Judy Diehl, a friend, is author of 2 Corinthians in the Story of God Bible Commentary and, if you follow her on FB, you will see lovely photos of her life in the Colorado Rockies.
Leadership is not a position; it is an offering.
In the OT, leadership centered around the heads of households and heads of the ancestral tribes of Israel. The military needed leaders, to fight battles “in the name of the Lord” (i.e., Joshua). The priests were the leaders who directed human worship and animal sacrifice at the Temple. Leaders were appointed by God and were answerable to him for their behavior to all the people of Israel, to all God’s people: men, women and children. Compare the story of faithful Hannah to the “scoundrels” who were “priests” and the sons of Eli in 1 Samuel 1:1-20, 2:12-17.
In the NT, the notion of leadership changed dramatically as a result of the work of Christ. It is a divine gift and a privilege, not a…
