As a leader you are capable of thoughts and actions that have principled qualities. Hence your interactions and dealings with others can be properly designated as “right” or “wrong.”
A fruitful and fulfilling life is a life lived morally.
But where does moral character come from? Does moral character result from one’s genetic code? Is it acquired from the environment? Is it a product of evolution? Or is moral character the consequence of some sort of social contract?
Morality is none of these things. Moral character finds its origin in God. By nature, God is a moral agent. He always does what is right. When we say, “God is moral,” we are saying that God does what He does because it is, in reality, moral – it is, in reality, the right thing to do.
God created you to be a moral agent. Therefore, you were created to conform to God’s perfect moral character in thought, word, and deed. Moral character is folded into the very fabric of who you are as a human. You were created to be moral. In your heart you have a moral compass inscribed by God. Deep within your conscience is a law which you do not lay upon yourself – which you must obey – ever calling you to do what is good – to avoid evil – to do this – to shun that. Your dignity as a person – as a leader – is in observing this law for by it you will be judged.[i] It is your moral duty to follow and obey your God-given moral conscience—to do, always, what you know, deep down inside, is the absolute right thing to do.
So, what is right? What standard serves as the reliable basis for informing your conscience? Is there a standard independent of personal beliefs and individual convictions? The conventional wisdom of today’s culture demands that there is no independent, absolute standard by which you can discern what is “right” or “wrong” in every situation. You are to do what you deem is the most appropriate action demanded in each unique situation. It is a matter of “personal choice.” What is “right” or “wrong” for one person may not be “right” or “wrong” for another. Moral standards, then, are relative. What’s more, there is no autonomous basis by which to judge another’s conscience, moral standards, or actions. Each person must choose for himself the “rightness” or “wrongness” of a particular action.
However, in a fallen condition, man’s conscience is inadequate and untrustworthy. Therefore, God was pleased to provide a clear revelation of His moral law in the Holy Scriptures – His inspired, infallible, reliable, and written word. This Word reveals God’s moral standard and will for all of faith and life. Through this word, you can know, utterly and completely, independently of your sin-distorted conscience, what is, in fact, the right thing to do in every circumstance of life. God’s Word, the Bible, is the moral standard given to guide and govern your character. The Holy Scripture is the completely sufficient rule for your faith and daily living. It is the external, absolute, and trustworthy standard created by the perfectly moral God. By it you may know what is right.
The point is this: morality, your moral character, is not formed in a relativistic vacuum. God not only created you as a moral agent, He provided the moral standard by which you can judge the nature of every one of your thoughts and actions. You either trust in God and His moral standards or you are left to trust in your own unbelief. To attempt to make moral choices outside of God’s moral standards is fool hearty and utterly irresponsible.
Effective leaders are moral agents. In other words, leaders do the right things. Leaders cultivate this key leadership attribute by identifying and developing a set of biblically-principled core standards by which they conduct their actions in every leadership role. Truly effective leaders recognize there are standards of conduct that are completely independent of mere human choice.
As a leader, you are a moral agent. Your thoughts and actions are not the reflexive and habitual consequences of the surrounding environment. Your thoughts and actions are not instinctive reactions driven by the genetic code. As a moral agent, you have biblically-principled moral reasons for each and every one of your actions.
A fruitful and fulfilling life is a life lived morally.
You are moral.
You are a leader.
This is the truth about leadership!
This is the Genesis Principle of Leadership.
Now go out and lead!
A fruitful and fulfilling life is a life lived morally.
But where does moral character come from? Does moral character result from one’s genetic code? Is it acquired from the environment? Is it a product of evolution? Or is moral character the consequence of some sort of social contract?
Morality is none of these things. Moral character finds its origin in God. By nature, God is a moral agent. He always does what is right. When we say, “God is moral,” we are saying that God does what He does because it is, in reality, moral – it is, in reality, the right thing to do.
God created you to be a moral agent. Therefore, you were created to conform to God’s perfect moral character in thought, word, and deed. Moral character is folded into the very fabric of who you are as a human. You were created to be moral. In your heart you have a moral compass inscribed by God. Deep within your conscience is a law which you do not lay upon yourself – which you must obey – ever calling you to do what is good – to avoid evil – to do this – to shun that. Your dignity as a person – as a leader – is in observing this law for by it you will be judged.[i] It is your moral duty to follow and obey your God-given moral conscience—to do, always, what you know, deep down inside, is the absolute right thing to do.
So, what is right? What standard serves as the reliable basis for informing your conscience? Is there a standard independent of personal beliefs and individual convictions? The conventional wisdom of today’s culture demands that there is no independent, absolute standard by which you can discern what is “right” or “wrong” in every situation. You are to do what you deem is the most appropriate action demanded in each unique situation. It is a matter of “personal choice.” What is “right” or “wrong” for one person may not be “right” or “wrong” for another. Moral standards, then, are relative. What’s more, there is no autonomous basis by which to judge another’s conscience, moral standards, or actions. Each person must choose for himself the “rightness” or “wrongness” of a particular action.
However, in a fallen condition, man’s conscience is inadequate and untrustworthy. Therefore, God was pleased to provide a clear revelation of His moral law in the Holy Scriptures – His inspired, infallible, reliable, and written word. This Word reveals God’s moral standard and will for all of faith and life. Through this word, you can know, utterly and completely, independently of your sin-distorted conscience, what is, in fact, the right thing to do in every circumstance of life. God’s Word, the Bible, is the moral standard given to guide and govern your character. The Holy Scripture is the completely sufficient rule for your faith and daily living. It is the external, absolute, and trustworthy standard created by the perfectly moral God. By it you may know what is right.
The point is this: morality, your moral character, is not formed in a relativistic vacuum. God not only created you as a moral agent, He provided the moral standard by which you can judge the nature of every one of your thoughts and actions. You either trust in God and His moral standards or you are left to trust in your own unbelief. To attempt to make moral choices outside of God’s moral standards is fool hearty and utterly irresponsible.
Effective leaders are moral agents. In other words, leaders do the right things. Leaders cultivate this key leadership attribute by identifying and developing a set of biblically-principled core standards by which they conduct their actions in every leadership role. Truly effective leaders recognize there are standards of conduct that are completely independent of mere human choice.
As a leader, you are a moral agent. Your thoughts and actions are not the reflexive and habitual consequences of the surrounding environment. Your thoughts and actions are not instinctive reactions driven by the genetic code. As a moral agent, you have biblically-principled moral reasons for each and every one of your actions.
A fruitful and fulfilling life is a life lived morally.
You are moral.
You are a leader.
This is the truth about leadership!
This is the Genesis Principle of Leadership.
Now go out and lead!
[i] Pope Paul VI, Gaudium et Spes, n.16, 1965.
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