The purpose of our leadership according to Daniel
Continuing in the book of Daniel, we leave the story of the fiery furnace, turning now to "the writing on the wall." A new king, Belshazzar, has taken over the kingdom. He asks Daniel to interpret the writing, which he does.
This king rewards Daniel by clothing him in royal robes, like Nebuchadnezzar had. But Belshazzar is himself killed mere hours later, because he dishonored the Lord.
The Medes and Persians take over next, and now Darius sits on the throne. For the third time, Daniel is recognized for his abilities and is placed in a high position of authority.
Again, he is betrayed by jealous rulers and sentenced to death, this time in a lions' den. God saves him, and King Darius—just like Nebuchadnezzar—decrees that everyone in his kingdom should fear and worship the God of Daniel.
With these three stories back-to-back, it's like God is making a point, summed up in Darius' decree:
"For he is the living God, and he will endure forever. His kingdom will never be destroyed, and his rule will never end. He rescues and saves his people; he performs miraculous signs and wonders in the heavens and on earth" (Daniel 6:26b-27a).
No matter what we do, or even how much we fail, God will glorify himself. As leaders, why not take advantage of our positions of influence to join in the praise? Why not add to his glory however we can?
This might look like sharing the gospel with coworkers, funding ministries, serving on a church board, or even simply leading in a Christlike way.
However we lead, and whatever we do, let's do our best to glorify God, as if we're working directly for him (Col. 3:23). Daniel modeled this well for us.
I believe there is no greater purpose for our leadership. It's the only part that really matters!
For his kingdom,
Tom Harper
Founder, BiblicalLeadership.com
LinkedIn profile | My books
 | Tom Harper is publisher of BiblicalLeadership.com and executive chairman of Networld Media Group, a business-to-business publisher and event producer. He has written five books, including Servant Leader Strong: Uniting Biblical Wisdom and High-Performance Leadership (DeepWater Books, 2019) as well as the Christian business fable Through Colored Glasses and its sequel Inner Threat (DeepWater, 2022). Learn More » |
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