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Leadership of Aaron and Moses
Exodus 32:1-6, 15-29:
When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people
gathered around Aaron and said to him, `Come, make gods for us, who shall go before
us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not
know what has become of him.'
2Aaron said to them, `Take off the gold rings that are on
the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.'
3So all the
people took off the gold rings from their ears, and brought them to Aaron.
4He took the
gold from them, formed it in a mould, and cast an image of a calf; and they said, `These
are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!'
5When Aaron saw
@
this, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation and said, `Tomorrow shall
Compare the leadership of Moses and Aaron.
be a festival to the Lord.'
6They rose early the next day, and offered burnt-offerings and
What are their values and priorities?
brought sacrifi ces of well-being; and the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to
revel. ...
[v7-15: God threatens to wipe out the people; Moses intercedes on behalf of the people.]
15 Then Moses turned and went down from the mountain, carrying the two tablets of the
covenant in his hands, tablets that were written on both sides, written on the front and on
the back.
16The tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God,
engraved upon the tablets.
17When Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted,
he said to Moses, `There is a noise of war in the camp.'
18But he said, `It is not the sound
made by victors, or the sound made by losers; it is the sound of revellers that I hear.'
19As
soon as he came near the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, Moses' anger burned
hot, and he threw the tablets from his hands and broke them at the foot of the mountain.
How are people affected by the leader-
20He took the calf that they had made, burned it with fi re, ground it to powder, scattered
ship of each?
it on the water, and made the Israelites drink it.
21 Moses said to Aaron, `What did this people do to you that you have brought so great a
sin upon them?'
22And Aaron said, `Do not let the anger of my lord burn hot; you know
the people, that they are bent on evil.
23They said to me, "Make us gods, who shall go
before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do
not know what has become of him."
24So I said to them, "Whoever has gold, take it off
"; so they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fi re, and out came this calf!'
25 When Moses saw that the people were running wild (for Aaron had let them run wild,
to the derision of their enemies),
26then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said,
`Who is on the Lord's side? Come to me!' And all the sons of Levi gathered around him.
27He said to them, `Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, "Put your sword on your side,
each of you! Go back and forth from gate to gate throughout the camp, and each of
you kill your brother, your friend, and your neighbour." '
28The sons of Levi did as Moses
commanded, and about three thousand of the people fell on that day.
29Moses said,
`Today you have ordained yourselves for the service of the Lord, each one at the cost of a
son or a brother, and so have brought a blessing on yourselves this day.'
INTERVARSITY ®
Sketches of Leadership #16
SKETCHES
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of Leadership o o o o >
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Leadership of Aaron and Moses
Moses
Aaron
Me
Uncritically people's
idolatry and calls
When have I risked people's disapproval
idolatry and helps them pursue it
people to repent.
to challenge their goals?
The people set goals; he spells out means.
God sets goals; Moses spells out the means.
Am I directed by God's priorities and
goals or by those of other people?
responsibility and intercedes
responsibility and blames
Am I willing to take responsibility for
with God. Holds Aaron responsible for the
the people
those I lead?
people's idolatry.
Concern for his own reputation
Concern for God's glory
Am I jealous for God's glory, or my own?
Do I take sin seriously, or am I more
with sin and fails to see
Angry with sin and of its
likely to joke about it and fail to see its
consequences
consequences
destructive results?
Am I and the people around me turning
Result: People are lost
Result: People are saved
from our destructive idolatries?
Leads when it is
Leads when it is
Am I willing to call for a costly obedience
or do I prefer being liked and known as
easy-going?
C @
ase Studies
> Consider what you can do to make the choice Moses made when it might be costly or uncomfortable. How can you make a differ-
ence in a way that would be most helpful? What are potential issues to address or questions to ask?
Opportunities to make the choice to lead as Moses would have:
1. When Christians friends are joking inappropriately about sexuality...
2. When a small group member says he/she is unable to attend but asks for prayer for the big test or project deadline he or she is facing in
two days...
3. When a small group member says something inappropriate and intolerant about homosexuals... or when a small group member says
something entirely approving of the lifestyle choices of homosexuals ...
INTERVARSITY ®
Sketches of Leadership #16
©2007 InterVarsity Christian Fellowship 6400 Schroeder Road, P.O. Box 7895 Madison, WI 53707-7895
tel 608.274.9001
email info@intervarsity.org
web www.intervarsity.org
SKETCHES
T
of Leadership o o o o >
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Leadership of Aaron and Moses
V1: "Moses, the man who brought us up..."
They forget that it wasn't Moses, it was God.
Exodus 32:1-6, 15-29
They have a very short memory.
When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people
gathered around Aaron and said to him, `Come, make gods for us, who shall go before V6: Perhaps
us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not
Aaron is wor-
ried about a
know what has become of him.'
2Aaron said to them, `Take off the gold rings that are on mutiny, with
the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.'
3So all the Moses gone. So
he capitulates
people took off the gold rings from their ears, and brought them to Aaron.
4He took the to the desires of
the crowd.
gold from them, formed it in a mould, and cast an image of a calf; and they said, `These
are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!'
5When Aaron saw
@
this, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation and said, `Tomorrow shall
Compare the leadership of Moses and Aaron.
be a festival to the Lord.'
6They rose early the next day, and offered burnt-offerings and
What are their values and priorities?
brought sacrifi ces of well-being; and the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to
Aaron wants to please the people--he
revel. ...
leads them into idolatry because they
[v7-15: God threatens to wipe out the people; Moses intercedes on behalf of the people.]
wanted to go there. Aaron values looking
15 Then Moses turned and went down from the mountain, carrying the two tablets of the
good, hence he justifi es his own choice
to Moses and blames the people. Moses
covenant in his hands, tablets that were written on both sides, written on the front and on
values God's glory and is willing to take a
the back.
16The tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God,
costly and unpopular stance to call people
engraved upon the tablets.
17When Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted,
back to a proper relationship with God.
he said to Moses, `There is a noise of war in the camp.'
18But he said, `It is not the sound
made by victors, or the sound made by losers; it is the sound of revellers that I hear.'
19As
soon as he came near the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, Moses' anger burned
hot, and he threw the tablets from his hands and broke them at the foot of the mountain.
How are people affected by the leader-
20He took the calf that they had made, burned it with fi re, ground it to powder, scattered
ship of each?
it on the water, and made the Israelites drink it.
The people are led astray by Aaron's
21 Moses said to Aaron, `What did this people do to you that you have brought so great a
choice and lives are lost. Moses' quick
choice ultimately saves lives of faith by
sin upon them?'
22And Aaron said, `Do not let the anger of my lord burn hot; you know
calling people to repent and return to the
the people, that they are bent on evil.
23They said to me, "Make us gods, who shall go
Lord's side.
before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do
not know what has become of him."
24So I said to them, "Whoever has gold, take it off";
so they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fi re, and out came this calf!'
V20: Moses is not patient with their
25 When Moses saw that the people were running wild (for Aaron had let them run wild,
idol--he destroys it and makes them
drink it, producing a memorable bitter-
to the derision of their enemies),
26then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said,
ness. He doesn't even melt it down to
`Who is on the Lord's side? Come to me!' And all the sons of Levi gathered around him.
be used later.
27He said to them, `Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, "Put your sword on your side,
V24: Aaron speaks as if the calf miraculously
each of you! Go back and forth from gate to gate throughout the camp, and each of
appeared out of the fi re
you kill your brother, your friend, and your neighbour." '
28The sons of Levi did as Moses
V26: "Who is on the Lord's side?" Response to
commanded, and about three thousand of the people fell on that day.
29Moses said,
that call was costly for these Levites.
`Today you have ordained yourselves for the service of the Lord, each one at the cost of a
son or a brother, and so have brought a blessing on yourselves this day.'
INTERVARSITY ®
Sketches of Leadership #16
SKETCHES
T
of Leadership o o o o >
he @
Leadership of Aaron and Moses
Aaron
Moses
Me
Uncritically people'
accepts
s
idolatry and calls
Rejects
When have I risked people's disapproval
idolatry and helps them pursue it
people to repent.
to challenge their goals?
The people set goals; he spells out means.
God sets goals; Moses spells out the means.
Am I directed by God's priorities and
Aaron says "You tell me where you want to go;
Moses says, "Follow me as I follow God."
goals or by those of other people?
I'll help you get there."
r
Takes
esponsibility and intercedes
r
Shifts
esponsibility and blames
Am I willing to take responsibility for
with God. Holds Aaron responsible for the
the people
those I lead?
people's idolatry.
Concern for his own reputation
his own reputation
Concern for God's glory
God's glory
Am I jealous for God's glory, or my own?
Do I take sin seriously, or am I more
with sin and fails to see
Patient
Angry with sin and of its
aware
likely to joke about it and fail to see its
consequences
consequences
destructive results?
Am I and the people around me turning
Result: People are lost
Lost
Result: People are saved
saved
from our destructive idolatries?
Leads when it is popular.
Leads when it is costly.
Am I willing to call for a costly obedience
Aaron is more accommodating, less uptight,
It may have been costly for Moses to lead, but it
or do I prefer being liked and known as
more fun, less serious
would have been more deadly if he had not.
easy-going?
C @
ase Studies
> Consider what you can do to make the choice Moses made when it might be costly or uncomfortable. How can you make a differ-
ence in a way that would be most helpful? What are potential issues to address or questions to ask?
Opportunities to make the choice to lead as Moses would have:
1. When Christians friends are joking inappropriately about sexuality... Rather than joining in, or in standing off or being judgmental, would it
be possible to talk about the role that joking about sex can have in making improper sexual activity more attractive or more tempting? This addresses the
(uncomfortable) topic without necessarily being dogmatic or judgmental, but leads rather than follows.
2. When a small group member says he/she is unable to attend but asks for prayer for the big test or project deadline he or she is facing
in two days... Aaron here would simply say, "We'll pray for you!" and wish the small group member well. Moses might at least ask if there is a way that
he/she can still adequately prepare while coming to the group meeting and receiving prayer in person, gently challenging the potential idolatry and helping the
member to grow in trust for God in this situation.
3. When a small group member says something inappropriate and intolerant about homosexuals... or when a small group member says
something entirely approving of the lifestyle choices of homosexuals ... An Aaron-like leader might try to duck this conversation, saying something
non-committal but polite, "Yeah, I know" or trying to ignore the comment. Others may be effected but unsure how to respond. A Moses-like response would
involve taking a risk to talk about how Jesus would treat a homosexual, with neither animosity and condemnation nor approval, "Go and sin no more," as he
says to the woman caught in adultery. The faithful position is a diffi cult choice, and not necessarily popular with either partisan crowd.
INTERVARSITY ®
Sketches of Leadership #16
©2007 InterVarsity Christian Fellowship 6400 Schroeder Road, P.O. Box 7895 Madison, WI 53707-7895
tel 608.274.9001
email info@intervarsity.org
web www.intervarsity.org
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