Moses: When No One Wants to Listen

So Moses spoke thus to the children of Israel, but the would not heed Moses,

because of anguish of spirit and cruel bondage.

Exodus 6:9, NKJV

"You shall speak all that I command you...and I will harden Pharaoh's heart,

and multiply My wonders in the land of Egypt.

But Pharaoh will not heed you..."

God to Moses, Exodus 7:2-3, NKJV

You are God's man of faith and power, chosen by Him for this exact hour, this very place, sent by Him for this purpose to this people.  There is no doubt in your mind that you are right where God wants you to be, doing exactly what He wants you to do.  Only no one will listen to you.  I suppose it could be applied to any position of leadership, but since I'm a lifelong pastor, I tend to view this through pastoral glasses, so hear my illustration.

You go the pulpit, Bible and notes in hand, prayed up, prepared, and ready to preach the message God has given you for the crowd.  You do your best with your delivery, but when you look across the congregation, their faces are blank at best, hostile at worst, and that's if they are awake.  You wind up the summation and issue the invitation, wondering who is going to respond to your heartfelt message, and no one raises their hand to acknowledge that anything you said had any effect on them.  No one comes forward for prayer or personal repentance.  No one has anything to say whatsoever about what they've just heard.  They just wait anxiously for the final prayer and dismissal so they can rush out the door to lunch, perhaps shaking your hand on the way out.  And when they return for the next service, they come back unchanged by anything you've said or done.

You go into the community, Bible in heart if not actually in your hand, prayed up, prepared, and ready to proclaim the message of God's love and salvation to those who need to hear it most.  You know how to follow the Roman Road and the Scarlet Thread of Redemption, leading sinners through the Scriptures to the Savior.  You think you've got them to the point of confessing Christ as Savior, but when you ask them if they are ready to do that, they shake their head and say, "I'm fine the way I am.  Life is good.  I don't need this right now."  And no matter how many times you tell them of Jesus and Heaven and sin and hell, no matter how many times you remind them of human mortality and eternal judgment, nothing you say seems to make a difference.

Why do people seem deaf to the things you are sent to say?

Some cannot hear the message over the cries of their own turmoil and problems.  Some are so wrapped up in their current condition and trying to figure a way out of it, that they cannot receive any kind of encouragement from the outside.  Some are caught up in sin and don't want to change.  Some are unresponsive to the Gospel because of  deaf ears, seared consciences, callused souls, hardened hearts.  But you keep doing what you do, because that is God has called and commissioned you to do.  Just remember, God is truly the only one capable of making a change in people's lives.  It just takes time on their part and faithfulness on yours.

When Moses' own people rejected his leadership and mission, he was heartbroken and wanted to give up.  Surely God had made a mistake.  But God spoke to him and said, "These are my people, I've heard their cries, I will deliver them.  But My deliverance has nothing to do with their response.  It has everything to do with My promises, no to them, but to Abraham.  I'm going to do this, whether they want to hear you or not."

And when Pharaoh rejected the word of the Lord, Moses left his palace completely discouraged and wondering if he had really heard from God.  After all, when God speaks you expect everyone to listed.  But God knew Pharaoh was going to need a little help cleaning out his ears, and He said to Moses, "I have made you like God before these people.  Say what I tell you to say, do what I tell you to do.  Be warned:  They aren't going to listen, but I will still set my people free.  You be faithful."

So Moses did what He was told to do.  He obeyed God.  He remained faithful.  God turned the water to blood, infested the land with frogs and flies and lice and locusts, infected the Egyptians with boils and their cattle with disease, afflicted the land with hailstorms, lightning, fire, and frost, deflected the sunlight for three days to leave them in complete and horrific darkness.  And still Pharaoh would not listen.  The rest of the Egyptians heard the message loud and clear.  The Israelites were won over by God's almighty hand.  Everyone was calling for freedom for the slaves.  But Pharaoh's heart was hard.  It was going to take more than this to persuade him to hear the word of the Lord.

It took the death of his own son, and the deaths of every firstborn son in Egypt, from the highest nobility to the lowest slave, to convince Pharaoh that he was up against more than he could handle.  He could not stand in the way of God's will, plan, and purpose for His people.  It cost him practically everything before he consented to what God required of him, and even then, after letting God's people go, he changed his mind and chased them down.  That is the result of a heart hardened so completely by sin and unbelief that it cannot be changed, it can only be destroyed.

And Moses just kept on preaching.  He kept on singing.  He kept on leading as God led him.  Finally, he was able to lead God's people out of Egypt, and the people followed.