In this lesson, we'll see how teamwork makes the difference for the church and in our own lives. We'll be looking at the example of Moses, and how he worked together with others.

1. Each One Plays His Part.

Exodus 17:8-16
8 The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim.
9 Moses said to Joshua, "Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hands."
10 So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill.
11 As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning.
12 When Moses' hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up--one on one side, one on the other--so that his hands remained steady till sunset.
13 So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword.
14 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure that Joshua hears it, because I will completely blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven."
15 Moses built an altar and called it The LORD is my Banner.
16 He said, "For hands were lifted up to the throne of the LORD. The LORD will be at war against the Amalekites from generation to generation."

Q: Who was attacking the Israelites here? [The Amalakites.]

Who did Moses choose to fight the battle? [Joshua, a young man.]

What did Moses do? [He stood on top of the hill, perhaps praying.]

What did he do on the hill? [He held up his hands, with Aaron and Hur helping him to hold them up!]

C: It was a team effort. Moses, Aaron and Hur stood on the hill, Joshua fought in the valley, and God brought about a great victory. Each one played his part in the victory.

C: In the church, some are like Joshua. They are the family group leaders and zone leaders, leading the way. Others are like Moses, who prays and leads everyone. Others are like Aaron and Hur, who hold up the arms of the leader. Perhaps you are not Joshua, or Moses. But you can hold up the arms of those around you. You can encourage other people.

We all must work together. Let's each play our part, and God will be glorified.

2. Don't Neglect Your Family

Exodus 18:1-6
1 Now Jethro, the priest of Midian and father-in-law of Moses, heard of everything God had done for Moses and for his people Israel, and how the LORD had brought Israel out of Egypt.
2 After Moses had sent away his wife Zipporah, his father-in-law Jethro received her
3 and her two sons. One son was named Gershom, for Moses said, "I have become an alien in a foreign land";
4 and the other was named Eliezer, for he said, "My father's God was my helper; he saved me from the sword of Pharaoh."
5 Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, together with Moses' sons and wife, came to him in the desert, where he was camped near the mountain of God.
6 Jethro had sent word to him, "I, your father-in-law Jethro, am coming to you with your wife and her two sons."

Q: Once Moses was busy leading the people, what did he do with his wife and kids? [He sent them to his native place.]

Is it good to send your family to your native place, to let others take care of them? [Unless it is absolutely necessary, it is much better for us to be with our wife and kids.]

Jethro realised that his daughter was missing Moses, and he brought her and the kids to see him.

C: Sometimes we get so busy that we forget to plan special time with our families. We encourage every married person in the church to have a family day or family night. This might be Wednesdays or Thursdays, or Sunday nights. This is a time when just the family gets together, to have fun, or just hang out. For those marrieds in this group, let's make sure we're doing that.

3. Rejoice in Each Others' Victories

Exodus 18:7-12
7 So Moses went out to meet his father-in-law and bowed down and kissed him. They greeted each other and then went into the tent.
8 Moses told his father-in-law about everything the LORD had done to Pharaoh and the Egyptians for Israel's sake and about all the hardships they had met along the way and how the LORD had saved them.
9 Jethro was delighted to hear about all the good things the LORD had done for Israel in rescuing them from the hand of the Egyptians.
10 He said, "Praise be to the LORD, who rescued you from the hand of the Egyptians and of Pharaoh, and who rescued the people from the hand of the Egyptians.
11 Now I know that the LORD is greater than all other gods, for he did this to those who had treated Israel arrogantly."
12 Then Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, brought a burnt offering and other sacrifices to God, and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat bread with Moses' father-in-law in the presence of God.

C: Moses was so fired up with his good news. He told Jethro everything. And Jethro was fired up, too.

Q: Have you ever had great news, and you told someone, but they didn't really care?

C: Perhaps you or I did not have a victory today. But there are always others who are having victories, and we need to rejoice and celebrate with them. It means a lot when others share our joy. Jethro praised God. He was genuinely happy for Moses that God was doing great things.

Q: Have you been praising God lately?

C: It is great to rejoice in others' victories, but we also should have victories of our own.

4. Speak the Truth in Love

Exodus 18:13-18
13 The next day Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people, and they stood around him from morning till evening.
14 When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he said, "What is this you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around you from morning till evening?"
15 Moses answered him, "Because the people come to me to seek God's will.
16 Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me, and I decide between the parties and inform them of God's decrees and laws."
17 Moses' father-in-law replied, "What you are doing is not good.
18 You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone.

C: Like a good team member, Jethro watched Moses as he was working. He wanted to help, so he asked Moses a question: "why are you alone doing this?" (v.14).

Jethro said, "what you are doing is not good" (v.17). He was hard-line without being harsh. He told Moses, "You will be burned out by this work delegate it. Get some people to help you."

Jethro had the courage to speak the truth in love to Moses, like it says in Ephesians 4:15.

Ephesians 4:15
Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ.

The words he said must have cut Moses' heart. It must have hurt Moses to hear those things. But Jethro changed his life because he had the guts to tell him the truth.

Q: Have you been speaking the truth in love to other disciples? Do you notice other people sinning, but you ignore it because you are not the "leader" or he is not in your "ministry area"? Do you care about the others in this group? Are you willing to challenge others, even if it hurts their feelings?

5. Value Every Person

Exodus 18:19-27
19 Listen now to me and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must be the people's representative before God and bring their disputes to him.
20 Teach them the decrees and laws, and show them the way to live and the duties they are to perform.
21 But select capable men from all the people--men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain--and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens.
22 Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with you.
23 If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied."
24 Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything he said.
25 He chose capable men from all Israel and made them leaders of the people, officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens.
26 They served as judges for the people at all times. The difficult cases they brought to Moses, but the simple ones they decided themselves.
27 Then Moses sent his father-in-law on his way, and Jethro returned to his own country.

C: Jethro asked Moses to listen (v.19), and Moses did listen (v.24). He put into practise Jethro's advice. When you want to build a team, you must ask for people's advice and listen to it. It makes us feel special when someone listens to us.

Jethro's advice was simple: he told Moses to select a group of capable leaders (v.21). He wanted Moses to organise the people into groups of 1000s, 100s, fifties, and tens. Then each person's needs can be taken care of in a great way. One man cannot take care of thousands of people. But if we break things down, it works great.

C: All of us must value each person around us. Even the guy who delivers things from the shop is a precious soul in the eyes of God, able to great things for God. Our church is organised the way Jethro suggested. We have regional leaders, Evangelists, zone leaders, and family group leaders in charge of thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens. And each one is important, including you and me!

Conclusion

We are God's team here in this city. Let us work together to bring glory to God.