Wednesday, January 13, 2016

Conversations In Heaven - Moses

God wants us to know and understand Him.  Sometimes that can be troublesome when we come upon sections of scripture that seem to contradict who we know Him to be.  But we can't look at it as a stumbling block or dead end.  Difficult sections of scripture must be viewed as an invitation to conversation.  There's hidden information and usually deep revelation found in the most confounding parts of the bible.  The key, I believe, is to ask our Teacher to help us understand.

In Exodus 32:7-14 Moses seems to save all of Israel from the anger of The Lord.  But I wonder if that's exactly what happened.  Here's what we know from scripture:

  • Israel was really really having trouble believing.  They tried God's patience a whole lot.
  • They got scared when Moses didn't come down from the mountain and asked Aaron to make them a new God.
  • The Lord tells Moses how miserably Israel has failed by making a golden calf.
  • The Lord asks Moses to leave Him alone so that He can let His anger destroy them.
  • Moses intercedes for Israel.
  • The Lord changes His mind and allows Israel to live.
Since learning of God's unchanging nature, His amazing patience and mercy, and the revelation of Jesus in the entire Old Testament, Exodus 32 has raised more questions for me than answers.

Here they are, in no particular order:
  1. Why was Israel so incredibly hard-headed when it came to trusting God?
  2. Why would such a loving God plan to destroy His own people?
  3. Where did Moses get the courage to stand between God's anger and Israel?
  4. Why does God seem to be taken by surprise about the golden calf, Israel's stubbornness, and Moses' reaction?
  5. Why does God seem to be reacting like a man, as if He's hurt by Israel and wants to squash them in response to their hurting Him?
I believe these questions are best answered by listening in on God's planning sessions before the beginning of the world.  I'm not saying this actually happened.  I'm saying I believe this is how God revealed to me the answers to my questions.  Often times He explains things to me in the form of movies in my mind.  Like an episode of a favorite television show or a clip from a favorite movie, He dramatizes the revelation He's giving me.  This is one such instance:

Jesus:  "OK, we need to come up with a way to pull intercession out of Moses.  It would be nice if We could get him to reveal that We are able to cultivate boldness in our friends at the same time.  Any ideas?"

Holy Spirit:  "Simple, I'll say We are going to destroy Israel."

J:  "Yes, but deserve has nothing to do with it.  I can't stand the idea of not saving them."

HS:  "Oh, Me either.  But Moses needs something to confront.  I mean, by this time he won't be afraid of any man or kingdom of men.  He trusts Us too much."

J:  "But We have to be careful what We say.  Our words will cause Israel to be destroyed the second they leave Our mouth."

The Father:  "Then We will make the destruction conditional.  If Moses allows it, it will happen.  If he is bold and challenges Us, they will be saved.  We will simply tell him to get out of the way, leave Us alone, so that we may destroy Israel."

J:  "BRILLIANT"

HS:  "BRILLIANT"

J:  "Wait, do We want this in The Book?"

F:  "Yes.  All Our beloved must see the trust We have in Moses because of the trust he has in Us.  It may take them a while, but they will see it.  You will show them, Son."

If you read the passages in Exo 32 carefully, you'll see that God did not declare outright that He was either angry or about to destroy Israel.  He chose His words carefully when speaking to Moses.  He told Moses to leave Him alone "so that He could" let His anger destroy them.  It's obvious that God has implicitly set Moses as the gate to Israel's destruction.  The entire interaction between God and Moses in this instance seems designed by God to inspire Moses to be bold before The Almighty and speak on behalf of both The Lord (Moses mentions God's reputation as being at stake) and Israel.  This is a type and shadow of Jesus who intercedes on God's behalf to us and on our behalf to God.  God found a way to get Moses to rise to the occasion and become what He always designed Moses to become.  This exchange had nothing to do with Israel and everything to do with the relationship between God and Moses.  This was not about the anger or wrath of God.  It was about God harvesting the attributes of Christ in Moses and putting them on display for all to see.  In one genius conversation, God revealed the intercessor and bold friend of God He had created in Moses.

The Lord provoked Moses into a transformational conversation.  The key word there is "provoked".  Is He saying or doing something provocative with you right now?  If you are like Moses and you know His character and nature, you will go boldly before Him and say what's on your mind.  Go to Him and tell Him Who He Is.  It may be the key to your next transformation.

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