Exodus 4:18-31 — Exodus
The God Who Is to Be Obeyed
This sermon examines Moses' journey to Egypt and the circumcision of Gershom, demonstrating that God expects obedience and that casual attitudes toward Him must give way to reverent trust.
Introduction
One of the hardest things is to follow instructions. Recently I bought some wiper blades at a store and there was a rebate for my purchase. The clerk printed off my receipt and attached it to a second piece of paper that explained how I was to receive my rebate. When I got home and began to read the instructions, they were easy to follow but quite extensive. In addition to providing the company with my original receipt, I also had to give them my name and address (so they could know the proper place to deliver the rebate). I also had to circle on the receipt the purchase items. Additionally, the company wanted my phone number and email address (so that they could send me future offers). Then finally they wanted me to include the UPC code from the purchased items.
At the bottom of these set of instructions was the address where I was to send all these items and then this final warning. Failure to follow these instructions will result in forfeit of your rebate. Pretty simple. What would happen if I didn’t include my phone number? What would happen if I failed to circle on the receipt the items that were purchased and subject to rebate approval? What would happen if I didn’t include the UPC code bars from the original packaging? What would happen if I made a copy of my receipt and included it instead of the original?
Do you think such requirements are unfair? Do you think the company should have given me a little grace or mercy? By the way, when my rebate finally arrived (6–8 weeks later depending upon processing; as per the instructions) my rebate was a $10 card that had to be spent at the establishment. Seems a bit less than a true rebate to me but then it is a marketing success. I get $10 off buying more of their products which have a markup anyway. I’m waiting until the air filters go on sale and see if I can get one for free. That somehow feels better.
We scoff at the precision of the rules and may even decide that it is unfair for a simple mistake to be made without any mercy from the company. We frown at such heavy handed requirements with not exceptions. We demand a bit more grace and a little lower expectations. We not only demand it from a company we expect it from God. I want to be clear, this lesson is not about perfection. This lesson is not about we have to get everything right before God will accept us. If that is what you hear, then I have not communicated well or you have stopped listening. This lesson is about our attitude toward God and to remind us that God is to be obeyed.
The Trip to Egypt
Moses leaves Midian. I have no doubt there is a lot of anxiety as he packs up to leave. He is leaving behind routine and to a certain degree comfort. He is leaving behind what he has known for the last 40 years. Moses is approaching 80 years old and while he will live to be the ripe old age of 120 and still full of vigor, this would not have been an easy thing for him to do. As we have seen he has humbly questioned God’s choice. He has deflected as much as he could. He has even told God to go find someone else.
God prevails and it is now time to leave Midian and go to Egypt. God reassures Moses about what is going to happen (vs. 21–23). He will challenge Pharaoh. He will perform God’s signs. God will harden Pharaoh’s heart. Moses will warn Pharaoh about the consequences. In fact, Moses will warn Pharaoh that refusing to release God’s firstborn will result in the death of Pharaoh’s firstborn.
A quick aside. God promises to harden Pharaoh’s heart. Some want to point out that God is manipulating the situation and Pharaoh’s response. If you go back to 3:19, God has already said that Pharaoh is not going to let the people go. There are other texts in Exodus in which Pharaoh hardens his own heart. The point is that God is telling Moses that He is in control of this situation and set of experiences yet to come. In other words, do not be afraid of Pharaoh. His outcome and the outcome of his people is already set. Pharaoh’s firstborn son will die.
And then comes that provocative three verses 24–26. God’s wrath against Gershom and Zipporah’s quick thinking. Notice in the NIV that the word “Moses” is bracketed. This means that Moses’ name is not in the text. Any translation that includes Moses’ name in these three verses is trying to help us out but Moses’ name is not found in these three verses. The masculine pronoun him or his is used. So what are we to make? In verse 23 there is a warning that the firstborn son of Pharaoh is going to be killed. Now the firstborn son of Moses is threatened. Why? Because no circumcision was performed. But it isn’t just a matter of circumcision. It is what this lack represents. The assumption is that God’s people since the time of Abraham have done this to their male children as a means of identifying with God. For some reason, Moses did not perform this ceremony with Gershom. Only speculation can tells us why Moses didn’t perform this ceremony but what these three verses do tell us is that God had not been obeyed. Just like Pharaoh who will not listen to God, Moses had not listened to God. Pharaoh’s refusal will result in the death of his son. The same thing almost happens to Moses except for his wife’s intervention. She understood. Moses needs to understand. God is to be obeyed.
Moses and Aaron meet. They travel on to Egypt and we have a quick summary that the people accept what is happening and together they worship God.
So What?
One of the many things that God allows us to see as Moses writes this history about the Exodus is that Moses is having to change the way he thinks about his life and about God. For almost 40 years of taking care of sheep and having a routine in life, God draws him via a burning bush to begin to think and act differently. Captivated by a bush that is on fire but isn’t consumed, Moses begins to think about God differently. He worships. He begins to understand that God is holy. But he is reluctant at best. And at the end of the conversation he is politely defiant. “I don’t want to do this. Please find someone else.”
Are we not like that too? Captivated at times with getting a glimpse into who God is and what he is like and then we throw up all kinds of barriers to keep us from engaging, listening, following. Politely asking God to get someone else. God patiently waits for us. He patiently encourages us. But like with Moses there is also a time when he expects us to obey. This isn’t about God’s lack of mercy; it is about our attitude and casualness toward God. Look at this text.
When Moses leaves to go to Egypt he takes his wife, his sons, and the staff of God (v. 20). Don’t gloss over it. Think. This is part of what is changing for Moses. The staff he had used for sheep has been in his hand a long time. The oils for his hands have darkened its wood and changed its texture. But now it is not his staff; it is God’s staff. What changed? We have to understand that the staff in those days was a point of identity. We don’t have time to look at all of the examples but in Genesis 38, Tamar brings out Judah’s staff as a way of identifying who had been with her. In Zechariah 11 the staff is broken to reveal the end of the covenant. The staff meant something. Moses will use this same staff to appoint leaders in Numbers; he will use this staff to demonstrate God’s power at the Red Sea; he will use this staff to strike the rock for water to come out; he will use this staff to hold over his head so that Israel wins a battle. The staff becomes representative of God’s power and presence. Moses leaves Midian holding this staff and with each step as the staff touches the ground, Moses knows God is with him.
And yet the event with Gershom reveals that Moses didn’t always listen. And he is having to learn that in growing to trust God more requires listening more and obeying him more. This isn’t about perfection. It is about changing our hearts and attitudes to move away from a casualness about God to a fervor about God that wants to listen to him; be near to him; to obey him. Not because we are afraid of his wrath but because we are changing into people who trust him more and more. Moses does not demand more mercy from God nor that God is being unfair in his dealing with Gershom. Moses changes. So must we. This is about our attitudes and who we trust. God isn’t casual about us. Let us not be casual about God. Invitation.
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