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God’s Eulogy of Moses
Maybe you haven’t thought of it or even caught it in Scripture but God gives Moses a eulogy when he finally passes after a long life of servitude. As the recount of Moses’ death is shared with us in the final penning of the second law, or Deuteronomy, as we know it, we then come to the great calling and recounting of God’s new servant, Joshua. The item to take notice in the call of Joshua in the first chapter is God’s eulogy of Moses. Notice in Joshua 1:2;
“Moses My servant is dead”
The eulogy is not long; it is not filled with many inspiring words to lift the spirit of Israel’s new leader, but is a description that we should all desire to attain from God’s own mouth: My servant. Oh how I long to hear those words from my Creator, my El Shaddai, my Jehovah Jireh. This is how God describes Moses! Paul called himself and calls us to be bond slaves for Christ (Titus 1:1; Romans 1:1), Jesus, Himself, calls us to serve God and not mammon (Luke 16:13). He tells of a parable where at the conclusion the master is pleased with his servant in the handling of talents and says to him, “Well done good and faithful servant.” But to actually run the race, to finish the course of our work as pilgrims on this earth and have God Almighty, say “My servant” is cause for great celebration that our work was not in vain.
Notice that God does not tell of Moses’ faults or of Moses’ great works, He simply says, “My servant.” We are told most often that when God sees one of His own, one of the elect, He only sees Christ. We are told that He imputed Christ’s righteousness on us because Christ took our shame; by His stripes we are healed. That the Just died for the unjust, that our sins were nailed to the cross, that if we confess He is faithful and righteous to forgive us. We know all this yet there is always the flesh, always the temptation from Satan that says, “But you have done so many wicked things, so many wicked thoughts, surely God cannot look at you as righteous.”
This is the same Moses that was terrified and feeble in his person as he said to God after his call:
“I have never been eloquent, neither recently nor in time past, nor since You have spoken to Your servant; for I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.”
Exodus 4:10
Did God, after the death of Moses, bring forth his sins yet again? No, God separated those sins as far as the east is from the west, and saw Moses white as snow.
What a great promise we have from God that we are truly His sons, His heirs, because we have died and have been buried with Christ (Romans 6). Let us all strive to be, “holy as our Lord God is holy,” but when we come up short, which we will, let us have confidence that when we confess, God sees us as He sees His son. Let us strive to have God speak our eulogy as simple and to the point that He spoke for Moses, “My Servant is dead.”
“Moses My servant is dead”
The eulogy is not long; it is not filled with many inspiring words to lift the spirit of Israel’s new leader, but is a description that we should all desire to attain from God’s own mouth: My servant. Oh how I long to hear those words from my Creator, my El Shaddai, my Jehovah Jireh. This is how God describes Moses! Paul called himself and calls us to be bond slaves for Christ (Titus 1:1; Romans 1:1), Jesus, Himself, calls us to serve God and not mammon (Luke 16:13). He tells of a parable where at the conclusion the master is pleased with his servant in the handling of talents and says to him, “Well done good and faithful servant.” But to actually run the race, to finish the course of our work as pilgrims on this earth and have God Almighty, say “My servant” is cause for great celebration that our work was not in vain.
Notice that God does not tell of Moses’ faults or of Moses’ great works, He simply says, “My servant.” We are told most often that when God sees one of His own, one of the elect, He only sees Christ. We are told that He imputed Christ’s righteousness on us because Christ took our shame; by His stripes we are healed. That the Just died for the unjust, that our sins were nailed to the cross, that if we confess He is faithful and righteous to forgive us. We know all this yet there is always the flesh, always the temptation from Satan that says, “But you have done so many wicked things, so many wicked thoughts, surely God cannot look at you as righteous.”
This is the same Moses that was terrified and feeble in his person as he said to God after his call:
“I have never been eloquent, neither recently nor in time past, nor since You have spoken to Your servant; for I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.”
Exodus 4:10
Did God, after the death of Moses, bring forth his sins yet again? No, God separated those sins as far as the east is from the west, and saw Moses white as snow.
What a great promise we have from God that we are truly His sons, His heirs, because we have died and have been buried with Christ (Romans 6). Let us all strive to be, “holy as our Lord God is holy,” but when we come up short, which we will, let us have confidence that when we confess, God sees us as He sees His son. Let us strive to have God speak our eulogy as simple and to the point that He spoke for Moses, “My Servant is dead.”
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