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The title of our message is "Moses in the Desert of Midian," and our text is taken from Exodus chapter 2, verses 16 to 25. After Moses had killed the Egyptian, he became an outlaw, a fugitive. When the Pharaoh heard about what Moses had done, he did not want Moses dead or alive; he just wanted him dead. Verse 15 tells us that he sought to slay Moses. So, Moses fled from Egypt and came to live in Midian.

In our previous message, we learned that Moses had good intentions and motivations when he tried to protect the Hebrew from the Egyptian. But the problem was with his method. In the process, he had committed the sin of murder. He had sinned against God because no one had the right to take another person's life except God. At that point in time, Moses was not yet called by God to lead the people out of Egypt, so when he decided to take matters into his own hands, he was outside God's will. It would take another 40 years for Moses to learn from his mistakes. By the time he was ready to be used by God, he was already 80 years old.

Even at the age of 80 years, God still had His plans for Moses. What lesson can we learn from here? It is never too late to be used by God. Sometimes we hear the older brethren say, "I'm already so old; I'm useless. What can I do for God?" Look at Moses, who was 80 years old when God used him mightily to lead His people out of Egypt. The question is not whether or not God is able to use us, but are we willing to be used by Him?

But firstly, Moses had to learn from his mistakes that he had committed in Egypt. The first test came not long after Moses arrived in Midian, where he sat down by the well. Perhaps he was sitting by the well contemplating the things he should not have done or the things he should have done. From this message, we want to see the lessons Moses had learned during his 40 years in the desert of Midian.

Let us begin with verse 16: "Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters, and they came and drew water and filled the troughs to water their father's flock. And the shepherds came and drove them away, but Moses stood up and helped them and watered their flock." Apparently, there seemed to be a long-standing conflict between the Midianites and the local shepherds. The priest of Midian was a man named Ruel, and he had seven daughters. The seven daughters had come to the well to fill their troughs in order to water their flock, and Moses happened to witness the shepherds giving them a hard time.

So, once again, Moses was confronted with injustice, but this time it was not the slaves being oppressed but the women being abused by the shepherds. Though Moses was a stranger in Midian, he was not about to let a group of men bully those helpless women. That tells us a lot about Moses’ character; he was a man who would stand up against injustice. Most likely, Moses had received military training in Egypt; therefore, he was able to defend those women.

Here, there are some clues that Moses had learned from his mistakes in Egypt. Firstly, he did not kill the shepherds like the way he did to the Egyptian. This time, he was able to restrain himself, and he used only sufficient force necessary to drive them away. This is very important because if Moses were to be a leader, he must be able to restrain himself. If he could not exercise self-control, how could he teach the Israelites to exercise self-control?

My friend, perhaps we may not be put into a situation whereby we need to restrain ourselves from physically killing someone, but what about our words? As James 3:6 says, "the tongue is a fire." Sometimes our words can kill a person emotionally. Some people will say, "Well, this is the way I speak; I'm always like that." No, that should not be the way. If God has transformed your life, then it means God has transformed your actions, your thinking, and your words as well.

So, as a leader, as a believer, we must exercise restraint in the way we speak, in the way we think, and in the way we behave. Moses learned from his mistakes; this time round, he was able to restrain his actions. Secondly, Moses had learned to serve. After he rescued the women, he went on to help them water their flock. In ancient times, it was unthinkable for a man to perform such a menial task for a woman. Obviously, the women were surprised; that was also the reason why they were able to return home early.

Verse 18 states: "And when they came to Ruel their father, he said, 'How is it that ye are come so soon to day?'" Verse 19 continues: "And they said, 'An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds, and also drew water enough for us and watered the flock.'" Moses had not only learned to restrain himself, but he had learned to serve others. By learning to serve, Moses was learning to lead.

Let us picture the scenario: Moses was sitting down by the well, right? He saw the women being troubled by the shepherds. What did he do? He rose up and rescued the women, and then he saw the women needing help to water the flock. What did he do? He rose up to assist them. No one told him what to do; no one had to invite him to do those things. He willingly availed himself to serve.

My friend, anyone who aspires to be a spiritual leader—a pastor, an elder, a deacon, or Sunday school teacher—should begin by being willing to serve and always be looking for opportunities to serve. Obviously, the perfect example is Jesus Christ. The Bible tells us He came not to be ministered unto, but to minister and to give His life a ransom for many (Matthew 20:28).

Some people say, "I want to serve, but I do not know where to serve." If they opened their eyes wide enough, they would be able to see and know where they can serve. You can serve in the refreshment team, in ushering, in the logistics ministry, or helping to maintain this physical church building. You can serve by helping the church camp committee to scout for potential church camp sites. You can help by attending Monash Gardens worship services and assist the elderly residents. You can come to church early every Lord’s Day to clean up and prepare for the worship services. There are so many things you can do. The question is not whether there are opportunities for you to serve, but are you willing to serve?

But learning to control his violent temper and learning how to serve were only the first of many lessons God would teach and prepare Moses. Maybe you can turn with me to Acts 7:29 to 30. Let me read for you Acts 7:29 to 30: "Then fled Moses at this saying, and was a stranger in the land of Midian, where he begat two sons. And when forty years were expired, there appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai an angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in a bush."

In other words, between this passage and the next chapter, which we will consider in our next message, 40 years had transpired. Moses had spent 40 years in the desert of Midian. Some people made this interesting observation: Moses had spent 40 years in Egypt to learn something, and 40 years in the desert to learn to be nothing, and then 40 years in the wilderness to learn that God is everything. How true! Are you impatient with God's timetable for your life? If you are, consider Moses. Forty years was a long time, and there were many spiritual lessons for him to learn.

Allow me to suggest a few spiritual lessons Moses would have learned. The term "Midianites" does not refer primarily to a place or location, but rather to a people—a tribe of desert nomads. Therefore, living with the Midianites meant living in the desert or in the wilderness. The wilderness was often a place for a man to meet God, as a person was cut off from the rest of civilization and reduced to the daily necessities of just food and water. He would be forced to throw himself at the mercy of God's providence.

Think about all those biblical examples of people in the wilderness. In the wilderness, there was the place where Jacob saw a stairway to Heaven (Genesis 28). It was in the wilderness where Elijah heard the still small voice of God (1 Kings 19). It was in the wilderness where John the Baptist preached most powerfully about repentance (Matthew 3). It was in the wilderness where our Lord Jesus overcame the temptations of the devil (Matthew 4).

So, it was not surprising that Moses went into the wilderness to meet the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. In the wilderness, Moses had no one else to turn to but God alone, so we can safely say that Moses’ relationship with God was enhanced in the wilderness.

Secondly, we consider Moses' life experiences in the wilderness. In order for Moses to lead the people out of Egypt, he must know certain things; he must have certain knowledge, like where to find water, how to find his way in the desert, and how to live in the desert. In other words, Moses must understand life in the wilderness.

But remember, Moses had always lived in the comfort of Egypt, so much so that the daughters of Reuel immediately identified him as an Egyptian. You can read about that in verse 19. They saw him and they told their father that he was an Egyptian. So, God must take Moses out of the comfort of Egypt into the wilderness in preparation for him to lead his people out of Egypt.

Next, we can learn about Moses' life experiences in the wilderness, where he spent 40 years. Now we consider Moses' family situation. Look at verse 20: "And Reuel, the priest of Midian, sent unto his daughters, and said, Where is he? Why is it that ye have left the man? Call him, that he may eat bread." The women were so shocked and surprised that a man would help them to drive away the shepherds and help water the flocks, so much so that they had forgotten to show hospitality to him. Their father knew that he was a good man; he was even willing to give his daughter Zipporah to him in marriage.

Verse 20 tells us, "And Moses was content to dwell with the man, and he gave Moses Zipporah his daughter." By the way, the Midianites were descendants of one of Abraham's sons through his second wife, Keturah. You can read about that in Genesis 25:1-4. Therefore, in a way, they were related. Most likely, some of the early Midianites were worshippers of the one living and true God. The name Reuel means "friend of God." Therefore, Reuel could be a priest of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

As a husband who married Zipporah, his wife, verse 22 says, "And she bare him a son, and he called his name Gershom: for he said, I have been a stranger in a strange land." Here, the "strange land" seems to be Moses referring to Egypt rather than Midian. Why? Because it was in the past tense: "I have been a stranger." In other words, while Moses was in the wilderness of Midian, he remembered his days in Egypt. He remembered the children of Israel; he was able to identify himself with them. "I was just like you; I have been a stranger in a strange land."

Now he got married. As a husband, he must have learned how to love and lead his wife, Zipporah. As a father, he must have learned how to provide, care for, and protect his children, and even discipline them. All those things were not without reason or consequence to his family life. God was preparing Moses to be the spiritual leader of the Israelites.

Finally, we consider Moses' work as a shepherd. According to Exodus 3:1, Moses became a shepherd. Genesis 46:34 tells us that every shepherd was an abomination unto the Egyptians. Being raised as an Egyptian or in Egypt, although his heart was always an Israelite, Moses would never have chosen to be a shepherd. But we all know that many great leaders started off as shepherds. David was one of them.

There are many lessons to be learned. While these shepherds were tending the sheep, sheep were not very bright; therefore, they needed someone to lead them to food and water. They were prone to wander, so they needed someone to bring them back to the field. They were easy targets of predators, so they needed someone to protect them. In short, sheep were completely and 100% dependent on the shepherds for their care and their lives, which is why the Bible so often compares God's people to sheep. Remember the Psalmist says in Psalm 100:3, "We are his people, and the sheep of his pasture." Like him, you and I need spiritual guidance, spiritual nourishment, and spiritual protection. It was by tending the flock that Moses had learned how to feed, defend, and protect the lordship of Israel.

Take a moment and consider this: if God's people, the children of Israel, were called the sheep of his pasture, there would be no better way for Moses to learn how to lead them than by spending 40 years living as a shepherd. That was the reason why the Psalmist was able to say in Psalm 77:20, "Thou ledest thy people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron." Indeed, God used Moses like a shepherd, leading the Israelites in the wilderness. Moses had to learn that by spending 40 years as a shepherd.

My friend, God works in very special ways to prepare you and me for His work. Sometimes God allows a situation to drive us to our wits' end. It could be a financial crisis, a relationship dilemma, or a medical issue—so much so that we have no one to turn to but God Himself. Like Moses in the wilderness, he could only turn to God. At other times, God would use our family situations. Like some of us who are married, we learn through our experiences as husbands, wives, fathers, and mothers to serve. For those of us who are single, we learn from our experiences through our devotion and intimacy with God, depending on Him as we serve. Or perhaps through our work situations, like Moses becoming a shepherd, we learn humility, patience, and endurance in our workplaces in peculiar situations. Nothing happens by chance or coincidence; God has a purpose in all things. God will use the environment, the circumstances, and situations of life to work out His sovereign will and purposes for our lives. But you and I must learn to see all these things as God's preparation—His plans for us. We must be able to see how God's hand is working in all these circumstances.

Then the scene shifts from Midian to Egypt, where the Hebrews were still in bondage. Now, this is for a particular purpose because God is showing us how all things work together for good to accomplish His purpose, that the preparation of Moses in the wilderness was connected to the deliverance of the children of Israel. Again, it was not without reason or consequence; all this was part of God's greater plan. Look at verse 23: "And it came to pass in process of time, that the king of Egypt died: and the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage, and they cried, and their cry came up unto God by reason of the bondage."

Some theologians have suggested that this king of Egypt was Thutmose III, but whosoever this Pharaoh may be, his death meant that Moses could now return to Egypt. But more importantly, it was time for the Hebrews to be delivered. The children of Israel were slaves; they had nothing—with no power, no property, no prestige—and their sufferings were so great that the only thing they could do was cry out to God. Most likely, this was not the first time they cried out to God. There would have been times whereby the children of Israel would have thought that God had forsaken them; God had forgotten about them. Otherwise, why would He not respond to their cries?

But, my friends, it was not because God had forgotten them or forsaken them. It was not because God was hard of hearing, but the time had not yet come for God to fulfil His perfect plan. Remember God had promised or predicted in Genesis 15 that the children of Israel would be strangers in a foreign land, that they would be slaves; they would be oppressed for 400 years. But the day will come when He will punish their oppressors and deliver them out of Egypt with great substance. So the time had not yet come then because the 400 years was not yet up. But now the time had come. That was why verse 24 and 25 says, "And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. And God looked upon the children of Israel, and God had respect unto them." The word "respect" means God took notice of them; God knew them.

Notice the Bible used three action verbs to describe God responding to the children of Israel: God heard, He remembered, and He looked. How comforting, right? For us to know that God hears us, He remembers us, and He is always looking and watching over us, just as He did to the children of Israel. So God not only had a plan for Moses in the wilderness, but His plan for Moses was part of a bigger plan that would result in the salvation of His people. It is so wonderful to see this connection between the preparation of Moses in the desert of Midian and how he was connected to the deliverance of the children of Israel.

So this sudden shift was not for nothing; it was to allow us to see this connection. Here, God was preparing Moses, and the time had come where the scene would shift to the children of Israel because the 400 years was up. God would now use Moses as part of a bigger plan for the salvation of His people.

The other day, Dr. Charles Bien and myself had the opportunity to visit a sister in Christ in an elderly residential home. This sister had just lost her daughter. She was recently reconciled with her son, whom she had not communicated with for decades. While we were there, she talked about worldly things—purely secular things: physical and even perhaps financial matters. As the conversation went on, I tried to direct the conversation from physical matters to spiritual matters, and we talked about the gospel. I tried to encourage her to share the gospel with her unbelieving family members. Dr. Charles Bien even shared his testimony. Finally, the sister said, "I will definitely share the gospel with my unbelieving family members."

That night, she called me to say that her son, who was an unbeliever, all of a sudden, after hearing from her, said that he would bring her to church and he was willing to attend worship service together with her. This sister said, "Now I know—I begin to see God has a bigger plan than just taking my daughter home with Him, than just me reconciling with my son. Perhaps His bigger plan would be the salvation of my son and his children and their families."

Isn't it amazing how we are able to see this connection? I pray that all of us here will be able to see and understand that God has a plan for your life and my life, and then to see how this plan He has for your life and my life is connected with the life of our children and their families, and the church, and missions, and for the gospel to be preached to the uttermost parts of the world.

My friends, if we are able to see that connection, that would be most wonderful. Then we will be able to see that all things work together for good to them who love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose. Nothing happens by chance or coincidence; God has a purpose for all things.

Let us pray. Father in Heaven, we thank Thee for enabling us to consider this portion of scriptures. Indeed, Thy word is so amazing that we can draw spiritual lessons to apply into our lives. Tonight, Thou hast taught us about Moses in the desert of Midian. 40 years was a long time, but it was not without purpose. Thou hast Thy sovereign purpose for his life, and there were so many spiritual lessons for Moses to learn, just as our lives do. Some of us may still have 10, 20, or 30 years to live. There are also many spiritual lessons for us to learn, and nothing happens by chance or coincidence. There are many lessons for us to learn from our days on this Earth.

Like Moses, we ought to learn to exercise restraint or self-control. Like Moses, we ought to learn to avail ourselves to serve, looking for opportunities to serve. Like Moses, we want to enhance our relationship with Thee. Sometimes, we know that Thou will allow us to go into the wilderness to allow certain things to happen in our lives, not to put us down, but to draw us closer to Thee, that in such moments there will be no one for us to turn to except Thee alone.

Like Moses, we learn from our life experiences—whether as husbands, wives, fathers, mothers, or as children, as members of the church. There are also wonderful lessons for us to learn in our work situations, whereby Thou would teach us humility, endurance, patience, and gentleness. Oh Lord, help us to say that all has a purpose. For all things, Thou would use the environment, the circumstances, and situations of life to work out Thy sovereign purposes for our lives. We must learn to recognise that and humble ourselves to trust indeed at every step of the way.

Help us also to learn that Thou not only have a purpose and a plan for our lives but to see how we can be part of a bigger plan in the gospel of the Almighty. Oh Lord, use us as instruments this day. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.