Throughout history there have been many individuals who could be considered leaders, but some stand out among the others. An example of a superb leader is Moses in the Bible. Moses is viewed as a righteous man in God's eyes and is chosen to lead the Hebrews out of oppression in Egypt. Contained in the story of Exodus are many examples of Moses' sacrifices and the hardships he endured while freeing the Hebrews. The faith of Moses was tested numerous times throughout the story, and, in some instances, it seemed that Moses had lost faith, however, being the "righteous" man that he was, he stuck it out until the end.
When compared to Noah and Abraham, Moses is a 'pillar of faith' for surviving his tests and for being the perfect tool for God's plans. In the Old Testament stories, God seems to want his earth to be peaceful and without sin and when he sees that the world is corrupt, he decides to conduct a purge. In the first two books of the Bible, there are two distinct covenants made, one with Noah and the other many generations later with Abraham. God talked to Noah and he was chosen to be the father of a renewed civilization after an enormous purge would wipe out the evil in the world.
Noah had to undergo many trials and tribulations. He had to experience embarrassment and ridicule because of the nature of God's requests. His neighbors and friends thought he was nuts because it is not everyday that a man constructs a huge boat made of gopher wood and claims that a flood will come to rid the world of evil. After Noah obeyed all Gods commands, he was rewarded.
Noah became like Adam, in that he would be responsible for starting life on earth over. Noah was rewarded because of his faith in God and his ability to obey. God's covenant with Noah laid the groundwork for his promise to Abraham many generations down the road. Here God's bidding was not exactly the same, but, in essence, it demanded the same degree of commitment and dedication from Abraham.
Abraham was old and his wife Sarah was barren. God promised Abraham that he would be the father of a great nation. Given Sarah's condition, Abraham had many inquiries and doubts about the feasibility of this, yet he had faith. God asked of Abraham that he give up all he knew, and all he had to wander in the desert in search of this nation, which God promised. Abraham also endured many hard times. He wandered in the desert for years on blind faith, and, when he finally got to where he was going, he was asked by God to sacrifice his most prized possession, his son Isaac. When God observed the faith and obedience of Abraham, he spared Isaac and allowed Abraham's nation to flourish.
The Old Testament model of a great patriarch is one who possesses faith coupled with voluntary obedience to God's wishes and gratitude. These things combine to make up God's standard of moral goodness. If the person obeys God's laws and meets His standards, happiness may be attained by the individual. The ultimate model of a great patriarch is Moses.
The second book of The Bible, the book of Exodus, begins with the Egyptian's decision to oppress the Hebrews who lived in the land of Egypt for 400 years. (The descendants of Joseph and his brothers) Although Moses was born a Hebrew, Moses grew up in the Pharaoh's court and the Hebrews were jealous of him. The Egyptians didn't trust him as well. This is one of the main reasons why Moses was such a great leader. He didn't really have any strong ties to either the Hebrews of the Egyptians. This is why he can be harsh and use force to make the people understand what God wants. He has the guts to order his own people to their death for freedom. Moses was willing to risk his life for his people and one day Moses saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew in the work-yard, and hastily killed the Egyptian with his bare hands. He then fled from Egypt to Midian, and found a wife with whom he had a son. Yet, Moses knew he would not settle down until he returned to Egypt to fulfill God's prophecy.
Important to Moses' development into a great leader was the time he was tending his father-in-law's flock up on the mountain of Horeb. Here, at the mountain of God, he came across a burning bush. Moses was amazed by the phenomenon and God spoke to him through this medium. Moses was commanded to go to the Pharaoh and ...