As Israel approached the Jordan River, Moses sent out 12 spies to investigate the land God had promised to give to His people. Moses appointed one leader from each tribe to represent them in this fact finding mission. All 12 had the same external experience but upon return the report from 10 was significantly different from the other 2. Read Numbers 13:1-14:4.

After the return, 10 of the leaders reported the land was indeed wonderful but would be impossible to conquer. While the other 2 also saw the problems, they believed the Hebrews should enter the land and receive the promise. The difference boiled down to the attitude created by core beliefs of each group. Two leaders believed (had “accepted” as truth that) God was controlling the fate of the people and the other 10 believed God was there but that the results were up to them.

When you are in leadership, criticism and confrontation will come with the territory. Read Numbers 12:3-14.

During the time the Hebrew nation was traveling in the wilderness, Moses married a non-Hebrew woman. This was a society where having several wives was accepted but the problem was Moses did not choose a Hebrew woman. We do not know if this foreign wife had converted to Judaism but we do know it caused major dissention in Moses’ family and leadership team. Both Aaron and Miriam confronted Moses and gave him a sharp rebuke. God ultimately intervened and confirmed Moses’ position but there are some things every leader can learn from this incident.

Miriam was Moses’ sister. Miriam is only mentioned a few times in the story of the Hebrew exodus from captivity in Egypt, but each time she is talked about in terms of being an influencer (a leader). Read Exodus 2:1-10; Exodus 15:19-20; Numbers 12; Numbers 20:1.

Miriam was used by God as an influencer from her childhood. When Moses was an infant and his parents had him placed in the Nile in a basket in hopes of avoiding the infanticide demanded by law, it was Miriam who the parents trusted to not only place him in the river at the proper place and moment so he would be found by Pharaoh’s daughter but they also trusted Miriam to make contact with Pharaoh’s daughter and persuade the princess to allow her to find a Hebrew nursemaid. Miriam had the courage to accept a difficult assignment and follow it through to completion.

Aaron, Moses’ brother, lived the leadership experience of most leaders. Like Aaron, most leaders will not be the final authority; most will lead from within the organizational chart not the top. Most won’t have a perfect track record of performance, but take courage in that position because God used Aaron to accomplish critical leadership functions for His kingdom and Aaron’s leadership left a mark that can still be seen today. Read Exodus 4:10-17; Exodus 32:1-6 & 19-29; Numbers 12:1-3; Leviticus 8:1-9.

Aaron was not God’s choice to lead the Hebrew nation from captivity in Egypt. He was selected by God to assist Moses. Aaron did not always understand the vision and he did not always perform in support of Moses but Aaron had key roles to play as God accomplished His vision for the Hebrew people. Most leaders, like Aaron, will serve in the middle of an organization and must learn to have maximum influence without having the final authority in either the vision or the process.

In a number of instances Moses’ actions showed he was a humble man and a servant leader. Think for a moment about his father-in-law’s advice to put structure and organization to the process of settling the people’s differences. Moses could have decided that he was God’s chosen leader, he was the leader of 3 million, he was the one God used to part the sea, God spoke directly to him and he did not need advice. He could have rationalized that the people and his core team would think him weak if he took advice. He could have, if he was ruled by arrogance and pride, but a leader ruled by humility can learn from the team around him. He not only took Jethro’s advice but he demonstrated a real change in his leadership utilizing the advice several times during the 40 wilderness years. The greatest validation of Moses’ humility came directly from God.  Read Numbers 12:1-8.

The quality of humility flows out of a proper assessment of ourselves before God. Moses was a powerful leader, but he was also a humble leader because he saw himself in the light of God and sought God’s honor and reputation, not his own. When leaders come to grips with their desperate need for the grace and mercy of God, they develop a teachable spirit, they seek wise counsel and they are willing to be under authority.