ARMY OF GOSPEL WORKERS

By Thandeka Moyo
Document 7: Moses

Before we trace through the Bible the results of relying on an army made
according to the fashion of the world we will look at the life of the one who
wrote the first five books of what would come to be known as ‘the book of the
law’ plus the book of Job. Moses was trained up from age 12 to be the next
Pharoah in Egypt when his step-grandfather would be no more. By the age of
40 he was well versed in combat skills and in leading men to war. One thing
he lacked in the eyes of the king’s court was his lack of faith in their religious
practices. He would not join up with the idolatrous priesthood in their worship
services, nor in their secret societies. We find the testimony of Moses’ early
life in Egypt in Hebrews 11:24-26:

“By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of
Pharaoh’s daughter; choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God,
than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; esteeming the reproach of
Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the
recompense of the reward.”

Commenting on these verses we find the following in Patriarchs and Prophets

“Moses was fitted to take pre-eminence among the great of the earth, to shine
in the courts of its most glorious kingdom, and to sway the scepter of its
power. His intellectual greatness distinguishes him above the great men of all
ages. As historian, poet, philosopher, general of armies, and legislator, he
stands without a peer. Yet with the world before him, he had the moral
strength to refuse the flattering prospects of wealth and greatness and fame,
‘choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the
pleasures of sin for a season.’ Moses had been instructed in regard to the
final reward to be given to the humble and obedient servants of God, and
worldly gain sank to its proper insignificance in comparison.
“The magnificent palace of Pharaoh and the monarch’s throne were held out
as an inducement to Moses; but he knew that the sinful pleasures that make
men forget God were in its lordly courts. He looked beyond the gorgeous
palace, beyond a monarch’s crown, to the high honors that will be bestowed
on the saints of the Most High in a kingdom untainted by sin. He saw by faith
an imperishable crown that the King of heaven would place on the brow of the
overcomer. This faith led [Moses] to turn away from the lordly courts of the
earth and join the humble, poor, despised nation that had chosen to obey God
rather than to serve sin.”

Being trained in combat, politics and worldly philosophy and now finding
himself firmly on the side of the slave nation of Israel Moses’ first instinct to
gain freedom was to use force in the killing of the slave-driving Egyptian guard
in perceived secrecy. This was not God’s plan for victory over Egypt, so
circumstances were orchestrated in such a way that Moses had to flee from
Egypt into Midian and there Moses spent another generation learning not to
be a commander of men but a leader under the God of heaven and earth. It
was in the herding of Reuel’s flocks that Moses became “very meek, above all
men which were upon the face of the earth.” (Numbers 12:3).

Thus prepared after 40 years, God could now count on Moses to follow His
commands and lead Israel out of Egypt. God showed clearly through the ten
plagues on Egypt that it was not by the might of any man that Israel was
delivered from bondage but by the outstretched arm of God alone. The
crossing of the Red Sea more clearly revealed God’s ability to defend His
people single-handedly, stalling Pharaoh’s armies in a shroud of darkness
and thereafter burying the Egyptians in the depths of the sea, fulfilling His
words;

“The Lord shall fight for you; and ye shall hold your peace,” Exodus 14:14.

Despite such a great display of God’s power to preserve His people, their
hearts were still hardened against Him and they murmured against their God-
appointed leaders.
After three tests of God’s patience God allowed the Amalekites to attack the
vulnerable, recently freed nation “to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know
what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep His commandments or
no,” (Deuteronomy 8:2). Even in this case Moses did not engage in the
conflict besides raising his hands and staff in the air as the Lord commanded
him (today we would say he was signaling his surrender). It is from this
conflict however that Israel now had a reason to seek to bear arms to protect
themselves and a sworn enemy was gained who would disturb the nation’s
peace for a very long time only because Israel would still disobey God’s
instructions to them. It is very likely that this first battle also led the
congregation to fall right back into worshiping the gods of war from Egypt with
feasting and songs that sounded like war in the camp to Joshua’s ears.

Yet God through Moses repeats three more times in the book of Deuteronomy
the promise that He will fight for Israel (Deut 1:30; Deut 3:22; and Deut 20:4)
and in the last song of Moses, God states:

“To Me belongeth vengeance,” Deuteronomy 32:35.

Even with these precious promises God saw that His people would not
believe in Him completely as their only Sovereign and Lord and so gave them
the regulations for kings despite the fact that the concept of having a man as
king originated from the surrounding nations. In Deuteronomy chapter 17 we
find the steps to watch out for:

Step 1: The king should know God, daily reading and writing the law of
God that he may not exalt himself above He who put him on the throne
(verses 18-20). Perhaps a king would notice God’s displeasure in
having a man as king in the first place and would avoid the cyclical
steps that follow;
Step 2: The king should be a citizen of Israel (verse 15). A citizen and
brother cares for other members of his nation.
 Step 3: The king should not build his own army (verse 16), and should
especially avoid seeking Egypt’s help in building one. That door must
not be an option.
Step 4: No polygamy or fornication (verse 17a). This especially guards
the man from turning to other gods, plus prevents alliances with nations
that reject God and thus getting involved in fights that aren’t yours; and
finally
Step 5: No seeking after great wealth (verse 17b). This step unheeded
would then secure one firmly into seeking after a place established in
this world rather than with God in heaven and in the earth made new.

With eyes on a more secure place in the world the chances of having a king
who is not even a citizen of the nation becomes likely; the desire for an army
to protect oneself grows deeper; and failing to match another nation in might
makes the consideration of drawing up alliances a safer option; which in those
days and even to this day (to a smaller scale perhaps) means marrying the
two royal houses together; which expands territory and responsibilities which
in turn breeds the need for more treasure and on and on the cycle goes till
destruction arrives in the form of God’s wrath upon the people.

Having borne his testimony to Israel and given them warning from personal
experience and God’s direction, God revealed to Moses that the people would
still follow after their own desire for the idolatrous practices of their neighbours
when he would no longer be around to give them warning (Deuteronomy
31:16-21; v25-30). So God instructed Moses to leave the people with one last
song to be passed down from generation to generation amongst the children
so that the people would not forget and fall prey to idolatry which is found in
Deuteronomy chapter 32. Not long after this the Egyptian heir apparent turned
shepherd who became the prophet of God died leaving behind him his
testimony of Jesus that we hold in our Bibles today.

Despite God’s detailed warning about what having a king would do to Israel
as shown in 1 Samuel 8:10-18, the people still wanted to be like what they
saw around, them just as God had predicted. The historical record of Israel’s
fate in the Old Testament proves God right, for truly having a man as king is
very much a form of idolatry as man is now not only a marred image of God
(Genesis 1:26,27; Exodus 20:4-5) but also the fact that most kings are looked
upon as gods reincarnated or mediators between God and men, thus putting
man in the place of Jesus Christ, the only Mediator between God and man.
And wherever you find a king he will have rule over armies of men and armies
demand a single ruler over them, even a king. Only 10 kings can be said to
have had a righteous or mostly righteous reign over Israel and these were
only the kings who were associated closely with the Lord and His Sanctuary:
David, Solomon and eight kings of Judah. A brief look at the reign of the first
three kings of Israel and a closer look at the reign of another noteworthy set of
three kings will feature in our next studies.

“And Moses made an end of speaking all these words to all Israel: and he
said unto them, ‘Set your hearts unto all the words which I testify among you
this day, which ye shall command your children to observe to do, all the words
of this law. For it is not a vain thing for you; because it is your life: and through
this thing ye shall prolong your days in the land, whither you go over Jordan to
possess it.’ ” - Deuteronomy 32:45-47