Learning to Excellently Display the Holiness of God

Last night in one of my evening church classes, the teacher was encouraging us in development as leaders. She showed us that in the Bible, leaders were seasoned over time. Their titles didn't magically give them maturity, but their willingness to be a moldable piece of clay in God's hands did. With this encouragement came the warning of seeking a title or position before seeking to be a student.

As a Biblical example, consider two different censuses of the Israelite people in Numbers. Those able to go out to war were numbered beginning at the age of twenty. Those in the tribe of Levi who were counted began at the age of 30, and these were the men who would serve with the priests in the Tent of Meeting. We discussed this a bit, and noted the difference in age. For those whose hearts are willing, God will shape you for the service He calls you to. God takes seriously the honoring and exalting of His holiness among people. When you come to lead, you come to serve the nation like the Levites did. They were set apart to Him, and would spend the first thirty years of their lives preparing towards that service.

Today, us young ones are so eager to display our zeal and watch it come to fruition. Zeal is good and honors the Lord. But, I don't want to mistake a title or position as the "arrival point" of my maturity. The truth is that I have a lot to learn, and can honor God by my excellence and humility. As I seek to serve, I seek to learn about how to excellently carry the holiness of God as a display for the world to see.

May the Lord test our hearts through His Word and prayer, to reveal to us those things that are pleasing and those things that set themselves up against Him.

© 2006 by Kendra Hinkle.