Organizing God’s People

Last week, we looked at the very beginning of the book of Deuteronomy. We talked about the need and value of studying these books of the Old Testament. While people often want something new and innovative, God has laid down in scripture guidance for life that continues to be applicable in every generation. Therefore, we are looking at the book of Deuteronomy together so that we can learn what it tells us about God, what it tells us about ourselves, what it tells about his eternal plan of salvation through Jesus, and what we are to do with all of this.

In the very opening chapters of Deuteronomy, we find Moses giving a speech to the people of Israel. He is giving this speech in the fortieth year of their journey, a journey that the text notes is but an 11 day journey. And that was one of the points we pondered last week; Has our own journey with God been delayed because of discontent, or sin, or stubbornness? We probably can all answer in the affirmative here, yes, because we are all humans and our nature is opposed to God, and even once saved, scripture tells us we are not yet perfected, so no one can say in response to this question, “no, I have never been delayed on my journey”. And even though I have met Christians that I am guessing would actually answer this and say they have never delayed their journey, we all know better, because we all can see clearly that none of us is doing this journey of faith in a perfect way.

So the speech is happening 40 years into this journey; What significant thing had happened prior to the 40 year mark? Let’s look ahead a bit to see: Deut2.14

Deuteronomy 2:14 ESV

And the time from our leaving Kadesh-barnea until we crossed the brook Zered was thirty-eight years, until the entire generation, that is, the men of war, had perished from the camp, as the Lord had sworn to them.

Also in Josh5.6

Joshua 5:6 ESV

For the people of Israel walked forty years in the wilderness, until all the nation, the men of war who came out of Egypt, perished, because they did not obey the voice of the Lord; the Lord swore to them that he would not let them see the land that the Lord had sworn to their fathers to give to us, a land flowing with milk and honey.

We are told the reasons for this in several places in scripture, but let me summarize briefly: the people of Israel were brought to the promised land, and 12 spies were sent in, and they came back and 10 of the spies said it looks really scary, there are big people there, it will be dangerous for us to go in. And two spies, Joshua and Caleb, said “No, the Lord is with us, we can take the land.” but the people grumbled and did not want to go into the land so God made the people wander in the desert for 40 years so that all of those who had grumbled would die off, and the next generation of Israelites would go into the land.

So who is Moses speaking to in this speech we are looking at today in Deuteronomy chapter 1? The younger generation. The ones whose parents or grandparents had died in the desert. Many of them were infants or not yet born during the events recorded in Exodus. We can see why Moses decided to give them a history lesson. He wanted to be sure that everyone knew the history of what God had done for Israel. Remember that God’s commands are often followed by a reminder of who He is and what He has done. The ten commandments begin with “I am the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt”. God is always reminding his people of what He has done for Him. The obedience God requires is not without a connection or a reminder to what He has done for us.

So Moses is now recounting to the new generation of Israel the good things he has done. So in the last few verses from last week’s study, we see the beginning of Moses’ speech to the younger generation, his retelling of the faithfulness of God. And may we remember, especially those of an older generation in the faith, who have seen God move, who have seen God draw people to himself, who have known God to heal the sick, who have known God to provide for needs, who have known God to move and act in their lives, to share these stories of God’s goodness and faithfulness to the younger generation. Churches used to do more of this. And perhaps we need to make more time for testimonies, both of what God has done recently, but also what God has done in the lives of his people. Our teaching of children about God should include our personal stories of His faithfulness.

So let’s go back to verse 6 from last week, where the speech begins, and we will take a look through verse 18 this morning.

Deuteronomy 1:6–18 ESV

“The Lord our God said to us in Horeb, ‘You have stayed long enough at this mountain. Turn and take your journey, and go to the hill country of the Amorites and to all their neighbors in the Arabah, in the hill country and in the lowland and in the Negeb and by the seacoast, the land of the Canaanites, and Lebanon, as far as the great river, the river Euphrates. See, I have set the land before you. Go in and take possession of the land that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give to them and to their offspring after them.’ “At that time I said to you, ‘I am not able to bear you by myself. The Lord your God has multiplied you, and behold, you are today as numerous as the stars of heaven. May the Lord, the God of your fathers, make you a thousand times as many as you are and bless you, as he has promised you! How can I bear by myself the weight and burden of you and your strife? Choose for your tribes wise, understanding, and experienced men, and I will appoint them as your heads.’ And you answered me, ‘The thing that you have spoken is good for us to do.’ So I took the heads of your tribes, wise and experienced men, and set them as heads over you, commanders of thousands, commanders of hundreds, commanders of fifties, commanders of tens, and officers, throughout your tribes. And I charged your judges at that time, ‘Hear the cases between your brothers, and judge righteously between a man and his brother or the alien who is with him. You shall not be partial in judgment. You shall hear the small and the great alike. You shall not be intimidated by anyone, for the judgment is God’s. And the case that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.’ And I commanded you at that time all the things that you should do.

As Moses tells the story of God’s deliverance, he is going to highlight some very important points about how God expects his people to conduct themselves. So he begins with a reminder of what God commanded. Remember God had already revealed himself as completely sovereign over nations and nature, the people have witnessed the power of God in the plagues, the pillar of fire, the crossing of the Red sea, and more. This God, the one who has proved himself again and again to Israel, this God is the one giving them direction. So he says to them “You have stayed long enough at this mountain. Turn and take your journey. See, I have set the land before you Go in and take possession of the land.”

So last week we looked at that part of it, this morning we pick up at verse 9.

Deuteronomy 1:9–10 ESV

“At that time I said to you, ‘I am not able to bear you by myself. The Lord your God has multiplied you, and behold, you are today as numerous as the stars of heaven.

So it has been pointed out by some people we could classify as hyper literal, that we now know that there are trillions of stars in the sky, so this could not be accurate, because the people of Israel certainly did not then and do not now number themselves in the trillions. Well, first off, it is a metaphor. It is a way of saying there are a lot of you. and secondly, even in those days, without the light pollution we have today, there were only maybe, at the very most, a few thousand stars visible with the human eye. So as far as the perspective of the people, they did number as many as the stars of the sky. But regardless, don’t get hung up on metaphors in the bible. Jesus used metaphors, simile's, and hyperbole and so did many writers of the scripture, who all were inspired by the Holy Spirit to write what they did.

Because of their great number, and apparently they had multiplied even since leaving Egypt, Moses says “I am not able to bear you by myself”. What does he mean by this? Well, Moses was humble enough to know that he could not personally see to every detail of his leadership. It was impossible for any person to do that. We don’t expect the governor of the state, much less the president of the country, to be personally involved in every decision of their government. So they delegate. There is a huge executive branch of our government. The president sets the tone, the policy, and so on, but he could not possibly be personally involved in every decision big and small.

As the executive in charge of Israel, Moses needed help. In verse 11 he blesses the people by asking God to increase them by a thousand times, which may be hyperbole, but a leader whose population increases now has even more people to be responsible for, so Moses recognizes he cannot do it all himself.

Deuteronomy 1:12–13 ESV

How can I bear by myself the weight and burden of you and your strife? Choose for your tribes wise, understanding, and experienced men, and I will appoint them as your heads.’

Now where did Moses get the idea to do all this? He listened to his father-in-law.

Exodus 18:13–24 ESV

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.

This is what happened, and this is what Moses is telling the younger generation, the reasoning behind appointing leaders. But note that while Moses did appoint these leaders, the people themselves chose the leaders. they were to choose wise, understanding, and experienced men, and then Moses would appoint them, that is, he would charge them with their duties.

According to the Expositor’s Bible commentary, The “wise, understanding and respected” men are also called “leading” men in v.15 (ḥaḵāmim, “wise”) means men who know how to apply their knowledge. neḇōnîm, “understanding”) means those who have discernment and so are able to judge matters. (yeduʿîm, “respected”) means those who are well known or, possibly, experienced. This passive form of (yāḏaʿ, “know”) occurs also in Isa 53:3, where the NIV translates it as “familiar with suffering.” It may well be “experienced in suffering”

When Moses did this, the people were happy with this direction. Deut1.14

Deuteronomy 1:14 ESV

And you answered me, ‘The thing that you have spoken is good for us to do.’

This reminds me a little of the situation we saw in Acts, where we see the reasoning behind the appointing of deacons:

Acts 6:1–7 ESV

Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution. And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them. And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.

So a job became to big for the main leaders, they appointed the deacons, or servants, for certain work, and the result was that this pleased the people. People like it when leaders delegate duties to able people who can serve well. But a danger is often found in leadership. The leader doesn’t want to give up certain responsibilities or powers. Maybe he doesn’t trust it will be done right or the way he wants unless he does it personally. Maybe he wants the credit for the work, and allowing others to serve spreads out not only the responsibilities, but the credit as well. Maybe he is proud. Whatever the reason, too many leaders cling to being personally involved in every decision. And when this happens, everyone under that leadership suffers. They suffer from not having the privilege to be part of the work. They suffer from the leader being unable to personally see to everything so things fall away. And sadly, sometimes they duffer because the leader who cannot delegate, and insists on doing it all, is prone to moral failure, either because his guard is down and he is worn out, or because his pride causes him to feel he is entitled to a little sin here and there.

But the people respond well, if there is clear organization and delegation. If their leader is still actively involved, but willing to give up some detail work to others for the sake of a healthier organization, then the people will rejoice. I read recently that a church will never exceed its organizational capacity. In other words, if you organizational structure is big enough to do well with 100 people, you will not exceed that number for very long. Even if you have a growth spurt and get to 130, if your organizational structure is not in place for that many, the number will come back down to where the organizational structure is. So how can one pastor possibly grow the church, unless others come and serve alongside him; yet for this to happen, he must let go of the reigns for certain ministries. Unfortunately, many leaders take it all on for themselves. By doing this, they deny others opportunities for growth and service. and ultimately, you will lose some of your most talented people who are not content to sit on the bench, they want to be in the game.

When our Lord said we should pray for workers for the harvest, he didn’t mean more pastors. Instead, I pray that the Lord himself would draw the right people, and give them the passion to serve, because this is far better than me getting someone to do something through nagging. So I thank God all the time for Oasis Church, and the many eager workers here who want to contribute. As we continue to work on our structure, and putting people into positions of real leadership, our church will grow, and we need to stay on top of serving our Lord and King Jesus with excellence and energy and excitement.

So Moses did just what he was recommended to do by his father-in-law Jethro: Deut1.15-18

Deuteronomy 1:15–18 ESV

So I took the heads of your tribes, wise and experienced men, and set them as heads over you, commanders of thousands, commanders of hundreds, commanders of fifties, commanders of tens, and officers, throughout your tribes. And I charged your judges at that time, ‘Hear the cases between your brothers, and judge righteously between a man and his brother or the alien who is with him. You shall not be partial in judgment. You shall hear the small and the great alike. You shall not be intimidated by anyone, for the judgment is God’s. And the case that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.’ And I commanded you at that time all the things that you should do.

Now, a lot has been said the last few years about justice and Christianity. And certainly God tells us a lot about what he expects regarding justice. Unfortunately, not everyone means the same thing when they use the word justice. I’m not going to discuss all the wrong ways people use the word justice, or that would become its own topic, and not really be edifying for us this morning. Instead, let’s consider some of the points here about justice:

The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 3: Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel 2. The Appointment of Leaders (1:9–18)

Four matters regarding justice are mentioned.

1. Disputes between fellow Israelites or with foreign inhabitants in the land were to be arbitrated (v.16).

2. The directives for making decisions include no partiality; small and great were to be heard on an equal basis (v.17a).

3. Judges were not to fear man because juridical process rested on the realization that “judgment belongs to God” (v.17b).

4. Cases too difficult for the judges were to be referred to Moses (v.17c).

16–18. The role of judge is detailed here (vv. 16–17), both in the interests of social justice and as a charter for future generations. Charged (v. 16) probably reflects appointment by oath, as practised in the Ancient Near East (Weinfeld 1991: 138). An alien (v. 16b) could be someone residing with the Israelites, to be treated as a brother (v. 16a). Though not equal in all respects to the Israelites, aliens were to be treated equally in law. The Israelites had been aliens in Egypt, therefore they should love the alien as the Lord had loved them (Deut. 10:17–20). In summary, three aspects of the judges’ duty are mentioned in verses 16–17: (a) They are to judge fairly (v. 16). (b) They must not show partiality within the judicial process (v. 17a). The Hebrew idiom (lô’ takkîrû pānîm) translated do not show partiality (lit. ‘do not regard faces’) is found only in Deuteronomy and Proverbs (24:23; 28:21).The judge must hear both small (emphatic in the Hebrew) and great alike. (c) Finally, the text exhorts them ‘not to be afraid of the face of a man’ (v. 17b).

Woods, Edward J. Deuteronomy: An Introduction and Commentary. Ed. David G. Firth. Vol. 5. Nottingham, England: Inter-Varsity Press, 2011. Print. Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries.

Word Biblical Commentary, Volume 6A: Deuteronomy 1:1–21:9, Revised Explanation

In a lecture on Deuteronomy, Luther notes that the question of persons and government comes before the exposition of Law, since laws are useless without persons to administer and enforce them. Magistrates are to endure the burdens and disputes of the people as servants, not as masters (Collected Works, vol. 9 [1960] 17). Luther also notes that no account is taken here of the rich, powerful, noble, or strong for handling public office, as is the usual custom. It is the wise, understanding, and experienced who are to be selected, even if they are poor, lowly, and weak. Moreover, if the choice is between a leader who is good but not prudent or one who is prudent but not good, the prudent though not good is to be preferred. In Luther’s words, such a “good man would actually rule nothing but would be ruled only by others, and at that only by the worst people. Even if the prudent man harms good people, yet at the same time he governs the evil ones, which is the most necessary … since the world is nothing else than a crowd of evil people” (p. 19).

Now, in the end, someone could try being a great leader by delegating, but not taking responsibility. This the other end of the pendulum. On one side, the leader who cannot delegate, on the other side, a leader who delegates but does not work himself or does not take any responsibility. Thankfully, this was not the case with Moses. He took his responsibilities seriously. And in the end, he told the leaders that any case too hard for them, they should bring to him. So when settling disputes among the people, the leaders were empowered to bring the case to Moses if they felt it was beyond their ability to handle. Note that it wasn’t the people that took matter to Moses whenever they wanted, but the leadership could. This way, Moses allowed the leaders and judges to grow and mature, but also gave them the safety net of him judging where they felt inadequate.

Great leaders are willing to take the blame when things are not going well, and give others the credit when there is success.

The Preacher’s Commentary Series, Volume 5: Deuteronomy Structure the Leadership (Organization)

Abraham Lincoln, like Moses, understood the motivation that subordinates receive when the top man is willing to assume responsibility for others. He demonstrated this truth immediately following the Battle of Gettysburg. Lincoln sensed an opportunity to end the war by driving hard against Lee’s army as it retreated. A swift, daring attack might do it. As commander-in-chief of the army, he ordered General Meade to pursue. A friendly note in the president’s handwriting accompanied the official orders. It said, “The order I enclose is not on record. If you succeed, you need not publish the order. If you fail, publish it. Then, if you succeed, you will have all the credit of the movement. If not, I’ll take the responsibility.” With that kind of loyalty, Lincoln instilled confidence in his generals. They would go the extra mile for him.

So how do we apply this to our own lives? Everyone is in some sort of leadership role. Parents are in a leadership role. You are in a leadership role in your job, even if you aren’t the top leader, you lead in some way. And in the church, we have leaders and need leaders, and ultimately, every believer should aspire to be a leader, if nothing else, showing others by example what living like a Christian should look like.

What can we learn from our passage today about leadership?

That no leader can handle a large group by himself or herself. Leaders need to delegate responsibilities, and then give folks the chance to succeed or fail. We desire success, but we all fail at times. Leaders need to make sure that when there is failure, it is in a safe place. Moses realized he could not handle it all. He was humble enough to take advice from his father-in-law, Jethro. He saw the wisdom in the plan of not overseeing every individual in the tribe, but allowing leaders to lead, and then providing a structure where he still maintained responsibility for everyone. How can you lead like that? In the home, in the church, at your place of work, when you have a chance to lead, do you give others an opportunity to grow?

Perhaps you are one who would say, “I’m just not a leader”. Yet, you have been delegated one very important task by our Lord. We talk about the Great Commission a lot, but let’s not miss that the Great Commission is one the the best examples of delegation we can find, because Jesus states he has all authority in heaven and on earth. And then he takes that authority and delegates it to each beleiver:

Matthew 28:18–20 ESV

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me, Jesus said. So before he gives the command, he states the authority he has to give the command.I have the authority to give this command, and now I give it to you, Jesus is saying. A general in the military is given authority to give legal orders, and when the general tells the colonel to do something, the colonel must do it, or see that it gets done. He may assign it to a captain, or a sergeant. But ultimately, though each one down the chain of command is responsible to follows the orders, the first one receiving the order has the greatest responsibility.

Jesus has all authority, and commissions us to Go.

Moses was given responsibility for leadership of all Israel, and he delegated portions of this to others. So as we go about our lives, as both leaders and followers, let us seek to do it in a way that honors our God.