Wednesday, March 30, 2022
But Moses said to the LORD, “Oh, my Lord, I have never been eloquent, either in the past or since You have spoken to Your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue. Then the LORD said to him, “Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the LORD? Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak. Exodus 4:10-12
The Path to the Promised Land
Have you ever put a toddler to bed, and they ask a million questions and want ten hugs goodnight and fifteen drinks of water? They are pros at thinking of everything they can to get out of doing what they don’t want to do. Adults are really not much different than toddlers when it comes to making excuses for what we don’t want to do. Even in the Bible, in the lives of men and women that God used to do amazing things for His glory, we can see them making excuses as to why they are not right for the job.
We have been studying the life of Moses and seen him give God many excuses about why he was not capable of leading His chosen people out of the bondage of slavery. My favorite part of this whole story is the passage above when Moses tells God that he is not good at public speaking. God’s reply is the best – Then the LORD said to him, “Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the LORD? Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.
What could Moses say to that? What could anyone say to that? God literally told him -
I made your mouth...
I will go with your mouth...
I will tell you what to say...
Believe it or not, Moses still found a way to somewhat escape the call God had on his life – or at least the abundant blessing. We will learn more about that tomorrow. The lesson here is that if God wants us to do something, He will provide the way for us to do it – literally. He just wants us to be surrendered to Him and trust Him.
But he said, Oh, my Lord, please send someone else. Then the anger of the LORD was kindled against Moses… Exodus 4:13-14a
When he couldn’t think of another excuse Moses begged God to send someone else. He was refusing to submit to God, and God was frustrated now. When we submit to God, we are giving God the authority and power over our lives that He deserves as King over our lives. It is not a forced obedience, but a voluntary submission made as a result of the trust and love we have for our Heavenly Father.
The reason God was frustrated with Moses was not because he wouldn’t do what God wanted him to do. It was because God had a plan for good – good things for His people and good things for Moses as he submitted to God’s call on his life. Anytime God calls us, it will ultimately be for His glory, but we will be so blessed in the process. Submission always comes with the reward of abundant life – flowing with milk and honey. A Promised Land. It doesn’t necessarily come right away. It may be after a long journey through the dusty, dry desert, but faithful submission – packaged in perseverance – will take you to the promised land every time.
