Paul=s Leadership Among Unbelievers

Consider the whole context for a moment. Paul is a prisoner. He is being sent under armed guard to Rome to stand trial before Caesar himself. Yet notice the kind of respect and honor he receives from the centurion and the other men on board the ship:

In verse 3, the centurion treats Paul kindly and even lets him leave for a while to go to his friends to be cared for. How many normal prisoners get that kind of treatment. Obviously the centurion respected Paul very highly.

In verses 9B10 Paul advises the centurion and the sailors to stay in Fair Havens for the winter. Now, they do not take his advice, but what prisoner would feel comfortable even giving advice except for the fact that he knew they would at least listen to him. Verse 11 says that the centurion took the advice of the pilot and the owner of the ship over Paul, but even considering the advice of a prisoner alongside seasoned sailors says something about the respect he had for Paul.

After they get caught up in heavy storms, in verses 21-26 Paul stands up and tells them that they should have listened to him, and then encourages them that God has revealed to him that none of them will die. Again, what typical prisoner would be able to do that?

In verses 30-31 when the sailors plan to sneak away from the ship and leave everyone else, Paul warns the centurion that unless the men stay, they all will die. And so what do the soldiers do in verse 32? They take the advice of a prisoner and cut the lifeboat away.

In verses 33-35 Paul addresses the whole ship again and admonishes them to eat and get their strength back. And what do they do? They listen to him. Clearly this lowly prisoner is actually a respected leader on the ship!

And finally in verses 42-43 when the soldiers plan to kill all the prisoners to prevent them from escaping, what motivated the centurion to keep them from carrying out their plan? His respect for Paul. All of the prisoners lives are spared because of the influence of this one man.

So here is a prisoner on his way to be tried before Caesar, likely to be killed (and he is killed eventually), and he is more respected and has more leadership and influence on this ship than any other single individual! Paul is truly a leader.

I=d like us to notice 6 principles about Paul=s leadership in this chapter, and as we do, I=d like to apply these principles in two areas. First, our influence and leadership among unbelievers. This may be at your workplace, in your neighborhood, etc. The second application is for influence and leadership within our church.

Paul=s leadership came because of respect, not an official position

The first principle is this: Paul=s leadership came because the people respected him, not because he held an official position of leadership.

You see, there are two kinds of leaders. Some are leaders by virtue of their position or title. Certainly Paul had that kind of leadership amongst Christians. He was an apostle. He was an evangelist. He was a pastor. By virtue of these positions, Paul was a leader.

But there is a vast difference between someone who is a leader just because of an official position and someone who is a leader because . . . he is a leader. That=s just who he is. He is respected by others because of his character and wisdom, and so people just naturally follow him.

And the fact is that when someone who has an official position of leadership doesn=t really possess true character and wisdom and respectability, his leadership is really weak. This is the kind of person who has an official title of leadership, but he has to rest in that title in order to make people follow him. This is the kind of person who always has to demand that people follow him.

I knew people like this in college. They had official titles of leadership, usually because they politically maneuvered their way into the position, but they always had to be shouting, AFollow me! Follow me!@ because no one really naturally followed them.

On the other hand, I knew people who didn=t have any official positions of leadership, but because of their character and evident wisdom, people naturally respected them and followed them.

That=s the kind of leader Paul is here. He obviously doesn=t have an official position of leadership C he=s a prisoner! But because of his evident wisdom and character, people follow him.

This is the kind of person you should be in your workplace. You may not be a manager or a director or some other kind of official leader. But you can and should be a leader simply by virtue of your character and example and respectability. And if you do hold an official position of leadership in your workplace, don=t root your leadership in some title or office. Lead by example. Don=t demand people follow you because you=re the boss. Make people want to follow you because of your character.

The same goes for leadership in our church. You may not be a pastor or a deacon or a Sunday School teacher, but you can (and should) still strive to be a godly leader just because of your character. And if you do have an official position of leadership, don=t rest in that. No one is ever a leader just because he has a title. Lead because you are a godly Christian.

Paul=s leadership was not the result of political maneuverings, but men=s response to his personal competence

The second principle of Paul=s leadership is closely related to the first: Paul=s leadership was not the result of political maneuverings, but men=s response to his personal competence. Paul did not work his way up the latter in order to gain influence. He didn=t butter up or flatter the centurion so that he could rise to a position of prominence. He simply did what was right and offered wise counsel, and people listened.

How many people get to official positions of leadership, not because they have character, but because they worked the system just right? That kind of politics does not result in the best leaders.

So this has application for both those who are in positions of leadership and those who are not. If you are not, don=t try to work your way up the latter to a position of leadership by flattery or deception. Seek to be a leader simply by the example and integrity of your life. You may never actually rise to an official position, but you can perhaps have more influence simply by your example.

And if you are someone who has the responsibility of choosing others for positions of leadership, don=t choose those who flatter you or who always agree with everything you say just to get on your good side. Choose people who have true character and wisdom and integrity.

Paul=s leadership came out of concern for others, not himself

The third principle is this: Paul=s leadership came out of concern for others, not himself.

Unfortunately, most Aleadership@ is simply telling other people what to do ultimately for the benefit of the leader. People usually see right through that kind of leadership.

But that=s not how Paul led. Consider this for a moment: God had already assured Paul that he would witness in Rome. Paul knew that he would not die. So he could have just slipped into a corner of the boat and let the others do whatever they wanted to. What did he have to fear? He trusted in the sovereignty of God!

But he didn=t just sit there, he warned them, he encouraged them, he admonished them to eat. Paul clearly did all that he did during this voyage for the benefit of others .That is true leadership.

Is that your motivation for leadership, either in your workplace or in our church? Are you just seeking to lead others to do what will serve you best, or is your motivation the well-being of others?

Paul=s leadership was rooted in his trust in God

The fourth principle of Paul=s leadership is this: Paul=s leadership was rooted in his trust in God. This is clear in his encouragement to the men in verses 21-26.

Acts 27:21 26 After the men had gone a long time without food, Paul stood up before them and said: “Men, you should have taken my advice not to sail from Crete; then you would have spared yourselves this damage and loss. 22 But now I urge you to keep up your courage, because not one of you will be lost; only the ship will be destroyed. 23 Last night an angel of the God whose I am and whom I serve stood beside me 24 and said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.’ 25 So keep up your courage, men, for I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me. 26 Nevertheless, we must run aground on some island.”

Paul was able to lead with character and integrity and respectability because he was trusting in God. He wasn=t primarily concerned for himself, he was concerned that God=s will be done. And this allowed him to have a strong testimony before these unbelievers, which leads to the final principle:

Paul=s leadership enhanced the preaching of the gospel

Paul=s leadership enhanced the preaching of the gospel. If Paul had simply led for his own safety or even just for the physical good of others, his leadership would have been worthless. But Paul=s motivation for all of his leadership on this journey was clearly for the sake of the gospel. When he encouraged the crew in verses 21-26, he made clear that God was in control of the situation. And they evidently respected Paul for that. When he admonished them to eat and they agreed, verse 35 says that he gave thanks to God for the food in front of them all.

In all of Paul=s leadership, he was ultimately concerned about the furtherance of the gospel. And no doubt his witness was not in vain. Notice verse 1 again:

Acts 27:1 When it was decided that we would sail for Italy, Paul and some other prisoners were handed over to a centurion named Julius, who belonged to the Imperial Regiment.

Now why would Luke refer to the centurion by name here? He doesn=t give us the names of any of the other soldiers or sailors on the voyage. Why does he name Julius?

We can=t know for sure, but most scholars agree that Luke named the centurion because this was a man that his readers would have recognized, most likely because he became a Christian. After all of Paul=s influence and example and leadership and trust in God and witness for the gospel, there is good reason to believe that at least this man, Julius, came to Christ, if not others as well.

Conclusion

You see, leadership C both out in the world and in the church C should be ultimately for the sake of the gospel and the glory of God. The foundational motivation beneath all that we do should be for the sake of the gospel, including how we lead.

So I ask you, do you strive to set an example at work for the sake of the gospel? Or do you just lead because that=s what will get you more money? Is it evident to those around you at work that you are a person of character and integrity? Is it evident that you are that way because of your trust in God? Do you take every opportunity you have to thank God publicly for the successes in your business? Are you leading in your workplace for the sake of the gospel?

What about your leadership here at church? Are you seeking to set a godly example and influence people to do right whether or not you have an official title? If you do have an official position, are you making sure that your leadership is not based on that position but is based on your respectability?

Let=s be leaders like Paul. Not because it will get us prestige and honor; not because it will get us what we want. Let=s be leaders for the sake of the gospel and ultimately for the glory of God.