Lesson 5: Moses: the LORD S Unlikely Leader

Lesson 5: Moses: The L ORD ’s Unlikely Leader

Moses’ Time: Moses lived from about 1526BC to about 1406BC. Add him on your timeline.

What Do You Know About Moses? Because Moses’ life covers such a large span of God’s Word, reviewing it as part of one lesson creates a challenge. To try to tackle it, assign one of these nine stories of Moses’ life to one or two students before teaching this lesson. Have him/her/them summarize that particular story from Moses’ life in just a few sentences, and prepare to share their summary with the class to lead off this lesson. This way, each student will review one account from Moses’ life more thoroughly, and the class will review nine important accounts of Moses’ life together, as each student shares his/her summary. The Exodus itself is excluded from these accounts, since it was read for the last lesson.

For your family devotions this week, read each of these accounts from the life of Moses. Account 1: Moses’ birth and flight (Exodus 2) Moses’ mother hid him, then floated him down the Nile, where Pharaoh’s daughter found him and raised him. Moses lived in Pharaoh’s house until, one day, he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew. In a rage, Moses murdered the Egyptian. Afraid for his life, Moses fled to Midian, where he met and married Zipporah.

Account 2: God calls Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3) While tending flocks in Midian, Moses saw a bush on fire, but not burning up. After approaching it, Moses heard the Lord’s voice commanding him to bring the Israelites out of Egypt. After Moses tries one excuse after another to get out of this work, the Lord still commands Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egypt.

Account 3: Israel crosses the sea (Exodus 13:17-15:21) Following the Plague of the Firstborn, Moses parted the Red Sea and the frightened, whining Israelites crossed on dry land. Stubbornly, Pharaoh tried to pursue Israel. But he and his whole army drowned as the walls of the Red Sea collapsed on them. After crossing safely and watching the sea swallow the Egyptians, Moses and Miriam sang a beautiful song of praise to the Lord.

Account 4: Mt. Sinai and the Ten Commandments (Exodus 19-20: 21) After crossing the Red Sea, Moses and the Israelites reached Mt. Sinai. While Moses climbed the mountain to receive the Law of the Lord, the people remained at the bottom and saw only a cloud of smoke and fire. While on the mountain, the Lord gave Moses the Ten Commandments, as well as much of the rest of the Old Testament Law.

Account 5: The Golden Calf (Exodus 32) After giving Moses much of the Law, the Lord instructed him to go down the mountain and see a horrible thing the Israelites are doing. The Lord told Moses that he was so angry with the Israelites that he would destroy them and start his plan over by turning Moses into a great nation. When Moses got down the mountain, he found Israel reveling in idol worship, dancing around a golden calf. Enraged, Moses smashed the tablets of the Law. God punished Israel by having many of them die, but after Moses pleaded for the Lord to spare Israel and keep his promises to them, the Lord relented and did not destroy them.

This account immediately precedes the one that one that will be studied more in- depth (Moses and the glory of the LORD). This will be important in understanding the direction of some of the questions in the Bible Study section of this lesson.

Account 6: Moses intercedes for Israel – again (Numbers 14) Because of the lack of faith of the spies and the rest of Israel, God was again ready to wipe Israel out. But once again Moses pleaded for Israel, and God relented. However, there were still consequences for their lack of faith: only Joshua and Caleb, the faithful spies, would be allowed to enter the Promised Land. The rest of the Israelites who are alive at this time would perish during 40 long years of wandering in the wilderness. Their descendants would enter the land, but they would not.

Bible Study: Learn More About Moses and the L ORD Now read Exodus 33:12-34:7. Let’s see what more we can learn about Moses and the Lord from these verses.

1. At the beginning of these verses, Moses seems discouraged. Why do you think that was (review what happened in Exodus 32)? Moses had just had the very discouraging experiencing of seeing his people worshiping the Golden Calf after he came down Mt. Sinai the first time. At this point, he may be wondering if the LORD still cared about him or the Israelites enough to see them safely into the Promised Land.

2. In verse 13, what blessing did Moses ask God for first ? What does this teach us about proper priorities for God’s people? Moses had serious concerns and requests to lay before the Lord. But first he asked the Lord to teach him the Lord’s ways. Above all, he knew that knowledge of God’s will was necessary if he and Israel were going to remain in God’s grace and protection. Of all the requests we lay before God, knowledge of his will (his Word) must remain on the top of our list, too.

3. What did Moses ask God for in verse 15? Why? Moses asked for the LORD’s Presence to be with Moses and Israel so that they could be sure God would bless them and lead them to the Promised Land, as he had promised.

4. Moses was still not done making requests. He requested another blessing in verse 18. What was it? Why would Moses request such a thing? How did the LORD answer Moses’ request? Moses asked to see the Lord’s glory. Downtrodden and disturbed as he was, Moses probably wanted visible, tangible proof that God would be with him and with Israel, as God had promised. Since, however, it is impossible for a human being on this side of eternity to see God’s full glory and live, the Lord hid Moses in the cleft of a rock and showed him only the “back” of his glory. (In a sense, Moses’ request to see God’s glory was answered again on the Mount of Transfiguration, and finally God fully answered this request on another Mountain, Nebo, where he took Moses home to full glory in heaven.)

5. Sometimes Christians today start to think like Moses, “I wish God would show me his glory. If only God would show me his glory, then I would believe his promises and be satisfied.” What does this story teach us about that attitude? First, be careful what you wish for. No one can see God’s glory and live. Second, God does not reveal his grace through glorious or striking displays of power. God reveals the true glory of his grace in the promises of his Word, as he does in this account (33:14, 17, 34:6-7a). Displays of power may make you afraid, but only the gospel creates saving faith.

6. Exodus 34: 6-7 is often called “The Sermon on the Name of the LORD.” This “mini-sermon” teaches us what God means when he refers to himself as “The LORD”(or “Yahweh” in Hebrew). What does God emphasize about himself when he calls himself LORD (“Yahweh”) in the Old Testament? (Note: whenever you see the word “Lord” as “LORD” in the Old Testament, it is the name “Yahweh”). With the name “LORD” or “Yahweh” God emphasizes that he is a loving, forgiving, saving God who abides with his people in patience and compassion. Yet, this name does not deny or forget the fact that God is also just, and punishes the sin of those who turn their backs on him. He punishes their children, too, in this sense: wicked, rebellious parents do not teach the love and mercy of God to their descendants. And so, generation after generation often loses God’s mercy and grace after one generation neglects it.