MOSES – A PROTOTYPE CHRISTIAN LEADER

Remember, like us Moses had direct access to the throne of grace. Unlike Israel under the Law, who needed go-between priests, God Himself was virtually priest for Moses. In Moses, we see a clear picture of how God wants us to serve Him and also where we ought to be extremely careful. In this piece, I examine briefly why Moses was such a phenomenally successful servant of God as leader of His people in how he dealt with GOD, HIMSELF and THE PEOPLE; and why he also got one of the most painful reproofs of all time.

HOW HE DEALT WITH GOD

The Lord God Almighty was the reason for Moses’ mission and source strength. Apparently, Moses started his service to God well by ‘admitting’ his lack of capacity to set Israel free from Egypt.  God therefore gave him a demonstration of his power and assurances that He will continue to be with him and guide him each step of the way. All Moses needed to do was to consult Him constantly and to follow every direction He gave him. That should be rule number one for every servant of God.

In His dealing with God, Moses

1.      Was transparent before God all the time (no veil), though he could not always do so with the people (veil on, see Ex. 33:34-35)

2.      Pursued God relentlessly: Apart from responding promptly to God’s invitations, Moses brought every case to God. It was not enough for Moses that God Himself had said he had found favor with Him – He showed extreme desire for God and delighted in Him, praying Him, “If I have found favor, show me now your ways, that I may know you, in order to find favor in your sight.” (Ex.33:13) And also, “Show me your glory.” (Ex. 33:18) And God was clearly pleased with this particular attitude of Moses, and responded, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest”, “This very thing you have spoken I will do”,  and “I will let my goodness pass before you” (Ex. 33:14, 17, 19)

3.      He kept the Word of God and brought it up regularly during his discussions (prayer) with Him (see Ex. 32:13, Nu. 14:13-20)

HOW HE DEALT WITH HIMSELF

Moses saw himself as one on whom God had trusted the human aspect of delivering His people and sending them to the Promised Land. Initially, he hesitated, but once He accepted to go He was a willing and committed tool, making sure he did not pursue his own comfort or agenda. He therefore put himself at the service of God and the people and was most slow in getting them to serve him, unless it was absolutely clear they would be serving themselves or God by following the instructions he gave them.

In dealing with himself, Moses

1.      Entertained neither personal ambition nor personal grudges: He understood that everything he suffered would be as a result of the calling he had received. (see Nu. 11:29; 12:3)

2.      Partially succeeded in controlling his impulsive tendencies: Apparently, due to excessive temper, he broke the original tablets of the Law and struck the Rock he was ordered to just speak to (Ex.32:19, Nu. 20:3, 6-12).

HOW HE DEALT WITH THE PEOPLE

The people Moses was called to lead were called the “inheritance of God”, and “stiff-necked people”. (see Ex. 33:4,5; 34:9)  They cringed at the idea of losing God’s company, and yet they had a tendency to grumble (spread dissatisfaction, see Nu. 11:1-6), stray into idolatry (making objects to represent God or His power, see 32:1-6, compare Ex. 20:3,4), adultery (enjoy forbidden pleasure, see Nu. 25:1-9) and test God (behave as if fat life under slavery was better than struggling life in purposeful freedom, see Nu. 14:22; 21:5, 6). Instead of taking their walk in the wilderness as a missionary journey, they chose to behave as if they were on an excursion or sight-seeing tour! Moses soon realized that setting them free was easier than leading them to the Promised Land. Of all the people that ever led Israel, Moses appears to have done the best, but his lingering impulsive tendency finally failed him when their repeated grumbling appeared to have caught him off-guard.

In his dealing with the people, Moses

1.      Loved them deeply, was ready to lay his life down for the people, and leveraged every personal advantage he had with God for their benefit (see Ex. 32:32; 34:9)

2.      Was careful not to be ‘led’ by the people as Aaron was in Exodus 32: 1-6

3.      Woefully failed to let the word of God stand before the people, as he and Aaron took matters into their own hands to strike the rock twice when God had instructed that he just speak to it (see Nu. 20:10-12). He and Aaron therefore painfully missed the Promised Land.

CONCLUSION

Every person who leads God’s people has a lot to learn from the example of Moses, that it is a position of great intimacy with God: It is God Himself leading the people through you. Nobody can lead God’s people, for His sheep know His voice and would not follow another (see John 10:5). It is very remarkable that the people never really stopped following Moses summarily, though they threatened to. God’s powerful voice, which assures, redeems, rebukes and terrifies kept them following. The people followed Moses, because He followed God. Loving God above all was Moses’ trump card.

Moses was also selfless, and so must we be: once we set out to serve God, nothing that happens afterwards is personal: Our ambitions (what we aimed to achieve in life) must give way to His vision (what God wants to achieve through us).

We must sincerely love our charges to death, and refuse to bear personal grudges or take personal credits. It is important for leaders of God’s people to note the tendencies of even the redeemed to grumble, crave physical representations of God’s power, seek easy life in sin, and behave as if Satan was a better master, and watch against being misled by those or being provoked by them. We must also always keep in mind that we are part of the flock, and therefore watch to get rid of all fleshy habits (every weight and sin which clings so closely, See Heb. 12:1) that can trip us and bring us under God’s condemnation.

All Bible quotations were from the ESV. #WIFJ