Exodus 4:1

When God called Moses in Exodus chapter three, God told Moses to go back to Egypt and to speak to the children of Israel. For example, God told Moses in Exodus 3:15, “Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you.” The Bible says in Exodus 4:1, “And Moses answered and said, But, behold, they will not believe me, nor hearken unto my voice: for they will say, The LORD hath not appeared unto thee.” Moses said to God, “they will not believe me.” From a human standpoint no doubt Moses had good reasons to say what he did. But from a spiritual standpoint, he had no good reason. If God wants you to do something, He will provide a way. God will make it possible. God will overcome the odds. It will be God doing it anyway, not you. The Apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” God does the work, but He often chooses a human instrument to do it. That was the case with Moses.

The Lord was patient and gracious to Moses. In order to help Moses’ faith, the Lord showed Moses three miraculous signs that would be given to Moses that Moses could use to convince the children of Israel that God had indeed spoken to Moses. Those three signs are given in Exodus 4:2-9 that says, “And the LORD said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A rod. And he said, Cast it on the ground. And he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from before it. And the LORD said unto Moses, Put forth thine hand, and take it by the tail. And he put forth his hand, and caught it, and it became a rod in his hand: That they may believe that the LORD God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath appeared unto thee. And the LORD said furthermore unto him, Put now thine hand into thy bosom. And he put his hand into his bosom: and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous as snow. And he said, Put thine hand into thy bosom again. And he put his hand into his bosom again; and plucked it out of his bosom, and, behold, it was turned again as his other flesh. And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe thee, neither hearken to the voice of the first sign, that they will believe the voice of the latter sign. And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe also these two signs, neither hearken unto thy voice, that thou shalt take of the water of the river, and pour it upon the dry land: and the water which thou takest out of the river shall become blood upon the dry land.”

There is an important lesson that we can all learn from the first miracle. Notice that Exodus 4:2-3 says, “And the LORD said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A rod. And he said, Cast it on the ground. And he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from before it.” Moses had been a shepherd for forty years, and that rod had been Moses’ instrument in performing his practical responsibilities as a shepherd. Moses used the rod every day to protect, and to guide, and to prod the sheep. Perhaps the reason that God used the rod to perform this miracle was because Moses leading the children of Israel was not going to be much different than Moses leading a flock of sheep. Perhaps also by using the rod to perform the miracle, God was showing that He can take ordinary, everyday things and events, and turn them into something godly and spiritual. In serving Jesus Christ there is no difference between the secular and the sacred. Everything becomes sacred when you turn it over to the Lord for His power and His infinite wisdom to use. The Bible says in Colossians 3:17, “And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus.” It also says in Colossians 3:23, “And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men.” How do you take what is in your hand, and place it into God’s hand so that He is using it like He did with the rod of Moses. You do it by what goes on in your heart and mind. You take what is in your hand and place it in God’s hand by dedicating what you do to the Lord.

Concerning the other two miracles that God performed in Exodus chapter 4, the Lord was demonstrating His power over all things in the lives of the children of Israel. The giving of leprosy and the taking away of the leprosy demonstrates that God is involved in every single thing that happens to someone’s body. God gives sickness or any other physical limitation, and God takes it away. Jesus is Lord, and there is none else. God may use doctors when He chooses, but God makes all of the decisions about every person’s health. The water from the river being turned to blood demonstrates that God is in control of all the natural processes around us. The wind blows, the sea flows, but God knows; and He also controls all things according to His infinite will. Everything fits into His plan, and He transforms whatsoever He desires. That is part of the reason that Jesus healed the sick and calmed the storm. Jesus demonstrated to Moses, and Jesus demonstrated in His life on earth that Jesus controls our bodies and the natural world around us. Do what God wants you to do. There is nothing to fear, but the infinite, never-changing Lord who controls all things, will continue to control all things so that you will be protected and empowered as He sees fit.

Even after these three demonstrations of God’s power, Moses had a second expression of doubt in Exodus 4:10. The Bible says, “And Moses said unto the Lord, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, not since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.” God commanded Moses to speak, but Moses looked at “speaking” from an entirely human standpoint. Humans tend to think of public speaking from a human standpoint. That is, they evaluate speaking based upon eloquence, the sound of the voice, or other human qualities. Speaking the truth is important, not the eloquence of words. Those who are not spiritually minded easily fall into this error of over-valuing human presentation, both when looking at themselves and when evaluating others. False teachers often are very good speakers from a human standpoint. It says in Romans 16:17-18, “Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them. For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.” Moses did not have a great speaking ability, but that did not matter to God. As a matter of fact, that may have been a benefit and a blessing for Moses. Without a great human speaking ability, all of the credit for anything that Moses would say would easily be credited to God and to God’s glory. Those who have an uncommon human speaking ability sometimes rely upon their own ability instead of relying upon the Lord, and they receive praise and honor of men for what they have said. But Jesus deserves all of the glory and all of the honor from our lips and from our hearts. It says in Revelation 4:11, “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.”

Moses said that he was “slow of speech, and of a slow tongue,” and therefore could not go and say the things that the Lord wanted Moses to say to the children of Israel and to Pharaoh. God’s answer to that objection is found in Exodus 4:11-12, “And the Lord said unto him, Who hath made man’s mouth? Or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? Have not I the Lord? Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say.” The point that God is making here is that He has created every single human being on this earth. And the unique characteristics of each of these humans was given to them by God, and that includes any limitation. If you have a limitation, and every human being has his or her share, then God gave you that limitation out of His infinite wisdom and for the purpose of fitting into His eternal plan for you and for the universe. One of the reasons that God has given you your unique limitations is so that you will remember to rely upon the Lord Jesus, and then He will be glorified as He helps you to overcome those limitations by His grace. The Apostle Paul learned that important spiritual lesson. Paul wrote in Second Corinthians 12:7-10, “And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.”

Moses’ response to the latest encouragement from God is found in Exodus 4:13. Speaking of Moses, the Bible says, “And he said, O my Lord, send, I pray thee, by the hand of him whom thou wilt send.” In other words Moses asked God to send someone else. That is not a good thing to say to God, not when He has called you and been very patient with you. Remember that God gives opportunity, but one of the characteristics of opportunity is that it does not last forever. There is an old saying, “Opportunity only knocks once.” Benjamin Franklin said, “To succeed, jump as quickly at opportunities as you do conclusions.” God gives opportunity, but He also takes it away and gives it to someone else if He must.

Jesus uses people to speak the Word of God. Moses was given the opportunity to do so. But when Moses doubted and resisted, then God gave the opportunity to someone else. The Bible says in Exodus 4:14-17, “And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Moses, and he said, Is not Aaron the Levite thy brother? I know that he can speak well. And also, behold, he cometh forth to meet thee: and when he seeth thee, he will be glad in his heart. And thou shalt speak unto him, and put words in his mouth: and I will be with thy mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what ye shall do. And he shall be thy spokesman unto the people: and he shall be, even he shall be to thee instead of a mouth, and thou shalt be to him instead of God. And thou shalt take this rod in thine hand, wherewith thou shalt do signs.” There is something important to notice about what happened when the Lord got angry at Moses. Even though the opportunity to speak was given to Aaron, God did not take His care and compassion away from Moses. God still used Moses, and still kept Moses in His plan. It says about Jesus in John 13:1, “having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end.” There is something else to notice about this passage. God has a will, and He has a particular way that He wants to do something. But the way that God wants to do something can be altered by man’s choices. God has given the power of choice to men and women. But no matter what choice people make, God will still fulfill His eternal purposes. God decided to deliver the children of Israel out of Egypt. Initially, Moses would have been the only leader to accomplish that task. But because Moses chose to not believe that God could overcome Moses’ speaking limitations, God brought Aaron into the picture to do part of the work. Be careful what choices you make. Find out which way God wants you to go, and go with Him. Jesus offers you salvation. Follow the Spirit’s leading and make the decision to turn to Christ.

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