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TYING THE HANDS OF GOD
(The call of Moses)
David A. Denyer

Like you, I believe that the Bible is God’s Word to us! Among the many things we find there are records of encounters individuals or groups of people had with the Almighty, and the responses of individuals or people to those exciting but frightening and awe-inspiring experiences.

I’m thinking of individuals called to do a task, to perform a service, or to be involved in some form of ministry – people like ABRAM who was told to leave Ur of the Chaldees (in Iraq; either at the northern end of the Persian Gulf or at Urfa, near Haran) and go to a land God would show him. There his descendants would become a great nation, he would be blessed, and be a blessing to all peoples on earth. See Galatians 3:28-29.

When we get to books of history (former prophets) we read of the call of SAMUEL while still a young man in the house of Eli the priest. Among the latter prophetic writings we’re told that God called AMOS, HOSEA, ISAIAH, JEREMIAH, and JONAH, among others.

But I want to zero in on the call of MOSES in chapters 3 and 4 of the book of Exodus, and then relate that to the man’s ministry. God’s calling of Moses is given in more detail than any other “call narrative” in the Bible. To understand Moses’ ministry and the impact he had, we must note what is written in the final chapter of Deuteronomy. It says, “Since then (since his death), no prophet has arisen in Israel like Moses” (Dt. 34:10).

In the New Testament we have a similar “claim to fame” for that Israelite leader. In his defense of the faith before he was martyred Stephen said, “Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was powerful in speech and action” (Acts 7:22).

It’s obvious that Moses was an important man. He is referred to more often in the NT than any other OT character; his story is well known. He was reared in the palace of the Pharaoh of Egypt, but on one occasion took matters into his own hands when he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew; so Moses killed the attacker. Unfortunately for him, someone saw what Moses did. Out of fear that his actions would become known Moses fled across the Sinai Peninsula to the northwest corner of the Arabian peninsula, to Midian, where he found all the necessities of life: a home, a job, and a wife. But think about the position Moses held. For forty years he tended sheep!

Can you imagine what this meant? In the eyes of most, Moses was no ordinary individual. He was the adopted grandson of the King of Egypt. He was a statesman. To vacate the court of Egypt for the desert of Midian was quite a come down! He had been wealthy, influential and powerful; yet he was reduced to the rank of a shepherd, caring for someone else’s animals.

What a humiliating experience! Yet that was part of what Moses had to go through if he was to be God’s man and do what God wanted. We don’t know what happened during those years of his life; I guess there’s nothing dramatic that could be said about tending sheep; but in Exodus 3, something exciting did happen. Notice what it says in verses 1-5, read.

Concerning that encounter, Vance Havner said, “Its always on the backside of the desert that we come to the mountain of God – on the backside of the desert of self, at the end of our own dreams and ambitions and plans.” That was Moses’ experience! While watching his flock he saw something that arrested his attention. It was a common ordinary bush – the type he doubtless saw every day. And it was burning.

I don’t think that was unusual. I suspect Moses had seen bushes ignited by lightning or spontaneous combustion, but the amazing thing about this bush was that it wasn’t consumed. And while it burned the Lord spoke out of that fiery clump, and called Moses to a task too big for him to handle on his own. He was to return to Egypt, seek permission from Pharaoh, and then lead the Israelites to Canaan – to the Promised Land.

Note that the Lord CONVEYED A MESSAGE and ISSUED A CALL. I suspect that Moses had a sense of compassion, of urgency, and of concern for his people. Yet if he was to do the work of God he needed to learn FIRST, that any old bush will do as long as God is in it, and SECOND, if the work of God is to get done, it’s not greater dedication, or more religious activity that’s needed – both of those lead to frustration – but a quiet, restful availability.

Furthermore, in that “burning bush” experience, some things about Moses’ character and some things about God’s character were revealed. I want to talk about those.

For one thing, God was unimpressed with Moses’ ability and brilliance as a statesman. Moses’ earthly credentials were impeccable, but they didn’t qualify him for the task God wanted done. Any person might have been chosen, but the Lord chose MOSES, and having chosen him, would empower him for the task.

Notice what is said in verses 6-10 of this chapter. The One who called Moses said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And beginning a verse later it states, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey ... so now, Go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.”

As far as we know it had been over 400 years since God had spoken to an Israelite; but He reminded Moses that He (the Lord) was the One who had been faithful, that He (the Lord) was the One who was aware of all that was going on, and that He (the Lord) was the One who was commissioning this eighty year old sheepherder to do something about the tragedy that was transpiring. In other words, God intended to do something about the situation in Egypt, and MOSES WAS TO BE PART OF THAT PLAN. That’s a truth to keep before us. God was then and is now concerned about what was and is happening in our world. He has invited you and me to join in rescuing people from their enslavements and to lead them out of bondage.

But we must also look in this passage to see how Moses responded to the call of God. When you analyze this situation you find that MOSES HAD FIVE PROBLEMS WITH GOD’S PLAN.
First, we find this response in 3:11, “Who am I (yk;(nxA ym) that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” He had A PROBLEM OF IDENTITY.

If the Lord had challenged Moses forty years before and told him that he was to deliver his people I think Moses would have readily volunteered. He would have said something like, “I’ll gladly do it; just step aside and the task will be done.” But now after herding sheep for all of those years Moses had no idea who he was.

The difference was that before his experience in the desert Moses felt qualified to do anything he was asked, but now that he was older, more mature and realistic he sensed that he needed God to tell him who he was. He had no self-confidence, and it was in that state of mind that the Lord appeared to him. Moses needed the assurance that he wouldn’t be in this job alone, and so God said in reply, “I will be with you” (3:12).

Maybe you’re like me in matters like this. I have a tendency to itemize my so-called “ASSETS” and put them in one column, and then say, “These are the things I can do fairly well. I’ve had experience, I think I’m qualified.” Then I list my “LIABILITIES” in another column, and say, “These are things I can’t do, and I’m not even going to venture into those areas.”

You see, most of us feel CONFIDENT about our assets and CAUTIOUS about our liabilities. That’s normal. We’re ready to work in the areas where we feel we have strengths, but are apprehensive about trying anything in the liabilities lists.

And do you know what often happens? God lets us work in an area that we consider a “strength” and we flounder and fail; and then He puts us into an area where we feel inadequate and we’re forced to lay hold of Him for help and wisdom in weakness, and we discover that He uses us. We become mixed up. There are things we thought we could do which we can’t, and there are things we didn’t think we could do which we can; and in that state of mind God steps in to show us that if we will say, “Lord, I’ll do anything you ask me to do, and I’ll go anywhere you lead me,” He will overcome our apprehensions and use us for His glory.
But Moses’ problem of identity created a second problem. It’s in verse 13, “Moses said to God, ‘Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, the God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they ask me, What is his name? Then what shall I tell them?’”. Here was a PROBLEM OF IGNORANCE. In the first place he had a problem of identity (“Who am I?”), now he asked, “Who are you?”

The solution to identity is assurance. The solution to ignorance is revelation! And in the verses that follow God told Moses who he was. He revealed His name hy,hx,, translated, “I am who I am.” It’s the first person singular form of the Hebrew verb “to be,” translated “I AM.”

God was saying to Moses, “What is it that you need? Whatever that is I can supply. Are you afraid? I am your courage. Are you weak? I am your strength. Are you perplexed? I am your wisdom. Are you lonely? I am your friend. Do you feel guilty? I am the source of continual forgiveness.” The God who calls supplies everything we need. Isn’t that good news?

In verses 16 to 22 (which we won’t take time to read) God says, in essence, “Moses, I’m aware of everything that could possibly happen to you. And I’ve already worked out a solution for every potential problem. The victory is yours. There is no possibility of failure if you trust me. As a matter of fact, my people are not only going to be delivered from the Egyptians, they’re going to plunder them. You and the people are going to come out of Egypt a wealthy nation.”

When “I AM” is in charge victory is certain! That’s why, many years later, the Apostle Paul could say, “We are more than conquerors through Him that loved us.” And later he wrote, “God is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think” (Eph. 3:20). [The NIV has, “immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us.” The New Living Bible Translation states it like this: “By his mighty power at work within us, he is able to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare to ask or hope”].

What are YOU facing this week? What demand, what pressure, what difficulty? The Lord wants you to know that He is adequate for that and has already secured a victory for you!
As we know, there are times when our strength is weak, but if we will let Him, the Spirit of God will provide everything we need to overcome and accomplish what God wants done. When Jacob and his sons went to Egypt the Lord promised to go with them and to bring his descendants back to Canaan. We’re told that in Genesis 46:3-4 (read).

That brings us to a third problem Moses expressed: the PROBLEM OF UNBELIEF. At chapter 4 verse 1 it says, “Moses answered, ‘What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you?’” Just prior to this (in 3:18) God told Moses, “They will listen to you;” now Moses turned around and said, “They won’t listen to me.”

Like him, there will come times in your life and mine when we’ll be tempted to disbelieve – to lack faith when we need it – yet the words of God are true. Rarely would any of us claim otherwise, but some times our actions or our apprehensions speak louder than our words.

A regular prayer of mine, and one I hope you pray for yourself is that I would be a man of faith, a person who believes God’s word. As you serve people you will discover that the Scripture is true and that the Lord builds faith by giving you something to believe that you can believe: the unchanging word of an almighty God.

God gave Moses three signs: his rod became a serpent, his hand became leprous, and the water became blood. In each case, that which was difficult for Moses to believe was NOT an obstacle to God. The principle is that the Lord BUILDS FAITH by giving people something to believe that can be believed. When Moses saw God perform those miracles he was encouraged to believe that God would work it all out so that the Israelites would believe him when he appeared before them and said God had sent him to lead them out of Egypt. You see, what is impossible with man IS possible with God!

What I’m saying is that unbelief in some areas of life, is no problem to God. If you’re open and responsive to truth the Lord will build your faith a step at a time. If God has brought you to the backside of the desert, if you are reduced, as it were, to a shepherd’s rod, cast that at His feet and He will strengthen you to do what He asks. With what He provides you can work wonders in His name!

A fourth problem Moses had is reported in 4:10. “Moses said to the Lord, ‘Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.’” Moses claimed INADEQUACY OF SPEECH, which is interesting in light of what Stephen said in Acts 7, “Moses WAS ... powerful in speech and action” (vs. 22). In effect Moses said, “YOU are all that you claim. But I am the same old Moses. I’m heavy-lipped and thick-tongued.”

But notice the Lord’s response, “Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or dumb? Who gives him sight or makes him blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say” (4:11-12). In other words, “Moses, that inadequacy is a created inadequacy. That may be a problem to you but it’s not a problem to me. I made you that way. I knew about it from the beginning, and I never thought of disqualifying you on that basis.”

I’m sure there are areas in each of our lives that we wish were different, and that we could change; but there is a pattern here that runs through scripture, that out of WEAKNESS we can become STRONG, the LEAST can become GREAT, the MEEK can become MIGHTY, and the LAST become FIRST. We may wish things were different, but whenever God calls He enables. Isn’t that great news?

Your so-called inadequacies are part of your uniqueness as a person and they are no problem to God if you willingly surrender them to Him; they, in fact, may become a source of power as you yield yourself, as you are, to Him.

There was one final problem Moses had; it’s reported in 4:13 & 14, “Moses said, ‘O Lord, please send someone else to do it.’” And it says, “Then the Lord’s anger burned against Moses.” It’s the PROBLEM OF UNAVAILABILITY. It was at that point in the interchange that the Lord is depicted as angry.
The problem of identity was no problem to the Almighty. He is with us and knows us. The problem of ignorance is no obstacle to getting the work of God done. He will reveal Himself in His Word. If we have trouble with unbelief, that’s not an impossible hurdle. The Lord will nurture and increase our faith. And our inadequacies aren’t a problem to God. He knew about them before we ever recognized them and didn’t hesitate to call us in spite of them. But if we say we’re unavailable the Lord will chose someone else to be His spokesperson.

At the burning bush Moses learned what you and I need to know; namely, the basis of spiritual power and effectiveness in our Christian life is in our AVAILABILITY.

What is God calling you to do? What need is lying before you at your office, at your plant, in your neighborhood, or at home? What is there to be done? Remember, any old bush will do as long as God is in it and we’re available to Him!
^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^
That brings me back to God’s call to Moses. Moses was to go back to Egypt, speak to the Pharaoh, and lead the Israelites to the Promised Land. But how willing were the Hebrews to accept this virtually unknown person? I’d like to suggest that Moses received a very cold reception from the Israelites. He had not been there for forty years. He was born there and reared there, but during his absence the descendants of Jacob had lived bitter and difficult lives. According to the opening chapter of Exodus slave masters oppressed them and forced them to do hard labor. Undoubtedly they had often asked God to do something about their situation. How long that had gone on even before Moses returned to Egypt we aren’t told, but when Moses went “knocking at their door” he had two hurdles to overcome. FIRST, he had to convince the Israelites to follow him, a virtual unknown, and SECONDLY, he had to convince them to believe in the God about whom he spoke – a God who had been strangely silent while they suffered unbearable hardships.

There are two passages that I want you to read: Exodus 6:9 and 14:31, read.

My suggestion is that in order to convince them to do what God wanted, and what he wanted, he told them the story of their beginnings; he told them about their pre-history (which is what we have in Genesis 1-11), and he recited to them patriarchal history (which is what is found in Genesis 12-50). So I’m proposing that Moses told them who God was by telling them the story of creation as its presented in Genesis 1 and 2, and he told them who they were by reciting the story of the patriarchs. Those two aspects of what he told them he later put into writing; and that became the basis for the book of Genesis. It was done to convince the Israelites FIRST, who God was – who God is, and SECOND, who they were.

Of those two purposes the most important was to learn about God. In reading the opening chapters of Genesis I see two creation accounts, one in Genesis 1:1 - 2:4a, and one in Genesis 2:4b-25. In those two creation accounts (not two creations, but two accounts of one creation) Moses presented the twofold nature of God. He is portrayed in the first account as A GOD OF MIGHT, and in the second as A GOD OF INTIMATE CONCERN.

In an attempt to prove that God had called him and that he wanted the Israelites to follow Moses to Canaan, Moses began by teaching them that GOD CAN DO ANYTHING – he is an omnipotent God. This was shown by his creative power. He created the heavens, the earth, and all that is in them. Secondly, HE SUSTAINS WHAT HE HAS CREATED by becoming involved in their lives and by ruling over it. NOTE, that order is important: If they would place their trust in Yahweh as CREATOR he would make himself know to them as REDEEMER. Thus we have Genesis 1:1 – 2:4a to teach the first truth, and Genesis 2:4b-25 to teach the second truth.

When we look at the creation account as it’s presented in Genesis we need to remember that this is not all the Bible says on the subject. It’s the most familiar passage, but by no means the only passage. We also read of creation in Job 38, Psalms 33, 90, 104, 136, and 148. There is information in Amos 4, 5, and 9, plus Matthew 19, Mark 13, John 1, Romans 1, Ephesians 3, Colossians 1 and 3, Hebrews 1 and 11, and Revelation 4 and 10. Probably the longest section on creation in the entire Bible is Isaiah 40-55. In looking at all those chapters it’s interesting to notice that the writers discussed creation in the context of God as Savior, Helper, and Deliverer, exactly as we find in Genesis 1 & 2.

Another thing to note from the biblical statements concerning creation: NONE OF THEM FULLY EXPLAIN THE ORIGIN OF THE WORLD AND OF MANKIND. Together the record points to the MARVEL OF CREATION and the MAJESTY OF THE CREATOR. In other words, after we’ve read all the Bible has to say about creation there are still many unanswered questions. In our scientifically oriented minds we want to know HOW the world was created; the biblical writers are content to say THAT God created it.

This means that a considerable number of difficulties we have gotten into regarding Bible and science can be resolved if we allow the Bible to speak for itself and not impose our interpretations upon it as verified truth.

Look with me at those two creation accounts in Genesis. One of the obvious lessons is that mankind occupies an exalted position in the order of creation. In fact, men and women are presented as the GOAL of creation. We’re told that God created us in the image of God. It also means that God is not to be thought of ANTHROPOMORPHICALLY (having the form of man), but mankind is to be thought of THEOMORPHICALLY (having the form of God). Mankind is the high point of all God’s creative work.

What you will also see is that the portrayal of mankind in the second creation account is no less noble; but there’s a shift in emphasis. No longer is one’s attention focused on the creation of the world as a whole, but upon mankind who is the CENTER of creation; and nothing is mentioned that does not concern God caring for the needs of those he has created. Men and women are so important in Genesis 2 that God takes infinite pains to satisfy their every need. The original waterless waste is turned into an oasis that mankind can till and cultivate. Adam and his wife Eve are set in the midst of a Garden and given every tree which is pleasant to see and productive of food to eat. Mankind is given dominion over the animals, and man’s loneliness and isolation are broken by the creation of a wife to be with him.

However, in both of these creation accounts mankind’s relationship to God is clearly defined as one of complete dependence. We don’t have life apart from God, and we breathe only because God has breathed into us. Our life is not inherent in ourselves. We are CREATURES sustained by the grace of our CREATOR. God is lord over our existence.

n DIFFERENCES IN THE CREATION ACCOUNTS –

DIFFERENCES IN THE CREATION ACCOUNTS
David A. Denyer

GENESIS 1:1 - 2:4a GENESIS 2:4b - 25

1. Note 1:1 = “heavens and earth.” 1. Note 2:4b = “earth and heavens”

2. Note 1:1 = “Elohim” 2. 2:4b = “Yahweh Elohim”

3. Note 1:1 = “create” (bara), a word 3. 2:4b = “made” (yatsar),
denoting divine activity used of a potter w/ clay

4. Concerns the origin of the universe 4. Concerns the origin of life on as a whole earth

5. The center of the stage is heaven 5. The center of the stage is earth

THUS: a difference in APPROACH, EMPHASIS, and STYLE

6. Frequent repetition: “create,” 6. No repetition of key words or
“after its kind,” “likeness,” phrases
“image”

7. Orderly arrangement, precision and 7. Simple, picturesque manner
repetition: with words borrowed from the every day work
Announcement: “And God said...” and life of man. God
plants a garden; He put
Command: “Let there be … Let the man there, whom he
it be gathered … Let it had formed, and he bring forth. made all the trees to grow out of the ground
Report: “And it was so.” -- trees that were pleasing to the eyes and
Evaluation: “And God saw that good for food.
It was good.”

Temporal framework: “And there
was evening and there was
morning, the __ day.”

THE REPRESENTATION OF GOD IN THE SECOND NARRATIVE IS MORE ANTHROPOMORPHIC THAN IN THE FIRST.

This can also be seen in chapter three, “The Lord God WALKED in the Garden” and “the SOUND of his footsteps were heard.” He “MADE coats of skins for the man and his wife and he CLOTHED them.”

8. An orderly gradation is observed 8. A different order of creation culminating in the creation of is presented: man is
male and female. formed first, then the Garden with its trees;
beasts and fowl are formed; last of all, Eve.
That is, the plants, trees and living beings are described as made for man’s use and enjoyment,
after he had been formed. Woman was
formed last because there
had not yet been found
a helper adapted to man.

9. Chapter 1 displays a style that is 9. Much more personal and not impersonal, formulaic, and so rigid.
measured to the point of
austerity.

10. The barest statement of the 10. A detailed account of man is sequence of facts is presented. given.
Yet the there is grandeur to
what is presented.

By way of summary, two aspects of God’s nature are presented in these accounts:

HE IS ALL-POWERFUL, and thus was able to deliver the Israelites from the slavery the were in, and

HE IS VITALLY INTERESTED IN THOSE AND WHAT HE HAS MADE, and thus able to provide for every need they had.

This is primeval history and is found in Genesis 1-11. The second major thing Moses did was to tell those in Egypt he went to deliver, who they were, and how he (Moses) fit into their past. They were God’s chosen people, chosen to be his instrument for good in the world. To convince them of that Moses recited the history of the patriarchs: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; culminating in the account of how Joseph, one of Jacob’s sons, was sold into slavery in Egypt by his brothers and how the rest of the family joined him there later. That story forms patriarchal history, as cited in Genesis 12-50 (more precisely, 11:27 – 50:26).

Moses learned about the patriarchs from his relatives; he learned about creation by revelation. As has always been the case, God utilized the human and the divine to accomplish his purposes (in communicating Scripture, by the incarnation, in witnessing, and in ministering. The God who was asking the Israelites to leave Egypt was the God of majestic power (chapter 1), and the God of intimate concern. That is the God we meet throughout the rest of the Bible.

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