Brothers & Their Brain Cells
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The next day Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people, and they stood around him from morning till evening. When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he said, “What is this you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around you from morning till evening?” Moses answered him, “Because the people come to me to seek God’s will. Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me, and I decide between the parties and inform them of God’s decrees and instructions.” Moses’ father-in-law replied, “What you are doing is not good. You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone. Listen now to me and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must be the people’s representative before God and bring their disputes to him. Teach them his decrees and instructions, and show them the way they are to live and how they are to behave. But select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with you. If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied.” Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything he said.
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When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.” Aaron answered them, “Take off the gold earrings that your wives, your sons and your daughters are wearing, and bring them to me.” So all the people took off their earrings and brought them to Aaron. He took what they handed him and made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, “These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.” When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced, “Tomorrow there will be a festival to the Lord.” So the next day the people rose early and sacrificed burnt offerings and presented fellowship offerings. Afterward they sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry.
These two passages show two brothers, Moses and Aaron, with two different influences and outcomes.
Moses was a leader of the people, yet he was not controlled by their pressure. At the same time, he remained humble enough to receive correction from his father-in-law, Jethro. God gave Jethro wise advice that Moses needed. Moses heard directly from God, even audibly, and he still needed guidance from someone else.
Let this show you that no one is above godly counsel. God gave each of us gifts, insight, and voices meant to strengthen one another.
Then you look at Aaron.
It is not that he refused to listen. He listened. The problem was who he listened to. The voices around him were demanding something evil, and instead of leading the people, he was led by them. Apparently, Aaron’s last few brain cells took the day off. He forgot how holy and powerful God had just revealed Himself to be on Mount Sinai.
The question is not whether people can speak into your life. The question is who is speaking into your life.
The voice of the world will pull you away from God. True godly voices will push you toward obedience and your purpose in Christ.
Today, be the kind of voice that strengthens someone in the church. Encourage a believer. Remind them to keep going. Be a voice that builds up, not one that caves to the noise of the world.