“‘Has the LORD spoken only through Moses?

Has he not spoken through us also?”–Numbers 12:2

The question above is from a conversation between Moses’ two siblings, Aaron and Miriam. Aaron had been by Moses’ side in ministry since his brother’s encounter with God at the burning bush. Miriam was the older sister who looked out for the infant Moses when he was hidden in the bulrushes. The first time she is referred to by name in Scripture is after the crossing of the Red Sea when she offers a song of celebration. Numbers 12 is the second.  

In it, Miriam and Aaron are complaining about Moses. The author says it was due to disapproval of their brothers’ choice for spouse, but that explanation rings hollow to me. “Has the LORD spoken only through Moses’” they ask. “Has he not spoken through us also?”  We don’t know what precipitated their gripe.  Perhaps it was after someone, for the millionth time, told them how wonderful their brother was. We aren’t told, but their jealousy seems clear and God responds directly. “When there are prophets among you,,” God says, “I the LORD make myself known to them in visions, I speak to them in dreams.  Not so with my servant Moses; he is entrusted with all my house.  With him I speak face to face clearly, not in riddles.” 

While that conversation seems to occur following a display of sibling rivalry, I hear it primarily as a word about how God communicates with human beings today. We might wonder if in Biblical days, God chatted directly with everyone. After all, the pages of our Old Testament tell of God speaking to Adam and Eve, Abram and Sarai, Elijah and Samuel, among others.  To read of such moments and now this scene from Numbers could make us wonder why things changed since few of us (including me) can recall a time God spoke directly and aloud to us. 

Yet that Biblical scene makes clear that the divine approach for communication has always varied, even for ancestors in the faith. Yes, Moses was blessed to have audible conversations with the Divine One, but even then, most people needed discernment to understand what and when God was speaking. That’s true for most of us, too.   

One day during my North Carolina pastorate, I decided to call a couple at whose wedding I had officiated a year earlier.  Given the relationship formed during preparing for and then celebrating the big day, I wanted to see how things were going.  The husband answered the phone and after I identified myself, he paused before greeting me warmly. I went on to say why I was calling. He turned to speak to his spouse and we soon found a convenient time to drop by. 

Days later, I settled myself onto their couch. The man thanked me for coming over and said there were a few issues in their marriage they wanted to discuss. I don’t recall the details of what we went on to talk about, but clearly remember what he said next. “I had been thinking about reaching out to you for several weeks,” he went on, “but kept putting it off.  So when you called, I thought to myself, ‘Okay, God I get it! I don’t know how that happened, but we are so glad you are here.” 

How does God speak today?  Scripture tells us that long ago God used dreams and visions to communicate and perhaps, you’ve experienced such times as well. I have no reason to conclude that God cannot still speak audibly and directly, too. Maybe you’ve had such occasions in your own life of faith as well.

Yet far more frequently, I believe that God speaks in those moments when we think about someone who hasn’t crossed our mind in years and on following-up, learn that something of importance had just happened in their life.  God speaks when a child cuts through all of the complications of everyday life and helps us see things clearly.  God speaks when prayers are not answered and when a friend keeps encouraging us to try again, when a stranger “just happens” to speak the word we needed to hear and in countless other, more subtle, ways. 

It might be easier if we heard the words directly, but perhaps you and I need the experience of working harder to understand God’s point and then respond in faithful ways. And to give thanks for those times when we truly “get it,” even if other people, including our own sibling, receive the message face-to-face.

Wonderful Counselor, thank you for continuing to speak to us over the din and distractions of this world. Help us to hear the counsel you offer and act.  Amen.