Thursday, June 26, 2014

WALKING IN MOSES’ SANDALS

                We have been presenting Vacation Bible School this week. The theme this year is Wilderness Escape Adventure. It is based on the journey of the people of Israel through the wilderness to the Promised Land. I was asked to play the role of Moses. So all this week I have been walking in Moses’ sandals, telling the children of some of the significant events in Israel’s wilderness wandering.

                Last night, I had to tell the children about the Passover. As I read through my script and reviewed what I was to do, I became apprehensive. How could I tell this to children, in a way they could understand, without unduly frightening them? I struggled right up to the time the first group arrived.

                Then something happened that surprised me. It should not have, but it did. God showed up in a powerful way. I met the children at the door to my room and explained that our talk would be more serious tonight. I asked them to come in and sit quietly, and they did. In fact, they were extremely attentive. As I began to tell the story, I was overcome with emotion. I deeply felt the sadness, the struggle, the uncertainty of that night. I struggled to control my emotions as I told of how Pharaoh defied God, and how God killed the first-born son of every Egyptian family, while protecting the people of Israel from the Death Angel. It was a profound experience.

                I have never entered into that story in the same way before. I have always read it from a safe distance. It was just a story. Last night, I was there. I keenly felt the struggle and the sadness and the fear. That is how Moses must have felt. Moses was not a cold, hard man. He understood the price that would be paid to free Israel from slavery. I am sure that he did not rejoice at the death of so many. I believe he wept for the senseless loss of life because of arrogant unbelief and rebellion. For sure, there was joy in Israel, as they realized that God had kept His promise, and they were being set free. But that joy had to have been tempered by the grief all around them.

                Sometimes we get the impression, from the Old Testament, that God somehow found pleasure in punishing those who rebelled against Him. That is far from the truth. I believe God’s heart breaks for every soul lost because of unbelief and rebellion. Say to them, 'As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways! Why will you die, O house of Israel?' (Ezekiel 33:11) This theme is carried into the New Testament. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9

                Last night, I walked in Moses’ sandals. I felt the weight of a grumbling, complaining people who quickly forgot all that God had done for them. I felt the spiritual struggle between rebellion and obedience. I felt the sadness of the cost that had to be paid. And, I was overwhelmed by the sacrifice that Jesus made for me on the cross of Calvary.

                In the past, I have identified with Moses in his struggle to be obedient to God. When God called me into ministry, I made many of the excuses Moses did for why I wasn’t qualified. Like Moses, I have, in many ways, been a reluctant leader, even though I know that God has prepared me for this very role. Last night, I identified with Moses in a whole new way. I felt the weight on his shoulders and the burden in his heart. I sensed his struggle to lead his people and his frustration with their resistance to being led. I sensed the conflict between doing what God called him to do and a heart of compassion for those who would pay the price. I identified with Moses in a whole new way.

                Last night, I walked in Moses’ sandals.


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