“Cuttin’ Teeth in Midian” (Exodus 2:11-23)
When Moses fled Egypt, he lacked the spiritual maturity necessary for his God-given destiny. Just like Moses, our unfulfilled destinies are linked to our own spiritual immaturity. Because of this, God allowed time for Moses to mature in Midian, a setting where his spiritual life could grow, and he could come to know God. You see, although he was a grown man, he was still a relative baby in his knowledge of God and how God operates.
A baby! Think about babies…Babies undergo so many changes that it is fascinating to watch them grow; moving from one stage to another, they transform before our very eyes. This transformation also includes a very interesting time, commonly referred to as “cuttin’ teeth.” I have several younger cousins who I watched grow to adulthood, and the time when they cut their teeth is still vivid in my mind. In this stage, they went through a period of intense sensitivity – their demeanor, their physical well-being, and their behavior towards those around them – all changed as a result of the discomfort that they experienced, “cutting teeth.” Indeed, cutting teeth is not the most exciting time on most parents’ lists.
Because of this, the phrase cutting teeth has become synonymous with the growing up process. And although THIS room is filled with a variety of ages, from newborns to those approaching one century, it goes with out saying that there are ALSO some SPIRITUAL infants here, cuttin’ teeth in their own PRIVATE Midian. Spiritual infants – as Paul alludes to, who have not yet been prepared for the challenges and difficulties of discipleship, and who are still struggling with issues of spiritual infancy.
Still dealing with who Jesus was, and what it means to be baptized, what it means to be a Christian, and what is my purpose. Spiritual infants – people who are not quite ready to fulfill their destinies because they have an under developed relationship with God, that ONLY comes through the trials and tribulation of a Midian experience – they are STILL “cuttin’ teeth.” This text clearly shows us that God allowed time for Moses to grow up, to cut his teeth, in the land of Midian.
One obvious question is, “Where was Midian?” Midian was in Northwest Saudi Arabia, near the Gulf of Aqaba, approximately 285 miles from the Egyptian city of Ramses from which it is believed Moses fled. To give you a better idea of this distance it was like leaving Norfolk, VA and going just past Trenton, New Jersey or a few miles short of Charleston, West Virginia. Moses had to flee such a distance because the Egyptian territory consisted of so much land. And this was no easy escape, for there were no cars to take him to his destination. No trains, or planes were available either… As a matter of fact, the text does not give us any clear method of Moses’ travel…leaving us to imagine Moses as the original Fugitive… in order to travel 285 miles undetected by the searching Egyptians, I’m sure Moses had to humble himself and hide out temporarily with some folks he did not know. Outside the palace walls, he probably gained some first hand experience as to how others lived who were not privileged to be raised in Pharoah’s house. One of the first signs of a Midian experience is having to deal with people that you would not ordinarily have to deal with! Check your companions…you may be headed to your Midian!
But, DON’T GET IT TWISTED, Midian doesn’t have to be somewhere that is far away, either…No! Midian can be an event, a situation, a time, a disappointment, a health condition, a WHATEVER….that forces you into a period where you and God become intimately involved in a way that you had not previously known him.
For you, Midian could be retirement from a job, where the comfort of a twenty or thirty year salary level, with bonuses and COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENTS, is being replaced with a pension and social security… and you can’t see your way to the end of the month. OR your Midian could be cancer, that COMES…G0ES… and COMES AGAIN…and your faith is challenged to the point that you despairingly wonder IF God’s hand is in fact UNCHANGING… I DON’T KNOW…Maybe your Midian is a recently deceased loved one, who was such an integral part of your life…and now you don’t know whether you are coming or going…Or perhaps someone that you love, a son, daughter, husband or wife…has been diagnosed with HIV… MOST OF ALL, MIDIAN could be the results of your sinful lifestyle, a life spent pursuing the things that are not of God…and that pursuit has led you to a place in your life where you must now face painful and embarrassing consequences…in your own private Midian.
Midian situations are as different as the people who have them, and THEY ARE ALL DESIGNED to draw us closer to God so that he might prepare us for the works of our individual callings.
Midian time can be tricky, especially for those who tend to focus on the natural. If you are more preoccupied with how you feel, and what you have, and your comfort level, Midian living can be a long, arduous and disappointing time. On the other hand, if you tend to look for God in the situations that routinely plague you….whether it’s your health, your relationships, your finances, or your ministry….Midian is an opportunity for reflection, observation, and renewal. The bottom line is your ATTITUDE. Your attitude is a critical factor in how you deal with Midian. Moses gives us a marvelously human picture of life in Midian, and his experiences allow us to gauge our own maturity. Ask your neighbor, “Do you have your teeth yet? “ or “Are you still whining about your Midian gums?”
God knows that, just like Moses, we have to cut our spiritual teeth. Otherwise we will be nowhere near the level of preparation necessary for God to use us the way HE wants to use us. Moses, the Scripture tells us, fled to the land of Midian. And it is in this Midian experience, cutting his teeth, where his level of immaturity is made abundantly clear.
First of all, Moses didn’t really know God. We must remember that Moses was raised as an Egyptian, identified himself with the Hebrew people, but did not have an established relationship with the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob because he had been raised with an Egyptian background – Osiris, Isis, Nu, Ra, Ptah, the gods of the Egyptian Pantheon - were probably more familiar to Moses than Yahweh, the Creator.
Although God knew him intimately, Moses had no clue as to why God is The Great I Am.
As a matter of fact, his actions tell us how little he knew about God. Verse 11 says, “He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his own people. Glancing this way and that and seeing no one, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand.” Glancing this way and that and seeing no one - only accounting for what HE could see through physical eyes, he didn’t know that the God we serve SEES every thing.
And it is clear that he didn’t think anyone saw him because Moses was genuinely surprised, and startled at the reaction of the Hebrew who said to him, “Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian??” Which to my mind says he must have waited, and cornered the man by himself! “What I did must have become known.” God also KNOWS everything that we do!
And just to remind you, when children are cutting teeth, they usually have a fever; they get hot. Well, this scene is another indication that Moses was spiritually cutting teeth because he was hot-headed… angry, and unmindful of the consequences of his actions – his anger boiled over to the point that he committed premeditated murder. Glancing this way and that – meaning he thought about what he was going to do before he did it. He committed a heinous crime. And so Moses had to flee!
He had to flee from the life he had grown up in, the comfort and coziness of an Egyptian lifestyle, of a prince. It says he had to flee because Pharoah heard of it and tried to kill Moses. What I did must have become known!
To me, this indicates a strained relationship. SOMETIMES, situations at home make it difficult for us to reach a level of spiritual maturity, and we have to leave. It almost seems like Pharoah tolerated Moses presence in the house, but would have been looking for an opportunity to get rid of him, since Moses WAS a constant reminder of what he had done to the Israelites, “the one that got away” from his decree to kill all male Israelites. God does certain things in our lives, puts us together in certain circumstances, that from an outside, unspiritual perspective, seem to cause animosity between our family members and us, but that animosity has a purpose. Often, that animosity is the force that drives us away to where we can actually begin to focus on the spiritual aspects of life.
Moses was tolerated...for lack of a better term, he was a well cared for “stray”… in the house, but not of the house. Perhaps this was one of the premeditating issues of Moses’ crime…perhaps there was a deep, latent hatred for the Egyptians that he was privileged to be a part of…because of how he was treated. I mean you can be clothed, and fed, but still see that you are simply being tolerated…Have you every felt like the family stray? What did it make you do? Because of his crime, Moses was put on the run….
What was it that put you on the run? What did you do that caused you to flee to your Midian? Did someone discover something or someone, buried in the shallow sands of your past, that you were too ashamed to face? Maybe you disappointed someone, who had high expectations for you, and all you could do was be who you are, and you failed to reach their expectations. And like Moses, you found yourself in full flight, headed to Midian…
When Moses arrived in Midian, he still was not mature because he still had some ‘cuttin’ teeth’ issues. What do you do with a baby that is cutting teeth? They usually give them a teething ring, to try to cool down the problem….some thing to calm the nerves, and ease their restless pains…to get them to a point where they can handle the dilemma a little better.
So Moses, in the land of Midian, winds up with the ultimate cool down, something to sink his teeth into…he gets a wife, Zipporah, one of the daughters of the Midianite priest, Jethro. Genesis 25:2 tells us the Midianites were descendants of Abraham through his concubine Keturah, and Moses was there with them for several reasons. These were spiritual people, people who knew God, and they were people who lived in freedom, unlike the people of Israel who were toiling away in captivity under the slave drivers’ whips. God allowed Moses to be there with them to open his spiritual eyes… to his unfulfilled purpose… to the Israelites chosen identity… and to God’s all-powerful presence. While Moses was in Midian, he fashioned a life that was different from all of his previous experiences: he married, had a son, and began to herd sheep.
Perhaps he thought Egypt would fade into a distant memory…but Moses did not realize that he was about to begin a period of preparation, preparation for the task that God had assigned specifically for him!
God put Moses in this situation so Moses could begin to see who God is, and have a relationship with him. Before this series of events, Moses relied on his own mind, his own experiences, and his own feelings to handle the problems that came up in his life. Moses had a mind to do right…he had a heart for justice…and he had the zeal that God would eventually use…but he did not know that it was the power and wisdom of God that would change his and his peoples’ situation. God had to move him out of his level of comfort, so he could be used! To prepare him for the tasks he would have to undergo as a leader of his people! This was an opportunity for Moses to grow, to get to a level where he could lean and depend and know a God that he never really knew. This was an evangelistic moment for the Midianite people, to introduce Moses to God. It’s one thing to hear of God, but it’s something else to walk with God in your daily experiences. To walk with God, reflect on his beauty, and observe all that he has done in creation – and to see your place in creation!
This was also a time for Moses to reflect on how he got to Midian. The journey to Midian, when viewed through unspiritual eyes, can seem to be a disappointment. I can imagine, while Moses was leading sheep out in the desert, he began to reflect on where he had come from.
Maybe while walking past a wild berry bush, he stopped to reflect upon the many delicacies he had feasted upon at Pharoah’s table. And with a touch of bitterness in his heart, thought about all that he was missing because he was no longer in Pharoah’s house. Or maybe while pausing to nap on a rocky hillside with a boulder as his pillow and his robe as a temporary blanket, he thought about the silk feather stuffed pillows of Egypt and the fabrics imported from all over the known world that he had at his fingertips. If he simply clapped his hands, a manservant or maidservant would bring him something to make his life even more comfortable. I’m talking about being in Midian!
You know, I can see where Moses could have been discouraged after awhile. Moses was actually in Midian for an extended period, and had a LOT of time on his hands, time that he might not have had otherwise if he were still in Egypt. Most biblical scholars believe that Moses life is divided into three periods of forty – forty years in Egypt, forty years in Midian, and the final forty years spent leading his people out of Egypt and to the Promised Land of Canaan. And when viewed that way, forty years is a long time.
I was raised in Pharoah’s palace for this? All that I’ve been through in life is for this?
One lesson we can learn from Moses is to be careful that we do not view OUR Midian existence as the end of the road.
As believers, we must be careful that while we are cutting our spiritual teeth in our own personal Midians, that we don’t get so caught up in the experience – the hurt, the pain, the bitterness – that we lose sight of where God is able to take us. Just like Moses, when we experience adversities that lead us into our own Midians…After we have flown off the handle, or failed at manipulating situations, when we have embarrassed ourselves in the natural…God stands ready and willing to go to work in the supernatural.
I want to put you on notice that your Midian is not a place for you to get comfortable and settle into…Midian is not a long term escape...God has unfulfilled destinies awaiting us! But we can’t even begin to approach those destinies if we fail to view our Midian experiences in the right light!
Moses had to mature in Midian. The bible says that while Moses was in Midian, there came a time when Pharoah died and God heard the suffering of the Israelites. Time…had passed. And when time passes while you are in your Midian, it feels like God has forgotten about you. I can empathize with Moses, because when you are out there in Midian, in a place where you don’t feel you belong, wondering how the heck did I get here, it seems as though God has just forgotten you. You are hooked up with people who are outside of your experience…doing strange things you wouldn’t normally do…sleeping in places you wouldn’t normally sleep in…engaging in experiences outside of what you have done…and you wonder when is this going to end? Is this what the sum total of my experiences is going to get me?
The bible tells us that Moses named his son Gershom, for I have become an alien in a foreign land. He passes on to his son aspects of his own experience. As parents, we must be mindful of what we say and do to our children, and not let our negative interpretations of our Midian experience impact their lives: an alien in a foreign land.
“I’m an outsider.” “An outcast”… in a place where I feel that I don’t belong. You belong where you ARE because that’s where God has you at that moment. Children are reminders, and Gershom is supposed to be a reminder of the time Moses spends in Midian. But is that a good memory or a bad memory? I mean, every time he looked at the child was it a reflection of a positive experience? When he looked at Gershom, did he smile? Or was it a negative reflection, and each time that he glanced at Gershom did he sort of cut his eyes? Did this cause the child to grow up thinking that he didn’t like him or love him, because he connected that child to his own negative experiences? Through his immaturity, did he allow the temporary pain of his uncut spiritual gums to permanently influence his and his family’s outlook? INSTEAD OF LOOKING TO SEE WHAT GOD WAS DOING IN HIS LIFE by having him in the place where he was?
The Good News this morning is that God does not intend for Midian to be the final stop on your journey, it’s not your final destination. The Good News is you don’t spend all of your life cutting teeth in Midian…after while, you get to chew on some stuff that God has planned for you and prepared you for.
No one grows up overnight, and is prepared to fulfill their destiny. It just doesn’t work that way! God prepared a place, and a time in history for each man’s destiny to be fulfilled…but in order for that destiny to be fulfilled, there has to be a period of maturation, where you have to grow up! Our Midian experience is the divinely authored time for us to grow up, to cut our spiritual teeth and get prepared for the destiny that God has for each of us! And the truth of the matter is that many believers are still in their own personal Midian, where they haven’t grown up!
Still looking at bitter situations, through unspiritual eyes. Still angry over the things that God has allowed to take place in our lives…not to hurt us, but to shape us…so the destiny he has assigned to us might be completed. Moses had a tremendous task ahead of him – to lead generations of people out of bondage in Egypt – logistics, how to lead them, how to organize them, how to plan – relations – how to deal with people – leadership – how to position people in authority over others and group those – patience – dealing with sheep all day you have to have patience – solitude- understanding where there are periods of time when you have to be alone to hear from God. (demonstrate here the physical change in Moses approach to God between the burning bush incident and the Mt. Sinai experience… “change in relationship caused a change in the approach”)
Spiritual maturity, is what God allowed to take place while Moses cut his teeth in Midian…Even Jesus had to spend some earthly time cuttin’ teeth….in a Midian type of situation….
On the night before his crucifixion, Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, “Not my will lord, but thy will be done.” That type of spiritual maturity didn’t come overnight! Jesus had to go through some things TOO to get to that level…Long before the Pharisees’ persecutions and the peoples’ ultimate rejection, the bible specifically tells us he was led into the desert, by the Holy Spirit where he might be tempted by Satan….This was a type of Midian experience.
Satan sought to tempt Jesus by connecting his identity to his physical needs, “If you are the Son of God, change this stone to bread.” But Jesus knew that who HE WAS had nothing to do with earthly supply…”Man does not live by bread alone.” That’s a lesson mature people learn, cutting teeth in Midian. Satan sought to tempt Jesus with authority and glamour, “If you worship me, I’ll give you worldly authority and splendor, which is mine to give.” But Jesus knew that who HE WAS was connected to his worship of God… “Worship the Lord, your God and serve him only.” Mature people learn to worship God while making their way through their Midian encounter. …Is your worship weak? God is still waiting on your holy wisdom teeth, some holy worship teeth to cut through… sounds like you’ll be in Midian a little longer…
Satan even tried to lead Jesus astray by misusing Scripture, telling Jesus to throw himself down from the temple top since “God will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully”…Mature people can rightly divide the word of God, and understand FOR THEMSELVES WHAT IT TRULY MEANS, NOT USING IT TO JUSTIFY THE UNSPIRITUAL MESSES WE GET OURSELVES INTO… “Jesus countered Satan with an appropriate Scripture… “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.” Mature believers use the Word of God against the enemy… JUST CALL IT “HOLY ANBESOL…” It helps us deal with the pain until those spiritual teeth can finally break through… and like Jesus, we CAN overcome the challenges of our own Midian-like situations. Tell yourself, “God is waiting until I’m ready to leave Midian.”
Jesus’ testing, and all of the things that happened in his life, were preparation for the great destiny that God had prepared for him, to be the living sacrifice for every sin sick soul that wanted to be saved! And if Jesus had to go through situations that shaped his spiritual maturity, how dare we think that we are ready for what God has in store for us, when we’re still whining! About a little bit of spiritual gum pain! Cutting teeth in Midian!
I went through a period of being in Midian, when I was in my mid twenties. I was just so confused…I had big dreams, and it looked as if all of my dreams were coming to nothingness.
I had a job working hard, and getting next to no pay…I was separated from my FIRST wife at the time…I wound up living in Richmond, and taking a temporary job putting up those big outdoor tents…and that temporary job was with a company based here in Norfolk…so I took the temporary job and came back to Norfolk…reconciled with my wife…working 12 hour days putting up tents for seven dollars an hour…living across the street in those apartments over there… wondering, How the heck did I get here from a college degree at Norfolk State? How did I get from honor society to putting up tents? How did I get from big man on campus to miserable man in Lambert’s Point? How did I lose the marriage that I had given my best? The answer was that I had to cut some teeth!
If we ever hope to fulfill our destiny, the destiny that God intends for us to have, we have to see our Midian experience for what it is, an opportunity for God to grow us spiritually! In preparation for what he has in store for us!
I was a lot like Moses growing up; I had heard about God and knew what others told me. But I didn’t really have the kind of personal relationship with God that can only develop from spending time in a Midian situation. Just like Moses, I had tried to handle my issues my way, and I found myself on the run. But God…the God who blesses us even in Midian, already knew some spiritual people that I could spend some time with, people in a neighborhood church called Lambert’s Point that had toiled in the Midians of the coal pier, the navy base and the shipyard.
He knew it was a place where I could mature, and let my own Midian teeth cut through while the teething ring of time allowed me to reflect on what I had endured, and appreciate the grace and mercy of a God who owned the Egypt I fled, the Midian I suffered through, and the Promised Land where I’m journeying toward! He knew it was a place where I could put my gifts to work, but especially where my relationship with Jesus Christ could grow and I could begin to mature into who he wanted me to be, and my unfulfilled destiny!
God eventually showed up in Moses life and ordered him to his destiny! And here is the thing: Moses still wasn’t where he needed to be spiritually, he wasn’t mature to the point where he followed God without question…this was just a period in the maturation process. He actually tried to get out of the job of leading the people out of bondage! Later on, his anger got the best of him again and he actually missed getting into the Promised Land because his anger led him to disobedience! God used him to free the Israelites, but he did not get a chance to go in!
This paints a picture for us…that spiritual maturity is critical to being in and doing God’s will! And if we fail to get it, it has lasting repercussions on everything that happens in our lives. There are nations literally at stake, based on our level of maturity. Midian is a place for growing up, and growing up begins by accepting Jesus Christ as your Savior.
You may be here this morning, and feeling the pain that comes from cutting your teeth in a Midian situation, a situation He has personally designed to get you where he wants you to be spiritually. But without a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, you are unprepared to navigate the situation. You will find yourself trying the same unsuccessful schemes and stuck in a Midianite rut. I have tried over, and over, and over, but there is no other way that I can live without Jesus Christ, the guidance He provides through his example, and the power I have access to through the Holy Spirit. You need to accept Jesus today, so that God can begin to reveal to you His plan for your life. Don’t continue to cut your spiritual teeth in a situation that you don’t even understand. Come to Jesus, so that you can reach the level of spiritual maturity God is looking for, that will move you from your Midian pain to your unfulfilled destiny. There simply is no other way…
(Move to invitation as the Holy
Spirit leads)
