By Grant Marshall.
The Moses Commission.
Let us focus on the life of Moses for a moment, particularly his last few days. I don't think that many people have experienced life in any similarity to that of Moses. His story tells us the rise of a man who spent the first 40 years growing up as a prince in Pharaoh’s Court. Moses had power, status and reputation. Because of the influence of his mother, we know that he was not unaware of his Hebrew heritage. Up to this point, life for him couldn't have been so bad. However, his defence of a Hebrew slave from his taskmaster, saw Moses become a fugitive. At the age of 80 Moses had already spent 40 years as a Shepherd. Then God decided to tell Moses that all was well and that the incident that caused his expulsion from Egypt had been forgotten. Moses could now go back to the people and declare to them that the time of their slavery had come to an end.
Can you imagine at the age of 80 years old, God giving you a similar commission? Well, don’t be surprised any longer. He just has. But would you find excuses not to take it up, as Moses did? Would you say that you are too old or not eloquent in speech?
Whatever God calls you to do, He will give you the means to fulfil the task. In this case, God gave Moses his brother Aaron as an aide. Aaron would be a voice piece, but Moses’ role would be as one who stands in the place of God.
Deuteronomy, 32 is the ‘Song of Moses’. It recounts the deeds of God for His people. It recounts the wickedness of the people and the goodness of God too. Moses, in the beginning of the song, asks that as he gives his praises to God, his words fall like the morning dew.
32 “1 Listen, you heavens, and I will speak; hear, you earth, the words of my mouth.
2 Let my teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants.
3 I will proclaim the name of the Lord. Oh, praise the greatness of our God!
4 He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is He.
This is a beautiful lament. Moses had many trials taking the people through the wilderness for 40 years, but it was a price to pay for this level of intimacy with God. Despite the closeness of this relationship, we also see that God maintained His distance. Moses was not a perfect man. He struggled with his commission, but somehow he knew he had to obey the voice he heard in the burning bush. Nothing is spoken of about the years spent as a shepherd, but we do know that this training made him one of the greatest shepherds of all. The book of Deuteronomy brings our journey with Moses toward the end of his life. Moses could say this, “I am closer to the end of my life than I am to the beginning.”
How true is that to the generation that I am now speaking to? The Lord has given me this word.
Let us continue to read the words of Moses in this song.
v5 They are corrupt and not his children; to their shame they are a warped and crooked generation.
6 Is this the way you repay the Lord, you foolish and unwise people? Is he not your Father, your Creator, who made you and formed you?
7 Remember the days of old; consider the generations long past. Ask your father and he will tell you, your elders, and they will explain to you.
You elders and fathers of the community, what is your excuse?
Why have you not raised the name of the Lord to those outside the camp?
Have you prepared the generations for the times to come?
Have you declared repentance to a wicked and lost generation?
Have you declared unworthiness to those who lead you — to the unelected, to the elected.?
Do you sit in your church pews and the comfort of your classrooms filling your mind with knowledge and growing fat on milk, whilst the famine of the word ravages the generations?
A hungry mind compensates for the malnourishment of the spirit.
What have you said to an eager and expectant generation who wishes to hear from your inadequate voice and untrained lips the things that God has done for you?
It is time to tell of your testimony and repent for the years that you have kept silent — for the years when you have feasted when others more needy have remained hungry and lost.”
I too, am convicted, as I am closer to the end of my life than from the beginning. I have served in the church and had the pleasure of teaching as well as being taught. But my heart is for the lost and for the generation that is about to pass. In the natural, lives are coming to an end. but will those who once walked in faith, and now flounder and refuse to believe any longer, return to God again.? Will they, if they have rejected him, repent and ask God for His regenerating Spirit to bring new life into their dry bones? I need this regenerating spirit too. We do not know how many years the Lord will grant us so let us pray that the Lord will help us to number our days, knowing that the time of His returning is close at hand.
If you need encouragement, then do not be held up by fear. Be bold and courageous for the Lord God Almighty is with you. If you do not know how to begin or what to say, when the Lord might have you speak to the crowd, let me say these words which the Lord has put upon my heart today. Perhaps they will help you.
“I am closer to the end of my life than I am to the beginning. I've seen bad things, done bad things, and think bad things all the time. I wish it were not so. But they remind me of my imperfections and my weaknesses and that I am human.
You have done the same, and you are living a life impacted by bad things. Let's talk about some bad things.
We know that the government makes bad decisions, and we too, make unwise decisions when we elect those over us.
We have an epidemic of bad physical and mental health. We have questionable educational practices and beliefs being given to our children. These I believe are not all good, but these young minds will make decisions that will, good or bad, impact the world and shape the future. It is also bad to refuse the truth of the realities of life.
We are all the same, we have all made bad decisions. Bad things and bad people have impacted us through unsavoury relationships. Bad decisions in business and marriage and even worse, choosing to be among bad company.
In my life, I have seen many bad things; I have seen war and death. I have seen struggle in society through strikes, and lack of food and energy. I have seen what men can do to each other. Young people say to my generation, 'You have had the good times and that there is now nothing left for us'. But I say yes, we did make the world that we live in today, we fought for freedoms and brought great change, but you have reaped the benefits and the opportunities that we never had. We never had credit and never bought anything that we could not afford. Bankruptcy was frowned upon, but today it is acceptable and debt is good. Many of us of my generation have lost our pensions; the things we saved for and hoped to pass down to you, our children have been taken or depleted. When we thought that we would retire we had to work again. Have you in your young lives lost marriages and businesses, your children and everything you have ever worked for? Let me tell you this, — my thoughts on the matter. Can I share with you the little wisdom that I have gained?
It doesn't matter how much you have or how much you have not. If you do not know Jesus, then let me tell you something about my friend. Because of His birth, you celebrate Christmas and Easter. You have holidays because of Him and you celebrate the gifts you given at these times. But you do not accept Him or thank Him for these times when you can find rest and gain pleasure from your labour. You use His most sacred name as a swear word. Would you use your father’s or mother’s name in the same way? Many of the good laws in society are based on His teaching; we know what is good and what is evil because of Him. It does not matter what tradition of Christianity, you observe, or what religion you follow, or whether you have no religion at all, it does not matter.
But I tell you this, it does matter if you don't believe in God and have not received His son as your saviour. God knows you whether you like it or not, and He sees the condition of your heart. He sees your ways, your thoughts and actions; He sees your sufferings, when you are sad and when you are happy. He knows all about you and more than you know yourself.
Don't waste your time seeking the thrill, or the adrenaline of life; don't waste your time trying to accrue wealth and status. Let it be enough and be content in knowing that God has everything covered for you and that you know Him. It is a wonderful thing to know about this relationship.
Jesus gave us a story about how hard it is for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. He also gave us a warning that severe and bad things would be coming upon the earth before his return. A man who chases after wealth is a ruthless man, he does not care about how he gains wealth or who he uses to attain it. This is an evil.
But money and wealth are not evil. Jesus taught us that the love of it is. He also said that He who loves his life will lose it, but he who gives his life to him will have life and more.
God grants us life, and life in abundance. So I say, seek Him, know Him, and serve Him and in all of this you will find fullness and purpose. You will no longer wonder what is the meaning of life — you will no longer chase the pointless and worthless things that occupy your mind now. Give every effort to know Jesus personally.
You will notice that I am not holding a Bible and that I'm not teaching you or speaking to you any of the Scriptures. I am speaking to you about the way of life that He brings and how important it is for me, in my generation, to speak of the good things that He has done for me, and for my brothers and sisters who once had lives like yours. Life is a blink of an eye. Eighty or one hundred years is nothing compared to the years that you will spend in eternity. But don't get me wrong, my friends, not many will make it because the door to the Kingdom is not wide and the road that you walk along is narrow. When you choose this path, you must understand that you will not walk it alone. God has promised to be with you and to give you immortality in Him. He promises to be with you in the deep valleys and upon the heights.
When our old bodies have become decrepit, fragile and seemingly useless, God will bring regeneration to them and we will no longer have sickness and sadness. We will no longer shed tears or be concerned with the lives we lead before all of this.
We fill our lives with great things and experiences — we fill them with clever things. We think that we are more knowledgeable now in the 21st century, but you take away all those clever things and life is the same today as it was for our ancestors some 2,000 years ago. Those people still had concerns about life. They were still worried about food supplies, sickness and war. We look at what we can do, and I believe that our humanity is essentially good and that we are capable of greatness and doing good things. But all of those things can just make us feel good, and make us believe we are Christian. To be a Christian you must know Jesus.
The greatest experience is to have that knowledge and the greatest good you can do is to have Him work great and wonderful things through you.
I am talking today to you because of what He has done for me. I bring a message of change, a message of hope in a world that is restricting movement and taking away your life, and bringing about laws that will enslave and not free.
Jesus said” Whoever”, “whoever” calls on His name and believes in Him shall be saved from the destruction that is to come upon the earth. You can call on Him now — I am not saying it is a good idea, I am saying that you should do it now! Don't leave it too late. You do not know what will happen to you by the end of the day or even in the next five minutes. Jesus is calling to you now—He's giving you a choice for life or a choice for death. Don't waste your time, don't procrastinate, believing that you need more information. Don't waste your life gathering it or believing that your intellect can somehow influence God's decision upon your life. It is more important to know God. It is more important to live by faith.
Jesus spoke of a time when great trouble would come upon the earth. He never told any of His followers that life would be easy for them.
He also gave us the story of a young man who wanted to leave his family home and not wait for his inheritance. The young man wanted his inheritance so that he could live a life in a world that was strange to him. He had heard perhaps from his friends about how exciting this life would be. But knowing his wealth, his friends took advantage of him and soon he became penniless and destitute. His only choice, if he was to survive, was to return home. Whilst this young man spent all these years in the world, having a good time, his father missed him and continued to pray that one day his son would come home. Every day he would think of his long-lost son. The son came to his senses and decided that he would go home and see if his father would be lenient on him and show him some favour. The son knew that his choice had been a wrong one and that he would be willing to spend his life feeding pigs if only his father would give him a place to stay.
We have all made decisions like this. We can't turn back the clock for the things that we have done, but we can see the error of our rebellion and make some reparation toward leading a better life. God uses times like these to bring change, positive change. He wants us to see the errors of our ways, but to also know that He waits patiently for us, just as the father waited for his son to return home. The story tells us that the father did not give him a job feeding pigs and that he welcomed him home - gave him new clothes and reinstated his son’s position in the house. This brought great joy to the Father, and the son knew that he had always loved him and that his father never stopped thinking about him.
I am closer to the end of my life than I am to the beginning of it. You, young people, are closer to the beginning of your life, than you are to the end, perhaps. But I want to tell you this, don't waste any more time. Don't waste time thinking that your ways are the best and that you’ll find your own way to God. Let me tell you this, God has designs on you. He knows the decisions you will make and the many diversions you will make in your life, and He has heard every excuse.
God wants you to know Him and He has made a way that you can. He gave His son, Jesus Christ to us.
The son of God came from heaven down to earth that He may know us. He experienced what it means to be human - He experienced pain and suffering that no man has ever endured.
When I think of challenging times in my life, I know without a shadow of a doubt that God has been with me through all of them and that He will be with me until the end. As I reach the end of my life, I want to tell you about the good things that God has done for me, despite my faithlessness, and my doubts. God brought a change into my life, and when I was lost like the son who went into the world, He welcomed me back when I returned to Him.
God is offering you now this chance to return to Him. Give up the fight because you will lose - give up struggling to believe through your intellect. Give in to Him and receive the faith needed to bring you into the Kingdom of God.
Today I say to you, “The kingdom of God is near you, and is in your midst. Do not reject this precious gift of salvation.”
I believe that the Lord has asked me to share these words with you. Please use them in your message.
Finally, let us hear how these words echo the ‘Song of Moses.’
Psalm 78.
1 My people, hear my teaching; listen to the words of my mouth.
2 I will open my mouth with a parable; I will utter hidden things, things from of old —
3 things we have heard and known, things our ancestors have told us.
4 We will not hide them from their descendants; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, His power, and the wonders he has done.
5 He decreed statutes for Jacob and established the law in Israel, which he commanded our ancestors to teach their children,
6 so the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and they in turn would tell their children.
7 Then they would put their trust in God and would not forget his deeds but would keep his commands.
8 They would not be like their ancestors — a stubborn and rebellious generation, whose hearts were not loyal to God, whose spirits were not faithful to him.
Rich Blessings
Grant Marshall
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