God tested Moses when he made the tabernacle to see
whether he would make it exactly according to the pattern that he had received
on the mount. The glory of the Lord coming on that tabernacle was the visible
indication of God's satisfaction with Moses' work. How is it with us in
what we do and build for the Lord? Is it exactly according to the pattern found
in the Scriptures? Or have we modified it with some of the wisdom of this
world? If so, then that must certainly be one reason why the glory of the Lord
is not found in our lives.
God tested Moses later in another area. Twice God
tested him to see whether he would seek his own honour at the expense of the
Israelites. In both cases, Moses passed the test with flying colours.
The first occasion was when the children of Israel had
rebelled against God through making the golden calf. God then told Moses, "Now
let Me alone, that My anger may burn against them, and that I may destroy them;
and I will make of you a great nation." (Exod. 32:10)
The second occasion was when the Israelites refused to
enter Canaan. God then told Moses, "I will smite them with pestilence
and dispossess them, and I will make you into a nation greater and mightier
than they." (Num. 14:12)
On both occasions, God told Moses that He would
destroy the Israelites and make Moses and his descendants into a great nation.
Moses had the opportunity then to become the inheritor of the promises made to
Abraham and to the twelve tribes of Israel. Lesser men might have failed
in that test, but not Moses. On both occasions, he pleaded with God to spare
the Israelites. On one occasion, he even went so far as to be willing to die
and to spend eternity in hell if only Israel could be saved. "Moses
returned to the Lord, and said, `Alas, this people has committed a great sin,
and they have made a god of gold for themselves. But now, if Thou wilt, forgive
their sin - and if not, please blot me out from Thy book which Thou has
written!'" (Exod. 32:31,32). Truly, Moses had the spirit of Christ
Himself - Who was willing to be forsaken by the Father on the cross in order
that we might be saved. God was so delighted with Moses' unselfishness that
thereafter He began to speak with Moses very intimately. "The Lord used to
speak to Moses face to face, just as a man speaks to his friend…" (Exod.
33:11).
God even gave Moses the unspeakable privilege of
seeing His glory. When Moses prayed saying, "I pray Thee, show me Thy
glory!", the Lord said, "Behold, there is a place by Me, and
you shall stand there on the rock; and it will come about, while My glory is
passing by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock and cover you with My
hand until I have passed by. Then I will take My hand away and you shall see My
back, but My face shall not be seen" (Exod. 33:18-23).
The most important qualification for a servant of God
is that he does not seek his own. Seeking our own gain or honour is so
deeply rooted in all of us that God has a difficult task to free us from it. He
arranges our circumstances so that we can see our self-seeking spirit, so that
we might judge ourselves and cleanse ourselves from it. He speaks to us through
His Word and is constantly speaking to us through His Spirit (if we have ears
to hear) urging us to cleanse ourselves from this self-seeking spirit.
And yet, in spite of all this, very few make the grade
and qualify for God's certificate of approval. Moses was one such. Paul and
Timothy were two others. There are not many, but there are a few.
The great lack of a spirit of intercession for others,
such as even Moses had under the old covenant, is mainly due to this one fact
that almost everyone, at the bottom of his heart, seeks his own in some way or
the other. We gain no honour when we pray for others secretly. That's why few
believers ever do it. Here is where we are tested by God - for He cannot commit
Himself to those who seek their own.
No comments:
Post a Comment