New Wine for New Wineskins November 2009


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Let the Weak Speak

Let the Weak Speak

Part 15

Moses – Faith and Patience (2)

We don’t ever have to wear ourselves out chasing signs and wonders – we are signs and wonders and so we are destined to be the most exciting thing that is going on wherever we are!

Isaiah 8: 18

18 Here am I and the children whom the LORD has given me!
We are for signs and wonders in Israel
From the LORD of hosts,
Who dwells in Mount Zion.

Joel 3: 9 – 10

9 Proclaim this among the nations:
“Prepare for war!
Wake up the mighty men,
Let all the men of war draw near,
Let them come up.
10 Beat your plowshares into swords
And your pruning hooks into spears;
Let the weak say, ‘I am strong.’”

IT’S TIME TO LET THE WEAK SPEAK!  LET THE WEAK SAY, “I AM STRONG!”

We have been looking at Moses and how even if all you have is a stick and a stutter if you bring it to the place of exchange and give it to God his strength will manifest in your weakness and bring you through every circumstance in victory!

Hebrews 11: 29

29 By faith they passed through the Red Sea as by dry land, whereas the Egyptians, attempting to do so, were drowned.

Exodus 14: 13 – 16

13 And Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. 14 The LORD will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.”
15 And the LORD said to Moses, “Why do you cry to Me? Tell the children of Israel to go forward. 16 But lift up your rod, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it. And the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea.

Tell the people to go forward!  “G-G-G-G-GO FORWARD!”  Lift up your rod and stretch out your hand!  You have authority!  God’s strength will manifest in your weakness!  God is still asking, “Why are you crying to me?  Go forward!  Speak the word!  Clear the way through the impossible and advance!”

Remember- Moses was the most teachable man in his generation!  God said that he spoke with Moses face to face!

Numbers 12: 6 – 8

6 Then He (God) said, “Hear now My words: If there is a prophet among you, I, the LORD, make Myself known to him in a vision; I speak to him in a dream.
7 Not so with My servant Moses; He is faithful in all My house.
8 I speak with him face to face, even plainly, and not in dark sayings; and he sees the form of the LORD.

There is a lot being said these days about dreams and visions and that is okay, but I want Moses’ testimony – I want God to speak to me face to face!  I want to be faithful in all his house!

Moses saw two million of God’s people supernaturally delivered out from the bondage of slavery under an oppressive regime!  He led these people for forty years through times of rebellion and insurrection as virtually a whole generation minus two people failed to enter into the fullness of their destiny.  They came out of Egypt with half the gospel but they rejected the full gospel that would have caused them to live in the fullness of their inheritance.

We have previously seen how Moses first felt the call of God stirring in him and how his weakness of impatience leading to frustration and manifesting in anger caused him to launch his deliverance ministry at the wrong time and in the wrong way!

After forty years on the back side of the desert when it would appear that the call of God was “on hold” in his life, God appears to him and commissions him to go to Pharaoh and command him to let his people go!  After a brief debate during which Moses learns that God’s power can manifest through whatever we surrender to him, he sets out for Egypt and consistently but patiently brings the message to Pharaoh that God wants his people released.

When the ten-count is over Moses finds himself responsible for leading a large company of people who are still so bound and controlled by a slave-mindset that they are continually unable to grasp the extent of the good plan that God has for their lives and so they murmur, grumble, and complain their way round in circles for forty years until all but two of them die from unbelief.  Who knows that could test your patience?  It really seems that Moses has the victory over his weakness!  In fact, at one point when God offers to wipe out all of the people and start again with him, Moses intercedes on their behalf.

Moses faithfully downloads the law from God and passes it on to the people.  He is a genuine, bona fide, twenty-four carat superdude of faith.

And yet, after eighty years Moses’ weakness manifests again and disqualifies him from inheriting the promised land.  Never become complacent with your weaknesses – even if you’ve had the victory for eighty years!

Proverbs 4: 23

23 Guard your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life.

LET THE WEAK SAY, “I AM STRONG!”

Let’s see what happens to Moses.

Numbers 20: 1 – 13

1 Then the children of Israel, the whole congregation, came into the Wilderness of Zin in the first month, and the people stayed in Kadesh; and Miriam died there and was buried there.
2 Now there was no water for the congregation; so they gathered together against Moses and Aaron. 3 And the people contended with Moses and spoke, saying: “If only we had died when our brethren died before the LORD! 4 Why have you brought up the assembly of the LORD into this wilderness, that we and our animals should die here? 5 And why have you made us come up out of Egypt, to bring us to this evil place? It is not a place of grain or figs or vines or pomegranates; nor is there any water to drink.” 6 So Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and they fell on their faces. And the glory of the LORD appeared to them.
7 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 8 “Take the rod; you and your brother Aaron gather the congregation together. Speak to the rock before their eyes, and it will yield its water; thus you shall bring water for them out of the rock, and give drink to the congregation and their animals.” 9 So Moses took the rod from before the LORD as He commanded him.
10 And Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock; and he said to them, “Hear now, you rebels! Must we bring water for you out of this rock?” 11 Then Moses lifted his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod; and water came out abundantly, and the congregation and their animals drank.
12 Then the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not believe Me, to hallow Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.”
13 This was the water of Meribah, because the children of Israel contended with the LORD, and He was hallowed among them.

God said speak but Moses struck!  What happened?  The old weakness manifested!   You can see why it happened but although there may have been a good reason there is still no excuse!

Moses’ impatience – having or showing a tendency to to be quickly irritated or provoked – became frustration – the feeling of being upset or annoyed because of the inability to change something or somebody – and manifested as anger – a strong feeling of annoyance, displeasure, or hostility.

Sin is a process and if you don’t nip it in the bud it will always end in death!

James 1: 12 – 20 (NLT)

12 God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. 13 And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, “God is tempting me.” God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else. 14 Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. 15 These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death. 16 So don’t be misled, my dear brothers and sisters. 17 Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. 18 He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession. 19 Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. 20 Human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires.

The tendency towards weakness is the enemy within – you take it with you wherever you go!  We must learn to nip it in the bud before it becomes sin in our lives and causes us to fall short of God’s glory!  Jesus said that we should learn to deny ourselves and take up our cross daily.  We need to come to the place of exchange every day and exchange our weakness for his strength!

Maybe you have a problem with impatience.  You may be wondering when you are finally going to see the fulfilment of some of the things that God has promised, or you might already be frustrated that the call of God on your life has not yet been recognised or utilised.  Please accept a word of caution: if you step out before God’s timing in frustration you will minister out of an angry spirit and do more damage than good and turn more people off than you turn on!

This is also true for those already involved in active ministry or leadership.  Everything we do must be led by the Holy Spirit so that we always speak as the mouthpiece of God and and minister with his ability.  Otherwise we will not speak words or minister actions that are bathed in his love for lost people.  Anyone involved in ministry knows that working with people – even God’s people – can try your patience to the max and leave you frustrated and angry if you don’t come to the place of exchange!

You see, there was a time forty years before that Moses had been instructed to strike the rock in order to bring forth water for the people.

Exodus 17: 1 – 5

1 Then all the congregation of the children of Israel set out on their journey from the Wilderness of Sin, according to the commandment of the LORD, and camped in Rephidim; but there was no water for the people to drink. 2 Therefore the people contended with Moses, and said, “Give us water, that we may drink.”
So Moses said to them, “Why do you contend with me? Why do you tempt the LORD?”
3 And the people thirsted there for water, and the people complained against Moses, and said, “Why is it you have brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?”
4 So Moses cried out to the LORD, saying, “What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me!”
5 And the LORD said to Moses, “Go on before the people, and take with you some of the elders of Israel. Also take in your hand your rod with which you struck the river, and go. 6 Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock in Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.”

There is a very powerful revelation here for us!

1 Corinthians 10: 1 – 4

1 Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea, 2 all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, 3 all ate the same spiritual food, 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ.

The Rock was Christ!  Jesus the Christ was struck once and for all to open up the rivers of living water that are accessible to all who simply believe!

The church is the Body of Christ and so you don’t strike them or try and whip them up with threats and tongue-lashings.  You simply speak and preach and teach all that Jesus has accomplished –  and those who believe what you say will produce rivers of living water!

John 7: 38

38 “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”

It was by faith that Moses delivered the people of God out of bondage and it should have been by faith that he led them into the promised land.  We can only lead people out of bondage by faith and it is certain that we can only lead them into the fullness of their inheritance by faith.  There have been times when I have heard “hard” preaching and because of my own frustration with people my soul has said “amen” to it but my spirit was always troubled by it.  I’m sure Aaron was in complete agreement with what Moses did but that didn’t make it right.  I have sat down with fellow ministers at different times and we have spoken about situations that are common to us all in dealing with difficult people but sometimes the words we spoke were the fruit of impatience and frustration and so they came out angry and ugly.

Remember – the number one qualification for ministry is that we love God and that we love people.  Love is patient.  Love is a part of the fruit of the Holy Spirit and so as long as we are accessing his fullness every day and coming to the place of exchange with our impatience before it becomes frustration and anger we will be alright.

LET THE WEAK SAY, “I AM STRONG!”

We need to speak the positive words of faith that can cause the abundance of living waters to flow!

Here is the key to everything – to overcoming weakness by accessing God’s supernatural strength!

Romans 5: 1 – 11

1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces patience; 4 and patience, character; and character, hope. 5 Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
6 For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. 10 For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. 11 And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.

Man’s anger can never produce the righteousness of God!  The church has many angry preachers because they don’t understand the righteousness that Jesus has made us!  All angry preaching does is prevent us from entering into the fullness of God’s awesome provision by faith!  Who is going to come boldly into the Throne Room when they think God is mad at them?

Paul put it this way.

2 Timothy 3: 16 – 17

16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Scripture is for speaking – not striking!  God’s instrument of discipline is his word but it always positive and should always be ministered in love and in the spirit of meekness – delivering it just as we heard it!

There is a verse that should have been recorded in Hebrews 11 that would have read, “By faith Moses led the people of God into the promised land” – but it is not there because it didn’t happen. God loved Moses and Moses loved God – in fact God loved Moses so much that he took his funeral himself, but still Moses was denied the privilege of leading the people into the promised land.

When God spoke to Joshua – Moses’ disciple – and told him to lead the next generation into the land of promise he told him that he would be with him just as he had been with Moses.  He also clearly told him that he must ensure to do all that was spoken in his word as it was spoken if he was to prosper and succeed wherever he went.

We don’t ever have to yield to impatience that will lead us to frustration and come out as anger in our lives if we simply live by faith and stay in love.  What God has said is what God will do no matter how long we have to wait.  Remember – it is through faith and patience that we inherit the promises of God.  There are some things that can’t happen until others in the Body of Christ are ready and willing to believe and receive so it might take a while!  Meantime, stay in the peace of God and don’t ever be tempted to strike out in anger at those who are dragging their heels!

IT IS TIME TO LET THE WEAK SPEAK!  LET THE WEAK SAY, “I AM STRONG!”

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