*Note, there is no audio as this sermon was given via Zoom due to snow. However, the notes are below for your reference*
Moses is familiar to many who read the Bible. He is known for being a man who persevered throughout his life.
To persevere is to endure. This is the call of the Christian in general, and this was exemplified or worked out in the Old Testament. Perseverance is not a New Testament doctrine alone.
Exodus 2:3- Moses perseveres as an infant because of Jochebed’s faith.
Exodus 4:1-9- When Yahweh God gives Moses signs to prove that He will be with him, Moses perseveres. As Yahweh is testing him, Moses endures through the grabbing of a serpent and a leprous hand.
Exodus 5:20- After Pharoah tells the Israelites that they must make bricks without straw (due to Moses and Aaron telling Pharoah to let the Israelites go), Moses hears the first of many complaints from the Israelites. Here, Moses perseveres through this griping of Israel and the perfect timing of Yahweh. In verse 23, Moses says to Yahweh that He had not saved the people of Israel at all. Thus, Moses thought that the deliverance of Israel would be quick and in short order. How often is this the case in my life? I want God to operate on my own terms. I do not want to wait, and I assuredly do not want to have to persevere in what I think is an unnecessary way. Yet, Moses continues to trust in Yahweh. And I must as well.
Another note, Yahweh did not give Moses an empty promise. In 6:1, Yahweh promises Moses that He will deliver the people of Israel from the hand of Egypt. Because Yahweh is God (v.2). Yahweh follows this promise with a more elaborate promise to Israel in verses 5-7 where He lays out the promise to them both in the near and distant future.
Exodus 10:28-29- Moses endured a death threat from Pharoah. Unlike the threats of today, Pharoah’s threat held weight. He could have had Moses killed if he wanted to (and if Yahweh would have ordained it). The way that Moses handled this threat could be carried out in 2 ways, he could have cowered in a corner, or he could have responded the way he did. Moses response was in godly confidence. Perseverance is not merely getting by but getting through the variety of challenges and struggles with confidence that only comes from God Himself. This, today, seen in the work of the Holy Spirit as He transforms us day by day.
Exodus 12:37-38- Perseverance and endurance was not in word only, but in the most tangible of ways. Moses orchestrated the greatest move in the OT. When Israel left Egypt, they didn’t do so with a U-Haul or moving company. They travelled from Rameses to Succoth on foot. Some estimate the distance between the two to be 20-90 miles depending on the route.
Exodus 14:10-14- When the people of Israel feared at the coming of the Egyptians, Moses endured through their grumbling about Moses wanting them to die in the wilderness and how great Egypt was. In essence, they said that slavery in Egypt was better than freedom. Again, Moses endures in a godly way pointing the Israelites to God instead of human fear.
Exodus 15:22-25, 16:1-3- The Israelites, quickly after being saved from the Egyptian army, grumble to Moses because there was no fresh water or food to eat. At this point, Moses was not angry with the people, but he went to Yahweh on their behalf as to what to do. Again, the Israelites griped at Moses that they would have rather died in captivity than in freedom. It is a crazy thought to think that captivity is better than freedom! They would rather go back to making bricks without straw! Craziness!
Exodus 32- After receiving the laws of Yahweh, Moses quickly shifts gears at Yahweh telling him that Israel had corrupted herself (vv.7-9). He endures the sin of this people in the greatest of ways (idolatry) after having gone to bat for her before when Yahweh wanted to be rid of her.
Moses perseverance leads me to see Jesus’ perseverance. Jesus persevered in the greatest of ways. It was prophesied in Isaiah 53:7-8 that He would be oppressed and afflicted, and He did not open His mouth.
It was Jesus who said that an entire legion of angels could come to His aid, but so that the Scriptures may be fulfilled, He let the Jews carry out their plan for something far greater. That far greater is that salvation would be available to all because of Jesus’ death and resurrection. He is the greater than, the propitiation or substitute that we all need!