Hear, you heads of Jacob and rulers of the house of Israel!
Micah 3:1
The Bible has a great deal to say about leadership. Some positions of leadership are elected. That is, people make a choice through a process of voting, by which they trust the task of leadership to people who are willing to take that responsibility.
This is what happens in a democracy, and it is also what happens in many churches. Leadership is a trust given by the people. But even when there is no voting involved, leadership is still a trust from God. Nobody votes on the birth of a baby, but when a child is born, the father and mother are given a trust by God.
The apostle Paul said that all governing authorities are established by God (Rom. 13:1-2), and the Roman Empire was hardly a model of democracy. So, even when governments are not elected by the people, Paul says, “the authorities are established by God,” and that means they are accountable to God.
All leadership involves a gift of trust, and all leaders are therefore accountable. The same is true in your work. Whatever authority or responsibility you have was given to you by someone else, and you are accountable to them for the way that you use it.
Think of a person in authority over you (a parent, boss, teacher, pastor, political leader, etc.) who’s been given responsibility and is accountable for how they use it. How does that make you feel, to be aware of their responsibility and accountability?
