What Are You Afraid Of?

Ok, fine. I'll admit it. I'm afraid of bees! Well, not just bees, but also wasps, hornets, yellow-jackets, scorpions... I guess you could say, anything that stings! I don't Fear lions, tigers, and bears (oh my!) because, frankly, they're not very common in my small Texas town. But stinging, biting critters? Well, they are a real and present danger!! And don't get me started on snakes! UGH!

What are you afraid of? What causes you to feel the debilitating pangs of Fear?
Darkness?           Loneliness?           Failure?            Ridicule?            Death?

One thing that is certain...we all struggle with Fear. Even the most confident, mightiest leaders of our time have had to face and battle Fear. And this was something I discovered when I was studying one of the most famous and beloved Bible heroes - Moses.

Although I knew that Moses had worries about his call to rescue his people who were enslaved in Egypt, I never knew that his Fear and insecurity actually pushed him to resist this call! And resist he did - 5 times to be exact!! For the full story, please read Exodus 3:1-22 and 4:1-17.

Let's look at the 5 excuses Moses used to try and "dodge" the job: 

1) "Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?" Moses asked God.

Basically, he's asking God, "Why ME?" He asked this because Moses knew his own heart. He knew his own shortcomings, failures, murderous history, etc. He didn't see himself the way God saw him, and he didn't feel like he was the right one to do the job.

I love how God answers him, "I will be with you!" The Lord graciously tries to re-direct Moses away from himself to the One who can do anything He wants through anyone He chooses!

But that wasn't enough for Moses...

2) "Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is His name?' Then what shall I tell them?"

Again, we see Moses' doubt... "I don't know what to say! I don't know what to do! And I certainly don't know YOU well enough to explain to them WHO is sending me!"

And God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM! This is what you are to say to the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you... the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation."
(This is where YAHWEH was derived. It means, He IS and He will BE!)

Right there, I would have thought that Moses would've been put in his place, but no....

3) Then Moses asked God, "What if they don't believe me or listen to me?"

Actually, I understand this question! In fact, I think we would all be a bit worried if we were told to gather every elder/Israelite leader and explain to them that God had appeared to us and called us to free them from their slavery! How could we not expect some skepticism? God understood this, as well, and therefore provided Moses with some supernatural signs (with his staff and with his hand) to prove that he was, indeed, sent by Yahweh.

But even these signs were not enough to fully build Moses' confidence.

4)   "But I'm not eloquent," Moses then said to the Lord.

"I'm not quick-witted!" "I can't speak to a crowd!" "I'll get tongue-tied!" And for the many of us who don't naturally enjoy the stage/spotlight, this can and is a very real Fear!! Let's also not forget that it's historically believed that Moses had a stutter. So if this is true, I can totally understand his Fear, his lack of confidence, and his desire to politely decline the job!

Nevertheless, the Lord firmly corrects Moses: "Who gave man his mouth? ... Is it not I, the Lord? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach  you what to say."

But instead of going, Moses begged, "O Lord, please send someone else."

Even with everything the Lord had said and promised, Moses was still not persuaded. "I can't do this!" I don't want to do this!" "I won't do this!"

Then, and despite God's righteous (and understandable) anger against Moses, God was still merciful and gracious, and provided Moses what he needed -- an assistant, a partner, a co-chair to accomplish this task. This person was found in his brother, Aaron. 

Ecclesiastes backs up this reasoning by saying, "Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: if either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up" (Eccl. 4:9-10).

Personally, I think that God created us to need each other. Life is hard! But isn't it much easier when we have our family, our friends, and/or our loved ones holding our hand and helping us along the way? I certainly think so! In fact, in Galatians 6:2 we are called to carry each other's burdens, and thus fulfill the law of Christ (to love God and to love others).

Fear is a funny thing, though. This one unpleasant emotion (which Webster's defines as being caused by the belief that someone or something  is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or is a threat) can keep us disabled, paralyzed and stuck! And this is exactly where Moses was. But the familiar and supportive arrival of his loving brother gave Moses the push, the confidence, and the assurance that he could do what God had called him to do.

"And despite Moses' lack of faith - his sinful obsession with his own flaws and faults rather than trusting in the Lord's love, power, and greatness - the Lord redeemed him and used him in spite of himself to save the nation of Israel and bring them out of terror and tyranny and into freedom."  Joel C. Rosenberg

Over time Moses became such a man of great faith that he is listed as one of the "Heroes of Faith" in Hebrews chapter 11. His feeble faith increased by his spending time with God, worshipping God, listening to God, and learning (through all of his many challenges) that he could trust God with any and every thing.

In fact, Moses spent so much time with God that he changed physically. In Exodus 34:29 it says that, "When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord."  He was RADIANT from being in the presence of God!

In the end, Moses became the antonym of Fear - he became brave, courageous... Heroic!
And you know what? So can we!

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified. What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?"  
Romans 8:28-31