As we honor Black History Month, we’re excited to launch a blog series titled The Gospel in Song: Theological Truths for Teenagers from Black Spirituals. This series highlights the rich theology, resilience, and faith woven into these timeless songs. We hope youth ministers and parents will be inspired to share the Black spirituals as tools for discipleship.
“Yes, of course I can!” I said as I hung up the phone. Before I even had a chance to put the phone back in my pocket the terror of what I had just done surfaced in my mind.
“Hey Curt, I need you to preach for me in a few weeks. Can you do it?” Those were the words my pastor had just uttered. The words I had just responded to in haste without contemplating the seriousness of the request.
I had spoken before in the presence of my entire church as a youth. I had even spoken as a featured speaker at a pretty big youth conference. But this was different. I was being asked to preach in place of a man who would become one of the great preachers of our generation. Not to mention, many were looking to this recently planted church as the pioneer for urban church planting. I had never done anything like this before. I had no formal training and had never gone to seminary. To make matters worse, my pastor hadn’t offered any tips or pointers to ensure that I wouldn’t fall flat on my face. To put it mildly, I felt completely overwhelmed and wholly unqualified.
As I reflect on that moment, I can’t help but to think how similar my emotional state may have been to Moses’ as he left the burning bush after his encounter with the Most High. Like me, Moses felt ill-prepared for the task God assigned him. Yet despite his inadequacies, God wanted to use him to show off his glory to the world. For me, the simple truth that God uses under-qualified people is seen nowhere greater than in the Black spiritual “Go Down Moses.”
The History of ‘Go Down Moses’
This spiritual, written from the bosom of enslaved Africans, was composed sometime in the 1800’s. It was birthed out of a connection that these enslaved peoples had with the story of the liberation of the Hebrew people as experienced in Scripture. The messages of deliverance, freedom, and justice resonated with them and instilled hope. The cultural significance of this spiritual is embedded into the fabric of African American culture. It signifies God’s care for oppressed peoples, his hatred of injustice, and the actionable steps he takes personally to redeem a people for himself.
Not only did slaves use this song to inspire hope that they could one day rebel against their masters, but fugitive slaves also used it as a code song on the Underground Railroad.1 According to Harriet Tubman, “Go Down Moses” was one of two code songs that fugitive slaves used to communicate when fleeing Maryland as they traversed North.
Biblical Connections
Exodus chapters 3-4 encapsulate the tension between God’s call and Moses’ insecurity. On one hand, we have a man not eloquent with his words, who has committed murder, and who lacks any type of influence. On the other hand, we have the God of the universe, who has all power in his hands, and has never made a promise he won’t keep. God has heard Israel’s cries of despair and remembers the covenant he made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. All Moses has to do is make himself available for use. That’s what God required of him. Moses didn’t need to be extraordinary. In fact, God does his best work when he takes his “super” and our “natural” and uses it to accomplish his purpose.
The words “Go Down Moses” call to mind that God wants to use seemingly unqualified people to stand in difficult places against injustice and oppression. It serves as a reminder to believers that God fights for his people. He doesn’t do this from some distant throne high in the heavens but rather, he invades time and space. He has stepped into human history to fight a battle for us that was unwinnable without his intervention.
Gospel Hope for Teenagers
God’s actively showing up in human history as a Protector and Savior should give us hope as we minister to the students he has placed in our sphere of influence. We are currently ministering during a time where mental health issues are at an all-time high and self-esteem is at an all-time low. Our youth desperately need to know that there is Someone fighting for them. Moses describes such a person in Deuteronomy 18:15 where he says, “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own brothers. You must listen to him.” Just as God sent Moses as his representative to deliver the people of Israel, he also sent Jesus to deliver the people of the world—only Jesus was a better Moses.
Jesus was better because he was the only One who was qualified for the mission on which the Father sent him. Jesus was better because he delivered people not from earthly bondage, but the bondage of sin and death. And Jesus was better because after he died, he rose again, and he sits at the right hand of the Father, interceding for us as our Advocate (1 John 2:1; Heb. 7:25).
Our students will not be exempt from experiencing the misfortunes this world has to offer. They will face their share of injustice and even persecution. But we should encourage them by sharing with them the hope that comes from a song like “Go Down Moses.” Not only does God see us, he also fights for us. And sometimes we are the ones he calls to go into enemy territory and stand up for those who can’t stand up for themselves.
- “African American Spirituals,” Library of Congress, accessed February 19, 2025, https://www.loc.gov/item/ihas.200197495/. ↩︎
We hope you’ll tune in for Youth Ministry Unscripted, hosted by Isaiah Marshall, Danny Kwon, and Josh Hussung, and part of the Rooted family of podcasts.
