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WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY TO YOU?
Are you called to be a leader?
My child, if you accept my words
and treasure up my commandments within you,
making your ear attentive to wisdom
and inclining your heart to understanding;
if you indeed cry out for insight,
and raise your voice for understanding;
if you seek it like silver,
and search for it as for hidden treasures —
then you will understand the fear of the LORD
and find the knowledge of God.
For the LORD gives wisdom;
from his mouth come knowledge and understanding;
he stores up sound wisdom for the upright;
he is a shield to those who walk blamelessly,
guarding the paths of justice
and preserving the way of his faithful ones.
Then you will understand righteousness and justice
and equity, every good path;
for wisdom will come into your heart,
and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;
prudence will watch over you;
and understanding will guard you.
Proverbs 2:1-11
A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse,
and a branch shall grow out of his roots.
The spirit of the LORD shall rest on him,
the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the spirit of counsel and might,
the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.
is delight shall be in the fear of the LORD.
He shall not judge by what his eyes see,
or decide by what his ears hear;
but with righteousness he shall judge the poor,
and decide with equity for the meek of the earth;
he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth,
and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.
Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist,
and faithfulness the belt around his loins.
Isaiah 11:1-9
See, a king will reign in righteousness,
and princes will rule with justice.
Each will be like a hiding place from the wind,
a covert from the tempest,
like streams of water in a dry place,
like the shade of a great rock in a weary land.
Then the eyes of those who have sight will not be closed,
and the ears of those who have hearing will listen.
The minds of the rash will have good judgment,
and the tongues of stammerers will speak readily and distinctly.
A fool will no longer be called noble,
nor a villain said to be honorable.
For fools speak folly,
and their minds plot iniquity:
to practice ungodliness,
to utter error concerning the LORD,
to leave the craving of the hungry unsatisfied,
and to deprive the thirsty of drink.
The villainies of villains are evil;
they devise wicked devices
to ruin the poor with lying words,
even when the plea of the needy is right.
But those who are noble plan noble things,
and by noble things they stand.
Isaiah 32:1-8
The saying is sure: whoever aspires to the office of bishop
desires a noble task. Now a bishop must be above reproach, married only once,
temperate, sensible, respectable, hospitable, an apt teacher, not a drunkard, not violent
but gentle, not quarrelsome, and not a lover of money. He must manage his own
household well, keeping his children submissive and respectful in every way —
for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how can he take care of
God's church? He must not be a recent convert, or he may be puffed up with conceit
and fall into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover, he must be well thought of by
outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace and the snare of the devil.
Deacons likewise must be serious, not double-tongued, not
indulging in much wine, not greedy for money; they must hold fast to the mystery of
the faith with a clear conscience. And let them first be tested; then, if they prove
themselves blameless, let them serve as deacons. Women likewise must be serious, not
slanderers, but temperate, faithful in all things. Let deacons be married only once,
and let them manage their children and their households well; for those who serve
well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and great boldness in the faith that
is in Christ Jesus.
1 Timothy 3:1-7
Remind them of this, and warn them before God that they are to
avoid wrangling over words, which does no good but only ruins those who are listening.
Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved by him, a worker who has no
need to be ashamed, rightly explaining the word of truth. Avoid profane chatter, for
it will lead people into more and more impiety, and their talk will spread like
gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, who have swerved from the truth by
claiming that the resurrection has already taken place. They are upsetting the faith of
some. But God's firm foundation stands, bearing this inscription: "The Lord
knows those who are his," and, "Let everyone who calls on the name of the Lord
turn away from wickedness."
In a large house there are utensils not only of gold and silver
but also of wood and clay, some for special use, some for ordinary. All who cleanse
themselves of the things I have mentioned will become special utensils, dedicated and
useful to the owner of the house, ready for every good work. Shun youthful passions
and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord
from a pure heart. Have nothing to do with stupid and senseless controversies; you
know that they breed quarrels. And the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome but
kindly to everyone, an apt teacher, patient, correcting opponents with gentleness.
God may perhaps grant that they will repent and come to know the truth, and that they may
escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.
2 Timothy 2:14-26
I left you behind in Crete for this reason, so that you should
put in order what remained to be done, and should appoint elders in every town, as I
directed you: someone who is blameless, married only once, whose children are believers,
not accused of debauchery and not rebellious. For a bishop, as God's steward, must
be blameless; he must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or addicted to wine or violent or
greedy for gain; but he must be hospitable, a lover of goodness, prudent, upright, devout,
and self-controlled. He must have a firm grasp of the word that is trustworthy in
accordance with the teaching, so that he may be able both to preach with sound doctrine
and to refute those who contradict it.
Titus 1:5-9
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