My sermon title
today is entitled:
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"TURN ASIDE AND
SEE" and those words
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come to us from a very
interesting chapter in the Bible
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If you have your Bibles,
I invite you to take them
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and turn with me to
the book of Exodus 3.
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An incredible story unfolds for
us here in this text, Exodus 3,
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and we are going to
begin in the very beginning.
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Notice with me
verses 1 thru to 3.
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Exodus 3:1- "Now Moses
was tending the flock of
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Jethro, his father-in-law,
the priest of Median,
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and he led the flock
to the back of the desert,
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and came to Horeb,
the mountain of God."
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By-the-way,
Horeb means desolate.
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Verse 2- "And the angel
of the Lord appeared to him
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in a flame of fire
from the midst of the bush.
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So he looked and behold,
the bush was burning with fire,
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but the bush was not consumed.
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Then Moses said, "I
will now turn aside and see
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this great sight, why
the bush does not burn."
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Now Moses is one of the
most interpreted characters
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that we find in all the Bible...
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so much so that many
people believe he looks like
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Charlton Heston - that's
how they all think of Moses
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when I mention the name.
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And I am sure that
on this particular day,
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his day had begun
like every other day.
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He was probably wishing
for something... anything
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to break the daily
monotony of his life
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which was all
about tending sheep.
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After 40 years of
looking after sheep,
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Moses' life had become
incredibly predictable.
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He knew all the
best grazing places,
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and all the best waterholes.
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All the locations
of those waterholes
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were etched in
the back of his mind.
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And to help past
the time, he probably
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spent time talking to his sheep,
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and maybe even
talking to himself.
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The occasional serpent
or snake or wild animal
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would provide the only
excitement or dramatic edge
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to his days as he was
out there tending sheep.
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And as the years had
rolled by, these 40 years,
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with the passing of
time, all of his grand dreams
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and hopes of being able
to deliver God's people,
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to take them out of Egypt,
had grown dimmer and dimmer,
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and I am sure he
must have wondered,
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on more than one occasion...
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"Is this all my
life has been for?"
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"Is this all I was
meant to live for?"
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Little did he know that it
was on this particular day,
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here in this wilderness
experience of his daily life,
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that Moses was
about to encounter God.
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God was waiting to meet him
here in this bush encounter.
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And in the distance
on this particular day,
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as he is
looking after his sheep,
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he looks and his keen
watchful eye sees something
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that instantly snaps
him out of his thoughts,
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and it arrests his attention.
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Something was burning
in the distance - a bush!
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And since there was no
real hurry and nothing else
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demanding his attention,
curiosity gets the better
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of him and he goes
over for a closer look.
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And the closer and
closer he comes to this bush,
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the more brilliant the
sight before him becomes.
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And I want you to notice in
the text that the Bible says
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that the angel of the
Lord is the one who appears
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to Moses in this instance.
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Notice it does not say
"an angel of the Lord,"
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It says, "The
angel of the Lord."
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This is not just ANY angel!
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And you say, "Well, who
is this celestial visitor."
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This is the same angel
of the Lord who appears
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to Abraham in Genesis 22.
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It is also the same
angel of the Lord that appears
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to Gideon in the
threshing field and to Elijah
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in 1 Kings 19, when
he is in the wilderness.
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If you do a study on
"the angel of the Lord
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in the Old
Testament, you will discover
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that he speaks as God; he
identifies himself with God,
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and he exercises
the authority of God.
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So this is very
important because,
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friends, I believe
that the angel of the Lord
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who meets Moses here at
this bush, is none other
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than the very One who would
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one day become
his Savior as well.
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This is a "theophany" -
that's a very fancy word,
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I just wanted
to put it in there.
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This is a theophany
of Jesus Christ Himself.
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A "theophany" means a
visible manifestation of God
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right here. Okay?
You following? Yes! Good!
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Now let's keep reading...
Verse 4- "So when the Lord
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saw that he turned aside
to look, God called to him
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from the midst of the
bush and said, "Moses, Moses,"
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and he said, "Here I am."
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I was talking to my
grandpa about this story
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because I like to talk to people
about the Bible because we all
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notice different things
when we come to the Scriptures.
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And I said to my
grandpa... I said, "Grandpa,
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why do you think God
called his name twice?"
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I mean, "Why didn't
he just say, "Moses?"
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You know, why did
he say, "Moses, Moses?"
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My grandpa looked at me
and he said, "I think you've
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been around
Avondale for too long."
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The bottom line and this is
really the most important thing,
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is that when God
calls your name, respond!
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That was an AMEN moment!
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Now, I just want you to know
here - and I'm going to chase
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a little kangaroo
because I like to chase them...
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But, do you know
that God knows your name?
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I was really...
I love this verse.
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Just hold your
finger in Exodus 3.
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Come over to Psalm 147.
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This is one of my
favorite verses and one day
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when I have time, I'm
going to spend a lot of time
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studying the stars so I
can develop a message on it.
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But Psalm 147:4-
Listen to what the Bible says,
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"He counts the
number of the stars;
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He calls them all by name."
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I don't know if you've
ever gone outside at night,
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in a country place, but there
are a lot of stars out there.
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We can't even see all of
them from the dark places
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there in the country,
but I think to myself,
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that if God knows
the number of the stars,
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and He calls them all
by name, then God knows me,
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and God knows you as well.
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God is a personal God!
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Back to Exodus, slip over there.
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We're back here in Exodus
3; we're noticing now verse 5.
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"Then He said, "Do
not draw near this place,
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take your sandals off your feet
for the place where you stand
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is holy ground."
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Put yourself in Moses'
sandals for just a moment.
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The ground wasn't holy
there because of the geographic
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location of the dirt.
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This ground was
holy ground because God's
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presence was there.
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If this was you and
you were in his sandals,
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how would you feel?
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Well, whenever we are in God's
presence, we are on holy ground.
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I believe that... and I'm
not suggesting, this afternoon,
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that we should
all take our shoes off
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the moment we
entered the sanctuary,
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but what I would like to suggest
is that this says to us that
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when we come into the presence
of God, we should assume
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a posture of reverence.
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Yes, He's our forever
Friend and we can come boldly
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before the throne of
Grace and bring our petitions
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there, but He is God!
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He is the Creator!
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He is the King of
Kings and Lord of Lords.
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We need to come into
His presence and give Him
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the respect that He deserves.
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I've been to funerals
and when the funeral is over,
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and people are
filing out of the church,
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and the deceased
is in the building...
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out of respect for the deceased,
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everybody
doesn't even say a word.
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And yet, when we come to
church, sometimes, the moment
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the sermon is finished,
we turn it into a marketplace
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with all of our chatter.
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It would be well for
us to think about this
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whenever we're
in God's presence...
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We need to assume a
posture of reverence.
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All right, let's
keep reading, verse 6.
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"Moreover, He said, "I
am the God of your Father,
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the God of Abraham, the God
of Isaac and the God of Jacob."
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Do you get the impression
that God is almost bursting
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to introduce
Himself to Moses right here.
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"And Moses hid his face for
he was afraid to look upon God."
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Verse 7- "And the Lord
said, "I have surely seen
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the oppression of My
people who are in Egypt,
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and have heard their cry
because of their taskmasters,
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for I know their sorrow."
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"So I have come down to deliver
them out of the hand of the
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Egyptians and to
bring them up from that land
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to a good and large
land, to a land flowing with
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milk and honey to the
place of the Canaanites
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and the Hittites and the
Amorites and the Perizzites
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and the Hivites
and the Jebusites."
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Friends, I wish that I
knew how to preach on this
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because this is just the
most beautiful verse ever!
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Well, I say that about a lot of
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verses when it
comes to the Bible.
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But, when my dad first
read this several years ago,
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he said to me, "Charissa,
you need to preach on the
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cry of God's people,"
and I couldn't understand it
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until I came and
visited the passage
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and parked myself here...
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Because, listen to this...
The telephone to glory works!
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I used to have a
ringtone on my mobile...
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cell phone if you're
in a different country,
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for our American friends...
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But I used to have a ringtone
on my phone that was so nice,
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every time my phone
rang, I just let it ring
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because I just
wanted to hear my ringtone.
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But God is not like me, Amen?
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The Bible wants
us, not to miss this,
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God doesn't want
you to miss this.
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God wanted His people
to know that He had seen
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their oppression
and He heard their cry.
00:10:02.35\00:10:05.70
Is there someone here who has
been crying out to God lately?
00:10:05.73\00:10:09.71
Perhaps you have been praying
and crying out to God about
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something and yet you
see no answer from Him.
00:10:13.06\00:10:17.00
Dear Friend, God's
message to you from His word
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says that He sees, He knows,
He remembers and He hears.
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He understands.
00:10:26.43\00:10:27.81
You and I have never
looked into the eyes of someone
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who doesn't matter to God.
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And I want you to
notice the progression here...
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First of all, God says, "I have
seen the misery of My people."
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Well, you can see something
from a distance, right?
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But then the next step, He says,
"I have heard their cries."
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In order to hear
a cry, you have to
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move in a little bit closer.
00:10:48.37\00:10:50.45
And then God says that
He knows their affliction.
00:10:50.48\00:10:54.21
Friends, He is present
with them in their experiences,
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and in their suffering.
00:10:58.00\00:10:59.57
We are looking a picture
of a personal God right here.
00:10:59.60\00:11:03.06
And you know what, it's
nice when someone says that
00:11:03.09\00:11:06.12
they can see what
you're going through.
00:11:06.15\00:11:07.96
And it's good when they say
that they can hear your pain,
00:11:07.99\00:11:11.90
hear what your struggle.
00:11:11.93\00:11:13.26
And it's helpful when
they say that they even know
00:11:13.29\00:11:16.14
what it's like, but it's
something else when they say
00:11:16.17\00:11:19.55
to you, "I have
come to help you."
00:11:19.58\00:11:22.21
And that's what God
is saying here to Moses.
00:11:22.24\00:11:25.92
Verse 9- God continues...
"Now therefore, behold the cry
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of the children of
Israel has come to Me,
00:11:30.52\00:11:33.10
and I have seen the oppression
00:11:33.13\00:11:36.59
with which the
Egyptians oppress them.
00:11:36.62\00:11:37.92
Come now, therefore, and
I will send you to Pharaoh
00:11:37.96\00:11:42.88
that you may bring My
people, the children of Israel,
00:11:42.92\00:11:44.63
out of Egypt."
00:11:44.66\00:11:48.42
When I went to the ASI
program in August of last year,
00:11:48.45\00:11:53.96
going to America, my dad
has never been to America,
00:11:53.99\00:11:57.03
and so he was a bit
worried about my sister and I
00:11:57.06\00:11:59.52
traveling to America.
00:11:59.55\00:12:01.19
And so before we left
Australia, he said to us,
00:12:01.22\00:12:04.48
"I want you to take my credit
card and I want you to take it"
00:12:04.51\00:12:07.55
and I've got the words
that he wrote right here...
00:12:07.58\00:12:09.63
He said, "Go have a good time...
you see something nice, buy it,
00:12:09.66\00:12:12.91
and treat yourself...
You know, if you're hungry,
00:12:12.94\00:12:15.13
eat something - don't
starve, eat something."
00:12:15.16\00:12:17.57
So I took dad's credit card
with me to America, and we had a
00:12:17.60\00:12:22.27
great time, it was a wonderful
time, we had a blessing!
00:12:22.30\00:12:25.18
And while we were over
there, I was with some friends,
00:12:25.21\00:12:28.08
and we went to a
restaurant, and we ate...
00:12:28.11\00:12:30.00
And at the end when the
bill came, I said, "No, I've got
00:12:30.03\00:12:32.27
this," and we had
this big fight over it.
00:12:32.30\00:12:34.54
I let them all, you
know, try and win the fight,
00:12:34.57\00:12:37.40
and then I said, "No dad
said," and everybody backed off,
00:12:37.43\00:12:40.61
because "dad said."
00:12:40.64\00:12:42.02
Then we went
shopping and I said to them,
00:12:42.05\00:12:44.66
"Hey, buy yourselves some
souvenirs, get a souvenir.
00:12:44.69\00:12:47.42
You're hungry, we
haven't had breakfast that day,
00:12:47.45\00:12:49.18
put some food in the
trolley, we'll go and we'll eat.
00:12:49.21\00:12:52.34
Put everything you need in
here, "Dad said, dad said!"
00:12:52.37\00:12:54.61
So we put all that stuff
in; we went to the checkout,
00:12:55.68\00:12:58.72
$80 worth of
souvenirs and breakfast food,
00:12:58.75\00:13:02.59
and I was SO happy,
whipped out my "dad-said"
00:13:02.62\00:13:05.18
credit card, put it
there; she tried to process it,
00:13:05.21\00:13:08.27
and she said, "Sorry ma'am,
but this is not going to work."
00:13:08.30\00:13:10.91
And I said, "Well, you sure?"
00:13:10.94\00:13:13.30
And she said,
"It's not going to work."
00:13:13.33\00:13:14.78
My friend was with me,
she looks at me and she said
00:13:14.81\00:13:17.03
"Dad said, huh?"
00:13:17.06\00:13:19.48
She ended up paying
for all of what dad said,
00:13:19.51\00:13:21.92
and when I got home, my dad
said, "That's not what I meant."
00:13:21.95\00:13:26.36
"I didn't mean to go
and just spend and spend,
00:13:26.39\00:13:28.31
I meant - just for emergencies."
00:13:28.34\00:13:30.47
But, my point was - I think
it's a wonderful thing that
00:13:30.50\00:13:34.24
you know, when my
dad said something,
00:13:34.27\00:13:36.58
I just believed him, you know,
I just took him at his word!
00:13:36.61\00:13:40.30
Amen! Wouldn't you love for
your dad to say that to you too?
00:13:40.33\00:13:44.33
But the point here is,
really for Moses, there was only
00:13:44.36\00:13:47.99
one response that was necessary.
00:13:48.02\00:13:50.30
God had said...
"Go, it's time to go,
00:13:50.33\00:13:53.96
and take My
people out of Egypt."
00:13:53.99\00:13:55.75
And the only response
he had to give was - to go.
00:13:55.78\00:13:59.06
Right? God had said
it, he should do it!
00:13:59.09\00:14:02.11
But instead, Moses -
ahh, he proceeds to beat
00:14:02.14\00:14:06.57
around the bush.
That was a good one!
00:14:06.60\00:14:09.68
And what follows -
we have 5 objections
00:14:09.71\00:14:14.47
that he comes up
with to God's call to him.
00:14:14.50\00:14:18.98
And they are worth studying
this afternoon because I
00:14:19.01\00:14:21.94
think you and I may
discover that some of us
00:14:21.97\00:14:24.28
have more in common with Moses
than we might have realized.
00:14:24.31\00:14:27.30
So, what's his first objection?
00:14:27.33\00:14:29.62
Verse 11- "But Moses
said to God, who am I that I
00:14:29.65\00:14:34.68
should go to
Pharaoh, that I should bring
00:14:34.71\00:14:37.22
the children of
Israel out of Egypt."
00:14:37.25\00:14:40.69
Moses can't get his
arms around God's calling.
00:14:40.72\00:14:44.23
Who me? Couldn't be!
00:14:44.26\00:14:46.42
Now here was a man who
was once a very prominent man,
00:14:46.45\00:14:50.71
from one of the most
civilized nations in the world,
00:14:50.74\00:14:53.41
Egypt, he was a prince in
Egypt, and, yes, now he is
00:14:53.44\00:14:56.89
self-deposed to
the role of a shepherd,
00:14:56.92\00:14:58.94
to the rank of a shepherd,
working for his father-in-law.
00:14:58.97\00:15:02.19
But listen, 40 years
ago, this man had tried...
00:15:02.22\00:15:05.44
he had volunteered
himself to deliver an Israelite.
00:15:05.47\00:15:09.69
Remember? He got
really passionate,
00:15:09.72\00:15:11.94
and he ended up
killing the man in so-doing.
00:15:11.97\00:15:13.84
But 40 years later,
we find a very different
00:15:13.87\00:15:17.02
picture of this man.
00:15:17.05\00:15:18.19
Forty years in the
wilderness of watching sheep
00:15:18.22\00:15:20.92
and in the wild has
humbled him to the point where
00:15:20.95\00:15:24.07
he has an utter
distrust in his own ability.
00:15:24.10\00:15:28.39
What influence could
he, a despised shepherd,
00:15:28.42\00:15:31.38
and he knew the
Egyptians didn't like shepherds.
00:15:31.41\00:15:33.59
That was a despised vocation!
00:15:33.62\00:15:35.68
What influence could he
possibly have over the king of
00:15:35.71\00:15:39.29
the most powerful
nation on the planet?
00:15:39.32\00:15:41.36
And the people... well,
they didn't even like him!
00:15:41.39\00:15:44.23
They had rejected him
when he was a mighty man,
00:15:44.26\00:15:46.59
and what were the odds
of them subscribing to his
00:15:46.62\00:15:49.05
leadership now that
he was returning from his
00:15:49.08\00:15:52.44
time in the wilderness.
00:15:52.47\00:15:53.57
The odds weren't
even worth calculating.
00:15:53.60\00:15:55.90
They'd surely reject him now
as surely as night follows day.
00:15:55.93\00:16:00.06
Have you ever felt like Moses?
00:16:00.09\00:16:03.01
I can't go! I
can't speak! I'm too shy!
00:16:03.04\00:16:07.89
I have never studied
theology at Avondale College!
00:16:07.92\00:16:10.89
I haven't even been to ARISE.
00:16:10.92\00:16:13.31
This is my first
witness! Are you kidding me?
00:16:13.34\00:16:15.05
How can I go and serve the Lord?
00:16:15.93\00:16:17.88
Well, who am I
that God should call me?
00:16:17.91\00:16:23.53
That's the objection!
00:16:23.56\00:16:24.88
Notice the Divine response...
00:16:24.91\00:16:26.71
Verse 12- "So He said, -
God said- I will certainly
00:16:26.74\00:16:31.91
be with you and this
shall be a sign to you that I
00:16:31.94\00:16:35.61
have sent you when you
have brought the people
00:16:35.64\00:16:38.29
out of Egypt, you shall
serve God on this mountain."
00:16:38.32\00:16:42.68
The Divine response, God
says, "I will be with you."
00:16:42.71\00:16:47.66
God didn't negate Moses'
concerns, they were valid,
00:16:47.69\00:16:51.35
but Moses needn't have worried
00:16:51.38\00:16:53.30
because God assures
him of His presence.
00:16:53.33\00:16:56.38
Did you know that the
Bible records God saying,
00:16:56.41\00:16:58.71
"I will be with
you, I am with you."
00:16:58.74\00:17:00.57
It records that saying
over 360 times - in fact 365.
00:17:00.60\00:17:06.78
Which means there's a verse
like that, a promise like that
00:17:06.81\00:17:09.96
for every day of our year.
00:17:09.99\00:17:12.07
God wants us to
know that He is with us,
00:17:12.10\00:17:15.42
and I can think of no
greater promise that this.
00:17:15.45\00:17:18.71
God is manifesting himself
to Moses because he intended
00:17:18.74\00:17:21.87
to work through Moses.
00:17:21.90\00:17:23.81
And is it just me or does
this verse sound strikingly
00:17:23.84\00:17:27.83
similar to the great
commission in Matthew 28
00:17:27.86\00:17:31.03
when Jesus said,
"Surely I will be with you
00:17:31.06\00:17:33.52
MOST of the time even to
the end of the age"... NO
00:17:33.55\00:17:37.14
Jesus said, "I will
be with you" how often?
00:17:37.17\00:17:39.61
ALWAYS - to the
very end of the age."
00:17:39.64\00:17:43.31
And so we read on... Verse 13
00:17:43.34\00:17:45.54
"Then Moses said to
God"... and he has answered the
00:17:45.57\00:17:48.17
first objection... "Indeed
when I come to the children
00:17:48.20\00:17:51.28
of Israel and say to
them, "The God of your fathers
00:17:51.31\00:17:53.76
has sent me to
you, and they say to me,
00:17:53.79\00:17:56.13
"What is his name?"
What shall I say to them?"
00:17:56.16\00:17:59.50
So Moses' first
objection was, "Who am I?"
00:17:59.53\00:18:02.97
The next objection
is, "Well, who are you?"
00:18:03.00\00:18:05.77
Question: Why would
Moses want to know the name
00:18:05.80\00:18:10.92
of God before he
goes to the Israelites
00:18:10.95\00:18:13.90
in order to deliver them?
00:18:13.93\00:18:15.46
I can only think of 2 reasons,
maybe you can think of more.
00:18:15.49\00:18:18.79
The first reason, perhaps, may
have been due to their worship
00:18:18.82\00:18:22.42
of other gods, Egyptians gods.
00:18:22.45\00:18:25.17
We get an indication that
this may have been possible
00:18:25.20\00:18:27.85
from Joshua 24:14- That they
have been perhaps looking to
00:18:27.88\00:18:33.07
other gods for help,
and so when Moses comes
00:18:33.10\00:18:36.32
saying that God has called
him, well, they may be wondering
00:18:36.35\00:18:39.07
WHICH of the gods is
answering their prayers.
00:18:39.10\00:18:42.44
That's the first
reason, and the second reason is
00:18:42.47\00:18:44.79
because one's name is a good
indication of one's character.
00:18:44.82\00:18:50.02
If Moses' authority was
wrapped up in God's commission,
00:18:50.05\00:18:54.36
and call for him to
lead his people out of Egypt,
00:18:54.39\00:18:58.26
then the name by which God
chooses to identify Himself
00:18:58.29\00:19:01.96
will capture the essence of
his character and will assure
00:19:01.99\00:19:05.68
them of God's willingness
to do as He has said He would.
00:19:05.71\00:19:09.62
How does God
respond to Moses' objection?
00:19:09.65\00:19:13.06
Verse 14- "And God said
to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM."
00:19:13.09\00:19:18.30
And He said, "Thus you shall
say to the children of Israel,
00:19:18.33\00:19:22.09
"I AM has sent me to you."
00:19:22.12\00:19:25.84
The Divine response,
He responds with His name,
00:19:25.87\00:19:29.89
and it reveals His character
and this is good news for us.
00:19:29.92\00:19:34.79
We can have assurance and
heart because of this name.
00:19:34.82\00:19:37.80
You say, "Hang on a
minute, what does this mean?"
00:19:37.83\00:19:39.94
"I AM" - what does "I AM" mean?
00:19:39.98\00:19:42.36
Friends, the "I AM" is the
God who exists independently.
00:19:42.39\00:19:47.88
He is the self-existent One.
00:19:47.91\00:19:50.99
This is why the Spirit of
Prophecy says of Christ...
00:19:51.02\00:19:53.91
"In Christ, is life
original, unborrowed,
00:19:53.94\00:19:57.37
and underived."
"Desire of Ages," p. 530
00:19:57.40\00:20:00.51
He is the One who is
and was and is to come.
00:20:00.54\00:20:03.58
This is the God
who meets Moses here.
00:20:03.61\00:20:05.90
And we continue to
read His response...
00:20:05.93\00:20:07.72
Verse 15- "Moreover, God
said to Moses, "Thus you shall
00:20:07.75\00:20:11.83
say to the children of Israel,
00:20:11.86\00:20:15.03
the Lord God of your
Fathers, the God of Abraham,
00:20:15.06\00:20:17.45
the God of Isaac,
and the God of Jacob,
00:20:17.48\00:20:19.88
has sent me to you.
00:20:19.91\00:20:21.26
This is My name forever and
00:20:21.29\00:20:23.04
this is My memorial
to all generations."
00:20:23.07\00:20:25.90
"Go and gather the elders of
Israel together and say to them,
00:20:25.93\00:20:29.84
"The Lord God of your
fathers, the God of Abraham,
00:20:29.87\00:20:33.72
Isaac and of Jacob
appeared to Me saying,
00:20:33.75\00:20:36.59
"I have surely visited you
and seen what is done to you in
00:20:36.62\00:20:40.18
Egypt and I have said, "I
will bring you up out of the
00:20:40.21\00:20:43.47
affliction of Egypt to
the land of the Canaanites,
00:20:43.50\00:20:46.16
Hittites, Amorites, Para...
I almost said "parasites,"
00:20:46.19\00:20:48.75
Perizzites and the
Hivites and the Jebusites
00:20:48.78\00:20:52.07
to a land flowing
with milk and honey."
00:20:52.10\00:20:54.61
"Then they will heed
your voice and you shall come,
00:20:54.64\00:20:57.49
you and the elders of Israel to
the king of Egypt and you shall
00:20:57.52\00:21:00.67
say to him, "The Lord
God of the Hebrews has
00:21:00.70\00:21:03.62
met with us and now
please let us go 3 days' journey
00:21:03.65\00:21:06.80
into the wilderness, that
we may sacrifice to the Lord
00:21:06.83\00:21:09.74
our God"... and it goes on there
00:21:09.77\00:21:11.73
and I'm just going
to stop right there...
00:21:11.76\00:21:14.04
because Moses, after
God gives answer here,
00:21:14.07\00:21:17.22
he's just.. God is saying,
"Listen Moses - stop worrying,
00:21:17.25\00:21:21.07
I've got it all sorted...
the whole plan is there!"
00:21:21.10\00:21:23.67
Moses comes up
with objection #3...
00:21:23.70\00:21:26.91
All right, what's objection #3?
00:21:26.94\00:21:29.02
Chapter 4:1- Then
Moses answered and said,
00:21:29.05\00:21:33.50
"But suppose they will
not believe me or listen
00:21:33.53\00:21:36.85
to my voice; suppose they say,
00:21:36.88\00:21:38.88
"The Lord has
not appeared to you."
00:21:38.91\00:21:42.57
I'm going to say a
word on behalf of Moses
00:21:42.60\00:21:44.45
even though he is
clearly in the wrong here.
00:21:44.48\00:21:46.55
But first of all, I understand
why he finds it difficult
00:21:46.58\00:21:50.00
to really jump at the
call of God right here...
00:21:50.03\00:21:52.86
Because, have you ever had
to face a group of skeptics,
00:21:52.89\00:21:56.52
and tell them and try to
convince them that God has
00:21:56.55\00:21:59.31
sent you, based upon
a conversation you had
00:21:59.34\00:22:02.05
at a burning bush?
00:22:02.08\00:22:05.22
I can understand why
he's fearing to go forward.
00:22:05.25\00:22:08.63
People just don't stand around
talking to burning bushes,
00:22:08.66\00:22:11.25
not even today.
00:22:11.28\00:22:13.22
But now Moses' question is not
only dangerous, it is sinful.
00:22:13.25\00:22:17.00
You see, in verse 18,
God had just said to him
00:22:18.32\00:22:23.52
that the elders of
Israel will listen to him,
00:22:23.55\00:22:27.55
but we find that Moses is
still doubting God's word,
00:22:27.58\00:22:31.29
right after God said it.
00:22:31.32\00:22:32.80
And I'm not going to read to
you the Divine response here,
00:22:32.83\00:22:35.69
but God gives Moses 3 signs
to prove that they will believe.
00:22:35.72\00:22:41.32
You remember the first sign?
00:22:41.35\00:22:42.65
He said to take the rod
that he had in his hand,
00:22:42.68\00:22:45.55
cast it down and it
became a snake... serpent. Yes
00:22:45.58\00:22:50.51
And then what was
God's instruction?
00:22:50.54\00:22:52.22
Pick it up by the tail.
00:22:52.25\00:22:53.97
Have you ever picked
up a snake by the tail?
00:22:54.00\00:22:56.59
No, you don't pick
them up by the tail.
00:22:56.62\00:22:58.60
I'm not a snake
charmer, but IF I was,
00:22:58.63\00:23:00.91
I would definitely
not go for the tail,
00:23:00.94\00:23:02.66
because the head would
just around and bite you!
00:23:02.69\00:23:04.82
But God had said,
"Take it by the tail,"
00:23:04.85\00:23:07.87
because He wants Moses to trust
Him - that's the first sign.
00:23:07.90\00:23:10.56
The second sign was take
your hand, put it in your cloak
00:23:10.59\00:23:13.36
... it came out leprous.
00:23:13.39\00:23:15.32
You remember this - it's
in the movie - you remember?
00:23:15.35\00:23:18.66
It came out covered in leprosy.
00:23:18.69\00:23:21.12
And then he put it back
in and it was restored again.
00:23:21.15\00:23:23.50
God had the power to do that.
00:23:23.53\00:23:25.18
And the third sign
was one that he would do
00:23:25.21\00:23:27.84
when he got to
Egypt... it was the water of the
00:23:27.87\00:23:30.12
Nile river turning to blood,
and they worshipped the Nile.
00:23:30.15\00:23:33.52
So God was showing Moses
and by extension he would show
00:23:33.55\00:23:36.75
the people that he had power.
00:23:36.78\00:23:38.33
He was more powerful
than the gods of Egypt.
00:23:38.36\00:23:41.15
So this is God's response...
00:23:41.18\00:23:43.26
But Moses comes up
with another objection!
00:23:43.29\00:23:46.33
Does he sound familiar?
00:23:46.36\00:23:48.26
Can you relate to Moses?
00:23:48.29\00:23:50.44
Some of us, God has been trying
to call and every time He calls,
00:23:50.47\00:23:53.24
we keep coming up with excuses.
00:23:53.27\00:23:55.47
Verse 10- Moses said
to the Lord, "O my Lord,
00:23:55.50\00:24:01.27
I am not eloquent, neither
before nor since You have
00:24:01.30\00:24:05.79
spoken to Your servant,
but I am slow of speech,
00:24:05.82\00:24:09.11
and slow of tongue."
00:24:09.14\00:24:11.57
Moses said he
has a speech problem.
00:24:11.60\00:24:14.18
But you know what, I
find that hard to believe!
00:24:14.21\00:24:16.97
Ask Stephen, you have
to ask Stephen about Moses,
00:24:17.00\00:24:20.81
because in Acts 7:22, if you
want to go and check what I'm
00:24:20.84\00:24:25.09
going to read, but I'll
read it to you.. go to my notes.
00:24:25.12\00:24:27.46
This is in Stephen's message.
00:24:27.49\00:24:29.61
This is the words of Stephen.
00:24:29.64\00:24:30.90
He said, "And Moses was
learned in all the wisdom of the
00:24:30.93\00:24:35.07
Egyptians and was
mighty in words and deeds."
00:24:35.10\00:24:38.16
So he had the ability,
but now he is doubting.
00:24:38.19\00:24:41.41
He is doing God a disservice
by refusing not only to
00:24:41.44\00:24:44.88
believe that God could send
him but that God could use him.
00:24:44.91\00:24:49.71
Moses need not have
trusted in his own abilities
00:24:49.74\00:24:52.62
and now he was denying
the abilities that God had
00:24:52.65\00:24:55.71
given to him and the gift
that God had instructed to him.
00:24:55.74\00:24:59.01
He was essentially telling God,
00:24:59.04\00:25:00.82
"Lord, I can't do this because
you didn't make me good enough."
00:25:00.85\00:25:04.24
"You didn't
make me well enough."
00:25:04.27\00:25:06.32
We need to avoid
these two extremes as well
00:25:06.35\00:25:08.71
when it comes to God's service.
00:25:08.74\00:25:10.52
There is one extreme
which says, "Lord, Here I am,
00:25:10.55\00:25:13.03
I've got what it takes, use me!"
00:25:13.06\00:25:15.20
God says that's
dangerous because God doesn't
00:25:15.23\00:25:17.84
call the equipped, He
equips the called. Amen!
00:25:17.87\00:25:21.43
And the other extreme is
saying, "Lord, I can't go,
00:25:21.46\00:25:24.49
I really can't go, I
don't have what it takes."
00:25:24.52\00:25:26.70
And God says, "I am
here, and I will equip you."
00:25:26.73\00:25:30.59
Those are the two extremes and
that is exactly God's response.
00:25:30.62\00:25:33.94
In verse 11- "So the Lord
said to him, "Who has made
00:25:33.97\00:25:37.39
man's mouth? Or who
makes the mute, the deaf,
00:25:37.42\00:25:40.36
the seeing or the blind?
00:25:40.39\00:25:41.73
Have not I, the Lord?
00:25:41.76\00:25:43.63
Now therefore, go, and
I will be with your mouth
00:25:43.66\00:25:46.99
and teach you
what you shall say."
00:25:47.02\00:25:49.61
The Divine response - "I will
teach you what you should say."
00:25:49.64\00:25:53.22
God reminds him
that He is his Creator!
00:25:53.25\00:25:55.86
He fashioned him
suitably for the task and if He
00:25:55.89\00:25:58.82
commissions him, He
will provide everything
00:25:58.85\00:26:01.04
that he needs for
his work assignment!
00:26:01.07\00:26:04.81
Listen to this,
Spirit of Prophecy...
00:26:04.84\00:26:07.08
"One worker may
be a ready speaker,
00:26:07.11\00:26:10.79
another may be a ready writer,
00:26:10.82\00:26:12.77
another may have the
gift of sincere, earnest,
00:26:12.80\00:26:15.62
fervent prayer and
another the gift of singing.
00:26:15.65\00:26:18.20
Another may have the
special power to explain the
00:26:18.23\00:26:21.08
word of God with clearness,
and each gift is to become a
00:26:21.11\00:26:24.96
power for God...
listen... because He works
00:26:24.99\00:26:28.63
with the laborer."
00:26:28.66\00:26:31.36
Oh, I hope you're enjoying
00:26:31.39\00:26:33.13
listening to the
promises of God right here.
00:26:33.16\00:26:35.67
I was once ironing a load of
washing... I don't like ironing.
00:26:35.70\00:26:40.15
But while I was ironing, I
think perhaps I was trying to
00:26:40.18\00:26:42.73
iron this whole load
because my cousin was visiting
00:26:42.76\00:26:45.47
from Samoa and I was
trying to show off to my cousin.
00:26:45.50\00:26:49.33
And I was ironing
this load of washing -
00:26:49.36\00:26:51.12
we were talking
away and I didn't notice,
00:26:51.15\00:26:53.22
but while I was
ironing this load of washing,
00:26:53.25\00:26:55.74
she went, got up and
she switched the iron off.
00:26:55.77\00:26:58.70
And I was still
ironing this load of washing,
00:26:58.73\00:27:01.63
and I happen to be a
little bit OCD or CDO
00:27:01.66\00:27:04.92
if you put them in
alphabetical order.
00:27:04.95\00:27:06.33
And so I was spending a long
00:27:06.36\00:27:08.12
time trying to
iron these clothes.
00:27:08.15\00:27:10.21
It is impossible to
iron a load of washing
00:27:10.24\00:27:13.29
without being
connected to the power source.
00:27:13.32\00:27:16.14
Friends, God was not
calling Moses to go and
00:27:16.17\00:27:20.20
deliver His people
in his own strength!
00:27:20.23\00:27:23.45
God was calling Moses to
go and move in His power.
00:27:23.48\00:27:28.11
BY His power - I
got the theme wrong.
00:27:28.14\00:27:30.04
God is calling him to
go and move BY His power!
00:27:30.07\00:27:33.60
And Moses kept trying to resist.
00:27:33.63\00:27:35.79
He says, "I
haven't got a budget,
00:27:35.82\00:27:37.03
I haven't got a theology degree,
I haven't got enough training,
00:27:37.06\00:27:39.79
I don't have the
personality for it."
00:27:39.82\00:27:41.49
But God has met every one of
his excuses with His promises,
00:27:41.52\00:27:45.56
and the promise of His
presence, and His sufficiency.
00:27:45.59\00:27:48.84
Verse 13- Would you believe...
I can't believe this, watch this
00:27:48.87\00:27:53.37
"But he said, "O my Lord,
please send by the hand of
00:27:53.40\00:27:58.40
whomever else You may send."
00:27:58.43\00:28:01.35
Objection #5...
"I don't want to go."
00:28:01.38\00:28:05.21
If Moses was a Pathfinder, then
he has forgotten his pledge.
00:28:05.24\00:28:09.73
"Loving the Lord my God, I
will daily seek His presence,
00:28:09.76\00:28:12.88
show friendship to
others, keep the Pathfinder Law,
00:28:12.91\00:28:15.77
and go where He sends."
00:28:15.80\00:28:18.24
Is that the right law?
00:28:18.27\00:28:20.32
No, I think I got it
wrong, but it's part of
00:28:20.35\00:28:22.72
the Pathfinder Pledge
or Law, somewhere there...
00:28:22.75\00:28:24.95
he has forgotten his pledge.
00:28:24.98\00:28:27.76
And when he has
offered all of his excuses,
00:28:27.79\00:28:30.29
and they've all been
proved to be invalid,
00:28:30.32\00:28:32.79
suddenly his
hidden motive surfaces.
00:28:32.82\00:28:35.91
Now, it's helpful to be trained.
00:28:35.94\00:28:39.81
It's helpful to go to
training schools of evangelism,
00:28:39.84\00:28:42.37
but the real problem now
is not a method of evangelism,
00:28:42.40\00:28:46.20
the real problem
is Moses' motive.
00:28:46.23\00:28:48.93
Moses has a
motivational problem...
00:28:48.96\00:28:51.86
He just doesn't want to go!
00:28:51.89\00:28:53.46
"Here am I...
Please send somebody else."
00:28:53.49\00:28:57.08
His response is
almost curt and rude
00:28:57.11\00:29:00.59
when you read it in
the original Hebrew.
00:29:00.62\00:29:03.10
No reason is stated why
God should send somebody else,
00:29:03.13\00:29:06.62
but, basically, Moses
is putting the breaks on...
00:29:06.65\00:29:08.93
..."It doesn't matter what
you say, Lord, I will not go!"
00:29:08.96\00:29:12.67
And so, what had first
appeared to be a doubt,
00:29:12.70\00:29:16.56
of his own ability,
now reveals itself as a
00:29:16.59\00:29:20.03
distrust of God's
ability to use him.
00:29:20.06\00:29:24.65
Now verses 14 and 15
read: "So the anger of the Lord
00:29:24.68\00:29:29.04
was kindled
against Moses and He said,
00:29:29.07\00:29:31.06
"Is not Aaron, the
Levite, your brother?
00:29:31.09\00:29:33.87
I know that he can speak well
and, look, he is also coming
00:29:33.90\00:29:37.35
out to meet you
and when he sees you,
00:29:37.38\00:29:39.27
he will be glad in his heart.
00:29:39.30\00:29:41.33
Now you shall speak to him
and put the words in his mouth,
00:29:41.36\00:29:44.81
and I will be with your
mouth and with his mouth,
00:29:44.84\00:29:47.45
and I will teach
you what you shall do."
00:29:47.48\00:29:50.49
The Divine response to
Moses' 5th objection...
00:29:50.52\00:29:55.11
"Moses, just trust Me."
00:29:55.14\00:29:57.74
Moses might not
have known who God was,
00:29:57.77\00:30:00.14
but God knew who he
was, and He already had
00:30:00.17\00:30:03.41
Aaron on his way
coming to help him.
00:30:03.44\00:30:06.18
The One who calls
you from the burning bush
00:30:06.21\00:30:08.54
is also the One who knows your
strengths and your weaknesses.
00:30:08.57\00:30:11.97
He knows you.
00:30:12.00\00:30:13.65
2 Corinthians 12:9-
Let's go there because this is
00:30:13.68\00:30:17.84
a beautiful text if you've never
00:30:17.87\00:30:19.22
seen it before...
2 Corinthians 12:9
00:30:27.85\00:30:30.42
I love this verse.
00:30:30.45\00:30:33.04
Here, the Bible
says, "And He said to me,
00:30:33.08\00:30:36.64
My grace is sufficient for you,
00:30:36.68\00:30:41.81
for My strength is
made perfect in weakness.
00:30:41.84\00:30:45.21
Therefore, most gladly I will
rather boast in my infirmities
00:30:45.24\00:30:49.26
that the power of
Christ may rest upon me."
00:30:49.29\00:30:54.57
"Gospel Workers," page
323, says, "Moses was the
00:30:54.60\00:30:58.86
prospective ruler of Egypt,
but God could not take him
00:30:58.89\00:31:02.55
from the king's court to
do the work appointed him.
00:31:02.58\00:31:06.29
Only when he had been for
40 years a faithful shepherd,
00:31:06.32\00:31:10.30
was he sent to be the
deliverer of his people."
00:31:10.33\00:31:13.99
The desert is a
dry and barren place,
00:31:14.02\00:31:18.00
but there is
nothing false in the desert.
00:31:18.03\00:31:20.34
There is no put-on,
there's nothing fancy.
00:31:20.37\00:31:22.88
Everything is raw, real and dry.
00:31:22.91\00:31:26.84
But it is in a place like
this that is unmistakably real
00:31:26.87\00:31:30.75
that tests Moses' character.
00:31:30.78\00:31:33.06
That changes him, that molds
his character, this experience.
00:31:33.09\00:31:36.56
That God allows him to
tread for 40 years before
00:31:36.59\00:31:40.17
He is ready to use
him for this mission,
00:31:40.20\00:31:42.73
before He comes and
meets him in a blaze of glory.
00:31:42.76\00:31:46.53
And this is a
remarkable paradox when you stop
00:31:46.56\00:31:48.85
and you think about it...
00:31:48.88\00:31:49.91
Because in order for
us to be sent by God,
00:31:49.94\00:31:53.19
we have to be empty first,
of our own qualifications...
00:31:53.22\00:31:57.57
Because we have
none, really worth
00:31:57.60\00:31:59.64
recommending to God. Amen?
00:31:59.67\00:32:02.16
The curriculum of the
wilderness was designed by God
00:32:02.19\00:32:05.44
to lay bare human weakness.
00:32:05.47\00:32:07.20
When I was a little girl,
my dad did something to me
00:32:07.23\00:32:10.03
which I have since seen
many fathers do to their kids.
00:32:10.06\00:32:12.68
I was minding my
own business one day...
00:32:12.71\00:32:14.61
He came along, saw me, picked
me up, put me on this fence,
00:32:14.64\00:32:18.76
like a wall, like this
here, and he said, "Jump!"
00:32:18.80\00:32:21.11
He stepped back and
he said, "Jump to me!"
00:32:21.17\00:32:23.06
And I looked at him
and I couldn't understand
00:32:23.09\00:32:25.52
why he would do this because
I was quite happy on the floor,
00:32:25.55\00:32:28.04
but I looked at him and I saw...
00:32:28.07\00:32:30.28
My dad is not a little
guy, and he's a strong man,
00:32:30.31\00:32:33.04
so I decided that
I would trust him,
00:32:33.07\00:32:34.87
and I would jump to him.
00:32:34.90\00:32:36.55
And I did, I jumped into the
00:32:36.58\00:32:38.11
open arms of my
dad and he caught me!
00:32:38.15\00:32:40.39
And the moment he caught
me, he put me straight back up
00:32:40.42\00:32:42.98
on the wall again and he
said, "Jump!, jump again!"
00:32:43.01\00:32:45.29
And he repeated this over
and over and over and over
00:32:45.32\00:32:47.67
until soon, it became
so natural for me to "jump"
00:32:47.70\00:32:50.81
to my dad, that
whenever I saw him coming
00:32:50.84\00:32:53.22
in our house, I would
climb things to jump to him,
00:32:53.25\00:32:56.13
and he had to be ready
to catch me because if he
00:32:56.16\00:32:58.42
dropped me, there
was the broken trust.
00:32:58.45\00:33:00.61
But the thing is... that's what
the wilderness was all about.
00:33:00.64\00:33:04.65
That's was God was
trying to get Moses to do.
00:33:04.68\00:33:07.59
He was trying to
lay bare Moses' weakness
00:33:07.62\00:33:10.86
so that Moses
would learn to trust Him.
00:33:10.89\00:33:14.25
There are some
things that no university,
00:33:14.28\00:33:16.18
no seminary, no
college, can ever teach you,
00:33:16.21\00:33:19.32
and the wilderness
is a great teacher.
00:33:19.35\00:33:21.66
Some of us are in
wildernesses right now.
00:33:21.69\00:33:24.76
They don't always
look like the barren desert
00:33:24.79\00:33:27.11
that Moses was in,
but they come in many
00:33:27.14\00:33:29.37
different shapes and
sizes, different forms.
00:33:29.40\00:33:32.29
Some of them are bad
relationships, family problems,
00:33:32.32\00:33:36.12
health crises...you
name it, there are many
00:33:36.15\00:33:39.53
wildernesses that
God can lead us through.
00:33:39.56\00:33:42.55
And that's the point, by the
way, God leads us through them.
00:33:42.58\00:33:45.24
He always brings us out.
00:33:45.27\00:33:46.65
But the man or woman who
God brings into the wilderness
00:33:46.68\00:33:49.35
is always entirely
different when they come out.
00:33:49.38\00:33:52.07
The man or woman who
goes into the wilderness,
00:33:52.10\00:33:53.92
they go in
knowing their strength,
00:33:53.95\00:33:55.92
when they come out,
they know their weakness,
00:33:55.95\00:33:58.12
and God's strength.
00:33:58.15\00:34:00.60
The burning bush was a turning
point in the history of Israel.
00:34:00.63\00:34:05.22
And again, I'm
going to read to you.
00:34:05.25\00:34:07.31
"Spirit of Prophecy,"
"Never could Moses describe
00:34:07.34\00:34:10.79
the impression made
upon his mind by the sight
00:34:10.82\00:34:13.62
he then saw and by the sound
of the voice that spoke to him,
00:34:13.65\00:34:16.82
but this
impression was never effaced.
00:34:16.85\00:34:19.47
Heaven came very near to him
00:34:19.50\00:34:21.96
as with reverent
awe, he listened.
00:34:21.99\00:34:24.71
What wondrous
condescension for God to leave
00:34:24.74\00:34:27.54
the heavenly courts and
manifest Himself to Moses
00:34:27.57\00:34:30.93
talking with him face-to-face
00:34:30.96\00:34:32.95
as a man
speaketh unto his friend.
00:34:32.98\00:34:34.90
God came down and speaks.
00:34:34.93\00:34:37.54
You know what... As I
think about this story,
00:34:37.57\00:34:39.69
I recognize that this story
is almost a parable for us now.
00:34:39.72\00:34:44.14
It's a real story but
we can take this story,
00:34:44.17\00:34:46.58
and apply it today
because there is a second Exodus
00:34:46.61\00:34:49.33
coming at the end of time.
00:34:49.36\00:34:51.32
God has His people,
this time they're not in
00:34:51.35\00:34:53.65
Egypt, they're in Babylon.
00:34:53.68\00:34:55.48
And God is calling His
people to come out of Babylon.
00:34:55.51\00:34:58.09
Come out of her, my people.
00:34:58.12\00:34:59.97
And God is calling
YOU, who are not in Babylon,
00:35:00.00\00:35:03.61
to help call His people out of
Babylon to help bring them out.
00:35:03.64\00:35:07.65
God is looking at a
generation of Moses here,
00:35:07.68\00:35:11.08
and He is saying, "GO because
it's time to bring them out."
00:35:11.11\00:35:14.47
And what are we offering to
00:35:14.50\00:35:15.90
God on the brink
of His soon return?
00:35:15.93\00:35:19.26
We offer God excuses...
"Can't go, can't speak,
00:35:19.29\00:35:23.20
who am I, who are you?"
00:35:23.23\00:35:25.13
We give God all the
same excuses and objections
00:35:25.16\00:35:28.50
that Moses gave as well.
00:35:28.53\00:35:30.68
But friends, we
need to stop and listen.
00:35:30.71\00:35:35.36
Listen to what God says.
00:35:35.39\00:35:38.25
One man turned aside to
see and because he turned aside
00:35:38.28\00:35:43.20
to see, the whole
history of Israel was changed.
00:35:43.23\00:35:46.57
Because even if Moses had not
stopped to check the bush out,
00:35:46.60\00:35:50.85
think of how history
might have happened differently.
00:35:50.88\00:35:54.22
I think that this is
really important for us to
00:35:54.25\00:35:57.40
stop and think about
because I think that not
00:35:57.43\00:36:00.07
many of us are
actually doing what Moses did.
00:36:00.10\00:36:03.01
Not many people will
actually turn aside and see.
00:36:03.04\00:36:06.30
We have not learned to
find God in the places where we
00:36:06.33\00:36:09.86
least expect Him - perhaps
in our struggles, in our trials.
00:36:09.89\00:36:13.28
We think we can only find God
on a Sabbath morning at church,
00:36:13.31\00:36:16.95
or in nice places, but
God can be found anywhere.
00:36:16.98\00:36:20.52
And the other thing too...
We're creatures of community.
00:36:20.55\00:36:23.36
We like to be
together in a group,
00:36:23.39\00:36:25.52
but notice that
God gets Moses alone.
00:36:25.55\00:36:28.45
It is when he is by himself
that he is able to speak to him.
00:36:28.48\00:36:32.23
When every other voice is still,
00:36:32.26\00:36:34.13
that is when
Moses hears God's call.
00:36:34.16\00:36:36.97
And I wonder as I
think on this story,
00:36:37.00\00:36:39.75
given the time and
history in which we live,
00:36:39.78\00:36:41.79
I wonder how many times
God must be reaching out to us
00:36:41.82\00:36:45.40
during our
day-to-day activities.
00:36:45.43\00:36:47.61
And instead of us
paying attention to God's call,
00:36:47.65\00:36:50.80
we just keep on doing everything
that we're already doing.
00:36:50.83\00:36:53.99
and we're missing
God's call because I believe
00:36:54.02\00:36:56.99
that God is putting
many more burning bushes
00:36:57.02\00:36:59.42
in our experience
than we may recognize.
00:36:59.45\00:37:02.51
I was traveling on an
airplane coming back from
00:37:02.54\00:37:07.23
and overseas country,
and while I was traveling
00:37:07.26\00:37:09.67
on this airplane,
I had two prayers...
00:37:09.70\00:37:11.93
"Lord"... Well more than that
and I was praying I'd get to
00:37:11.96\00:37:14.42
my destination on
time and safely...
00:37:14.45\00:37:17.42
But I said, "Lord,
please seat me next to somebody
00:37:17.45\00:37:20.59
who won't wake me up
too much during the flight,
00:37:20.62\00:37:22.92
and also somebody
that I can witness to.
00:37:22.95\00:37:25.85
So this man comes...
this young guy and he comes
00:37:25.88\00:37:28.27
and he sits next to me
on my row on the plane.
00:37:28.30\00:37:31.53
And there was one seat
between us and he was a very
00:37:31.56\00:37:33.81
polite, young man and
we made light conversation
00:37:33.84\00:37:37.60
in the beginning of our
trip, then the journey began,
00:37:37.63\00:37:40.67
and I fell asleep.
00:37:40.70\00:37:42.03
When I woke up, I looked
over at him and he wasn't there.
00:37:42.06\00:37:45.90
He had gone and I
felt, "That's strange."
00:37:45.93\00:37:47.42
I didn't remember
him asking me to move
00:37:47.45\00:37:49.98
so that he could
get up out of the seat.
00:37:50.01\00:37:51.93
So I just closed my eyes again.
00:37:51.96\00:37:53.56
A couple of minutes
later, I looked over
00:37:53.59\00:37:55.32
and he was there again.
00:37:55.35\00:37:57.38
It was a turbulent flight
and the first thought that came
00:37:57.41\00:37:59.81
to my mind was -
"Maybe this man was an angel"
00:37:59.84\00:38:02.72
because he hadn't woken me up.
00:38:02.75\00:38:04.45
Well, that thought
quickly disappeared when the
00:38:04.48\00:38:07.03
refreshments came
around and he asked for the
00:38:07.06\00:38:08.89
ham sandwich -
Hello, this is not an angel!
00:38:08.92\00:38:13.38
Anyway, we didn't talk
until the end of our journey,
00:38:13.41\00:38:17.35
and at the end of the
journey, just before the plane
00:38:17.38\00:38:19.70
comes in to
land, we start talking.
00:38:19.73\00:38:21.62
And he just opened up to
me and he was telling me about
00:38:21.65\00:38:25.93
his life story; his
girlfriend had just left him;
00:38:25.96\00:38:29.51
he had, in a matter of 2
days, decided that he was going
00:38:29.54\00:38:33.11
to leave his job,
which is a very good job
00:38:33.14\00:38:35.11
and he'd just up and leave
countries and move to Australia.
00:38:35.14\00:38:37.96
And he said to me, "I
just don't know if I'm
00:38:37.99\00:38:39.61
doing the right thing - I
just don't know what I'm doing."
00:38:39.64\00:38:42.48
I said, "Well you know
what, God is going to help you
00:38:42.51\00:38:44.81
and this is a new chapter,
God will bring you through it."
00:38:44.84\00:38:48.12
And I was trying to put
in, you know, little moments
00:38:48.15\00:38:50.46
where I could try and
witness to him about Jesus,
00:38:50.49\00:38:53.57
but he didn't quite bite,
but we kept talking and talking,
00:38:53.60\00:38:57.14
and finally I said to him...
00:38:57.17\00:38:59.00
He kept talking saying to
me, "I just don't understand,"
00:38:59.03\00:39:00.93
and I said, "Well God
is going to help you."
00:39:00.96\00:39:02.47
"God is going to help you," and
he said, "Yeah, you're right."
00:39:02.50\00:39:05.10
The plane starts coming in
to land, and I had two prayers.
00:39:05.13\00:39:08.64
The first one that God
would put me next to someone
00:39:08.67\00:39:11.29
who wouldn't wake me up -
He had answered that prayer.
00:39:11.32\00:39:13.27
And the second one was
that I would have opportunity
00:39:13.30\00:39:15.92
to give a "Steps to Christ" to
this person to witness to them.
00:39:15.95\00:39:19.37
And, as the plan is coming
in to land, I said to him,
00:39:19.40\00:39:22.20
"Would you like this little
book that I have in my bag,
00:39:22.23\00:39:25.45
I wanted to give it
away before I reached my
00:39:25.48\00:39:27.36
destination, would you take it?"
00:39:27.39\00:39:28.59
He said, "Yeah,
I'd love to take it."
00:39:28.62\00:39:30.56
So I got to
give this man a book,
00:39:30.59\00:39:33.01
"Steps to Christ" on my trip.
00:39:33.04\00:39:35.35
Now that's a really
little thing, but I think that
00:39:35.38\00:39:38.00
was like a
burning bush experience.
00:39:38.03\00:39:39.79
God put me in an
opportunity and I talked to him,
00:39:39.82\00:39:42.94
and God gave me the
ability, the opportunity to
00:39:42.97\00:39:45.81
witness to this man right here.
00:39:45.84\00:39:47.72
Another example of how this
can look in your daily life...
00:39:47.75\00:39:51.99
I was mowing the lawn one
day and I was really proud of
00:39:52.02\00:39:55.25
myself because when I
finished one tank of fuel,
00:39:55.28\00:39:58.71
I went and got another
tank of fuel to fill up
00:39:58.74\00:40:02.02
the lawn mower and it just
so happened that while I was
00:40:02.05\00:40:05.16
doing that, the
phone rang and it was
00:40:05.19\00:40:06.79
Pastor Youlden on the phone.
00:40:06.82\00:40:08.85
And I told him what I was
doing, I was mowing the lawn
00:40:08.88\00:40:11.30
... showing off,
yes, a little bit.
00:40:11.33\00:40:13.30
I was telling him that
I was changing the fuel
00:40:13.33\00:40:15.19
and he was very impressed
- "Oh, that's so good!"
00:40:15.22\00:40:18.42
As soon as I hung up, I
went to start the mower,
00:40:18.45\00:40:20.73
I realized I put the
wrong fuel in the mower,
00:40:20.76\00:40:24.05
and this was a very
serious thing because
00:40:24.08\00:40:26.48
the last lawn mower
that we had, had died because
00:40:26.51\00:40:29.64
we put the wrong fuel in it and
this was a brand new lawn mower.
00:40:29.67\00:40:34.26
So I thought, "What am
I going to do - my parents
00:40:34.29\00:40:36.83
they are not going
to be happy with this."
00:40:36.86\00:40:38.19
So I remembered when I
was in the Islands in Samoa,
00:40:38.22\00:40:41.70
my cousin had done
exactly the same thing,
00:40:41.73\00:40:44.38
and when we were in the
Islands, she had taken a hose,
00:40:44.41\00:40:47.35
stuck it in the fuel
tank and siphoned it out.
00:40:47.38\00:40:50.58
So I went, got a hose, and
tried to siphon out the fuel.
00:40:50.61\00:40:54.92
My attempt was stopped
when my phone rang again,
00:40:54.95\00:40:58.98
and this time, my phone
call was not a good one,
00:40:59.01\00:41:02.81
and this phone call...
You know those phone calls
00:41:02.84\00:41:05.93
that you get and
your whole world changes?
00:41:05.96\00:41:08.23
The news that this
person has on the other side,
00:41:08.26\00:41:10.69
that's what it was for me.
00:41:10.72\00:41:12.53
My whole world came crashing
down and I just couldn't
00:41:12.56\00:41:16.14
believe what was going
on in this phone call...
00:41:16.17\00:41:18.44
This person was
sharing something with me
00:41:18.47\00:41:20.92
that never shared before and
it was just very devastating.
00:41:20.95\00:41:23.76
I hung up on the phone call
and now I had a wrecked mower,
00:41:23.79\00:41:28.97
and my life felt
like it was a mess!
00:41:29.00\00:41:31.66
And I said to the Lord then,
00:41:31.69\00:41:33.03
I said, "Lord, if
you could fix this mower,
00:41:33.06\00:41:34.64
then I know that You
could fix this situation."
00:41:34.67\00:41:37.01
That was a Friday; the
next day, I went to church,
00:41:37.04\00:41:39.94
and while I was
there at the church,
00:41:39.97\00:41:41.99
I was wishing
everybody a "Happy Sabbath,"
00:41:42.02\00:41:43.96
but it was a very fake
Happy Sabbath that Sabbath,
00:41:43.99\00:41:46.15
because in my
heart, I was not happy,
00:41:46.18\00:41:47.77
or didn't want to be there.
00:41:47.80\00:41:49.07
And that night... I'm
the youth leader in my
00:41:49.10\00:41:51.59
local church and, generally,
they like to do things
00:41:51.62\00:41:54.00
on a Saturday night...
that Sabbath I managed to
00:41:54.03\00:41:56.39
convince every single one
of them that it was better
00:41:56.42\00:41:58.54
we all just go home!
00:41:58.57\00:41:59.92
So we all went home
that night and I came home
00:41:59.95\00:42:02.43
that night and I was angry.
00:42:02.46\00:42:04.55
I got angry and I couldn't
understand what was going on,
00:42:04.58\00:42:08.11
and I didn't like
what was happening,
00:42:08.14\00:42:10.37
and I fell asleep rehearsing
all the things that I wanted
00:42:10.40\00:42:14.51
to say to this person
when I finally saw them
00:42:14.54\00:42:17.06
face-to-face, it was terrible.
00:42:17.09\00:42:19.04
I woke up at 2
o'clock in the morning,
00:42:19.07\00:42:21.60
and I woke up still
rehearsing the same things
00:42:21.63\00:42:24.97
that I wanted to
say to this person.
00:42:25.00\00:42:26.33
That's how I knew I
was so worked up about the
00:42:26.36\00:42:28.96
situation and that's
when God got my attention.
00:42:28.99\00:42:33.16
"Charissa, what are you doing?"
00:42:33.19\00:42:35.15
"You're angry at
somebody who doesn't even know
00:42:35.18\00:42:37.65
that they have upset you;
it's 2 o'clock in the morning,
00:42:37.68\00:42:40.69
what are you doing?"
00:42:40.72\00:42:41.82
And I came and I knelt
beside my bed and I prayed
00:42:41.85\00:42:45.01
and it was one of those
prayers where you're just alone,
00:42:45.04\00:42:47.35
just you and God and you
just want to make sure that
00:42:47.38\00:42:50.31
your prayer reaches heaven.
00:42:50.34\00:42:51.81
Remember, the phone
line to glory is always open.
00:42:51.84\00:42:55.35
But that night, when I prayed,
I told the Lord my address.
00:42:55.38\00:42:58.69
I told Him how He
could find me when He reached
00:42:58.72\00:43:00.86
the front door of my house...
00:43:00.89\00:43:02.01
I'm in the upstairs
room, I'm on the left.
00:43:02.04\00:43:04.23
I gave God specific directions
because I needed to hear
00:43:04.26\00:43:07.50
His voice, and I told
Him about everything that was
00:43:07.53\00:43:09.98
upsetting me and do you
know what God said to me?
00:43:10.01\00:43:12.21
"Just trust Me."
00:43:12.24\00:43:14.68
He often says that to me.
00:43:14.71\00:43:16.74
And do you know what, I
went to sleep that night,
00:43:16.77\00:43:20.69
and I had this
peace come over me.
00:43:20.72\00:43:22.35
The next day, I woke up, made
a phone call to this person,
00:43:22.38\00:43:25.25
and would you
believe... we talked it through,
00:43:25.28\00:43:27.66
and the whole situation God
turned it for good at the end!
00:43:27.69\00:43:31.91
Not only that,
remember I said, "Lord, if You
00:43:31.94\00:43:34.52
were to fix the
mower, then I know that
00:43:34.55\00:43:36.73
You could fix anything."
00:43:36.76\00:43:38.17
Well, on the Thursday
of the following week,
00:43:38.20\00:43:40.01
my mom said, "Charissa,
we better take the mower
00:43:40.04\00:43:42.32
and we better get it replaced,"
so I went to go in the backyard
00:43:42.35\00:43:46.28
to get it so we
could put it in the car,
00:43:46.31\00:43:48.16
and before I put it
in the car, I thought,
00:43:48.19\00:43:50.18
"I'll just try it once more."
00:43:50.21\00:43:51.46
Prayed... Went to
start it, and the whole thing
00:43:51.49\00:43:53.99
kicked over again! God is good!
00:43:54.02\00:43:56.07
He turned that
whole experience around!
00:43:56.10\00:43:58.83
I'm running out of time and
I had other things here to say.
00:43:58.86\00:44:01.76
But listen, let me
close with these words here...
00:44:01.79\00:44:05.81
Moses' problem
was that he failed to
00:44:05.84\00:44:08.86
believe that God could help him.
00:44:08.89\00:44:10.52
He failed to believe
that God could use him,
00:44:10.55\00:44:12.69
and so we find in "Patriarchs
and Prophets" that it says,
00:44:12.72\00:44:17.24
"Every failure on the
part of the children of God
00:44:17.27\00:44:19.42
is due to their lack of faith."
00:44:19.45\00:44:22.24
Friends, God wants you to
know something this afternoon,
00:44:22.27\00:44:24.85
that it's not about YOU!
00:44:24.88\00:44:27.66
It's all about HIM! Amen?
00:44:27.69\00:44:30.44
God wants us not to
move in our own strength,
00:44:30.47\00:44:33.61
but to move by His power.
00:44:33.64\00:44:35.76
So friend, if God is
calling you, step out in faith,
00:44:35.79\00:44:39.41
and know that you
are not alone when you
00:44:39.44\00:44:41.99
follow His leading. Amen?
00:44:42.02\00:44:44.24
I wanted to put in something
here because, listen...
00:44:44.27\00:44:48.64
"There is no limit to
the usefulness of one,
00:44:48.67\00:44:51.40
who putting self aside,
makes room for the indwelling
00:44:51.43\00:44:54.99
of the Holy Spirit.
00:44:55.02\00:44:56.95
Some of us are waiting
for God to give us a sign
00:44:56.98\00:44:59.72
so that we know we
can move forward in faith,
00:44:59.75\00:45:01.57
and trust Him, but God
just wants us to trust Him.
00:45:01.60\00:45:04.09
Just step out in faith
and know that I will be there.
00:45:04.12\00:45:07.03
When I was in high school,
I got to school one morning,
00:45:07.06\00:45:10.35
and I was in year
8, and I was very shy,
00:45:10.38\00:45:14.16
and I was talking with
my friends one morning,
00:45:14.19\00:45:16.11
my English teacher
walked past and she said to me,
00:45:16.14\00:45:18.67
"Charissa, have you got your
English speech ready for class?"
00:45:18.70\00:45:22.31
And my friends and I,
we looked at each other...
00:45:22.34\00:45:23.95
We didn't know about any speech
00:45:23.98\00:45:25.92
that was due in
class the next period.
00:45:25.95\00:45:27.75
She said, "Well,
it's due next period,
00:45:27.78\00:45:29.92
you better go write something."
00:45:29.95\00:45:31.28
So we showed up at class
and, of course, teachers know
00:45:31.31\00:45:34.13
when you haven't
done your homework...
00:45:34.16\00:45:35.57
They put your names on the top
00:45:35.60\00:45:37.53
of the list when you
haven't done your homework.
00:45:37.56\00:45:39.48
And my name went at the
top of the list on this board.
00:45:39.51\00:45:41.97
So, I had to give this speech.
00:45:42.00\00:45:43.92
This particular speech was
a monologue where you get up
00:45:43.95\00:45:46.44
and you pretend to be
like you're somebody else.
00:45:46.47\00:45:49.48
And so I thought, "Well,
I've been reading a book called,
00:45:49.51\00:45:52.32
"Rachel's Tears," has
anybody read this book?
00:45:52.35\00:45:55.48
Nobody - okay... someone.
00:45:55.51\00:45:57.41
It's a book about a
girl who died during the
00:45:57.44\00:45:59.81
Columbine High School shooting.
00:45:59.84\00:46:01.12
She was a Christian, they
pointed the gun at her head.
00:46:01.15\00:46:03.27
They said, "Do
you believe in God?"
00:46:03.30\00:46:04.73
She said, "Yes,"
and so they shot her.
00:46:04.76\00:46:05.98
And the whole book
is about her story,
00:46:06.01\00:46:07.36
a wonderful person that she was.
00:46:07.39\00:46:09.67
I decided that I would be the
brother of this girl in the book
00:46:09.70\00:46:13.05
So I'm 14 years old, in year
8, and I stood up in front of my
00:46:13.08\00:46:17.00
classmates and I'm going through
this speech pretending I'm
00:46:17.03\00:46:20.25
this other person, and
at the end of the speech,
00:46:20.28\00:46:22.84
I thought to myself, "Why
don't I make an appeal like the
00:46:22.87\00:46:28.35
evangelists do in
their crusades, after all,
00:46:28.38\00:46:30.72
I'm just pretending to
be like somebody else."
00:46:30.75\00:46:33.77
And I have grown
up always practicing
00:46:33.80\00:46:36.53
how to preach in
front of a mirror.
00:46:36.56\00:46:37.90
When I was a little girl,
my mom brought my sister and I
00:46:37.93\00:46:40.30
to church and we would
practice in front of the mirror
00:46:40.33\00:46:43.46
and we played church together.
00:46:43.49\00:46:45.32
She would do the
offering, sing, do the welcome,
00:46:45.35\00:46:48.80
and sing the hymn,
do the special items,
00:46:48.83\00:46:51.18
then I got up preach and
then we'd stand together sing
00:46:51.21\00:46:53.93
our closing hymn and then I'd
stand at the door of our room,
00:46:53.96\00:46:56.34
shake her hand and
thank her for coming!
00:46:56.37\00:46:59.23
And so I'm in my speech
with my class, a live audience,
00:46:59.26\00:47:02.82
and this idea comes, why
don't you make an appeal,
00:47:02.85\00:47:04.89
so I thought, "Great!"
00:47:04.92\00:47:05.96
So I get to the end
of my speech and I said,
00:47:05.99\00:47:07.79
"And now if you would
like to accept Jesus as your
00:47:07.82\00:47:09.88
personal Savior, would you
mind raising your hands at me."
00:47:09.91\00:47:13.48
The whole class just sat there!
00:47:13.51\00:47:15.79
And it felt like a very long
time because I've never seen
00:47:15.82\00:47:19.75
an appeal done
when nobody responded,
00:47:19.78\00:47:21.66
so I didn't know what
to do if nobody responds.
00:47:21.69\00:47:25.33
So I was just going to
wait there until somebody moved.
00:47:25.36\00:47:28.08
Finally, after what
seemed to be an eternity,
00:47:28.11\00:47:30.45
my friend in the front
row, finally she put her hand up
00:47:30.48\00:47:34.02
and I said, "God bless
you," friend, and sat down.
00:47:34.05\00:47:36.87
When I went home that
night, I felt like Moses.
00:47:36.90\00:47:40.81
I felt like Moses
felt in the wilderness.
00:47:40.84\00:47:42.72
I felt a failure - I never
wanted to go back to that school
00:47:42.75\00:47:46.19
I said to my mom, "Can
you please change my school,
00:47:46.22\00:47:48.90
I don't ever want
to see them again."
00:47:48.93\00:47:50.57
"They're just going
to think I'm weird."
00:47:50.60\00:47:52.24
Well the next day,
I showed up at school,
00:47:52.27\00:47:54.45
and to make things
worse, my friends weren't there.
00:47:54.48\00:47:57.43
But my teacher was
walking across the campus,
00:47:57.46\00:47:59.86
and as she was
walking across, she says,
00:47:59.89\00:48:01.76
"Good morning Charissa."
"Good morning," I said.
00:48:01.79\00:48:03.90
She says, "Walk with me."
00:48:03.93\00:48:05.25
So I obeyed and walked with
her across the school campus.
00:48:05.28\00:48:07.73
She says to me,
"That was an amazing
00:48:07.76\00:48:09.41
speech that you
have the other day."
00:48:09.44\00:48:11.10
I said, "Really?" She
said, "How would you like
00:48:11.13\00:48:12.99
to give it in assembly today?"
00:48:13.02\00:48:14.96
I said, "You
mean the whole thing?"
00:48:14.99\00:48:18.24
"You mean the hands
up thing and everything?"
00:48:18.27\00:48:19.77
She said, "Yes, I've been
talking with the teachers.
00:48:19.80\00:48:22.45
We want the whole
thing in assembly.
00:48:22.48\00:48:24.17
You got 99 out of 100."
00:48:24.20\00:48:25.78
I said, "Really? What
did I lose the mark on?
00:48:25.81\00:48:27.64
She said, "You went too long."
00:48:27.67\00:48:29.11
That's... I'm
going too long now too.
00:48:29.14\00:48:31.51
"That's because
nobody put their hands up."
00:48:31.54\00:48:34.40
Well friends, I prayed
very hard that morning,
00:48:34.43\00:48:37.87
and when the opportunity
came for me to deliver that
00:48:37.90\00:48:40.44
same speech to my whole school,
00:48:40.47\00:48:42.28
I changed the appeal just
a little bit because I wanted
00:48:42.31\00:48:45.13
more hands and
when I made the appeal,
00:48:45.16\00:48:47.40
nearly every hand
in the school went up.
00:48:47.43\00:48:49.79
And I remember coming
off the platform that day
00:48:49.82\00:48:52.01
thinking, "I felt shaken
because God had just used me."
00:48:52.04\00:48:56.35
And if God can use
me, if God can use Moses,
00:48:56.38\00:49:00.10
God can use you too. Amen?
00:49:00.13\00:49:03.38
All we need to do is trust Him.
00:49:03.41\00:49:05.07
So, I've been talking for
probably too long right now,
00:49:05.10\00:49:08.58
but I'm going to
finish right here
00:49:08.61\00:49:10.41
and I just want to ask you...
00:49:10.44\00:49:12.17
We've had a wonderful time
at this witness conference.
00:49:12.20\00:49:14.91
I've been really
blessed as I have sat here and
00:49:14.94\00:49:18.20
been listening to God's
words and I've felt impressed.
00:49:18.23\00:49:21.39
There have been convictions
that have come to my heart,
00:49:21.42\00:49:24.00
and as I come to this message,
and as I think on this story,
00:49:24.03\00:49:27.56
I believe that God is
calling people in this room
00:49:27.59\00:49:30.44
to a specific task,
to a specific mission,
00:49:30.47\00:49:34.43
to a specific place of service.
00:49:34.46\00:49:39.49
And if that is you,
if you sense that God is
00:49:39.52\00:49:41.59
calling you, maybe
it's not to deliver
00:49:41.62\00:49:43.94
the whole nation of
Israel out of Egypt,
00:49:43.97\00:49:46.14
but God has people that
He can use you to speak to.
00:49:46.17\00:49:49.54
Use you to witness to.
00:49:49.57\00:49:51.25
Maybe God has been placing
their names on your mind,
00:49:51.28\00:49:54.16
then I just want
to encourage you.
00:49:54.19\00:49:55.79
Do not give God objections.
00:49:55.82\00:49:58.07
Take Him at His
word and trust Him,
00:49:58.10\00:50:00.43
because He has
everything that you need. Amen?
00:50:00.46\00:50:04.62
So, if that is you, do you
sense that God is calling you?
00:50:04.65\00:50:08.20
Hands - do you sense it? Amen!
00:50:08.23\00:50:11.13
Then friends, if God is calling
you, let nothing stop you!
00:50:11.16\00:50:14.83
Let nothing and no
one come between you
00:50:14.86\00:50:17.52
and responding
to the call of God.
00:50:17.55\00:50:19.55
Let's bow as we close...
00:50:19.58\00:50:21.33
Father in Heaven, We
thank you for the story
00:50:21.36\00:50:24.32
of Moses, who turned
aside to see, and when he did
00:50:24.35\00:50:28.08
he had this encounter with you.
00:50:28.11\00:50:30.24
We live in this world
where there are so many things
00:50:30.27\00:50:32.83
that are competing for
our time and attention.
00:50:32.86\00:50:35.36
So much so that I'm
sure, on many occasions,
00:50:35.39\00:50:37.70
we are missing the
call of God in our lives.
00:50:37.73\00:50:40.54
We are missing the opportunities
that You are placing
00:50:40.57\00:50:42.94
in front of us because we're
too busy, we're too distracted.
00:50:42.97\00:50:45.50
But right now, this
afternoon, we just want to say,
00:50:45.53\00:50:48.31
"Lord, here we are, send us."
00:50:48.34\00:50:51.56
We believe that Your word
is true. That You are faithful
00:50:51.59\00:50:54.65
and You will do
as You have promised.
00:50:54.68\00:50:56.43
I pray that you will
use us in Your service,
00:50:56.46\00:50:58.86
and there is a
call for everybody here.
00:50:58.89\00:51:00.82
I pray that You will
speak very clearly to them,
00:51:00.85\00:51:03.30
and make known
to them Your will,
00:51:03.33\00:51:05.35
because You're coming
soon, and we long to be ready
00:51:05.38\00:51:08.24
to meet You when You
come and with everybody
00:51:08.27\00:51:10.40
around us that we
love, we want to be ready
00:51:10.43\00:51:12.53
to meet You as unbroken families
00:51:12.56\00:51:14.18
with our friends and loved ones.
00:51:14.21\00:51:15.82
And we ask this
in Jesus name... Amen
00:51:15.85\00:51:18.83