Greetings again my Brethren. This month we will start on a new section as we begin to look at God’s call in the life of Moses. Seen in Moses’ life are three major areas that must be a part of our lives if we are going to be useful to God when He calls. The three areas are: preparation, qualification, and providence. All of the areas are equally important and are progressive in nature. Without a solid time of learning the lessons from God in preparation there will be no qualification, we will not be approved by God, and if this does not happen then there will be no providence in our life and our ministry. All three must be present at the right time and for the right reasons. You could say for the right reason, yes our motives and heart condition must be right all along the way of our training. This month we will look at why God called Moses. We have learned in the past we are called because God has a plan and purpose for everyone’s life, well so too in Moses life. Funny how we look at someone and say look at that fellow God is really using him more than I so God must love him the more, well this is not true. Our service to God is not greater or lesser than another’s person. All service is the same in God’s eyes according to God’s plan and purpose and when we change things to help God out we can really mess things up. We need to just go along for the ride and do those things God wants us to do at the level of our preparation and if we are approved (qualified) in them God will give us His providence. If then God moves us along to something else (maybe bigger and better in our opinion) glory be to God, if not glory be to God. So Moses was called because: God heard the people groaning. In Exodus we read, “And it came to pass in process of time, that the king of Egypt died: and the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage, and they cried, and their cry came up unto God by reason of the bondage. 24 And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob.” (Exodus 2:23-24) God heard the people there was a need that needed to be met and the only way God could meet the need was to sent a man He had prepared, qualified, and give His providence too. There must always be a need for God to get involved. Mankind sinned in the garden and needed a saviour so God sent His son. There must always be a need for God move in our situations. The ideal would be us living in a pleasant land (just us and God) without any needs, but that is not reality. Our land is often filled with needs that can only be corrected by God’s hand of providence in our lives. Now not all of our needs must be met by God, oh no God expects us to handle some of this need meeting, but the ones that are out of our hands (by either God’s plan or by our doing) God and God alone is the one who meets our needs. For example: we have a job and work for money to meet the need for food and shelter; we work, but God gives us the money not our boss. Everything we get comes from God. but we must do our part to help God meet our needs. In the late 70s many Christians went on what they called “love walks” where they just walked with the LORD and did not work, but expected the LORD to speak to others to give them money, well this is not what the Bible says, “For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.” (2 Thessalonians 3:10) We must all do our part in helping God meet the need. Another reason what Moses was called to lead the Children of Israel was God saw their affliction, Again in Exodus we read, “And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;” (Exodus 3:7) Affliction moves God’s heart. No matter the heart condition of the person God’s heart is always moved by affliction and those who have been beaten and down trodden. David in the Psalms said, “The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.” (Psalms 34:18) When God’s sees such a one He always gets involved. Many people (Christians included) want to be near God, but the Bible says, “The LORD is nigh” or near those who are broken hearted and of a contrite spirit. The word “contrite” here means crushed and ground to powder. Not too many people especially Christians (I include myself here at time) want to be crushed even by God and ground to powder and do not even talk about being broken, even broken hearted. But God saw the peoples’ affliction and responded to both their cries and what God saw. In Verse 8 the LORD said, I am to come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, but He did not come down in “person” oh no He sent Moses who He had in training for 40 years. Moses life can be divided into three 40 year periods. The first 40 years of his life Moses was in the palace of Pharaoh learning, mighty in word and deed, then the next 40 years of Moses’ life was in the wilderness in service to Jethro watching his sheep and working out all of the things from the last 40 years he would not need for the last 40 years of service to God leading the Children of Israel out of Egypt into the wilderness. When God finished with Moses this mighty man of valor, in word and deed could not speak. “And Moses said unto the LORD, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.” (Exodus 4:10) Just goes to show us God can use anyone He has prepared.
Next month we will continue to look at Moses’ preparation. Can you hear Him now?
