Sunday of Moses (GA)

Luke 12:8-12

⁸ “And I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God, ⁹ but the one who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God. ¹⁰ And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. ¹¹ And when they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not be anxious about how you should defend yourself or what you should say, ¹² for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”

Why do I care what the angels in heaven think of me? Why should I care what you think of me? Isn’t it more important that God thinks I am okay? Well maybe a little more than okay? It is interesting how many people in the Bible are anxious about speaking the truth. Whether you go back to Adam in the garden, or Sarah laughing in the tent, or even Moses being commissioned, you have people denying what they know to be true. They even do it before the face of God.

Jesus talks about acknowledging you before the angels of God. I guess I would rather make sure he acknowledges me before God the Father, but these angels are most likely in the presence of God the Father, so maybe it is the same thing. But the fact remains in order for this acknowledgement to happen we must first acknowledge him before men.

Jesus will often talk about his disciples falling under persecution. They will be lead before all kinds of people. You can even listen to St Paul standing before Governors at the end of Acts. They stand up and faithfully confess their faith. They do this not because of all their great learning, but because the Holy Spirit gives them the proper words.

We can write and prepare all kinds of speeches, but it is not about our speaking skill, or great rhetoric. It is about God calling his people through the words that he places in our mouths. It was God who put his Words in the mouth of Moses, and Aaron. Jesus tells us God will do for you the same thing. He will give you the power to speak.