of nature and identity.

Before Christ, darkness was not just the atmosphere around us. It shaped our understanding, desires, conduct, and direction. But in Christ, something radical has happened. The believer has been brought into union with the Lord, and that union is described as light.

When Paul says, “walk as children of light,” he is not telling believers to pretend to be something they are not. He is telling them to live consistently with what they have become.

That is how New Testament metaphors work. They do not merely decorate doctrine. They explain it.

Jesus First Declared It, Then Shared It

Jesus said of Himself:

John 8 (KJ2000)
12 Then spoke Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

He is the light of the world. In Him there is no darkness at all. He reveals the Father, exposes error, destroys deception, and gives life.

But then Jesus says something astonishing to His disciples:

Matthew 5 (KJ2000)
14 You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.
15 Neither do men light a lamp, and put it under a bushel, but on a lampstand; and it gives light unto all that are in the house.
16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.

This is one of the great wonders of redemption. The One who is Himself the Light of the world brings men into union with Himself, then speaks of them as light too.

This is why the New Testament must be read carefully. Jesus is not saying believers are light independent of Him. Paul later makes that clear with the words, “light in the Lord.” But because we are in Him, His life now shapes our identity.

The moon has no light of its own, but it shines because it reflects the sun. In a far greater way, the believer shines because he is joined to Christ. His life is now expressed through us.

Light Speaks of Revelation

Light in Scripture often has to do with seeing clearly.

Darkness hides. Light reveals.

Darkness confuses. Light clarifies.

Darkness deceives. Light exposes truth.

This means that to say the believer is light is to say that in Christ, he has been brought into revelation. He is no longer defined by blindness. He is no longer a prisoner of ignorance. He is no longer left to grope in moral and spiritual darkness.

Peter says:

1 Peter 2 (KJ2000)
9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession; that you should show forth the praises of him who has called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

God did not merely forgive you and leave you confused. He called you out of darkness into marvellous light. Your new life in Christ is a life of spiritual illumination.

That does not mean you know everything. It means your new realm is light, not darkness. You now have access to truth in Christ. You can know God. You can understand His Word. You can recognise error. You can walk with clarity.

Light Speaks of Purity

Light also speaks of holiness.

Paul continues in Ephesians by saying that the fruit of the light is found in what is good, righteous, and true. That is important because many people want the language of light without the life of light.

But the New Testament never separates identity from conduct.

If you are light, then your life should carry the moral character of light. Not perfectly in the flesh, not by legalism, and not by performance, but truly and increasingly. Your choices, speech, relationships, and habits should reflect who you are.

John writes:

1 John 1 (KJ2000)
5 This then is the message which we have heard from him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
6 If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanses us from all sin.

John is not telling believers to become acceptable to God by walking in the light. He is saying that fellowship with the God who is light produces a life that agrees with that light.

Light does not make peace with darkness.

Light Must Shine

The purpose of light is not private comfort. It is visibility.

Jesus said a city set on a hill cannot be hidden. A lamp is not lit in order to be covered. Light is meant to shine.

This means your identity in Christ is not only personal, but also public. The world is meant to see something through you. Not self-display. Not religious performance. But the visible effect of Christ in a human life.

When the believer forgives, tells the truth, walks in love, rejects corruption, speaks with grace, and lives with moral courage, light is shining.

When a believer understands the gospel clearly in a generation of confusion, light is shining.

When a church proclaims Christ plainly instead of entertaining darkness, light is shining.

This is why identity matters. If you think of yourself only as a struggling sinner trying to survive, you will likely hide. But if you know you are light in the Lord, you will understand that your life has been designed to reveal Him.

Children of Light Live Differently

Paul also says:

1 Thessalonians 5 (KJ2000)
5 You are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.

That is covenant language. That is family language. That is identity language.

You are a child of light. The day belongs to you. Darkness is not your home anymore.

The believer should stop making excuses for what no longer fits his nature. Bitterness does not suit light. Deceit does not suit light. Hidden compromise does not suit light. Persistent love for darkness does not suit light.

The call of the gospel is not merely, “Try harder.” It is, “Know who you are, and walk accordingly.”

This Is Why the Metaphor Matters

The New Testament could have said many true things about the believer. It could have chosen abstract theological formulas alone. But again and again, it uses metaphors. Why? Because metaphors make truth visible. They help you see what has happened in Christ.

To say, “You are light,” is to say that in Christ you now belong to revelation, purity, visibility, truth, and life.

It means darkness is no longer your definition.

It means confusion is no longer your master.

It means hiddenness is no longer your calling.

It means your life in Christ was designed to shine.

So do not read this metaphor casually. Receive it. Think with it. Speak with it. Live with it.

You are not darkness trying to borrow some light.

You are light in the Lord.

And because that is now true, walk as children of light.

Continue in grace!

_{Editor’s Note:
Today, we are publishing our first guest post on The Ministry of the Word.
Rev. Tokunbo Adejuwon writes about Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, and the danger of insecurity in leadership. This fits the heart of our “Leadership the Bible Way” series. Scripture does not record the lives of leaders to entertain us. It records them for our learning.
Jeroboam received a kingdom by the judgement of God. Yet he tried to secure by sin what God had given by grace.
Read carefully. There is a warning here for every leader.}

Jeroboam received a kingdom by the judgement of God. Yet he tried to secure by compromise what God had given by grace.

Romans 15:4 (KJV)
4 For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

Jeroboam the son of Nebat is quite an interesting person. His insecurity ruined him.

Solomon married 700 wives and had 300 concubines. He multiplied wives to himself which is something an Israelite king wasn’t to do.

Deuteronomy 17:17 (KJV)
17 Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold.

But he didn’t just stop there, he married strange women who turned his heart away from God, another thing a Jew wasn’t to do.

1 Kings 11:4 (KJV)
4 For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father.

Despite the fact that God appeared to him twice, Solomon due to the influence of these women began to follow idols and as a result, God’s judgement came on him that the kingdom would be taken from his son and split with his servant.

1 Kings 11:11 (KJV)
11 Wherefore the LORD said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant.

Why didn’t Solomon repent when he heard this? Instead, he sought to kill Jeroboam who fled for his life.

1 Kings 11:40 (KJV)
40 Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam. And Jeroboam arose, and fled into Egypt, unto Shishak king of Egypt, and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.

10 tribes were later taken from Rehoboam, Solomon’s son and given to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.

Isn’t it interesting that Jeroboam too began doing the same thing, idolatry even on a higher level in a bid to keep the people loyal to him and not return to Rehoboam. How foolish!

1 Kings 12:28 (KJV)
28 Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.

There was a sin that made Solomon’s son lose the kingdom and gave Jeroboam the opportunity to receive the kingdom. That same sin was the sin that Jeroboam embraced eagerly.

This just makes one to wonder. God gave it to him. Wasn’t it serving that same God and obeying Him that would cause him to keep it?

But Jeroboam’s insecurity drove him to foolishness.

1 Kings 12:26-27 (KJV)
26 And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David:
27 If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah.

Now, it’s easy to condemn Jeroboam’s actions and attitude. But don’t we sometimes do the same thing and fall for the same lie of the devil?

Let’s learn from Jeroboam. It’s God Who maintains our lot.

Psalm 16:5 (KJV)
5 The LORD is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot.

Our security and sense of worth and importance and value is in Christ. And it’s in serving and obeying God that we find maximum fulfilment and satisfaction.

Jeroboam the son of Nebat later became a reference point for evil in Israel and Judah among the kings that later reigned. How pathetic!

God maintains our lot! And we need to be utterly sold out to obeying Him with our whole heart.

It doesn’t cost to serve God, it pays!

^{About the Author:}

^{Rev. Tokunbo Adejuwon graduated from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics. He also graduated from Rhema Bible Training Centre as well as Rhema Correspondence Bible School.
He was ordained by Pastor & Mrs. Kenneth W. Hagin and is credentialed with Rhema Ministerial Association International, USA.
He additionally successfully completed the Senior Management Programme of Lagos Business School, Pan-Atlantic University, Nigeria.
He currently serves in Rhema Bible Training Centre, Nigeria as the National Director, with campuses in Abuja (National Headquarters), Port Harcourt, Kaduna (English & Hausa campuses), Nasarawa, Ikeja Lagos, Lagos Island, Enugu, University of Ibadan, Obafemi Awolowo University Ile-Ife and University of Ilorin.
He has been in the ministry for 40 years. He has helped pioneer works, pastored, served in administrative roles and now itinerates both nationally and internationally.
He preaches and teaches God’s Word with passionate fervor especially on the subjects of faith and healing. He’s also very strong on following and flowing with the Holy Spirit.
Brother Toks, as he is fondly called is happily married to Dr. Akunna and they have 3 lovely children. They are based in Abuja, Nigeria.}