Deuteronomy 34:1-7 - Then Moses climbed Mount Nebo
from the plains of Moab to the top of Pisgah, across from
Jericho. There the LORD showed him the whole
land--from Gilead to Dan, all of Naphtali, the territory of
Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the western sea, the Negev and the whole region from the
Valley of Jericho, the City of Palms, as far as Zoar.
Then the LORD said to him, "This is
the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob when I said, 'I will give it to your descendants.'
I have let you see it with your eyes, but you will not cross
over into it." And Moses the
servant of the LORD died there in Moab, as the
LORD had said. He buried him
in Moab, in the valley opposite Beth Peor, but to this day no
one knows where his grave is. Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died, yet his eyes were not weak nor his
strength gone.
Moses first encounter with God was with a burning bush…a curiosity
he saw from a distance. But as he
approached the holy ground where God chose to reveal himself…he took off his
shoes and spoke with God as he were a friend. Eighty years of his life had
already been lived…full days …of good things and evil…things that prepared him for
the tasks God called him to do. And now…40 more years have passed….years of
following God…talking with him…translating his voice to those who had also been
chosen to be his people. He did a good job…more good than bad…so God allowed
him to see the Land of Promise…from a distance.
I like to think that they had a wonderful last ‘Earthly’ visit. God patting him on the back…recalling all the
good he had done….and showing him the beauty of the land he had chosen….telling
him how much more beautiful Heaven would be. God would have gently reminded him
of the one time Moses disobeyed…and how he covered that one mistake with the
grace and mercy of his great love as well. One minute they were looking out over the peak
of the mountain…and in the next instant…Moses just drifted peacefully into the
permanent sleep we call death…at some point opening his eyes to see the great
Heaven promised to us all.
Maybe it is good that the last conversation of Moses was
kept secret…just like his burial place. It allows our own concepts of a loving God
to fill in the blanks…just like some loving person recorded his climb up the
mountain. These people…who were so tempted to return to idol worship…might have
gone to get his body…and made it an idol.
So God only allowed them to mourn for 30 days…so they would move on… and
cross that mighty river…and begin to fight for the life and land God wanted
them to have.
When faced with death…we have two choices. We can hold on to anger…and let the absence
of more life to come… trap our feet in our pain. OR we can be like Moses…and gracefully accept
the will of God…and climb that mountain ...putting fear underneath our feet…closing
our eyes as we talk one last Earthly time to God….to wake in his full
presence. For whether we believe that we
immediately go to Heaven when we die…as the prisoner on the cross beside Jesus…or
we fall asleep as Paul thought…we truly have no concept of time when we sleep.
Father…I thank you for this humble servant named Moses and
for all that you allowed him to record in your Bible. Help me to always think
back to the many lessons you allowed him to record…and keep the laws that you
gave him to help me have a closer relationship with you. And when my human…weak brain is faced with
the loss of someone I love...or I myself hear those words pronouncing my own death…let
my mind remember the great resolve of Moses…and his grace and obedience….and
how his last conversation with you glorified you even more that the entirety of
his life. Amen.
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