THE GOSPEL MESSENGER—February 1899

The motives of the servants of God and the source from whence those motives come are often misjudged, not only by enemies, but by even their nearest kindred and friends. And though the true servants of God may be impelled forward by the irresistible power of God’s Spirit, bad and selfish motives are sometimes ascribed to them by even some of their beloved brethren. There are numerous instances of this kind recorded in the Scriptures, but at present we will only refer to Moses, into whose heart it came, when he was full forty years old, to visit his oppressed brethren, and supposing they would understand that God by his hand would deliver them, he saw two of his brethren striving one against the other, and desiring to set them at one again, he ap­proached them, saying: “Sirs, ye are brethren; why do ye wrong one to another?” Acts. vii. 26. But what was his surprise, when with all his good, pure, and self-denying motives for their good, “he that did his neigh­bor wrong” bitterly retorts upon him by saying: “Who made you a ruler and a judge over us? Will thou kill me as thou didst the Egyptian yesterday?” Thus we see that the motives of Moses and the source from which those motives came were misconstrued, perverted, and misjudged, especially by him who did his brother wrong. 

And here we may learn an important lesson, and see developed an important truth concerning a very common trait of character of those who do their brother wrong. They are generally first to justify themselves or scornfully repel the kind labor of any brother who seeks to heal the breach and remove the strife. 

Moses himself was surprised at the unkind reception he had from his brother. He felt that his motives were pure. It had come into his heart with great power from the Lord to visit his oppressed and afflicted breth­ren, and, when he spoke to them out of the honesty of his heart, he supposed that they would understand that God by his hand would deliver Israel from the iron yoke of Egypt. But they understood not, but even as­cribed bad motives to him in all he said or did among them—“Will thou kill me as thou didst the Egyptian yesterday ?“ was the sharp rebuke of the evil-doer. 

And here we might well infer from the subsequent conduct of Moses that he felt greatly disappointed and much discouraged in this his first effort in the work to which the Lord had called him. And we might well suppose that like many young gospel ministers when they make miserable failures in their first efforts of preaching, Moses began to doubt whether the Lord had ever called him to such a great work as to lead Israel out of their many hundred years’ bondage. He might well have concluded that, if the Lord had called him to this work, better success would have crowned this first effort. He gave it up as a rash undertaking of his own, and fled to the land of Midian. There he remains away from Israel forty years, as an humble shepherd watch­ing over his father-in-law’s sheep. But this that came into his heart forty years before, from the Lord, is now revived in a more powerful manner by hearing the great God of Israel speak to him out of the midst of a burning bush. With fear and trembling Moses “hid his face” at such a wonderful display of God’s presence. And when the Lord said, “Come, now, therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharoah, that thou mayest bring forth My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt,” he remembered his first effort and his poor success forty years before that time, and no doubt had, like many preachers of this day, concluded that he was mistaken in the whole matter of his being called of God to such a work. He replied to the Lord, saying “Who am I that I should go unto Pharoah to bring forth the chil­dren of Israel out of Egypt ?“ Exod. iii. 10.

But we will not pursue this line of thought respecting Moses further than to say that, though his motives were misjudged by his own brethren to whom the Lord sent him, and though he himself was much discouraged from their conduct toward him, and may have also had many temptations and doubts as to whether the Lord had called him to such a great and responsible work, yet the heavenly source from whence his motives came could not be defeated. And though he was now 80 years old, and had so long given this matter up as delusive and visionary, yet that which came into his heart from the Lord full forty years before was now being more fully, forcibly, and powerfully revived, so that Moses was made to know more and more of the exceeding greatness of God’s power, love, and faithful­ness toward His people.

How slow of heart are many of the Lord’s people to believe all that the Scriptures teach or all that the proph­ets have spoken concerning our Lord Jesus, or concern­ing the coming of the set time to deliver His church and people from the many yokes and bondage that the inventions of men have put upon them! This has been more or less manifest in nearly all ages of the world.

It shows how slow we are to cut loose from every false way, and how liable we are to be led away with the error of the wicked, and fall from our steadfastness. “How long halt ye brethren two opinions?” I Kings xviii 20.           

 W. M. M.

Opelika, Ala., Dec. 19, 1898