Humble Leadership

Readings for today: Numbers 14-16, Psalms 44

What qualities do you look for in a leader? What kind of leader do you vote for, follow, or admire? One can draw all kinds of conclusions simply based on what leaders are the most popular or who gets platformed. In politics, it seems clear that we admire the leaders who project the most strength. We look for leaders who have the guts to stand up for what we believe in and fight against our political enemies. We look for leaders who can score the most points, denigrating their opponents. We look for leaders who confirm our bias and affirm our worst fears. I see the same thing in business, education, and sadly, in the church as well. Those pastors who seem to be the strongest and most certain and most successful are the ones who get the most attention. Even though they also fall at an alarming rate, we excuse their behavior and restore them quickly to their positions of influence and power.

Now consider the leadership of Moses. The man is as humble as it gets. How many time does he save Israel through his prayers of intercession? How many times does he stand in the gap before God as their mediator? How many times does he fall on his face before the Lord in humility rather than fight back against those who reject him or even seek to stone him? He’s simply incredible and it’s because he has a healthy, God-centered view of himself. He doesn’t think more highly of himself than he ought. He doesn’t think less of himself than he ought. He simply thinks of himself less. That’s humility. That’s the very definition of humble leadership.

I do my best to follow examples like Moses. Thankfully, I’ve had several mentors over the course of my life and one of the qualities almost all of them shared was humility. Steve Hayner was the president of Intervarsity and the president of Columbia Theological Seminary when he took me under his wing. A more humble man I have never met. Bud Sparling was a pastor at the church I serve for over fifteen years. He was an incredible man with an incredible testimony and humble to the core. Don Bachman is a highly successful businessman and one of the most passionate believers in Christ I’ve ever been around but what strikes me the most from meeting with him for almost thirty years now is his humility. I can only hope to attain to the level of humility each of these mentors have achieved. They remind me of godly men like Moses. Godly women like Mary. Godly people who do not seek their own good but instead, seek to love God and love others with all their hearts.

Readings for tomorrow: Numbers 17-18, Psalms 45

Second-Guessing

Readings for today: Exodus 4-6, Psalm 18

We all second-guess ourselves. We all question ourselves at times. Especially when we are about to make significant decisions or take great risks. I remember when I was thinking about asking my wife to marry me. Although I was pretty sure she would say “yes” after a year or so of dating, there were no guarantees. So I second-guessed myself. I wasn’t worthy of her love. I wasn’t the man she needed me to be. I didn’t have great job prospects after college. I wouldn’t be able to provide for her like I felt she deserved. I remember when I was getting ordained. Although I was pretty sure God had called me, I didn’t feel worthy to serve Him in this way. I know my sin. I know my struggles. I know my fears. I know my doubts. I wondered if these things disqualified me. I’ve served three churches since graduating from seminary. The risks in each situation were great. Things could have gone very wrong and in one case did. There were no guarantees that I would be successful in leading those churches. I was anxious at times. Struggled with self-confidence. Wondered at certain moments if I should go and do something else. But through it all, God was faithful. He kept encouraging me and working with me and challenging me to surrender more and more of my life to Him.

The same is true for everyone we encounter in Scripture, including great leaders like Moses. Today’s reading includes one of my favorite stories. I love how vulnerable Moses is before God. He expresses his fears and doubts. He wonders if he’s the right man for the job. He struggles to accept God’s call on his life. And how does God respond? He is patient. He works with Moses. Encourages Moses. Even gets stern and challenges Moses. As a result, Moses goes back to Egypt. Back to the place where he was wanted for murder. Back to the place where he grew up. He goes back to face his fears and failures. And he takes nothing with him except a staff and a promise from God. It’s a powerful example of how God can use anyone to accomplish His purposes.

Perhaps you know how Moses feels? Perhaps you’ve second-guessed yourself a time or two? Perhaps you have fears and questions and doubts? We all do. And the great news is God invites us to share those things with Him. He invites us to be vulnerable before Him. And He encourages us to remember it is not by our might or our power or our wisdom that we make our way in this world. It is by God’s Spirit. Read and re-read Psalm 18 today. Let those words fill your heart with the confidence that can only come from God. No matter what challenges you may be facing in your life, know that God is with you! “I love you, Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer, my God, my rock where I seek refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I was saved from my enemies.” (Psalms‬ ‭18‬:‭1‬-‭3‬ ‭CSB‬‬)

Readings for tomorrow: Exodus 7-9, Psalm 19

Progressive Revelation

Readings for today: Exodus 1-3, Psalm 17

It’s hard for us to imagine what it must have been like for the ancient Israelites. We live two thousand years post-resurrection. We have the full counsel of God revealed in a complete Bible. We have generations of church history to look back on where we can see the hand of God at work. Most importantly, we have the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit inside us, keeping us in constant contact with our Heavenly Father. The ancient Israelites had none of these things. Four hundred years had passed since they last heard from God. All they had were a few family stories to go on of this God who occasionally spoke to their ancestors. They had no Scripture. No worship. No Law. Nothing to go on. They didn’t even know God’s name.

One of the things we have to remember as we read through the Bible is the nature of progressive revelation. God reveals Himself in different ways to different people in different situations over time. He speaks to them in a language they can understand, taking into account their particular time and place and culture and worldview. This can result in misunderstandings about God. When we see Him reveal Himself in different ways, we might be tempted to think He is contradicting Himself. But nothing could be further from the truth. God’s character and nature are eternal and unchanging and everything He does has a purpose. It is geared to bring about His great salvation plan.

Consider the plight of Israel. They have lived for hundreds of years in exile from the Promised Land. The king of Egypt no longer remembers the contributions their forefather Joseph made to the nation. As the Israelites grow in number, they represent a potential threat. After all, no empire wants a powerful people group living on their border. So Pharaoh acts decisively to enslave them and decimate their population by killing all the male children. It’s brutal. It’s violent. It’s terrifying. Such was life in the ancient world. One wonders why God didn’t intervene? Why did He not reach down and strike Pharaoh down? Why did He not pluck His people up and bring them back to the Promised Land? Why did God allow such evil and suffering? Once again, we come face to face with God’s unchanging nature and character. He absolutely refuses to change His eternal plan. In the beginning, He gave humanity dominion over all He had made and He has never taken that gift back. So if salvation is to come to the world, it must come in and through the creatures who bear His image. The creatures He set up to reign and rule over all He has made.

I love the end of chapter two. “After a long time, the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned because of their difficult labor, they cried out, and their cry for help because of the difficult labor ascended to God. God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. God saw the Israelites, and God knew.” (Exodus‬ ‭2‬:‭23‬-‭25‬ ‭CSB‬‬) God heard. God remembered. God saw. God knew. God never abandoned His people. He was always there though they could not see Him or hear Him or perceive Him. God was always faithful and at the right moment - after the king of Egypt had died - God raised up a deliverer to save His people.

Now think about your own life. Think about the many ways you groan due to difficult labor or cry out due to struggle and heartbreak. Sometimes it may seem like God is silent. It may seem like God isn’t responding to your prayers. But God is faithful, friends! And at the right time, He will act. He will send deliverance - usually through another person - to bring you comfort and peace.

Readings for tomorrow: Exodus 4-6, Psalm 18