Sun.’s Devo - Moses’ Assignment

Read: Exodus 4:1-5:21; Matthew 18:1-22; Psalm 22:19-31; Proverbs 5:15-21
God called Moses to go back to Israel and deliver the whole nation from Egypt - not an easy task. Moses had plenty of questions about how this was going to happen and “what ifs” about what to do if they didn’t listen. God gave Moses three miraculous signs: turning his staff to a snake and back again, turning his arm to leprosy and then back to healed and turning the Nile’s water to blood.
Moses’ next fear was about his mouth. He was not a good public speaker. God got a little frustrated with that one. He reminded him that he had made his mouth and he would tell him what to say, but then God mellowed and told him that his brother Aaron could be his speaker. Aaron was on his way to meet him at the time.
Moses left with his wife, Zipporah and his son, Gershom and on the way God told him…by the way, when you tell Pharaoh and do all these signs, I am going to harden his heart so he won’t let you go. Then you will tell him that I am going to kill his first-born son. (Moses might have wanted to know that before he left.)
Right after that, God would have killed Moses if Zipporah hadn’t taken a knife and circumcized their son. I don’t know if that was a matter of argument between them or what, but that needed to happen before Moses entered into his next step with God. I have a feeling that it had to do with covering his first-born with the blood of Jesus before he could pronounce judgment on Pharoah’s first born.
Moses met Aaron and told him everything and Aaron got him a meeting with the Jewish leaders. Everyone was excited that Adonai had remembered them and was coming to deliver them, until, they met with the Pharaoh and his response was to give them more work in less time. Then they accused Moses of making it worse for them. So, Moses turned and accused God of the same thing.
In Matthew 18, Jesus taught his disciples about faith, agreement and forgiveness. Jesus used the example of a child because they have no reason not to believe everything you say. Their faith is pure and undefiled by the world and disappointment. We are to have that kind of faith toward God. When we agree with another person in prayer and we both have that kind of faith, it will be done. One of the biggest hindrances in prayer is unforgiveness. We are to forgive not just perfectly (seven times) but perfectly and completely (seven times seventy). Our forgiveness cannot keep records of past offenses. Unforgiveness clogs up our channel to heaven and keeps our hearts from being able to receive or give to God and others.
Lord, cleanse our hearts of all offense and unforgiveness. Help us to forgive as you have forgiven us.