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The lesser duties that could be undertaken by other men should be undertaken, or the
work would otherwise suffer, and so Jethro counseled that Moses should provide able
men who feared God, men of truth, hating covetousness, and that these should be placed
over thousands, fifties and tens, thus simplifying the labour and preventing trifles from
interfering with the main work.
The warfare and the warfare of God's people necessitates fellowship. It would have
been a display of the flesh had Moses refused the stone as a seat or the loving support of
Aaron and Hur. It would have been the work of the flesh had Moses chosen rather to
wreck the ministry he had received for the apparently high quality of independence.
There were circumstances wherein Paul was justified in saying, "it were better for me to
die" than to receive fellowship (I Cor. 9: 15), but to take this as a general rule would be
harmful and foolish. The church at Philippi were ever in close touch with the apostle and
his needs:--
"In as much as both in my bonds, and in the defence and confirmation of the gospel,
ye all are partakers of my grace" (Phil. 1: 7).
This he called their "fellowship in the gospel from the first day" (1: 5). We see how
practical this fellowship was by turning to Phil. 4: 15:--
"Now ye Philippians know also, that in the beginning of the gospel (as 1: 5) . . . . . no
church communicated koinoo (in 1: 5 it is koinonia) with me as concerning giving and
receiving, but ye only."
The burden and the blessing.
We are joyfully to expect our duties to increase, and be ready to respond to the
growing need. Moses did not for one moment regret the multiplying of Israel which
added to his burden; he rejoiced in it, but he accepted Jethro's counsel to meet the
situation:--
"And I spake unto you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone.
The Lord your God hath multiplied you, and, behold, ye are this day as the stars of
heaven for multitude (The Lord God of your fathers make you a thousand times so many
more as ye are, and bless you, as He hath promised you!) How can I myself bear your
cumbrance, and your burden, and your strife?" (Deut. 1: 9-12).
There came a moment in the early church when the apostles had to decide whether
they were justified in leaving the ministry of the word of God and prayer, or whether,
following the lines of Exod. 18:, the time had not come to look out men of honest
report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom they could appoint over the business
that was intruding into the time and strength of the apostles (Acts 6: 1-4).
It is not the will of God that either His servants or their ministry should suffer through
false sense of independence, neither is it His will that there should be any leaning upon
the arm of the flesh or warring with its weapons. It is most certainly for our guidance and
warning that the lesson of Exod. 17: should be restated in Exod. 18: