Exodus 2: A flawed saviour (Day 50)

Pray

Lord, prepare me to receive your word. Clear my mind and warm my heart. Assure me of your loving purposes for me, and speak into my life today.

Read

Exodus 2 Luke 5 Job 19 1 Corinthians 6

Daily reflection: Exodus 2

Most Bible heroes have their faults. Certainly Moses did. He kills an Egyptian in an act of revenge – it might be called patriotic resistance, but it looks uncomfortably like murder. When he's challenged, he doesn't stand his ground but runs for his life.

Under the violence and fear, though, there are deeper currents in his character. There is no sense here that he's driven by faith or an awareness of God – he doesn't ‘meet’ God until the next chapter. Neither is he motivated just by nationalism, a sense of being a Hebrew in spite of his Egyptian upbringing. Jethro's daughters are foreigners to him, but he still protects them. What seems to drive him is a sense of justice. He stands up for the underdog, whoever that may be.

Moses was chosen for a particular role, and it's clear in the story that God intervened miraculously to preserve his life. But while it's true that often God equips the called rather than calling the equipped, some people seem built for a purpose. In Moses' case, it was to lead his people out of slavery. Even in his early days, we can see someone who was passionate about righteousness and able to act as a leader. 

Not many of us have Moses' gifts, and none of us has a mission on the same scale as him. But God has made each of us who we are, with our own characters, skills and aptitudes. He calls each of us, too, to be faithful disciples of Jesus. There are things only we can do, and words only we can say.

Pray

God, thank you for making me who I am, and for the gifts you've given me. Help me to discover what you're calling me to do with the life I have.