Share The Burden

In Exodus 18 there is a story that moved me to tears, and I'm not even sure why. This is usually a case of the Holy Spirit being with me, teaching me, and moving within me.

I really want to seek the Lord, and to know him. A daily knowing of his presence in my life. Fear and passions quickly crowd him out, but so also is this thing I'll call detachment for now. I grow detached from my life, going through the motions of the day to day activities. My professional driving lends itself to such automated movements. Struggling out of it is like getting out of a comfortable bed.
Well, I asked God to show me a scripture he'd like me to read today, and I started to noodle around at Bible Gateway. I had heard a sermon this past Sunday preached from Luke 17, and the one leper had turned back before showing himself to the priest, but after he'd seen that he'd been cleansed. Jesus is our high priest. The Mosaic law stated that a leper must be declared clean by the priest. Jesus was honoring the law by telling them to show themselves to the priest. I'd never before thought that the leper had returned to thank Jesus BEFORE he'd shown himself to the priest. Well, I did a search for the word 'priest' in the entire bible, and found this story in Exodus 18. Jethro, Moses father-in-law is referred to as the Priest of Midian.

• "10 Jethro said, "Blessed be the LORD, who has delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of Pharaoh and has delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians. 11 Now I know that the LORD is greater than all gods..."

This further explains a mystery earlier in the life of Moses and Zipporah, his wife, Jethro's daughter. Its found in Exodus 4, and its only a couple of verses, but is very disturbing because it says that God was going to slay Moses, but Zipporah intervenes and saves Moses life by circumcising their son. Another question is, why would a Hebrew child not yet be circumcised? Also, why is Zipporah angry with Moses?!? Further investigation reveals that Zipporah is  a Midianite. Where did the Midianites come from? In Genesis 25 we learn that Midian is a son born to him by another wife of Abraham. This shows that Midian, being a child of Abraham would have been circumcised, but the practice of circumcision was possibly not carried on with the successive generations afterward. Jethro's declaration regarding Abraham's God is one of great interest. Jethro acknowledged God's place above all other gods! Its a scene that reminds me of a person coming to confess Jesus as Lord and Savior!

Later in Exodus 18 we see Jethro gives counsel to his son in law, Moses, to appoint judges over 10's 100's 1000's who will settle small matters and Moses will be left to settle difficult disputes. Moses instructed the people in the law, and he taught these judges to do the same.