Exodus 16:7, 28 And in the morning, then ye shall see the glory of the LORD; for that he heareth your murmurings against the LORD: and what are we, that ye murmur against us? And the LORD said unto Moses, How long refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws?
A Steward of Blame and Authority
It is our nature to want all the credit and to accept none of the blame. That’s what differentiates a leader from everyone else. A leader is the steward of both blame and authority.
In Exodus 16 we find Moses, a great leader, but one who was frail and needed God’s help. Moses was following God’s lead as he led the children of Israel out of Egypt. In Exodus 16, the people begin to complain. Their memory was faulty concerning Egypt. They remembered only the good things about a bad place and didn’t see the real-time provision of God for them where they were. They said to Moses, “For ye have brought us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole assembly with hunger.” The people were blaming Moses for something that God was doing, and they were giving Moses credit for something that Moses had not done. It wasn’t Moses’ idea or power that led Israel out of Egypt. It was by God’s design and power that they had been brought forth out of the land of bondage.
In verses 6-7 Moses said to the children of Israel, “At even, then ye shall know that the LORD hath brought you out of the land of Egypt: and in the morning, then ye shall see the glory of the LORD…the Lord heareth your murmuring which ye murmur against him: and what are we? your murmurings are not against us, but against the LORD.”
Moses is taking the blame for something that only God could have accomplished, bringing them forth out of Egypt. The people were complaining against Moses when Moses was just following God’s lead. Many times, a leader is the steward of blame. Moses was simply a servant following God as the people were following him. Sometimes when we lead, we think we have to make things happen, but a good leader is simply one who follows the Lord well and realizes that he is a steward of blame.
In verse 28 God speaks to Moses just as the children of Israel had done, as if he were the one who was causing the problems. Here, it says, “And the LORD said unto Moses, How long refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws?” Had Moses refused to keep God’s commandments? No, but he represented God to the people, and, in this case, he represented the people to God.
A leader is a steward of both blame and authority. That means that his work requires courage and humility. A leader must have courage to follow God no matter what it means. A leader must have humility, realizing he is but a steward. Neither ability nor authority comes from the leader. He is a steward of the blame, ability, and authority that come from following God, honoring God, and bringing the people along with him.