Exodus 18: Everybody Loves Moses

My Summary
Jethro comes and brings Moses' wife and children. Jethro advises Moses to put some other people in leadership to listen to disuputes instead of doing all of the work himself.

Random Historical Things
1. Some ancient Jewish rabbis (and some modern commentators) believe that Moses and Zipporah were divorced. They take the phrase "Moses sent her away," to mean that Moses divorced her. They also point to the fact that Moses has another wife in Deuteronomy. However, the best reading of the original language and context suggest that Moses simply sent his wife and children back to Jethro until his work in Egypt was done. Zipporah may have passed away before Moses remarried or he may have been practicing polygamy which was not unknown among the patriarchs.

2. Jethro uses the personal name "Yahweh" for God and not the generic name for a god. He knew exactly who he was worshipping.

And So What We Have Learned Applies to Our Lives Today...
1. When Israel was freed from the bondage and tyranny of Egypt they needed to replace the authority structures in their nation. They could not just rejoice in their freedom, but structure and organization was necessary to avoid anarchy. Pure freedom does not mean freedom from authority, but submission to a fair and balanced system of authority. In the same way the church is set free from the authority of Satan and sin, but in our newfound freedom we must have structure and authority to replace the missing structures. Our Christian community is free from sin, but if it left free from authority it will run wild and not be effective.

2. Jethro communicates an important principle to Moses. This is the prinicple of shared leadership. One person can not and should not do it all themselves. The apostles saw the wisdom in this too when they appointed and delegated responsibility to others. In the church we need to have shared leadership and delegate authority to those who can keep the pastor from being the one who does everything. However, there are guidelines for who these leaders should be and Jethro lays them out before Moses. They should be:
a. They should be capable. They must have the ability to do the job given.
b. They should fear God. They must be men who are spiritually mature and live righteous lives evident of a fear of God.
c. They should be trustworthy. Honesty and the ability to follow through with what is promised is foundational to anyone trusted with authority.
d. Finally they should hate dishonest gain. This means they are not in this to gain wealth, influence, power or authority. They should not be men who will use their position to gain for themselves. A godly man will flee using his authority for personal gain.