The Exhausted Excite, Exult and Exalt
| Moses and Aaron brought together all the elders of the Israelites, and Aaron told them everything the LORD had said to Moses. He also performed the signs before the people, and they believed. And when they heard that the LORD was concerned about them and had seen their misery, they bowed down and worshiped. (Exodus4:29-31) |
As Moses heads back to Egypt, Aaron is prompted to meet him along the way and the brothers come to meet the elders of the Israelites. Think about their plight - while Moses was in the desert for 40 years, they were still slaves. More sons and daughters had been born - probably two generations born into slavery. This was an excruciating and exhausting experience.
And so Aaron tells Moses' story.
Think about the wisdom of this:
Aaron has credibility - he's been slaving. Moses not so much - He grew up as a prince of Egypt and now he's been far away - and even goat herding in Midian would seem preferable to slavery. But Aaron speaks - they know him and trust him. He is convincing and the story seems plausible.
And so Moses performs the two signs and they get really excited - they begin to believe.
But it's the last bit that grabs me by the throat.
When Moses performs the signs - they are excited and believe - "Yeah! We can do this!"
But even bigger things happen when Moses and Aaron communicate God's compassionate concern ("I have seen their suffering, I have heard their cries, I am concerned about them and I have come down" (Exo3:7-8))
After hearing this the elders exult in God's compassion and bow down in exalting worship.
It's not the miracles - it's the compassion.
Can you see it?
Exhausted older men with bent whipped backs and calloused hands, world weary eyes now flowing with tears, feeling like a load has been lifted off their shoulders:
"God sees us, He's concerned about us, He's coming to help us!"
And so they worship: excited, exulting and exalting.
