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Bold Leaders Are: Communicators of Culture

The Israelites had a vision: Get to the promised land! They left Egypt to do just that; however, along the way, things didn’t always go their way and many began to lose their excitement for the vision set before them. The vision is clear, but how you carry yourself in the process of seeing the vision become a reality always matters more! Lee Burns, our executive Vice President of HIllsong College says that “if vision is where we are going, culture is how we get there.” The issue for Israel was that they allowed their obstacles, their fears and their insecurities to become the dominant culture in their lives. When the spies went to see the Promised land, most of them came back saying the people were too strong, the obstacles too big, and the cities too large to overcome. 

Here we see that good vision is important, but as Sam Chand, a leadership and culture teacher says, “bad culture eats good vision for breakfast”! If you want to change the world, but constantly live like the world - you’ll never see your vision accomplished.

Caleb knew there’s a culture that comes with being God’s people! He knew they must live their lives by faith in his promises, and because of that he was able to enter the promised land. Where the other spies and the rest of Israel confessed negativity and defeat, Caleb and Joshua confessed victory.  A word of advice up front: if you don’t want to be like the ten spies, don’t confess the way they did, because your confession will frame your reality. 

If you could confront any of the ten spies about their negative report, they’d say, “Hey, we’re just keeping it real. We’re just telling it as we see it.”

What made Caleb say something completely different when all twelve witnessed the same thing? Caleb chose to believe what God had promised, despite the evidence before his eyes. Caleb and Joshua continued their appeal the next day, “The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good. If the LORD is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. Only do not rebel against the LORD. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will devour them. Their protection is gone, but the LORD is with us. Do not be afraid of them.” (Numbers 14:7-9 NIV)

What a great spirit Caleb had – where there’s a will, there’s a way! Look at the contrasting perspectives. Group one says, “If the Lord would….then we could.” The other says, “The Lord will, therefore we will.” The big difference is that the ‘would’ culture takes no responsibility while the ‘will’ culture takes faith. He carried God’s culture and boldly communicated it with his actions for 45 years and in Joshua 14, Caleb finally received the land God had promised him. When we look at the life of Caleb, we see a man who communicated Kingdom culture and carried it well.

APPLICATION QUESTIONS  

• Are you carrying the culture of the kingdom?    
• What areas of your life do you need to speak the promises of God over?    
• What obstacles are you facing right now? How can you align your confession with God’s word?

PRAYER

Thank You Jesus for giving me the opportunity to live my life as a Bold Leader. I choose today to align my confession with the promises of your word. I choose to bring a culture of faith in you into every environment I am in. I choose that when times get tough I will remember your goodness and your grace. I pray that the desires you have for me will become the desires of my heart. Lead me into all of your incredible plans and promises for my life. In Jesus' name, Amen.