LifeLink Devotions for Wednesday, September 25, 2024

Moses is still not satisfied that he is the man for the job God has assigned to him, so in an attempt to excuse himself from service he gives the Lord another excuse. In addition to claiming that he is a nobody and that he is not a theologian, he now claims that he is simply unconvincing and without any authority to prove a point to anyone. He says, “What if they do not believe me or listen to me?” He is afraid that people will not take him seriously.

I’m sure we all have these same fears at times. We know what the truth is, but no matter how we explain it people just don’t believe us. We fall into a familiar trap that we are somehow responsible for other people’s decisions. We are convinced in our hearts that sharing the truth is only profitable when it is believable. We let other people’s responses dictate our dictation. Where did we get this idea that speaking the truth is only appropriate if it produces acceptance with the hearer?

I think that philosophy is the product of fear – the fear of rejection, which is a serious twist of pride in our lives. Pride is the source of the fear of rejection, so it is pride that keeps us from doing or saying anything that might make relational waves. This is what Moses was dealing with. These people had rejected him once. Why would he risk that rejection again? Why would any of us? God has the answer: live by the truth. Either we do or we don’t. We cannot say that we live by the truth and then choose not to speak it and act upon it regardless of the consequences. If we are allowing outcomes to determine our actions, then we are not truly committed to the truth but rather to outcomes, and that’s prideful.

God answer Moses’ concerns by teaching him 2 incredible lessons in Exodus 4.

1.   God’s power makes the insignificant great. He turns Moses’ staff into a snake and then back into a staff again. God can take what we deem insignificant and unconvincing and make it into something alive and powerful. If he can do that with a stick, he can do that with our lives.

2.    God’s Word, when obeyed, conquers our fears. Moses ran in fear from the snake, but he obeyed God’s command to face his fears and pick up the snake by the tail. God’s Word is powerful, as 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 states, “For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” When we are obeying God’s Word, we are more powerful than anything we previously feared.

God has answered another excuse Moses gave for not immediately participating in His plan. Have you used the excuse of rejection to avoid doing something God has called you to do? If you join God in His work, He will give you the power needed to overcome your fears. You will be equipped with His identity to step out in obedience and experience His authority and security. 

Pastor John