DCLM Search The Scripture Youth For October 30, 2022 : Topic – THE BIRTH, CALL AND COMMISSION OF MOSES
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YOUTH STS
LESSON 42
THE BIRTH, CALL AND COMMISSION OF MOSES
TEXT: Exodus 2:1-10; 3:1-22; 4:1-31; 5:1-23; 6:1-30
MEMORY VERSE: “Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth people the children of Israel “out of Egypt” (Exodus 30.10).
The birth of Moses was during the difficult time of Israel because the latest edict of Pharaoh’s government against Israel was oppressive: “…Every son that is born ye shall cast into the river, and every daughter ye shall save alive” (Exodus 1:22). But it was this time that God Almighty decided to bring the deliverer of Israel to the world and satanic device could not stop it. “But he saveth the poor from the sword, from their mouth, and from the hand of the mighty” (Job 5:15). From the account of the birth of Moses at such a difficult time, we learn that no human efforts can frustrate the Will and purpose of God.
Question 1: Mention salient lessons a believer can draw from the timing and lowliness of Moses’ birth.
MOSES’ BIRTH AND HIS PRESERVATION FOR GOD’S PURPOSE (Exodus 2: 1,2; 1:22; Acts 7: 19,20; Hebrews 11:23; Proverbs 21:30)
And there went a man of the house of Levi, and took to a daughter of Levi. And the woman conceived, and bare a son…” (Exodus 2:1,2a). Amram and Jochebed birth to Miriam long before Moses was born. They also had Aaron three years before the birth of Moses. But Moses was born during the period of Pharaoh’s edict to kill the sons of the Hebrews by casting them into the river (Nile). However because Jochebed saw that the child was extraordinarily handsome and she believed that God had a special mission For him, she did not surrender him to be drowned. In doing so she took a great risk because if discovered, she would face the king’s wrath. But she acted in faith. Risk-taking is a common feature of those who walk by faith. Jochebed did not fear the edict of the king because fear is an enemy of faith and the two cannot co-exist. She chose to believe in God for the preservation of her son even though all that she could devise was an ordinary ark of bulrushes (reed) to serve as a shelter for the young baby (Hebrews 11:23). We should not be afraid of the threatening circumstances that sometimes prevail around us. Such times are moments of test and opportunities to put our faith to work. Rather than give up in despair and allow the enemy to have a walk-over on us, we should trust God and allow Him to fulfill His plans in our lives. There was nothing extraordinary or peculiar in the parentage of Moses. The parents were Levites and they gave birth to Moses without any pomp or fanfare – under a threatening circumstance. Most great men that God had God had extraordinarily used over the ages were mostly men of humble and common birth. Many of them were not even given much chance of survival, either because of health problems, physical danger, poverty or other threats. But eventually they were raised against all odds to accomplish Gods purpose for their lives.
Question 2: Mention some means that God used in preserving Moses from death?
After his birth, Moses was preserved by God during the dangerous time. The Lord used several means to ensure the preservation of His chosen servant from death at infancy. Firstly, He used the beauty of Moses. “In which time Moses was born, and was exceeding fair…” (Acts 7:20). It was his beauty that God used to make the heart of Jochebed cleave much to the child and volunteer to take a risk in preserving him (Exodus 2:2). “By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid three months of his parents, because they Saw he was a proper child; and they were not afraid of the king’s commandment” (Hebrews 11:23). It was the same beauty that motivated the daughter of Pharaoh to pick him up as her own son; just as godly beauty of Esther, David, Solomon, Daniel and even our Lord Jesus Christ, who was the Fairest among the fair, was used to accomplish the purpose of God. Theirs were beauty matched and backed up with godly character. To have beauty without godly character is a trash in an attractive envelop; it always leads to pride, sensuality and destruction. The case of Lucifer, Absalom and Jezebel are warnings against having physical beauty without godliness. “As a jewel of gold in a swine’s snout, so is a fair woman which is without discretion” (Proverb 11:22). Secondly, God used Jochebed’s faith, diligence and discretion. She hid and nursed the child for three months until it became too risky to keep him in the house. Thereafter, she made an ark or basket with reeds, covered it with tar and bitumen to make it water-proof. Then she put the baby in the ark, covered it and- kept it at the river brink. She did all she could and left the rest in God’s hand. Then Miriam followed the ark to know what would happen to the child in it. In all these, we see human responsibility cooperating with divine sovereignty to ensure Moses’ survival. When we do all we could, then God will do all we cannot. Of a truth, it was not Jochebed’s device that saved Moses but God expected her to do all that she did before He, the Almighty would move in to save Moses. True faith is never passive but active. There must be corresponding actions to prove the reality and genuineness of our faith. Thirdly, God directed not only the steps of Pharaoh’s daughter to the river at the time the ark was floating past, but also directed her gaze to see it and also arouse her interest in it. God used her coming to the river at this instance to deliver Moses. Fourthly, the cry of Moses at the time Pharaoh’s daughter picked him up was another means of divine intervention to save him. Lastly, Miriam’s timely intervention and prudent suggestion to go and call one of the Hebrew women to nurse the child was acceptable to Pharaoh’s daughter. We see clearly the finger of supernatural Being in this because Pharaoh’s daughter accepted Miriam bold suggestion without any hesitation or suspicion. God, in His Sovereign employ the most humbling means and methods to achieve His purpose. Though the time of the king’s edict was a dark period for Israel in Egypt, yet God brought something cheering and praise-worthy out of it.
MOSES’ CALL AND HIS RESPONSE (Exodus 3: 1-22; 4:1-14; Acts 7:20,21; Hebrews 11:23; Judges 6:11-16; 1 Kings 19:19; Matthew 4:18-22; Acts 26:9-18)
At the age of 40, Moses, living in the comfort of the palace as son of Pharaoh’s daughter, had been drawn out by the feeling of love and compassion to defend one of his Jewish brethren against an Egyptian oppressor. He killed him and hid the corpse in the sand. Eventually, Moses had to flee to the land of Midian as Pharaoh sought to slay him when he heard of the incident (Exodus 2:15).
Question 3: Mention some Bible characters and the work they were doing before being called by God.
“Now Moses kept the nock of Jethro his father in-law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb” (Exodus 3:1). He must have been a caring shepherd who wanted the best grass for his flock to graze upon. The patience, meekness and discipline needed by Moses to lead the often unruly and difficult children of Israel must have been acquired during this forty years of waiting and tending to the flock. They were years of humble preparation for a nobler task. As he occupied himself in his humble occupation at hand, so did God exalted him to lead His people and to maintain a special relationship with Him. All God’s children are expected to be busy doing something worthy for a living, while God opens doors of higher opportunities. Examples of other men of God called while busy include: Gideon (Judges 6: 11), Elisha (1 Kings 19: 19), Peter, Andrew, James and John among others (Matthew 4: 18-22). Moses’ business took him to Horeb (also called Sinai) which unknown to him was the mountain of God. On this occasion however, God appeared unto him in a flame of fire. “And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed” (Exodus 3:2). This angel that appeared to Moses was God Himself (Exodus 3:2-22; Mark 12:26; Acts 7:30-35; Deuteronomy 4: 15). “And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I” (Exodus 3:4). Moses turned aside to see the wonderful sight which also created the awesome realization that there was an unseen Personality behind the great sight who knew him well and could call his name distinctly. If he could run away and hide from the Pharaoh of Egypt, here was a Personality that one could not hide from, “Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do” (Hebrews 4: 13). He must have realized that this, was the God of the Hebrews whom he was taught about in his childhood. He was warned as he approached the presence of God to avoid undue familiarity which breeds disrespect. “And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground” (Exodus 3:5). This was a mark of respect; and submission to God’s presence; the place where Moses stood is holy. By the same token, believers should respect the place of worship; whatever pollutes, be it material or irreverent acts and attitudes, should be avoided.
Question 4: Mention some ways by which worshippers today manifest disrespect to God in the place of worship.
MOSES’ COMMISSION AND HIS OBEDIENCE (Exodus 4:15-31; 5:1-23; 6:1-18,23; Genesis 15:1-8; Romans 7:19,22,24; Acts 7:6; Galatians 3:14-17)
“Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God” (Exodus 3:6). This is an apt introduction as Moses needed to know the identity of the Personality who addressed him in his own name; yet he did not know Him and could not see Him. He is the God of his ancestors; God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Moses knew very well the splendor of God’s glory (Exodus 33:18-23). The brief introduction had prepared his heart for what was to follow. He began to look beyond the flocks of Jethro under his care to the bondage and deliverance of the children of Israel in Egypt. “Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them. Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt” (Exodus 3:9,10). It was not within the power of suffering Israelites to deliver themselves. Therefore, God sent a deliverer to them. The power to live a life of holiness is not available to the fallen man without Christ. When anybody surrenders to Christ, he will be delivered from Satan, sin and sickness. “But as many as received him, to them gave the power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name” (John 1:12).
Question 5: What are the fears Moses expressed after receiving God’s call?
At the time of his call and commission, Moses seemed to have lost the vision for the mission which he earlier imposed upon himself and failed therein. He no longer felt competent for the task. “And Moses said unto God, Who I am, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?” (Exodus 3: 11). His fear and objection to the commission was due to human short comings such as: his escape from Egypt; two, fear of not being accepted by the Israelites; three, the inability to speak fluently; four, the fear of Pharaoh (Exodus 6:30); five, the Egyptian army was one of the greatest world powers of the time. The thought of human limitation for a mission work is still the problem of many children of God today. They think it’s by their ability, when God says it is not by power or by might but by the spirit of God. To all Moses excuses, God gave corresponding answers. After been assured of His presence, Moses obeyed and returned to Egypt with his family. God assured Moses of success in the mission. It was upon this token that Moses depended and demanded from Pharaoh: “Let my people go, that they may hold a feast for me in the wilderness”