I remember the movie Mr Holland’s Opus years ago. It was the story of a beloved teacher who had dedicated his life to his students and music. He had written a beautiful piece of music not knowing if it would ever come to fruition….only to be overwhelmed with love when his students, family and faculty had put it all together with great surprise at an assembly in his honor. What a legacy he left for those he had led well throughout his life. Isn’t this what all of us would like to do? It may not be a musical score, but something we leave behind that inspires and encourages others.
Studying the life of Moses will lead you on quite a journey with many twists and turns. He survives the murderous threats of an evil pharaoh because of a faithful and courageous mother who hides him in a homemade “baby ark” and allows it to float into the Nile river near Pharaoh’s daughter. His very first of many divine interventions. From a saved Hebrew baby, to become Pharaoh’s daughters son; and then a leader in that palace.
After he murders a fellow Hebrew, he becomes a man on the run. He lives on the back side of the desert for 40 long years! You could say he got pretty comfortable there. He had a family and flocks and herds to care for; however God had other plans for Moses. He had a nation of people that needed a deliverer, and Moses had been chosen by God the day that his mother placed him in that little ark. What we may see as coincidences, God sees as divine interventions.
How many times has God intervened in your life? How many arks of refuge has He placed you in? I can look back over my life and see more than a few! What the enemy had planned for evil, God turned it around and used it for my good. In the midst of the desert seasons when all seems comfortable, and the place we would choose to remain incognito from the places of trauma….the LORD appears with a divine intervention. It is a custom made “burning bush” If He can save us with a little ark, He can certainly create a burning bush to get our attention. And that He did.
Out of the backside of the desert to the land of Egypt that he had escaped 40 years earlier. The Lord was already writing the score for the song that Moses would recite to the children of Israel before his death. He begins writing our stories and our songs long before we know that we will either sing them, write them, or leave them for the next generation to sing. There are so many experiences that go into the song. I cannot write music, nor could I sing a song solo; but I can write a story or a letter in hopes that it will change a life here and now, or later when I am gone.
The song that the LORD gave Moses in Deuteronomy 32 is almost the entire chapter. He begins by calling them to attention, and acknowledging the greatness of God. “Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak; And hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. Let my doctrine drop as the rain, and My speech distill as the dew, as raindrops on the tender herb, and as showers on the grass, for I proclaim the name of the LORD: Ascribe greatness to our God.” It is 43 verses of history and prophecy. It details the LORD’s provision and the severe correction they will endure for their rebellious ways.
The final verse in the song is, “Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people; for He will avenge the blood of His servants, and render vengeance to His adversaries; He will provide atonement for His land and His people.” This is a promise. There are three psalms that repeat this promise….psalm 65:3, 79:9, 85:1
What took place when Moses finished reading this song to the people? The LORD took him to the top of Mount Nebo and showed him the entire land that His people had been promised from the beginning when Moses delivered them out of Egypt. God in His mercy allowed Moses to see what had been promised even though he could not cross over the Jordan to enter the land. Sometimes we will only get a glimpse of a promise, yet it is a beautiful reminder of His unending mercy and continued faithfulness to all generations.
Moses closes out his life with a final blessing over the people, reminding them that, “The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms; He will thrust out the enemy from before you, and will say, Destroy!” Then at the top of Mount Nebo, “Moses the servant of the LORD died there in the land of Moab….and He buried him, but no one knows his grave to this day. Imagine that… the LORD Himself gave Moses a personal burial! Moses was one hundred and twenty years old when he died. His eyes were not dim, nor his natural vigor diminished.”
What a legacy! After all he had been through he was still full of life. God wrote an amazing story through Moses, and He continues to write amazing stories through each one of our lives. We may not be leading multiple thousands out of Egyptian bondage….literally. However, each one of us has a voice, an influence, and a purpose. When we build our life on the Rock of ages, and allow Him to be our refuge, we become that lighthouse for others to find salvation.
“He is the Rock, His work is perfect; For all His ways are justice, A God of truth and without injustice; Righteous and upright is He.”