So back to final post on the Exodus 3-4 saga which started a few weekends ago at church. To recap quickly this story and how it was applied here is a brief summary:
Moses has encountered, face to burning bush, the presence of the Lord and has been given a mission to confront Pharaoh with the message from God – “Let my people go!” Moses suffered from self doubt when given this task and this reminds us that we too can suffer from self doubt when asked by God to do things (namely go into the nations to preach the word of God – which I’ve already discussed).
But is that really all we’re meant to see from Moses’ conversation with God? Is the sole application to draw from this passage merely a reminder that, unlike Moses, we should remember that God is with us always? I hope that answer we’ll see involves much more than this.
The passage we’re really focusing on is Exodus 3:11 – 4:17. It overlaps a little with God revealing his name, which has already been discussed, and our main focus is on the man Moses and the excuses he comes up with in order to get out of the task given to him.
You see Moses isn’t your typical hollywood hero. He questions God a number of times about the role:
- 3:11 “Who am I that I should go…?”
- 3:13 “Who shall I say sent me?”
- 4:1 “But they will not believe me or listen to my voice…”
- 4:10 “But…I am not eloquent…but am slow of speech…”
And then finally after beating around the bush, Moses ends up getting to his point in 4:13 – “Please send someone else…”
Moses is afraid. In some ways we can identify with that. What has he just been asked to do? Well, think about it, a burning bush has just asked him to go to Pharaoh (the most powerful man on earth) and tell him that his God (a god that Pharaoh does not know) has commanded that he should let His people go. Let the slaves, whom
Moses also easily forgets the promise from God in 3:12 – that God would be with him. It is something that we too can easily forget, that God is with us by his Holy Spirit always.
However, there’s something else which is more at stake than doubting God’s presence. It’s the willingness of the saviour who has been elected by God for the task. Moses comes up with every excuse he can think of to get out doing the job, he is unwilling to be the saviour.
The contrast we immediately see is that God is EVER-WILLING to save his people and put his plan into action. Moses comes up with an excuse, God comes up with the solution. Moses asks, “Who am I that I should go?” God replies, “I will be with you…”
Moses asks, “Who shall I say sent me?”
God replies, “Tell them ‘I AM’ sent you…”
Moses says, “But they will not believe me…”
God gives him miraculous signs to perform to gain the people’s trust.
Moses says, “I am not eloquent…but am slow of speech…”
God replies, “I will give you the words to speak.”
Then Moses says, “Send someone else…please…”
But God sends Aaron, his brother, with him.
It is God who is the hero of this story, the every willing saviour of His people. It is not Moses who we should praise in this situation, but God. God is so willing to save his people.
And it is this truth that we remember as Christians:
What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not
also with him graciously give us all things? (Romans 8:31-32).
Remember our saviour, Jesus the Christ, who willingly went to the cross to save us from our sins.
^_^
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