Exiting Egypt Chapter 4 P 1

Exiting Egypt

“The Blessings of Obedience”

Exodus 4:18-31

By Dennis Lee

Today, what I would like to look at is how God met Moses obedience with His blessings. God has just met Moses at the burning bush. The great call of Moses had just taken place, but Moses did not want to go. He did not want to live a life of service and witness, a life obligated to God. He wanted to be free to live life the way he wanted, to do his own thing.

And so standing before God, Moses made up one excuse after another, arguing against God’s call. But, let’s just say that God insisted, because no excuse, no argument is valid. When God says go, He wants us to go. And so like Moses we need to surrender to God’s call, and when we do, then what we’ll see is God’s blessings.

1. With Obedience God Brings Assurance

Read Ex. 4:18-19

The first thing we see is that Moses left the desert encampment and went home to take care of family business. He had worked for his father-in-law, Jethro, for forty years, so he had to

handle whatever business arrangements existed between them. He could not just leave Jethro hanging. Moreover, seeing that Jethro was father of Moses’ wife, and grandfather to Moses’ sons, that would have just been rude.

The point is that Moses was kind and respectful to his wife’s family. He didn’t just pick up and leave. He didn’t ignore the affect of his leaving upon his wife’s family. He asked permission of Jethro, who was the head of the family, the leading priest and most probably Moses’ mentor.

What’s important to understand is that God’s calling first and foremost demands unquestioned loyalty on our part, which places it above family. Even Jesus said,

“He that loves their father, or mother, or sons or daughters more than Me is not worthy of me. And he that doesn’t take up his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me” (Mt. 10:37-38).

But, that doesn’t mean that we are not to be loving, kind, and respectful to our families when we’ve been called. We must help them understand God’s call to the best of our ability, and then leave the rest up to God.

Notice something else about what Moses did, he wasn’t boastfully mentioning God’s calling. He didn’t act all superior and super spiritual. He was quiet and humble about the experience. Throughout the Scripture we are told that we are not to think more highly of ourselves than what is right, but rather to think soberly according to the faith we’ve been given, and in lowliness of mind we are always to esteem others better than ourselves (Rom. 12:3; Phil 2:3-4). I really think that Moses followed the Holy Spirit’s lead on this one, as the Spirit revealed to the Apostle Peter.

Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble (1 Pet. 5:5 NKJV)

Once Moses obeyed, God gave to Moses the assurance that everything was set for his return to Egypt. Remember, there was a price on Moses’ head, but God assured Moses of safety, security, and protection as He told Moses that the guys who had sought to kill him were now dead. In other words, the coast was clear, and there was no reason to fear.

Throughout God’s word we see similar assurances attached to obedience. To Solomon, the Lord made this promise.

And if you walk in my ways and obey my statutes and commands as David your father did, I will give you a long life (1 Kings 3:14 NIV)

The Apostle James gives us this promise for obedience

But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does (Jm. 1:25 NKJV)

And so God blesses us with assurance that He’s got our back when we step out and obey His calling upon our lives.