Deuteronomy 31: 1-8
When Moses had finished giving these instructions to all the people of Israel, he said, “I am now 120 years old, and I am no longer able to lead you. The Lord has told me, ‘You will not cross the Jordan River.’ But the Lord your God himself will cross over ahead of you. He will destroy the nations living there, and you will take possession of their land. Joshua will lead you across the river, just as the Lord promised. “The Lord will destroy the nations living in the land, just as he destroyed Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites. The Lord will hand over to you the people who live there, and you must deal with them as I have commanded you. So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the Lord your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you.” Then Moses called for Joshua, and as all Israel watched, he said to him, “Be strong and courageous! For you will lead these people into the land that the Lord swore to their ancestors he would give them. You are the one who will divide it among them as their grants of land. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.”
“Follow the Leader” is a
game we all played as children. For
Moses and Joshua it was no game. The
passing of the baton of leadership for the nation of Israel was as serious as
it gets. Moses had been the only leader
the nation of released slaves in the wilderness for 40 years. His leadership was an awesome image of
dependency on Yahweh, and it was now being passed along to Joshua, who would
lead the people across the Jordan River to their new home, the Land of Promise.
In observing how Moses
passed that baton of leadership to Joshua we notice Moses made it a clear and
unalterable moment. It was ceremonial,
done in the presence of the entire nation…but the language he used was clear
enough so there could be no mistaking that there was a new pastor of the flock.
I have seen the effects
of leaders who couldn’t bear to do that.
In my tribe, the Methodists, there is an expectation that when your
appointment as pastor ends, you leave; you leave the position, and you leave
leadership in the hands of the next person.
You don’t seek to continue pastoral leadership. You may accept friendship, but critiquing the
next leader, or continually showing up, muddles perception of who is leading,
and that cripples ministry. When
pastors, or members who have left the church to become part of another church
family, hang on to the past it is a hindrance to the group they deemed to
leave. Living in the past is a hindrance
to the present and the health of the future.
Moses did not go with the people across Jordan. Had he done that we never would have seen
Joshua’s name written in Scripture.
Moses also made it
clear in handing the baton to Joshua that God was the ultimate leader. He reminded Joshua and everyone listening on
that day that it was God who would go before the people into the land. Joshua, the undershepherd would be following
the Good Shepherd. Joshua did well to
accept that leadership and faithfully lead; Moses also did well in obeying God’s
direction to pass the baton; his job was done.
The people also did well to accept the new leader.
For You Today
Some day the pastor of
your church will leave. Some day a dear
friend (or not so dear) may leave. It
may be the right or wrong time, or, in your opinion, for the wrong reason. It is always appropriate to grieve the loss,
and remember the ways God has used a leader in your life. But, the best course of action is not to sit
down like a mule, refusing to go forward.
Moses went to his reward with God; Joshua picked up the baton and moved
out; God’s people follow the leader!
No comments:
Post a Comment