Moses (Exodus 3) | Story

 
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Today’s hero is Moses because he shows us the gift of a plan
Essential Teachers notes:
The story of Moses encounter with the burning bush is iconic and as such can suffer from re-tellers errors. Before teaching this story it’s really important to go back and read exodus 3 and 4. This is a story where the board is set and everything prepared, it’s a story of ignition in more ways than one, it’s a story of God’s timing not our own, and a story of a master plan greater than the Hebrews, or even Moses, imagined.

Main Passage : Exodus 3-4
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Moses had been wandering around with the sheep, not following any real path. He was on the edge of the mountain of God when he’d seen the bush. It had confused him. How could the bush be on fire but not burning. Then he had heard a voice, a voice so familiar and yet he didn’t know it at all.

“Moses Moses” came the voice and as Moses moved closer again it came “take off your shoes, this is holy ground!”
God introduced himself then, the God that Moses had learnt of, the God of Abraham, of Isaac and Jacob, the God of his people. Moses knew people had started to whisper, started to doubt, started to wonder why their God left them as slaves. And here he was, not talking to one of them but to Moses, the runaway, Moses the failed Egyptian and the failed Hebrew too. And then God said the words every Hebrew had longed to hear, the words they thought may never come, He said he saw how they suffered, he said a plan was coming, he said the time had come for then to be free. And not just free, more than free, a people with a land and a beautiful land flowing with milk and honey and every good thing. And his big plan was… Moses.

“No way, wrong guy, no no no” said Moses. “the Hebrews won’t believe me, I mean I’m not really one of them, perhaps I was born that way but I’m 80, I’ve never lived as they do, nope, sorry God but I’m the wrong one”
“This is what to say to the Hebrews” replied God, and he gave Moses a script, “this is what to say to the Pharaoh too…” he added and then “I should warn you, it’s going to be tough, but I’m going to convince them through you, and when you leave the Egyptians will shower you with gifts for your journey”

“But they won’t believe me”, shouted Moses, “why should they even listen”
“They will listen” replied God “And, if they doubt I’ll give you amazing signs to show them, miracles from heaven, I’ll turn your stick into a snake, go on, test it out” Moses threw his stick on the floor and ran back as it became a snake, “grab it’s tail” came God’s voice and as soon as Moses touched the snake it became a stick again. God gave Moses 2 more signs but still it was not enough for him

“Lord, please, I’m not good at speaking, I’m slow and I stutter and I mumble and…”
God was getting frustrated, Could Moses really think a little stutter would stop God’s plan, God who had created Moses, created mouths, formed words long before anyone could speak. “Please lord, please, send someone else” Moses begged. God looked at the shaking man before the fiery bush. He was foolish or very brave, arguing with God, but God took pity. I’ll send your big brother, Aaron, to meet you, he can walk this path with you so you are not alone. And then the fire was gone and the bush seemed just a tangle of branches and leaves.

God sat up in heaven and sighed at Moses. Couldn’t he see the way He had prepared him? God had been putting the different pieces together for years. He had saved Moses from the river. God had given him a safe house to grow up in and knowledge of not only the Egyptians but the Pharaoh. Moses knew the way they cared, the way they fought, the way they judged things to be true. God had sadly known the way Moses real family was treated would eventually break him. He had kept him safe from the Pharaoh when Moses did things wrong, kept him safe as he ran away and had lead him to Jethro and his daughters home. He watched over Moses for years, waiting for the time that it was safe to send him back, waiting for the time the plan could start and God’s people could be free.

A few days later Moses left the sheep with his father in law Jethro, he packed up a donkey with a tent and supplies for the journey. Then Moses, his son, and Zipphorah, his wife headed back towards Egypt.

Today’s hero is Moses because he shows us the gift of a plan