Moses: The Courage to Lead

Take Courage

Moses was chosen by God to lead the Israelites out of the land of Egypt. At first he was hesitant to do this. But in the end, Moses obeyed the Lord, stood against Pharaoh, and led the people out of bondage and toward the promised land.

The Lord said, ‘I have surely seen the affliction of My people who are in Egypt, and have given heed to their cry because of their taskmasters, for I am aware of their sufferings. So I have come down to deliver them from the power of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and spacious land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanite and the Hittite and the Amorite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite. Now, behold, the cry of the sons of Israel has come to Me; furthermore, I have seen the oppression with which the Egyptians are oppressing them. Therefore, come now, and I will send you to Pharaoh, so that you may bring My people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt’” (Exodus 3:7-10).

We often associate leading with leadership roles (husbands, employers, generals, Presidents, elders, etc.). But we can lead without an official leadership position. Leadership can be exerted through one’s position, words, actions, and influence. We lead by directing others toward the way they should go and by showing them how to do what is right. There are ways in which each of us can lead within the roles we occupy (in the church, home, workplace, society, etc.). But it takes courage to do so. Moses is an example of one who had the courage to lead.

The Background

The children of Israel settled in Egypt in order to survive a famine (Genesis 45:5-8; 47:11-12). Thanks to Joseph (Genesis 47:11-12) – with the help of God (Genesis 45:5, 7) – they prospered. “Now Israel lived in the land of Egypt, in Goshen, and they acquired property in it and were fruitful and became very numerous” (Genesis 47:27).

All of this happened while Pharaoh thought highly of Joseph (Genesis 41:39-45; 45:16-20). However, eventually “a new king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph” (Exodus 1:8). He saw the Israelites as a threat (Exodus 1:9-10), so he tried to keep them under his control by making “their lives bitter with hard labor” (Exodus 1:11-14).

However, God was with the Israelites and blessed them (Exodus 1:12). Even still, their oppression was severe. They “cried out” and “God heard their groaning; and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. God saw the sons of Israel, and God took notice of them” (Exodus 2:23-25). So He planned to deliver the Israelites out of bondage (Exodus 3:7-9). He chose Moses to lead them (Exodus 3:10).

Why This Took Courage

When we consider the example of Moses, we can find five reasons why it took courage for him to lead the people out of Egypt.

First, Moses did not aspire to lead. Some people are natural born leaders. Others simply want to be in charge. Moses was not like this. When God called him to lead he tried to come up with excuses so that he would not have to do it. He saw himself as being unfit to stand up to Pharaoh (Exodus 3:11). He was afraid that the Israelites would not listen to him (Exodus 4:1). He claimed to be a poor speaker (Exodus 4:10). Eventually he said, “Please, Lord, now send the message by whomever You will” (Exodus 4:13). He wanted God to send anyone but him.

Second, Moses had to face opposition. He first had to face Pharaoh – the leader of the most powerful nation on earth at that time (Exodus 3:11; 5:1-2). At one point Pharaoh threatened to kill him (Exodus 10:28). When Moses finally did lead the people out of Egypt, Pharaoh and his army pursued them (Exodus 14:9). If this were not enough, he also faced opposition from his brethren (Exodus 5:20-21), from Miriam and Aaron (Numbers 12:1-2), and from Korah and his allies (Numbers 16:1-3).

Third, the people often did not want to follow. When Pharaoh pursued them, they said, “It is because there were no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you dealt with us in this way, bringing us out of Egypt? Is this not the word that we spoke to you in Egypt, saying, ‘Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness” (Exodus 14:11-12). This was not the only time the Israelites wished they had never left Egypt (Exodus 16:3; 17:3; Numbers 11:5-6; 14:2-3). At one point they even wanted to “appoint [another] leader and return to Egypt” (Numbers 14:4).

Fourth, Moses had to lead the people out of comfort, security, and prosperity. Moses was leading them from bondage into a state of freedom and blessings from God. This may not seem like it would be hard to convince the people to follow for this, but it is – it demands a strong faith in God and a firm sense of personal responsibility. People often accept oppression if it allows them to be dependent. This is what happened with the Israelites. Though they were sorely oppressed by Pharaoh, they preferred to “serve the Egyptians” (Exodus 14:2) if it meant they were able to eat “bread to the full” (Exodus 16:3; cf. Numbers 11:4-6). Moses had to lead them away from the free food provided by their oppressive leaders to the blessings provided by the God of heaven.

Fifth, Moses had to lead in the right way. He was not to be an oppressive leader like the ruler of Egypt – even though at one point in his life he was potentially positioned to attain that role (Exodus 2:10; Hebrews 11:24-26). He led as God’s chosen spokesman (Exodus 7:1-2).

Moses Took Courage

Moses knew what was right. God spoke directly to him (Exodus 3:6) and told him what he needed to do – lead the people of Israel out of Egypt (Exodus 3:7-8, 10, 14-17).

Moses believed that he would be rewarded for heeding God’s call. The Hebrew writer tells us that he considered “the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the reward” (Hebrews 11:26).

Finally, Moses took courage and put his faith into action. He confronted Pharaoh and delivered God’s message: “Let My people go” (Exodus 5:1). Stephen said of Moses, “This man led [the people] out” of the land of Egypt (Acts 7:36).

Application for Us

Though we may not lead God’s people away from an oppressive ruler and into a land flowing with milk and honey, there are applications to be made from the example of Moses.

First, we must be willing to do things we may not be comfortable doing. Before Jesus performed his first miracle at a wedding feast in Cana, his mother told the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it” (John 2:5). We need to follow this same instruction. We must do whatever – not just what we might be comfortable with – the Lord instructs us to do in His word (Matthew 28:18-20; Hebrews 5:9).

Second, we must be able to stand up to opposition. Paul warned the Ephesian elders that opposition to the truth may come from two directions. There may be “savage wolves” who “will come in among you” (Acts 20:29). There may also be men “from among your own selves” who will try to lead Christians away from the truth (Acts 20:30). Being among brethren is not justification for us to let our guard down. We must be ready to face opposition from wherever it may come.

Third, we must try to lead and influence people, even if they do not want to follow. Jesus was “the Light [that] has come into the world,” but many refused to “come to the Light for fear that [their] deeds [would] be exposed” (John 3:19-20). We also “appear as lights in the world” (Philippians 2:15; cf. Matthew 5:14-16). Because of this, many will oppose us just as they did with Moses and Jesus (cf. John 15:18-19).

Fourth, we must promote freedom in Christ over dependence upon the enemies of Christ. Jesus offers us freedom (John 8:31-32; 2 Corinthians 3:17). But just as the freedom proclaimed by Moses required a strong faith in God and a sense of personal responsibility, proclaiming freedom in Christ today demands the same – faith in God and His reward (Hebrews 6:11-12) and personal responsibility for our salvation (Philippians 2:12).

Fifth, we must lead as God would have us to lead. We cannot try to force people to comply as a wicked ruler like Pharaoh would. We must lead others through words (1 Peter 4:11), actions (1 Peter 2:12), and by fulfilling whatever divinely-approved leadership role we may occupy (Romans 12:8).

Conclusion

Moses had many excuses for not leading the children of Israel out of Egypt. Yet he proved himself to be a man of courage by carrying out the difficult task of leading a reluctant people away from the bondage of a godless tyrant. Though we may not have as great of a burden of leadership as Moses had, we all have the opportunity to lead people in one way or another – whether it is through an official leadership position or through the influence we exert over those around us. It may be tempting to make excuses as Moses did. But let us take courage and lead in a way that would be pleasing to God.


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