Photo: Fishing on the Nile (Aaron Dunlop)

The story of Moses at the burning bush is a fascinating insight into the call to ministry and the inward struggle of the Lord’s servants. Rejected and discredited by the people in the initial attempt to deliver Israel, Moses was left in a state of chronic insecurity. But the Lord had not finished with him and his greatest work was yet to come. Here are some lessons we need to learn as pastors and then some encouragements in the ministry.

Here are some lessons from the story that pastors need to learn.

  • Learn the skills of a shepherd. Moses had all the learning of Egypt (Acts 7:22), but he needed the skills of a shepherd (Acts 20:28, 1 Peter 5:3-4).

  • Learn that God keeps his promises. God remembers the affliction of his people and his calling on Moses.

  • Learn to make yourself vulnerable and trust God. Although recoiling from it at first, Moses trusted the word of God and picked the snake up by the tail.

  • Learn that God is always present (the I AM) to provide, teach, lead, and work.

  • Learn to exercise your authority with humility — Moses was given a staff, not a sceptre (1 Peter 5:3). 

  • Learn of your own inner corruption. When Moses put his hand in his bosom it became leprous. 

  • Learn that God knows your needs and has anticipated them, just as God made Moses’ path cross with Aaron’s.

There are also some encouraging applications in the story of Moses at the burning bush. 

  • For the “successful” Pastor. Preparation for service is always found in the presence of God. This principle is evident throughout Scripture; Isaiah (Isaiah 50:5-9), John the Baptist (Luke 1:80), Lord Jesus (Matthew 4:11), Paul (Galatians 1:17)

  • For the Suffering Pastor. After the initial rejection, Moses lost all confidence, both in himself and in his hearers. But the Lord was preparing and teaching him that his identity and ministry were bound up in the Lord, not in himself or his people. 

  • For the Stammering Pastor. Moses thought he had nothing to say and could not speak. God told him that the Lord would teach him. It was the Word of God that Moses held onto, not the miracles or the phenomenon of the burning bush. Moses did not mention the bush to the Israelites.

  • For the Senior Pastor. At eighty years old, Moses was just getting ready for retirement and the Lord gave him the most significant mission of his life (remember Moses wrote Psalm 90:10). God still has work for you at the end of your ministry… don’t freewheel into retirement.