Reflection for Yitro
“Leadership Matters”
Matthew 5:21-30; 15:1-11; 19:16-30
Mark 7:5-15; 10:17-31
Luke 18:18-30
Acts 6:1-7
Romans 2:17-29; 7:7-12; 13:8-10
Ephesians 6:1-3
1 Timothy 3:1-14
2 Timothy 2:2
Titus 1:5-9
Hebrews 12:18-29
James 2:8-13
1 Peter 2:9-10
excerpted from TorahScope Apostolic Scriptures Reflections
The Torah portion we are considering this week, Yitro (Exodus 18:1-20:23), is perhaps best known for including the Ten Commandments which Moses received from the Holy One on Mount Sinai. After a few months (Exodus 19:1) of recovering from the whirlwind of activity around their escape from Egypt, and some initial challenges with water and food needs—plus a serious skirmish with the dreaded Amalekites—the fleeing Israelites finally settled down at the foot of what became known as the “Mountain of God” (Exodus 18:5, WMB). It is here, at Mount Sinai, that Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law for whom our reading is titled, arrived with Moses’ wife Zipporah and their two sons, Gershom and Eliezer. It is apparent from the narrative that Moses respected the wisdom of Jethro, as he honored him with a sacrificial meal and an audience of Aaron and the elders of Israel (Exodus 18:12). Eventually, when Jethro witnessed what appeared to be the day-to-day workings of the fledgling nation which Moses led, he voiced some serious concerns about a need to alter the workload—in order to delegate some of the overwhelming leadership tasks to qualified candidates (Exodus 18:17-18).
While the Apostolic Writings naturally, and for obvious reasons, have a number of references to the Ten Commandments—primarily because of the foundational nature of them to Biblical instruction—there are also a significant number of references to how Messiah followers should choose or recognize leaders in their respective assemblies or groups. Today, with all of the mixed messages being promulgated in the broad Messianic community of faith, it is critical that the Body of Messiah know what the Apostolic Writings inform us about, finding appropriate leaders. In this time, as we steadily approach the End of the Age, proper leadership really does matter. I would submit that the wise counsel, established by Jethro to Moses, has been expanded by further qualifications and more specific qualifications seen in the Apostles’ instruction. A review of some of the relevant verses, can help people ascertain whether proper godly leaders are in positions of authority and responsibility, in their respective groups or assemblies.
First, let us read the counsel of Jethro, and how Moses responded affirmatively to his recommendations:
“Moses’ father-in-law said to him, ‘The thing that you do is not good. You will surely wear away, both you, and this people that is with you; for the thing is too heavy for you. You are not able to perform it yourself alone. Listen now to my voice. I will give you counsel, and God be with you. You represent the people before God, and bring the causes to God. You shall teach them the statutes and the laws, and shall show them the way in which they must walk, and the work that they must do. Moreover you shall provide out of all the people able men which fear God: men of truth, hating unjust gain; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens. Let them judge the people at all times. It shall be that every great matter they shall bring to you, but every small matter they shall judge themselves. So shall it be easier for you, and they shall share the load with you. If you will do this thing, and God commands you so, then you will be able to endure, and all these 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, rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens. They judged the people at all times. They brought the hard cases to Moses, but every small matter they judged themselves. Moses let his father-in-law depart, and he went his way into his own land” (Exodus 18:17-27, WMB).
Obviously, Jethro observed how Moses was going to exhaust himself with all of the work, so he recommended choosing leaders who were capable of handling different size responsibilities. Hence, Jethro recommended individual leaders of thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens—but the qualifications for each of these positions were identical. The four common denominators were: (1) the ability to lead, (2) the necessity to fear God, (3) individuals guided by truth, and (4) who would hate dishonest gain.
Able, capable, or accomplished persons, who have already proven their ability—in whatever their chosen field was—meant that they were proficient in whatever they had been chosen to do. Additionally, a genuine fear of the Lord was critical. Remember how Proverbs 9:10 so eloquently states, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom. The knowledge of the Holy One is understanding” (WMB). Consequently, if one truly feared the Lord, more than self ability or self worth, then the wisdom and understanding needed to deal with judging controversies would be present. Thirdly, the requirement for truth to be demonstrated, as leaders maintained their word and displayed trustworthiness in their dealings with others, was essential. I cannot help but be reminded by a Psalm composed several centuries later, appropriately summarizing what a person of truth entails:
“A Psalm by David. LORD, who shall dwell in your sanctuary? Who shall live on your holy hill? He who walks blamelessly and does what is right, and speaks truth in his heart; he who doesn’t slander with his tongue, nor does evil to his friend, nor casts slurs against his fellow man; in whose eyes a vile man is despised, but who honors those who fear the LORD; he who keeps an oath even when it hurts, and doesn’t change; he who doesn’t lend out his money for usury, nor take a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things shall never be shaken” (Psalm 15:1-5, WMB).
Finally, hating dishonest gain reveals how leaders must be above the love of money—something which is the cause of much evil in the world:
“For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some have been led astray from the faith in their greed, and have pierced themselves through with many sorrows” (1 Timothy 6:10, WMB).
It is upon these foundational building blocks for leadership, as stated by Jethro, that we have to consider the kind of people our leaders are. Without these critical components able to be seen, those in positions of leadership are often liable to fail in their judgment—and misuse, if not abuse their authority as designated leaders—of whatever size religious group, organization, or assembly they have responsibility for. Leaders are there to serve the people, and while they deserve appropriate respect and support, they are by no means there to serve their own self interests!
After the resurrection of Yeshua, and the expansion of the good news as seen in the Book of Acts, we can see how the Apostles followed the Torah’s instructions in the choosing of leaders. The leaders of the First Century Messianic movement were filled with the Holy Spirit, and possessed significant discernment, in being able to determine who could serve the people the best. One person who was full of faith and the Spirit was Stephen, who was chosen to lead in administrating the needs of the broad groups of Jewish Believers:
“Now in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplying, a complaint arose from the Hellenists against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily service. The twelve summoned the multitude of the disciples and said, ‘It is not appropriate for us to forsake the word of God and serve tables. Therefore, select from among you, brothers, seven men of good report, full of the Holy Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. But we will continue steadfastly in prayer and in the ministry of the word.’ These words pleased the whole multitude. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch, whom they set before the emissaries. When they had prayed, they laid their hands on them” (Acts 6:1-6, WMB).
Obviously, without the supernatural enablement of the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit, leaders or teachers would not have the spiritual enlightenment to properly discern how or what to teach. As the Apostle Paul further related to the Believers in Corinth, the mind of Messiah is critical for walking in the Spirit (cf. Galatians 5:16) and being led by the Spirit (cf. Romans 8:14):
“But we received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is from God, that we might know the things that were freely given to us by God. We also speak these things, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual things. Now the natural man doesn’t receive the things of God’s Spirit, for they are foolishness to him; and he can’t know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he who is spiritual discerns all things, and he himself is to be judged by no one. ‘For who has known the mind of the Lord that he should instruct him [Isaiah 40:13]?’ But we have Messiah’s mind” (1 Corinthians 2:12-16, WMB).
Within the Pauline letters, readers see how the good news continued to spread, and new Believers in Yeshua formed various assemblies and fellowship groups. Part of Paul’s responsibility was to convey further delineation about what was required for leadership positions among the brothers and sisters, something most clearly seen in the Pastoral Epistles. In both 1&2 Timothy and Titus, Paul enhanced what was expected of those who led the sheepfold of Messiah Yeshua. In his instruction to Timothy in Ephesus and Titus in Crete, he summarized a number of things which have informed various leadership structures in the Body of Messiah up until today:
“This is a faithful saying: someone who seeks to be an overseer desires a good work. The overseer therefore must be without reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, sensible, modest, hospitable, good at teaching; not a drinker, not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous; one who rules his own house well, having children in subjection with all reverence; (for how could someone who doesn’t know how to rule his own house take care of God’s assembly?) not a new convert, lest being puffed up he fall into the same condemnation as the devil. Moreover he must have good testimony from those who are outside, to avoid falling into reproach and the snare of the devil. Servants, in the same way, must be reverent, not double-tongued, not addicted to much wine, not greedy for money, holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience. Let them also first be tested; then let them serve if they are blameless. Their wives in the same way must be reverent, not slanderers, temperate, and faithful in all things. Let servants be husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well. For those who have served well gain for themselves a good standing and great boldness in the faith which is in Messiah Yeshua” (1 Timothy 3:1-13, WMB).
“The things which you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit the same things to faithful men who will be able to teach others also” (2 Timothy 2:2, WMB).
“I left you in Crete for this reason, that you would set in order the things that were lacking and appoint elders in every city, as I directed you—if anyone is blameless, the husband of one wife, having children who believe, who are not accused of loose or unruly behavior. For the overseer must be blameless, as God’s steward, not self-pleasing, not easily angered, not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for dishonest gain; but given to hospitality, a lover of good, sober minded, fair, holy, self-controlled, holding to the faithful word which is according to the teaching, that he may be able to exhort in the sound doctrine, and to convict those who contradict him” (Titus 1:5-9, WMB).
The critical thing for the Body of Messiah, especially today, is to be consciously informed by these specific guidelines—so that capable godly leaders are present, who are able to handle the responsibilities of serving the sheepfold of the faithful. Being acquainted with the First Century recommendations, and implementing them properly in a Twenty-First Century setting, is certainly something which is a challenge for many denominations and groups. Most especially to be looked out for, is how seemingly-talented people are able to outwardly display some leadership abilities—but mostly because of their skills in entertaining or mesmerizing people with slippery words or musical shows, they really are unable to truly lead or teach. Yeshua warned His ancient followers about false prophets, who were really wolves in sheep’s clothing:
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravening wolves. By their fruits you will know them. Do you gather grapes from thorns or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree produces good fruit, but the corrupt tree produces evil fruit. A good tree can’t produce evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree produce good fruit. Every tree that doesn’t grow good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them. Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will tell me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in your name, in your name cast out demons, and in your name do many mighty works?’ Then I will tell them, ‘I never knew you. Depart from me, you who work iniquity’ [Psalm 6:8]” (Matthew 7:15-23).
Even though some of these false prophets might accomplish some works in the name of Yeshua, the sad testimony is that the Lord never knew them. The admonition is to beware of such people and others (cf. Philippians 3:2).
Lamentably, far too many, who should know better, do not consult the Scriptures when selecting their leaders, or when determining where they should receive their spiritual nourishment. This often leads to devastating problems in the assembly—because leadership matters on so many levels! Of course, some things like a love for money or drunkenness, might be hidden by a person. But one of the most obvious and blatant signs that someone is not equipped for leadership, would be leadership and child-rearing within the home. It is difficult to conceal ungodly or hypocritical actions from children, who could very well be manifesting their parents’ actions. Sadly, too many times people overlook home lives of their spiritual leaders.
For someone such as myself, who has been a Believer in Yeshua for over thirty years (since 1978), I find it quite useful to reflect back on some of the teachers or leaders who have influenced my walk. I know of those in spiritual leadership who have done this both positively and negatively—and you probably do as well. If you go back and read the guidelines of Jethro and the Apostles, you might note that if you had been more careful in making sure that the main characteristics of service were present in your leaders or teachers—you could have perhaps minimized past disappointments. On the other hand, you should also note that when the same service characteristics are a part of your leaders’ or teachers’ character traits, you were not discouraged, but inspired to grow spiritually into God’s plan for your life.
Today, with many spiritual and secular distractions vying for our time and attention, it is critical to heed the instructions found in the Holy Writ—when it comes to either following leaders, or letting various teachers fill our hearts and minds with instruction. If the Messianic community of faith is going to reach the maturity level it should have, and possess the long lasting influence on society it is capable of, then its leadership matters.
