| “And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him … as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot [know] not what is become of him” (Exodus 32:1). |
| “And Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that overlived Joshua, and which had known all the works of the Lord, that He had done for Israel” (Joshua 24:31). |
| Perhaps you wonder why I have put these two verses together in today’s meditation, but there is definitely a connection between them. Let me try and explain it to you, and the lesson we can learn from these verses. |
| Some people like to be leaders, but most of us like to follow a good leader. This is true even in natural things. People like to follow a good boss at work, and they like to follow a good leader at the head of their country, whether a prime minister, a president, or a king. We also like a leader in spiritual things — someone who guides us in our Christian walk. This is especially true when we are young, for we often look for a “hero” whose life and character appeals to us. We see from our verses that this happened among the Israelites too. |
| They had good leaders, first of all in Moses, whom the Lord used to lead them out of the land of Egypt, and then Joshua, whom the Lord used to lead them into the land of Canaan. But what happened? Sadly, the people became occupied with the leader more than the Lord! When Moses stayed up in Mount Sinai for forty days, the people ended up making an idol out of gold — an idol like a calf! Then later, they followed the Lord as long as Joshua was alive, and the elders that outlived Joshua. But then it is recorded that “there arose another generation after them, which knew not the Lord” (Judges 2:10), and they began to worship idols again. |
| Why did the later generation not know the Lord? It was because they had looked to leaders whom the Lord gave them, instead of to the Lord Himself. Yes, God provides leaders to His people, and today He still gives us leaders and guides to help us. But no leader should take the place of the Lord. Those leaders can be a big help to us, but only when they help us to have a closer relationship with the Lord. Then, if the leader dies, or moves away, we can look directly to the Lord, and seek guidance from Him. |
| This is a most important lesson to learn when you are young. You may follow good leaders, and their example can be a big encouragement to us. However, if we get our eyes on them instead of the Lord, then, when the leader is gone, we will not be able to follow the Lord. Somehow we will think we need a human leader to follow, and if that leader is not there, we will seem lost. But the Lord wants us to have a direct relationship with Him. Then we will still be thankful for good leaders, but the Lord will be more important to us than the leader. If the leader is no longer there, we will only be drawn closer to the Lord, who will never disappear! |
