Exodus 33
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Exodus 33:1-3, Then the Lord said to Moses, “Leave this place, you and the people you brought up out of Egypt, and go up to the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, saying, ‘I will give it to your descendants.’ I will send an angel before you and drive out the Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. Go up to the land flowing with milk and honey. But I will not go with you, because you are a stiff-necked people and I might destroy you on the way.”
God wants the Israelites to leave the place they have been and move on. They are not intended to be in the Sinai peninsula forever. God has better things for them. But at the same time, God is clearly telling them that because they are a disobedient, stiff-necked people, God will no longer be present with them in the way he has been up until this point. The people are distressed and mourn at this news. They have been craving a divine presence (hence the golden calf debacle) and now God won't be with them as they desire because of their tremendous disobedience.
The most interesting part of this passage to me is Moses' response. He expresses what I would consider burn-out and frustration. He says to God in verses 12-13, “You have been telling me, ‘Lead these people,’ but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. You have said, ‘I know you by name and you have found favor with me.’ If you are pleased with me, teach me your ways so I may know you and continue to find favor with you. Remember that this nation is your people.” Moses is advocating on behalf of these people. He is tired and probably really mad at them for their behavior but he also loves them. In response, God consents that he will not remove his presence from the people. Furthermore, he will provide rest for Moses.
I'm not sure I'm supposed to do this but I can't help extrapolating a bit here - could this passage be expanded to speak to those of us, volunteers and paid, who work in ministry? How often in ministry work have we felt frustrated and burned-out, in need of great rest? Maybe our people haven't just gotten in major trouble for worshiping a golden calf but there is other stuff going on in our church or organization. Or, maybe we don't sense the presence of God like in the past. I'm wondering if we need to try a prayer similar to Moses, "You have been telling me to lead these people..."
Let's pray...God, we need you, we need you, we need you! We can't do the work of ministry without your guidance. We need to feel your presence and we need your wisdom and discernment for next steps. Lord, we give you our ministry, our volunteer work, our jobs, our lives. In the mighty name of Jesus, Amen.