21 Bible Verses about Leaders, Spiritual

And no one takes this honourable office upon himself, but only accepts it when called to it by God, as Aaron was.

For every High Priest is chosen from among men, and is appointed to act on behalf of men in matters relating to God, in order to offer both gifts and sin-offerings,

Every High Priest, however, is appointed to offer both bloodless gifts and sacrifices. Therefore this High Priest also must have some offering to present.

for never did any prophecy come by human will, but men sent by God spoke as they were impelled by the Holy Spirit.

So he assembled all the High Priests and Scribes of the people, and anxiously asked them where the Christ was to be born.

Here the Pharisees and Sadducees came to Him; and, to make trial of Him, they asked Him to show them a sign in the sky.

He entered the Temple; and while He was teaching, the High Priests and the Elders of the people came to Him and asked Him, "By what authority are you doing these things? and who gave you this authority?"

"The Scribes," He said, "and the Pharisees sit in the chair of Moses.

Meanwhile the High Priests and the whole Sanhedrin were seeking false testimony against Jesus in order to put Him to death;

Heavy and cumbrous burdens they bind together and load men's shoulders with them, while as for themselves, not with one finger do they choose to lift them. And everything they do they do with a view to being observed by men; for they widen their phylacteries and make the tassels large, and love the best seats at a dinner party or in the synagogues,read more.
and like to be bowed to in places of public resort, and to be addressed by men as 'Rabbi.' "As for you, do not accept the title of 'Rabbi,' for one alone is your Teacher, and you are all brothers. And call no one on earth your Father, for One alone is your Father--the Heavenly Father. And do not accept the name of 'leader,' for your Leader is one alone--the Christ. He who is the greatest among you shall be your servant; and one who exalts himself shall be abased, while one who abases himself shall be exalted. "But alas for you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for you lock the door of the Kingdom of the Heavens against men; you yourselves do not enter, nor do you allow those to enter who are seeking to do so. No translation "Alas for you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for you scour sea and land in order to win one convert--and when he is gained, you make him twice as much a son of Gehenna as yourselves.

Jesus, however, called them to Him and said to them, "You are aware how those who are deemed rulers among the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men make them feel their authority; but it is not to be so among you. No, whoever desires to be great among you must be your servant; and whoever desires to be first among you must be the bondservant of all.read more.
For the Son of Man also did not come to be waited upon, but to wait on others, and to give His life as the redemption-price for a multitude of people."

And, in fact, there was not a needy man among them, for all who were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the money which they realised, and gave it to the Apostles, and distribution was made to every one according to his wants.

So the Twelve called together the general body of the disciples and said, "It does not seem fitting that we Apostles should neglect the delivery of God's Message and minister at tables. Therefore, brethren, pick out from among yourselves seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, and we will appoint them to undertake this duty.

And in every Church, after prayer and fasting, they selected Elders by show of hands, and commended them to the Lord on whom their faith rested.

I have left you behind in Crete in order that you may set right the things which still require attention, and appoint Elders in every town, as I directed you to do;

Faithful is the saying, "If any one is eager to have the oversight of a Church, he desires a noble work." A minister then must be a man of irreproachable character, true to his one wife, temperate, sober-minded, well-behaved, hospitable to strangers, and with a gift for teaching; not a hard drinker nor given to blows; not selfish or quarrelsome or covetous;read more.
but ruling his own household wisely and well, with children kept under control with true dignity. (If a man does not know how to rule his own household, how shall he have the Church of God given into his care?) He ought not to be a new convert, for fear he should be blinded with pride and come under the same condemnation as the Devil. It is needful also that he bear a good character with people outside the Church, lest he fall into reproach or a snare of the Devil. Deacons, in the same way, must be men of serious demeanour, not double-tongued, nor addicted to much wine, nor greedy of base gain, but holding the secret truths of the faith with a clear conscience.

wherever there is a man of blameless life, true to his one wife, having children who are themselves believers and are free from every reproach of profligacy or of stubborn self-will. For, as God's steward, a minister must be of blameless life, not over-fond of having his own way, not a man of a passionate temper nor a hard drinker, not given to blows nor greedy of gain, but hospitable to strangers, a lover of goodness, sober-minded, upright, saintly, self-controlled;read more.
holding fast to the faithful Message which he has received, so that he may be well qualified both to encourage others with sound teaching and to reply successfully to opponents.

"Take heed to yourselves and to all the flock among which the Holy Spirit has placed you to take the oversight for Him and act as shepherds to the Church of God, which He has bought with His own blood.

Therefore be on the alert; and remember that, night and day, for three years, I never ceased admonishing every one, even with tears.

Let the Elders who perform their duties wisely and well be held worthy of double honour, especially those who labour in preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, "You are not to muzzle the ox while it is treading out the grain;" and the workman deserves his pay. Never entertain an accusation against an Elder except on the evidence of two of three witnesses.read more.
Those who persist in sin reprove in the presence of all, so that it may also be a warning to the rest.

Be shepherds of God's flock which is among you. Exercise the oversight not reluctantly but eagerly, in accordance with the will of God; not for base gain but with cheerful minds; not lording it over your Churches but proving yourselves patterns for the flock to imitate.