Our Leaders are a Reflection of US

Our Leaders Old and New

I’ve never heard it said that the Kings of Israel simply reflected the hearts of the Hebrew people. Almost every king of Israel and Judah did evil in the sight of the Lord. Manasseh, who was touted as the worst king of them all, even crafted new ways of being evil. But were these kings solely evil in themselves, or did they reflect the morals and values of the people they ruled?  If it was just an evil king, then why not simply send the king into Babylonian exile by himself or let Assyria capture him and his family and be done with it? What was God saying by choosing these men to lead Israel? Until now, these have just been wonderful stories and proverbial lessons for me. But the Lord has impressed on me that these leaders reflected the heart of the people. And beyond this, He referenced us, the United States, as being very similar.

It’s easy to shoot at the broad target of leadership. They’re in plain view, living before the whole world.  But what about the millions of unnoticed people that makes up the citizenry? What about the mass populace carrying on about their daily routines without public scrutiny? Is God displaying in the open the secret heart of the people by giving them a leader who reflects them? And what about us, the United States of America? We the people can grumble and complain all day long, but do our leaders and their many indiscretions simply reflect our own moral sliding scale?

Are Our Leaders Leading Us or Reflecting Us?

I’ve believed, up until recently, that our leadership is dragging our country into the mud. What I’m now seeing is that our leaders are only upholding our personal values. No, we might not personally make some of the same choices they’re making for our country. But in actuality, we’re not observing a struggle of only ideologies and political agendas. We’re witnessing our hearts lived out in our leaders.

As I wrote in my recent post about the Baltimore riots, as a nation we have cast off the restraints of God. Because we have attempted to loose ourselves from His direction and rule, we have become a lawless generation. So now we’re being led by leaders who “do as they wilt.”

Our Leaders Minority or Majority?

Our leaders, independent of their political views, are reflecting our own rebellious hearts. Like King Manasseh. He wasn’t a minority amongst the righteous populace; he was a reflection of the majority, whether through active participation or through compromise. God uses the leaders and authorities He places over us as a reflection to reveal our own hearts back to us. It’s a clear sign of our individual and personal choices played out before us. So no, you may not agree with our current administration, but if we look into our hearts, are we Christians holding God’s party line? Are we upholding His standards, His values, His agenda and His Will in our lives?

I’m not making a generalization, grouping every soul in the U.S.A together as unrighteous. But only God Himself can judge the heart of man. And if no authority is in place outside of God’s own direction, then we must ask the question: What is it that You are saying, God? Why have You placed us under a set of leaders who disregard the rule of law? How are we individually like them?

We have a question before us—God, what are You trying to communicate? While desecration of our flag becomes a social media challenge, riots and lawlessness run rampant, those who hate us are threatening to murder us in the streets, and fundamental change to the constitutional structure of our country abounds, maybe the question should be more personal in nature. Not “why are they…” but “why am I?”

The leaders reflect the people!

If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.
2 Chronicles 7:14 NKJV

* I can’t recommend enough Martha’s daily devotional series Rule and Reign Like Daniel. In it she writes about what it is to live victorious in times of chaos and uncertainty. The point when God uses our leaders to purify our hearts and cause us to rise to a position of ruling and reigning.