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Moses’ father-in-law replied, ‘What you are doing is not good. 18 You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone. 19 Listen now to me and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must be the people’s representative before God and bring their disputes to him. 20 Teach them his decrees and instructions, and show them the way they are to live and how they are to behave. 21 But select capable men from all the people – men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain – and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. 22 Let them serve as judges for the people at all times, but let them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with you. 23 If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied.’

24 Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything he said. 25 He chose capable men from all Israel and made them leaders of the people, officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. 26 They served as judges for the people at all times. The difficult cases they brought to Moses, but the simple ones they decided themselves.

27 Then Moses sent his father-in-law on his way, and Jethro returned to his own country.

Someone said, ‘God gave us two ears and one mouth, and that should tell us something!’

Also it’s been said He gave us a mouth that closes and ears that don’t, and perhaps there’s more than a hint there.

James writes these words: ‘My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.’ (Jas.1:19).

Moses, the great leader, listened to his father-in-law (a new convert, as we have seen). But then we know he was also a very humble man, and humility is teachable. It knows it has so much to learn.

Although it takes time, and possibly a little effort, we should be willing to listen to people: even those we disagree with; or those we don’t like or who don’t like us. ‘Every day is a school day’ and we have much to learn.

Jethro had wisdom and insight to share, and it was a good thing for Israel that Moses was open to receive it.

It was a good thing for Moses too!! It probably enabled him to burn on rather than burn out.

(“Emma felt that she could not now show greater kindness than in listening.”― Jane Austen)

Moses’ father-in-law replied, ‘What you are doing is not good. 18 You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone.

I heard an interview in which someone was honest enough to say, ‘When you’re frightened you can stop listening, because you’re afraid of what you might hear if you do listen.’ She admitted that this had been her story for a number of years, until she finally faced reality.

There are times when people need to be made to face the facts. I’ve heard it said that ‘facts are your friends.’ The problem is they don’t always wear a friendly face. But we need those around us who are honest enough to tell us the truth in love (and note that Jethro spoke out of loving concern for Moses and the whole Israelite community, v18). He wanted to be constructively helpful.

It takes courage, grace and skill to deliver a rebuke well. It also takes a whole lot of humility to listen, sift what is said, and make necessary adjustments. I remember Gordon Macdonald saying that even in the most unjust criticism there will be something we can learn; something to be taken away.

As a friend of mine has often said, ‘We impoverish ourselves if we refuse feedback.’

“An open rebuke is better than hidden love!

Wounds from a sincere friend are better than many kisses from an enemy”

(Prov.27:5,6 New Living Translation).

PRAYER: Lord, give me courage (and wisdom) to point out what is wrong when it is necessary; and give me the humility to be told I’m in the wrong when I am. Even when I’m not, may I be so teachable that I learn from the rebuke.

The next day Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people, and they stood round him from morning till evening. 14 When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he said, ‘What is this you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand round you from morning till evening?’

15 Moses answered him, ‘Because the people come to me to seek God’s will. 16 Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me, and I decide between the parties and inform them of God’s decrees and instructions.’

It often takes an objective observer to see what is going wrong in a situation, and maybe also to advise on necessary steps to rectify things. Jethro acted as an unsolicited, but extremely valuable ‘consultant’ to his son-in-law. He was newly converted; a freshly minted member of the community, and almost immediately he began to make a difference. You don’t have to be a Christian for a long, long time before you can start to offer meaningful service. Everyone has a contribution to make. The gifts and talents of each one are important and needed, and every person in the church should have the opportunity to use their gifts. (I remember someone observing that a redundant member of the body of Christ may become a ‘grumbling appendix’!)

See the humility Moses showed to listen to this new believer (who was also his father-in-law) and adjust his lifestyle accordingly.

Moses’ ministry entailed helping people to know and do God’s Word, and Jethro’s counsel was aimed at enabling him to fulfil his call in the best and most efficient way possible. The daily life of Israel was to be ordered according to God’s revealed truth. Alec Motyer writes that: ‘…18:13-22 brought them to the point where they learned that the supreme obligation of the Lord’s redeemed is to order their lives by the Lord’s revealed truth.’

Then he adds: ‘It was at this central point that Jethro, the newly converted and welcomed Gentile, played a deeply significant part within Israel. His was a full, practising membership – no second-class citizen or merely officially tolerated entrant, but a fellow-member, who could presumably, had he so chosen (cf.Num.10:29-32) lived on in full fellowship, among Israel.’ ‘The message of Exodus’, p.171.

PRAYER: Teach me, Lord, to value and welcome the contributions of all the members of the church; enable me to be open to all you may want to say and do through others. Help me to not  feel threatened by, or jealous of, the gifts you give people, but recognise my need of everyone you bring into your church

He said, ‘Praise be to the Lord, who rescued you from the hand of the Egyptians and of Pharaoh, and who rescued the people from the hand of the Egyptians. 11 Now I know that the Lord is greater than all other gods, for he did this to those who had treated Israel arrogantly.’ 12 Then Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, brought a burnt offering and other sacrifices to God, and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat a meal with Moses’ father-in-law in the presence of God.

There is nothing more wonderful than one sinner repenting, one person turning to God. We sometimes get carried away with crowds and large numbers, but we must not lose sight of the miracle and mystery of an individual conversion.

It looks like this is a conversion story. Someone pointed out that the “burnt offering” represents totality and wholeness – everything given to God. It would appear that Jethro is formally welcomed into membership of the Israelite community with this fellowship meal, and, as the sequel will show, his input and involvement – his participation – is welcomed. He is able to play his part, to have a sense of contribution.

Let’s not forget that the risen Jesus seeks for the one lost coin, the one lost sheep, the one lost son; and that son always has a name. This one’s name was Jethro.

Jethro was delighted to hear about all the good things the Lord had done for Israel in rescuing them from the hand of the Egyptians.

Jethro had an open heart, a soft heart, a prepared heart. He delighted to hear the good news – the salvation story.

Some years ago I read a book entitled, ‘Mine to share’ by Gavin Reid. He argued that effective evangelism occurs when a ‘seeker’ meets a ‘sharer’; i.e, good things can happen when someone with an open heart runs into someone who is prepared to speak the gospel. In terms of the argument of that book, I think we can say that in Exodus 18 a ‘seeker’ meets a ‘sharer.’

‘…the salvation of Israel is the salvation of the world, and the experiences of the redeemed are a testimony to the world.’ Alec Motyer: ‘The message of Exodus’, p.186.

PRAYER: Lord, may it be on this Good Friday, and over this Easter week-end, that many a seeker encounters many a sharer. Cause conversions to take place, and bring many a Jethro into the Israel of God.

Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, together with Moses’ sons and wife, came to him in the wilderness, where he was camped near the mountain of God. 6 Jethro had sent word to him, ‘I, your father-in-law Jethro, am coming to you with your wife and her two sons.’

7 So Moses went out to meet his father-in-law and bowed down and kissed him. They greeted each other and then went into the tent. 8 Moses told his father-in-law about everything the Lord had done to Pharaoh and the Egyptians for Israel’s sake and about all the hardships they had met along the way and how the Lord had saved them.

Moses added his own verbal testimony to what we might call the visual testimony of his sons (and their names). He didn’t talk about himself and his leadership achievements; he spoke about the Lord.

I remember David Pawson telling a story about hearing a ‘Salvation Army’ girl give her testimony in an open air service. He realised, as he reflected on it, that she never once used the word “I”, but simply spoke about ‘Jesus’ and what He had done for her. May we be so full of the Lord that our witness is just the overflow of that fullness, and He spills out everywhere.

I overheard two men in conversation in a Spanish hotel some years ago. One of them, an American, was telling the other how he had ‘seen God.’ Even though I only caught a fragment, I sensed the overflow of a full heart – not just words. ‘Rivers of living water’ were flowing

By the way, I note in verse 7 Moses’ courtesy towards Jethro. Whoever we are witnessing to, be it members of our families, friends, neighbours, work colleagues or complete outsiders, let us treat them with utter respect, as those made in God’s image. We owe this to them, whether or not they believe.

But, thank God, Jethro did!

After Moses had sent away his wife Zipporah, his father-in-law Jethro received her 3 and her two sons. One son was named Gershom, for Moses said, ‘I have become a foreigner in a foreign land’; 4 and the other was named Eliezer, for he said, ‘My father’s God was my helper; he saved me from the sword of Pharaoh.’

We have no record in the Bible that Moses had sent Zipporah and her sons to Midian, but the Bible doesn’t tell us everything, and we mustn’t misunderstand its silences. Zipporah and the children would have been safe in Midian, but it was now time for the family to be reunited.

I note that Moses had written his testimony into the names of his children. It is important not only to teach our children the truths we believe, but also to tell them about our walk with God, and of His goodness to us. Moses enshrined these things in their names. In fact, their two names together succinctly told his story.

May God help us find creative ways to share our stories about Him. There is such magnetic power in personal testimony.

Now Jethro, the priest of Midian and father-in-law of Moses, heard of everything God had done for Moses and for his people Israel, and how the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt.

I suppose we could say Jethro heard the gospel (Romans 10:14).

‘This chapter is one of the points where we suddenly become aware of the wider world in which our redeemed brothers and sisters, the church of the Old Testament, made their pilgrimage…suddenly, in the person of Jethro, ‘the world out there’ walked right into the centre of Israel’s camp.’ Alec Motyer: ‘The message of Exodus’, pp.185,186. As Motyer goes on to say, Jethro is an example of a Gentile becoming a fellow-member of God’s people and fellow-inheritor of His promises (Ephesians 2:11-22).

It has been pointed out that Exodus chapters 17,18 reflect two aspects of the church’s relationship to the world. In 17:8-13 the world opposes and must be resisted (cf.Phil.1:28), and in 18:3 the world is won by the sharing of saving truth.

God never intended His people to hold the blessing tight to their chests, but to open-heartedly and open-handedly share it with the world (Genesis 12:1-3). The church is to so reflect Christ’s light that many are attracted to this light.

Prayer: Lord God, may the attention of the world come to be arrested by you and your work

The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim. 9 Moses said to Joshua, ‘Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hands.’

10 So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. 11 As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. 12 When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up – one on one side, one on the other – so that his hands remained steady till sunset. 13 So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword.

14 Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure that Joshua hears it, because I will completely blot out the name of Amalek from under heaven.’

15 Moses built an altar and called it The Lord is my Banner. 16 He said, ‘Because hands were lifted up against the throne of the Lord, the Lord will be at war against the Amalekites from generation to generation.’

We have spent much of this last week in this passage. Whenever I come back to it, I always feel it has something abidingly significant to say to the church about prayer. It stirs something very deep within me that I can’t always adequately put into words, but I know it’s important.

So let’s reprise the whole story before we move on, and here’s a final observation on it from Alec Motyer:

Jesus ‘ trembled in Gethsemane (Mark 14:33) and though stepping into the arena of extreme trial and suffering, never trembled again. The disciples slept in Gethsemane and never stopped trembling thereafter. Or, in better words, the Lord in Gethsemane made the place of trembling the place of prayer; they were called to prayer but refused the call. Without prayer nothing will bring victory. The essential battle is the battle for the secret place.’ (Emphasis mine).‘The message of Exodus’, p.163.

PRAYER: Lord, I confess that I admire the idea of prevailing prayer, and I have great respect for the intercessors I know (or have heard about); but I also know that prayer can be hard work and demanding to engage in. Help me to overcome my reticence, please, and enable me to seek you with all my heart.