WHAT IS THAT IN YOUR HAND?

God caught Moses’ attention with the bush that would not burn up!
When Moses went to look at this “strange sight,” God spoke to him right out of the bush (Exodus 3:3-4). Hearing my name being spoken out of a burning bush would certainly get my attention, as it did with Moses.

God immediately instructed Moses to take off his sandals because he was standing in a holy place. In many cultures, guests take off their shoes when entering a home as a sign of respect. God’s request was not because Moses’ sandals were dirty and his feet were clean (socks were not in vogue yet and Moses was wandering in the desert, dirty feet and all). And the ground itself was not sacred. The gesture was a sign of respect because Moses was in the presence of the Lord.

The Jews in Egypt were crying out because of their suffering and oppression and God began to talk to Moses about their plight: “So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt” (Exodus 3:10 NIV).

Does the term “a boatload of excuses” mean anything to you? Moses brought out his boatload of pitiful reasons why he could not go. I call them pitiful because they sound just like me when I’m trying to convince God that I can’t do something right away. I tend to say things like, “I’m really busy, and perhaps you are not fully aware of how difficult it is down here.” Moses said things like the following:

• “Who am I that I should do this important thing?” (v. 11)
• “What if I do this and somebody asks me who sent me? What do I tell them—I don’t even know your name.” (v. 13)
• “What if I go and do what you ask but the people don’t believe me? They might say, ‘This is not the Lord’ and what then?” (4:1)

Sometimes these passages make me feel a little uncomfortable because they are so close to the excuses I use. Pathetic excuses are what they are and sadly we are still guilty of using them, at least I am.

As the conversation between Moses and God unfolded, God suddenly broke the pattern of conversation and asked Moses, “What is that in your hand?” (Exodus 4:2). No, it wasn’t a cell phone, it was a walking stick, a shepherd’s staff. God told Moses, “Throw it on the ground.” Moses threw it down and the stick turned into a snake (4:3). “Moses, pick up the snake by the tail,” and when he did, it turned back into a walking stick.

God had one more demonstration for Moses. He instructed him to put his hand inside his cloak and then quickly pull it out. Moses obeyed and when he looked at his hand, it was white with leprosy. The moment he put the leprous hand back into the cloak and pulled it out again, it was fully recovered and clean. Leprosy doesn’t mean that much to us today because medicine has largely eradicated it, but in Moses’ day, leprosy was a sentence of death. It was the AIDS of the day, with no cure.

So what was the Lord trying to teach Moses? How would these supernatural demonstrations help him move past his boatload of excuses? I don’t think it’s that complicated or deep.

1. “What is in your hand?” There are at least two things to understand in this.

• The snake was the symbol that Pharaoh had on his crown and, of course, Moses knew this. He had been Pharaoh’s adopted grandson, in line for his throne. But God was telling him that not even Pharaoh and his might could stand against the mission He was sending him on.

• This was the Lord’s way of showing Moses that He was going to use his gifts and talents. God had prepared Moses over the forty years he had spent in the desert and He wanted him to understand that he was ready! God would use what was in his hand.

2. The disappearing leprosy was a demonstration to Moses that God’s power would be with him and God would handle even the seemingly impossible problems he would confront.

After some additional dialogue and a couple more pitiful excuses, Moses agreed and prepared to leave the backside of the desert and begin the journey to Egypt.

One final insight for your consideration: When God first asked Moses, “What is that in your hand?” Moses replied, “It is a staff.” As Moses prepared to leave for Egypt with his wife and sons, we read that “he took the staff of God in his hand” (Exodus 4:20).

Moses had made himself available to be used by God, and his staff became an instrument of usefulness for God’s eternal purposes. When we make ourselves available to Him and dedicate our giftings and talents to Him and His service, they turn into “the staff of God” and, as such, become useful, blessable instruments for His work.