Devotional Day 47

Scripture

Exodus 4:1-17

Moses answered, “What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you’?” 2 Then the Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?” “A staff,” he replied. 3 The Lord said, “Throw it on the ground.” Moses threw it on the ground and it became a snake, and he ran from it. 4 Then the Lord said to him, “Reach out your hand and take it by the tail.” So Moses reached out and took hold of the snake and it turned back into a staff in his hand. 5 “This,” said the Lord, “is so that they may believe that the Lord, the God of their fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has appeared to you.” 6 Then the Lord said, “Put your hand inside your cloak.” So Moses put his hand into his cloak, and when he took it out, the skin was leprous—it had become as white as snow. 7 “Now put it back into your cloak,” he said. So Moses put his hand back into his cloak, and when he took it out, it was restored, like the rest of his flesh. 8 Then the Lord said, “If they do not believe you or pay attention to the first sign, they may believe the second. 9 But if they do not believe these two signs or listen to you, take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground. The water you take from the river will become blood on the ground.” 10 Moses said to the Lord, “Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.” 11 The Lord said to him, “Who gave human beings their mouths? Who makes them deaf or mute? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Is it not I, the Lord? 12 Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.” 13 But Moses said, “Pardon your servant, Lord. Please send someone else.” 14 Then the Lord’s anger burned against Moses and he said, “What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he can speak well. He is already on his way to meet you, and he will be glad to see you. 15 You shall speak to him and put words in his mouth; I will help both of you speak and will teach you what to do. 16 He will speak to the people for you, and it will be as if he were your mouth and as if you were God to him. 17 But take this staff in your hand so you can perform the signs with it.”

Devotional

This conversation between God and Moses which takes place before Moses went back into Egypt to free God’s people is a very powerful example of God’s empowering grace being offered to make up someone’s lack. Yesterday we looked at Jesus’ conversation with the Apostle Paul about his thorn in the flesh, three times Paul pleaded with Jesus to take the thorn away and yet Jesus told Paul ‘my grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness’. Paul then chose to boast of his weaknesses to glorify Christ.

From my perspective, we can see Paul having a conversation with the Lord about his empowering grace, that even when Paul has weakness or is facing a trial that God can make up the difference, so to speak, with his grace. When we read Moses’ conversation with God, Moses didn’t yet seem to fully submit to the idea of God’s empowering grace. Instead of submitting to God and letting God enable him to speak well, he lacked faith and chose control instead.

Moses and the Lord wrestle over the matter, and God isn’t happy about it. Moses doubts himself and God’s response is to remind Moses that He invented both mouths and communication! This is no issue for the Lord, Moses just needed to trust him. Even in the midst of Moses’ struggle to fully trust God’s empowering grace, God didn’t disqualify him for the assignment, by alloweing Aaron to speak for Moses, even though it was not God’s perfect will for Moses. Unfortunately, this compromise on Moses’ part seemed to cause some serious issues within his leadership team down the road…

It’s possible that Moses battled with insecurity, doubt and or fear, we can so often battle with these things too. Moses’ insecurities and lack of faith became a problem when he let his weaknesses preach to him about what was possible, instead of having faith that with God all things are possible. We can get flustered and afraid as well, thinking that God needs us to be intelligent, confident and eloquent to walk out what he has for us and yet the Lord doesn’t need us to be any of these things, just that we would trust him and be obedient. Funnily enough in the economy of the Kingdom, our weaknesses are actually strengths because they become opportunities for humility, and humility opens the door for the Lord’s grace and power to flow into our lives.

I want to encourage you today as you wrestle with God over the needs in your life to take wisdom from both Moses and Paul’s stories. Both wrestled with God, and both were asked by the Lord to do things they didn’t want to do or didn’t feel able to do. You and I are no different. Every day the Lord stretches our faith. We need God’s grace. Likely there are things in your life right now that you have asked God to take away and he hasn’t. The temptation in these moments is to become prideful and shut God out of the situation, which unfortunately we still need to deal with. Instead of turning to sin to cope or control the situation, we can ask God for his grace, so that his power might be made perfect in our weakness.

Prayer

Lord, I submit my life to you today. I say yes to everything that you are asking me to do and I humbly ask for your strength, grace, help and empowerment. I want to do everything your way, deep down. I’m sorry for where I’ve been like Moses - saying yes, but with a lack of faith to do it your way. I can see how you want to get all the glory in my life and how if I do everything my way I quench the work of your Spirit. Thank you for your patience with me Lord too, thank you that I don’t have to do it all perfectly and that you don’t disqualify me when I struggle. In Jesus’ name, Amen.