Despite the triple assurances God had given Moses, yet he was still filled with trepidation. He simply couldn’t see that it was not so much about his capability as it was God’s ability. So, he called God’s attention to his lack of ability and his ineloquence in Exodus 4:10-12. He said to God, “Please, Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither recently nor in time past, nor since You have spoken to Your servant; for I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.” Like Moses, we all need to know that God’s work is not about our eloquence. The reason is simple. The works of God are often beyond our comprehension. No amount of words, whether written or spoken, can ever adequately capture all that God wants to say. But God’s undergirding will enable His yielded vessel to speak His word and message at the right time.
In Exodus 4:10, His assurance to Moses was, “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes him mute or deaf, or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? In effect, God was saying that He would be his enabler. This tells us that however we are made, and with what talents we are given, when we yield them to God, He can turn us into His effective instrument. None of us should ever use our lack of eloquence or lack of ability as an excuse so as not to be involved in God’s work. He promises to enable us to do and speak His truth. Through the corridor of time, we have seen many godly men who expressed to personal inadequacy yet accomplished much for God. Why? For the same reason. God enabled them to do so. And this is precisely the point. It is in our weakness that His power is made perfect. If God is with us, His grace is more than sufficient for us. Our strength will be truly made perfect in our weakness. The message we are sent to speak is best achieved with His undergirding. More than our words, our character speak more eloquently for God.
Moses’ excuses here tell us that fear can blindside a person to a point of reluctance. Even though with God’s repeated assurances, yet he still had little faith in what he could do. So, he said to God “Please, Lord, now send the message by whomever You will.” Notice that the word “Lord” is not spelled in capital letters. He did not refer to God’s covenant name, which is always spelled with all capital letters. That’s an indication of a lack of trust. So, God became angry with him. Yet in His anger, God showed great patience with Moses. Why? Because God was very focused. He never allowed his excuses to distract Him from what He wanted to do, i.e. to deliver His people.
Repeatedly, God had told Moses to go and tell Pharaoh to let His people go. Moses’ real issue was his unwillingness to fully trust and obey. It was not really a lack of his social standing or his ignorance, for God had already promised to be with him and revealed His covenant name to him. It was also not because the elders of Israel would not believe in him, God already told him that they would. And it certainly wasn’t his speech inability for God already assured him that He would fix that. Moses’ every objection was debunked by God. The conclusion was clearly his refusal to trust and obey God. Plain and simple!
At this point, Moses had digressed. Remember at Mount Horeb when he first encountered the burning bush and heard the call of God, his answer was “Here I am.” At that point, he was willing to take off his sandals and submit as he stood on holy ground. Now he was not responding as wholeheartedly to the call as of when God first appeared to him. If God’s anger speaks anything to us at all, it will be that He knew that we humans are made of feet of clay. We have fear and trepidation when confronted with the unknown. And one thing is clear. God is patient. He will deal patiently with us like how He dealt with Moses. But we must not test His endurance and press his patience too far. It may be alright when we are new in our faith to ask questions. God understands we need to know as we progress with Him. But when we have reached a certain point in our walk with Him, there must come a time when we stop asking and start obeying. Obedience is the best indication of trust. The more we trust Him the more we will obey Him. That’s undeniable. So, let's trust and obey!
No comments:
Post a Comment