By Andrew Stoddard
Then Moses answered, “But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you.’”
The Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?
Moses replied, “My smartphone, Lord.”
And God said unto Moses, “Good. Begin working on increasing your platform immediately. It is true that the people will not believe you now, but if you can double your Twitter following and increase the reach of your Instagram account, then the people will respect you as a leader. If you can angle your way into a better job with a more important title, then my people will hear your voice and respond. If you can make just a little more money, or be seen as the most powerful man in the room, then the people of Israel will follow you. If you buy better clothes and wear nicer shoes, then my people will know you are called to be their leader.”
This is a paraphrase not so much of the Bible, but of the human heart.
Sometimes if feels more natural to seek leadership and influence not by the power of God, but by our own strength and will. Clearly, God would never say something like this; but I think the desire to make our own name great runs deep. It can trick us into thinking that the pursuit of glory in the name of God is the same thing as glorifying God. It can also trick us into becoming much more comfortable with relying on our talents and strengths than on the supernatural power of God.
One of my favorite professors in seminary always challenged us to search our hearts and think clearly about our motives and methods for approaching leadership positions. His basic premise was this: if you feel like you’ve smooth-talked or influenced (or platform-ed) your way into a position of leadership, then it’s hard to know if you weaseled your way into power or if God has actually called you to that place. Working your way to leadership through your own strength could actually pay off in the short run, but when the going gets tough, it’s highly likely that you’ll waver.
The best positions of leadership are the ones you know you couldn’t have attained without the intervention of the Most High.
Moses was in such a place. There was no way that he could have confronted Pharaoh and triumphed because of his bravado. There was no way the Israelites would’ve have followed him on account of his clever speeches or military prowess. The only way Moses could account for progress was by the hand of God.
It was the same for Aaron! “No one takes this honor for himself, but only when called by God, just as Aaron was” (Hebrews 5.4).
Moses succeeded because he knew that it was really God who was paving the way for change and redemption. The signs of the staff and the leprous hand were proof not just to Pharaoh’s court, but also to Moses, that God was doing this work.
We can’t force God’s hand. We can only follow His lead. With that in mind, we should examine our own hearts and motivations. A good thing done for the wrong reasons or in the wrong way can have disastrous results. How are you caring for your family? Your co-workers? Your friends? Are you operating out of a place of self-contrived power? Or do you seek divinely given influence?
Man may be impressed by the outward appearance, but remember—God looks at the heart (1 Samuel 16:7).
Written By Andrew Stoddard
71 thoughts on "God Equips Moses"
-
Josh Woods says:
He calls us to places where He can showcase His strength, not to where we can show off ours.
-
I will stop trying to prove my own prowess, and instead I will listen first and respond to Him.
-
God calls us in spite of ourselves, and for His glory (not ours), He invites us into the redemption of the world in ways that are beyond our own strength and abilities.
-
Men want to show off–to showboat–to make themselves look good.
-
Lord,
You know my heart–and the pride that drives me to rely on my own strength. But this is way beyond me. And I don’t want my life to be something I can manage. I want to live into Your life–not my own. Make me more like You; more like love.
Amen. -
Mark McNeff says:
I will respond with patience. A greater understand of my own tendencies to misuse the gifts God has given me and I will allow Him to be the guiding force of leadership in my life. Not my own desires
-
That He uses people for His purposes as He see fit. His choice will often not look like the right man for the job so that when He says he is acting by the power of the Lord it will be more evident that is true.
-
We often will work and control and manipulate our lives to where we feel like we are in the drivers seat and we have earned what we have. We are inherently thinking about what the next step is or next move and trying to plot our success path instead of allowing God to move and work through us
-
Even Jesus being perfect, waited until the Father gave him the charge of High Priest, He didn’t scheme or smooth talk or sneak his way into a leadership position. This shows the God wants to use us but in His context and timing. If we are to model Jesus and look to His work we will find that He was patient for the Father to raise Him up in the right time during the right situation. So when things in life aren’t adding up the way we want them to we ought to rest easy know the the Father may be saving us from ourselves
-
I will pray for God to satisfy my heart and to protect from the temptations of thoughts like, if I had this thing or job or situation then God could use me. And allow his power to speak through me in the times and places he has me in now
-
Graham says:
I will confess and repent of my sin of control and self-willed determination. I will pray and ask the Lord to equip me for His purposes this day. I will seek the Holy Spirit to check my inward motivations.
-
That God in His mercy and grace equips those He has chosen. Leadership is given, not earned or contrived.
-
The Gospel of Jesus Christ and the power of His blood and the victory of His resurrection are the only things that can free us from our doubts and our worries. The gospel equips us with truth.
-
Man is powerless without God’s divine intervention. Will always look to shift the responsibility to someone else. I’m a doubter and worrier just like Moses.
-
For right motivations with others and with myself.
-
Richard Duncalfe says:
Lord, give me the heart and ears to hear your voice, and know your calling in my life. Give me the eyes to see the grace in my life, that shows me that you are trustworthy. Please give me the courage to obey you in what I hear.
-
God asks us to obey in spite of our weaknesses, and to trust in him to bridge the skill deficit. His wrath is kindled if we protest too much or resist his calling – but still he is gracious to provide what we ask for!
-
When I hear God’s promoting to speak, or give, to someone I would not normally / easily speak to, I will – and rely on him for the words.
-
Man doesn’t like to step out of a comfort zone! We don’t like to trust in other people. But I can’t blame Moses – he didn’t know this God, why should he trust Him? He needed the supernatural signs. What signs do I have to trust God? Well the evidence is in the gift the Bible, the story of Jesus, the grace of the church community. I have just as much reason to trust and obey God as Moses did.
-
God appears to us when we are not looking for him.
God promises to provide for us for the things he calls us to.
Comments are closed.
Post Comments (71)