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Three Stages, Three Lessons 120 Years Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died,
yet his eyes Brad Bach Some may wince when they read that Moses lived to be one hundred twenty years of age, and find even more incredible the ages of those whose lives are recorded as much longer spans, such as Adam at 930 years or Methuselah, the longest earthly life recorded at an amazing 969 years. The Bible, however, speaks of man being formed by God in a state of perfect stature physically, from which he has gradually slipped, leading to the shortened life span of subsequent generations. This conflicts with the Darwinian theory that man is on an ever upward ascent from a lower organism to a higher. Moses’ life of one hundred
twenty years is divided into three forty-year periods. These are mentioned in
Acts 7:22-23, 29-30, and 34-36. The Broad Lesson A wonderful lesson can be observed that aligns with the forty-year reigns of kings Saul, David, and Solomon. These three forty-year reigns, like Moses’ three forties, typified three time periods: the Jewish age, the Gospel age, and the Millennial age. In the first age, the Jews as slaves in Egypt were a picture of fleshly Israel in bondage under the taskmaster of the Law (Galatians 4:21-25). When Moses appeared on the scene to act as their deliverer, he was rejected. Moses here is clearly a type of Jesus at his first advent when he appeared as the Jewish messiah, deliverer, and was rejected and put upon the cross (Luke 9:22), bringing the Jewish age to a close. The second forty found Moses in Midian as a type of Christ during the Gospel age, tending his flock (the church) and raising his two sons, symbolic of the faithful church and the great company. At the end of this period, representing the end of the Gospel age when the church is complete, God directed Moses to return to Egypt to deliver his brethren. God’s word tells us that Jesus as an antitype will reveal himself a second time to natural Israel (Zechariah 14:1-3), and this time the Jews indeed will receive him as described in Zechariah 12:10. In the third forty we find Moses in the wilderness of Sinai acting as a mediator between God and Israel. What a wonderful illustration of the Millennial age work of The Christ standing as a mediator between God and natural Israel, and by extension all mankind. At the close of that period of forty years Moses died at the age of one hundred twenty years, picturing the end of the work of Christ as mediator at the end of the Millennial age. Christ will then step aside, allowing devoted mankind to enter into a direct covenant relationship with God (1 Corinthians 15:24-28). Moses never crossed the Jordan with Israel; likewise the greater-than-Moses deliverer, The Christ head and body, will watch from on high as the human family crosses their “Jordan” without a mediator, passing the test of the little season. By their own righteous works they will attain everlasting life in the land of promise (Jeremiah 31:29,30; Revelation 20:13). The duration of three equal
forty-year periods is striking and should pique our interest. Those familiar
with the Bible recognize that numbers often carry significance. In the case of
the number forty there is good evidence that it signifies a period of
development, testing, or trial. And so it is fitting that each forty-year
period of Moses’ life presented him with specific experiences concluding with a
trial. Favored Forty Years—Taking God’s Perspective When the infant Moses was placed in the river, his sister Miriam waited nearby, eager to assist God’s work, and offered the daughter of Pharaoh the service of a Hebrew nurse (Exodus 2:7). Thus the baby could be cared for until he was grown, probably to the age of seven years before he finally left the care of his natural parents. During this stage of life Moses was loved, nurtured, and instructed in his mother’s faith concerning the promises that God had made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. But there was another that
claimed Moses as her son. Some translate the name Moses to mean “born from the
water,” supposing that the princess meant to signify that she had mystically
born Moses as her son, born him from the water. She would have provided Moses
all that this world could offer and would have thoroughly educated him in
Egyptian thought. It is most telling that Moses could pass through those many
years of life in Pharaoh’s palace with its allurements and philosophies, and
yet maintain an uncompromising faith in the promise that God had made to his
fathers. The First Great Test At forty years Moses realized that he had to make a choice. He knew who he was and where he came from. Would he quench the spirit of the Lord that lived in him from his youth? Would he silence the inner voice that spoke to him of higher, eternal longings, and try to satisfy himself with the distractions of worldly advantage? Had Moses been a man of lesser character he might well have simply advanced his own interests in whatever Egypt could offer, the best of life under his highly favored circumstances. But this was not to be: “By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter; choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt” (Hebrews 11:24-26).1 Thus the first forty years
of life brought Moses many experiences and many choices, and then the test. Had
Moses been unable to deny himself the temptations open before him of satisfying
his own fleshly nature, then he surely would have lost the opportunity to be a
servant of God in any meaningful capacity. Moses properly weighed the temporal
nature of this life and the eternal prospects that were promised by God to his
forefathers. He was a man possessed of the kind of faith that enabled him to
look out beyond the boundaries of this life. Moses did make the higher choice,
casting his lot with the people of his God. However, in his relative youth he
acted rashly, stepping out on his own impulses, which resulted in having to
flee for his life instead of delivering his people. Comparative Lessons for Us We, as disciples of Christ, must live by this same standard of faith, looking beyond the brevity of this life. Like Moses we must be able to deny self and sever attachments that may lead to present earthly gain for the privilege of future service to God. Someone once wrote, “You will not be in heaven two seconds before you cry out, ‘Why did I place so much importance on things that were so temporary? What was I thinking.’ ” In other words we must be able to think long term. Moses was of a favored class of people, hand-selected for God’s service. He was born a slave in Egypt, condemned to death by the Pharaoh along with the other firstborn males, snatched out of the Nile where by faith he was laid by the hand of his mother, drawn out of a certain grave to rise not only to the courts of Pharaoh, but into the presence of the I AM, the creator of all that exists in the universe. In like manner the young shepherd David was elevated to become a king, the fishermen of Galilee became apostles, and Jesus the assumed son of a carpenter from Nazareth became the Anointed. All were raised up from the humblest of beginnings from the world’s standpoint. What then of us? Is it not God’s election that brings any of his created beings to a place of special service? As Moses was in Egypt, we have been placed in a highly favored condition to be instructed and receive a great education, observing the ways of this world, and at the same time learning of God’s dealings with mankind. But like Moses, we must recognize that the favors we have been given are not for self-elevation and benefit. Rather, they are given to educate us, to prepare us to be members of the antitypical Moses, the Christ deliverer. Just as Paul was a “chosen vessel,” so Moses and all of the elect are retained to further God’s plans, designed to bring all of his creation into perfect and age-lasting harmony with himself. Oddly, at the crucial point
of his first test when Moses decided on his own to free the Hebrew slaves from
their Egyptian taskmasters, he spoke to the people directly and was even so
bold as to slay one of the Egyptian guards. This hardly seems like the actions
of one that would come to be known as “very meek, above all the men which were
upon the face of the earth” (Numbers 12:3). Forty Years Teaches Meekness and Patience Of course “meek” does not mean “weak.” Yet undoubtedly it was during the next phase of Moses’ life, in the land of Midian, that he learned to be the meek man that he was later noted for being. Fairly little is recorded about this period of Moses’ life as a shepherd, but we see that at its beginning Moses, the man of Egypt, “stood up” and “delivered” the daughters of Reuel that they might water their flocks. Are these the actions of one known as meek? It is not difficult to imagine, however, that a transformation took place during these next forty years as he lived the secluded life of a shepherd caring for his flock. Moses must have thought, during moments of solitude, that God is the shepherd of Israel, yet the people are in bondage. “Why is this, Lord?” he might wonder. Meekness resulted from years of learning patience, waiting for God to direct the affairs of his people. We recall the results when Moses first decided to act on his own decision to lead Israel. In like manner many Christians, upon making the decision to give their life to serve God, have had this same enthusiastic response, yet most come to find that their novice efforts to convert others are met with rejection, just as with Moses. We remember that Paul decided that an Arabian experience, a time for gaining his own footing, was well advised before he was prepared to serve as the Lord’s apostle (Galatians 1:15-18). The great lesson to be
learned in meekness and patience is that God is the leader, the deliverer, not
man. This is an imperative lesson. However long it takes, we must fully learn
that God is aware of every circumstance and condition that we endure. He is the
only head and we must always look to him, trust in him, and wait upon him, no
matter what challenges life brings to us. This trusting obedience is a lesson
that even our Lord Jesus needed to have to be fully prepared: “Though he were a
Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; and being made
perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him”
(Hebrews 5:8,9). The Final Forty—Serve and Hold Fast “The meek will he guide in judgment: and the meek will he teach his way” (Psalm 25:9). Meekness makes us teachable and in meekness Moses had learned that the great shepherd whose eye was ever watchful indeed had constant care over his flock. He did not need to take control for God; rather he needed to allow God to control him. What a change forty years had wrought. The quality of meekness, now well inscribed in Moses, found him saying, “I am not eloquent … I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue” (Exodus 4:10, ASV). Ah, now Moses had the right appreciation of the matter. This deliverance was not to be by man or because of a man, but by the Lord himself (Hebrews 5:4). Now he was prepared to be the servant that God could safely work through. Similarly these desirable qualities, meekness and humility, should be found in those most developed in Christian character. Through Moses God had wrought many wonders in Egypt and in the Sinai. Moses had faithfully served God and Israel in the exodus, in the giving of the Law, in judging the weighty matters among his brethren, and in establishing the tabernacle and the priesthood. And again, after the forty years in the wilderness of Sinai with the quality of meekness deeply inscribed, came the test. Miriam had just been buried which must have weighed heavily on his heart. We see Moses frustrated by his complaining brethren, so much so that he responded with behavior that would cost him the prize of entering the promised land, for Moses took to himself the credit of bringing water out of the rock, saying: “Ye rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?” (Numbers 20:10, NIV) —smiting the rock. “Must WE”—Moses and Aaron? God alone brings forth truth and gives life. Let this be a powerful reminder to all who find themselves in a position of leadership as did Moses, to guard carefully against the sin of pride, or arrogance, or superiority. This is the lesson of Moses’ test, and sobering it is. This man who reached greatness through a life of steadfast service was required, as are all, to hold fast to that Godly character of meekness and humility until the end. We must never allow pride or self-conceit to control our minds. We must never take the position of headship over our fellow brethren as if we were anything of ourselves. The apostle warns leaders of the results, “lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil” (1 Timothy 3:6). Cultivate this humility of mind and its preservation; never allow it to be lost. As we reflect upon this wonderful character and servant of God, let us appreciate his example of choosing rightly, taking the long-term view of learning in meekness to wait upon the Lord, and of serving faithfully in meekness and humility even unto the end of our days. 1, Consider the term Christ in verse 26, “Considering the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the reward” (NASB). We view this as suggestive of any one separated for God’s service and not that this reference is specific to Jesus as “the Christ.” Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words states: “Christos, 5547, ‘anointed,’ translates, in the Septuagint, the word ‘Messiah,’ a term applied to the priests who were anointed with the holy oil, particularly the high priest, e.g., Leviticus 4:3,5,16. The prophets are called hoi christoi Theou, ‘the anointed of God,’ Psalm 105:15. A king of Israel was described upon occasion as christos tou Kuriou, ‘the anointed of the Lord,’ 1 Samel 2:10,35; 2 Samuel 1:14; Psalm 2:2; 18:50; Habakkuk 3:13; the term is used even of Cyrus, Isaiah 45:1. The title ho Christos, ‘the Christ,’ is not used of Christ in the Septuagint version of the inspired books of the OT.” |