Biblical Character Series — Moses
By Clarke Skelton
The story of Moses begins with the miracle of his life. Moses was supposed to die but God intervened and instead of growing up a slave, Moses grew up as the adopted grandson of Pharaoh. However, Moses struggled to understand who he was because he was neither completely Egyptian nor completely Hebrew.
Struggling to “find himself,” Moses killed an Egyptian guard who was beating a Hebrew slave. Fearing he would be executed for murder, Moses fled to Midian where he became a shepherd.
God spoke to Moses through a burning bush as he was tending sheep, commanding him to return to Egypt and tell Pharaoh to let God’s people go. Although Moses heard God’s call, he was reluctant to go. Exodus 4:1–17 records the story of how Moses found the courage to serve.
Moses found the courage to serve through honesty (v. 1).
• Honesty with himself
Moses was afraid to do what God commanded and he expressed that fear to God. His fear was at least two-fold. First he was afraid for his life because he was under a death sentence for murder. Second he was afraid that neither the Hebrew slaves nor Pharaoh would listen to him. Moses was afraid to obey God and he was honest with himself about his fears. When Moses returned to Egypt, his fears came true because the Hebrew people rejected him and Pharaoh ignored him.
• Honesty with God
Moses hoped God would choose someone else because he was afraid. However, God was not distressed by Moses’ honesty about his fears. In fact when Moses confessed his fears, God repeated His call and gave Moses evidence of God’s power in his life.
We are sometimes taught we must deny our fears. We are often told fear means our faith is weak. However, the story of Moses reveals that God values honesty — even honesty about our fears.
Moses found the courage to serve by experiencing God’s provision (vv. 2–14).
• Examining God’s gifts
God called Moses to take an inventory of what he had. God’s question was, “What is that in your hand?” Moses was a shepherd. What he had in his hand was his staff. It was what he used to protect his sheep. His staff seemed useless for God’s call to go to Egypt. It seemed useless for convincing the Hebrew people that he was sent by God or for convincing Pharaoh to give up the free labor provided by his Hebrew slaves.
However, before God could use what he had given Moses, Moses had to recognize what God had given him. What has God given you? What you have may not seem significant. However, because everything you have is a gift from God, like Moses you will discover that it is significant.
• Discovering God’s power
God told Moses to throw his staff on the ground which was unthinkable for a shepherd. Moses always kept his staff close at hand in case he needed it to defend himself or his sheep from wild animals. Moses reluctantly obeyed. When his staff hit the ground, it became a snake and Moses ran from it. God again commanded him to pick up the snake. Once again, Moses reluctantly obeyed and the snake was transformed back into his staff. God wanted Moses to realize he already had what he needed to serve Him. What Moses needed to do was to allow God to demonstrate His power by using what He had already provided.
Are you willing to serve God, to use what He has given you for His purpose? God reminds us just as He reminded Moses that when He calls us, He equips us with what we need and empowers us to do whatever necessary to complete our assigned task.
• Experiencing God’s grace
Even though God had already given Moses everything he needed to serve Him, God still gave Moses what Moses thought he needed. God gave Aaron to Moses to be his spokesman before Pharaoh. Moses did not really need Aaron, but God demonstrated His grace by giving Aaron to encourage Moses when he stood before Pharaoh.
The story of Moses demonstrates God’s grace. Because of God’s grace, God called Moses in spite of his failure, in spite of his reluctance and in spite of his fears. Because of grace Moses became one of the great prophets of Israel. The story of Moses demonstrates God also can use us not only when we are reluctant but also when we struggle with serving Him.
Moses ultimately found courage to serve through trusting God (vv. 15–17).
• Trusting God’s call
God’s call to Moses never wavered. God was not deterred from calling Moses by Moses’ fears. At the burning bush, although Moses’ trust of God’s call was extremely limited, He continued to call Moses and to equip him to serve.
• Trusting God’s presence
Moses thought he needed miraculous signs so God gave him a staff that demonstrated His divine power. Moses thought he could not serve God on his own so God provided Aaron. Yet all that Moses needed was God’s presence. God emphasized that truth in verse 15. God said, “You shall speak to him (Aaron) and put words in his mouth; I will help both of you to speak and will teach you what to do.” God’s greatest provision for Moses was not the miraculous signs or Aaron. God’s greatest provision was His presence.
Just like with Moses, God’s greatest gift to us is His presence with us. John 1:14 says, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” As God called Moses, God is calling us to serve Him. Like Moses, we too can find the courage to serve God by being honest with Him so we experience His grace and by trusting Him to be with us and to provide whatever we need. Will you allow God to help you find the courage to serve?
EDITOR’S NOTE — Clarke Skelton is pastor of Valley Grande Baptist Church. He previously served in South Korea for 15 years with the International Mission Board. He and his wife, Anita, have two children and four grandchildren.
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