The Identity Plan

In Pursuit • Sermon • Submitted 4 years ago

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Intro:

Last week we launched into a new series titled “In Pursuit.” Over the course of the several weeks we will be in the book of Exodus. We will see God pursuing His people, His people pursuing Him, what happens when His people pursue Him, and what happens when His people don’t pursue Him. If you missed last weeks message I encourage you to go to our website and watch it. On the back table there are instruction cards for our mobile app, you can watch or listen to it on our app right from your phone.

We discovered last week that the people of Israel were in Egypt, which by the way when the book of Genesis ends that is where it leaves the people of Israel. The new king didn’t know Joseph or the history of the Israelites. He feared they would soon come against him so he decided to oppress them. We see in Exodus chapter 1 that the Israelites are under pressure, and even though they are under pressure they are blessed.

Have you ever gone through something and said this is who I am. This is what I was made for? Have you ever gone through something and questioned why you had to go through or it made you question who you were?

That happens quite frequent at my house as of recent. My kids recently decided to finger paint our couch with Diaper Rash cream. I began to wonder why on earth I would have to deal with such a situation. Krista and I have often joked “ What did we do to deserve this?” Don’t get me wrong we know what a blessing our children are.

During my time at Teen Challenge, many of the students would ask why did addiction happen to me. Why was I created this way?

Have you ever been in a situation where you would’ve liked to have the luxury Clark Kent had. Where you could step into a phone booth and turn into Superman.

This morning I titled the message “The Identity Plan.” Turn in your Bibles to Exodus chapter 3.

As you’re turning there, let me catch us up to speed.

The Identity Plan

Exodus 1

Last week as mentioned we discovered in Chapter 1 that the Hebrew people in Egypt were under pressure from the new king. Even under that pressure they multiplied. The new king of Egypt devised a plan in Exodus 1:16 to have the mid-wives to kill any son born to the Hebrew people. What the new king didn’t realize was these mid-wives feared God.

Exodus 2

As we read Exodus 2 we discover the birth of Moses. This is where things start to get real interesting. Moses’ mother makes a basket and puts Moses in it and sends it down the river. Pharaoh’s daughter discovers Moses in the basket in the river. She decides to keep Moses. Moses’ sister is there in the presence of Pharaoh’s daughter and suggests getting a Hebrew woman to nurse Moses. God’s plans are so awesome. The woman who nurses Moses is his mother, and here’s the kicker Pharaoh’s daughter pays Moses’ mother to nurture him, how awesome is that. Once nurtured Moses is raised in the royalty of Egypt.

However, Moses is still a Hebrew. One day he sees an Egyptian beating a Hebrew and ends up killing the Egyptian. He then flees to Midian. And makes a family. I’m sure Moses in his own thinking thought he was minding his own business, but he was hiding. Which is where we find Moses at the end of chapter 2.

Look at all these I wish I was Superman moments. Chapter 1 under pressure, I bet the Hebrews would have liked a superhero to save them. Chapter 2 Moses almost seems to fit the bill for the Hebrew people. Then he kills someone. I bet he would have liked a superhero to show up.

Let’s dig in. Exodus 3:1-12.

Exodus 3:1–12 NIV

1 Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. 3 So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.” 4 When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.” 5 “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” 6 Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God. 7 The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. 9 And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. 10 So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.” 11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” 12 And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.”

Here Moses is tending his father in-laws flock. And God shows up.

Life Experiences

Each of us are a culmination of our life experiences, including Moses. Moses is hiding in Midian. Here’s one of the most interesting parts of the text. Moses has been through some stuff, right from birth. Maybe you and I can relate to Moses. I know I have been through some stuff. God shows up in an awesome way in the form of a burning bush. He get’s Moses’ attention. He tells Moses who He is. He tells Moses that He knows. He has heard the crying out of the Hebrew people. And God says Moses I’m sending you. Once again Moses seemingly is the superhero. But Moses has life experiences that have affected his self identity. Moses from birth has had an identity crisis. He’s:

Born Hebrew

Raised Egyptian

Now living in a foreign land.

Think about his teenage years, he’s raised Egyptian but doesn’t look like most Egyptians, actually he looks like many of the Hebrews. Can you imagine having his identity issues. Add to that murder, rejection from the Hebrews and Egyptians. Can you imagine what he thought of his self worth?

Moses even says to God “Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh?”

But God. God says Moses I have a plan for you. I created you, I have had this plan for you from birth. Everything you have gone through doesn’t change who you are. You are my creation. Your identity is found in Me.

God’s Identity Plan For You

God has an identity plan for you and I. Just like Moses, God is saying I have a plan for you from birth.

Psalm 139:13–16 NIV

13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. 14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. 15 My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. 16 Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.

You were knit together in the womb. In the womb God had an identity and plan for you. You are His child. God knows all of your days, and yet He still chooses you. You have value.

Ephesians 1:5 NIV

5 he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—

1 Peter 2:9 NIV

9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

You and I are not defined by our circumstances or by what we have done. We are defined by God. But we have a responsibility to have a relationship with Jesus.

Conclusion

As much as we would as it would be really awesome to have a superhero show up and save the day, that’s not reality. God is reality. God created us and gave us identity. It is imperative that you and I draw our identity from Him. It’s imperative that we seek God. It’s imperative:

That we pray

That we read our Bibles, not out of duty.

That we are apart of Christian Community.

Or how else would we know who we really are? How would be able to resist the enemies lies of who we are? How would we be able to keep the culture for defining us? We wouldn’t. We are created to be God’s children. We are created to be light and salt to the world around us. Let’s do that. Let’s bring Jesus to the unbelieving parts of our world. Let’s let Jesus define our identity. Let’s accept His plan.