Too Heavy for You

Now we are in Exodus chapter 17, verse 8, going to chapter 18, verse 27.

Exodus 17:8

Let me pray for the reading and preaching of God's word.

Heavenly Father, we believe that your word is truth.

And because of that, that your word is good.

And we ask now that you would quiet our hearts before the reading and preaching of your word.

That you'd incline our ears, our hearts toward you.

And we ask that you would speak, address us as your people.

That we might live in accordance with your will.

That we believe you will speak specifically to the individuals here and to us as a church.

Speak, Father, in an unmistakable way.

That we might know that we are hearing your voice.

In your word.

In Jesus' name we pray.

Amen.

If you are able, please stand for the reading of God's word from Exodus 17, verse 18, 27.

Then Amalek came and fought with Israel at Rephidim.

So Moses said to Joshua, choose for us men and go out and fight with Amalek.

Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.

So Joshua did as Moses told him and fought with Amalek.

While Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill.

Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed.

And whenever he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed.

But Moses' hands grew weary.

So they took a stone and put it under him.

And he sat on it.

While Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side and the other on the other side.

So his hands were steady until the going down of the sun.

And Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the sword.

Then the Lord said to Moses, write this as a memorial in a book.

And recited in the ears of Joshua that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.

And Moses built an altar and called it the name,

The Lord is my banner, saying,

A hand upon the throne of the Lord.

The Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.

Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses' father-in-law,

heard of all that God had done for Moses and for Israel, his people.

How the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt.

And now Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, had taken Zipporah, Moses' wife,

after he had sent her home, along with her two sons.

The name of the one was Gershon, for he said,

I have been a sojourner in a foreign land.

And the name of the other, Eliezer, for he said,

The God of my father was my help,

and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh.

Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, came with his sons and his wife to Moses in the wilderness,

where he was encamped at the mountain of God.

And when he sent word to Moses,

I, your father-in-law Jethro, am coming to you with your wife and her two sons with her.

Moses went out to meet his father-in-law and bowed down and kissed him.

And they asked each other of their welfare and went into the tent.

Then Moses told his father-in-law all that the Lord had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel's sake,

all the hardship that had come upon them in the way, and how the Lord had delivered them.

And Jethro rejoiced for all the good that the Lord had done to Israel,

in that he had delivered them out of the hand of the Egyptians.

Jethro said,

Blessed be the Lord who has delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians,

and out of the hand of Pharaoh,

and has delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians.

Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods,

because in this affair they dealt arrogantly with the people.

And Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, brought a burnt offering and sacrifices to God,

and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat bread with Moses' father-in-law before God.

The next day Moses sat to judge the people,

and the people stood around Moses from morning till evening,

when Moses' father-in-law saw all that he was doing for the people.

He said,

What is this that you are doing for the people?

Why do you sit alone,

and all the people stand around you from morning till evening?

And Moses said to his father-in-law,

Because the people come to me to inquire of God.

When they have a dispute,

they come to me,

and I decide between one person and another,

and I make them know the statutes of God and his laws.

Moses' father-in-law said to him,

What you are doing is not good.

You and the people with you will certainly wear yourselves out,

for the thing is too heavy for you.

You are not able to do it alone.

Now obey my voice,

I will give you advice,

and God be with you.

You shall represent the people before God,

and bring their cases to God,

and you shall warn them about the statutes and the laws,

and make them know the way in which they must walk,

and what they must do.

Moreover, look for able men from all the people,

men who fear God,

who are trustworthy and hate a bribe,

and place such men over the people

as chiefs of thousands,

of hundreds,

of fifties,

and of tens.

And let them judge the people at all times.

Every great matter they shall bring to you,

but any small matter they shall decide themselves,

so it will be easier for you,

and they will bear the burden with you.

If you do this,

God will direct you.

You will be able to endure,

and all this people also will go to their place in peace.

So Moses listened to the voice of his father-in-law,

and did all that he had said.

Moses chose able men out of all Israel,

and made them heads over the people,

chiefs of thousands,

of hundreds,

of fifties,

and of tens,

and they judged the people at all times.

Any hard case they brought to Moses,

but any small matter they decided themselves.

Then Moses let his father-in-law depart,

and he went away to his own country.

This is God's holy and authoritative word.

You may be seated.

Are you guys hearing echoes?

Are you guys okay with the sound?

Okay.

This passage serves as a hinge in the book of Exodus in two ways.

First, chapter 18, verses 1 to 12,

summarized the Lord's deliverance of Israel through Moses,

recounted in chapters 2 to 17.

And then chapter 18, verses 13 to 27,

lay the groundwork for the governance

and judgeship of God's people as a nation,

and anticipates chapters 19 to 40,

where God gives specific laws and instructions

for obedience to him and his worship.

And in this way,

chapter 18 serves as a conclusion

to the first half of the book,

and an introduction to the second half of the book.

And we see here another kind of transition in second way.

17, verse 9,

is the first time in the Bible

that we are introduced to Joshua,

who will eventually succeed Moses

as a leader of Israel

and lead God's people into Canaan.

And in this passage,

both chapter 17 and 18,

we see Moses delegating more of his responsibilities,

thereby laying the groundwork

for his eventual transition from leadership.

So this passage serves as a hinge

to a new phase of life in Israel as God's people.

And one of the main lessons that we learn

from this passage is this,

that God appoints weak people

to carry out his weighty purposes

with the help of others.

And first, we're going to see generals

for times of war,

and then we're going to see judges

for times of peace.

When the Israelites were still at Rephidim,

which is in the region in the wilderness of sin

that they've been at for the past two weeks,

where the Lord provided water

for the Israelites from the rock,

it says in chapter 17, verse 8,

that Amalek came and fought with Israel.

We know from Genesis 36

that Amalek is Esau's grandson.

This is, it's his firstborn son, Eliphaz,

who gave birth to Amalek through a concubine.

And so here we see a distinction

between the chosen line of Jacob

and the line of Esau, the Amalekites.

Since Moses and Aaron were only four generations

removed from Jacob,

it's not inconceivable that the Amalekites

are here actually being led by Amalek himself.

That's why in verse 13,

it refers to Amalek and his people.

So considering that they were distant relatives

of Israel, what they're doing here

is even more egregious.

Deuteronomy 25, verses 17 to 19

Deuteronomy 25:17–19

provides some more details

about this attack of the Amalekites.

And it says this,

remember what Amalek did to you

on the way as you came out of Egypt,

how he attacked you on the way

when you were faint and weary

and cut off your tail,

those who were lagging behind you.

And he did not fear God.

So this explains why the Lord declares

in verse 14,

I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek

from under heaven.

God is absolutely furious

at what Amalek is doing here.

Because when you're on a march

with hundreds of thousands of people,

millions of people,

who are the people that lag behind

at the back of the line?

Sick people?

Old, infirm people?

Families with children?

Pregnant women?

These are the people

who are lagging behind,

people who are falling in the back.

And what Amalek is doing

is cutting off the tail,

attacking the most vulnerable member

of Israel as a nation

in order to profit themselves.

And so God declares war on the Amalekites

on behalf of the Israelites.

They did not fear God.

They came upon the Israelites

when they were faint, it says,

and weary from their long journey

through the wilderness.

Up to this point,

Israelites have not had to take up the sword.

But here the Amalekites forced their hand

and it says in verse 9,

Moses said to Joshua,

choose for us men

and go out and fight with Amalek.

Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill

with the staff of God in my hand.

So we'll see,

this is the first time

we are introduced to Joshua

and we're going to see more and more

his increasing role

as an assistant to Moses

and eventually to take over

the mantle of leadership.

And Moses here determines

that Joshua is the most fitting man

to recruit an army

among the Israelite men

to go out and fight with Amalek.

Maybe, I mean,

he's certainly younger than Moses.

He's fresher, stronger.

He appoints Joshua

to lead the men into battle.

And Moses says,

tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill

with the staff of God in my hand.

So just so you know,

this is not a cowardly attempt

to avoid the perils of war

on the safety of a hill.

He says in verses 11 to 13,

whenever Moses held up his hand,

Israel prevailed.

And whenever he lowered his hand,

Amalek prevailed.

But Moses' hands grew weary,

so they took a stone

and put it under him

and he sat on it

while Aaron and Hur

held up his hands.

One on one side

and the other on the other side.

So his hands were steady

until the going down of the sun.

And Joshua overwhelmed Amalek

and his people with the sword.

Moses' hand is mentioned

six times in verses 9 to 12.

There's a focus on Moses' hand.

And it's not because

Moses' hand itself

has some magical properties

or any special powers,

but it's because in his hand,

as verse 9 says,

is the staff of God.

The authority and power

that God had personally entrusted

to Moses to lead his people.

So whenever Moses raises his hand

holding the staff of God,

the tide of battle

turns in favor of the Israelites,

but whenever he lowers it,

the tide turns the other way

in favor of the Amalekites.

So I don't know if you've ever tried

to hold your hands up

for a long time.

It's really hard to do that

for more than a few minutes.

I know because growing up,

this is how my parents punished me

when I did something wrong.

They said,

kneel over there

and keep your hands up

for several minutes.

If I get into fights with people,

this is what they make me do.

And it's really hard to do.

So eventually it gets very tiring

so you start squirming

and if you're only having

to raise one hand,

you can support it

with the other hand.

And it seems like

that's what Moses is doing.

That's why in verse 11,

it only mentions one hand of Moses.

But then in verse 12,

it says Moses' hands, plural,

grew weary.

And the phrase grew weary

is literally grew heavy.

It's getting too heavy

for him to keep up his arms.

And it's becoming,

it's plural because

he's doing this,

he switches hands

to the other hand,

he's doing this,

or he's doing this

and now he can't keep either one up.

So now he's,

that's why both hands are weary.

This is why they make him,

make him sit down.

You know,

you might wonder why,

you know,

Aaron and Hur

put a stone under him

to have him sit down.

It's not his legs that are tired,

it's his arms.

The reason why

is because if Moses sits down,

his arms are lower,

so Aaron and Hur

don't have to keep their arms up,

they can just hold his arm

against their body.

So they're literally

holding his arms up

on either side

while Moses is sitting

on the stone.

And so what's the point

of all this?

Why are we getting

all these details?

So there are at least

two things that I think

the Lord is teaching us

through this.

First is that Moses,

though he was

the Lord's chosen representative,

he was only human.

He was weak,

he was inadequate,

he needed the help of others,

and in this case,

Aaron, his brother,

and Hur,

a man from the tribe of Judah,

who is the grandfather

of Bezalel,

who is responsible

for designing

and crafting

the tabernacle

and its furnishings

in Exodus 31.

It's not verified

by scripture itself,

but later Jewish tradition

says that Hur

is actually

Miriam's husband,

which would make him

Moses' brother-in-law.

So if that's the case,

he's taking his

literal closest brothers

to hold up his arms

while he's up on the hill,

his brother and his

brother-in-law.

That shows us

that God appoints

weak people

to carry out

his weighty purposes

with help from our

brothers and sisters

in Christ.

Because there will be

times in your own life

when your hands

grow weary

with work that you

are doing for the Lord.

The things that God

has called you to do,

but you will not

be adequate

for the task.

You will not be able

to do it on your own.

And when you grow weary,

it's not cause to despair,

but it's cause to remember

that God designed it

to be that way

because you're not meant

to carry the burden

on your own.

No one is self-sufficient.

Ephesians 4.16 says,

when each part

of the body of Christ,

the local church,

is working properly,

it makes the body grow

so that it builds

itself up in love.

Each part

has a role to play.

1 Corinthians 12 says,

for the body

does not consist

of one member,

but of many,

and that God

arranged the members

in the body,

each one of them

as he chose.

So that each part

has an indispensable

role to play.

Moses was God's

appointed leader

of Israel.

He was the one

to whom the Lord

had given the authority

to carry the staff

of God.

Aaron and Hur

could not carry

the staff of God

for Moses.

However,

they could help

Moses hold up

his arms.

And that's exactly

what they did.

I feel like I'm

overusing references

from this lately,

but in the Lord

of the Rings,

the return of the king,

where Frodo,

Baggins,

and Samwise Gamgee

enter Mordor,

Mordor,

sorry,

they are approaching

the fire of Mount Doom,

and Frodo is so exhausted

from the journey

that he literally

cannot take another step.

And you guys know

where I'm going.

But he is a chosen

ring bearer.

Frodo is the only one

who can carry the ring

to go destroy it

in the mountains.

So this is what

in that moment

his loyal friend

Samwise Gamgee

says to him,

come Mr. Frodo,

I can't carry it for you,

but I can carry you.

And he literally

picks him up

and starts walking

into Mount Mordor.

And sometimes

that's going to happen

to us.

That's what Aaron and Hur

are literally doing.

I can't carry the staff

for you,

but I can carry your hand.

I can pick your hand up

and keep it up.

Galatians 6, 2 commands us

to bear one another's burdens

and so fulfill

the law of Christ.

When one of us

is caught in any transgression,

we can't repent

for that person.

But we can restore him

in a spirit of gentleness.

We can rebuke him

in love.

When one of us

is grieving a loss,

we can't experience

the loss for her,

but we can comfort her

in her mourning

and point her

to the resurrection hope

that we have in Christ.

When one of us

is afflicted

by severe trials

in a marriage,

and we can't go through

the trial for that person,

but we can help him

or her bear

some of others' burdens,

the other burdens

in that person's life.

We can encourage that person

and pray for that person.

Some of you are

carrying very heavy burdens

this morning.

You can't hold up

your arms anymore.

But don't give up.

Look around you.

See who can be your Aaron.

Who can be your her

and call them

to your aid.

And brothers and sisters,

knowing that there are people

in our midst

who are weary,

whose hands are growing heavy,

look out for such people

around you

so you can come

to their aid

to be their Aaron

and her for them.

The second thing,

and I think this is

the main thing

that this passage teaches us,

is the same lesson

that we have seen

over and over again

throughout the book of Exodus.

And that is this,

the battle belongs

to the Lord.

Lord,

pretend that you are

a film director

for a moment.

You're adapting this passage,

Exodus 17,

short verses

for the big screen.

Where would the focus

of your movie be?

I would venture to guess

that you would probably

not spend the majority

of your movie

showing Moses

struggling to hold

his hand up.

You'd probably spend

most of the time

showing the swords clashing,

chariots clashing,

people running,

blood spilling,

action on the battlefield.

Joshua rallying

his troops into battle.

Because from our

human standpoint,

that's where the action is.

But that's not

where the focus

is in this passage,

in the word of God.

Apart from the summary

statement of verse 13,

which says Joshua

overwhelmed Amalek

and his people

with the sword,

there is zero description

of the battlefield.

The focus is instead

on the hand of Moses

carrying the staff of God.

When it is lifted,

they win.

When it is lowered,

they start losing.

How Moses' hands

grew weary

and how Aaron and her

helped them keep them up.

Why is the focus

so much on Moses' hand?

God's perspective,

because that's

in the spiritual scheme

of things,

from God's perspective,

that is where

the real battle

is taking place.

Because the battle

is not being decided

by the sword of Joshua,

but by the hand

of the Lord.

Surely Joshua

was a valiant young man

as we see throughout

the first six books

of the Bible,

but it's not his competence

or courage

as a military general,

nor the might

of the Israelite army

that brings victory.

They did have a role to play.

They did have to go and fight,

and we likewise

have a role to play.

We do have things

we must do

as God's people,

but the battle

belongs to the Lord.

It's him who decides

the victory.

That's the whole point

of verses 11 and 13.

It says in verses 14 to 16,

then the Lord said to Moses,

write this as a memorial

in a book

and recite it

in the years of Joshua

that I will utterly

blot out the memory

of Amalek

from under heaven.

And Moses built an altar

and called the name of it,

the Lord is my banner,

saying,

a hand upon the throne

of the Lord,

the Lord will have war

with Amalek

from generation to generation.

Since there is a repetition

and an emphasis

on the hand of Moses,

the expression,

a hand upon the throne

of the Lord

is most likely a reference

to Moses' outstretched hand

with the staff

petitioning the Lord

on behalf of Israel.

It's as if Moses'

outstretched hand

is like a hand

on the throne,

on the throne of God,

pleading with him

to fight on Israel's behalf.

And because his hand

was on the Lord's throne,

the Lord says,

I will have war

with Amalek

from generation to generation.

So Moses,

to commemorate this,

builds an altar

and names it,

the Lord is my banner.

The banner,

most likely when we hear

the word banner,

we now think of

advertisement banners.

That's not what's

in view here.

It's referring to the signal,

the military signal,

or the military standard,

the flag,

the banner under

which an army fights.

If the Lord is the banner,

that means this is

the Lord's battle.

He's the king

who is depicted on the flag.

As Christians,

we will face battles

in this life.

Jesus says in John 15 to 20,

15 verse 20,

if they persecuted me,

they will persecute you also.

When you try to obey God

and follow his word,

you will face opposition

from the world

and from your sinful flesh

and from the devil.

We should not be surprised

by that.

1 Peter 5, 8 says

that our adversary,

the devil,

prowls around

like a roaring lion

seeking someone to devour.

He will come upon us

when we are faint and weary

like the Israelites were.

He will try to cut off our tail

and attack the weakest

and most vulnerable members

among us.

there will be sweat

and tears

and sometimes even blood.

There's a reason why

Ephesians 6 tells us

to put on the full armor of God.

You don't need an armor

if you're not in war.

You might not want to fight,

but our enemies

will bring the fight to you.

But in the midst

of these battles,

we must remember

that the Lord is my banner.

The battle ultimately

belongs to the Lord.

So let me ask you,

are you fighting your battles

in the Christian life

in your own strength

or in the strength

of the Lord?

Here's how you know.

Here's a good

diagnostic test

to gauge

what's happening

in your life.

Where are your hands?

Are your hands

always busy

with ministry?

Are your hands

always serving?

Or are your hands

upon the throne

of the Lord?

Are your hands

stretched out

toward God

in prayer?

If you're not

clinging

to God's throne

in prayer,

then you're operating

under the assumption

that your activity

and not God's activity

is decisive

in your life.

But the battle

does not ultimately

belong to us.

It belongs

to the Lord.

So let's not forget,

let's not be a church

that forgets

where the banner is,

under whose banner

we fight.

Because as soon as

we become

a prayerless church,

we will be

a powerless church.

After defeating

the Amalekites,

the Israelites

have some respite.

And it's during

that time,

Jethro,

the priest of Midian,

Moses' father-in-law

comes to visit Moses

and see how he's doing.

In Exodus 4,

we were told

that Moses actually

took his wife

and children

with him to Egypt.

So it seems,

according to chapter 18,

at some point

later in time,

he sent his wife

and children

back to Egypt,

which would be

a very understandable

thing to do.

It's probably

what I would do

in his shoes

because Pharaoh's

refusing to let

the Israelites go.

Tensions are rising.

Plagues are falling.

There's conflict going on.

So it's maybe

a sensible time

to send your children

and your wife

back home

since they have

a place to go to

in Midian.

And it recalls

a couple things,

the names of his sons.

And this is significant

because in this

family reunion,

we see a summary

of Moses' biography.

Verses 3-4,

chapter 18,

tells us that

the name of the one

son was Gershom,

for he said,

I have been a sojourner

in a foreign land

and the name

of the other,

Eliezer,

for he said,

the God of my father

was my help

and delivered me

from the sword

of Pharaoh.

So Gershom was

the son Moses

had with Zipporah

when he entered

the land of Midian.

He was saying

that he is now

a sojourner

in the foreign land

of Midian.

And then Eliezer

is the son he had

just before

re-entering Egypt

and he named him

Eliezer

because God

had just told him

that the men,

including Pharaoh,

who were seeking

your life in Egypt

are now dead.

And so Moses

praised God

saying that God

has delivered me

from the sword

of Pharaoh.

He was my helper

and so God,

he named him

Eliezer.

And this is

a sketch

of Moses' life,

how God

has been faithful

to him.

But in this passage,

it also serves

to exemplify,

to capture

what God has done

for the Israelites.

Because Gershom,

I have been

a sojourner

in a foreign land.

Israelites were also

sojourners

in the foreign land

of Egypt.

And Eliezer,

God is my help,

he has delivered me

from the sword

of Pharaoh.

The Israelites

have also been

delivered by God

from the sword

of Pharaoh.

God has been

their help.

So in this,

we see God's

utter faithfulness.

Moses sees

his son,

Gershom,

Eliezer,

and he sees

how faithful

God has been.

And so Moses

greets his father-in-law

warmly,

and they spend

the while

catching up

in Moses' tent.

And it says

in verse 8,

that Moses told

his father-in-law

all that the Lord

had done

to Pharaoh

and to the Egyptians

for Israel's sake,

all the hardship

that had come upon

them in the way,

and how the Lord

had delivered them.

So Moses

tells Jethro

of all the amazing

signs that God

did in Egypt

that he witnessed,

how the Lord

defeated Egypt

and Pharaoh

by his mighty hand.

But that's not

all he tells.

He also tells

of their hardships

and their struggles.

He tells his father-in-law,

pours out his heart

about all the hardship

that they faced

in the wilderness.

If you think

about the last few passages,

it hasn't been

an easy journey

for Moses.

People grumbled

against him

at the bitters

of waters of Marah.

They grumbled

against him

for lack of food

in the wilderness

of sin.

And then they quarreled

with him

at Massah

and Meribah

and almost

stoned him

to death.

So Moses

is kind of

sharing his griefs

with his father-in-law.

Can you believe

what these guys

are trying to do

to me?

But the Lord

has delivered

them.

Think about this

for a moment.

From a human standpoint,

this is a fantastic

opportunity

for Moses

to impress

his father-in-law.

Look at what

I've done!

Look at what

I've done!

I just went

into one of the

most powerful

ancient kingdoms

in the world

and delivered

millions of people

out of their slavery

and brought them

through the wilderness

and here they are!

You thought

your daughter

married a no-name

fugitive from Egypt

but here I am,

the great Moses.

It's a great opportunity

for him to do that

but Moses

doesn't do that.

He emphasizes

the role

of the Lord

in all of it.

He speaks of all

that the Lord

had done

to Pharaoh

and to Egyptians

and he speaks of

how the Lord

had delivered

Israel.

It's about

what the Lord

has done

and not what

Moses has done.

Likewise,

when we

recount

the triumphs

and victories

of our lives,

we should give

credit

where the credit

is due

and glorify

God.

We can take

credit

in quite subtle

ways.

There's a difference

between saying,

look at the amazing

things that God

has done

in my life.

There's a difference

between saying that

and saying,

look at the amazing

things that God

has done

in my life.

Do you see

the difference?

What God

has done

in my life

makes me

amazing,

makes me

so mature,

makes me

so put together,

makes me

so experienced.

If the effect

of your testimony

is the elevation

of your standing

before people

rather than

elevation of

God's standing

before their eyes,

then your emphasis

in your testimony

is in the wrong

place.

Because Moses

puts the emphasis

in the right

place,

Jethro's response

in verses 9 to 11

is appropriate.

It says,

Jethro rejoiced

for all the good

that the Lord

had done

to Israel

in that he

had delivered

them out of the

hand of the Egyptians.

Jethro said,

blessed be the Lord

who has delivered

you out of the

hand of the

Egyptians

and out of the

hand of Pharaoh

and has delivered

the people

from under the

hand of the

Egyptians.

Now I know

that the Lord

is greater

than all gods

because in this

affair they dealt

arrogantly with

the people.

Jethro's response

is not,

wow,

I am so lucky

to have such

an impressive,

successful man

as my son-in-law.

No,

his response

is,

wow,

the God

you serve

is greater

than all

the gods.

That's,

that should be

the desire,

the heartbeat

of every Christian.

For people

to look at us

and say,

wow,

look at,

not look at how

impressive those

Christians are,

but for them

to look at us

and say,

look at how

amazing

their God

is.

And Jethro

comes to

correct conclusion

that the Lord

is greater

than all the gods.

Because the

ancient world

was so thoroughly

religious

and because

God's people

were keenly

aware of

spiritual realities

and that there

were spiritual

forces,

demonic spirits

at work

among the

pagan deities

and the

pagan nations,

they sometimes

expressed their

monotheistic faith,

the belief that

there is only

one true God

in henotheistic

terms,

terms that

acknowledge that

there are other

gods.

But this is not

a denial of

their monotheism.

There is only

one true God,

but because all

these nations

believe in other

gods and because

there are evil

spirits at work,

they say things

like,

the Lord is

greater than

all gods.

There is no

God like

our God.

God.

Jeremiah 2.11

makes this clear

when God,

they're there in

that context,

God's bemoaning

the fact that

the Israelites

have exchanged

God,

the true God,

for idols.

And this is what

God says in

Jeremiah 2.11,

has a nation

changed its

gods?

So are there

actually gods?

It says,

has a nation

changed its

gods,

even though

they are

no gods?

But my people

have changed

their glory for

that which does

not profit.

Every other

nation has

not changed

its gods,

even though

their so-called

gods are

actually not

gods at all.

But it speaks

like they are

gods.

God's people

had exchanged

the true God

for idols.

In light of

this,

Jethro's

profession that

the Lord is

greater than

all gods

is remarkable.

Remember from

verse 1 that

Jethro is the

Midianite priest.

He is the

priest at

Midian.

He's not only

a non-Israelite,

a foreigner,

a Gentile,

he's the

priest of

Midianite religion,

worshiper of a

different false

deity.

And yet after

hearing of all

that Yahweh has

done on behalf

of the Israelites,

he concludes,

I know that the

Lord is greater

than all gods.

Knowing God,

knowing the

Lord is a

major theme in

the book of

Exodus as we

have seen over

and over again.

Pharaoh claimed,

I do not know

the Lord.

And every time

God reveals

himself through

signs in

Egypt,

his purpose is

so that the

Egyptians and

the Israelites

might know

him,

know that he

is Yahweh,

he is the

Lord.

The purpose

of the

Exodus is

revelation,

to reveal

God.

But sadly,

we saw in the

preceding episodes

the last two

weeks that the

Israelites,

even after all

that they had

been delivered

from,

did not rightly

know God as

they ought to.

But here is a

Gentile pagan

worshiper,

the priest of

Midian professing,

I know that the

Lord is greater

than all gods.

This is a humble

admission that

Yahweh is greater

even than the

God of the

Midianite religion

that he is

priest of.

In fact,

it may even be a

profession of faith

that Yahweh is

the only true

God.

We can see the

possibility of that

in verse 12.

Where it says,

Jethro,

Moses' father-in-law,

brought a burnt

offering and

sacrifices to

God.

And Aaron came

with all the

elders of Israel

to eat bread

with Moses'

father-in-law

before God.

This is a

preview of the

sacrificial system

that will later

be instituted

and resembles a

fellowship offering

that is stipulated

in Exodus 20

and Leviticus 7

where they make

a burnt offering

to God

and then God's

people share in

that meal together

to indicate their

fellowship with one

another and with

God.

So,

after being,

having been

introduced in

verse 1 as

the priest of

Midian,

Jethro is never

again called

the priest of

Midian again

in scripture.

But he is called

repeatedly again

and again,

13 times to be

exact in this

passage,

Moses'

father-in-law,

showing that he is

a member of

Moses' family

included in the

fellowship of

God's people

and it's his

relation to

Moses and

his profession

of faith

in the Lord

that gives

Jethro standing

among God's

people,

not the fact

that he is

a priest of

Midian.

And Jethro is

not afraid to

use his

standing as

Moses'

father-in-law

to give him

some fatherly

counsel in

verses 13 to

27.

He notices in

verse 13

that Moses

sat to judge

the people

and the people

stood around

Moses from

morning till

evening.

So we

learn here

from verse

15 to 16

that Moses

hears an

individual

case and

takes each

individual

case to

the Lord

in order to

hear from

him and

to be able

to make

a judgment,

a decision.

And he's

the one that

in those

cases individually

teaching people

that come to

him the

statutes of

God and

his laws.

Jethro sees

immediately that

this is not

only a

painstakingly

slow process,

which is why

people are

standing around

just waiting

in line all

day.

It's testing

people's

patience.

But also

Jethro sees

that his

son-in-law

is headed

toward inevitable

burnout.

So he says

to Moses

in verses

17 to 23,

what you are

doing is not

good.

You and the

people with

you will

certainly wear

yourselves out

for the thing

is too heavy

for you.

You're not

able to do

it alone.

Now obey

my voice,

I will give

you advice,

and God

be with you.

You shall

represent the

people before

God and

bring their

cases to

God,

and you

shall warn

them about

the statutes

and the laws

and make

them know

the way

in which

they must

walk and

what they

must do.

Moreover,

look for

able men

from all

the people,

men who

fear God,

who are

trustworthy

and hate

a bribe,

and place

such men

over the

people as

chiefs of

thousands,

of hundreds,

of fifties,

and of tens,

and let them

judge the

people at

all times.

Every great

matter they

shall bring

to you,

but any

small matter

they shall

decide

themselves.

If you do

this,

God will

direct you,

you will

be able to

endure,

and all

these people

will also

go to their

place in

peace.

Jethro's

recommendation

is what in

modern days

people call

the principle

of subsidiarity.

The Oxford

English

Dictionary

defines

subsidiarity

as,

quote,

the principle

that a

central authority

should have

a subsidiary

function,

performing

only those

tasks which

cannot be

performed at

a more

local level.

So this

principle was

expounded

upon by

13th century

theologian,

Italian theologian

Thomas Aquinas,

as well as

by 16th century

German lawyer

and Calvinist

political philosopher

Johannes

Althaus,

but the

principle is

way more

ancient than

that.

It goes

all the way

back to

Moses.

This

principle is

codified in

the laws of

the United

States.

The

Tenth

Amendment

states,

quote,

the powers

not delegated

to the

United

States by

the

Constitution

nor

prohibited

by it

to the

states

are

reserved

to the

states

respectively

or to

the

people.

Subsidiarity.

Our

federal

justice

system also

reflects this

principle

with 94

district

courts

spread

throughout

the

country

serving

as

the

primary

trial

courts.

And

then

when

issues

cannot

be

resolved

there

people

make

appeals

which

then

goes to

the

13

courts

of

appeals

and

then

if

the

issues

still

remain

unresolved

then

it

goes

to

the

one

U.S.

Supreme

Court

for

final

review

and

judgment.

This

is the

principle

of

subsidiarity.

It's

a

wise

and

biblical

principle.

And

note

that

this is

not merely

Jethro's

good idea

it's

actually

ultimately

God

who is

directing

Moses

and the

Israelites

this way.

That's

why it

says in

verse 23

if you

do this

God

will

direct

you.

The

NIV

translates

it

this

way

if you

do

this

and

God

so

commands

Moses

follows

his

father-in-law's

advice

because

he

believes

that

this

is

in

fact

what

God

is

commanding.

Once

again

we

see

that

God

appoints

weak

people

to

carry

out

his

weighty

purposes

with

help

from

others.

God

makes

babies

to be

born

within

families.

We're

celebrating

the

Miller's

new

baby

this

weekend.

They're

all

born

into

families.

Yeah.

And

he

makes

families

function

within

larger

societies.

Similarly

God

places

every

Christian

within

the

family

of

God

when

they

are

born

again

through

repentance

and

faith

in

Jesus.

The

church

and

because

we

need

each

other

because

we

cannot

function

alone

God

places

us

in

local

church

families.

The

lead

pastor

of

a

local

church

does

not

make

all