In Jeremiah chapter 45, Baruch was handed an astounding opportunity for leadership and administration as a messenger for the very mouth of God. Jeremiah dictated the Lord’s warning to Israel as Baruch wrote down everything with the command to read it in the Temple on a day when large crowds would be gathered there from all over Judah. Every word was meant as an attempt to provoke repentance upon a rebellious nation.
Baruch was handed the chance of a lifetime. He could break away from this event with immense respect and a high position among the people of God as His messenger. I can only imagine his excitement and sense of purpose as he was given the task. The temptation of a young ambitious man to achieve deference among his peers no doubt was tugging at his own aspirations, and Jeremiah wasn’t hesitant to call him out on the matter.
Are you seeking great things for yourself? Don’t do it!
(Jeremiah 45:5)
Jeremiah’s experience allowed him to understand something that Baruch and I both had never grasped. True leadership is realizing that God’s highest potential for our lives is the most humble position we could ever assume. When our ambition is to be effective in the service of the almighty Creator, it must be void of self-promotion and centered on the glory of God and welfare of the church.
I was slapped in the face this morning when I realized how much I can relate to Baruch. I am a fake and a self-seeker of social visibility. Instead of realizing God’s highest potential for my life, I have sought out His highest position for my life. While Paul called leadership an “honorable position” (1 Timothy 3:1), it is inexcusable if your motivation is godly popularity.
The final estimate of men shows that history cares not an iota for the rank or title a man has borne, or the office he has held, but only the quality of his deeds and the character of his mind and heart.
Samuel Brengle, Salvation Army Revival Preacher
Too many times have I lived vainly in search of leadership for the sole reason of man’s respect. I have been God’s messenger with the purpose of self-recognition. Too many times I have wanted to become great, I have refused to lower myself, and I have wanted to rule. The consequence is that Jesus became small, He humbled Himself, and He came to serve. God forgive me!
Tags: Baruch, Bible, Christ, Christianity, Faith, Fake, False, God, Israel, Jeremiah, Jesus, Judah, Leadership, Lord, Paul, Phony, Religion, Scripture, Temple, Timothy
