Small and beautiful (1 November 2020)
(Daily Devotions by Rev. Dr. J.N. Manokaran)
Leadership is not about accomplishment of great personalities, who control large resources and lord over many people. Moses being trained in Egyptian school probably thought that control from top is essential for effective leadership. Yes, God had chosen him to be a spiritual giant to confront stubborn Pharaoh and receive Commandments and Covenant, intellectual giant to provide the Nation of Israel the Judicial Law, and political strategist to lead a bunch of slaves to become a Nation.
Moses judged the Nation of Israel like One-man army, holding courts to dispense judgements. The estimated population was about 24 lakhs – six lakh able-bodied men, women, children and others. One judge Moses for this huge population was burdensome, cumbersome. Jethro, father-in-law of Moses gave a good advice to appoint judges or leaders or counsellors at the micro-level and Moses managing at macro-level. “Moreover, look for able men from all the people, men who fear God, who are trustworthy and hate a bribe, and place such men over the people as chiefs of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens.” (Exodus 18:21)
The grass-root level leader would be leading just ten people: One family with half-a-dozen children or two families. If Moses wanted to be successful, his effectiveness as leader would be represented by these leaders. The Law could be taught, people disciplined, youngsters trained for Israel to become a God-honouring, God-glorifying and Global-witnessing Nation. Indeed, Moses followed that advice. (Deuteronomy 1:15) Probably, people did not listen or understand or were stubborn. Hence, there were murmurs, rebellion, cravings, lack of faith, testing of Lord and even idol-worship. God was not pleased with them. (I Corinthians 10:5) Like children need repeated teachings, people need repeated teachings from the Church.
Today, lack of discipleship, discipline, faith and nominalism weighs heavily upon the church as there are no leaders of ‘ten’ that could effectively teach the Word and train them in righteousness and doing good. Law illiteracy in the time of Moses, and Biblical illiteracy today are the results.
Am I leading my ‘ten’ faithfully?
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