God Makes us Better

Exodus 4

Moses, more than anything, wanted his people to be free from the ugly oppression he saw his people endure his entire life. If Moses could bring his people out of slavery by Himself, he would, but the fact that Israel was trapped in slavery was not dependent on him. God then appears to Moses and tells him that he has heard the cries and groans of the Israelitesjust as Moses heard, but God had the power to change the situation. God claims to Moses that he will send plagues to Egypt until the Pharoah lets the Israelites out of slavery, something Moses could not say he could do because the difference between water and blood was not Moses’ will, but God’s. The wills of bugs are not dependent on Moses’ will but God’s will. Light is not dependent on Moses but on God. And the lives of humans and animals were not dependent on Moses’ will, but God’s will. Moses believed that all of these things were dependent coupon God, so He believed that God could easily change them. God also claimed that God had the power to change and influence the wills of men. God told Moses that God would harden Pharoah’s before Pharoah would let the Israelites go, and he would make the hearts of the Egyptian citizens like the Israelites enough to give them gifts of gold as they exited Egypt. Moses apparently had an easy time believing that the difference between being regarded as immigrant scum and being given gifts of gold is also God’s will and that the difference between Pharoah having common sense and letting the Israelites go and Pharoah being insanely stubborn to the point of not letting the Israelites go was ultimately God’s will. Moses also got to see nature’s dependence on God first hand. First God tells Moses to throw down his staff. When the staff hits the ground, it becomes a snake. This causes Moses to freak out and run away fast. The next thing God told Moses to do is put his hand into his cloak, and when Moses pulled it out it was leprous. When Moses puts his leperous hand back into his cloak and then takes it out again, his hand returns to health as it was before. He now knows intimately that the difference between a stick and a snake is God’s will. And the reason why Moses does not have leprosy is that God did not will to give Him leprosy. But Moses, although he wants nothing more than to lead his people out of slavery, had a problem with God’s plan because it also involved Moses speaking to Pharoah and all of the Israelites. Moses points out to God, “I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.”( Exodus 4:10). God of course knows this full well, and tells Moses that the reason why Moses spoke poorly, was because God made him Moses that way! God tells Moses that God controls everything and that everything is dependent on Him, including Moses’ inability to speak well. But God tells Moses not to fear because God will be with Moses’ mouth so that Moses could talk to all of the Israelite community and the Pharoah of all of Egypt. Yet, for some illogical reason, Moses does not believe God will make Moses a good speaker. In patriarch and prophets, Ellen White states, “It implied a fear that God was unable to qualify him for the great work to which He had called him, or that He had made a mistake in the selection of the man”. The two options according to Ellen White are that either Moses did not feel that God could make him eloquent or that Moses felt like God should have chosen someone else, but are these not the same things? The only reason why Moses is said to be unfit for being God’s spokesperson is of his poor speech, and when God gives Aaron to be Moses’ spokesperson, this solves the problem for Moses and Moses goes on and become the leader of Israel, and when Moses become a good speaker, Aaron’s role of leadership decreased drastically. Clearly, Moses just did not believe God would give him eloquence. Because Moses had a limited view of God’s sovereignty because Moses believed that his own speech was not dependent on God, Moses asks God very politely to find someone else to talk to Pharoah and to the Israelites. It is after this request from Moses that God’s anger is kindled. It makes God angry when we believe that something is not dependent on Him.

Problem in the world:

God is angry at some of us right now. Many of us need to be reminded today that everything is utterly dependent on Him. There are two attitudes of our souls toward’s God’s sovereignty, and these views express themselves in how we pray. Do we believe everything’s existence and qualities depend on God’s will or do we believe that the world would be fine without Him? One weekend I was about to drive to a bowling alley with some friends, but before I drove off I prayed out loud for a safe trip to the bowling alley in Jesus’ name. Then, interestingly enough, one of my friends, who is a good Christian, asked, “Ricky why do you pray before you drive, I don’t pray before I walk!”. But I cleverly responded, “maybe I should pray before I walk, who knows how many falls God would have not allowed.” Therein lies the difference between the views, is everything utterly dependent on God’s will or not? God told Moses that God was the reason why anyone blind or can see, whether someone is mute or can talk, or if any of us can speak well or speak poorly. I, recently realized that I was not subconsciously aware of my dependence on God for speech, just like Moses was. For one reason or another, I realized that my speech had gotten slightly worse than it had been in previous weeks, and it kind of made me frustrated. But instead of praying about it, I was just in an annoying mood about the whole situation. But as I was writing this sermon, I realized that I did not once pray to the almighty God about it. For some reason, I was a person who was deeply aware that my safety on the road depended on God, but I was not someone who was deeply aware that my ability to speak was also dependent on God’s will. I believed subconsciously that my safety on the road was more dependent on God than my own speaking ability was. It is a curious thing that we subconsciously limit God’s role in the world, and this manifests in how we pray and how we view other people’s prayers. One time I was in a prayer meeting where someone asked broadly about them asking out a girl that they liked. In my head when I heard this I was dumbfounded. I have never thought of asking God for help when asking a girl out. I felt like that was so weird in many respects. But I, also when writing this sermon, realized, that I myself have been inconsistent with what I subconsciously assume is utterly dependent on God. I have been in scenarios where I have asked for God to change to the heart of those who are racist, or the heart of those who have disliked me for one reason or another, I have prayed for God to open the eyes of those who hate God to love God. The Bible clearly shows that the loves and dispositions of people are in the hand of God. God told Moses that God would cause the Egyptians to love the Israelites so much so that the Egyptians would be moved to give the Israelites gold on their trip out of Egypt. God also hardened Pharoah’s heart so God clearly has control over a human’s will. Going back to the person who asked for prayer over asking a girl out, is the outcome not also utterly dependent on God. Do you know why you are attracted to one type of person as opposed to another type of person? Surely this is the furthest thing from your free will. Even someone finding you physically attractive is utterly dependent on God’s will. When we truly believe God could solve every problem we have, when we understand that everything is dependent on God’s will, our prayers reflect that. Do you believe God has control over your sanctification? You do if you pray for God not to lead you into temptation. Are you praying for world peace? If not, I don’t believe your soul believes that world peace is utterly dependent on God’s will. When we are in a tough spot, do we pray right away? If not, I do not believe your soul believes that the situation you are in is utterly dependent on God. When we are writing a paper we are loathing, we pray. When we hit any roadblock, we pray. Why? Because our souls know through the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit, that our situations, our wills, all the atoms in the universe, are utterly dependent on God. Do you pray for God to keep you safe while walking? Then you truly realize that everything is truly dependent on God’s will. God was angry at Moses because he limited God, I pray this is not the case in this room.

Grace in the Text:

Moses was not close to God enough that Moses would believe that his own speech was dependent on God, so God let Moses have someone speak for him, Aaron. Yet, God tells Moses that he will give both Aaron and Moses the ability to speak for Him. And over time, God gave Moses the ability to speak to a large group of people well, overtime Moses did end up learning that his speech was indeed completely dependent upon God. As Moses’ courage and faith increased, the need for Aaron’s help lessened. Ellen White states, “The divine command given to Moses found him self-distrustful, slow of speech, and timid. He was overwhelmed with a sense of his incapacity to be a mouthpiece for God to Israel. But having once accepted the work, he entered upon it with his whole heart, putting all his trust in the Lord. The greatness of his mission called into exercise the best powers of his mind. God blessed his ready obedience, and he became eloquent, hopeful, self-possessed, and well fitted for the greatest work ever given to man. This is an example of what God does to strengthen the character of those who trust Him fully and give themselves unreservedly to His commands”. God did not give up on Moses. After Moses did not believe his own speech was dependent on God, God stuck with Moses and ended up teaching Moses who God really was.

Grace in the World

Throughout our lives, God will make us more and more intimately aware of our dependence on Him. Our speech is dependent on God. Our sanctification is dependent on God. Our lives are dependent on God. Over time, God will make us more and more aware of him, and this process of becoming aware of God’s power is also utterly dependent on God. God will teach and mold us into people who recognize that He is our salvation in all things from not into eternity. We deserved death, but God died for us. So even in heaven, for an eternity, we will be singing praises to God because the joy that we will be given was completely dependent on God’s death on our behalf. To Him be the praise and honor forever and ever, amen.