Moses was also trained in relation to the children of Israel’s unbelief (6:9, 12). When I studied the history of Israel many years ago, I did not have much appreciation of the children of Israel. I told myself that I would never be like them. However, after being with the Lord’s people for more than forty-five years, I now have a high regard for the children of Israel. In some respects, I think that they are much better than the church people today. Elders in the churches may actually prefer the children of Israel to the saints in the church in their locality. It seems that wherever we are, the people are more difficult than those in other places. Nevertheless, no matter what the environment may be, we should not believe it. Environment fluctuates, but God’s word is unchanging.
On the one hand, the environment is altogether a lie because it will change; it is only temporary. On the other hand, because everything in our environment speaks something to us for God, the unbelief of the children of Israel should have spoken something to Moses. Through the unbelief and through the stubbornness of Pharaoh, Moses should have had his own shortage fully exposed, and he should have gone to God to trust Him more. Instead, Moses went to God with a complaining spirit. Without the unbelief and stubbornness, Moses would have thought that everything was fine. Actually, Moses had some problem inwardly that needed to be exposed, and he needed some further training.
Now we come to Pharaoh’s stubbornness. We have pointed out that Pharaoh signifies Satan. Satan is always stubborn; he never changes, except to become more stubborn. Therefore, we need to learn not to be distracted by the stubbornness of the enemy.
Twice in chapter six Moses told the Lord that he was of uncircumcised lips (vv. 12, 30). At first, I thought he was simply making a confession like that made by Isaiah (Isa. 6:5). But after more consideration, I have arrived at a different understanding of this matter. In 4:10 Moses said to the Lord, “O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou has spoken unto thy servant; but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.” This was Moses’ response to God’s original call. Nevertheless, the Lord insisted on sending Moses to Pharaoh. Because the Lord insisted on sending him to Pharaoh, Moses may have believed that his tongue would become a powerful instrument and that whatever he said to Pharaoh would be filled with authority. He may have thought that his speech would become so powerful that everyone, including Pharaoh, would obey his word. The result of the first conflict with Pharaoh was altogether different. Pharaoh did not listen to him, and the children of Israel did not hearken to him. Therefore, Moses complained to the Lord, but the Lord told him, “Go in, speak unto Pharaoh king of Egypt, that he let the children of Israel go out of his land” (6:11). It was at this point that Moses remarked to the Lord, “Behold, the children of Israel have not hearkened unto me; how then shall Pharaoh hear me, who am of uncircumcised lips?” (6:12). This word implies a complaint. Moses was complaining that the Lord had done nothing to make his mouth powerful. He was unhappy that his lips were still the same.
Those who are called by the Lord today may pray and expect that He will endue their speaking with miraculous power. But we eventually discover that our lips remain the same. Our lips are still uncircumcised; that is, they are still natural.
In telling the Lord that he was of uncircumcised lips, Moses was saying, “Lord, You tell me to go and speak to Pharaoh. I have done this already, but it didn’t work. Neither Pharaoh nor the children of Israel would listen to me. I thought that my lips would be changed, but I have found that they are still uncircumcised. You haven’t done anything to change my lips. Unless You do this, I will not speak to Pharaoh again. By my natural lips I can’t do anything. No one listens to me. Lord, You must make my lips powerful. Only then will I be able to speak in a way that people will listen to me.”
No doubt Moses expected God to use his lips to speak a mighty word to Pharaoh in a miraculous way. Instead, the word out of Moses’ mouth was common, not at all extraordinary. But what eventually comes out of such a common speaking is the Lord’s doing, not man’s. The outcome depends on the fact that we are sent by the Lord and commissioned by Him and that we represent Him—not on our effort, our skill, or how good a job we do. The earthen vessel is still earthen, but it contains a treasure. The thorn-bush is still a thorn-bush, but the holy fire is burning upon it. The thorn-bush should not expect to be changed, nor should it expect the glory to come to it. The glory must always go to God.
Suppose you are sent by the Lord to a certain place. You may pray and exercise yourself to believe that the Lord will make your lips powerful. However, when you speak, you find that your lips are not changed. If anything, your speaking is worse than ever. I have experienced this many times. After giving a message I went to the Lord and said, “Lord, I prayed that You would give me utterance, but You didn’t help me at all. Lord, don’t You realize how poor my speaking was? I want to give up speaking for You. I am still of uncircumcised lips.”
To have this attitude indicates that we depend on what we are and on what we can do, not on what the Lord is and on what He can do. The Lord does not intend to change our lips. On the contrary, He will let them remain the same. Although the Lord told Moses that He had made him God to Pharaoh (7:1), He would not do anything about the condition of Moses’ lips. In fact, there was no need for Moses to speak to Pharaoh at all, for Aaron would be his prophet.
The first time Moses met with Pharaoh, he did not speak in a miraculous way, but in an ordinary way. He also spoke to the children of Israel in an ordinary way. Because nothing happened, he complained to the Lord. God then gave him further training and charged him to go to Pharaoh again. But Moses did not want to do so unless the Lord did something miraculous to his lips. God’s answer implies that He would not do anything to change Moses’ lips. Instead, He would make Moses God to Pharaoh and provide Aaron to be Moses’ prophet. It seems as if the Lord were saying, “Moses, I will not do things according to your way. Rather, you must follow what I say. Whether you feel your lips are circumcised or uncircumcised does not make any difference. Actually, there is no need for you to speak to Pharaoh, because Aaron will be your spokesman. Moses, forget about your lips.”
There is a very important lesson for us here. We want God to miraculously change our lips. But God does not intend to do this. Success in carrying out God’s calling does not depend on our wisdom or on our proposals. God always has His own way of doing things. Moses thought that everything depended upon the condition of his lips. But God’s way was to leave Moses’ lips the same and to provide Aaron to be Moses’ prophet. In the church life today we need to drop our proposals and our concepts and say, “Lord, what I say means nothing, but what You say means everything. Lord, I am willing to forget myself and to no longer cleave to my natural being.” Let us forget our uncircumcised lips; that is, let us forget about what we are by nature.
Because Moses was cleaving to his natural condition, he neglected God’s word of assurance. Although God had spoken marvelous words of assurance, Moses did not pay attention to them due to his natural concept. We are the same today. Because we cling to our natural insistence, natural tendency, and natural understanding, we may read the Bible without receiving any light. Holding to our natural concept is a hindrance to enlightenment through the Word. We need to learn, as Moses did, that God does not do things according to our natural concept or insistence. Moses was strictly dealt with by God in this matter, and we need the same kind of dealing today.