Feel the Fear and Be Faithful
Blockbuster Bible Movie
Maybe one of the most iconic movies of all time is a movie about the Bible. The Ten Commandments was released in 1956 and quickly became a blockbuster as it made motion picture history.
I remember seeing this movie on TV when I was growing up.
It was, and maybe still is, the most famous depiction of the story of the Exodus, the story of how God in a miraculous way delivered the people of Israel from 430 years (Exodus 12:40–41) of Egyptian slavery. How He caused the ten plagues to come across Egypt to get Pharaoh’s attention until he was finally ready to let the people of Israel go. How he parted the waters of the Red Sea so the Israelites could walk across on dry ground and then, when the Egyptians pursued, God released those waters and the Egyptian army was completely destroyed. And then, how God gave Moses the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai.
What’s interesting about this movie is that it was actually a remake of a 1923 Silent Film by the same director, Cecil B. DeMille. He wanted to remake the movie using the new technology of 1956 to tell the story in a bigger and better way. Not only could the actors speak, the movie was filmed in widescreen format in Technicolor!
At the time, it was one of the most expensive films ever produced with a budget of about $13 million, equivalent to about $140 million in today’s dollars! The film had massive sets, needed thousands of extras, and had groundbreaking special effects.
In fact, one of the biggest things they had to figure out was how to film the parting of the Red Sea. They didn’t have CGI! So they actually filmed water crashing in, then played it in reverse in the movie to give the effect of the water being parted! Pretty ingenious at the time!
Casting was the other big question. I mean, who do you get to play Moses? Who would be willing to play this part, step into this role, be the lead actor and main character in the movie?
As you might imagine, there were several people who were interested in the role and wanted the part. The movie would employ hundreds of actors, thousands of extras, but the lead role was key. It was an important decision that had the potential to make or break the movie. So who would the movie maker, the producer, choose to play this important role?
Playing the Part
Some of you already know the answer, and we’ll talk about it in a minute. It’s not a secret. And it’s really not even that important. But before we talk about that, I just want to pause and ask this question,
Are you willing to play your part, the role God has given you, in His story?
The world we live in today isn’t that much different than 1956. People are still competing for lead roles in movies, in plays, on their sports team, in band, at work, at school, on social media, and the list goes on and on. Everybody’s giving that main character energy.
But not everybody wants to step into the part that God is calling them to play in His story. Not everybody realizes they’ve been invited to be a part of the cast.
But the bigger problem, if you ask me, is that those who have, those who know God, who know that He has invited them to play a part in His story, to be a part of what He is doing in this world, have decided they don’t want the part. They would rather someone else take the role, play the part, get the spot.
People like you and me, people who know God’s heart and know God’s Word, people who know what we should be about and should be doing, have decided not to accept the invitation to play our part in His story.
Why?
Maybe it’s fear.
Maybe we don’t want to step out of our comfort zone. Or maybe we just don’t want to step out of our comfort.
Maybe we’re worried that we can’t do it. That we don’t know enough. That we aren’t good enough.
Maybe we’ve got a past, and we’re afraid. What if people found out? If they knew what I knew about me, they wouldn’t like me much less listen to me.
Whatever the reason, we, too, sometimes say, “No,” to God.
It’s interesting, Cecil B. DeMille asked Charlton Heston to play the part of Moses, and he was eager to do so. He jumped at the chance to play the part. And because he did, he has gone down in movie history for playing one of the most important parts ever cast in one of the most popular movies ever made.
Moses Didn’t Want to Play the Part
But Moses, the actual person named Moses who lived some 3500 of years ago and was wandering in the wilderness near Mt. Sinai when God called him, he did not want to play the part. He said, “No,” to God not once, not twice, not even three times. Moses said “No,” to God five different times because he did not want to play the part of Moses in one of the greatest stories of all time, the story of the Exodus and the Ten Commandments.
This story is found in Exodus 3. We aren’t going to walk through the whole story of Moses. If you want to do that, you can read through Exodus or just go home today and watch the 1956 film, The Ten Commandments. 🙂
Exodus 3
1 One day Moses was tending the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian. He led the flock far into the wilderness and came to Sinai, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a blazing fire from the middle of a bush. Moses stared in amazement. Though the bush was engulfed in flames, it didn’t burn up. 3 “This is amazing,” Moses said to himself. “Why isn’t that bush burning up? I must go see it.”
At this point in the story, Moses has just about hit rock bottom. He grew up in Egypt, a Hebrew boy in Pharaoh’s house, and he had everything in front of him. His future seemed to be mapped out perfectly. He had wealth and riches. He was like a son to the most powerful king on the planet.
His future was bright when, all of a sudden, things took a turn for the worse.
One day, he saw an Egyptian beating one of the Hebrew men. Moses thought no one was looking and took matters into his own hands, killing the Egyptian. He hid the body and thought, for a moment, that he had gotten away with murder. But you know how this works. Before he knew it, everyone knew what he did. Moses was afraid of what would happen when Pharaoh found out, and so he ran. He fled from Egypt and found himself in the land of Midian.
Now it’s been 40 years (Acts 7:30). Moses has a wife and two sons (Exodus 2:21–22; 18:3–4). He went from being a prince in Egypt to now being a shepherd for his father-in-law. Almost overnight, he went from being one of the wealthiest people on the planet to being the poorest of the poor. He doesn’t even have his own sheep. He’s a shepherd for his father-in-law.
Moses thought his life was over, his story was over, and he was content to live the rest of his life in obscurity as an exile in a foreign land. But God had heard the cry of his people in Egypt living under oppression. Moses might have been done with Egypt, but God wasn’t done with Moses.
It was a normal night, a night like any other night. Moses has pushed the sheep past the land of Midian into the west, looking for better pasture. He’s ended up close to a place called Mt. Sinai. And then, he sees something he’s never seen before. There’s a bush, it’s on fire, but it’s not burning up.
And then he hears something.
God’s Call
4 When the Lord saw Moses coming to take a closer look, God called to him from the middle of the bush, “Moses! Moses!”
“Here I am!” Moses replied.
5 “Do not come any closer,” the Lord warned. “Take off your sandals, for you are standing on holy ground. 6 I am the God of your father—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.”
Moses is in his 80s. He’s got no wealth, no future, no plans, only a past that he’s not very proud of. Life hasn’t worked out the way he once thought it would. And now, somehow, someway, he is having this encounter with God!
When Moses heard this, he covered his face because he was afraid to look at God.
7 Then the Lord told him, “I have certainly seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I have heard their cries of distress because of their harsh slave drivers. Yes, I am aware of their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them from the power of the Egyptians and lead them out of Egypt into their own fertile and spacious land. It is a land flowing with milk and honey—the land where the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites now live. 9 Look! The cry of the people of Israel has reached me, and I have seen how harshly the Egyptians abuse them. 10 Now go, for I am sending you to Pharaoh. You must lead my people Israel out of Egypt.”
God finds Moses in a foreign land, reveals Himself to him, and calls him to be a part of what He wants to do in the world.
God wants to cast Moses in the lead role, to give that main character energy, to step out of obscurity into His story. Moses has been a shepherd for his father-in-law, and now God wants him to be a shepherd for His people!
It’s like the kid who played sports all his life and ends up out of the game for some reason, maybe it was an injury, maybe he had been overlooked, and then discovers that he’s the number one draft pick!
Or the person who’s company failed and all of a sudden they’re out of work, down on their luck, finally found a job that’s way beneath them, but they’ve got to do something, only to get a call one day from another employer offering them the dream job of a lifetime!
Moses went from being on top of the mountain to being at the bottom of the valley. And now, God is inviting him back into the game, into the story, to play a major part not just in some movie, but in God’s story!
Moses is going to say, YES! Sign me up! Thank you, God! Right?
Not so fast…
Moses’ First Protest
11 But Moses protested to God, “Who am I to appear before Pharaoh? Who am I to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt?”
Moses essentially says, “Thanks, but no thanks!” This is his first protest. God has invited him into His story, to play a lead role in what He’s about to do, but unlike Charlton Heston, Moses does not want to play the part of Moses in this story.
Why? We don’t really know. Maybe he’s afraid to return to Egypt. When he ran away 40 years ago, he became a fugitive.
Was he comfortable living the life of a shepherd tending another man’s sheep and simply unwilling to step out of the safety and security he felt like he had created for himself?
Maybe he was worried that he wasn’t good enough, strong enough, smart enough, whatever enough to return to Egypt and make any kind of demands before Pharaoh. That feeling of “notenoughness” is a strong and powerful feeling. Some of you have felt it before.
Whatever his fears or doubts, worries or concerns, insecurities or anxieties around the calling God was placing on his life, whatever it was that Moses was so afraid of, God had an answer.
12 God answered, “I will be with you. And this is your sign that I am the one who has sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God at this very mountain.”
God’s answer to our every fear is this: “I will be with you.”
So quick question, what would you do if you knew the God of the Universe was with you? Is there anything you would be afraid to do if you knew the God of the Universe was going to be right by your side?
This is the promise God gives to Moses. You don’t have to fear. You don’t have to worry. No matter what, come what may, I will be with you!
This is the point where Moses is supposed to say, “Ok, God! Let’s go! Let’s do this!”
But that’s not what happened…
Moses’ Second Protest
13 But Moses protested, “If I go to the people of Israel and tell them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ they will ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what should I tell them?”
This is the second time Moses tells God no. His second protest.
Before Moses agrees to this, if he agrees to this, he wants to know. When they ask me What is your name? What do I tell them?
Now, spoiler alert, this question never came up. Moses, when he finally returns to Egypt and meets with the people, they don’t ask this question. But Moses thought they might. And so God tells him…
14 God replied to Moses, “I AM who I AM. Say this to the people of Israel: I AM has sent me to you.” 15 God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: Yahweh, the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.
This is my eternal name,
my name to remember for all generations.
Moses, standing on holy ground, before a burning bush that is on fire but is not burning up, hearing the voice of God from that same bush in the middle of a wilderness near Mt. Sinai, hears God speak God’s name. He is I AM. This is His eternal Name. It is unchanging. Everlasting.
You could also translate it this way: I Will Be What I Will Be meaning, My Nature will become evident from my actions.
In other words, everyone in Israel and in Egypt is about to find out exactly who I am, Moses, because of what I am about to do as I deliver my people from Egypt through the ten plagues, through the parting of the Red Sea, through the giving of the Ten Commandments on Mt. Sinai. I AM who I AM, and you can tell them, if they ask, I AM has sent me to you.
But Moses, somehow, is not convinced yet. And unbelievably, he continues to argue with God! Turn the page to chapter 4.
Moses’ Third Protest
Exodus 4:1
But Moses protested again, “What if they won’t believe me or listen to me? What if they say, ‘The Lord never appeared to you’?”
This is the third protest Moses makes.
Then God show Moses two different miraculous signs he can perform to prove that he really has been sent by the great I AM.
Moses’ Fourth Protest
10 But Moses pleaded with the Lord, “O Lord, I’m not very good with words. I never have been, and I’m not now, even though you have spoken to me. I get tongue-tied, and my words get tangled.”
Moses is worried because… “He don’t talk to good.”
If you’re keeping count, this is the fourth protest.
Moses’ Fifth Protest
13 But Moses again pleaded, “Lord, please! Send anyone else.”
Finally, Moses says, Can’t somebody else do this!? This is his fifth and final protest.
God was calling Moses to something big. Something he never could have done on his own. Something he was afraid to do. Anxiety and insecurity consumed him. Fear surrounded him. “God, can’t you find someone else?”
If God had done that, we would never have known Moses’ name. He would have missed out on the biggest blessing of His life.
We sometimes say things like, “God really doesn’t need me. He can find someone else. He’ll accomplish His will with or without me.” Well, maybe. But God seems pretty set on Moses here.
And God may be set on you as well to do what only you can do for Him.
So what are you so afraid of?
What is it that God is calling you to do in faith, calling you to do in obedience, but you’re afraid to do it? Maybe you’re filled with doubt and fear, anxiety and insecurity, maybe you feel like you’re not enough, like God should just choose someone else. What are you so afraid of?
The Mine Train
Several years ago, Alisha and I took our kids to Disney World. They were all young, and so everything about Disney World was just amazing and magical and all the things. Our kids loved seeing their favorite characters from some of their favorite movies, getting autographs, and doing all the fun things.
But the rides, our kids weren’t too sure about the rides. Especially the roller coasters. Personally, I enjoy a good roller coaster. Our kids, not so much!
Finally, somehow, I convinced them to ride the Mine Train. I told them, I’ll ride it with you. I’ll be right there beside you. If you don’t know, the Mine Train is a very basic roller coaster. It doesn’t go too fast. It doesn’t go upside down. There aren’t any big hills or big drops. It’s not even all that fast. But it’s a fun little roller coaster, a perfect ride to start out on.
Our kids, however, were so scared to get on it. You could see the anxiety. They were really afraid. But they got on the roller coaster and… they loved it! I remember when they got off the roller coaster, they were jumping and laughing and celebrating, and they were ready to ride it again!
Fear was separating my kids from having a good time and experiencing the good things that Disney World had for them.
Fear was separating Moses from God and from experiencing God’s call on His life and the good things He had planned for him. God’s answer to his fear, and to ours, is His presence. God said, “I will be with you.”
Moses is an icon of faith. They’ve made movies about him! But we see in him the human side of faith.
It’s not always easy, in fact, more often than not, it’s difficult. But when we are willing to trust God, to hear His call on our lives, and to obey His word, we too will experience what life is like with Him. Living in His presence. Playing our part in His great story.
God has a part that only you can play in His story. Will you say Yes?
Here’s the Good News…
You don’t have to be full of faith to be used by God. You can be afraid and still be faithful.
Feel the Fear and Be Faithful
Today, can I encourage you to hear God’s voice, to walk with Him in faith, and to do what He wants you to do?
You may want to protest. But God will be patient with you. God wants to reveal Himself to you so He can invite you into His story. He wants to cast you, He wants to use you, He wants you to play a part in what He’s doing in this world. Will you say yes to the One who has already said Yes to you?
About two thousand years ago, there was a conversation in Heaven. At least, that how I see it in my mind’s eye. I imagine this moment where God the Father came to God the Son and called Him to go from Heaven to Earth to save all people. To deliver them from darkness to light, from death to light. Unlike Moses, there was no hesitation, no protest. Jesus said, “Yes,” to the Father. And because He did, we can know that even when we’re afraid, we have this promise: God is with us. And because of the promise we don’t have to protest, we can feel the fear and we can choose to be faithful!
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