Getting Ready
I'm Excited About Exodus • Sermon • Submitted
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· 20 viewsStart of the Exodus series - God prepares His people in some very unexpected ways
Notes
Transcript
Children
Children
Born?
Were any of you born in China? (No, all of you or most of you were born in the US.)
Were any of you born 100 years ago? (No, all of you were born in the last 10 years.)
Were any of you born as a monkey? (No, all of you were born humans.)
Wonder?
Did you ever wonder why you were born in the US instead of China or Germany?
Did you ever wonder why you were born just a few years ago instead of 100 years ago? Or 100 years from now?
Did you ever wonder why you were born a person and not a monkey?
Reason
God made you to be born in this place because He wanted you here.
God made you to be born at this time because He wanted you alive at this time and not 100 years ago or 100 years from now.
God made you a person instead of a monkey because he wants you to be a person.
Point
God wants you right here, right now because that’s what He wants.
And that means that God has special plans for you.
And we adults can’t wait to find out what that is.
Intro
Intro
In 2011, we did a series called “I Love Leviticus”
Then in 2018, we did 2 series: “I’m Nuts About Numbers” and “Dude, it’s Deuteronomy”
All 3 were overview series of books of the Pentateuch, the 1st 5 books of the Bible
Now in 2020, we’re going to add one more to the collection: “I’m Excited About Exodus”
I can just feel the excitement already!
Have your own Bibles handy
Someday, we’ll need to add to the collection the last series: Genesis is My Giam” or something like that
But in Exo, we’re going to see that God will move heaven and earth in order to create a people for Himself
Prayer
Story
Story
(1.1-22) God’s people are made ready through suffering, oppression, and fear
(1.1-22) God’s people are made ready through suffering, oppression, and fear
Readings
Exo 1:7
And the Israelites were fruitful and multiplied and were many and were very, very numerous, and the land was filled with them.
Exo 1:8
And a new king rose over Egypt who did not know Joseph.
Exo 1:17; Exo 1:21
And so because the midwives feared God, he gave them families.
But the midwives feared God, and they did not do as the king of Egypt had said to them. They let the boys live.
And God did the midwives good, and the Israelite people became many and were very numerous.
Their times weren’t completely different from ours: (CG)
Racism: (Exo 1:9) “He said to his people, ‘Look, those people are bad people b/c they are those people’”
Immigration explosion: (Exo 1:9-10)
They’re becoming too numerous
Fear of the ways that will change how things have always been around here
Fear of “them” gaining power in society
Oppression: preventing a group from flourishing in the workplace and in society, setting up the entire system to work against them; the minority population actually becomes the majority population
Slavery: overt in this case, as if God loved them less
Unfair labor practices: beyond slavery, “make bricks without straw” (ch 5), unreasonable quotas
Genocide: kill all the Hebrew boys
Abuse of political power:
Gender issues: who needs males? how many women are the heroes in this chapter alone (devo)
Military concerns abroad: (and how the oppressed people within the borders might align with foreign hostile forces)
Normal, everyday life - like raising families and a hard day’s work
Religious persecution: none of that religion that says there’s only one God and He defines right and wrong
Religion and politics mixed together in an unholy alliance
Not RE people of faith involved
Using politics to advance a religious agenda
Using religion to advance a political agenda
It’s not just because they had the wrong religion, but that true religion must be free to be prophetic
Civil disobedience: about to become a kind of riot, but this one we know God is for, because He threw 10 different kinds of Molotov cocktails at them
And of course the same old stories of lies, deceit, intrigue, and murder
Does any of this sound familiar?
Sum:
Not drawing direct parallels as if this should be our Playbook.
Mostly to note that even though we live 3600 years later, nothing’s really changed within the Kingdom of Man.
What does this chapter turn on?: (WS)
Fear of Elohim (17, 21) > dread of the king
The bravery of a faithful few can turn the course - all they did was find a way to not kill a baby. Eventually, the boy they saved would lead an entire nation out of slavery, deliver to them a covenant with God, and bring them to the border of what would be, and still is, their land.
(2.1-4.17) Moses is made ready
(2.1-4.17) Moses is made ready
(2.1-22) Moses is made ready through suffering and shepherding
(2.1-22) Moses is made ready through suffering and shepherding
Readings
Exo 2:10 (or Exo 2:7)
And the boy grew, and she brought him to the daughter of Pharaoh, and he became her son, and she called his name Moses, and she said, “Because I drew him out from the water.”
And his sister said to the daughter of Pharaoh, “Shall I go and call for you a woman from the Hebrews who is nursing so that she will nurse the boy for you?”
Exo 2:14
And he said, “Who appointed you as a commander and a judge over us? Are you intending to kill me like you killed the Egyptian?” And Moses was afraid, and he said, “Surely the matter has become known.”
Exo 2:17 or Exo 2:22
And the shepherds came and drove them away, but Moses stood up and came to their rescue and watered their flock.
And she bore a son, and he called his name Gershom because he said, “I am an alien in a foreign land.”
Formative elements for Moses? (DS)
Levite —> priesthood
Older brother (of course, also a Levite) —> 1st chief priest
Internal drive to seek justice * 3
Egyptian v. Hebrew
Two Hebrew men
Shepherds at the well
Pharaoh’s treatment of the Hebrews
Gonna found an entire society uniquely founded on principles of justice
People use “social justice warrior” as an insult, but Moses was the real deal
Belonged in two communities —> come in handy
Rescued —> a rescued rescuer
A fugitive from the law —> will make a run for the border with a couple of million with him,
An exile (self-id = “resident alien in a foreign land”, Exo 2:22) —> nomads for 40 years, every year another delay of the promise God gave them for their own land
A shepherd —> of a huge flock of whiny, wandering sheep
A husband and father —> they will be factors
40 years observing his father-in-law the priest —> wrong religion, but still see what the job is like)
Sum:
God is carefully, specifically preparing this man even from birth for a purpose
A purpose that wouldn’t start until the man was 80
Even after 40 more years, he had to hand the task off to his apprentice
(2.23-3.22) Moses is made ready by God’s presence (*2)
(2.23-3.22) Moses is made ready by God’s presence (*2)
Readings
Exo 2:24
And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob,
Exo 3:5
And he said, “You must not come near to here. Take off your sandals from on your feet, because the place on which you are standing, it is holy ground.”
Exo 3:8
And I have come down to deliver them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up from this land to a good and wide land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites.
Exo 3:14
And God said to Moses, “I am that I am.” And he said, “So you must say to the Israelites, ‘I am sent me to you.’ ”
Exo 3:15
And God said again to Moses, “So you must say to the Israelites, ‘Yahweh, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is my name forever, and this is my remembrance from generation to generation.’
Exo 3:19 or Exo 3:20
But I myself know that the king of Egypt will not allow you to go unless compelled by a strong hand.
And I will stretch out my hand, and I will strike Egypt with all of my wonders that I will do in its midst, and afterward he will release you.
Plunder —> Gold calf (Naresh in devo)
Father-in-law (w/ Exo 2:18?)
Milk and honey? (Bruce)
A divine, holy commission and presence (EV, sent, WS, CG)
Divine: God appeared in a way Moses could handle
Miraculous enough to show it was of God
But hidden enough so that Moses wasn’t obliterated by the full revelation of God’s glory
YHWH = covenant name, finally! The self-existing one
Holy: take off your sandals! (divine is the origin, holy is the nature)
Commission: Go!
Go to the Israelites and say this
Go to Pharaoh and do this
“But me not talk good” —> “Go, and I’ll be your mouth”
To Aaron, “Go meet your bro in the desert”
“But God, Pharaoh’s not listening to me, the Israelites are mad at me because things got worse” —> “Go to Pharaoh and demand that he release your people”
YHWH: Pharaoh refuses to release the people … so I have an idea … go to Pharaoh and do Plague #1
Plagues: Go to Pharaoh and say this and then release a plague
Finally, “Go from the land of Egypt to the land flowing with milk and honey”
Moses is sent!
Tell the Israelites that the I AM, the self-existing one sent you
Tell Pharaoh that YHWH the God of Israel sent you
God will:
God will rescue
God will relocate them into pagan lands
God will send Moses to lead them out (God does the rescue, Moses does the leading out)
“I will be with you” -
????you’ll know this when you return to this mountain (10C? presence!)
However, it’s gonna be really difficult -
Difficult doesn’t mean God doesn’t want you in the middle of it
You’ll win and plunder
HLM: I’m not invoking the political meaning of this phrase, but in every plain sense of the phrase, Exodus is about the idea that Hebrew Lives Matter. All lives mattered, but these oppressed people needed God to send a rescuer because they cried out to Him and their lives mattered to Him in a special way because of the covenant.
(4.1-17) Moses is made ready by God’s anger
(4.1-17) Moses is made ready by God’s anger
Readings?
Exo 4:2
And Yahweh said to him, “What is this in your hand?” And he said, “A staff.”
Exo 4:6
And Yahweh said to him again, “Put your hand into the fold of your garment.” And he put his hand into the fold of his garment, and he took it out, and, to his surprise, his hand was afflicted with a skin disease, like snow.
Exo 4:14
And Yahweh was angry with Moses and said, “Is there not Aaron your brother the Levite? I know that he certainly can speak, and also there he is coming out to meet you, and when he sees you, he will rejoice in his heart.
God prepares Moses with fear and anger
Fear: obviously doesn’t like snakes, “Grab it! By the wrong end … grab it!”; “Put your hand in your coat and then pull it out - gotcha! You’ve not got a disease that everyone fears because it ruins the rest of your life!”
Anger: Who gave you your ability to speak that you’re complaining about? God’s not the overly sensitive sort - His anger is always intentional and always has a good purpose.
Prep: There had to be a change in Moses to deal with these things, and he’s going to need that kind of courage and ability to face anger in order to do the thing God called him to do. He’s going to represent God’s anger to Pharaoh, and then later in ch 22 he’s going to represent God’s anger to the Israelites.
(4.18-31) Moses returns to rescue God’s people
(4.18-31) Moses returns to rescue God’s people
Readings
Exo 4:19
And Yahweh said to Moses in Midian, “Go, return to Egypt because all the men have died who were seeking your life.”
Exo 4:21
And Yahweh said to Moses, “When you go to return to Egypt, see all of the wonders that I have put in your hand, and do them before Pharaoh, and I myself will harden his heart, and he will not release the people.
Exo 4:24
And on the way, at the place of overnight lodging, Yahweh encountered him and sought to kill him.
Exo 4:27
And Yahweh said to Aaron, “Go to the desert to meet Moses.” And he went and encountered him at the mountain of God and kissed him.
Exo 4:31
And the people believed when they heard that Yahweh had attended to the Israelites and that he had seen their misery, and they knelt down and they worshiped.
Father-in-law lets him take his daughter and grandkids and says, "Have fun storming the castle” (18)
Independent confirmation with Aaron
Two key ideas introduced
Two key ideas introduced
God will harden Pharaoh’s heart
God will harden Pharaoh’s heart
Disturbing idea
Some explain this away by saying, “But Pharaoh hardened his own heart first.”
First, that’s not a clear statement in Scripture - the dominant statement is that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart and that resulted in his continued refusal to let the Israelites go
Second, God says in advance he will do it - it’s His plan before Pharaoh does one thing
Third, no matter how much Pharaoh hardened his heart when, we still need to deal with the reality that God hardened his heart
We’ll deal with this next week - but this key idea is introduced here
Israel is my firstborn!
Israel is my firstborn!
Exo 4:22 - Israel is my firstborn
Exo 4:23 - So I will take your firstborn
Exo 13:1-2 - Consecrate for me your firstborn
Num 3:11-13 - Instead of the firstborn, Levite priests
Cultural: privileges, inheritance
More are coming (Gentiles = adopted children)
Discussion
Discussion
We Worship God
We Worship God
Worship, celebration, theo proper
Q: What is the event that pivots the story in Exo 1-4?
Fear in Exo 1:17, 20
Fear at burning bush Exo 3:6
Fear God will create
Signs before the people —> belief and Worship (Exo 4:29-31)
Tag: “God stories” turn good when there’s a fear of God that surpasses the dread of the Pharaohs of life.
He is Our God
He is Our God
Relationship, community, fellowship
Q: This is an elaborate rescue. Why is it a rescue at all?
God made a covenant with Abraham and then repeated it to his descendants Isaac and Jacob
That covenant is in God’s mind when He calls Moses from the bush (Exo 2:24)
Later in Exodus, He will repeat 3 things:
They shall be my people
I will be their God
I will dwell among them
Exo 6.7; 17.7; 20.2; 29.45; with Lv 11.45; 22.33; 25.38; 26.12, 45; Rv 21.7
4x in Exo and 5x in Lev, God says something along the lines of “They shall be My people, and I will be their God, and I will dwell among them”
And in the next to last chapter of Revelation, the last book of the Bible, when God moves the New Heaven and New Earth, it says that the one who overcomes in Christ will inherit the Kingdom, and He will be our God, and we will be His people
They are His “firstborn”
Tag: God moves heaven and earth to create a people for Himself.
Exodus is the story of God moving the heaven and earth He created to create a people for Himself
The NT is the story of God moving a new heaven and earth to create a people for Himself
Our God Loves the Oppressed
Our God Loves the Oppressed
Common good, outreach, justice
Q: There is great injustice (then and now). God responds to it and moves people to respond to it, but how?
Civil disobedience? [Perhaps, but it better be about God’s covenant with us or His commission to us, not because we don’t like the rules. Romans taught us right submission to the governing authorities.]
Changing your circumstances?
What was the pivot point of these 4 chapters?
Tag: We are called to move heaven and earth to bring justice - but as an outflow of our worship of God.
Not as its own cause that we take up as if it was the Gospel.
But also not something we ignore, either.
Worship of God is selfish if it ignores the plight of the oppressed.
Our God Sends His People
Our God Sends His People
Evangelism, apostleship, sentness, ambassadors, outward facing
EV: Evangelism - divine holy commission (3), go (3), sent, God will be with (2/3?), God will teach (3); you will speak but I’ll give you the words
Q: Moses is sent. What is he sent with?
An amazing vision at the bush (ch 3)
God’s miraculous power to show the people and Pharaoh
His older brother who speaks more gooder
Tag: More than a really cool stick, Moses goes with God’s Word, God’s divine holy commission, and God’s presence.
Word: “Speak to Pharaoh, I will give you the words”
A divine holy commission and a repeated command to “Go!”
God’s presence: “I am with you” (Exo 3:12)
Hey … we have those things, too!
God Prepares His People
God Prepares His People
Discipleship, spiritual formation, ABNYC
DS: Discipleship - prepared by mistreatment & suffering (2), prepared by God’s presence (3), prepared by weakness (3), prepared by God’s anger (), God getting people ready for His plan, rescued rescuer, Aaron (3)
Q: What kind of weird things did God use to prepare Moses?
By where he was born when
By mistreatment and suffering at the hands of an unfair world
By the people He put in his life
By God’s presence (bush, “I am with you”)
By his own skills (shepherd)
By his own weaknesses
By God’s anger
By going through what He wants us to help others go through (“rescued rescuers”)
By the words and abilities He specifically gives us, sometimes not until the moment they are needed
Tag: God prepares us in a lot more places than in the pew.
It’s not all burning bushes
Sometimes it’s RV
When God Prepares You, He Makes You a Steward
When God Prepares You, He Makes You a Steward
Stewardship, generosity (as stewardship), collaboration, cultivating, obedience
Q: God is clearly preparing Moses to be the Covenant Head of a Covenant People on behalf of the God of the Covenant. God is clearly preparing Aaron the Levite to be the "firstborn” priest of the “firstborn” priests. But what did Moses and Aaron do as part of this preparation?
Learn shepherding (egs)
Learn priesting (eg)
Learn how to rightly seek justice
Tag: When God prepares you, He makes you a steward of that preparation.
Once you learn CPR, now you’re a steward of that preparation when someone has a cardiac event
So, what is God preparing you for - and therefore making you a steward of?
So, what is He preparing Grace Fellowship for - and therefore what is He making us stewards of? [inventory, generosity])
Concl
Concl
These events are not instructions to us
But we do live in the same situations of oppression, injustice, and rejection of God
Jesus is our Exodus; He is your Exodus; if you want freedom from the bondage of oppression, injustice, and sin, your answer is Jesus and your response is repentance and faith
D Groups
D Groups
Cross references:
Isa 6:1-13
2 Cor 3:1-6
Introduce: Make sure everyone has a chance to say ‘hi.’
Launch: Which injustices in our society particularly affect you and why?
Read: Ask the group if there is a particular portion of Exo 1-4 that they want to focus on. Or, pick a section that you want to focus on. (Alternately, you can look at the big sweep, but you might find that harder.)
Observe:
In the passage you read, what do you notice as significant and why?
How does God prepare Moses and/or others in this passage for what He has planned for them?
How does Moses and/or others respond?
Interpret:
Do you see echoes of Jesus in this passage?
The events of Exodus do not form an instruction manual of what we should do in our situation, but they can be instructive. What lessons for us might there be for our times?
Reflect:
From your passage or from all of Exo 1-4, what is the relationship between worship of God and responding to injustices in society?
Apply:
How might God be preparing you to respond to the injustices that affect you, especially relatives to worship?