Throughout history, various motives have moved men to sing unto the Lord. Some men sang as a testimony of some specific thing God had done for them (Exodus 15:1; Psalm 126:1-2). Others sang in order to teach truths set forth in the word of God (Colossians 3:16; Psalm 101:1). Some even sang songs that would testify against them in times of disobedience (Deuteronomy 31:19). Though some things have changed throughout history, God’s people still should sing songs of personal testimony like My Jesus, I Love Thee; songs that teach like Holy and Reverend Is the Name; and songs that witness against disobedience like He Was Not Willing.
Singing may involve one person, but there are always a minimum of two parties involved in any song: the person singing and the person receiving the song. Exodus 15:1, among many other passages, teaches that God’s people are to sing “unto the LORD.” This indicates that a song is much like an offering to the Lord. The person singing offers the song and the offering is received by the Lord. Singing serves as an important act of praise and worship; however, modern Christianity has lost much of its focus. This especially applies to singing. Every week, individuals and groups in churches stand up in worship services and sing unto the people rather than to the Lord. This should not be the case. God’s people need refocused to learn that the singing should be “unto the LORD” and not man.
At the age of forty, Moses fled Egypt in fear for his life (Exodus 2:11-15; Acts 7:20-29). It is not hard to imagine the degree of fear sensed by Moses as he ran from the most powerful man who ruled the most powerful nation on earth during his day. Today's verse reveals that Moses yet again departed from Egypt, forty years later this time, not fearing the wrath of the king. What made the difference? How did Moses keep from losing his mind during such a difficult time of trial? How did he endure the troubles associated with leaving Egypt? He endured because he saw “him who is invisible.” He saw God! He did not see the Lord simply with his physical eyes, but rather through the eye of faith. Moses endured for one reason, the Lord was with him and he knew it. Endurance becomes possible as the believer learns to acknowledge the presence of the Almighty in his or her life.
