Exodus 4:19: “Before Moses left Midian, the Lord said to him, ‘Return to Egypt, for all those who wanted to kill you have died.’”

Since all of us have sinned and come short of God’s glory, we all need God’s grace to save us. In order to be saved (become born again), we must access God’s grace through our faith in Christ. Everyone that has confessed Jesus as Savior and Lord should already know about this side of God’s grace. But once we become born again, we must continue to walk by faith. Then, through grace, we can obey God’s will and serve His purpose in our new life in Christ.

The first principle of grace is given to us when, as a sinner, we become broken over our sins against the Lord. Because Jesus has already paid the price for our sins with His blood (the cross), through this principle of grace, we are empowered to overcome Satan, sin, and receive the Spirit of Christ into our hearts. God gives us “saving” grace so that we can walk away from our past life—a life where sin held us captive.

After we become born again, we’re then able to receive the second principle of grace; this grace offers a different kind of work in a Christian’s life. Through this grace, we now have the dunamis power of God to live a holy life and obey His commands, especially when He tells us to go back and face our past (this time through faith).

In Exodus 4:19, God told Moses to return to Egypt and be His mouthpiece to Pharaoh and Israel. If you’re not familiar with Moses’ story, he is a fugitive who is on the run from Egypt, because he killed an Egyptian. Moses was hiding out in the plains of Midian near Horeb, the mountain of God. It’s at this point in Moses’ life that God appears to him and calls him to deliver His (God’s) people, Israel. Now put yourself in Moses’ shoes for a moment. God is commanding Moses to go back into his past in order to serve His purpose in Egypt. Obviously, if Moses obeys, God’s purpose will cause him to have to face his past mistakes. Would you not agree that this might be a little intimidating to say the least—even though God reassured Moses that those who sought to kill him were dead?

After the Lord gave Moses his marching orders and announced to him that he didn’t have to worry about those who sought him, He told Moses that He was with him and not to be afraid. You may be asking, “But what does this have to do with me as a Christian?” You and I have a past, and the Lord won’t allow our past to keep us from fulfilling a glorious future in Christ; so He will use our testimony of the grace of God that saved us from our past to inspire others to believe in Jesus for themselves.

As you share your testimony, you’re being like Moses in that you are going back into your past life; but now you have a good ending, because of God’s grace. BUT GOD!!! In order to have the boldness to share your testimony about your past with others, you will need the grace of God to empower you to face your fears, confront them, and conquer them. So while God is using your testimony to deliver others, like Moses delivered the children of Israel, He is at the same time building godly character in you as you confront your fears. In conclusion, once again, as Moses ran from his past, we also ran. Now we no longer run from our past, but through grace, we are confronting it. It is through our willingness to share our testimony of God’s saving grace with others that God saves others and liberates us from fear. God doesn’t miss a beat. That’s why He’s God.  —submitted by Asa Dockery, US