A RELUCTANT LEADER

Exodus 3-4

Fellowship Bible Church, Roswell, Georgia

Monty Watson

July 13, 2008

 A RELUCTANT LEADER
Exodus 3-4

Everywhere we look these days there are voices telling us how to improve our lives and get
our lives in shape. Fitness magazines tell us how to exercise and financial magazines tell us how to
invest. Advertisers tell us how much better our lives would be if we would drive this car or use this
makeup. Magazine covers project images of perfect people with perfect lifestyles, and inside articles
tell us how we too can live the perfect life. This week Apple’s latest iPhone went on sale, loaded
with upgrades promising to make life better if you buy it. And daily, Oprah gives her advice on
everything from the latest book to read to the latest guru to follow. If you buy this club your golf
game will be better, if you use this shampoo your hair will look better, if you see this movie your life
will be so much better.

It’s all about experiencing the good life and finding fulfillment. But I doubt your choice of
shampoo is going to have much to do with fulfillment in life or with shaping who are you. So what
will? What will bring fulfillment? What will shape you into the person that you truly long to
become?

In our series Moses: Made by God, we are studying the events which shaped Moses’ life to
learn how God wants to shape our lives. So what made Moses Moses? Moses was shaped by living
in the daily presence of God and, albeit reluctantly, Moses was shaped by fulfilling God’s call on his
life. So what can we learn from Moses? To live in the daily presence of God and do whatever He
asks you to do.

When I say the presence of God, I’m not just talking about reading about God, not just God
on paper. I’m talking about God jumping off the pages of Scripture into the reality of our lives.
Because that’s what He did for Moses. God intervened in the reality of Moses’ life and shaped him
for an extraordinary moment in history. At a point of desperate need, God sovereignly chose to act
and to act through Moses.
23
Years passed, and the king of Egypt died. But the Israelites continued to groan under their burden of
slavery. They cried out for help, and their cry rose up to God. 24God heard their groaning, and he
remembered his covenant promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 25He looked down on the people of Israel
and knew it was time to act. (Exodus 2:23-25, NLT).

The Lord heard their cries. The Lord saw their suffering. And the Lord chose to do something
and do that something through Moses.

Moses was 80 years old; 40 years removed from banishment from Egypt, from a home in
Pharaoh’s palace, from being the prince of Egypt to being just a shepherd in Midian. But he was
about to become an instrument in the hand of God. God was about to transform his life from the
ordinary to the extraordinary, from the complacent to the compassionate, from making a living to
making an impact, from saying “I can’t” to trusting God’s “I can.” Moses the reluctant leader has
become a role model for leadership throughout the world.

Moses is featured in the center position on the eastern frieze of the United States Supreme
Court building. His bronze statue looks down upon the Reading Road in the Library of Congress.

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A bas relief of Moses dots the wall above the chamber of the U. S. House of Representatives. Moses
sits at the entrance the New York City Public Library, in the courtyard of the University of Notre
Dame, and at the Vatican in Rome. And of course, he had a starring role in The Prince of Egypt.

Moses is hailed as a great keeper of the law, but we know something more about him. We
know what shaped Moses’ life. What made Moses Moses? He lived in the daily presence of God in
order to do whatever God asked him to do. Exodus 3-4 can be read in about 15 minutes. Perhaps the
encounter lasted longer. But this short story is not just an ancient story. It is relevant because our
story is much like Moses’ story. It is relevant because what shaped Moses’ life can shape our lives.
And that’s our challenge today. To live in the daily presence of God and do whatever He asks you
to do.

FACE TO FACE WITH THE HOLINESS OF GOD

Moses was shaped by coming face to face with the holiness of God. And when he did, his
ordinary life was trumped by the presence of God.

Moses tended the flock of his father-in-law Jethro and searched for food and water in the
desert region near Mount Horeb, also called Mount Sinai and referred to as “the mountain of God.”
It was there that Moses saw a burning bush, a blazing fire which oddly did not consume the bush.
When he got closer to take a look, God spoke from the burning bush!

This day started out like any other day, like 40 years of days before. Another day of bleating
sheep, another day of sun-backed rock under foot, another day with the taste of desert dust in his
mouth. But this day would be anything but just another day. This day would bring a “never before”
experience. A burning bush!? A voice!? And the voice knew his name. “Moses.” God knew his
name. It was personal. It was one-on-one. A conversation was about to take place. Moses came face
to face with the presence of God.

And the voice of God said, “Do not come any closer. Take off your sandals, for you are
standing on holy ground. I am the God of your father—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and
the God of Jacob.” When Moses heard this, he covered his face because he was afraid to look at God
(Exodus 3:5-6, NLT).

Moses encountered the presence of God, the holiness of God, and realized that God must be
approached with reverence.1 So he took off his sandals in recognition of God’s authority, God’s
purity, God’s perfection. It was an acknowledgment of his unworthiness before God. It was a
moment of shame, fear, humility, and awe all at once. Holiness demands reverence.2

Nothing shapes us more than living daily in the presence of God, than peering into His
holiness, trying to understand Him, trying to get to know Him, trying to learn about Him and to learn
from Him. Nothing shapes us more than reading His word and meditating on what He is trying to
say to us. His presence, His Word, and His holiness shaped Moses and His presence, His Word, and
His holiness shapes us.

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 After a week at the beach, out in the sun, and people will say, “Oh, what a nice tan. You must
have been at the beach.” People can see it. And people can see it when we’ve been in the presence
of holiness. Years later, when Moses came down from Mount Sinai, after literally being in God’s
presence, his face shone so brightly that the people could not look at him. He had to wear a veil
because his face was so bright. But as time passed, something happened. Moses kept wearing the veil
so that people could not see “what was fading away” (2 Corinthians 3:13). Oh how quickly the glory
will fade if we neglect being in His presence.

Nothing shapes our lives more than coming face to face with the holiness of God, than living
in the daily presence of God.

FACE TO FACE WITH THE HEART OF GOD

Moses was also shaped by coming face to face with the heart of God. And when he did,
his complacency was trumped by God’s compassion. Moses came face to face with God’s
compassionate concern about the deliverance and salvation of His people.
7
Then the Lord told Moses, “I have certainly seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I have heard
their cries of distress because of their harsh slave drivers. Yes, I am aware of their suffering. 8So I have
come down to rescue them from the power of the Egyptians and lead them out of Egypt into their own
fertile and spacious land … a land flowing with milk and honey … 9The cry of the people of Israel has
reached me, and I have seen how harshly the Egyptians abuse them. (Exodus 3:7-9, NLT)

“I have seen … I have heard … Yes, I am aware of their suffering.” God sees, God hears, and
God cares.

It broke the Father’s heart to see the suffering of His children. It once broke Moses’ heart too,
but no more. Forty years of trying to forget the pain of banishment, the guilt of murder, the loss of
identity, the compassion Moses once had for his people had turned to complacency. Moses with
content with his obscurity and, frankly, did not want to be reminded about it. Yet he would be
reminded of Israel’s distress, because he came face to face with the compassion of God.

Again, God sees, God hears, and God cares. And He wants us to care about what He cares
about. “Moses, do you see their oppression? Moses, do you hear their cries? Moses, do you care
about your brothers?” Do we see? Do we hear? Do we care? God wants us to care about the lost who
need to hear the gospel, to see the plight of the poor who need help, to hear the case of the oppressed
who need justice to be served. What will move us out of our complacency? Coming face to face with
the heart of God.

FACE TO FACE WITH THE CALLING OF GOD

Moses was shaped by coming face to face with the calling of God. And when he did,
making a living was trumped by making an impact. There’s more to life than making a living.
Now, I’m not talking leaving your job for something more spiritual. Your job is spiritual. Your job
is your ministry. And your job is to make an impact where God has placed you and to fulfill God’s
holy calling on your life.

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 Moses came face to face with his holy calling. “Now go, for I am sending you to Pharaoh.
You must lead my people Israel out of Egypt” (Exodus 3:10, NLT). At Israel’s most desperate
moment, God chose Moses deliver Israel from her misery. Moses had the chance to free Israel from
430 years of slavery!3

I don’t know what God is specifically calling you to do, but I am certain that He is calling
you to join Him, because God chooses to use us to accomplish His purpose.4

In his book The Call, Os Guinness writes that “answering the call of our Creator is ‘the
ultimate why’ for living, the highest source of purpose in human existence.”5 Responding to this
calling is offering “everything we are, everything we do, and everything we have” to God.6 We have
been “personally summoned by the Creator of the universe, we are given a meaning in what we do
that flames over every second and inch of our lives.… The call of God jerks us wide awake.…
Calling is the supreme motivation, the ultimate ‘why.’ ”7

God has a purpose for your life. “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “(plans
for) a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11, NLT).8 We are created by God, sustained by God, gifted
by God, and called by God. Life is not just about making a living, it’s about living in the daily
presence of God and doing whatever He asks you to do.

FACE TO FACE WITH THE POWER OF GOD

Moses was shaped by coming face to face with the power of God. And when he did, his
“I can’t” was trumped by God’s “I can.” We all make excuses. We make excuses when we don’t
want to be bothered or when we’re afraid or feel inadequate. Moses made excuses too. Every excuse
Moses gave was trumped by God’s promise.

Excuse #1. Moses protested to God, “Who am I to appear before Pharaoh? Who am I to lead
the people of Israel out of Egypt?’” God answered, “I will be with you” (Exodus 3:12, NLT). In
comparison the Pharaoh, Moses was a nobody. A shepherd versus a king?! “Who am I to appear
before Pharaoh?” “I’m a nobody. I’m not up to a job like that.” And God said, “I know you’re a
nobody. And, of course, you’re not up to the job. I knew that before I chose you. Moses, what’s
important is not your ability but Mine. I will be with you.”9

Excuse #2. Moses protested again, “If I go to the people of Israel and tell them, ‘The God of
your ancestors has sent me to you,’ they will ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what should I tell
them?” God replied to Moses, “I Am Who I Am. Say this to the people of Israel: I Am has sent me
to you” (Exodus 3:13-14, NLT).10

Titles signify rank and names often signify character. Just the mention of a name can tell a
person’s life story. Washington, Napoleon, Ghandi, Manson, Oswald, Elvis, Diana. John Piper writes
that God chose “names for the sake of revealing things about himself that will deepen our love for
him and enlarge our admiration and strengthen our faith.”11

He is the great “I Am.”

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 I AM the one who came from nothing and who has no beginning
I AM the forever existing one
I AM the creator, owner, and sustainer of all that is
I AM inexhaustible energy and power
I AM consuming fire, I AM holiness, I AM perfection
I AM good, I AM love, I AM just
I AM everything and everywhere
I AM near and I AM aware
I AM sufficient and I AM enough12

David said, “Those who know your name trust in you” (Psalm 9:10, NLT). That’s what God
was calling Moses to do and that’s what God is calling us to do. To know His name and to trust His
name.

Excuse #3. Again Moses protested. “What if they won’t believe me or listen to me? What
if they say, ‘The Lord never appeared to you’?” (Exodus 4:1, NLT). The Lord performed two
miracles to prove His power to Moses, miracles which Moses would perform before Pharaoh to
prove the power of God as well.

The Lord told Moses to throw his staff to the ground, when he did it turned into a snake.
Then the Lord told Moses to pick up the snake, and when he did it turned back into a staff. The Lord
told Moses to place his hand inside his robe, when he removed it his hand turned leprous. Then the
Lord told Moses to place his hand inside his robe again, and when he removed it his hand was
healed. The Lord told Moses to perform these signs so that the Egyptians would believe and let His
people go.13

Excuse #4. But Moses had one more excuse. “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the
past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.” Then the Lord
said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is
it not I, the Lord? Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall
speak.” (Exodus 4:10-12, ESV).

Jesus told the disciples, “Don’t worry about how to respond or what to say. God will give you
the right words at the right time” (Matthew 10:19, NLT). And the Lord said to Paul, “My grace is
sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Because Christ dwells in us, we can
confidently say as Paul said, “for when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:9-11, NAS)

You are an instrument in the hand of God; like a brush in the artist’s hand, like a scalpel in
the surgeon’s hand, like a violin in the master’s hand. No one says, “Wow, look what that paintbrush
did.” No one applauds the violin. The applause is not for the violin, it’s for the violinist. As that old
song says, “it’s the touch of the Master’s hand” that makes the difference. You and I are instruments
in the hand of God and it’s His touch that makes the difference. Our gifts, talents, and abilities are
important because they come from God. But our gifts, talents, and abilities are impotent without the
anointing of God.

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 Moses’ “I can’t” was trumped by God’s “I can.” There are no legitimate excuses for not
fulfilling God’s calling on our lives. “I AM” will be with you and “I AM” is enough. Therefore, live
in the daily presence of God and do whatever He asks you to do.

FACE TO FACE WITH THE PERSISTENCE OF GOD

After four excuses, you’d think Moses would give up. But Moses pleaded, “Oh, my Lord,
please send someone else” (Exodus 4:13, ESV). The Bible says, “the anger of the Lord burned
against Moses” (Exodus 4:14, NAS). God had had enough with Moses’ excuses, fear, doubt, and
disobedience. So Moses came face to face with the persistence of God. And when he did, his “no”
was trumped by God’s “go.”

“But Lord, don’t make me go back there. Don’t make me relive my past. Don’t make me face
my failure. Oh Lord, send someone else.” Have you ever said something like that? “Oh my Lord,
please send someone else ... ask someone else to go, to give, to speak, to sacrifice.”

How dare we say “no” when God says “go”? Saying “no” to God …

• is choosing a self-absorbed life, a life of lesser pursuits.

• is choosing to be comfortable and refusing to be inconvenienced.
• is fear; a fear of risk, a fear of ridicule, a fear of failure, a fear of losing what you treasure most.
• is lack of faith, it’s doubt and a failure to believe in God’s ability.
• is spiritual complacency, disobedience, and it is sin.

To say “no” to God, you might as well say, “Thanks Lord, but I really don’t have a passion
for that. I kinda had something else in mind.” You might as well say, “My plate’s kinda full right
now Lord. How about you check back with me in about six months.” You might as well say, “I said
no God. What do You not understand about No?!” That’s the audacity and arrogance of saying “no”
to God.

How dare we say “no” to God. He is “our Lord” and “our Father. We are the clay, (He is) the
potter; (and) we are the work of (His) hand” (Isaiah 64:8). “ Who are you, a mere human being, to
argue with God?” Paul asked (Romans 9:20, NLT).14

A friend of mine leads a ministry on the campus of West Point discipling young cadets who
will become future military officers. My friend is also an officer in the Army Reserves. This past
month, he received orders for deployment to the Middle East. It had been over 20 years since his last
deployment. And he could not say, “Thanks for the invitation, but this is just not a good time for
me.” He could not negotiate or give excuses. When the Army says “go” you don’t say “no.”

When God says “go” don’t dare say “no”! And why not? Because you will be miserable. The
most miserable place you can be is outside the will of God. Disobedience is miserable. If you say
“no” to God you will miss participating with God. Miss seeing God change people. Miss
experiencing God work through your life. Miss God’s blessing. Miss honoring Him for all He has
done for you.

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 Both Moses and Isaiah encountered the holiness of God. Both Moses and Isaiah were called
by God. Yet, Moses’ responded with reluctance and fear and said, “Please send someone else.” But
Isaiah responded with confession and surrender and said, “Here I am. Send me.”15 What will you
say?

CONCLUSION

What made Moses Moses? What shaped his life? Once he came face to face with the holiness
of God, Moses chose to live in the daily presence of God and to do whatever He asked him to do.
And the same thing will shape you. The decision to live in the daily presence of God and do
whatever He asks you to do.

So, here are three questions you need to answer, (1) What is God calling you to do? What
is He calling you to do, where is He calling to go, and how is He calling you to serve? The Lord is
saying, “There’s something I have for you to do. Will you do it?”

(2) What excuses are you making? If you’re making excuses, then stop it. There is no
legitimate excuse to say “no” to God.

(3) Do you believe God is enough? He’s saying “I will be with you and I will be everything
you need.” God’s sufficiency trumps your inadequacy, and that’s the way it’s supposed to work.16

How you answer those three questions will shape the rest of your life.

If your desire is to live in the daily presence of God and to do whatever He asks you to do,
I invite you to make this a holy moment. We are in the presence of God and, just like Moses, we are
standing on holy ground. So, I invite you to take off your shoes as your acknowledgment of that, as
your way of showing God you believe He is here and that He is holy. As you stand barefoot before
Him, may this song become your prayer and your commitment … to live in the daily presence of
God and to do whatever He asks you to do.

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NOTES

1. Moses would later pray, “Who is like you among the gods, O Lord—glorious in holiness, awesome in splendor, performing great
wonders?” (Exodus 15:11, NLT). Hannah prayed, “There is no one holy like the Lord; there is no one besides you; there is no
Rock like our God” (1 Samuel 2:2, NIV). And the angels in heaven sing out “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole
earth is full of his glory” (Isaiah 6:3, NIV).
2. See Psalm 24:3-4.
3. See Exodus 12:40.
4. This invitation, Dallas Willard adds, is an invitation “into the heart and life of God.” [Dallas Willard, The Divine Conspiracy:
Rediscovering Our Hidden Life in God (San Francisco, CA: HarperSanFrancisco, 1998), page 11.]
5. Os Guinness, The Call (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 1998, 2003), page 4.
6. Ibid.
7. Ibid., page 144.
8. But to fulfill that purpose you must realize that your life is not your own. David realized this when he said, “My times are in
Your hand” (Psalm 31:15, NAS).
9. J. A. Motyer, The Message of Exodus, The Bible Speaks Today (Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press, 2005), pages 65-66.
10. The Hebrew word is hāyâ. Yahweh comes from “I Am” and the Jews revered this name so much that they dared not pronounce
it for fear taking the Lord’s name in vain. Jesus is the “I AM.” “Before Abraham was born, I am!” (John 8:58, NIV). This was
a claim to eternal existence and to deity. This so offended the religious leaders that they picked up rocks to stone Jesus.
11. John Piper, “I Am Who I Am,” sermon manuscript based upon Exodus 3:13-15, www.desiringgod.com.
12. See similar list in Louie Giglio, I Am Not But I Know I Am (Sisters, OR: Multnomah Press, 2005), pages 38-39.
13. See Exodus 4:5.
14. “Who in the world do you think you are to second-guess God? Do you for one moment suppose any of us knows enough to call
God into question? Clay doesn’t talk back to the fingers that mold it” (Romans 9:20, MSG).
15. See Isaiah 6:8.
16. We must believe as Mary believed. “Nothing is impossible with God” (Luke 1:37, NIV). We must trust as Paul trusted. “I can
do all things through Him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13, NAS). Paul also said, “We are confident of all this because
of our great trust in God through Christ. It is not that we think we are qualified to do anything on our own. Our qualification
comes from God” (2 Corinthians 3:4-5, NLT). Other translations of this verse read: “Not that we are adequate in ourselves …
but our adequacy is from God” (NAS).“Not that we are sufficient in ourselves … but our sufficiency is from God” (ESV). “Not
that we are competent in ourselves … but our competence comes from God” (NIV). The Greek word translated “qualification,”
“adequacy,” “sufficiency,” “competence” is Êκανότης.

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