Vol.5, No. 08 – March 15, 2020
Leadership in a Time of Crisis
2 Chronicles 14:1-15
Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God. 12:2
Good leaders hang tough! Here, Asa, the great grandson of Solomon, is a reformer, a champion for Judah’s purity. He vanquishes false religion, calls the people of god to revival, and marches at the head of his army, relying upon Almighty god as their Supreme Commander.
Do you know anyone whose life is expressed or marked by an exclamation point “!“? Asa’s early life was marked by an exclamation point. His was a leadership role of determination, purpose, and hanging tough! Asa proves to be a man committed to the non-negotiables.
We are in desperate need, in our culture, of people committed to God’s non-negotiables!
This is not where we are at this juncture of the 21st century. We are living in the season of the interrogation point, the question mark “?“. We are living in a season of life where all the doors in the universe are open. Like little children that do not know any better, we are looking in every corner, in every closet, and under every bed, with an insistent question: What is there for me? Everything is supposed to be pointed to me!
We have written our question marks all over the earth and the sky, pushing back the skirts of time and the canopies of space with our never-ceasing question, Who? Where? How? Why? We have written this same question mark over every holy book and every sacred place, and we have invaded the inner depths of the soul of man with our crabbed, crooked, question mark. –Rufus M. Jones
Asa, a leader in research, searches for absolutes, for truth, and for integrity. In chapters 14 and 15, the term seek appears eight times. That is not insignificant. Asa led his nation in exploration for God, to seek after God. The word, to seek, from the Latin, means to scent out. It is the action of a Bird Dog. It is a quest, a bending of one’s effort to find. It is an apt description of Asa’s toughness in finding the correct answers.
Asa’s aim is to please Almighty God. There is a predictable result for this hang-tough leader:
- Spiritual faithfulness is honored
In 14:3, Asa smashes the sin of the people. He smashes the altars, chops down the idols, and breaks down every image that is against Almighty God. The nation is quiet for ten years.
- Peace and rest brings purpose
Cities are given attention. The nation is once again prepared. The cities are fortified. Armies composed of well-trained personnel are fully equipped. General Zerah of Ethiopia watched this taking place. He saw all this as a threat to his power. Three hundred chariots and over a million military personnel were assembled to move against Asa. The contest was 2:1 against Asa’s military personnel.
The hang-tough leader, placing his faith in Almighty God first, assembles his people. He begins with a time of worship. Then, tragically, Asa, after all his preparations, slipped into the humanistic views of the people.
- Leadership is not only for the days of peace and prosperity; it is also for a season of boldness, a cry unto the Lord in the day of trouble
Life Application
Where are we in those three seasons of life? What does our history record? Where do we fit in this time of crisis.
Asa cried to the Lord his god. “O Lord, there is none like you to help, between the mighty and the weak. Help us, O Lord our God, for we rely on You, and in Your Name we have come against this multitude. O Lord, you are our God; let not man prevail against You.” –2 Chronicles 14:11
So . . . how will it be for us? – ! ? Will we respond with an interrogative or an exclamation?
Leadership in a time of crisis is always available—if we would but ask our Almighty God!
