Good morning!
Text: Numbers 25-27; Psalm 35
As Moses’ run as leader of the nation of Israel comes toward its conclusion, Moses asks the Lord to appoint a successor. Indeed, he does. The exchange caught my attention:
“Let the Lord, the God of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation who shall go out before them and come in before them, who shall lead them out and bring them in, that the congregation of the Lord may not be as sheep that have no shepherd.” So the Lord said to Moses, “Take Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and lay your hand on him.” (Numbers 27:16-18)
Our leaders, if we are doing it right, are appointed by God. We need them because, without godly leaders, we are “as sheep that have no shepherd.” That means dumb, helpless, defenseless and destined for trouble. As a congregational church, we gather together to elect leaders having been nominated by a committee. Our choice of leaders has to be from the Lord, so when we seek people to fill leadership positions, our primary tool is prayer and our primary attitude is patient listening. Pray that our own leaders might always be of God’s choosing and not our own.
in Him, Mike