When the Lord invites us to be His servants, He isn’t looking for suggestions but obedience.
Have you ever argued with the Lord? What are we thinking? That He’s wrong and we’re right? Yet at the end of Exodus 19 we have such an exchange. The Lord tells Moses to remind Israel to not try and peek through the cloud cover: “Go down and warn the people, lest they break through to gaze at the Lord, and many of them perish” (v 21). But Moses objects, “The people cannot come up to Mount Sinai; for You warned us, saying, ‘Set bounds around the mountain’” (v 23). “Away!” replied the Lord, “Get down and then come up, you and Aaron with you. But do not let the priests and the people break through to come up to the Lord” (v 24). It might be helpful, in understanding Moses’ reluctance, if we know he is meeting God “on the top of the mountain” (v 20), and Mount Sinai is 7,497 feet in elevation, taking a fit person 2.5 hours each way. And Moses had just arrived! Another five-hour round trip, but down the mountain he trudged, did what the Lord told him, then headed back up to hear what God would say next. So while we wait for Moses to make this trek (remember, he’s 80+), let’s take the time to think about this. Arguing with God to prove yourself right is always wrong. Sometimes He simply wants our loyalty manifested in unquestioning obedience. As my father, a Royal Air Force officer, used to say to us, “It’s not obedience if you do it in your own sweet time. Obedience means now!” Remember our Lord’s response: “Not what I will, but what You will” (Mk 14:36). But God welcomes questions if we honestly seek answers. “‘Come now, and let us reason together,’ says the Lord” (Isa 1:18). He’s happy to hear our voices. “For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are open to their prayers” (1 Pet 3:12).