Paul the apostle writes to Timothy and states, 2TI 2:15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth. Paul realizes that it takes energy and labor to “handle accurately” the scriptures. What exactly is Paul telling Timothy when he states “handle accurately” the word?  This Greek word orthotomeo has been translated; “rightly dividing (KJV),” “rightly handling (RSV),” “correctly handles (NIV),” and even, “who knows how to use (PME).”  The Analytical Greek Lexicon¹ defines the word, to cut straight, to direct aright; to set forth truthfully, without perversion or distortion. The only way for us to handle the scriptures correctly is to allow the context to tell us what actually is happening instead of filtering it through our theological beliefs. If there is a right way of handling the scriptures there is also a wrong why.

This story starts as the four hundred years of bondage upon the descendants of Abraham draws toward a close. The sons of Jacob or Israel, as his name is now known (Gen 32:28), had moved to Egypt because of a great famine in the land. Joseph, Israel’s son who was sold as a slave, was sent ahead of him into Egypt and eventually was established as an authority over the nation. Joseph’s position provides his family acceptance by Pharaoh and they are permitted to settle in the land under Joseph’s care. Over three hundred years has passed and Israel (Jacob’s collective descendants) finds themselves in bondage to the Egyptians. They are forced to build cities for the Egyptians and are cruelly treated. Israel increases in number and the Egyptians fear that if they are attacked, the Israelites will join with their enemies and they will be defeated. As the Israelites increase in number the Egyptians become more afraid of their strength so the King of Egypt tells the Hebrew midwives to kill the male children when they are being born and allow the females to live.

It is here that we see the first lesson about authority. The king of Egypt told the midwives to kill the Hebrew males but the midwives did not listen to what was told them by the physical authority of the land. Scripture states: EXO 1:17 But the midwives feared God, and did not do as the king of Egypt had commanded them, but let the boys live. These women disobeyed not just some authority want-to-be but actually the king. It no doubt was a grave decision for them to make. They had to ask themselves, is it worth losing my life for the sake of another? They chose to obey God over the voice of a man. When called to account we see something very interesting. EXO 1:18 So the king of Egypt called for the midwives, and said to them, "Why have you done this thing, and let the boys live?" v19 And the midwives said to Pharaoh, "Because the Hebrew women are not as the Egyptian women; for they are vigorous, and they give birth before the midwife can get to them." v20 So God was good to the midwives, and the people multiplied, and became very mighty. v21 And it came about because the midwives feared God, that He established households for them. Not only do the midwives disobey the king, they lie to his face. While it may be true that the Hebrew women were more vigorous then the Egyptian, it definitely was not why the boys lived. These midwives defied the king in word and deed and were blessed by God for it. A lie is a small thing in light of disobedience to a command (not killing the boys), but neither of them are significant to God when they are employed in behalf of obedience to God. God doesn’t even consider the disobedience and lie with the least amount of rejection but acknowledges fully their obedience and worship of Him and pours out blessings upon them. Even if these midwives had paid with their lives for disobeying the king there is no reason for them to be ashamed or think they did wrong. Right and wrong is for God to decide and not man.

It is this same spirit of disobedience that grips Moses’ mother when she refuses to kill him but sends him adrift into the Nile and towards his destiny. For three months Moses’ mother hid him but when she could hide him no longer she placed him into a wicker basket that was made to float. She commissioned her daughter to watch over him, to see what would come of him after being placed in the river. God honors those who do not fear men or the consequences for disobeying unjust laws. As providence would have it, Pharaoh’s daughter was walking along the river and noticed the basket which contained the child Moses. This mother’s faith and boldness is honored by God, for when the daughter of Pharaoh noticed it was a Hebrew child she did not order him killed but allowed him to live as her own child. Not only does the male child get to live but his mother is paid for nursing and caring for her own child. God honors faith and boldness that is directed the right way. Many “men of God” talk extensively about rebellion as if it is always the most horrid thing a person can do. They especially talk about how people are out of God’s will if they rebel against them as an authority. They just assume that whatever they dictate is God’s will and they may not even know what the scriptures state about the topic. Woe to the person who does not submit to their every whim and yet God is seen here honoring the outright rebellion of midwives and a mother. While this is a case of a worldly authority making unjust laws, how often do we as “spiritual” authorities make unjust laws or requirements?  Probably more often than we would like to admit.

Moses was raised in the house of Pharaoh yet he knew that he was not an Egyptian by birth but a Hebrew. EXO 2:11  Now it came about in those days, when Moses had grown up, that he went out to his brethren and looked on their hard labors; and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his brethren. We know Moses was forty years old when he fled Egypt yet why did it take so long for him to go and look on his races hard labor? It would seem that Moses knew intimately his biological mother and other family members, so why the long delay? We may never know this answer. Age does have its own way of causing us to question our existence and life choices. Moses finally decides to go to his own people to look upon them. He witnesses an Egyptian beating a Hebrew. Moses acts impulsively but very purposefully (for he looked around to see if anyone was watching) and kills the Egyptian. Moses chose by this action who he was going to be. He is no longer the son of Pharaoh’s daughter but the son of a slave. In one moment, he traded his opulent lifestyle for the rages of a criminal, who is a descendent of Hebrew slaves. Word of what Moses did to the Egyptian gets back to Pharaoh and Pharaoh tries to kill Moses. So Moses flees to the land of Midian. 

Stephen in the book of Acts makes reference to this situation in Moses’ life as he testifies before Jewish Council in Jerusalem. (Acts 6:9-7:29) ACT 7:23 "But when he was approaching the age of forty, it entered his mind to visit his brethren, the sons of Israel. 24 "And when he saw one of them being treated unjustly, he defended him and took vengeance for the oppressed by striking down the Egyptian. v25 "And he supposed that his brethren understood that God was granting them deliverance through him; but they did not understand. Stephen states that Moses expected his fellow Hebrews to understand that “God was granting them deliverance through him.” In the Genesis text we do not see this implied but maybe just the opposite. Moses killed the Egyptian in what he thought was secret, not openly. I don’t think that Moses would have worried about the murder of the Egyptian if he wanted his Hebrew brothers to know he was their deliverer. If we declare that the Acts verses are true, this implies that Moses did in fact have some understanding of what God called him to. If Moses’ goal was to bring deliverance to his people, Moses did not understand God’s way of doing things. We can take a lesson from Moses and realize that just because God spoke to us about who we are, what He wants us to do, or even what physical position of authority we will occupy, it does not mean we are now ready to posses these things today. The greatest callings of God take the most amount of time to prepare us. Like Moses, if we attempt to fulfill God’s purposes by fleshly means then we will find failure and a need to run for our lives.  We must first attain spiritual knowledge and authority before we take action.

Saved by disobedient midwives and a rebellious mother, Moses understands that God is calling him to bring deliverance to his Hebrew brothers. Stephen stated that his brothers “did not understand.” We should never be offended when our brothers do not recognize our calling. This could be evidence that we are not yet ready to fulfill this position and thus others could not recognize the authority within us. There may be many factors in delaying our release to the position. In Moses’ case there were at least two factors that hindered him. One was that the four hundred years of bondage that God told Abraham about was not yet complete and the other is Moses was not yet mature enough to handle the position. This is why Moses got such a response from his brothers. For his brothers said to him, EXO 2:14 ... "Who made you a prince or a judge over us...?” They did not recognize Moses as having any authority over them.

Moses spent forty years in Egypt before fleeing into Midian and now after forty years wandering the land of Midian, God initiates an encounter with Moses. While tending sheep Moses sees a bush ablaze that was not burned up and approached it with curiosity. God from the midst of this bush tells Moses that he heard the cry of the Hebrews in Egypt and was sending him to deliver them from the power of the Egyptians and bring them into a good land flowing with milk and honey. Moses asks the most relevant question to this proposal. Who am I to do this? EXO 3:10 "Therefore, come now, and I will send you to Pharaoh, so that you may bring My people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt." v11 But Moses said to God, "Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?" Moses fled from Egypt because he feared for his life. Pharaoh wanted to kill Moses for killing an Egyptian in defense of a Hebrew brother. Even if Moses believed that God wanted to use him to bring deliverance to his brothers before he fled into the desert, there remain several problems. 1. Before Moses fled he had a certain amount of power and authority as Pharaoh’s daughter’s son but now he has spent forty years in the desert and is nobody. He had authority in the Egyptian culture before fleeing to Midian and could not effect change. What chance would he have as a shepherd? 2. While Moses (forty years earlier) was a respected man to the Egyptian people, he had no inherent respect before his Hebrew brothers.  I am sure the response “who made you a prince or a judge over us” loomed large over his mind. Moses failed badly the first time he tried to make a difference and now he is being asked to try again.

It is right here that we are confronted with the very foundation of authority. Moses may have known as a young man what God wanted to do through him but he did not have the authority or power to carry it out. Any action he would take was outside the authority and power that he possessed at the time and would only meet with failure, and fail he did!  At the age of approximately eighty years old Moses is now being commissioned by God to carry out this destiny. The difference is that instead of doing a job he was not asked to do, Moses is now being asked to do it. When Moses took it upon himself to try and deliver the people, he could not rely on anyone else to back him up, seeing he was doing it in his own power and authority. God is now the commissioning power for Moses to rely on. God is the one who is saying, “Go and accomplish this task for me.” We must notice that no one else is present when God commissions Moses to the task. Many people today think that some higher person in authority will commission you to the job. While there may be a commissioning by a church or organization it is not the most important of commissioning. We must first and foremost be commissioned by God to any gift or place He wants us then any public commissioning will have meaning. If we are commissioned by an organization without first receiving God’s commissioning we are deceiving ourselves if we act like we are something. We may be able to muddle our way through the job and even be successful, but our success is purely worldly and has little spiritual value. 

Moses describes a scenario of speaking with the sons of Israel and he asks, “who should I say is sending me?” EXO 3:14 And God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM"; and He said, "Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'" God then tells Moses to instruct the sons of Israel that their hardships are known and that they will be brought to a land flowing with milk and honey. God further tells Moses, EXO 3:18 "And they will pay heed to what you say; and you with the elders of Israel will come to the king of Egypt, and you will say to him, 'The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. So now, please, let us go a three days' journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.'” God reassures Moses that the Israelites will accept what he has to tell them. The fact that they accept what Moses has to tell them is evidence that he is moving in God’s timing. When we are not accepted or what we say is not believed we should console ourselves with the fact that we must be out of God’s timing and not be offended. Some people have a spiritual ability to understand the times and seasons of God. Those of us who are not able to discern the seasons have to trust God for leading and future favor.

We should notice that Moses is not to go to Pharaoh alone but with the elders of Israel. Moses has the authority to represent God in this matter but not the Israelites. He has not been received or commissioned by the people to represent them. This is why the elders need to accompany Moses when he addresses Pharaoh. EXO 3:18" ... you with the elders of Israel will come to the king of Egypt ...” Moses is not just talking for God but for the whole nation of Israel as evidenced by the elders’ presence. The elders of Israel are the dimension of authority that we see in our church structure. The people themselves elect or acknowledge those they want as their authority. They generally are not handpicked by God but by a board of directors or by a vote. While Moses has authority from God to do a job, there are limits to his authority. God realizes that at the beginning he will not have any authority to represent Israel and will need the elders’ acceptance and presence. 

God says to Moses, EXO 3:19 "But I know that the king of Egypt will not permit you to go, except under compulsion.” Worldly authorities do not generally recognize spiritual people or the god they represent, especially if they worship some other god. This is the case with Pharaoh. God further tells Moses that He will strike Egypt with miracles which will force Pharaoh to release Israel and that Israel will not leave poor but will plunder Egypt. The miracles that God promises to perform will be the evidence that Moses is not speaking from himself. If we are commissioned to accomplish some task for God, how would anyone know it if we are not being backed up by God’s miracles? Authority and power are brothers. Authority without power makes us a figurehead. A figurehead is just a likeness to a real authority. Power without authority makes us potentially dangerous. When we have power, but not the authority to fully wield the power, we may find ourselves crossing lines of authority that will put us counter to God and his authority. This is why David’s heart smote him when he cut off the piece of King Saul’s garment. David had the power to come against Saul but not the authority. It is hard to learn the lesson to wait on God’s timing when you know who you are and what He is calling you to do, especially when your Saul is hunting you down like a dog. Moses however is not going to Egypt with authority alone but also with power.

Moses realizes that it may be asking too much from his brothers to just believe his word. Moses asks, “what if they don’t believe me?” God then gives Moses three signs (Ex 4:3-9) to perform before the children of Israel to persuade them of the truth. Moses may have the authority of God but without the three signs he would not be able to prove that God had in fact sent him. Signs alone should never be trusted as evidence of God’s favor or authority. While signs should and will accompany true authorities, character is a more reliable evidence of one who is an authority. Even good character can be rooted in deception and blanketed by demonic charisma. This is why it is important for all of us to be spiritually mature with the ability to discern demonic powers and anointing.

Once all of the contingencies are dealt with, Moses realizes that this really doesn’t sound like something he wants to do and tries to get God to find someone else to do His bidding. First Moses makes an excuse about his lack of ability to speak. God explains to Moses that He is the one who has created every part of man and reassures him that He will teach his mouth what to say.  Moses gets more direct and says, send someone else! (Ex 4:13) God becomes angry with Moses for attempting to get out of the job. EXO 4:14 Then the anger of the Lord burned against Moses, and He said, "Is there not your brother Aaron the Levite? I know that he speaks fluently.... Moses was not lying to God when he said he was not fluent in speech because God does not disagree with Moses’ assessment and in His anger allows Aaron, Moses’ brother, to speak in his behalf. God even confirms the fact that Aaron speaks fluently. Moses is trying his hardest to get out of doing this job for God but is ultimately unable.

It is in what God says next that sets Moses apart from other spiritual authorities. EXO 4:15 "And you are to speak to him and put the words in his mouth; and I, even I, will be with your mouth and his mouth, and I will teach you what you are to do. v16 "Moreover, he shall speak for you to the people; and it shall come about that he shall be as a mouth for you, and you shall be as God to him. God reassures Moses that not only will He be with his mouth but Aaron’s as well. God places Aaron in a position as though he were Moses’ mouth. Aaron does not have any authority of himself but is commissioned to say only what Moses tells him. This really is the very foundational principle of what being a prophet is all about. Moses’ position is as a type of Christ. If we fail to understand Moses’ position as a type of Christ we will fall into the error of over estimating our authority. No one before Moses or after him displayed the amount and kind of authority that Moses did. Jesus did not even demonstrate authority like Moses during His thirty three years on earth. It will not be until Jesus comes back to earth and begins to reign that He will fully display the same kind of authority Moses did. We must understand the reality of the authority that Moses displayed is not intended to be displayed in any one man again, except Jesus (satan during the end times will attempt to posses similar authority). The authority that was upon Moses can and must be in evidence upon the church as a whole (world wide as opposed to a single local body.)  When every member is allowed to function and operate the way God intended (not as we want them to operate) the body will then approach a similar authority as Moses possessed. EXO 7:1 Then the Lord said to Moses, "See, I make you as God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron shall be your prophet. God is in a very practical way showing how His authority functions through the relationship with Moses and Aaron.  Moses should be viewed as god, Aaron the prophet and Pharaoh the world. If we think that we possess authority similar to Moses’ then we really don’t understand the scriptures and will end up with the wrong ideas about who we are and how we are to operate. Moses’ authority will be explained and contrasted to ours as we progress through the story of his life. We must view Moses as having extraordinary authority and yet we all share in certain aspects of it, according to our gifts and calling.

Moses after meeting with God went to Jethro, his father-in-law as well as employer (Ex 3:1), and asks that he allow him to leave and go back to Egypt. I don’t know why Moses asked Jethro for permission. Was it a courtesy or was it a matter of submission? Would Moses have been wrong to leave if Jethro said he could not go? Now you may say, if Jethro doesn’t want you to go and God does, God will cause Jethro’s mind to change. Jacob just left without saying a word to Isaac or Laban and God seemed to be fine with it. Now this issue is about family authority and nothing else. Jethro is Zipporah’s father and as such has authority over her as her father. There is a certain amount of authority that fathers have over children even when married. What about Jacob? The situation between Jacob and Laban is slightly different. Jacob served seven years for Leah and another seven for Rachel. Laban was Jacob’s father-in-law and employer but the difference is that as a father-in-law Laban sold his daughters. The fact that Laban sold Leah and Rachel to Jacob makes them Jacob’s sole possession. Laban has no say or standing in what happens to Leah and Rachel. When Jacob tells his wives that God told him to return to the land of Canaan they say, GEN 31:14 And Rachel and Leah answered and said to him, "Do we still have any portion or inheritance in our father's house? v15 "Are we not reckoned by him as foreigners? For he has sold us, and has also entirely consumed our purchase price. v16 "Surely all the wealth which God has taken away from our father belongs to us and our children; now then, do whatever God has said to you." They recognize that since they were sold and the price Laban was paid has been consumed they have no responsibility left to their father. Jacob leaves with all his family without a word. As evidence of God’s approval He warns Laban. GEN 31:24 And God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream of the night, and said to him, "Be careful that you do not speak to Jacob either good or bad." While we may be able to see authority within the family structure and understand it as an academic pursuit we should view it more as a courtesy and respect for their position. There may be very strong ties in a family and removing parts of it from other parts can cause a lot of resentment. It is the right thing to allow our family the opportunity to give us input about any decision that would remove us from them. It is the children’s responsibility to care for their parents as they age, not the government. Would you really want your children to turn you over to the government to make decisions for you? This is not popular in our culture at this time. Today’s culture wants to relinquish any responsibility that they have to the elderly to some other organization. Yet God cares about our responsibility to respect and obey those of our family that are our authorities. We should never think that family has final say in our life at the expense of God’s will.

Moses gathered together his family after speaking with Jethro and they began their journey to Egypt. Scripture states that at a lodging place along the way back to Egypt, God sought to kill Moses. Why would God want to kill Moses if He commissioned him to go to Egypt and deliver the people? The answer to this is found in what God spoke to Abraham concerning circumcision.  GEN 17:10 "This is My covenant, which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you: every male among you shall be circumcised. God is very specific about this covenant called circumcision. He tells Abraham who needed to be circumcised and when to do it. Moses was no doubt circumcised by his parents but Moses failed to do it to his son. God told Abraham, GEN 17:13 "... thus shall My covenant be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant. v14 "But an uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that person shall be cut off from his people; he has broken My covenant." The only requirement that God put on Abraham and his descendants was circumcision and Moses failed to be obedient to it. Moses did not circumcise his son and therefore God saw Moses as breaking His covenant and needing to be cut off from His people. God is not a respecter of persons. When anyone fails to be obedient to His requirements, judgment is the result. God will not overlook any sin unless there is a greater principle that supersedes it. Moses and Zipporah are familiar with circumcision but both have up to this point failed to carry out God’s requirement. Zipporah, aware of what is happening, circumcises their son and averts God’s judgment. Knowing all that Moses was destined to accomplish it may seem hard to believe that God would have actually killed Moses, but we should not wonder. God would have killed him and then raise up someone else to do the job. This story should have us trembling. If God would have killed Moses over a seemingly small thing like circumcision then what small thing will God be tempted to kill us over? If God did not confront this situation could Moses have actually been a real authority while being disobedient? We should never think that we can be an authority for God while being disobedient and unwilling to do what He says.

When Aaron and Moses meet, Aaron is told about what God said. Moses performs the signs for Aaron and they gather together all the elders of Israel. Moses does not tell the elders what God said but Aaron does. Aaron even performs the three miracles and the people believe that God sent them. Moses and Aaron do things according to God’s directions and everything advances as planned. It may have been impossible for Moses to convince the elders if it wasn’t for Aaron bridging the gap. Moses is unknown to the people of Israel. If they were familiar with Moses they may only remember him as Pharaoh’s daughter’s son and resent him. Moses is sent with Aaron who is a bridge to the nation. Aaron lived with the Israelites and suffered with them and as such, known by them. Moses did not have any right to expect the leadership to listen to him let alone believe he hears God’s voice. It took someone who is known by the leaders to not only give Moses a hearing but vouch for his validity. This same issue may stop us from fulfilling what God wants us to accomplish. God still raises people up who are not in the mainstream but live in the back side of the wilderness. Those of us in this situation need someone who can come beside us and help us receive a fair hearing among those who are leaders of people about what God called us to do. We as leaders need to realize God does not just raise up from within the body. He takes people out into the desert so he can create a special tool for His purposes.

After the supernatural displays, the elders bow low and worship. (Ex 4:31) We need to learn something from the Israelites. Israel had been in bondage and mistreated for about four hundred years and they could have just as easily said to Moses and Aaron, “this situation has been going on for a long time and God is just now seeing how we have been treated? Why should we think God is going to do something now?” Instead of voicing their bitterness and hurt they just bow low and worship God. It is not always clear why we are placed into a situation of suffering and then left there for a long time. Suffering has a way of developing us and transforming us into what God desires and yet resentment and bitterness are also products of suffering. We should behave like the elders in this situation. When we have suffered for years and God declares that He now sees it and will change it, let us be thankful and worship God for His kindness. If we decide to be bitter and angry it may take many more years before we are delivered.

Deliverance isn’t always instantaneous. In the case of Israel it was just the beginning of their deliverance. When God comes to deliver us, those who are responsible for oppressing us will make matters worse. Devils resist freeing the people of God and they will inspire their subjects to heap all kind of abuse upon them. This is the case with Israel. Once Moses and Aaron declared freedom, satan inspired Pharaoh to increase the hardship of the Hebrew people. Pharaoh makes Israel’s labor more unbearable than ever with the intent of trying to intimidate the faith of the people and get them to back down. When God draws close to us for deliverance, satan reverts to the same old recipe and increases our hardships.  We should never be shaken when situations seem to get darker and more difficult especially if God is declaring that it is time for our release. In a situation such as this, our faith should actually increase, knowing that satan cannot stop what God has declared!

The principles of authority are such that even Pharaoh is allowed and permitted to do what he chooses to do with those under him. God never rebukes Pharaoh for his mistreatment of Israel nor does God threaten his life but continues to send Moses and Aaron to reason with him. God cannot force Pharaoh to release Israel. Pharaoh has to will Israel to be released and allow them to leave. Authority and free will are intertwined to such a degree that God can only allow our situation to get so bad that we chose to do His will. This is why God performs miracles through Moses. Moses and Aaron testify to what God is saying and then proceeds to declare judgment upon Pharaoh’s unbelief until he comes to the breaking point and obeys His will. This same principle is seen in Jonah’s life when he tried to stand against God’s will. We can see this principle in the King of Israel during Jeremiah’s day. We have the authority to choose our own course in life even if it is counter to sound wisdom and God. Just because we may be standing in a physical as well as a spiritual position of authority it does not mean what we do is according to God’s will. God will allow us to behave badly and mistreat people. If we are closed to God’s way of speaking to us we too will be facing God’s judgment until we repent. God cannot make you repent but He can make your circumstance to be so bad that you will freely choose to repent. We should be forewarned that the scriptures testify of many who refused to repent after many rebukes and were destroyed. We should not think that we can abuse the children of God with impunity. God may allow you to rule in your physical and spiritual place of authority for years and even decades but eventually He will say enough is enough and send a deliverer. Israel was allowed to be abused for four hundred years but once the fullness of time came God says they are to be released.

The Israelites worship a foreign god to the Egyptians. Why would Pharaoh just let them go? It would not matter to Pharaoh if they said, God wants us to go. EXO 5:2 But Pharaoh said, "Who is the Lord that I should obey His voice to let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and besides, I will not let Israel go." There was no incentive for Pharaoh to let Israel go. The fact that Israel was building the Egyptian cities was the main reason Pharaoh did not want to release them. Why would Pharaoh bow to a foreign God of slaves? It is these very attitudes that propel this story forward and why so many signs and wonders were performed.

Moses, Aaron and the elders of Israel go and meet with Pharaoh. Moses represents God and Aaron is Moses’ mouth piece or prophet while the elders represent the nation of Israel. It should not be ignored that Moses did not, and could not, represent the people of Israel. He would need to have been established as an elder or leader in order for Moses to represent them. Moses’ authority at this point only extended to freeing the people from Egypt. Authority always has limits which should not be carelessly crossed. These limits are not just drawn between us and some greater authority but even between us and those under our authority.

Even satan can perform signs and wonders in order to deceive people and convince them he is powerful. This is why signs and wonders in themselves should never be viewed as the main evidence that a person is a spiritual authority. A spiritual authority without signs and wonders really isn’t an authority at all. Pharaoh’s magicians duplicated the first three signs that Moses and Aaron perform. I’m sure that Pharaoh along with his magicians thought that what Moses and Aaron were doing was no big deal. If Egyptian magicians can duplicate the sign, they have not yet proved that their god is really God and so Pharaoh ignores their request to be let go.

The fourth sign that Moses performs cannot be duplicated and the magicians make a statement of faith. EXO 8:19 Then the magicians said to Pharaoh, "This is the finger of God." But Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he did not listen to them, as the Lord had said. These magicians are dabblers in the spiritual and when something is performed beyond their ability and understanding they recognize it as not only supernatural but coming from God. They recognize that the power and authority that Moses and Aaron are exhibiting is coming from God and they freely tell Pharaoh but he refuses to listen. This is one of God’s way of declaring to the unbelieving world that He exists. Whether by the walls of Jericho falling, the destruction of the 400 prophets of Baal or healing of the masses, God shows himself with spiritual power through a person.

Up to this point, the supernatural signs that Moses is displaying has not only affected the Egyptians but also the Israelites. Everyone in Egypt was subject to the first three plagues sent upon Egypt but the fourth plague will not affect everyone. Why the Israelites had to endure the first three plagues is not known. What we do know is that only the Egyptians would be subject to the next seven. EXO 8:22 "But on that day I will set apart the land of Goshen, where My people are living, so that no swarms of insects will be there, in order that you may know that I, the Lord, am in the midst of the land. God now starts to make a distinction between His people and the Egyptians by protecting the Israelites from future plagues. God’s intention is to pummel the Egyptians into choosing to do what He wants them to do. The scripture quoted above states that God was in the midst of the land and the Egyptians failed to recognize it. When God’s presence goes with us and is on us, we will see His power displayed. If we are walking by ourselves without God’s presence, there is no assurance of His help or power present and we fail to be an authority in Him. Moses is walking in obedience with God and the evidence of it is that supernatural power is being displayed at his word.

The signs and wonders were so spectacular that Moses gained respect among the people of Egypt and among Pharaoh’s servants. (Ex 11:3) Moses was the vessel that God chose to work through and could not perform one sign by himself, and yet, he was respected. When God begins to pour out supernatural signs through us we should not become puffed up as if we did them by our own strength. It is difficult staying humble. When we start experiencing supernatural outpourings we may see other brothers and sisters as deficient in the faith. We may even think that we have more power and authority than most of them. We may even view ourselves equal to the mightiest men of God and yet our flesh is setting us up for a fall. God cannot trust many with massive wealth and even fewer with outrageous displays of power. God longs to enrich us both spiritually and financially but what hinders Him is us! Gifts may flow freely for a while and then He crops them and they stop. They stop because of our pride and arrogance that we allowed to developed because of them. If we can get beyond the notion of how great we are because of God’s activity through us as well as what other people say about us, we may find God’s power works more reliably. If we cannot get a handle on our pride, we are destined to great times of God’s power flowing followed by intense drought. 

Israel was compelled to leave Egypt on the heels of a great slaughter of all the first born males. Before they left they plundered the Egyptians of much wealth and they head off into the wilderness. EXO 14:5  When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his servants had a change of heart toward the people, and they said, "What is this we have done, that we have let Israel go from serving us?" Pharaoh gave Moses his permission to leave the land with all the people and their belongings (Ex 12:31-32) but is now realizing what this means. The work force that he was using to build the cities is now gone and Egypt is in financial ruin. Pharaoh and his army go after the Israelites with the intention of returning them to Egypt. Once Pharaoh released Israel they were no longer under the authority of Egypt as slaves thus free to choose for themselves. God does not destroy Pharaoh and his armies until Israel is free from any responsibility to them. Even though God could have destroyed all of Egypt to free His people He instead draws out the situation and shows Himself a respecter of authority. Pharaoh had authority over his land and slaves and God respected his position. Once the people were free, any attempt to place them back into bondage is viewed as aggression (in the form of war) against His people. God no longer coddles Pharaoh and his armies but destroys them with a wall of water.

It may not always be clear to us why God works in a certain way or why it takes so long before the timing is right. God is subject to the very principles He established in the universe, whether spiritual or physical. Some principles can be superseded by other principles of a higher order. God has established authority and freewill as principles that frame our lives. He will not transgress either of them unless we give Him the permission to do so. Once when God was speaking to Abraham, God informs him of the four hundred years of bondage and the cause of it. GEN 15:13 ... "Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, where they will be enslaved and oppressed four hundred years. GEN 15:16 "Then in the fourth generation they shall return here, for the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet complete." God could not uproot the Amorites from their land for no reason but knew that after the four hundred years of bondage their sin would allow them to be judged and removed from the land. When God was telling Abraham this He was speaking of matters that would not come about for over five hundred years. God doesn’t rush things because He can’t rush them. He gives everybody the opportunity to make their own decisions and decide their course of life. He knows when the timing will be right and sets His people in position to accomplish His will at the most opportune time. This is why we must be patient when suffering and wait for God’s timing.

Once the children of Israel were in the wilderness and the Egyptians that chased them were dead new trials began to pop up for Moses and Aaron. Moses went to Egypt at the bidding of God and did all that was required from him. It wasn’t Moses’ plan to deliver the Hebrews nor was it his idea to lead them into the desert. After several days in the desert the grumbling begins. First, “we have no water,” and then, “what are we to eat?” Moses was commissioned to this job by God and he was only following His voice. It was not Moses’ fault that there was a lack of water and food. If you have spent any time in a desert you know that a desert is waterless and deficient of food so why should it be a surprise to the Israelites?  All the people begin to grumble against Moses and Aaron as if it was their fault that this is happening. EXO 16:6 So Moses and Aaron said to all the sons of Israel, "At evening you will know that the Lord has brought you out of the land of Egypt; v7 and in the morning you will see the glory of the Lord, for He hears your grumblings against the Lord; and what are we, that you grumble against us? " God is about to perform a miracle for the children of Israel that will provide a constant source of food while they wander through the wilderness. Moses wants everyone to realize that they are not complaining about him and Aaron but God. God is the one who has lead them this way. He is responsible for any lack that they experience. Moses in and of himself is not able to perform a miracle to provide for all the people and just states, “and what are we, that you grumble against us?” I believe this is why God chose Moses to fill such a spectacular position of authority. He never let the praise or the signs and wonders deceive him into thinking that he was somebody. Moses knew that he was nothing and God did all the heavy lifting. Moses did not make excuses nor did he try and explain the purpose of the situation but deferred to God. Moses and Aaron were subject to the conditions like everyone else and they also had to wait on God. If Moses had no power over the situation Aaron had even less. Any complaint did not land on Moses or Aaron but squarely on God.

How does this affect our lives today? While Moses was the person God sent to deliver Israel, it is Jesus that delivers people from bondage today. Moses is a type of Christ and as such direct parallels can be drawn. Jesus constantly stated that he came to do the Fathers will and not his own and that he only did what the Father wanted. Jesus like Moses leads us as Christians into the destiny of God but ultimately Jesus is not responsible for situations that confront us. He is only leading according to his Fathers will. The Father is the one part of the Godhead that makes the decisions and is solely responsible when we are walking with Jesus for the circumstances that confront us. When we stand in faith about a situation and do the appropriate warfare and it does not change we must conclude that God has designed it for some purpose that we are unaware of. These hard places can last days, months and even years. I’m sure that Abraham did not think that God’s promises would take twenty years to see them fulfilled. Joseph no doubt was shaken by his brothers desire to kill him and then being sold as a slave. When Joseph was cast into prison the possibilities of God’s promises coming to pass seemed even farther away. The great apostle Paul was beaten, ship wrecked, mistreated and thrown into jail and even writes about himself, 1CO 4:13 when we are slandered, we try to conciliate; we have become as the scum of the world, the dregs of all things, even until now. Following Jesus does not promise us a fun care free life where we are always understood and loved. The very opposite is more likely if we are truly following His leading. Even Jesus is stated as not being received by those who he came to save. JOH 1:10 He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. v11 He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. When we are an authority for God we do not experience ease and trouble free living, but hardship and trials.

Not long after entering the wilderness Israel is confronted by Amalek. Moses instructs Joshua to select a group of men to fight against them. Moses does not choose to seek God concerning this situation with Amalek but instructs Joshua that while he and the men fight he would be standing on the hill with the staff of God in his hand. Moses is marshaling his own authority as the leader of this group and decides what course of action to take. God does not rebuke him for taking this initiative but backs up his decision. How Moses knew what to do is a mystery but the spiritual understanding of what Moses does is profound. Moses as the spiritual authority over all the people stands over the battle with the staff of God in hand. He raised this staff into the air as a sign of victory before God. Joshua in the valley carries out the physical battle while Moses on the top of the hill carries out the spiritual battle.

Today it seems that we have failed to understand this element of warfare. We either war in the spirit or we war in the physical and we don’t see these two things as both essential for winning the battle. We need those Joshua’s who can fight the physical battles to be connected to the Moses’ that have the spiritual authority to rule over the area. Together they are a force of divine power that can change things, but alone unable in themselves to turn the tide. Spiritual battles alone will not change physical situation in a government or a nation. That is not to say warring in the spirit for a nation is fruitless. When we war in the spirit we stop wicked spirits from controlling and manipulating situations but this does not guarantee that our leaders will make any wiser decisions. If we intercede as well as send people to speak to these leaders we actually have a chance to stop satan. If we can explain the issues we have a real chance to sway their opinions. We then stand a better chance of changing and influencing our government.    

We see examples of this type of warfare in the scriptures. When Moses’ arms were held high Joshua would prevail but when his arms became heavy and were down Amalek prevailed. The war ultimately hinged on the spiritual side of the battle not the physical. Moses had people who helped him hold up his arms so that they would ultimately prevail. Even as Joshua could not fight the physical battle by himself neither could Moses fight alone in the spiritual. While the spiritual battle is the most important, we must not neglect the physical battle. Each one of us has authority to operate in the world or in the church. We must fully discharge our abilities to see the Kingdom of God come to earth.

We as the church need to see social, political and legal battles as our responsibility. We cannot effectively pray for God’s kingdom to come and His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven if we are not actively involved in these issues. God expects us to be involved with the affairs of this world. We are expected to make an impact upon our neighborhood as well as the world. There are people that God has equipped to do the physical battle in each of these areas, as there are also people God gave spiritual authority for each of these areas. Unless we stop consuming all of our finances on church buildings, staff and other things we will never accomplish God’s will on earth. Each of us personally needs not only to give our tithes to God but we should be giving extra offerings to organizations that support and defend us in the physical battles of life. If we are called to these physical battles we should do what we can, knowing that we fight for God. The time for us to be actively involved in the affairs of man is now. We have been called to rule and reign so what are we waiting for? Jesus is coming back to rule upon the earth not so that He can take us to heaven for ever. Our destiny is tied to the earth not the spiritual heavens.

Sometime during Moses’ stay in Egypt he sent his wife and sons to her father Jethro. Now that Israel is freed from Egypt Jethro visits with Moses and brings him his wife and two sons. During Jethro’s stay he notices a strange thing. Moses sits and judges the people as they stand around awaiting their turn to bring their disputes before Moses. Jethro addresses this issue with Moses out of concern. It is here that we begin to see the organizing of corporate authority that is based on family authority. The family is the bases for which God is establishing His purposes in the earth. Abraham is the father of this group of people and they are inheritors of all the promises God made to Abraham. They are destined to control a land that was promised to Abraham’s descendants. They are not only destined to be a religious group but a national entity. The very first move to bring about some national identity is seen in Jethro’s ideas. Jethro realizes that there are too many people for Moses to judge alone. Jethro reasons that there has to be people who can deal with simple issues so that Moses can attend to the more complex and important ones. Jethro tells Moses, EXO 18:19 "...You be the people's representative before God, and you bring the disputes to God, v20 then teach them the statutes and the laws, and make known to them the way in which they are to walk, and the work they are to do.”  This is the foundation of authority in secular things as well as spiritual. Unless we learn what is right and have a good understanding of God’s ways there is no way we can be either a good spiritual or political leader. We should take note of the fact that Jethro not only told Moses to teach the people the oracles of God but also instruct them on what “work they are to do.” The issue here is not for Moses to assign vocations to people (even though he does in relationship to the worship of God) but to instruct them on how to live morally or what actions are to be taken under certain circumstances.

Moses, under the urging of Jethro, establishes Israel’s first judicial system. This system is not based on social or moral consensus but on the oracles of God. Establishing God as the source of law gives this system an authority that it would not possess if based on a changing morality. Jethro did not suggest that just anyone fill these positions but that, EXO 18:21 "... you shall select out of all the people able men who fear God, men of truth, those who hate dishonest gain; and you shall place these over them, as leaders of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties and of tens. v22 "And let them judge the people at all times; and let it be that every major dispute they will bring to you, but every minor dispute they themselves will judge. So it will be easier for you, and they will bear the burden with you. Morality and fear of God are essential in being a judge. Unless a judge understands that God is the ultimate authority and we all will have to give an account of ourselves to Him, he is unfit to stand in the position. All authority is an extension of God’s authority, but not all worldly authority is to be submitted to and unconditionally obeyed. This even includes church authorities. One problem is that we think church authorities represent God in a more inclusive way then they do. They may have authority but only over the area of authority they are responsible for. An example of this could be concerning a person’s employment. You may seek godly council about your employment by going to your local pastor. He may give you good or bad council but he has no authority over this situation. He may tell you what to do but your job choice is not under his authority but yours. He has no right or power over your work life (unless you work for him) and any action you take based on his advice is your responsibility not his. We will look at this issue again but it remains one problem within the church that we need to understand. Pastors, elders, apostles, prophets and parents have limited authority over our lives. Until we as the church understand the boundaries of our authority we will constantly have expectations that are false and put undue burdens on people we are trying to help.

EXO 18:24 So Moses listened to his father‑in‑law, and did all that he had said.. v25 And Moses chose able men out of all Israel, and made them heads over the people, leaders of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties and of tens. v26 And they judged the people at all times; the difficult dispute they would bring to Moses, but every minor dispute they themselves would judge. Moses recognized wisdom and realized this was a good solution to this issue and set up Israel’s judicial system even as his father-in-law suggested. We should take note that God did not have any objections to a Midian priest counseling Moses about His affairs nor did he object to Moses instituting them. We however cannot state that God wanted this. God did not institute it nor can we say this is the best way or God’s way. This type of organization is widely used in everything from a corporation to the military as well as state and federal courts.

In the first chapter of Deuteronomy we see Moses recounting a situation where He established those who where to be the heads of the people. It may seem confusing and even be misunderstood for the establishing of the judges which we have already discussed.  As we have already seen Moses’ father-in-law initiated the establishment of judges to deal with decisions of everyday life. Here in Deuteronomy we see Moses recounting the establishment of the heads of the tribal families. DEU 1:9 “And I spoke to you at that time, saying, 'I am not able to bear the burden of you alone. ... 1:13 'Choose wise and discerning and experienced men from your tribes, and I will appoint them as your heads.' Moses was not appointing the judges here but the heads of the people. We should understand them as political heads as opposed to spiritual or judicial. The difference in how they were being chosen is; Moses picked the judges while the heads were chosen by the people. Now this is significant if we really can see the difference. With the judicial it represents God and so it really should not be up to the people to choose them. With the political leaders they represent the people and their day to day life which is more normal (technicalities of life) than judicial. This is why after establishing the political heads Moses exhorts the judges to do their job right because the judge’s job represents God while the political heads represent the living of everyday life. DEU 1:16 "Then I charged your judges at that time, saying, 'Hear the cases between your fellow countrymen, and judge righteously between a man and his fellow countryman, or the alien who is with him. v17 'You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall hear the small and the great alike. You shall not fear man, for the judgment is God's. And the case that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.' Not only did Israel have their own group of Judges but also those holding political office as representatives of and for the people. Further evidence of these people who were the heads of families can be seen in Numbers chapter 10:14-28. It lists those who where the ultimate head of each tribe and the family in which they belonged.

Recognizing these two layers of responsibility and authority is significant for us today. We should realize that the judicial aspect is so much more important than those who are standing in political office. If our judges are corrupt then our society is corrupt and built on a faulty foundation. How can anyone expect to receive justice from those who are unjust? If we have a rule of law that changes with every administration then we should fear for our lives and our safety. If those who are in places of power are corrupt then we can always vote them out or remove them. If we as the church think that we fill these positions by virtue of being a positional authority (pastor, elder, apostle, prophet, territorial leader, etc) then we are indeed deceived. There are many layers of authority not only in the world but in God’s kingdom as well. It would behoove us to understand that our authority is limited, regardless of whom we think we are.  

Once the people made it to the Sinai wilderness we see one of the most amazing things about authority. God calls Moses to ascend up the mountain to meet with God. Once up the mountain God tells Moses what He wants him to tell the Israelites. Moses is to remind the people how God delivered them from Egypt and then say, EXO 19:5 ...if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own possession among all the peoples, for all the earth is Mine; 6 and you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation..." God sends Moses to speak these words to the Israelites and not until God gets their agreement does God begin to expound all His will. Moses goes down the mountain and speaks to the people all that God told him and they agree to the terms that God put forth. EXO 19:8 And all the people answered together and said, "All that the Lord has spoken we will do!" And Moses brought back the words of the people to the Lord. If we just read this account and pass over it without understanding what is going on we will fail to know God and His ways. God cannot make a covenant with a people who do not agree to the terms nor will he force His will upon mankind. The people could have sent Moses back to ask further about the covenant and what it entailed before agreeing to it but they didn’t. Without knowing the particulars they just agree to the conditions that were set forth and Moses heads off to tell God. We should be amazed that God waited for the people’s agreement to His terms before telling them what He wanted. God, the God of the entire universe had to have the people’s acceptance. We sometimes think of God as this great and powerful being who forces us to do His will or BAM, we get smoked. While not doing what God wants will eventually have negative consequences, He forces no one to obey. God sends Moses as his representative with the terms and conditions of their relationship and the people agree to them. Once Moses returns to God and tells Him the people agreed to the terms everything changes and the people are now bound by terms they do not yet know. This was the turning point for the Israelites.  

God doesn’t joke around nor does He lie. When he says something He means it and never promises anything He is unprepared to fulfill. He entered into this covenant with Israel which He intends to carry out fully. If we really ponder this we may think it is unfair for God to expect so much from the people when they really did not know what they were agreeing to. God knew what He wanted from the people and He also knew what kind of trouble the Israelites were going to be. God fully understood the future, the good and bad. The Israelites on the other hand had no idea what it meant to obey God’s voice and keep His covenant. God does not impose His will upon the people until they chose to agree to the conditions. God approached Israel as an equal sovereign. What I mean by this is Israel, not God, had control over their future. Israel could choose to go their own way or God’s way.  Israel’s deliverance from Egypt was not connected to them being obedient to God but God being true to His promises to Abraham. Israel could have rejected God’s advancements in establishing a nation and a people dedicated to Him. Israel as a whole has a sovereign free will with the authority to choose what kind of future it wanted and God could not deny or change this fact. The great signs and wonders displayed which resulted in deliverance from the Egyptian bondage was no doubt a great persuader toward doing it God’s way. The people are still individual entities with their own authority to choose for themselves. The more we understand how God treats us and respects our right to choose, the more we will know how we are to treat others.