Are you a leader? Are you aspiring to be a leader? Do you hate the fact that you don’t want to be part of the bandwagon and the trend that goes on around you? Do you seek to be different, walking the path the Holy Spirit has carved out for you to follow in order to reach the heights and the peak of leadership? The Holy Spirit has showed me something amazing that I would love to share with you. This article will give you a step by step break down as to how to expand your sphere of influence in order to realize that leadership destiny.
Before I begin I want you to remember that you must “Enlarge the place of your tent, and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out; do not hold back; lengthen your cords and strengthen your stakes.” (Isaiah 54:2.) It is not in the character of God to hold back, you must also not be a leader that holds back, you must stretch out, and maximize the potentials of God residing in you. The Scripture says in Ephesians 3:20, Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us. What is the power at work in us? The Holy Spirit. So, it means that there is no limit to what the Holy Spirit can do in us and through us. Take note of these words even as we proceed.
I would love you to follow me patiently and carefully as the Holy Spirit helps me to unveil these things to you. And my text would be taken from the book of Luke 19:11-15. Verse 11 says; “Now as they heard these things, He spoke another parable, because He was near Jerusalem and because they thought the kingdom of God would appear immediately.” I want us to begin to look carefully at this verse because it will form a background for what I would be sharing with us today. The concluding statement of that verse says “they thought the kingdom of God would appear immediately.” There are two strong words that are worthy of our consideration here; firstly “the kingdom of God” secondly “appear immediately”
I want us to note that this parable was spoken to the people because of this mindset that they had. What was the mindset? “the kingdom of God appears immediately.” Note what the verse says; He spoke the parable because, number one; they were near a city called Jerusalem, and secondly because they also think in their minds that the kingdom of God appears to people immediately, perhaps we could also say the kingdom just falls on people, or it becomes the people’s experience by luck, or that success fall on people like ripe pawpaw, it doesn’t require time, it doesn’t require process. John the Baptist was preaching at a point in Matthew 3:2, and he made a statement, he said; repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. That word “is at hand” could also mean the kingdom is near you. But before it can become your experience, there is something that you must do. And what you must do is that you should repent. So, your repentance births the experience of the kingdom.
So, in this context the people were expecting the kingdom to appear to them immediately because they have come or they are near to a particular city called Jerusalem, they have come to the city of the living God, but this experience is not automatic. This scenario looks like a similar situation in our environments, in the church and in our work places or in whatever environment we find ourselves, there is this mindset people have, they think that things happen immediately especially things that require process, efforts, focus and attention. There is a desire to experience the kingdom, but the kingdom does not appear immediately even though it is at hand, even though it is near you, it requires time. This is the mentality Jesus was trying to correct. Kingdom experience and expansion is a function of what you do, it is not a function of who you are or the weakness you possess, it is a function of the process you have subjected yourself to overtime and the willingness not to hold-back because of fears, inadequacies, and excuses. This is what has formed the background to this parable Jesus told the people.
Verse 12 began by giving us an introduction, it says; “Therefore He said: “A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return.” Let’s begin by noting the word “noble man.” What does this parable mean by describing this man to be a noble man. It means this man has attained the highest social rank in the society. What it also means is that the man is someone people admire and respect because he is unselfish and morally good, a man who is always willing to help in any way he could. I am taking my time to describe this to us so that we would understand why the third servant was not justified to have called him a wicked master. So, this noble man could also be called a leader, perhaps a father or any other similar thing it may represent. If he is a leader and a father he must have been good at it, and has earned the respect he deserves, because he had lived an exemplary life that is worthy of emulation. So, lets continue; it says; “Therefore He said: “A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return.” Again I want us to note another word that describes something about this nobleman, “he went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom”
The Holy Spirit simply explains to me that this man is a visionary man and a business man who is profit minded. What explains for his nobility is the fact that even though he is profit minded, he gave his servants something to start business with. As a matter of fact, he gave them according to their capacity. This man is also territorial in his orientation, his focus is towards expanding his kingdom, his business or his domain of influence. I also came to realize that he also has the mindset of a king. The Scripture says he went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom. I have never seen in any situation were a kingdom is being acquired. And that is very instructive for you. He may be a rich man but he didn’t buy these kingdoms with his money. There are three major ways in which kingdoms are gotten, the first is gotten by inheritance, the second is gotten by conquest i.e. through war, the third is gotten via influence either through business or through a dicey agreement or foolish negotiations. This is the kind of negotiation Eve entered with the serpent, and it cost them the kingdom.
The parable didn’t tell us how this noble man was able to receive this kingdom, but one thing is sure; he got the kingdom and he didn’t buy it. perhaps he died for it, or maybe he fought for it, or maybe he even created it. Does this not show us a scenario where the Scripture says the heaven, even the highest of the heaven belongs to God and the earth he has given to the children of men?
See what that statement says he went to receive for himself a kingdom and to return. So, in the beginning of creation, God made the heavens and the earth. He was simply receiving the kingdom for man, He was creating the business for man, and this also shows what Jesus came to do for us on the earth. The aim is not for him to stay there; it was for him to return. And if he would return, the kingdom must be in the custody of someone. So, God said “let us create man” this man will be in my image and function according to my likeness. And haven made that statement He said to man; tend and keep that kingdom. This Scripture we read says in verse 13, “do business till I come.” So, by so doing, the man must function like the one who had come to receive the kingdom for himself in order to retain the authority of the original owner of the kingdom. This why if you don’t function in authority on the earth, you are simply not showing that you have been kept in charge of the earth by God.
Now see what verse 13 says; So he called ten of his servants, delivered to them ten [e]minas, and said to them, ‘Do business till I come.’ The verse began by saying; “so he called ten of his servants” are we seeing what is going on? He called. Dominion begins with a call, and accepting the call. The Scripture says in Matthew 11, come unto me all yea that labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest. How many of us are willing to lead but refusing to accept the call of leadership? We want to make impact and to take responsibilities for God but we are refusing to accept the call of God. Jesus didn’t call the servants to have fun or because he lacks company, no! the verse says he called ten of them and “delivered to them” and I want us to also note that word. What has the Lord delivered to you? The kingdom is not acquired but what makes the kingdom appear, take shape and form is that you apply and do business with what has been delivered to you. Haven delivered to them minas he said do business till I come. That minas talks about power; it talks about authority to oversee the kingdom till he returns.
Most people want the kingdom to appear immediately but failing to realize that it begins with a call and haven been called there is something that must be delivered to your hands. And haven received you must make disciples, you must do business, that was similar to the word Jesus said to His disciples go into all the word and make disciples of all nations. Jesus was simply telling His disciples to go and receive other kingdoms for me, haven’t you wondered why the rewards of the faithful servants were cities and not minas? He gave them minas but was rewarding them with cities. So, inherent in every mina is encoded with cities and nations, it is only a function of what you do with it. The minas carry the power required to influence cities and kingdoms for the nobleman. Do we see the reason why we began by saying the kingdom does not just appear immediately? The kingdom appears to the degree in which you put to work the minas that have been committed into your hands.
He said “do business till I come” one of the first things that comes to mind when the word business is mentioned is profitability. Whatever business you do and do not consider profit is no longer called business but charity. But the philosophy of the kingdom is that the reason why you do the charity is so that the kingdom can profit from it. You can also replace that charity with love. So, the word was a charge, it was an expectation, it is the same as saying arise and take responsibility, make use of what I have given to you. Jesus knew this when He said I will not leave you as orphans. He is like the noble man who after receiving the kingdom called His servants and delivered minas to them. the minas can also be referred to manual, or mode of operations. His expectation is that you don’t bury the minas, refine it, package it, make people see value in the things I have given to you.
Why did I make that statement? See what verse 14 says; But his citizens hated him, and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We will not have this man to reign over us.’ His citizens hated Him, and didn’t want Him to reign over them, but I asked a question, where we not told that this man was a noble man? Why then was He hated, despised and rejected? This is what almost every leader experience in leadership. Remember we said this noble man was a king, and a visionary leader, like so many other leaders, they may have good philosophy, vison and ideas that will guarantee the people a better experience yet they would still be rejected, denied and betrayed by the people, sometimes the leader is trying to lead the people towards a particular goal but the leader meets resistance on the part of the people. Something happened to this leader, to this father, just as it could happen to any leader, and the simple reason why this happened to this nobleman is hanging on a principle I am about to share with you.
He said do business, knowing fully well that he was rejected by the people, but he left something very tangible and precious to the people. This is why you must have value as a person and as a leader. The minas were not rejected but the nobleman was rejected, this means that in order for the minas to remain, the owner or the giver of the minas must remain. Do we understand? No matter how the world continues to reject the Holy Spirit, there is no doubt that the Holy Spirit is indispensable in our world. This is the same thing as saying no matter how you hate a company if their product is unique and has quality, you will have no option but to buy their products. What have you been given? How are you making profit with what you have been given?
This is where I would be rounding up, Verse 15 says; “And so it was that when he returned, having received the kingdom, he then commanded these servants, to whom he had given the money, to be called to him, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading.”
This talks about a time to settle accounts. The noble man is not concerned with how much the world hates you, or how much the world hates Him. You may say after all He said if they persecute me they will persecute you also. But that is not a good enough reason why you should not be fruitful and productive, what He is concerned about is; despite the good and bad weather, despite the low patronage, despite the persecution, despite the economic depression, he wants to know how much every man had gained by trading. Remember the kingdom of God does not appear immediately, it is a product of work, sacrifice and efforts. What strategy have you used to make the minas work for the kingdom despite all the situations that surround the assignment. You may be in the kingdom, you may be in your Jerusalem, you may have been given minas, you must see to it that the kingdom appears. And the appearance of the kingdom will not fall on you, you must do business, you must evaluate, you must add value, you must repackage your minas to solve problems, you must have vision you must take on the responsibility so that the kingdom is always making profit. Continue to depopulate hell, and most importantly remember that the day to settle accounts is coming. What have you done so far with the kingdom you have received?
Thanks for the gift of your time, I am Apeh Francis Abah!
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