** This response is biblically sound, concise, and personable. The questions are answered directly and even include a helpful demonstration of how to understand the Bible in context. The tone is genuinely kind. **
Question: Then the Lord said to Moses, “See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron will be your prophet. Exodus 7:1 NIV Does Moses assume the position of God just like Jesus assumes the position of God in the new testament? If so, is there any incidence where he is worshipped? Pardon my Ignorance. I mean no disrespect Just a scholarly question.
Answered by: Cliff Lim, who has been a volunteer with us since July, 2006.
Answer: This verse is better understood if we try to view this through the lenses of Pharaoh i.e. through the eyes of a hardened unbeliever.
From a believer’s viewpoint, we are certain that Moses cannot and will never take the place of God. That is a given and will never be in doubt so a believer will not read this verse and have the view that Moses was taking the place of God.
The context here is: Pharaoh had rejected any direct dealing with Yahweh, as he said in Exodus 5:2: “Who is the LORD, that I should obey His voice to let Israel go?” Therefore, God would then deal with Pharaoh through Moses. In order to move Pharaoh, a nonbeliever, into accepting that the authority of Moses actually comes from someone much greater than Moses, Moses should stand before Pharaoh in the place of God to deliver God’s message accompanied with actions of power to demonstrate that authority.
Although Moses is a shadow of Jesus, Jesus is the reality, the “real deal”. Moses can only give us an indication of who Jesus is and what He came to do but Moses is never Jesus. Jesus is the second person in the Godhead, God the Son and thus God Himself. Moses is never worshipped by true believers, but Jesus was called Lord by His disciples. In fact, Jesus was worshipped in the early days after His birth by the magi (Matthew 2:11) and during the triumphal entry into Jerusalem (John 12:13) plus other incidences and Jesus is still worshipped today.
Worship is given only to the one and true God and no one or anything else.
