Chapter Six:  Why Elders were Chosen to Bring Direction to God's People

By Dr. Steve Davis

What you’ll get in this chapter: 

1) You'll find out what happens when church leadership, is a "one man show." And why itHas NEVER worked! 

2) The first priority of the spiritual leader ‑ not preaching, not teaching, not fellowshipping.  

3) Why McDonalds. Coca-Cola, Microsoft would never operate like most churches. 

4) Why Moses had to do the selection of the leaders, instead of the people voting on it.

Moses, the One Man Show.  In the early days of Moses leading the people of God, he was the one that the people went to for all their spiritual answers. In their minds, that was his job; it was they "paid him to do!" Every day, Moses spent his time with the people, listening to their problems, helping them run their families, making their decisions for them, and basically spending his time and energies like many modern Pastors. We don’t find Moses complaining too much about it. It was all he knew to do, and besides the people expected him to spend his days talking to them and listening to them.

 And, here is what happened:  Exodus 18:13: "And when Moses' father‑in‑law saw all that he did to the people, he said, 'What is this thing that thou doest to the people?  Why sittest thou thyself alone, and all the people stand by thee from morning unto even?'"  When administration and ministry are all left up to one man, little gets done, simply because no one man can do it all.  These people weren't Spirit‑filled Believers. There were three million of them and only one man to make decisions.  So the people lined up, and from morning till evening, while Moses spent his time listening to everyone's problems and heartaches and explaining the will of God to them. 

Then God sent Moses’ father-in-law Jethro to Moses. Jethro wasn’t a Pastor, but he knew that what Moses was doing wasn’t effective – and he told Moses as much. Moses replied to Jethro in verse 15 "...because the people come to me to inquire of God. When they have a matter, they come unto me and I judge between one and another and I do make them know the statutes of God and his laws."  Moses was saying, "I have to let them know what God's Word says. They don't understand the will of God, so I have to tell them!" To his credit, when Moses spoke, he said what God said.  The Word of God was the authority in Moses' life and that is what he taught God's people. He did not tell them what his opinion was, he told them what God's Word said.

You would think that, since the people expected Moses to listen to their problems and then to tell them what God said, and, since Moses did what they said they wanted, that the people would be happy.  But, quite a few from time to time didn't appreciate this method of doing things.  Sometimes they even organized protests against him and filed formal complaints about how he did things! They also complained about his personal standard of living.  Some people said he was power hungry!.  Others said that he had too high of a standard of living to be a "man of God."

This happened in Numbers 16:3: And they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them, Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them: wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the congregation of the LORD?  

"Moses, you and Aaron think you're better than the rest of us! You seem to think you're the only ones around  here who can hear from God! You're no better than we are! Our opinions are just as valid as yours are!" But it wasn't Moses and Aaron who put themselves in the position of leadership, it was God. And, Moses and Aaron were not giving THEIR opinions, they were giving the Word of God.

Then, they attacked Moses' standard of living. He wasn't poor enough to be a real man of God! In verse 13, they accused him of living like royalty! They said,  “Is it a small thing that thou hast brought us up out of a land that floweth with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness, except thou make thyself altogether a prince over us?”

This was the beginning of the “leadership by laymen” movement among God’s people! They wanted a man of God, but they did not want to do what he said, and they didn’t want him living very well. They wanted to do whatever they wanted, and to tell the man of God what to do, while still claiming to be in submission to God. The reality is that the people did not like God's way of operating among His people. They fell because they were trifling with the man and the method that God had chosen to lead them and to guide them.  (Numbers 16:3‑35)  When a church will line up with God's Word, it will find out how just powerfully God will move on behalf of those He prepares as spiritual leaders for His people.  It is one way that God has chosen to protect the flock and to bring authority in the body as well as in the homes of His people.  On all levels, God has provided protection and guidance for His people.

The first priority of the spiritual leader.  Moses' father‑in‑law saw that the "one‑man‑leader-ship" program was not effective. In Exodus 15:17 said to him, "The thing that thou doest is not good. You will surely wear away, both thou, and this people that is with thee for this thing is too heavy for you; thou art not able to perform it thyself alone.  Hearken now unto my voice, I will give thee counsel, and God shall be with thee:  Be thou for the people to God‑ward." 

He's saying, "Moses, you need to be interceding for the people.  You and God are close and you need to go to God for these people and intercede for them. Your first responsibility is to take these people before God." (v.20) "and thou shalt teach them ordinances and laws, and shall show them the way wherein they must walk and the work that they must do."

The second priority is to raise up proven leadership. A spiritual leader is only a leader if he has followers. Not just current followers, but those who will follow his position as a leader among God’s people. Even in a local congregation, this is a test of leadership. A Pastor should be seeking out competent men with a proven track record. Exodus 15:21 "Moreover THOU (Moses) shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens.  And let them judge the people at all seasons: and it shall be, that every great matter they shall bring unto thee, but every small matter they shall judge: so shall it be easier for you and they shall bear the burden with thee."

It was Moses' task to recognize capable, competent men as leaders to the people of God. Men who were godly, honest men who loved truth, men who hated covetousness (still a requirement!!!) These were the men who were to be over God's people.

How did Moses respond? Did he say, "I'm the prophet of God around here! God talks to ME, and since I'm the leader, if He wants to change things, he'll tell ME about it, so keep your opinions to yourself!"  Did he say that? No! A true man of God will listen to and recognize the voice of God whenever God speaks to him. He doesn't let pride get in the way of hearing the voice of God.

Here is how Moses who was indeed a prophet of God, responded to Jethro's idea: Verse 24 "So Moses hearkened to the voice of his father‑in‑law, and did all that he had said. And Moses chose able men out of all Israel, and made them heads over the people, rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens." 

God still uses the same principle.  Never under the Old or New Covenant did the voice of the popular vote determine the leadership. Men and women of God are always open to hearing the wisdom of God from the people of God. In Acts 7, the people recognized certain men for the ministry of Deacon, but the Deacons were not put into place until they were also recognized and consecrated by the existing leadership, the Apostles. The people WILL recognize the qualifications of those chosen to lead them.  And, the existing Leadership is responsible to set the qualifications and after prayer and consecration, set the new leaders in place and presented them to the people.

Why McDonalds, Coca-Cola, Microsoft would never operate like most churches. The idea that many modern churches have, that of the church being a democracy, where everybody votes to decide on who will be a leader, would never be used in the world of commerce.  In the business world it would be comparable to McDonalds Corporation looking to their frontline help and new‑hires to make corporate decisions, find and select the Chairman of the Board and to set the direction for the entire conglomerate.

Why doesn't McDonalds Corporation or any other major corporation run their administration this way? Because the front line help and new hires AREN'T PREPARED to make these decisions.

They don't know what's involved in the day to day operation of a corporation.  They don't know the history of that corporation, where it's been.  They don't know the full vision of the corporation, where it's going.  They don't know what qualities it takes to be an effective officer of the corporation.

They don't realize how complex it is, to manage so many people and they tend to have a simplistic and unrealistic idea of just what is involved in leadership.

For these very same reasons, God doesn't set before the new believer and the nominal Christian responsibilities that they aren't prepared for.  How can the carnal believer set the direction for spiritual when he hasn't been there?

We are not all in the same office, or position in the Body of Christ.  In the sense of church membership and worship we are all equals.  We are all one in the Body of Christ; we are all members in particular.  None of us are greater than the other.  But in the area of spiritual leadership in church government we are not all in an equal position because God has set different offices in the church.

Why Moses was the one who had to do the selection of the leaders. Numbers 11:16 "And the Lord said unto Moses, Gather unto me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom thou knowest to be the elders of the people, and officers over them; and bring them unto the tabernacle of the congregation, that they may stand there with thee." 

Notice what the requirements were: a fairly large number of leaders, seventy. Second, men who had been around awhile, men with a sense of history, maturity, men who knew the people well. Third, they had to be men whom Moses knew well. Men with whom Moses knew he could work well.  Men whom Moses knew to be mature. Fourth, men that were recognized as having a "say so" over the people ‑ "officers" over the people. Men whom the people held in high regard ‑ these would be the men who would stand with Moses and lead the people.

Copyright Steven L. Davis  www.stevedavis.org