Deuteronomy 1:9-12 "And I spake unto you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone: (10) The LORD your God hath multiplied you, and, behold, ye are this day as the stars of heaven for multitude. (11) (The LORD God of your fathers make you a thousand times so many more as ye are, and bless you, as he hath promised you!) (12) How can I myself alone bear your cumbrance, and your burden, and your strife?"
Moses is recalling the experiences of the children of Israel from the time they
left Egypt until this point. He reminds them of the responsibility that
has been carried by himself and the leaders of each tribe. He is
acknowledging his inability through that time to be able to bear the load by
himself. We are told concerning Moses in Numbers 12:3, "Now the man
Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the
earth" Meekness does not mean weakness. Moses was meek in that he
was teachable and ready to accept help in the circumstances of the daily lives
of the people. He appointed leaders from each tribe of Israel to help him in
the matters of judgement that would need to be addressed each day.
There is a fine line in saying the words, "I am not able...."
There are many instances in life when we speak those words. Sometimes, we
use those words when in reality we simply do not want to do something.
Sometimes, our schedules are so filled with prior commitments that we are not
able to do something we are asked to do. Sometimes, we are not
knowledgeable enough concerning a given task that we are not able.
Sometimes, we are not physically able to accomplish a task.
Moses admitted his inability to properly carry out the task of leading such a
numerable group of people. It is interesting to see the wording which he used.
"The LORD your God hath multiplied you, and, behold, ye are this day
as the stars of heaven for multitude." Where have we seen those
words used before? On several occasions, the Lord reaffirmed the promise
to Abraham concerning his seed which would be born after him. "And
he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the
stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed
be." (Genesis 15:5) The Lord affirmed the promise to Isaac,
"And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will
give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations
of the earth be blessed." (Genesis 26:4) Jacob relied upon this
promise when he was left with no more of his own devices to help him. He
cried out when God sent him back to face his brother Esau: "Deliver
me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I fear
him, lest he will come and smite me, and the mother with the children.
(12) And thou saidst, I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed
as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude." (Genesis
32:11-12) When Moses came to the place of realizing he needed help, he
also thought back on those words, "Ye are this day as the stars of heaven
for multitude." God had, and still was, fulfilling His promise.
So, what does this have to do with you and me this morning? How does this apply
to us? It is so very important for us to rely upon the promises of God
when we come to the place where we know the Lord is leading us in a certain
direction and yet we want to say, "I am not able..." It is
important for us to read and meditate upon the Word of God in order to know God
has given us precious promises and not one of His promises has ever
failed. So when we come to that place of saying, "I am not
able," may we complete the sentence by saying, "But my God is
able." Paul reinforced that great truth in the New Testament,
"But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by
Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:19)
For Moses, God provided help through wise men from each tribe. For you and me,
God will provide whatever we need in order to better serve Him and experience
contentment in life through that service. Trust Him! He will
provide!