Moses

Listen to today’s reading:

Exodus 6:28-7:1

Now when the Lord spoke to Moses in Egypt, he said to him, “I am the Lord. Tell Pharaoh king of Egypt everything I tell you.”

But Moses said to the Lord, “Since I speak with faltering lips, why would Pharaoh listen to me?”

Then the Lord said to Moses, “See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron will be your prophet.

Psalm 118:6

The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid.
What can mere mortals do to me?

Matthew 13:55

“Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas?

Today’s Reading:

On May 1st of 1991, we heard it from the mouth of Rickey Henderson. He told the Oakland crowd, “today, I’m the greatest of all time!” Rickey wasn’t short of confidence, and it showed on the base path. He had just pulled third base out of the dirt as his prize after taking his 939th stolen base – one more than Lou Brock for the all-time record. He didn’t stop there though. He went on in his career to steal 1,406 bases, which is a total that may never be touched again. Rickey had a deadly combination of not only being fast, but also being quick. He seemed to reach his top speed in just three steps. Rickey might could get away with a little bit of hesitation and still take a bag, but did he ever? For most of us, committing to the next base is crucial to stealing. Any bit of reservation puts the catcher in a position to throw runners out. Unlike Rickey, Moses was hesitant and doubtful in his abilities. God wanted him to lead. Israel was captive in Egypt and needed to be freed. From the first time God approached Moses in a burning bush, he questioned God about facing Pharaoh. He just didn’t get it. No, Moses didn’t have the power to save the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt. It would be God through him. Moses had serious doubts, telling God, “Since I speak with faltering lips, why would Pharaoh listen to me?” Some scholars believe that Moses had a speech impediment. Maybe he was just a bad public speaker and stumbled over his words. We don’t know exactly, but we can be confident that God already knew all of that about him. The Lord responds to Moses, “see, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron will be your prophet.” Moses and Aaron would go on to deliver the nation of Israel out of 430 years of slavery with God in their side, despite all of Moses’s doubts. When we look at the life of Jesus on earth, he never doubted the Father’s plans, but he had a lot of experience leading the doubters. He was surrounded with them though his ministry. It was recorded in scripture that many of his followers did doubt him at some time. Even John the Baptist - who identified himself as the one fulfilling Isaiah 40:3, the one calling out in the wilderness to make a straight path for the Lord (John 1:23) and identifying Jesus as the lamb of God who would take away the sin of the world and God’s Chosen One at his savior’s baptism in John 1:29-34. He seemed to doubt Jesus later in Matthew 11:3. Even one of the disciples, now nicknamed “Doubting Thomas,” had to stick his finger in Jesus’s side, into his wound, in order to believe that Jesus had resurrected from the dead (John 20:27). And as you read from our New Testament scripture today, his hometown doubted him because he was “the carpenter’s son” (Matthew 13:55). The list goes on. When Jesus invites Peter to walk out on the water with him, he doubts Jesus’s power and started to sink into the sea, but our Lord Jesus doesn’t let him sink in over his head. He was there to catch him when he fell into that doubt (Matthew 14:28-32). Yes, our Lord knows about our doubt, in him but also in ourselves. We may never be the smartest, strongest, fastest, or most talented. We may be the least in the world’s eyes, actually. Know that God has made you specific to your job in the kingdom, a job that no one else can and will do. Do you believe that? He wants you to trust him. Be faithful to the call of Christ, because it will be so worth it going into eternity when Jesus says, like in Matthew 25:23, “well done, good and faithful servant!” When you get the sign from your coach to steal second base, don’t hesitate. Know that no evil can throw you out. As you follow closely to Jesus, you will come to find that he will continue to faithfully relieve your doubts one by one.

Today’s Prayer Guide:

Praise – Praise God for being patient with us in our doubt of his great power.

Confession – Confess that you yourself have doubted what he can do in and through you.

Ask – Ask God to give you confidence in him and your ability to do great things for his kingdom.