Exodus 4:1-4

Exodus 4:1-4 is not about throwing down your dead identity, income, and influence before God so that he can bring it back to life.  The reason God had Moses throw down his staff was not so that he could metaphorically bring it "back to life" and show Moses the big picture of his purpose.  Conveniently left out of sermons that claim this interpretation is the actual verse 4:1 and 4:5.  Verse 4:1 reads, "Then Moses answered, "But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, 'The Lord did not appear to you.'"" Verse 5 reads, "that they may believe that the Lord, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you."  This passage is in no way about throwing down anything to God, so he can bring it to life.  It is a miracle that God instructs Moses to perform (throwing down his staff, so it will become a serpent) so that Israel will believe that God sent him.  This is similar to the healings that Jesus performed, so that everyone would believe that the Father sent him.  This is not about us, it is about Jesus.