Moses’ Great Goodbye (Deuteronomy 31:1-7)
Big Idea: Effective leaders empower their teams to work independently, cultivate future leaders, and set ambitious goals that endure beyond their time.
Part of this past week was spent beginning to organize and pack my library for the big move. One of my favorite sections in my library is on the subject of leadership. I revisited some of my leadership books, including Lincoln on Leadership, The Leadership Style of Jesus, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Leadership, and Winnie the Pooh on Management. Now you know what your pastor does during the week—reads Winnie the Pooh books in his office.
As a general observation, I believe that many Christians in the church minimize the importance of leadership for the church. Many people do not say what is painfully obvious: the church needs great leaders. Paul emphasized the importance of leadership: "If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously" (Romans 12:8 NLT).
I honestly believe that one of the greatest leaders in Biblical history is Moses. After four hundred years of slavery, God appointed Moses to lead about two million stubborn people through the wilderness for forty years. You think you have a hard job? What pastor hasn't wanted to preach on a verse such as this one:
For I know how rebellious and stiff-necked you are. If you have been rebellious against the LORD while I am still alive and with you, how much more will you rebel after I die! (Deuteronomy 31:27)
Moses really didn't have an easy job.
What's also hard to understand is how Moses disqualified himself from entering the promised land. In Numbers 20, we read that God told Moses to speak to the rock to command water to come out of it. Moses, however, struck the rock – not once, but twice. And Moses even took credit for the miracle, saying that he brought water out of the rock. It seems unusually harsh at first, but Moses disqualified himself from eventually leading the people into the promised land. He would only view the land of Israel from afar and would not visit it until thousands of years later during the Transfiguration with Jesus. And here's a question for any good leader, not to mention their followers. What's a leader to do when it's time to hand over the reins?
I wonder if Moses was ever tempted to say, "Ah, that's it. I quit. Somebody else can lead this cantankerous group of people." Aaron died before entering the promised land, likely as punishment for his rebellion against God after he and Moses disobeyed Him. I think Moses had a hard time accepting that he would never set foot in the land beyond the Jordan. In fact, God in effect told Moses not to bother him anymore about the matter:
At that time I pleaded with the LORD: "O Sovereign LORD, you have begun to show to your servant your greatness and your strong hand. For what god is there in heaven or on earth who can do the deeds and mighty works you do? Let me go over and see the good land beyond the Jordan–that fine hill country and Lebanon." But because of you the LORD was angry with me and would not listen to me. "That is enough," the LORD said. "Do not speak to me anymore about this matter. (Deuteronomy 3:23-26)
Talk about unanswered prayer! God didn't just say no, he said, "Don't bother asking me again." Moses didn't simply quit. He did what every good leader aspires to do – he finished well. If you'll turn with me to Deuteronomy 31, you'll see that Moses took three steps to help Israel as he faced his impending death. These three steps are contained in his great good-bye, contained in this passage, and are applicable to any leader today:
A Good Leader Prepares People To Function Without Him
Read with me:
Then Moses went out and spoke these words to all Israel: "I am now a hundred and twenty years old and I am no longer able to lead you. The LORD has said to me, 'You shall not cross the Jordan.' The LORD your God himself will cross over ahead of you. He will destroy these nations before you, and you will take possession of their land. Joshua also will cross over ahead of you, as the LORD said. (Deuteronomy 31:1-3)
Moses is making his retirement speech right before he dies. Perhaps many of the people always assumed that Moses would lead them right into the promised land. But now Moses tells them, "You're going to have to function without me. My leadership is coming to an end." And the big question is this: "What are you going to do when I'm done being your leader?" Don't forget how dependent the Israelites were on Moses. No one had ever known any other leader. When Moses started as leader, the people were still slaves in Egypt. The previous generation had died, and the new generation entering the promised land had only known Moses as their leader. It would have been incomprehensible to think of crossing the Jordan River without Moses leading the way.
The mark of a good leader is really what happens when they're not there. Every leader understands that their time in leadership will eventually end. However, if they have been effective, their team will perform even better after their departure. The real test of a leader is what happens when they're no longer leading.
Some leaders make the mistake of making themselves indispensable. You'll remember that when Moses started off, everything revolved around him. Do you have a sheep issue? Call Moses. Have a dispute with your neighbor? Line up for Moses. At that time, Moses was literally indispensable. They couldn't get along without him. If Moses was sick one day, everything came crashing to a halt. Kind of like some churches. Is there a problem with the piano bench? Call the pastor. Is there a book to be returned to the church library? Give it to the pastor. Trust me – this happens!
Moses took steps to correct this situation, which we'll discover in a minute. But other leaders make the same mistake today. Before his death, Walt Disney made films to provide instructions for his employees. How would you like a boss who tries to manage you even from his grave? Some leaders never prepare their people to function without them. And the greatest compliment you could pay me as a pastor is to function well without me. If I've done a good job, this church won't miss a beat while I'm gone.
A good leader inspires their people to embrace a vision and creates a framework to achieve it, ensuring that the vision and structure remain even in their absence. Moses vision? It came from God, and it could be summarized in three words: the promised land. What is the framework needed to achieve that vision? Moses distinctly articulates that framework in chapters 31 and 32. If I've done a good job as a pastor, you'll know our vision. Because it won't be my vision – it will be the vision that God has given us corporately. And it won't die after I'm gone. The vision can be summarized in four simple words: "Bond, Grow, Serve, Win."
And if I've been a good leader, the structure of teams to accomplish this vision will outlast me. If I've been an ineffective leader, our vision and the structure to achieve it will fade once I'm gone. The greatest compliment you can give me as a pastor is being strong and courageous after I'm gone and fulfilling the vision God has given us, even in my absence.
A good leader prepares people to function without him. Here's the second thing a leader does:
A Good Leader Prepares Leaders To Outlast Him
I love what Moses does in Deuteronomy 31:7-9:
Then Moses summoned Joshua and said to him in the presence of all Israel, "Be strong and courageous, for you must go with this people into the land that the LORD swore to their forefathers to give them, and you must divide it among them as their inheritance. The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." So Moses wrote down this law and gave it to the priests, the sons of Levi, who carried the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and to all the elders of Israel. (Deuteronomy 31:7-9)
Remember how everything used to revolve around Moses? One day, his father-in-law Jethro suggested he recruit and train other leaders to help him with his responsibilities. The results were dramatic. Soon other leaders were there to help him carry the load. This gave added strength to Moses and enabled the needs of the people to be met. After God indicated he wouldn't enter the promised land, Moses took steps to transfer leadership. In Deuteronomy 3:21-22, Moses tells Joshua that God will grant him great victories after Moses is gone. Moses commissioned Joshua as the new leader and encouraged him in that role. And now, in Deuteronomy 31, Moses publicly encourages the people to follow Joshua.
In other words, he could say, "Don't be dependent on me. There's the promised land, and there's your new leader. You're still following the same God, so be strong and courageous." A good leader prepares others to take charge by identifying and training those with leadership potential and eventually passing on leadership roles to them.
I grew up with the model of pastoring that said, "The pastor does everything. The people show up to pay his salary and watch him work." As I began to read the Bible, I discovered that this is the exact opposite of what God intends. According to Ephesians 4:10-11, God's design is that pastors equip the people to do the work of the ministry. In other words, my job has been to prepare you to do ministry that will outlast my leadership.
I'm attracted to a story I heard of a large church pastor who preaches and lives this model. He came to a baptismal service. Those who had a role in leading a person to Christ were actually in the water, doing the baptizing. In the middle of the service, somebody approached the pastor and said, "Who are you?" The pastor had successfully trained the congregation to handle ministry tasks, making him nearly invisible. The church was able to function quite well because he had raised up leaders to lead the church without him.
Some of you have been leaders in this church and have done a good job. You will be tempted to rest a little after I'm gone. But let me tell you: this church needs your leadership – not just when a pastor is leading the people, but especially when he's gone. I've worked on developing leaders during my time here, and now I challenge you to lead. May your leadership at Park Lawn Baptist Church last long after mine!
A good leader prepares people to function without him and prepares leaders who will outlast him. There's one more thing a good leader does:
A Good Leader Elevates Goals That Are Bigger Than Him
Have you ever heard of "BHAG?" It's pronounced "beehag," and it stands for "big hairy audacious goals." Don't worry; it's not a term that I invented. A recent study in the book Built to Last finds that successful long-term businesses set bold, ambitious goals that help them thrive over time. In other words, if you want an organization to outlast the leadership of one individual, don't set small goals. Moses left behind a big goal for the Israelites to pursue:
The LORD your God himself will cross over ahead of you. He will destroy these nations before you, and you will take possession of their land. Joshua also will cross over ahead of you, as the LORD said. (Deuteronomy 31:3)
Israel had a goal that would outlast Moses' leadership. That's a mark of a good leader. I think you can accurately describe the goal that Moses left as BHAG! As I close this morning's message, I want to leave you with a BHAG that will outlast my leadership. Why did God put this church here sixty-nine years ago? Why did God put us in the middle of a community with ten thousand residents within a three-minute drive? Our goal is straightforward yet ambitious: unite as God's family, grow in obedience to His commands, use our unique gifts to serve Him, and lead others to Christ.
God has placed Park Lawn Baptist Church here for a purpose that matters. Fulfilling that purpose will demand courage, strength, and a willingness to step up. Now is the time for bold leaders to embrace the vision God has given us and move forward with his guidance, regardless of individual leaders being present. I pray that you thrive in my absence, that strong leaders will rise, and that our God-centered mission will continue to guide this church for generations.
