by J. David

Times are very tough. Every news station and public radio update seems to be abundant with negative happenings. In recent days, many have turned to God and wondered, "why me?" People have been facing financial destruction, losing their homes and jobs, while others have confronted natural disasters and violent invasions that have wiped away belongings and taken away their families. In an age of broken relationships and over-anxious societies, people tend to question their purpose in the world. To the question, "Why me?" we might be able to give a superficial answer that would get us through the day, but our ultimate response should provide much more than that. From the beginning of Sh'mot, we see God's purpose for humankind in a plethora of ways. God does not make mistakes but plans intricately for every detail of our lives - and ultimately gives us a vital purpose.

To begin, Moses was born under the tyranny of a new king - one who did not only undervalue the Hebrews but ordered them to be killed upon birth because of their abundant growth in numbers. The critical character here, Moses, was spared by his mother who sent him away, on faith, in a basket, hoping he would arrive in a safe location. This very act of faith by his mother began Moses' journey to his ultimate purpose - God's purpose. A man that we learn throughout Exodus doubted his own abilities was given great strength and power as God orchestrated his life. God is the master planner here, as Moses continued to learn.

Upon Moses' deliverance by Pharaoh's daughter, a Hebrew nurse was assigned to take care of him - a woman who turned out to be Moses' own mother. After finding a way to rescue her child, and release her son to God on faith, Jochebed has her son returned to her by God, allowing her to fulfill her calling as a mother.

Growing up in the house of Pharaoh, Moses found that deep within his soul, he was not at home. As he watched an Egyptian slave driver beat a Hebrew slave, Moses flung himself upon the oppressor and murdered him. It was because of his deep-seated calling that Moses wanted to protect this Hebrew slave. This profound sense of identity called him to become who he was always meant to be - an instrument for God, although he did not know this at the time. It was not an accident that Moses fled and his life was spared for many years in exile. Throughout his time living with Pharaoh, Moses was not technically in exile since he enjoyed many of the advantages of his adopted household, but in his heart he was indeed in exile - a man without an identity. His true self emerged when he landed in Midian, where he finally empathized with his own people, living in internal and external displacement. It was during his time in Midian that God spoke to Moses in the form of a burning bush - a powerful example of God's incredible plans:

An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire from within the thorn bush, and behold, the thorn bush was burning with fire, but the thorn bush was not being consumed. So Moses said, "Let me turn now and see this great spectacle why does the thorn bush not burn up?" The Lord saw that he had turned to see, and God called to him from within the thorn bush, and He said, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am!" And He said, "Do not draw near here. Take your shoes off your feet, because the place upon which you stand is holy soil." And He said, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." And Moses hid his face because he was afraid to look toward God. (3:2-6)

Let us not ever forget who the God of our Fathers truly is - the one who comes to us and commands us to remove our sandals, for we are standing on holy ground. It has been said that the reason Moses took off both of his sandals was to be able to feel all the little stones on the ground beneath his feet as a metaphor for physically and spiritually empathizing with all the pains of his people (Plaut commentary, 1981). God knew exactly where to find Moses in order to tell him to return to his people so that they all might be free to share in a collective calling. In exile or at home, God knows exactly where to find us, and desires to use us for his perfect intentions. When God told Moses what to do, Moses began to argue with God because of his own feelings of inadequacy.

And now, behold, the cry of the children of Israel has come to Me, and I have also seen the oppression that the Egyptians are oppressing them. So now come, and I will send you to Pharaoh, and take My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt." But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should take the children of Israel out of Egypt?" (3:9-11)

God convinced Moses that he was indeed the man for the job despite his weaknesses - that there was no one else who would do. Although God allowed Moses to feel inadequate (which is perfectly human) he did not allow him to remain feeling incapable. As a result, God empowered Moses by compromising with him and allowed Moses' brother, Aaron, to accompany him to speak eloquently on his behalf. In his sovereignty and compassion, God always knows how to meet his people as they are - not how they view themselves, but in light of their potential; strengths and weaknesses combined to create the perfect candidate as only God can envision.

As Moses left his new home in Midian, Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, did not hold him back to take care of anything. He blessed Moses and encouraged him to be faithful and to follow God's purposes for his life. As Jethro was aging, it was helpful to have Moses around to take care of many of the physical demands of his property. Instead of benefiting himself, however, Jethro too saw God's intent and was resolute to submit to such purpose. Another step in Moses' journey; Moses was free to lead his people out of slavery.

So far, throughout this passage about Moses' journey, nothing happened by accident. Moses' life seemed to line up exactly where God wanted it to in order to fulfill a very important goal. This leads us to a most powerful part of this week's study. God instructed Moses to go to Pharaoh and tell him that God himself requests that he let the Hebrew slaves go free to worship Him. Before Moses set foot before Pharaoh, God already told Moses what the result would be: God would harden Pharaoh's heart and he would not comply. After all that Moses had agreed to do, why did this happen? Is there no purpose to God's calling for Moses, knowing that Pharaoh would refuse to do what would be asked of him?

The Lord said to Moses in Midian, "Go, return to Egypt, for all the people who sought your life have died." So Moses took his wife and his sons, mounted them upon the donkey, and he returned to the land of Egypt, and Moses took the staff of God in his hand. The Lord said to Moses, "When you go to return to Egypt, see all the signs that I have placed in your hand and perform them before Pharaoh, but I will strengthen his heart, and he will not send out the people. (4:19-21)

There are many interpretations of why God did this. Perhaps it was to strengthen the Hebrews' faith in the God of their ancestors. They were quite skeptical upon Moses' arrival, considering all that they endured both before and after Moses returned. Because of Pharaoh's response to Moses, the Hebrews were required to produce even more bricks, yet given the same amount of raw materials. Thus, they were not thrilled with Moses' supposed rescue. Over time, however, as we see later in the passages of Sh'mot, they begin to realize that with faith in God, they would in fact be liberated through the actions of Moses. Perhaps God knew that his people had become weary and lacked confidence that God would fulfill his promise to give them a land, a home, and a purpose. By continually hardening Pharaoh's heart, God extended a gracious hand to Israel, giving them an opportunity to remember the goodness of God's promises and his plan to fulfill them. Others say this hardening was so that Pharaoh and all the Egyptians would truly begin to believe and understand that Moses was a valid messenger of the Most High. When introducing God to Pharaoh, Moses refers to him as a divine name - one that indicated "I am," or "I will be," which has a connotation that God's name is an action. That Moses presents God as one who is or who will be and who will act on behalf of his greatness is an insight into the profundity of what Moses was called to do! A man who thought little of himself presented a God whose desire was to prove his incomparable supremacy. Through all of the actions that followed Moses' requests (as we later read), the Egyptians witnessed the intensity of the magnitude of God. In light of many possible interpretations and reasons for God's hardening of Pharaoh's heart, it remains firm that God has a specific and extraordinary objective for every human being. It is this beautiful characteristic of God that we must consider today.

Perhaps the question, "Why me?" is valid in that we are fallible human beings, imperfect in numerous ways. Regardless of what we think of ourselves, and even what we might think about others, God's ways are not our ways; his thoughts not our thoughts. Moses, a man of little consequence on his own, was used to deliver an entire nation only because God made it so! We usually refer to Moses as a man of faith, one who followed after God. Sh'mot shows us why Moses was such a man - only through the calling and empowering of God. This is true for us - it is only because of God's calling and empowering that any one of us, and every one of us, is given an intricate design and a special purpose. May we live our God-given purpose today, and help others live out theirs.