Sunday Sermon Snippet 08.31
“What you’re doing is not good,…” Exodus 18:17
This week’s weekly posting of the Sunday Sermon Snippet comes from yesterday’s sermon on Exodus 18, entitled, “The Delight and Duty of Salvation.”
At this point in the exposition, we’re just beginning to explore the kind of joyful duty that the delight in our salvation should call forth from God’s people, the church.
If you’d like to check out the whole sermon, just click here.
We had just seen Moses fatigued while mediating power in the midst of a battle, so much so that he needed support — his arms needing raising by men around him. But this is a whole ‘nother level of fatigue — the care and leading of the people, ensuring that they are satisfied as a family, as the people of God. That there is peace and harmony. Among a congregation of hundreds of thousands. And watch now, look at this — it’s an unbeliever (or maybe he’s a brand new convert) — who brings wise counsel. Friend, in the common grace of God, wisdom can come from anywhere…
Exodus 18:17
“What you’re doing is not good,” Moses’s father-in-law said to him.
I love it! Straight to the point.
Exodus 18:18-23
“You will certainly wear out both yourself and these people who are with you, because the task is too heavy for you. You can’t do it alone. 19 Now listen to me; I will give you some advice, and God be with you. You be the one to represent the people before God and bring their cases to him. 20 Instruct them about the statutes and laws, and teach them the way to live and what they must do. (MARK THAT, brothers and sisters!) 21 But you should select from all the people able men, God-fearing, trustworthy, and hating dishonest profit. Place them over the people as commanders of thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens. 22 They should judge the people at all times. Then they can bring you every major case but judge every minor case themselves. In this way you will lighten your load, and they will bear it with you. 23 If you do this, and God so directs you, you will be able to endure, and also all these people will be able to go home satisfied.”
Isn’t that a fascinating statement and possibility? Imagine this among God’s people, imagine this in a church family, of all places — that all the people would be able to go home satisfied. That’s a big part of what someone coming to church desires, is it not? To be satisfied? And when you read the Scriptures, this isn’t actually a bad thing, or a wrong thing. God speaks a great deal about desire, about happiness, contentment, and satisfaction.
And what we are shown in this passage is that the pathway to satisfaction is the duty of salvation.
As one commentator notes: “The liberated community must develop [ministries and structures] that will sustain and stabilize the salvation vision in daily [life and practice].” In other words, the delight of salvation leads to and produces a duty of salvation. Every member of the family must be involved in working out salvation so that the one (or the few) don’t get worn out, and so that all can go home satisfied. So all can be at peace. So that the spreading of salvation may occur to those like Jethro.
Do you see? Every member of the family needs to be involved in the ministry of the family. “The people of God should think of themselves as a community in which every member plays his or her part.” (Garrett) And by member, I’m not talking formal membership like we may as a church, I’m talking about being a member of the family of God, who calls Grace your church home. Who says, “This is my family.” And do you know what this requires of every member of the family? Humility.
As Duane Garrett wisely advises:
“This includes the humility of realizing that my contribution to an organization is not invaluable and that I am not irreplaceable. It also shows itself in the humility of the people, who must submit their concerns and problems to lower officials (to others, just like them) before they approach Moses (or the elder, pastor, or deacon). Humility also shows itself in willingness to take on a task for the good of the community, even though you may not feel that task is fun, or is your gift — it just needs done. Finally, it shows itself in the willingness to take sound advice, as Moses did.”
And here’s how Moses did that —
Exodus 18:24-26 Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything he said. 25 So Moses chose able men from all Israel and made them leaders over the people as commanders of thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens. 26 They judged the people at all times; they would bring the hard cases to Moses, but they would judge every minor case themselves.
Do you see, my family, my friends? We can’t leave the work to a lead pastor, or associate pastors, or to the elders or deacons. We cannot leave the work, as so often happens in churches, to the 20% fully committed and fully giving, while the 80% merely show up and receive. If that’s how we operate, “what we are doing is not good.” (v17)
