That's the situation Moses faced in Exodus 34. God wanted to wipe Israel out and start over again with Moses. Moses was pleading with God to stay with them, to honor His covenant with the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
Moses had no way to sugarcoat their behavior. Only days before they had worshipped the Golden Calf. So he admits the truth: we are hard-headed. We are sinners, everyone of us.
The only one of them who had any glimmer of worthiness was Moses himself. And he offered himself on behalf of his people. "If you see any good in me."
Then, on behalf of the people who just left slavery behind, Moses asked, "Own us. Possess us."
What a standard to live up to. God expects nothing less than our complete honesty--we can't exactly hide our sins from Him--and He demands nothing less than our lives. Later in this chapter, He tells them, "No one is to show up in my presence empty-handed."
Applying for a job in God's kingdom is not for the faint of heart.
How many times does God take us back? so many many, no matter how bad an employee we have been.
ReplyDeleteOver and over and over he takes us back, just as he answered Peter's question of how many times he should forgive his brother - seventy times seven. I am so thankful for God's forgiveness to me.
DeleteSomething that jumped out at me was the concept of applying for a job. When we were praying over the beginning of our ministry and trying to determine God's direction for us, I was petrified at the thought of "working for God". I just kept thinking I would never be able to live up to His standards. But then I realized that God doesn't call the fully equipped servant - He fully equips those He calls.
I know! God takes us back over and over again. I know, Susan, "working for God." As a teenager I expected to enter "full time Christian service." Instead I ended up in the public work place--and very happily finding my place to witness and minister in that environment.
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