“It’s Not All on You” (Exodus 18:13–27)

“It’s Not All on You” (Exodus 18:13–27)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday PM, February 18, 2018

Exodus 18:13–27 (NIV)

13 The next day Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people, and they stood around him from morning till evening. 14 When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he said, “What is this you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around you from morning till evening?”

15 Moses answered him, “Because the people come to me to seek God’s will. 16 Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me, and I decide between the parties and inform them of God’s decrees and instructions.”

17 Moses’ father-in-law replied, “What you are doing is not good. 18 You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone. 19 Listen now to me and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must be the people’s representative before God and bring their disputes to him. 20 Teach them his decrees and instructions, and show them the way they are to live and how they are to behave. 21 But select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. 22 Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with you. 23 If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied.”

24 Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything he said. 25 He chose capable men from all Israel and made them leaders of the people, officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. 26 They served as judges for the people at all times. The difficult cases they brought to Moses, but the simple ones they decided themselves.

27 Then Moses sent his father-in-law on his way, and Jethro returned to his own country.

1. The Problem: Shouldering the Responsibility Alone (vv. 13–18).

a. Moses was rightly serving as judge and overseer over the people (13, 15–16).

i. The people did need God’s Word and His Will, and Moses was in the position to mediate that Word to the people (13, 15).
ii. The people did need matters that were in dispute to be decided by someone who knew God’s Word and His Will (16).

b. Moses was wrongly thinking that he needed to do it all by himself (14, 17–18).

i. Just because the people needed God’s Word didn’t mean that Moses had to give it to them directly and personally himself.
ii. Just because the people needed matters that were in dispute to be decided by a judge who knew God’s Word didn’t mean that Moses had to be the only judge deciding every matter.

c. Shouldering the Responsibility Alone leads to overworked servants of God and frustrated and under-served people (18).

2. The Plan: Share the Responsibility with Others (vv. 19–23).

a. The one suggesting the plan: Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law
b. The plan itself:

i. Moses should be the primary mediator between the people and God (19).

1. Bringing matters to be decided to God
2. Bringing God’s Word/Judgments to the People

ii. Moses should be the primary teacher of God’s Word and God’s Ways to the people (20).

1. Teaching God’s people God’s Words
2. Teaching God’s people God’s Ways

iii. Moses should select and appoint men of character and capability to help shoulder the load of judgment and leadership (21).

1. Capable men
2. God-fearing
3. Appoint them to various levels of leadership and responsibility commensurate with their level of experience and qualifications

iv. The ministry of judgment/leadership can be shared with these qualified men, and Moses can continue to handle the more difficult cases. He is still the ultimate mediator of God’s word and his judgments to the people (22).
v. Shared Responsibility lessens the stress of fatigue on the minister/leader and provides more personal and consistent ministry to the people (23).

c. The approver of the plan: this plan comes from Jethro; it is his advice. But still God must give the approval for this plan.

i. The text seems to indicate that this plan is subject to approval by God:

1. May God be with you (v. 19).
2. If you do this and God so commands (23).

3. The Process: Begin the Process of Training and Selecting Others to Share the Responsibility (vv. 24–27).

a. No matter how good a plan is, it still must be implemented (24) – Moses listened and implemented (assuming God’s approval).
b. A plan such as this can’t be implemented overnight. It appears that the implementation of shared judgment and leadership was a process.

i. It takes a process to show the people the value of shared leadership.
ii. It takes a process to train the leaders to know God’s Word and become capable of handling their sphere of responsibility.
iii. It takes cooperation and humility for everyone to maintain their sphere of responsibility and not try to do more than what they’ve been given or slack in doing less.

Main Idea: Ministry is not intended to be responsibility of one person, not even one leader. Ministry is intended to be shared by godly, qualified leadership, and by willing, serving people.