Celebrities and successful people seem to just spring up out of nowhere these days. The media is full of stories about the latest star or business guru who seem to have suddenly appeared.
I wonder if, when Moses appeared on the scene, the Children of Israel thought, “Who’s this upstart?” “I wonder how long he will last?” “How long will it be before the new wears off of this one?”
In Deuteronomy chapters 33 and 34, we find Moses still on the scene. He’s as strong and as vibrant as ever, after forty years! (Deuteronomy 34:7) And his reviews are still glowing!
- “There has never been another like him.” (Deuteronomy 34:10)
- “He was a close friend to God and God used him in miraculous ways.” (Deuteronomy 34:10-12)
So what’s the secret to that kind of longevity and impact? What is it that turns a baby in a basket into a man of spiritual intimacy and power with God?
The answer to these questions is implied by Moses himself in Deuteronomy 33:26-29. There we find Moses saying it’s all about God! It’s all about…
- God’s power.
- God’s plan.
- God’s activity.
- God’s desires.
- God’s victories.
- God’s provision.
- God’s fame.
Moses was powerful, because he recognized and submitted to Almighty God time and time again. He was not an over-night success who faded quickly. He was molded and shaped by God for approximately 80 years. Step by step, he laid aside his agenda for God’s. Moses was Moses because he was absolutely convinced that God was God, and he lived accordingly.
And through Moses, God urges us to live the same way, so that we might have the same epitaph.