Send me Lord

Sunday service, Michael Ngubane, 12 Aug 2018

Ex 3:1-8

1 Now Moses kept the flock 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.

2 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.

3 And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.

4 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.

5 And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.

6 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.

7 And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;

8 And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.

The Lord had heard their cry and came to deliver them. We see that God hears the cry of the afflicted.

Someone might find himself in big trouble, but if you cry out to Him He will hear you. He is the one Who sees and hears and responds to your cry.

Moses was ordained by the Lord that he be the one to deliver Israel. He was born during a time of affliction and his mother sought a way to save him and hid him. According to God’s fore-knowledge Moses was found by the princess and raised according to the royal standards of the Egyptians.

But here in our text he was like a shepherd keeping the flock of his father in law in a distant country. Humanly speaking he was just doing a lowly job, while he was raised in the palace. He humbled himself and remained where he was placed. He could have sought a much better career since he was trained much better.

Another point is that the Israelites had been suffering for such a long time, but God has His time. God worked on him so that he would faithfully do the task God had for him. Don’t chase after position. If you remain faithful, in due time God will raise you up.

If God answers you contrary to your expectation, do you still remain faithful to Him or does he then become your enemy?

We also notice that God met Moses while he was faithfully busy with his work. But if you are just busy with time wasting then don’t expect God to meet you. When you are at home are you a help to your people, or a nuisance?

Do you take notice when God works? With Moses it was different. He noticed the bush that burned but would not be consumed. He was attentive to God’s Word and Work.

Just think what Moses experienced! Face to face with God! We read, draw nigh to me and I will draw near to you (James 4:8). You must be at the right place to draw near to God. When last have you heard God speaking to you?

God told Moses to remove his shoes for he was in God’s presence. What must you rid yourself of? What defilement is still in your heart that God cannot use you? Remember Isaiah who realised his defiled lips and God sent His angel to cleanse his lips (Isaiah 6).

There are many who want to be used of God, but God can never make use of them because they are unwilling to separate from that which is defiled. Till when do you want to sit with your sin?

In the wilderness Moses remained the same. He desired God’s presence when God suggested that He would just send His angel to be with them (Ex 33:15). Make sure that God is with you. Many people perish in sin and are crying out for help. Can you hear their cry and answer, “send me Lord”?

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