The heart of the Book of Exodus lies in chapters 19–24, where God and Israel enter into a covenant in the wilderness of Sinai. Immediately before this pivotal moment, in Exodus 18, Moses reorganized Israel by appointing leaders over thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens, entrusting them with the serious responsibility of judging the people on his behalf. Notably, Moses acted on the advice of his father-in-law, Jethro.
Why his father-in-law, of all people? Could Moses’ wife have complained to her parents about her marriage, which may have been on the brink of collapse? Why did Moses send his wife and children back to his in-laws (Exod. 18:2–3)? Was it for their safety? Or was it because he could no longer cope with the frequent conflicts at home? One thing is clear from Exodus 18: even if Moses had lived with his wife and sons, he would have faced circumstances that compelled him to neglect and sacrifice his family. If Moses alone had to handle all the disputes of a population of two to three million, the stress he endured was beyond imagination.
May is Family Month. Moses had no family; ministry consumed him. Do we, as pastors, truly nurture our families? This is a true story from many years ago in Chicago. A teenage son repeatedly called the church, trying to share his struggles with his father, who served as a pastor. Each time, the father ended the call by saying, “Son, you know I’m a pastor. I’m extremely busy taking care of the congregation right now. Let’s talk when I get home after work.” Eventually, the discouraged son called the church one last time and asked, “May I speak with Pastor Kim, please?”
When did Moses regain his wife and sons—his family—and also begin to see fruit in his ministry? It happened when he appointed leaders to act on his behalf and delegated his authority and responsibilities to them. “Moses chose capable men from all Israel and made them leaders of the people—officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens. They judged the people at all times; they brought the difficult cases to Moses, but they decided the simple ones themselves” (18:25–26).
Scholars who study church growth note that a growing church functions best when pastors lead, and laypeople carry out the ministry (see Eph. 4:11–12). Some argue that if the essence of the sixteenth-century Reformation was taking the Bible out of the hands of the clergy and placing it in the hands of the laity, then the twenty-first-century Reformation is about taking ministry out of the hands of the clergy and placing it in the hands of the laity. When Moses handled everything himself, not only did he suffer, but the people suffered as well (v. 18). Needless to say, his family must have suffered greatly, too. It is notable that after Moses restructured the ministry in Exodus 18, Israel entered into a covenant relationship with God in chapter 19.
Church planters may say, “Please don’t talk about such luxuries. Even if I want to delegate, I don’t have mature people to whom I can entrust the work.” Just before Jethro exhorted Moses to select capable leaders from among the people and delegate his work and authority to them (v. 21), he made an important point: “You must serve as the people’s representative before God and bring their disputes to Him. Teach them the decrees and laws, and show them the way to live and the duties they are to perform” (18:19a–20b). Fully formed leaders with whom pastors can share ministry do not appear out of nowhere. Pastors produce them through continual prayer and training of the congregation. Training baby Christians into mature leaders forms the essence of pastoral ministry (Eph. 4:11–12).
At the end of Matthew 9, Jesus instructs his disciples to pray, “Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field” (Matt. 9:38). Then, at the beginning of chapter 10, Jesus names the disciples he has chosen. He trained them and sent them out, giving them “authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness” (Matt. 10:1). This was a delegation and the transfer of authority in His own ministry.
Delegation and transfer of authority require prayer and thorough training. The day Moses truly became a leader was the day he entrusted ministry to capable leaders whom he had raised through prayer and training. At that point, he also restored the family he had lost. As we observe Family Month, pastors must reflect on this core leadership lesson. Moses stopped striving to serve endlessly at the cost of everything else and began to work effectively. His family reunited, and his home became a place of joy. This marks the birth of a true leader.