The Power of Weakness: Old Testament

     Because I have felt so riddled with pock marks and scars caused by my weaknesses, understanding why I need to feel weak has become something of a quest. I think it's so crazy that subconsciously we assume that we need to get through life without messing up, and we expect those in authority to be mistake free. Rather ridonculous, if you stop and think about it. As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, I believe in a Savior that forgives, sanctifies, and enables each of His children. That means even prophets are allowed to make mistakes. So, with this in mind, I decided to embark on this little mini-series. Two prophets from each major book of scripture from the Old Testament to the Book of Mormon and the Doctrine and Covenants are spotlighted. In each case I look for ways these prophet's weaknesses allow them to serve their God more effectively.


OLD TESTAMENT

Moses

     Moses was a powerful prophet and one of the one scriptural figures we refer to the most, from Judaism to Mormonism, from The Book of Mormon to the Dead Sea Scrolls. 

 Here is a quick biography:  He delivered the whole house of Israel, and led an impossible number of people across an unforgiving desert, after he parted the Red Sea with a piece of wood that allowed his people to cross a fierce obstacle in relative comfort. (Oh, and swallowed up the enemies that had held them physically, mentally, and emotionally captive.)

      Manna fell from the skies at his command, he talked with God face to face, conversing with the Eternal Being and came away imprinted with glory that streamed from his features. He laid down the law that is still treasured today, and guided, goaded, gathered his people through a journey that would purify them to the extent that they would be worthy to enter a land of promise, a religious paradise where they could enjoy freedom for the first time in many, many years.

     Buried among all of this greatness are a couple of surprising verses. The children of Israel are thirsty and missing their pomegranates that they had in Egypt and are generally making Moses and Aaron feel terrible by complaining. So Aaron and Moses go to the Lord in prayer and this is what follows: 

            Numbers 20:1-11

     Shut off the faucet. Pretty insane when you read it. This great, blessed man got so grouchy with the attitudes of the people, always nagging on him, and asking him to do things over and over again, that instead of talking to the rock, he bangs on the rock with his staff in outright disobedience. I think all of us can attest to a time in our lives when we’ve banged instead of talked. But in Moses’ case, it apparently cost him his right to lead the people into the Promised Land. It seems a little strange that God would punish a prophet like this, and then openly refer to him throughout His ministry in Jerusalem.  Also, let’s be honest. When anything is buried by God, or people don’t know where the body went in the scriptures, it doesn’t usually mean that the ravens found them. This usually means that they were taken up to God, to heaven, to glory. The Book of Mormon (a sublime testament of the simplicity, consistency and glory of the restored gospel and the role of Joseph Smith as the first prophet of this particular time) supports this as fact, and states, that indeed, Moses was translated, as in pretty much resurrected. 

       So what does this prove? By being removed from the head of the people as they entered the Promised Land, Moses’ weakness becomes apparent to us. Sometimes he had a hard time trusting God more than his own ability to see what was happening, and find a solution. But he knew better. He knew this powerful fact:

      He knew his staff would only be a stick without the True Vine. His words only stuttering, half-finished ideas without the Word, and the commandments simply the legislation of an inexperienced man without Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End. Moses was Moses because God is God.

      Moses forgot this in a moment of human weakness, and as a result was taken up into the eternal Promised Land. The consequence for Moses’ disobedience was that he would have no opportunity to take credit for his work with the children of Israel by being the one who led them into the Promised Land.

     The most beautiful part of this story to me is that despite, no BECAUSE of his weakness, Moses sealed with his life his understanding of God’s power. Yes, he messed up, yes, he didn’t “win” by leading his people into the Promised Land, but he did oh so much more for us and those who are adopted into the House of Israel through covenant. He knew what he was supposed to do, but wasn’t strong enough to trust God all of the time, so God, in His abundant mercy allowed Moses’ “punishment” to also be his second chance. His weakness would be a testimony of what he believed, even though he wasn’t strong enough to live the way he knew, that God was powerful and strong enough to make Moses’ efforts enough. This is the power of the Atonement. Moses’ life, obedience, and yes his weakness is now leading millions into the eternal, the real and the heavenly Promised Land. Moses got his wish, his honor. He fulfilled his mission, but only through the magnitude of an all-seeing, all-powerful, and all-merciful God. It is a reminder that we need to remember who the real strength is. His life is a beacon that pulsates with the reality that our weaknesses do not have the power to cripples us unless we choose to allow them to have that power. God forgives. God heals. God provides the infinite second chance.

Joseph in Egypt

     We don’t usually assign any grievances to Joseph, other than maybe being super excited about his colorful coat. But, whether or not the following is actually accurate, the scriptures are vague enough that I feel pretty comfortable about using this interpretation.

     Joseph in Egypt was a savior. He saved the entirety of Egypt, and several other nations along with his family from certain death by famine due to foresight and interpretive abilities. His posterity has been and is involved in the spiritual salvation of all mankind. He is a figurehead, a leader, a prince. He was a dreamer, a natural talent, a seer, a hard worker, and a people person. Respectful and obedient, bold and determined, he is what he would view as the ultimate hero.

He was also a tattle and apparently a little self-absorbed. First he got his brothers in trouble for the whole kerfuffle with Bilhah (which was a good thing for him to do, of course), and then proceeded to tell them all about his cool dreams about grain and stars, which even the teeniest brain could interpret as supporting his spiritual superiority. It makes one wonder if he didn’t notice what his brothers were thinking, I mean there were ten of them (not sure if Benjamin joined in at this point, but if so then eleven). How could he not notice their frustration? And if he did, why in the world did he continue to tell them about his dreams? Did he not consider the possible implications of what he was doing? Or did he feel inspired to continually rock the boat? We may never know. What we do know is that it got him a cool colored coat (which represented his father’s respect, love and dependence on him), and then tossed in a pit, sold to Ishmeelites and dragged to Egypt as a slave. Gen37 

      I would like to submit that Joseph did not have the pure motivation for the telling of his dreams or even for his obedience until he came out of his ordeal as a slave. That learning what it meant to be nothing after being promised that he would be everything changed the way he viewed his talents and his identity.

     Have you ever felt like you’ve done everything you can to do what’s right and then everything falls apart? This is what happened to Joseph. He never pushed the line too far, he resisted huge amounts of temptation and still ended up in a deep, dark prison cell. I have to assume that while all of this was happening he was learning to trust God in greater detail. This is what I like to glean from his experiences. We all have been given certain talents, some more visible than others, but they are all equally important in our personal progression and furthering the work of the Lord. Joseph was given one of those visible gifts. There is no way that he automatically knew how to use that gift only for

God’s will right from the start. Yes, I’m sure he wanted to, but things like that have to be learned, nurtured, and tested. I think it was a better, stronger, and more clearly motivated Joseph that emerged from prison than the boy that went in, ready to take on all the cows and corn that Pharaoh could throw at him. I believe talents are like that. It is so easy to identify with the things we do well and think that that is what people should love about us. Joseph’s life and experiences teach us that this is not the case. And it also points out a very important aspect of motivation. When we change why we do something, it doesn’t necessarily change how it looks on the outside, but it will change what we become on the inside. Sometimes our deepest desires will lead us through the roughest times, not because God is cruel and wants to see how long we can hang on, but because we are imperfect and cannot live up to what we understand and therefore what we want. God in His mercy allows for experiences that will change the why, and therefore change the how. It is only then can we really reach what we truly want.