Humility

 But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?"

Exodus 3:11 ESV

To be fair to Moses, he had a point. He'd been shepherding his father-in-law's flocks for 40 years. How was this country bumpkin going to persuade the most powerful man in the world to let God's people go?

Not only so, but Moses had fled Egypt in ignominy, with blood on his hands. Any advantage he may have had by being the previous Pharoah's adopted grandson had been ruined by the fact he'd murdered an Egyptian oppressor of one of his fellow Hebrews. And if he had once been in the royal family, he had now made himself a murderous stench to the Egyptians, and the new Pharoah wouldn't welcome his return at all.

Having said that, Moses had enjoyed the best start in life as the adopted son of Pharoah's daughter. If anyone could speak to the Egyptians on the Hebrews' behalf, it was him. And though the old testament paints him as a fugitive, the new testament reveals that Moses chose the eternal value of being one of God's people over the fading pleasures of Egypt.

I think Moses was quite settled in his exile. I'm sure he wasn't expecting an encounter with the God who is, to send him back to Egypt like some prodigal, to demand the freedom of his people. He must have felt like a little fish in the Red Sea!

I don't think Moses was simply displaying some typical self deprecation that is so characteristic of a number of Biblical heroes. I do believe that he genuinely thought he wasn't up to the task. Maybe he was right, humanly speaking, but spiritually, God was going to prove him wrong.

'God who is, may we be open and available for whatever You would have us to do for You. May we proclaim Your freedom for every slave to sin who trusts in You. In Christ's name we pray, amen'

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