Rather harsh – isn’t it? Particularly when spoken to a guy who wasn’t in the first place looking for an encounter – of any kind with anybody – the words and the tone, do sound brusque! For, as far as he was concerned, it was just another day in the office; or perhaps we should say, out of it, grazing the sheep being his day job. Moses was tending to his father-in-law’s sheep as he did every day for forty years and went just a little farther on this particular day. All that he wanted was a bit of green pasture. Give or take a bush here, a shrub there, a mount here and a rocky hillock there, things appear pretty much the same in wilderness . Moses may be forgiven for trespassing into God’s territory, for as we just stated, there is nothing much to differentiate one part of wilderness from another – the very characteristic that makes wilderness wilderness. Alright, he had gone further than his usual beat and ventured into an unknown territory but he had no idea that he had strayed into an area that was special to God. And he most certainly did not imagine he would have a dialogue with God.
Knowing the story as we do now, from the book of Exodus chapters 3 and 4, there are certain applications we can deduce. First of all, it is vital to meet up with God before every major enterprise. Moses of course arrives there by accident (but is it?) whereas we with all the resource and knowledge available to us have very little excuse not to seek the presence of God. In the Acts of the Apostles we find a reference to somehow finding God (Acts 17:27) and the Psalmist speaks of his yearning to be at least gatekeeper in the house of the Lord (Psalms 84:10) since “one day in His courts is better than a thousand elsewhere”. In the New Testament we read that St.Paul discovered that the Athenians weren’t sure that their god was the right one and so had an altar erected for the unknown god, just to play it safe.
How about us? Is God a factor in our lives?
There are those who are running away from His presence because they have disobeyed God but even these negative accounts make it clear that the right place to be, is God’s presence. We can think of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden after the fall. And Jonah comes to mind as he runs away from the presence of the Lord and His direction for his mission.
Yes, it is important to seek the face of God when we stand at the threshold of a major undertaking, but it is always a good practice, one that should become a habit with us. This point is brought out beautifully in a prayer written by a major Christian Tamil poet when he writes
“to begin and complete every action in the name of Jesus”
We will do well to remember this and employ this little prayer as part of our morning devotions. This of course has the corollary meaning that if we cannot – for whatever reason – use Jesus’s name in the context of the undertaking, it is better for that undertaking not to be undertaken at all. Secondly it puts the imprint of the divine, with all of God’s power to bear upon the enterprise thus ensuring its success.
We can go on, but I guess the point is made. In order to live our lives aright, we need to find ourselves in the presence of God from time to time.
What next? When you find yourself in God’s dwelling place wily nilly, it is reasonable to expect to be noticed – by the Head of the house! Yes, God takes note of your presence. It happened with Moses without any planning on his part, but we ought to know better. The Word of God. The legacy of faith. The frequent reminders from meaningful traditions. The very many miracles we have experienced …ah, yes the cloud of witnesses surrounding us (Heb. 12:1). With all that we ought to seek out His dwelling place at every opportunity. Maybe it is your quiet time in the morning, maybe it is your Sunday morning worship, or whatever, it is important that we go to the throne of grace. Where the mundane gives place to the divine.
And He wants to speak to us. Most of the time – in private or public – we tend to do the speaking to God and ask things of Him; we treat him like a Genie who should merely listen to us and do our bidding. We haven’t quite cultivated the listening ear. But in moments like this we had better leave the talking to God and hear what He has to tell us. “Be still and know that I am God” says the Psalmist (Psalm 46:10). “God is in His holy temple. Let all the earth keep silence before him” writes Habakkuk (Hab. 2:20).
God calls out to Moses from within the burning bush. Forty years of bleating of sheep in his ear has had its deleterious effect on his auditory faculties, and God had to turn on a spectacular sound and light show to draw his attention before He spoke.
And note that God calls Moses by his name. Isn’t it wonderful that God knows our names? He knows us, knows our ancestry (“God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob”), knows our people and knows our living conditions. Listen to what He says: “I have seen the oppression of my people, heard their cry of distress..(I am) aware of their suffering”(Ex. 3:7). “My people” – a people God calls His own. Related to Him as children. Isn’t that wonderful?
It is interesting that Moses could understand every word that was said. For God was speaking in his own language. God does not have a language problem. He can make Himself understood whatever our tongue. He is intelligible; He is precise, purposeful and specific and gets to the point straightway. “I have come to deliver them (my people) and I will send you to Pharaoh”.
(Credit:bogsprospect.blogspot.com)
Now Moses begins his excuses.Who am I, what am I, who shall I say sent me? The problem with Moses was that he had little idea of the power of God.Little idea of the purpose of God.Little idea of the extent of God’s compassion towards His people. Little idea that God meant business.Sometimes we are guilty of the same mistake. We completely fail to recognize God’s character even while talking to him; we regard Him as a benevolent uncle – no more.
First of all He is holy. Heb. 12:14 says no one will see the Lord without holiness; therefore we must remove our footwear. Footwear here represents dust, dirt and contact with the earth. Contamination. The first step in getting into the presence of the Lord is therefore purification. We need to become vessels meet for the Master’s use (2 Tim. 2:21)
God is omnipotent and almighty, but He does not bludgeon His people into submission. Once we listen to Him, we may talk to Him, tell Him our feelings, concerns an d objections. He is ever willing to listen. In Genesis 18:23-32 we read the fascinating story of how Abraham negotiates with God for sparing Sodom. Beginning with 50 righteous people, he goes down step by step to 45, 40, 30, 20 and finally 10. God is still listening to him without getting annoyed or angry. He gives us full scope to make our case. We can talk to Him freely and air our views. This point about God’s gentleness can also be illustrated by the picture in Rev. 3:20. He knocks the door of our heart and awaits our response. He doesn’t break down the door.
But the purposes of God cannot be frustrated. It happens that Sodom cannot boast of even 10 righteous souls. It must therefore be destroyed, but God provides a way for the righteous to escape. In the case on hand, God has a mission to be undertaken – that of liberating His people from servitude – and He has picked His man. Moses can irritate Him with objection after objection about his inability to speak well etc.,etc.,but God is not about to let him go. He hasn’t made a mistake in selecting Moses. In fact what is happening is but unfolding in time, of God’s eternal purposes and plan for giving His people the land of Israel. We see the same kind of perseverance of God in the story of Jonah where God all but put hooks in his jaws and turns him around (Eze. 38:4). If that takes an nonseasonal storm in the Mediterranean, so be it. The people of Nineveh must be given an opportunity to repent. Nor is that an isolated incident. We see this pattern, of God working on His improbable selections from time to time. He can use a childless Manoa, an immoral Samson and a hesitating Gideon in His plans for judging His people. He can use a child soldier David to bring down the gigantic Goliath – all in the cause of liberating His people. He specializes in using people ‘inspite of’ their weakness or smallness or whatever rather than ‘because of’ their strength, size or skill.
There are a couple other angles at which we can look at this incident. One is the usage of the word “when” by God. In His mind there are no uncertainties, no “ifs” in the clause “bring people out of Egypt”. It is bound to happen. The only question is timing. This aspect of completed action is also reinforced by the term “have brought”. God offers this as a sign to Moses: “when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God at this mountain” (Ex. 3:12)
But Moses is demurring. “Not me, Lord” he seems to say. “You have misidentified me”. All that I am fit for is to lead a herd of cattle for the next forty years”. They bleat and I stammer. We understand each other. Let me just go on with my pedestrian, uninteresting, insipid life style like that of the last 40 years.
Is that us? Bringing objections to the surface when God calls. In the face of a leadership position and a life full of challenges, what do we rather choose? What will we rather be? An inconsequential nobody heading to an unlamented death in the deserts of Midian? Or a victorious leader of two million people heading to the promised land? Five loaves and two fishes satisfying a little boy’s hunger or feeding of five thousand? Just plain, ordinary, colourless and odourless H2O or rich, red and tasteful wine smelling of the goodness of grapes? Would we hand over what we have to God? Would we turn over ourselves to be used by Him. He has great plans for you. His thoughts are far higher. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”(Jer. 29:11).
Sometimes there is an element of false humility in protesting. Since he was quite alone in the wilderness, we can assume that Moses was not playing to the gallery but was genuinely meek. It is good to examine ourselves in this context and check our own attitude in similar situations. Do we put ourselves down in a fetish of humility or are we sincere and truthful in voicing our response when the call for a higher service comes to us? Do we cringe and withdraw or do we take hold and climb higher?
God is not looking for eloquence, but obedience. Submission rather than rebellion. Adherence, not excuses, however rational they may seem. Moses, with his sincerity seems to make for himself a pretty decent case for wriggling out of the assignment God calls him to take up, but God is not about to be thwarted.As we said before (we did,didn’t we?), we have a God who listens to us even when we make the most outlandish excuses. If we have a problem He has a solution. You can’t speak well: Never mind, I give you Aaron who can. Pharaoh and company will not believe you: Here, show them this miracle.
We have already made the point that God knew Moses well before this encounter.But it is worthwhile to consider that He knows Aaron as well. “I know that he can speak well” He says. When God offers Aaron as a mouthpiece to Moses, He prepares Aaron as well for the mission. Indeed He prepares the Pharaoh too by hardening his heart, so that ultimately Israel would come with a strong hand. He also makes the Egyptian people look favourably at their Israeli neighbours so that the latter do not go out empty handed but with articles of silver, gold and fine clothing. God is not only speaking to you but He acts in the lives of all concerned with the mission, for it to succeed and bring glory to His holy name.
At this point it is also good to reflect for a moment on our attitude when going to church or God’s dwelling place. The Psalmist says “I was glad when they said to me let us go into the house of the Lord” (Psalm 122:1).What is our state of mind when we go to church? Is it just tradition or Sunday morning duty? Do we go with the expectation of sound teaching and joyful fellow ship with other worshipers?
Much as the church goer needs to be in a mellow frame of mind, the pastor equally has the responsibility of using the pulpit time well and in keeping with the dignity and grace of his high office. We must sadly acknowledge that there are some men of the cloth who specialize in irritating the congregation with unnecessary remarks that have little to do with the glorification of God, edification and encouragement of His people or extension of His kingdom. Do we come back home glad that we went to church or do we gain our satisfaction only from the fact that the pastor fulfilled our worst expectations?
In general two realms are or should be operational in every person’s life: the natural or carnal with its obedience to the laws of nature and a supernatural or heavenly realm that transcends nature. The natural realm tells us that if there is a fire, there must be a burning. The bush must catch fire and eventually burn out into ashes. But God is not bound by nature and where He is present the heavenly or supernatural realm comes in to play. Sometimes the supernatural is but an extension of the natural and we don’t immediate detect its nature. For example, consider the sale of young Joseph drawn out from a pit to the trading party from Midian. This looks like a perfectly ordinary event hatched out in Judah’s practical mind. But in reality it was but an unfolding of God’s heavenly plan to take Joseph to Egypt where he eventually becomes Prime Minister. At other times, God’s supernatural intervention is plainly visible as in the raining of Manna from the skies or the parting of the Red Sea. Whichever way, plain or hidden, patent or latent,there is this intersection of the earthly and the heavenly . Only to see it as such, sometimes we need to have our spiritual eyes opened as in the case of Elisha’s servant who was justifiably rattled at the amassing of the Syrian army against his master Elisha, before the prophet prayed for him to see the heavenly forces that are arrayed on the side of the prophet (2 Kings 6:17).
(Credit: Free Bible images)
That is to say, God is working all the time, though for the most part we may not readily discern His hand in our affairs. Spiritual insight is needed to detect the heavenly in the course of our mundane, pedestrian lives. Moses might not have known it all, but God was at work in every stage of his life right from his birth, escape from the murderous decree of the monarch, the princely education in the courts of Pharaoh, his misadventure in solving fights between men, and his long years of lonesomeness in the deserts of Midian, Sinai and Arabia. Why coming to think of it even his excellent rapport with his father-in-law cultivated over forty years of faithful service (Exodus 18:7) seems to have been presided over by God, when we later learn how Jethro delivers Moses from physical burn out through fatigue. ( Exodus 18:17-23)
Also, it is equally true that God’s actions sometimes suddenly become manifest. Our man Moses with his high educational qualifications was content (or obliged to) to lead a simple, pastoral life as a family man. His was a largely risk free life but I dare say he was suffering from ennui after forty years of unrelieved boredom of the same daily routine. Quite literally lying down with the lambs and rising with the lark. Day long wandering in search of pasture. Drawing out water from the well. Today was like yesterday and tomorrow will be like today. That is about it. Nothing interesting or exciting was happening in his life – until he reached the mountain of God.
And his was the kind of C.V. you wouldn’t look at twice if you were considering candidates for the position of CEO for two million people. Forty years of life with the sheep – not the brightest company! What is your experience? Leading flock. Particular skills ? Edging out other shepherds and drawing out water, assisting wife and sisters-in-law. Height of achievement? Murder of a quarrelsome Egyptian. Communication skills? Not very good by own admission (Exodus 4:10). Tend to stammer. Road map for the future? None. Assessment of personal esteem? Low (Exodus 3:11) Credibility? Lower (Exodus 4:1). Ability in handling weapons? Touched nothing except the staff for forty years (Exodus 4:10) . Movable assets? Donkey (Exodus 4:20). Age? Eighty. Well past prime.
But CVs don’t matter with God when he picks his man. Saul the first king was hiding among the stuff when he was called to be anointed king (1 Kings 10:22), and we read that David was in the sheep cote before he was selected as king (2 Sam. 7:8). When Peter was asked to be a leader of the fledgling group of followers of Christ, his record was miserable. He had thrice denied the Lord, and was shown up to be an abject coward. Gideon was threshing wheat when he was called to a leadership position and he protested that he belonged to a poor family in Manasseh, and that he was the least in his father’s house (Judges 6:15).Yet he was asked to take on the Midianites and save Israel. Yes, quite often God chooses the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; He chooses the weak things of the world to shame the strong.(1 Cor. 1:27).
And whom God calls, He equips. Now He doesn’t do this with fancy ordnance and deadly weapons but He infuses things we already use with extraordinary powers. So, it is that Moses was asked “what is that in your hand?” And the lowly shepherd’s staff became a wonder working instrument . When Gideon complained that the Lord had all but abandoned Israel and wondered how he could be the deliverer, God tells him to go in the strength he had, implying that God will be with him and together they can take on any force. So it was that, rather than mobilizing a vast army, Gideon had to look for ways for downsizing and eventually fought his battle with just 300 men, down from 22,000 originally! David tried out the king’s coat of armour, but settled on his own sling for the slaying of Goliath. And it was a choir singing God’s praises that brought down the combined strength of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir against King Jehoshaphat of Judah. It was only five loaves and two fishes Jesus used to feed five thousand! Again and again this principle of ‘little is much in the hands of God’ is reiterated in the Bible with several examples.
What about the problem of age? Is there hope at eighty of a productive, thrilling, satisfying,exciting life bristling with challenges? Robert Browning seems to have caught the essence of the objection here with his immortal words “Grow old along with me, the best is yet to be”. These words seem prophetic when read along with Deu. 34:7 when Moses completes his assignment: “ Moses was 120 years old when he died, yet his eyesight was clear, and he was as strong as ever”. This tells us that Moses was in pretty good shape when he was eighty years old!
How about us? Do we take care to be fit and sprightly as we get on in years or are we doddering disasters waiting to happen?
Living with his father-in-law Jethro, Moses led a contented life for forty years. His biggest challenge in these years was probably at the watering hole, where He had to chase away other shepherds (Ex. 2:17). With Jethro being a preist in Midian, God was always there at a comfortable distance and He didn’t seem to be interested in Moses or his people back in Egypt, an attitude reciprocated by Moses . This is where we might make a mistake (and Moses mos certainly did), for God is watching all the time and He sees the misery of His people (Ex. 3:7)
While Moses was wonder struck at the sight of the burning bush, it is remarkable he does not seem particularly over awed in hearing God speak to him. It is as though it is nothing out of the ordinary, an every day event. Indeed it should be! Herein is a lesson for us: we must expect God to speak to us.Indeed God speaks in several ways – through His Word, through His servants and through situations. Why sometimes even through a gentle impress on our heart of His unmistakable guidance. We must be alert with our antennae properly oriented, with the frequency correctly tuned in. It is for this reason that Jesus time and again said “he who has ears, let him hear”.
In his ‘nay sayings’ Moses seems to be extremely doubtful of the reaction first of the elders of Israel and later of Pharaoh and company. Growing up in the palace, he has sufficient knowledge of the way in which successive pharaohs behave. But his grasp of God’s character is rather limited. There is this tendency to think Pharaoh to be more powerful than God Himself. This is the problem of the ‘known king versus unknown God’. Quite often we too are apt to fall into this error.
What we are looking at here is a confrontation, first turning into a conversation, a conversation that later acquires an edge of rancor as Moses keeps on coming up with a string of excuses. God becomes angry and pointedly asks “who made your mouth”? Meaning of course that as the creator He has complete sovereignty over every aspect of our being.
Some people don’t realize that. They cannot trust themselves with their mouth. The moment they open it, their case gets weakened. Others have no control over their mouth. They talk great big things they do not understand. They set their mouths against the heavens, and their tongue struts through the earth.(Psalm 73:9) Presumptuous are they, self-willed, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities (2 Peter 2:10)
Our mouths are made by God and must always be in His control. Well does the Psalmist pray “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer (Psalms 19:14).We must be careful what we say in the presence of God. If we are to avoid corrupt communication proceeding from our mouth, our mouths must be sanctified. It is useful to recall the vision of Isaiah where he sees one of the Seraphim flying to him with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched his mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”( Isa. 6:6-7)
Interlocution with the Lord is one thing. Provoking Him to anger, quite another. After the Lord describes the whole scene with the elders of Israel and the Pharaoh in advance, and carries out a couple of miracles and assures Moses that He will be with his mouth, Moses still talks about the slowness of his speech and his inadequacy and begs the Lord to send someone else. It is at this point that the Lord gets angry and all but tells Moses to shut up. But we ought to note that even in the midst of his anger, the Lord still addresses Moses’s problem and provides Aaron as his mouth piece.
The fact that he readies Moses’s brother Aaron to aid him (and not someone else) perhaps tells something to us. To work together with our brothers (Psalm 133:1). To be unified in purpose and goal.
Another aspect worth pondering over is Moses’s faithful service to Jethro, his father-in-law. Once he marries Zipporah, Moses settles down with the household of his father-in-law and renders faithful service to him by looking after his flock. Chapter Three of the book of Exodus begins innocuously saying that “one day” (New Living Translation) Moses was tending the flock of his father –in –law when he came to the mountain of God. What the Bible leaves unsaid is, this “one day” comes nearly after four years; that is a total of a thousand four hundred and sixty one days of loyal, unswerving service. You might say that after his education in the court of Pharaoh Moses was under employed in tending cattle, but he didn’t complain. No wonder the Bible describes him as the meekest of all men (Num. 12:3). No doubt God noticed how faithful Moses is as an employee in setting His sights on him.
If he was praying for a change in his fortunes, the Bible does not talk about it. So we conclude that Moses was a contented husband man for forty years before God intervenes in his pastoral life style. Can it be said about us similarly that we are faithful in everything we undertake? In our present job, vocation or assignment? We will do well to recall here Jesus’s parable of the talents found in Matt.25 wherein the faithful servants receive commendation from the Master with the words,” ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!”(Matt. 25:23)
What is our view of God? When God introduces Himself and lays out the whole plan do we still protest, betraying lack of faith and distrust?Do we see Him as a compassionate God, intent on liberating His people from the bondage of sin? Are we ready to be sent and be used up in this cause? Or are we making excuses in order to avoid being sent by Him? Remember, the calling of God and His gifts are without repentance (Romans 11:29). He doesn’t make a mistake. Also that He provides the words that we ought to speak when we go in His stead (Ex. 4:16). “Open your mouth wide and I will fill it for you” (Ps. 81:10) writes the Psalmist. So, where is the excuse? The questions, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” (Isaiah 6:8 ) still resound.
Will we say”here am I,send me” (ibid) and offer ourselves up to God’s service?
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