When leaders fail

The historian that wrote the account of Ahab believed that he was the most evil of all the kings that had served Israel. He had done all that his predecessors had done and more. While he had introduced idol worship at the incitement of his wife, Jezebel, he was responsible and God was going to hold him accountable. But once Ahab had heard the judgment that had been pronounced against him it seems that he finally grasped the enormity of his actions. His response was to at least adopt the outward signs of repentance.

While there was no evidence of the changed behaviour that should accompany genuine repentance, it seems that he was sincere. God drew Elijah’s attention to the fact that Ahab had humbled himself and because of this had given him a short stay of execution. Whether or not we feel that Ahab was genuine doesn’t really matter. God accepted Ahab’s outward signs of repentance and extended mercy toward him, He did not take away the penalty completely however, just put it off until the next generation of Ahab’s family came to power.

This account reveals that God is ever willing to extend mercy but sin has consequences. Ahab had led the people away from God and while they had willingly gone along with him, the responsibility rested with him. God accepted Ahab’s repentance and withheld the penalty that he was to receive, but the judgment would come nevertheless. Sometimes when the things we do go unpunished or seemingly unnoticed we assume that we have got away with it, but God does not forget and he will bring to light the consequences of our actions. However he always allows us the opportunity to acknowledge our failure and genuinely repent. The apostle Peter writes ‘God is not slow about his promise…but is patient toward you not wishing any to perish but for all to come to repentance’. The promise he is speaking of here is the promise of judgment. The fact is that God is much more willing to forgive than we are to ask it of him. He wants to extend mercy but there is a condition. The apostle John writes that if we confess our sin, God is faithful and just and he will forgive us. But he requires us to acknowledge our failure and to genuinely commit to making the changes that are necessary to walk in fellowship with Him.

Ahab did those things which publicly demonstrated that he was aware of his failure. In that way he humbled himself before the people that he had previously oppressed. Even if his repentance wasn’t as thorough as it could have been it would still have cost Ahab dearly to humble himself in the sight of his people. There is no indication about how Jezebel responded to his apparent repentance but Ahab repented and God extended mercy. Perhaps if Ahab’s repentance had been more thorough or accompanied by acts in keeping with a change of life, such as the removal of the false gods or restoration of Naboth’s land to some remaining members of his family or tribe, then God would have relented from the judgment completely. As it was he secured a temporary reprieve.

God expects that his people act in a manner that is in keeping with righteousness. But knowing that we are weak and prone to failure he makes provision for the times when we fall short of his expectations. Even though we may feel we have let him down badly, or that we have acted in such a way that we have lost our position and privilege God is ever ready to offer mercy. Failure, even moral failure is not terminal. God delights in restoring the broken.

The tragedy of Ahab was that his moral failure had caused not only personal cost to him, but had drawn the people under his influence into this same web of deceit and loss. Those that are leaders have the God given responsibility to lead with integrity and righteousness, otherwise they too may cause the failure of those under their influence. There is only one way back from this precipice; that is to acknowledge the weakness, turn from it and seek God’s mercy. He is more willing to give it than we are to receive.