And the Spirit of the LORD will rest on him—
the Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and might,
the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.
He will delight in obeying the LORD.
He will not judge by appearance
nor make a decision based on hearsay.
He will give justice to the poor
and make fair decisions for the exploited.
The earth will shake at the force of his word,
and one breath from his mouth will destroy the wicked.
He will wear righteousness like a belt
and truth like an undergarment.  Isaiah 11:2-5

 

A government leader once asked God how to do his assigned task well. In response, God instructed that leader, a king named Solomon, to continually attend four essential points of responsibility to God: humble yourself, pray, seek my face, turn from sin. God then tied blessing to the king's obedience. He would hear from heaven, forgive sin, and restore the land. 

 

Those four points of responsibility, the relationship to God they establish, and the promise attached to them still stand. Our prayer for good government includes petitioning God for good leaders at every level who courageously demonstrate their responsibility to God through application of the characteristics of Christ in the exercise of their respective roles. 

 

Good government emerges from good leadership. Conversely, flawed leadership . . . leadership attempted apart from responsibility to God . . . produces ineffective government and, over time, flawed culture. Another biblical principle applies, "Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap." (Galatians 6:7)

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Consider the messianic words of the prophet Isaiah as he described the character of Jesus and the possibilities that rise as governmental leadership reflects them in the exercise of positional responsibility.

 

The Spirit will rest upon Him, the Spirit of:

• Wisdom

• Understanding

• Counsel

• Strength

• Knowledge

• Fearfully respect God

• Obedience

• Discernment

• Justice

• Power in his words

• Destruction of evil

• Righteous

• Truth 

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These characteristics of Jesus accompany the indwelling Spirit of God in the believer. Here is the biblical support for that claim--

But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.) And Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life because you have been made right with God. The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.  (Romans 8:9-11)

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We of faith seek God under the same set of responsibilities as did Solomon. We pray directed by the same Spirit described by Isaiah and explained by the apostle Paul. Is it not reasonable to expect God to do exactly what he said He would do in response to obedience--hear, forgive and restore?   

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Therefore, we pray obediently for good leaders who courageously and consistently demonstrate the character of Christ Jesus in the exercise of their respective offices. Because we know God's promise to be sure and those characteristics to be essential, we expect that for which we pray and refuse to settle for less. 

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