Exodus 3.10-12
We’re back at the burning bush. Last week we heard God’s introduction. This
week the actual conversation starts. What you will find as you read through
this chapter and the beginning of the next is that Moses has a list of
reasons why he’s not the man to go to Egypt. And God has an answer for each
objection. This is quite a conversation. Today, we’ll look at the first of
Moses’ objections and God’s reply. Let’s see what lessons the Spirit has to
teach us.
God calls Moses to be His man to bring Israel out of Egypt. And what does
Moses say? ‘Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of
Israel out of Egypt?’ This sounds very different from the brash man forty
years earlier who was ready to start a slave revolt. ‘Who am I…?’ It’s the
right question, but I suspect that Moses has gone way beyond developing a
humble spirit. Instead, he has become timid. Though he phrases his comment
as a proper sounding question, what Moses is really saying is, ‘Are you
crazy? I can’t do that!’
Imagine a situation that, I am sure, happens with some regularity in many
homes. A child is given some task. Maybe it’s a school project. Maybe it’s a
new chore. And feeling more than just a little overwhelmed, the child
responds with a, ‘I can’t do that!’ And what is the classic parental
response? Well, what were you told when you were growing up? I heard
something like, ‘Sure you can. All you have to do is just put your mind to
it. Now, go ahead and do it.’ Maybe I wasn’t always told that in so many
words, but that was the spirit of what I was told. ‘You can do it if you try
hard enough.’ But how did God respond to Moses’ excuse? He didn’t say, ‘Sure
you can Moses. Just put your mind to it.’ Instead, He said, ‘I will be with
you.’ And there is a very big difference between the two responses.
There are several potential problems with telling someone (or thinking to
yourself), ‘You can do it if you try hard enough’. For one thing, it can
easily lead to pride. The child returns to the task and accomplishes it, at
least adequately well. He, then, says to himself or his parent, ‘Look at
what I did’, to which the parent says, ‘See, I told you you could do it if
you tried.’ Where is the focus in all of this? The ability of the child.
‘Look at what I did.’ The child learns lessons of trusting his ability. And
as he sees that simple hard work succeeds, he adopts that attitude for
himself. ‘I can do it. All I need to do is try hard enough.’ Who is God
according to such a person? What kind of role is He expected to play in this
person’s life?
Interestingly, encouraging this attitude in a child can, over time, have the
exactly opposite effect. Instead of becoming proud, the child grows up to
despise himself. And why? At some point, try as he might, he really can’t do
it. All it takes is just a few well-timed failures. This can result in a
devastating sense of inability, a sense of being a failure, of being a
loser. He trusted in his ability and his ability failed him. Sometimes this
sense of failure is obvious for anyone to see. But there are those
situations where it is a hidden theme of a person’s life. The fancy label
for some of these is ‘underacheiver’. Here is a person who is convinced that
he can’t, that, try as much as he might, he will fail. Who is God according
to this sort of person?
There is a third possible fruit of this attitude: fear. Here is the person
who actually has been successful. He has a measure of ability and has ‘tried
hard enough’ and has succeeded to some extent. His trust in his ability has
worked. But then the question looms, ‘But what if I fail the next time?’ And
every success, with its approval, makes the question that much more
pressing. And so, this person becomes a bit driven. He needs to be sure to
succeed. But what happens if he does fail at some point? Who is God
according to this person? The answer will depend on whether we are talking
about before the failure hits or after. Failure to depend fully on your God
is the same as deciding to depend on yourself. And that is one way of
describing our culture.
Moses says, ‘I can’t do that. You are asking me to do the impossible.’ ‘But
I will be with you.’ ‘Yes, Moses, left to yourself, you will fail. But that
won’t happen this time. You won’t fail. I will be with you.’ God guarantees
Moses’ success by promising His presence. What is this presence of God?
Exactly what good does it accomplish? Or is it just one of those empty
‘church words’?
Imagine some man going to his pastor to tell him that he has an important
business meeting on the next day. ‘I made a large mistake that will cost my
company a lot of money. My boss wants to talk to me about it tomorrow, and I
’m feeling really shaky.’ So the pastor says, ‘Why don’t I go with you to
your meeting?’ The man seems pleased with that and thanks his pastor. The
next day they both enter the boss’s office. The boss loses no time to tear
into the man. He shouts and yells and screams. He rips the man to shreds for
what he labels as his ‘total incompetence’. And, as the best way to end his
tirade, the boss tells the man first, that he’s fired, effective immediately
and secondly, if any potential employer contacts him about the man, he will
try his best to persuade that potential employer not even to consider him
for any job above cleaning the toilets. And with that he tells the man to
leave. The man and his pastor get up and leave. Now, the question is simple.
What good was that pastor’s presence with the man? What difference did he
make? Beyond some vague religious [and useless] sentiment, his presence was
worthless. Is God’s presence of any greater, practical good? Is there any
tangible benefit to this presence? Or is it just some vague religious – and
useless – sentiment?
God has promised His presence in other places in Scriptures. Listen to some
of them.
· ‘…fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will
strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right
hand. [Isaiah 41:10]
· ‘They will fight against you, but they shall not prevail against you, for
I am with you, declares the Lord, to deliver you.’ [Jeremiah 1:19]
· ‘Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, for I am with
you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city
who are my people.’ [Acts 18:9-10]
· ‘Be strong and courageous, for you shall bring the people of Israel into
the land that I swore to give them. I will be with you.’ [Deut. 31:23]
·
There are other examples, but the pattern is clear. When God promises His
presence, whatever the need might be, it will be met so that the goal can be
achieved. In those verses the needs were different and the goals were
different, but the benefit of God’s promise to be with them was the same.
The needs will be met and the goals achieved. God’s presence makes a very
tangible and practical difference. And that is the same with God’s words to
Moses. ‘I know that you can’t do this, Moses. But I will go with you so that
you will succeed.’ And to that end, God gives Moses a sign to encourage his
faith. ‘…and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you
have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.’
That last ‘you’ is plural. God is promising Moses that he will succeed in
bringing out the people. He and they will gather at the mountain where the
burning bush is, a mountain called Mt. Sinai. Moses will succeed because God
will provide whatever is needed for success.
Now, let’s make this personal. Remember something Jesus said. ‘And I will
ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever,
even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither
sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in
you.’ [John 14:16-17] Our God didn’t give Moses his task to free Israel and
then send him off on his own. Neither does Jesus give you the task to be a
faithful disciple in this fallen world and then send you off on your own.
Could you have any hope of anything even close to success if He did? Our
God, knowing Moses’ weakness, also gave him a sign that he would succeed.
‘Moses, you and all Israel will worship Me here on this mountain, Mt Sinai.’
Likewise, Jesus gives you a sign that you will succeed also. He gives you
the Lord's Supper, a sign that you will make it as a faithful disciple
through this fallen world not to worship Him on some mountain in the desert,
but to worship Him ‘on Mount Zion … the city of the living God, the heavenly
Jerusalem…’ [Hebrews 12.22]
Now, there is much here for you to meditate on and there are many fruitful
thoughts that you can develop from what I’ve said – and I hope that you do
think about this. Talk about it over lunch or in the car on the way home.
Take a copy of the sermon and read it again in the middle of the week. But
here are a couple of thoughts that I have come up with.
For one thing, do not minimize what Jesus has called you to do. Just as
Moses was up against a tremendous foe, so are you. Being a faithful
Christian here – and that relates to home, school, job, the works – is
incredibly difficult. Do not lower the standard because you realize your
inability. Jesus has been clear about what His expectations are. Don’t
redefine them down. They are high on purpose. But then remember the promise.
‘I will be with you.’ Whatever need you may have for the success of your
task, Jesus will be there by His Spirit to provide it. He has promised you
that in His Word – and then added the sign of the Lord's Supper. As you take
the bread and the cup, you are taking Jesus’ body and blood. And what does
that mean? As you take, you can tell yourself, ‘I do not return to the world
alone. Jesus will be with me. He will provide whatever I need to be faithful
for Him. Jesus guarantees me success. The sacrament of the Supper assures me
that His promise is mine.’ Believe the Gospel, and then return to the world
with confidence.