February 10, Day 41 – We Hardly Know Ourselves
- Dr. Eric Stricker
- Feb 10
- 4 min read
Yesterday, in Exodus 1-3, we saw that, under a new king “who did not know about Joseph” (cf., 1:8), this Egyptian Pharaoh oppressed the Israelites. As a result, God called on Moses, a man whom God could use even in spite of his weaknesses (cf., 2:11-12). Today we come to Exodus 4:1–6:2 where we see God bestowing on Moses the resources and tools he will need to lead His people – God’s people – out of Egypt. Moses is timid about his own leadership, and he doubts his abilities. This is actually the kind of man that God finds quite useful – a man who is humble and dependent on the Lord for strength and confidence. In Exodus 4:24, we read that God was going to take Moses’ life. Here, the context seems to suggest that Moses had somehow been negligent or even disobedient about God’s regulations concerning the circumcision of his son. However, it appears that his wife, Zipporah, interceded for Moses before God, “so the LORD let him alone” (4:24). Later, in Egypt, God called Aaron to assist Moses. In Exodus 5, Moses confronts Pharaoh who, pridefully, does not wish to cooperate with God. Not a good idea. This initial confrontation only seems to make Pharaoh irate, so the workload of the Israelites is severely increased. We see that Moses becomes frustrated and goes before God: “Is this why you sent me? You have not rescued your people at all” (5:22-23). Moses is about to learn an important principle here. If God calls us to a task or to a ministry, He will not do our work for us. God is definitely going to rescue His people, but He is going to use Moses to do it. Because sin has complicated everything about our world, sin has also made man’s work messy – even that work which is of the Lord. Moses will need to confront Pharaoh many times before he will allow the people to leave, and each confrontation is going to increase in complexity. Where man is called to participate in the work of God, it’s still work, and because work can be messy, we learn that the garden still has weeds that need to be pulled.
In Proverbs 4:10-19, again, we find the writer’s wise counsel to “listen and accept what he says – that the years of our lives may be many” (verse 10). For several years now – as a result of my own regular readings in Proverbs – I have prayed practically every day that God would fill my loved ones with (1) truth; (2) wisdom; (3) knowledge; (4) understanding; (5) insight; (6) discernment; (7) discretion; and (8) a love for God’s Word. I strongly recommend that you to do the same. Why? First, because God tells us to ask for them (cf., James 1:5-7). Second, because we know that these resources don’t just spring forth by their own will. Third, because God delights in answering our prayers and giving them to us. God knows that truth is always veritable – it is fixed – it never devolves or disintegrates into something less than what it already is. Truth is always faithful and reliable because God is the ultimate Truth; truth is whatever God decrees. Thus, it is more dependable than a GPS. We can chart our lives by the truth, and it will lead us to our proper home. Wisdom derives from a correct grasp of the truth in life. Truth ignored or misapplied has no value, but wisdom helps us to recognize the value of truth. Knowledge is the information that we need for good decision-making. Understanding enables us to apply wisdom appropriately, and insight helps to put understanding into effective practice. Discernment and discretion are the beneficial results of exercising appropriate insight. These benefits all come from a love for God’s Word. Proverbs 4 instructs us: to “walk in the way of wisdom” so that our “steps will not be hampered” (verse 12). But notice: “the way of the wicked is darkness; they do not [even] know what makes them stumble” (verse 19).
In Matthew 26:31-46, we come to our Lord’s prediction of Peter’s approaching denial. Once again, I want to emphasize that this passage informs us about how little we know regarding ourselves. Peter said, “Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you” (verse 35). Just a few hours later, Peter denied Him three times – the third time – with a curse. We need to remember that, because we are human beings, we are capable of anything of which any other human being is capable. Only God knows us fully – we hardly know ourselves at all. Here, we see Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane where his disciples were “sleeping” (verse 40). I don’t believe they went into the garden with the intent to sleep. Jesus asks, “Could you not keep watch with me for one hour?” (verse 40). He went away, and came back the second time “and found them sleeping” again (verse 42). “The spirit is willing, but the body is weak” (verse 41). Truly, we have good intentions, but we hardly know ourselves at all.
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