History

The Desire in the Heart of Moses

by Terry Barlow
02/07/15
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   Moses, as the deliverer of the children of Israel from their bondage in Egypt, went through an awful lot leading them through the wilderness for forty years to the brink of the Promised Land. He put up with an amazing amount of rebellious complaints and immaturity, and idolatry. So when he was disciplined by God for his angry, frustrated outburst against the people, his heart had to have been broken. He was not going to be allowed to enter the Land with the people after all his travailing to bring them there. He would merely "put them in position" to enter and Joshua would be the one to actually lead them into the Land. Even though that had been the purpose all along, that they had been "brought out to be brought in" he would not see the fulfillment of that high purpose. On Mount Nebo and the peak of Pisgah specifically he would see the Promised Land from a distance as a kind of consolation prize and then die as "commanded" and be buried secretly by God himself, perhaps to prevent his grave becoming another idol to the people. (Deuteronomy 34)

  But first he would see a panoramic perspective that none of the others would see. He would see the big picture that only fathers can see as John the Apostle later indicated in one of his epistles.(1John 2, v.13&14) And Moses was indeed a spiritual father, a father of a multitude and of a fledgling nation. Seeing this distant view would keep him from missing the forest for the trees, so to speak. And many, even most, of those who would actually enter would miss the forest for the trees, would forget the point of their being there: that of being a holy nation set apart by God to show His might and glory to the nations. Though it was a bitter pill at the time and a bitter taste in his mouth right before he died on that same mountain, he could not ask or think what God would one day do for him instead. (Ephesians 3, v.20)

  For Moses would in fact appear in the Land of his desire hundreds of years later on the Mount of the Transfiguration of the awaited Messiah himself! How much better was that! He didn't walk in by the sweat and exhaustion of a multitude, but stood rather in his glorified form on another high mountaintop alongside Jesus and that giant of prophets Elijah, discussing in sublime council the upcoming atonement. These three represented the three "halls of power " in Bible history when the most miracles were done, and in each case a transfer of power took place between master and disciple(s).  Not only that, Moses looked upon the inner apostolic circle of those being mentored so intensively by the chief apostle himself.

 Though his own failure and weakness kept him out of the Land the first time, it was also just a part of the process of how another way was to be prepared for him to be where he so longed to be, and to be established there far more gloriously! This was after all the point and purpose of why there was a Promised Land and a People in the first place. Might it even be so with us? Our hearts' desires some of which that seem to be denied us, that seem unreachable now through our own weakness, failures and botched opportunities, or even through no apparent fault of our own, might those desires actually be fulfilled for us in far more glorious ways than we ever imagined through the very means that seemed to separate them from us and disqualify us?

  If the story of Moses is any indication and has any relevance to us, and it wouldn't be there in the Bible for us to read if it doesn't, then we can expect similar surprises as we press on in our desire to know the same God he served and be faithful in our generation, as Moses was in his. Hallelujah!