SE052409
MOSES
2. Feel the Power
Bruce Wilkerson has written an allegory called the Dream Giver. He tells the story of a man named “Ordinary”, who leaves the land of Familiar, to follow the DREAM the Dream Giver gave him. The adventure of his life has just begun.
- He meets the Border Bullies on the outskirts of town. They try to intimidate him into keeping the status quo.
- Then he comes to the great Wasteland, where he questions whether the Dream Giver ever came to him in the first place.
- Then he comes to the place where every Ordinary who ever had a dream must inevitably come: the valley of Giants.
You may be like Ordinary … a person set out to follow God. Have you come to The Valley of the Giants. It’s a time of testing the calling we receive from God – which we talked about last week.
Well Moses certainly did come to his own Valley of the Giants.
So, let me set the scene: Moses has left the land of Familiar… in this case, Midian… where he’s been doing Ordinary things for 40 years. He has been called to lead God’s People out of slavery in Egypt. On the way, he meets several tests that are like his GIANTS:
1. THE HOUSE IN ORDER TEST
Moses has decided to take his wife and two sons with him back to Egypt, and while they’re on the way, a bizarre thing happens which most people just skip over – but it contains a key obstacle and question to answer.
- Ex 4:24-26 – At a lodging place on the way, the LORD met Moses and was about to kill him. But Zipporah [his wife] took a flint knife, cut off her son's foreskin and touched Moses' feet with it. "Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me," she said. So the LORD let him alone.
Now this is extremely weird! But less so if we fill in some blanks. The sin that upsets God is that Moses neglected to circumcise his son. Now, why the big deal? Remember, Moses is helping his people make a clean break with Egypt. And as a son of Abraham, God has given all Hebrews a sign of identification with Him, circumcision of male babies.
More than likely he did this with one son, but not other, because only one is mentioned. The reason probably has to do with Zipporah. Zipporah his wife is not a Jew. She probably sees this sign of covenant relationship with Yahweh as kind of disgusting and unnecessary.
Now, this highlights a bunch of things. One is how hard it is to follow God’s call when you’re not equally yoked with a life partner who loves God and follows Messiah as zealously as you do. It divides your home. It splits your concerns. God or spouse? When sacrifices need to made for the Dream, who’s way will you go?
It’s always easier to be pulled down than to lift someone else up. So… if you’re considering marriage to a non-Christian, retreat. It will make getting your house in order very difficult. If you’re not a Christian, hitched to a Christian, I ask you: don’t you want to share the most intimate thing in the world, with your spouse? Shared
- meaning,
- purpose,
- hope,
- how you raise your kids,
- how you spend your money, your time, your tithe
- all these things flow from your decision to accept Christ as your master and forgiven.
For Moses his divided home had caused him to compromise his devotion to God and it was so serious it says, God was about to kill him! Now, how did they know God was about to kill him? We don’t know. I suspect that Moses might have become deathly ill which is what got Zipporah’s attention – they both saw it as a sign of discipline – and that prompted her to give in and let their son be circumcised.
As strange as this episode sounds to modern ears, the lesson is clear: For Moses to follow the call, he has to have integrity. He can’t lead Israel to follow God and then refuse the mark of the covenant on his own children. He has to make it clear, even at the risk of his wife’s rejection that God’s will comes before her will.
What about you? You want to follow God’s call? Great. But know this… you need get your house in order first:
we can’t take more responsibility in God’s house until you’ve been responsible in your own.
So, some hard questions:
- Have you submitted to the forgiveness and grace and leadership of Jesus Christ?
- Have you brought your sexuality under Christ’s leadership?
- Have you brought your money under Christ’s leadership?
- Have you brought your hobbies, time management under his leadership?
- Do you have a circle of friends you’re trying to pull up but they just wind up bringing you down?
- Do you have an obsession or idol that needs tearing down?
Friend, being a Christians starts with little things. Confession, faith, repentance, obedience. You start to do that consistently, you’re ready for graduate level stuff. Next GIANT:
2. THE AFFIRMATION TEST
After he gets to Egypt, you might think the first person Moses goes to is Pharaoh, but it’s not.
- Ex 4:29-31 Moses and Aaron brought together all the elders of the Israelites, and Aaron told them everything the LORD had said to Moses.
The first people he meets are the people of God. First Aaron, whom God has said will be his mouthpiece, and then the leaders of the Hebrews. Why? So that he gets their buy-in and affirmation. Remember earlier in his life, he bypassed this step. And the people he was trying to lead rejected him. Now is a different story…
(This is not to be confused with a later REJECTION test, when sometimes, even the people you lead and serve seem to turn on you. That’s a different test.)
This test is about having your spiritual gifts acknowledged by others. This is about getting feedback from people you trust, people who have known Christ for years and can say:
- “yeah that sounds good.” Or
- “I’d rethink that if I were you.”
NEXT GIANT:
3. THE RISK TEST
- Ex 5:1 After this presentation to Israel's leaders, Moses and Aaron went to see Pharaoh. They told him, "This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: 'Let my people go…’"
This is the key test. Because it is the test that reveals whether or not we really believe in the God who calls us,
- to teach or
- lead that small group, or
- help those children, or
- change a relationship, or
- feed the hungry,
- or serve,
- or give,
- or pray,
- or show mercy.
Question: Will you take the initiative? There comes a time when you just have to risk.
This was so perfectly illustrated for me when I sky dived for the first and only time. There I was 14,000 feet in the air, in a perfectly good airplane. My way had been paid for by a friend, (who apparently wanted to see me killed).
The risk test, is the moment at the mouth of the airplane door, when every fiber of your being, every shred of self preservation in you is aching for you to step back… and you must literally WILL you’re your body to step into thin air – the risk test is when you PROVE whether you believe or not.
In this case, did I believe in my Instructor. Did I believe in the safety of that sheet of canvas on his back?
The risk test asks, do you believe in God or not? Yes, research the risk, get your house in order, get confirmation, watch other people do the same thing and not die… but then, there comes a time, talking is over with, waiting is done, it’s time to jump. The risk test comes down to only one thing:
Do you believe God is trustworthy? There’s only one way to find out! It’s not inside the airplane!
Well, Moses jumps by confronting the most powerful man in the world. And the next GIANT may be the biggest of all:
4. THE HARSH REALITY TEST
This Giant is the Giant of Disappointment that comes when you risk and the wheels get in motion and then reality hits. Now, I’ve been here and I know that when you step out for God, a secret part of you thinks, it’s smooth sailing from here. I took the big leap and now, it should be all good, right?
Wrong. God had tried to prepare Moses, just like Jesus prepares us for hardship when we sign up to follow him. God had said to him, “Pharaoh is going to be stubborn and I’m going to use that hard heart to get glory…” - but I’m sure Moses was still pretty shaken when harsh reality hit:
- Ex 5:2-9 "Is that so?" retorted Pharaoh. "And who is the LORD that I should listen to him and let Israel go?" …That same day Pharaoh sent this order to the slave drivers… "Do not supply the people with any more straw for making bricks. Let them get it themselves! But don't reduce their production quotas by a single brick.
Pharaoh is a classic manipulator. Total power tripper. He knows if he can turn the people against Moses, he wins. Make them hate Moses for planting the Dream of freedom in their heads. Make them blame Moses for their slavery.
Which brings us to…
5. THE REJECTION TEST
The Children of Israel actually now blame Moses for their suffering. They complain to Moses saying,
‘Stop helping! You’re making things worse!’
Let’s say you step up to follow the call of God,
- become a Christian,
- serve the world;
- change careers to help your family;
- involve yourself in a new ministry;
- take a more active role in disciplining the kids;
- care for that wounded couple;
- speak the truth more;
- love God more…
- and what sometimes happens?
Those you seek to help, aren’t so thrilled with your help. They’ll say things like:
- Why are you changing the dance steps?
- Why are you rocking the boat?
- This is a little inconvenient for us!
Now we’ll see if Moses has grown… will he run, like he did 40 years ago, away from responsibility, away from a life of duty and calling? Or will he run TO God?:
- Ex 5:22-23 So Moses went back to the LORD and protested, "Why have you mistreated your own people like this, Lord? Why did you send me? Since I gave Pharaoh your message, he has been even more brutal to your people. You have not even begun to rescue them!"
I mean, when we get disillusioned, where will you run? Away from the call? Away from responsibility? No, run to God… pour your complaint out to Him. He WANTS you to run to him! He doesn’t get mad at Moses, he has big shoulders, he can take your complaint. So pour it out, just don’t run out. Stay pressed in to God. Stay patient in affliction. Wait on God. Keep faith.
And then finally, you will see vindication after the Valley of the Giants has been crossed:
THE RISK TEST VINDICATION!
- Exodus 6:1 God says: "Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh”
Now, before we see what God will do, let’s look at what we can learn from Pharaoh. He’s the absolute dictator of an empire that reigns with unchallenged authority over the known world. He has strength, wealth, fame and power unparalleled in his world. He has everything Moses the Shepherd does not have.
He’s the most secure person on the face of the earth. He is a god! That’s how people think of him. Son of Ra! His Empire has enslaved the race of Hebrews for their massive building projects for hundreds of years. They’ve come in very handy building monuments to kings’ vanities.
But now, this god man has suddenly got a challenger to his “I am God delusion”. An old man rolls in demanding the release of the slaves. As we’ve seen, he responds to this challenge with uncompromising control. He increases the burden on the slaves, he doubles their torment.
Now you think that’s Hitler type of stuff there, genocidal madman… but how many of us might not do the same when challenged? We’ll go to crazy lengths, do immature things to prove that
- that we’re in control,
- that no one resists our will,
- that the world revolves around us?
- What we’re laboring under is the same God delusion friends!
- It’s as old as the Garden of Eden.
Because Pharaoh has this ‘world revolves around me’ thing going on, notice what he does in response to his little “Moses” problem. The Bible says:
- Ex 7:13 Yet Pharaoh's heart became hard and he would not listen to them, just as the LORD had said.
A stubbornness sets in that takes over and leads to torture, genocidal desires, oppression. Before you dismiss this as the ravings of a lunatic, ask yourself, what if Pharaoh was born in Marysville, WA circa 1970. He might look like an average guy you know. He would have no power to perform genocide, but that doesn’t mean he’d wouldn’t still behave as if,
- people exist to make me happy.
- The world is here to fulfill my joy and pleasure
- As if you are God and you can control your destiny.
Friend, this is going to get you off God’s plan in a big hurry. Because there’s one thing that’s fatal to the Call and that’s you competing with God for top spot. The position’s already been filled and they aren’t taking applications. You need to watch out that you don’t harden your heart, friend. It’s a cancer. It’ll make you immune to God’s voice, it covers you with a blinding pride that ruins any chance you have of getting on God’s page.
You say, my heart is hard because of life has made it that way, it’s really God’s fault if I’m too independent! Not true. You harden your own heart. The Bible says:
Zech 7:12 They made their hearts as hard as flint and would not listen …to the words that the LORD Almighty had sent by his Spirit… So the LORD Almighty was very angry.
Friend, you don’t want that to be said of you. Humble yourself before you are humbled – because eventually, in this life, or the next, every Pharaoh gets his God delusion bubble popped. To humble Pharaoh, the Bible says, Moses was to be “like God to Pharaoh”. That sets up an interesting altercation.
- A man who thinks he’s God,
- Confronted by a man who’s not God,
- But whom God wants to act like God
- To teach the man who thinks he’s God a lesson
- That he’s not God.
Get it?
Moses performs miracles in God’s name in front of Pharaoh, and at first, his outward confidence isn’t shaken one bit. Pharaoh’s magicians can conjure up the similar tricks, so why should he, ‘a God’ listen to this imposter? Have you brushed off God’s first overtures?
For Pharaoh that meant God turns up the heat on his illusion of godhood through plagues – 10 of them. If you study this, what’s interesting about the plagues is that they are cascade effect of natural disasters:
- The Nile turns to blood, probably a reference to red tide which kills everything in the life-giving river
- The dead river sends all the frogs out of the water and into the Egyptian homes,
- Dead frogs bring swarms of flies and gnats,
- Which bring disease and death and so on.
It’s fascinating how these plagues built on each other… but it’s even MORE fascinating if you look into the Egyptian religion. Each plague relates to a god in the Egyptian pantheon of gods – the Nile River god, the frog god, the insect god, the cow God, and even Ra, the great sun God.
But friends, each of these gods bows to the LORD’S command – the Bible says God executed judgment against all the gods of Egypt! The Nile turns to blood and frogs and gnats infest and cows are stricken with disease and yes even Ra, meekly bows his knee to God as the sky goes black for 3 days. Pharaoh was the supposed ruler of all these gods as the son of Ra himself, but finally, Pharaoh himself, has his own son stricken and he dies.
- Where is your power now, Pharaoh? Where is your control?
o You can’t stop this from happening to you.
The lesson to Pharaoh is unmistakable:
“these gods that you think you control are actually controlled by a greater power, the one True Creator God, maker of heaven and earth, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.”
It took 10 plagues to finally humble him to place he would say to Moses whose humble risk was vindicated:
Go away! All of you! Take your flocks and herds and be gone.”
Friend will it take 10 plagues to humble you? To divest you of the illusion that you have god-like control? Don’t think that God is not able or ready to humble you. Not because he doesn’t love you, but precisely because he does! Pharaoh put his entire country through untold grief rather than acknowledge,
“God is God and I am not.”
I pray it wouldn’t come to that for you.
CONCLUSION
Just look at these two figures: Moses, Pharaoh.
- One humbled, house in order, affirmed by other leaders, ready to risk greatly for God, faithful after rejection and finally vindicated.
- One hard hearted, thinks he rules the world, thinks he has all power, self absorbed, cruel.
One is lifted up, the other is brought low. As evidence of what God might say to each of us today:
“God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”
