Exodus 2:11-14

It happened in those days, when Moses had grown up, that he went out to his brothers, and looked at their burdens. He saw an Egyptian striking a Hebrew, one of his brothers. He looked this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no one, he killed the Egyptian, and hid him in the sand.

He went out the second day, and behold, two men of the Hebrews were fighting with each other. He said to him who did the wrong, “Why do you strike your fellow?”

He said, “Who made you a prince and a judge over us? Do you plan to kill me, as you killed the Egyptian?”

Moses was afraid, and said, “Surely this thing is known.”

This passage is an especially sensitive one for me. Sometimes, God’s calling and His power don’t come at the same time. Sometimes, God calls us to wait… for a long time.

Moses knew that God wanted to use him to deliver his people. He had grown up in
Pharaoh’s household and was well educated in everything that they knew. He was an excellent speaker and was a very capable man. Yet, He specifically chose to not be an Egyptian with great wealth and distinction but to identify himself with his own people who were living as slaves. The reason I can speak so dogmatically about this is because this is what I read about Moses in the Bible. Here’s what Stephen said about Moses in Acts:

Acts 7:22 :

Moses was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians. He was mighty in his words and works.

In Hebrews it says:

Hebrews 11:24-25 :

By faith, Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to share ill treatment with God’s people, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a time;

And again in Acts it says:

Acts 11:25 :

He supposed that his brothers understood that God, by his hand, was giving them deliverance; but they didn’t understand.

Did you know that when Moses killed that Egyptian, he didn’t run out of the fear of the
Pharaoh? It appears that Moses was frustrated with the fact that his own people didn’t recognize who He was. He was probably also afraid of the fact that he had disobeyed God and killed a man. He knew that it was not his place to kill the Egyptian. How do I know that He wasn’t running from Pharaoh? The Bible tells us in Hebrews:

Hebrews 11:27 :

By faith, he left Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.

It was God’s will for Moses to lead his people, but it was clearly not God’s timing. This is such a common story among those who have been called by God to do something. It may be very confusing to us when God promises that we are to do something and then nothing happens for years.

At this time, Moses was 40 years old. God was not to start his leadership ministry for another 40 years! Ministry for Moses was to start at 80! When we fail to wait on God, our lives can be frustrating and wasteful and even lead to horrible things like murder, as was the case with Moses. It is not only important for us to know the will of God for our lives, but we must also wait for God’s timing and power or else we will end up extremely frustrated.