Leaders must demonstrate self-control. If people cannot control themselves, they cannot lead others. Those under the control of alcohol cannot be trusted to lead Christ’s church. Willingly placing ourselves under its power demonstrates a lack of self-control. True leaders are always composed, so they are prepared to lead. Godly leaders aren’t bullies. They have no need to resort to threats or intimidation to get their way. True leaders are free from the love of money. It is always dangerous to place someone who loves money into a position of leadership. It can be too tempting to compromise their ethics in an effort to accumulate wealth.
Leaders that please God are also gentle, not quarrelsome. They draw people together rather than driving them apart. They are long suffering. They don’t lose their tempers when they fail to get their way. They also are not covetous. They are satisfied with what God has given them, without desiring what does not belong to them.
Such qualities are particularly important in leaders in an age when the media bombards us with messages that assure us we deserve to have what we want. Today’s leaders are continually tempted to grasp at pleasures for themselves while neglecting their duties to others. Godly leaders are God centered, and others-focused, rather than self-centered. God’s standards for leaders is much higher than the world’s!