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Moses Shows Us Great Character
Andrea Lende • October 25, 2020
Numbers 27:16 and 18
Moses Shows Us Great Character
You can listen to the meditation and prayer at: https://anchor.fm/andrea-lende/episodes/Being-Humble-Inside-of-Our-Imperfections-eli8jc
Numbers 27:16 and 18
“Let the Lord, the God of the spirits of all flesh, set a man over the congregation.”
“The Lord said to Moses, Take Joshua son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and lay your hand upon him.”
God had just told Moses that he would not be the person to lead His people into the promised land.
Moses could not be the leader of the people anymore because of a sin he had committed.
God had showed him that because he had disobeyed Him in the Wilderness of Zin, he was not the one to go into the promised land.
Moses was at the end of his life and understood the consequences of his actions.
However, inside of his imperfections and sin, he continued to pray for the Israelites.
He asked the Lord for someone to lead the Israelites so they would not be sheep without a shepherd.
As I read this passage, I was struck with Moses’ character.
He was unable to enter the promised land even though he had given a big part of his life to leading the Israelites out of bondage.
He had overcome so many anxieties to be able to do this.
He overcame his fear of speaking.
He overcame his fear the people wouldn’t follow him.
He overcame his fears throughout the journey as new problems continually arose.
Lack of food.
Lack of water.
The Israelites lack of obedience to the Lord.
And in only one instance his faith weakened.
He doubted the Lord one occasion.
And that one occasion prevented him from going into the promised land.
However, we see his character even inside of this punishment.
Moses asked the Lord for another leader.
Moses wanted to be sure the people wouldn’t be left without leadership.
He even laid hands on and worked with his replacement.
Moses shows us how to act and who to be when we fail.
He shows us a humble spirit.
He shows us obedience even inside of failure.
He continued to pray for the Israelites.
He continued to ask the Lord to meet their needs.
Even though we fail, as all humans do, we can still humble ourselves and serve the Lord as Moses did.
We can pray for those we are serving.
We can make sure they are prepared for what they will be facing.
We can train in our replacements with grace.
We can show others who we are by not complaining about our plight.
Seems a bit tough.
How would we be able to accomplish this?
Through prayer.
Only the Lord can help us through our difficulties and sins with grace, faith, obedience, and a humble spirit.
Today I choose to pray the Lord will continue to make adjustments in my spirit and character so that I will serve Him with all my heart and with all humility.
May you find the Lord will help you serve Him with your heart and soul and will change you as He enfolds you in His love.
Daily Prayer:
O Lord, my God, thank You for showing me how to lead with a humble spirit. Thank You for showing me the true character of Moses and how he served you with His whole heart and with a humble spirit. As his life ended, he prayed for his replacement. He laid hands on Joshua and publicly gave him his authority to lead Your people into the promised land. His love for Your people shown through to his last moment. Help me love Your people, Father. You have made each and every one of us for a purpose. Help me see through Your eyes, Lord. Help me love as You love. Soften my heart and put compassion in my soul. Build my character so I may serve you with all integrity. Help me completely rely on You, Father, and not look to the world for what I need. Help me serve with joy today. Help me bless someone this day. Thank You for hearing my prayer.
Answer: I AM readying you for My service and will fix all that is broken.
Response: Fix my broken parts and make me fit to serve You, Lord.
We start a New Year! How exciting! Paul had just finished telling the Ephesians to put off their old nature. They had been run around by their feelings and desires. He told them to be renewed in their spirit. The Amplified Bible defines this to be “having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude.” As we say goodbye to this year, let us put on the new and leave the old behind. We have an opportunity to reflect on what to bring forward into this New Year.
This is a great message for the New Year. We can be in control of our own words. As a mother, I used to tell my children to use their words to explain what was happening in their minds. I tried to help them find the right words. Words that would help the situation and not make it worse. I must do the same thing when talking to them. It’s important to use words that do not damage their spirits. Words that lift up instead of tear down. Even though my children have grown, I still want to be careful how I speak to them because my worlds will impact them for the rest of their lives.
As we approach the New Year, it is a perfect time to take inventory of what part of our lives, our hearts, and our souls are not bearing fruit. What can we give up as this year comes to a close? What do we need to give to the Lord for His cleansing and pruning? The answers to these questions take time. Time with the Lord. We are creatures of routines and habits which serve us well. But we can also change our routines and habits to serve us and the Lord better. So, we can ask God to show us what He wants us to give up so that He can have more of us.
I cannot think of a better verse to meditate on as we approach the New Year. Jesus said, "the kingdom of God is within you [in your hearts] and among you [surrounding you]." For so many years I believed I had to wait to go to heaven to experience the kingdom of God. I have longed to step into heaven and meet the Lord and His Son. However, as we read the Gospels and study Jesus and all that He said, we begin to understand the kingdom of God is all around us. The kingdom of God is within.
Paul wrote to the Colossians and told them he was praying for them. He prayed they would be refreshed, renewed, and invigorated. He also prayed they would be strengthened. May his prayer be heard by the Lord God Almighty on our behalf today just as it was received two thousand years ago. God is the Source of all things beautiful and wonderful. There is no shortage of renewal, refreshment, or inspiration in His kingdom. And as the Creator of this universe, He continues to pour all good things into His people. Paul wrote that refreshment and strength are needed so we may have endurance.
This verse is the perfect verse to reflect on as Christmas comes to a close. The Lord sent His Son to us. He sent Him to this world as a babe. Jesus was given the task of growing up. A difficult one for all of us. He endured the awkward stages we all go through as we grow past them. I look back at old picture and cringe, yes, I cringe. This life provides plenty of opportunities to feel awkward and just plain weird, but our Father loves us as though we are perfect every day of our lives. This is why Jesus came. He came to make us perfect in God’s sight.
God made Himself flesh so He could take away the sins of the world. The story of the very first Christmas was humble, yet the most powerful and loving birth ever recorded in history. All humanity changed in an instant. When Jesus was born, love filled the earth. Love came down and lifted us up. The angels came to tell the shepherds of this beautiful birth. The stars in the heavens also told the story. As we do all tasks that we do to ensure a beautiful Christmas day, may we remember the miracle that God sent long ago. The miracle of all miracles.
The first Christmas was going to be documented, so that it could be read many times over for all Christmas’ to come. It was also documented so the prophecy of the Messiah’s birth would be known to be fulfilled. Prophets of old foretold Jesus would come from the house of David. They also prophesied that He would be born in Bethlehem. And all this came to pass. Even though Jesus would be known as a Nazarene, His beginning began in Bethlehem. God’s divine plan was set in motion with the first census while Mary was at the end of her pregnancy.
What a wonderful passage to read during Christmas week. Our passage touched my heart as I read it through the lens of Jesus’ birth. “It was God [personally present] in Christ, reconciling and restoring the world to favor with Himself.” We have so much to be thankful for in these few short words, “restoring the world to favor with Himself.” So undeserved and yet so graciously given. We are offered favor with the Lord. Imagine having favor with the almighty God, the Creator of the universe. Jesus chose to leave heaven’s door where all was perfect. He chose to be born into this dusty messy world.
Jesus had just spoken to a fig tree and deemed it unworthy to live because it had no fruit on it. His disciples were amazed when they saw the fig tree wither and die. Then the Lord talked to them about prayer and belief. He told them that whatever they asked for, if they had the faith and belief, they would receive it. I remember the day I started hearing music and lyrics. I had just bowed my head at the piano and asked if the Lord would bless praise and worship music. As soon as I prayed that prayer, the Lord bestowed the gift of song writing upon me.