Lesson 23 – When the Spirit Bears

Exodus 11:17

I will take of the Spirit that is upon you and will put the same upon them, and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, that you may not bear it yourself alone.

    In Exodus 11:14, Moses cries out to God to say he could no longer go on bearing the burden of leading Israel to the promised land. Maybe you've been in the same position as Moses, trying to be the leader to those who don't want to follow, or those who complain about your every decision, or those who seem to have no desire to sacrifice for the greater good. If so, you understand where Moses was coming from. The job was simply too much for Moses to bear.

    I suspect most of us come often to the same junction faced by Moses. We just don't think we can go on. In a sense, we can't bear the pressures life brings to us. Maybe it is the exhausting pressures of raising young children. It could be the unrelenting pressure of needing to be successful on the job to meet financial commitments. Or maybe it is simply the unrealistic pressure from trying to meet expectations laid on you by others. Whatever the pressure, you just don't feel you can go on, and like Moses, you cry out to God.

    The truth this, none of us can go it alone. We need someone to help us bear the load of life.

    For Moses, the Spirit reached out and touched 70 men to help bear this burden. The Bible doesn't say how they would help Moses, but it does tell us that God placed the same Spirit on these men that was on Moses (vs 25). That lets me know that with the Spirit's touch, there is plenty of God to go around to help bear our burdens.

    Of course, it doesn't take much an imagination to see how this would have helped Moses. Anytime we share our burdens with others, the load is lightened and we find our outlook is no longer as dire as it was before.

    This account ends with a wonderful declaration by Moses, one that I think applies to the church today--that all would have the Spirit of God upon them to help those who lead the church in bearing the burdens of ministry.

LORD JESUS

Oh that all the Lord's people were prophets and that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them! (Exodus 11:29) Amen.