GREAT WORKS THROUGH WEAKNESS
Susan Murray
Today’s Scripture: “But Moses protested to God, ‘Who am I to appear before Pharaoh? Who am I to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt?’” Exodus 3:11, NLT
Theme: Insecurity protests: “Who am I to act on behalf of God?”
WHO AM I?
If I were to tell you who I am, I could list several things such as my name, who my parents are, where I was born and what work I do. The list is endless.
We first read about who Moses is in Exodus, Chapter 2. He was born to Hebrew slaves but rescued and raised as an Egyptian prince. He had all the privileges of royal life, including wealth, education, position, and comfort. Yet he identified with his own Hebrew heritage (Hebrews 11:24). One day, Moses killed an Egyptian whom he saw beating a Hebrew slave, and hid the body, thinking he had not been seen. The next day, he tried to stop a fight between two Hebrew men. The one in the wrong said, “Who made you ruler and judge over us? Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian?” (Exodus 2:14, NIV).
In other words, who do you think you are!? Moses thought that from his high position of privilege, he had the power within himself and so “went out” (Exodus 2:13) as a savior to his people, but they rejected him. When Pharaoh heard what Moses had done, he was angry and tried to kill Moses, but Moses fled (Exodus 2: 11-15). So much for being born a slave yet elevated to a high position with credentials, and thinking it gave him the ability to save his people!
WHO AM I TO…?
Moses fled to Midian and there he became a shepherd. He went from the top of society to the bottom, as shepherds were considered the lowest people. He remained there 40 years until God called him, saying, “I am sending you” (Exodus 3:10) to save His people. It took 40 years for Moses’s pride to be broken over his own self-sufficiency, coming to a posture of humility saying, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt?” (Exodus 3:11, ESV). His self-confidence was replaced by self-doubt, and he could now be useful to God.
Moses made many excuses as to why God should send someone else, but God encouraged Moses, not by building up Moses's self-esteem, but by reminding Moses that He, the Lord Almighty, is sovereign (Exodus 4:11-12). In His grace, God gave Moses everything he needed to lead God’s people to freedom. Most importantly, God said He Himself would be with Moses to guide him.
WHOSE AM I?
When I feel self-confident, I can be bold like young Moses. When I feel inadequate and insecure, I’m humble yet timid like older Moses.
Jesus was truly the only Person who was completely humble and bold at the same time. He was sent by God the Father, leaving His high position to take the low position of a weak human being, in order to be our Savior. He gave up His power, dying in weakness and trusting in God’s plan of resurrection.
God always works through weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9), yet I don’t like feeling weak. I want to feel strong. Yet I will never call on His power to be more like Him unless I am reminded of my weakness. God has used great difficulty in my life to humble me so that I can repent of pride and self-sufficiency. Then, instead of resting in who I am, I can rest in Whose I am. Because of Jesus, I am God’s beloved child. I can still easily forget His love and go out to live life on my own power, so I need to preach the Gospel to myself daily. Then in dependence on God’s power (John 15:5), He can send me to do great things in true humility with boldness. That great thing can just be small, like giving someone who is thirsty a cup of cold water in His Name and not my name (Mark 9:41).
When I feel insecure about doing what God has called me to do, I remember a quote in a small devotional book titled, My Luggage Is Not Heavy, written by Serge ministry missionaries; “I am not qualified but Jesus makes me competent.”
Make It Personal:
Do you want to do great things for God but feel it’s up to you? It’s not.
Do you take pride in doing things for God? Repent.
Do you feel inadequate to do great things for God? You are.
Is He calling you to do something to show His greatness? Yes
Can He give you what you need to demonstrate His greatness to the world, despite your weakness? ABSOLUTELY!
Pray: Abba Father, I praise Your Name for You are great. You are the one and only I AM. No person created You; You had no beginning, but You have always been and always will be God. Forgive us when we go out in our own names and power, trying to make names for ourselves for doing great things. We are nothing compared to You. We are not worthy to call on Your Name, but out of Your grace, You love and forgive us. You make us Your children, giving us access to You, whereby we can cry Abba (a child’s Da-Da) in our time of need. We need you every minute. In Jesus, You have made us competent to do great works for You. We ask You to empower us with Your Holy Spirit and send us out. May we glorify You always. Amen.
Read: Numbers 12:3; Zachariah 4:6; Jeremiah 9:23-24; Philippians 2:13; Isaiah 6:1-8
Weekly Memory Verse: “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” Psalm 27:1, ESV