Working Together" Exodus 18 [Serving in a Church Ministry]

Exodus 18 shows that God’s people are healthier when godly character is present and the load of ministry is shared. Jethro arrives after hearing what the Lord has done in bringing Israel out of Egypt, and his response is worship. Jethro does not treat Israel’s rescue as merely Moses’ story. God’s mighty work leads him to confess that the Lord is greater than all gods, and it brings him to the table with Aaron and Israel’s elders in God’s presence.

The church is not a bag of marbles, where everybody can stay separate and untouched. The church is more like a bag of grapes. Pressure comes, people bump into each other, hurts happen, and the whole group feels it. Christ has taken natural enemies and made them supernatural siblings through His blood. The body of Christ is one body, not a pile of separate bodies, and therefore one person’s pain, health, faithfulness, and service affect everybody else.

Moses’ long line of people waiting from morning until evening shows the problem clearly. Jethro says, “What you’re doing is not good,” not because Moses is lazy or uncaring, but because the task is too heavy for one man. Moses must still represent the people before God, teach God’s statutes, and handle the hard cases. Yet godly men must carry real responsibility alongside him, so that Moses can endure and the people can go home satisfied.

Ministry is not a sedentary profession. Christ alone could do all the work, but Christ’s plan was to make His church. The Spirit gives gifts to every believer, and those gifts are not meant to collect dust. Prayer belongs on every Christian’s plate, even when health concerns, pain, or mobility limitations make other forms of service difficult. God’s varied grace appears through administration, encouragement, hospitality, practical help, teaching, care, and faithful prayer.

Jethro’s standards for leadership reach deeper than skill. Able men must be God-fearing, trustworthy, and opposed to dishonest gain. The church does not need perfect leaders, because no such leaders exist outside of Christ. The church needs humble, repentant, teachable people whose old sin habits are getting smaller in the rearview mirror as Christ becomes clearer through the windshield.

The load of ministry still needs to be shared. The health of the whole church blesses every member, and serving over time often roots people more deeply into the life of the body. Christ carries the penalty of sin and gives an easy yoke, so His people do not carry burdens alone. The Lord’s Supper then proclaims His death, looks back to His sacrifice, and looks forward to His return.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. The church is one body The body of Christ cannot function as a collection of disconnected religious consumers. Christ joins people with different histories, politics, struggles, and gifts into supernatural family. The health or hurt of one part eventually touches the rest, which makes shared care a gospel reality rather than a church preference. [44:33]
• 2. One person cannot carry everything Moses’ exhausting schedule looked responsible, but Jethro called it “not good.” Faithful leadership does not mean doing every task personally, and faithful discipleship does not mean leaving all ministry to a small group. Shared responsibility protects both leaders and people from being worn out. [37:00]
• 3. Godly character matters more than polish Jethro’s qualifications begin with fear of God, trustworthiness, and hatred for dishonest gain. Skills can be taught, but humility, repentance, and teachability reveal a heart being shaped by Christ. The church becomes safer and stronger when leaders own their failures rather than defend them. [56:20]
• 4. Gifts are meant for active service The Spirit gives varied grace so that believers can serve one another rather than merely observe ministry from a distance. Prayer remains real labor, especially for those whose limitations narrow other opportunities. Every gift, whether visible or hidden, belongs in Christ’s mission of reaching, teaching, and encouraging people. [50:42]
• 5. Christ carries burdens through His people Jesus has already carried the crushing weight of sin’s penalty as the substitute for His people. His church then becomes one of the ordinary means by which burdens are shared through prayer, presence, service, and care. The lightness of Christ’s yoke does not mean isolation from difficulty, but fellowship under His care.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [28:33] - Exodus 18 and Jethro’s Wisdom
• [30:00] - “That’s Not Really How You Do That”
• [31:12] - Reading Exodus Through Christ
• [33:31] - Godly Character and Shared Ministry
• [34:21] - Jethro Rejoins Moses’ Family
• [36:15] - Jethro Sees Moses’ Heavy Load
• [40:17] - The Church Is a Bag of Grapes
• [46:50] - One Person Cannot Do All the Work
• [49:14] - Every Christian Has a Place
• [51:28] - Jethro’s Care for Moses
• [53:12] - Choosing Leaders With Godly Character
• [57:57] - When the Church Thrives
• [60:22] - Finding a Place to Serve
• [63:21] - Nursery and Youth Ministry Needs
• [68:56] - The Lord’s Supper and Christ’s Death

1. Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses and for Israel his people, how the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt. [34:35]
2. Now Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, had taken Zipporah, Moses’ wife, after he had sent her away, [34:47]
3. and her two sons, of whom the name of the one was Gershom (for he said, “I have been a sojourner in a foreign land”), [34:50]
4. and the name of the other, Eliezer (for he said, “The God of my father was my help, and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh”). [34:50]
5. Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, came with his sons and his wife to Moses in the wilderness where he was encamped at the mountain of God. [35:07]
6. And he said to Moses, “I, your father-in-law Jethro, am coming to you with your wife and her two sons with her.” [35:16]
7. Moses went out to meet his father-in-law and bowed down and kissed him. And they asked each other of their welfare and went into the tent. [35:22]
8. Then Moses told his father-in-law all that the Lord had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel’s sake, all the hardship that had come upon them in the way, and how the Lord had delivered them. [35:25]
9. And Jethro rejoiced for all the good that the Lord had done to Israel, in that he had delivered them out of the hand of the Egyptians. [35:25]
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. [35:47]
11. Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods, because in this affair they dealt arrogantly with the people.” [35:56]
12. And Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, brought a burnt offering and sacrifices to God; and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat bread with Moses’ father-in-law before God. [36:04]
13. The next day Moses sat to judge the people, and the people stood around Moses from morning till evening. [36:15]
14. When Moses’ father-in-law saw all that he was doing for the people, he said, “What is this that you are doing for the people? Why do you sit alone, and all the people stand around you from morning till evening?” [36:22]
15. And Moses said to his father-in-law, “Because the people come to me to inquire of God; [36:34]
16. when they have a dispute, they come to me and I decide between one person and another, and I make them know the statutes of God and his laws.” [36:36]
17. Moses’ father-in-law said to him, “What you are doing is not good. You and the people with you will certainly wear yourselves out, for the thing is too heavy for you; you are not able to do it alone. [36:47]
18. Now obey my voice; I will give you advice, and God be with you! You shall represent the people before God and bring their cases to God, [37:00]
19. and you shall warn them about the statutes and the laws, and make them know the way in which they must walk and what they must do. [37:10]
20. Moreover, look for able men from all the people, men who fear God, who are trustworthy and hate a bribe, and place such men over the people as chiefs of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens. [37:10]
21. And let them judge the people at all times. Every great matter they shall bring to you, but any small matter they shall decide themselves. [37:27]
22. So it will be easier for you, and they will bear the burden with you. [37:38]
23. If you do this, and God so commands you, then you will be able to endure, and all this people also will go to their place in peace.” [37:43]
24. So Moses listened to the voice of his father-in-law and did all that he had said. [37:55]
25. Moses chose able men out of all Israel and made them heads over the people, chiefs of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens. [37:55]
26. And they judged the people at all times. Any hard case they brought to Moses, but any small matter they decided themselves. [38:07]
27. Then Moses let his father-in-law depart, and he went away to his own country. [38:15]

1. For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. [44:16]
2. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit. [44:33]
3. For the body does not consist of one member but of many. [44:34]
4. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. [44:44]
5. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. [44:49]
6. If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? [44:53]
7. But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. [44:57]
8. If all were a single member, where would the body be? [45:04]
9. As it is, there are many parts, yet one body. [45:07]
10. The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” [45:11]
11. On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, [45:13]
12. and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, [45:22]
13. which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, [45:26]
14. that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. [45:30]
15. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together. [45:43]
16. Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. [46:02]

1. As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace. [50:42]

1. Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. [01:05:12]
2. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. [01:05:22]
3. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. [01:05:33]

1. What does Moses tell Jethro about Israel’s rescue, and how does Jethro respond to what the Lord has done?
2. What was Moses doing from morning until evening, and what two groups were becoming worn out because of this arrangement? [36:47]
3. What responsibilities does Jethro tell Moses to keep, and what responsibilities are given to the other able men?
4. According to 1 Corinthians 12, what attitudes or actions would create division in the body, and what should replace them? [45:11]

1. Jethro calls Moses’ work “not good,” even though Moses was handling real disputes and teaching God’s laws. Why is doing valuable work alone still harmful when it wears out both the leader and the people? [37:38]
2. Exodus 18 names fear of God, trustworthiness, and hatred of bribes before it speaks about leadership ability. Why are these character qualities necessary for someone who helps care for God’s people? [37:10]
3. In 1 Corinthians 12, why does Paul say that members who seem weaker are indispensable? How might this reshape the way a church views quiet, limited, or behind-the-scenes service?
4. Jesus promises rest to those who come to Him, while 1 Peter calls every believer to use his or her gift in serving others. How can service be faithful and joyful rather than an attempt to earn God’s acceptance? [01:05:33]

1. The church is not a bag of separate marbles but a body more like a bag of grapes: people are close enough that pressure, pain, and sin affect one another. Where have you been tempted to remain separate or untouched by the needs of other believers? What would it look like to move toward someone with prayer, encouragement, or practical care? [41:39]
2. Is there a burden you have been carrying alone—whether grief, fear, conflict, financial strain, health concerns, or temptation? What would it look like to let another believer pray with you or help carry that burden this week? [01:05:12]
3. God has given each believer a gift to use for others. What abilities, experiences, resources, or opportunities has God placed in your life that could serve someone in the body—such as administration, hospitality, encouragement, care, teaching, practical help, or prayer? [50:51]
4. Physical limitations, chronic pain, and changing seasons of life can affect how a person serves, but prayer remains real ministry. Who are two or three specific people or needs you can begin praying for consistently this week? [48:37]
5. When you make a mistake, are you more likely to defend yourself, withdraw, or receive correction? What would humble, repentant, teachable growth look like in one current relationship or area of service? [56:20]
6. The health of a church’s ministries blesses the whole body. Is there an area where you could take one realistic next step toward serving regularly, or toward helping someone else find a place to serve? [01:02:01]
7. Jesus carried the penalty of sin as our substitute, so serving is not about gaining His approval but responding to His grace. How does remembering Christ’s finished work change the way you approach your responsibilities, limits, and relationships in the church? [01:05:41]