Participants: Rick Remmers
Series Code: FC
Program Code: FC000216
|
00:31 Hello, welcome to Faith Chapel.
00:33 I'm pastor Rick Remmers, from Chicago, Illinois. 00:37 I'm glad that you can join us as we consider the message 00:40 the view from the top. 00:43 William Dyke became blind at the age of 10. 00:48 Despite this handicap he was quite intelligent, 00:51 went to school, had a good sense of humor 00:54 and had many friends. 00:56 While he was attending graduate school in England, 00:59 William met the daughter of an English admiral. 01:03 They fell in love and soon became engaged. 01:07 William had never seen her 01:09 but he loved her with all of his heart 01:11 and at the insistence of her father the admiral 01:15 he agreed to under go a treatment for his eyesight 01:19 to try and restore it. 01:20 It had been so many years that he had been blind that 01:24 there seems like there was little hope 01:26 but he was willing to try and he decided that 01:31 they would take the bandages off his eyes 01:35 at the wedding ceremony 01:36 so that the first thing he would see 01:39 would be his new bride. 01:41 As the admiral was leading his daughter down the aisle 01:45 William's father started to unwrap the gauze 01:48 wrapped around his head. 01:50 Soon the bandages were removed from his eyes 01:53 and as he opened his eyes 01:55 for the first time in many years 01:58 he was able to see the face of his new bride, 02:02 the one that he loved. 02:04 Sometimes the view from a mountain top 02:07 can be like going from blindness to new site. 02:11 From the top of a mountain you gain a prospective 02:14 of everything around you. 02:16 You can see so much more than when your down in the valley 02:20 and today I want us to take a look 02:22 at Mountain Nebo 02:24 and some of the events that took place there 02:26 and the lessons that we can learn 02:28 from Moses and others 02:30 as they spend time on Mount Nebo. 02:34 Mount Nebo is about ten miles east 02:37 of where the Jordan River joins into the Dead Sea. 02:41 In the scriptures that's also referred to as Mount Pisgah. 02:47 Going to Deuteronomy 3:27 we find the first lesson. 02:54 "Go up to the top of Pisgah, 02:56 and lift your eyes toward the west, 02:58 the north, the south, and the east 03:01 behold it with your eyes, 03:03 for you shall not cross over this Jordan." 03:07 One of the things that we find in the lessons from Mount Nebo 03:11 is that there is a penalty for sin. 03:15 Moses after serving faithfully through out the 40 years 03:19 wandering in the wilderness 03:21 has come close to the end of that time 03:23 and once again the children of Israel 03:25 are with out water 03:26 and they're grumbling in complaining to Moses 03:29 blaming him for this. 03:30 He goes to God and God instructs him in a similar way 03:35 to what had happened many years before 03:37 but with some change 03:39 he was instructed to go and speak to the rock 03:41 and fresh water would come out 03:44 in order to give to the children of Israel. 03:46 But Moses went with Aaron and in frustration 03:50 he took his staff and he-- he struck that rock 03:55 because of the needs of the people 03:56 God respected this 03:59 and allowed the water to come forth. 04:02 But this had violated the instruction 04:04 that God had given to Moses. 04:06 Moses and Aaron were claiming to take credit 04:09 for being able to bring water from the rock 04:12 and they had struck the rock a second time 04:15 violating the-- the very symbol 04:18 that God was providing 04:19 as a lesson to the children of Israel. 04:22 Jesus of course in the scriptures 04:24 as referred to the rock 04:25 and Jesus has struck once for our sins 04:29 dying once on the cross of Calvary 04:31 for our sins. 04:33 Successive times when we are needing forgiveness, 04:36 Jesus has not crucified over and over again. 04:39 We simply speak asking for forgiveness 04:42 coming to Him with a repentant heart 04:44 and our sins are forgiven. 04:46 By striking the rock twice 04:49 Moses took away from this image this lesson. 04:54 And because he was the leader for the children of Israel 04:58 the response was doubly troubling for him 05:04 because 40 years earlier 05:07 when the children of Israel had come up 05:08 to the edges of the promise land 05:10 they had lacked faith that God would give this land to them. 05:13 Ten of the twelve spies came back 05:15 with a negative report that the-- 05:17 the people of the land were giants 05:19 and their cities were true well fortified 05:21 and they would never be able to go and take this land. 05:24 And so God let that curse come upon them. 05:28 And He let them go back to the wilderness 05:31 and He said that all of the adults 05:33 who had been there, who lack the faith to go in 05:36 would not be able to go in to the land of promise. 05:39 It would be their children 05:41 who would inherit the promise land. 05:43 And now, nearly 40 years later 05:45 as they come again to the Jordan valley 05:49 and are ready to cross over 05:50 into the land of Israel to the Palestine. 05:55 Moses and Aaron are told that they cannot cross over 05:58 that they too must die in the wilderness 06:02 and will not be able to set foot in the promise land. 06:06 There is a penalty that comes for sin. 06:10 There is a nursery rhyme that's well known it goes, 06:13 Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall, Humpty Dumpty had a great fall, 06:17 All the king's horses, all the king's men, 06:20 Couldn't put Humpty together again. 06:22 And according to people who know such things 06:26 they say that this nursery rhyme is actually 06:29 a relic from thousands of years ago 06:32 and that it appears in eight European languages 06:35 and in its primitive stages however Humpty Dumpty 06:38 was really a riddle that asked the question 06:40 what when broken can never be repaired 06:43 not even by strong or wise individuals 06:47 and any child knows the answer, its an egg. 06:50 An egg when broken cannot be put back together again. 06:53 Once that shell is crushed it's crushed 06:57 and it will never be the same again. 07:01 In our lives there are Humpty Dumpty 07:04 kinds of experiences. 07:06 We find that when Adam and Eve fell into sin 07:10 this world was broken like an egg 07:14 and it cannot be put back together again 07:16 no matter how wise we think we are or capable, 07:20 they are the results of sin it will never be the same again 07:24 until it is transformed recreated by the power of God. 07:28 And when there is sin in our life 07:31 it brings its consequences, 07:34 it brings its devastating effects 07:36 and they're wounds, they're scares 07:38 that remain through out our life 07:40 as we make decisions that dishonor God. 07:44 Moses learned this in a difficult way 07:47 but he also trusted that God will lead him appropriately. 07:53 There's another lesson that we learn from Mount Nebo 07:56 and that's that we must have faith in God's promises. 08:01 Moses had many experiences 08:03 that lead him to increase his faith 08:06 that God was leading in his life 08:09 and that the promises of God remained certain in secure. 08:13 You have the experience of Moses 08:15 when he was still a baby 08:17 and his mother unwilling to have him destroyed 08:20 as all the young boys born to the-- 08:22 the Israelites had been commanded to be killed 08:27 she put him in a basket 08:29 in the bulrushes of the Nile river. 08:31 And there he was protected 08:33 and God's hand was seen in his life. 08:36 Forty years later he-- he leaves Egypt 08:39 and it seems like his whole world 08:41 has fallen in around him that -- 08:43 that any plan that he had for helping God's people 08:46 had been destroyed with his rash act 08:50 of killing the slave master. 08:52 But he goes and spends another 40 years 08:54 tending the sheep on the side of Mount Sinai 08:59 and then God comes to him in the burning bush 09:01 and gives him the promise that He will be with him 09:03 as he goes to speak to Pharaoh 09:06 that He will present miracles and bring about events 09:11 so that Pharaoh will finally let the people go. 09:14 There is a promise of God that as the children of Israel 09:17 put that blood of the lamb on the doorpost of their home 09:20 that the first born in their home 09:22 would not be killed by the Passover angel. 09:27 There is the experience of Mount Sinai 09:29 where the people came 09:31 and they received the law of God 09:33 and God met with Moses there. 09:36 There was Korah's rebellion as Korah 09:38 hundreds of the princess of the tribes of Israel 09:41 came and felt like they could lead the children of Israel 09:45 better than Moses could 09:46 that after being turned away from the land of promise 09:51 and sent back into the wilderness 09:54 that they could lead in a way that 09:57 the people would appreciate more than Moses. 10:00 And God simply came and brought judgment upon them. 10:03 Moses waited for God to act 10:05 and the earth opened up and swallowed them. 10:10 You have the repeated times 10:12 where the people fell into apostasy 10:14 and they lost confidence that God was leading them. 10:18 They worshipped the golden calf while Moses was on Mount Sinai 10:23 and God was wanting to destroy the children of Israel 10:27 and create a new nation from the decadence of Moses 10:31 and bring about the promise that He had given to Abraham, 10:34 Isaac and Jacob 10:35 through the descendent of Moses. 10:37 But Moses intersected on behalf of the people 10:40 before God. 10:42 He had a certain hope and this hope is described 10:45 in Hebrew 11:1 we read there, 10:50 "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, 10:53 the evidence of things not seen." 10:56 Moses had great hope in things that he hadn't seen 11:00 because God had promised them 11:03 and God's promises had always been true. 11:06 Sometimes things turned out differently than Moses 11:09 had planned or wanted 11:11 but God's word never failed him. 11:13 And so he had a certain hope in the promise of God. 11:17 Another lesson that we find from 11:21 the experience of Mount Nebo 11:22 and this actually comes from the prophet Nehemiah 11:26 is that we cannot stand against the Lord. 11:29 He has a plan and a purpose and events in this world 11:33 take their course within certain bounds 11:36 set by God. 11:38 Numbers 23:14 describes Nehemiah's experience 11:43 "So he brought him to the field of Zophim, 11:46 to the top of Pisgah, and built seven altars, 11:49 and offered a bull and a ram on each altar." 11:53 Here Nehemiah has been asked to curse the people of Israel 11:57 by King Balak. 11:58 Balak has been concerned he is heard of-- of the ways 12:01 that God has provided for the children of Israel 12:04 in the past. 12:05 How the armies of pharaoh and Egypt 12:07 had been drowned in the Red Sea 12:09 and now that they are on the-- the edge of his territory. 12:14 He is wanting to find a way to defeat them. 12:16 He is concerned that he-- he can't do it militarily 12:18 so he calls for the prophet of God 12:20 Nehemiah to come. 12:22 Now, Nehemiah had been a faithful prophet of God 12:25 but his heart was filled with greed. 12:27 He wanted the honor and the material possession 12:31 which Balak would give as a reward 12:34 for cursing the children of Israel. 12:36 So, he says to the ambassadors from Balak, 12:40 let me come to the Lord and pray about this. 12:44 God initially tell him that he can't go 12:47 but King Balak believes that Nehemiah is simply holding out 12:50 for more wealth and so, greater dignitaries 12:53 are sent offering more of a reward to Nehemiah. 12:57 Finally, Nehemiah agrees to go God 12:59 conscience that he can go 13:01 but he must speak the words that God will give to him. 13:05 So, he sets off on his way. 13:07 We have the unusual account of-- 13:09 of Nehemiah's donkey running to the side of the path and-- 13:14 and Balaam cursing and hitting his donkey 13:18 until finally Nehemiah's eyes are open 13:20 and he too sees the angel of God 13:22 standing in the path way. 13:24 He is reminded that he must speak 13:25 what God tells him to. 13:27 So he gets to the top of Pisgah 13:29 actually one mountain after another 13:31 he essence with Balak. 13:33 They build the seven altars. 13:34 They try and out sacrifice the people of Israel 13:38 thinking that this would appease God in some way. 13:42 And each time Nehemiah opens his mouth 13:44 to pronounce a curse 13:46 there is a blessing that comes out 13:48 bringing increasing frustration to King Balak. 13:51 But we cannot stand against the Lord. 13:55 God had chosen to be with 13:58 and bless the children of Israel. 14:00 And there wasn't any sacrifice, there wasn't any curse 14:03 that Nehemiah could give that would dissuade God 14:06 from the plan and the purpose that He had for His people. 14:09 We must not try to please ourselves, 14:12 we have to obey God rather than man. 14:16 And time and again as we look at the prophesies of God word 14:19 we find that-- that God is unfolding events in this earth 14:23 in order to accomplish His purpose. 14:25 As we the see the rise and fall of nations 14:28 described in the prophecy of Daniel 2 14:30 and the prophecy of Revelation 14:31 we recognize that 14:33 well, this world seems to be in chaos 14:35 and completely out of control 14:37 as one natural disaster after another takes place 14:39 and there are wars between the nations. 14:42 We wonder what the-- the end result will be 14:46 and God's word tells us that God remains on His throne. 14:51 God remains in control and this earth will end 14:54 with a second coming of Jesus Christ. 14:57 We can have confidence in the future 14:59 and we cannot set ourselves 15:01 to stand against the will of God. 15:05 Nehemiah finally understood as a prophet of God 15:08 that wealthy couldn't curse Israel 15:11 that he could bring temptation to the children of Israel 15:15 and tempt them to separate themselves 15:18 from God's leading. 15:19 And so that's what he encouraged Balak to do 15:21 to send the women of Midian in among the women 15:26 in the children of Israel 15:27 and there they could form friendships, 15:30 that would bring the people to worship their false gods. 15:35 The children of Israel fell into idolatry and adultery 15:39 and they run faithful to God 15:41 and this brought a judgment upon them 15:44 but the choice was there as to make 15:45 as long as they remained faithful 15:47 the promises of God were assured 15:50 and they were not able to stand against Him. 15:54 Another lesson that we find at Mountain Nebo 15:56 and the experience of Moses is that 15:59 we are at the gateway to heaven. 16:03 We cannot predict the future in great detail 16:06 but God tells us what the end result will be. 16:10 Deuteronomy 34:1-8 16:13 we find the description of Moses 16:16 as he climbs up Mountain Nebo. 16:20 "Then Moses went up from the plains of Moab 16:23 to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, 16:25 which is across from Jericho. 16:26 And the Lord showed him all the land of Gilead 16:29 as far as Dan, 16:32 all Naphtali and the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, 16:36 all the land of Judah as far as the Western Sea, 16:39 the South, and the plain of the Valley of Jericho, 16:41 the city of palm trees, as far as Zoar. 16:46 Then the Lord said to him, 16:47 'This is the land of which I swore to give Abraham, 16:50 Isaac, and Jacob, saying, 16:52 "I will give it to your descendants." 16:54 I have caused you to see it with your eyes, 16:58 but you shall not cross over there.' 17:00 So Moses the servant of the Lord 17:02 died there in the land of Moab, 17:04 according to the word of the Lord. 17:06 And He buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, 17:10 opposite Beth Peor 17:12 but no one knows his grave to this day. 17:15 Moses was one hundred and twenty years old 17:17 when he died. 17:18 His eyes were not dim nor his natural vigor diminished. 17:23 And the children of Israel wept for Moses 17:25 in the plains of Moab thirty days. 17:27 So the days of weeping and mourning for Moses ended." 17:32 Moses was climbing Mountain Nebo 17:35 and he knew that it was the end of his life. 17:37 The children of Israel understood this as well 17:41 but God also had another plan for Moses 17:44 and in the New Testament we find that 17:46 there is the rest of the story Jude verse 9 tells us, 17:52 "Yet Michael the archangel, in contending with the devil, 17:55 when he disputed about the body of Moses, 17:58 dared not bring against him a reviling accusation, 18:01 but said, 'The Lord rebuke you!' 18:05 " God wasn't finished with Moses 18:08 and God had something even greater 18:11 than the earthly Canaan in store for him. 18:14 And so as Moses climbed to the top of Mount Nebo, 18:19 he gave up his life, he died there on Mount Nebo 18:24 but God came and claimed him as the first truth says 18:27 the promise that Jesus would conquer 18:30 the power of the grave, 18:31 that there would be a resurrection 18:33 and the resurrection of Moses was promise 18:36 that God would be able to bring to life 18:38 all of those who love Him at the time of His return. 18:43 This produced unmistakable evidence to Satan 18:47 that his power on this earth was waning away. 18:53 That Jesus in the plan of salvation 18:55 that God had would be a success. 18:59 Satan still resisted but God's plan and purpose 19:02 was foreshadowed in the resurrection of Moses. 19:06 While he left this earth, there was something 19:09 even better that God had. 19:11 In Hebrews 11:24-26 We find a description of this, 19:17 "By faith Moses, when he became of age, 19:19 refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, 19:22 choosing rather to suffer affliction 19:24 with the people of God 19:25 than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, 19:29 esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches 19:31 than the treasures in Egypt for he looked to the reward." 19:36 Moses had an eternal prospective. 19:39 He wasn't looking for all of the things 19:41 that the courts of Pharaoh could provide in Egypt. 19:43 He wasn't looking for honor from the children of Israel. 19:46 He knew that following God's plan 19:48 would lead to life eternal. 19:51 He had a prospective on life 19:53 that was not just restricted to the here now 19:56 but it was focused on eternity 19:58 and accepting the whole of God's promises 20:01 that God ultimately had not just 20:03 the promise land in Canaan for those who followed Him 20:07 but ultimately a heavenly Canaan 20:09 awaiting for them 20:10 and that was the reward of Moses 20:13 and he was willing to experience something 20:16 much greater than this world could offer. 20:19 Instead of the promise land he had a new heaven 20:21 and a new earth. 20:22 Instead of enjoying the wealth of Pharaoh Quotes 20:25 he had the streets of gold in the New Jerusalem. 20:28 Instead of great political power 20:30 in the nations of this earth 20:32 he experienced miss treatment by the people of God. 20:35 Instead of being preserved as a mummy in Egypt, 20:38 he was able to go and be with Jesus 20:40 at the transfiguration 20:42 being a critical point in Jesus ministry. 20:44 Moses looked to the reward, 20:47 he was one step away from heaven. 20:50 And we don't know the timing of our lives, 20:52 we don't know when the sleep of death will take us 20:56 but the next thing we know 20:57 will be the return of Jesus Christ, 20:59 will be the resurrection, will be the-- 21:01 the eternal life that Jesus promises to us. 21:06 The fifth lesson we learn from Mountain Nebo 21:09 is that we are not to build any human shrine. 21:13 Moses burial place was not preserved by any other people. 21:19 It was shortly before this that Moses older brother Aaron 21:23 had Moses and his sons Eleazar accompany him 21:27 to the place of his death. 21:30 He died there in Moses arms and Moses and Eleazar 21:34 were able to burry Aaron 21:35 and they at least knew the site of his burial. 21:39 But Moses went alone to the top of Mountain Nebo 21:44 we are not to be worshipping any prophet 21:46 even some one so great as Moses 21:49 there is no apostle there is no priest, 21:52 there is no pastor, preacher or teacher 21:54 that we are to make a shine to. 21:57 We worship Jesus Christ in Him alone. 21:59 And our natural human tendency is to look for-- 22:02 for a physical place, 22:04 a physical thing that we can go and worship at. 22:08 And yet we are not to create these shrines. 22:12 And Moses place of death 22:15 was not persevered for future generations to come to 22:19 and worship and regret where it happened. 22:23 Instead his place went completely unmarked. 22:27 The sixth and final lesson 22:28 we will look at from Mountain Nebo 22:30 is that the view from the top gives us a clear prospective. 22:35 Moses needed a clear prospective 22:38 and he needed to be able to understand 22:41 that God was leading each step of his life 22:43 and that God had a plan and a purpose in his life. 22:50 There is a story about a-- a bishop 22:53 who was traveling from the east coast 22:57 to a small Midwestern college. 23:00 He was going to be a guest speaker there 23:02 and he was staying with the college president 23:05 a young man who not only served as the president 23:08 but was the professor of physics and chemistry. 23:10 And after dinner the bishop declared that 23:14 the return of Christ must be very soon 23:16 because just about everything in nature had been discovered 23:20 and all the inventions that could be thought off 23:23 had already been made. 23:24 The young college president 23:26 politely disagreed with the bishop. 23:27 He felt that there were 23:28 many more discoveries to be made. 23:31 The bishop became angry and challenged the president 23:34 to name one thing that could yet be invented. 23:37 The president said that 23:38 he was certain that with in 50 years 23:41 people would be able to fly. 23:44 "Nonsense!" said the bishop. 23:46 There is no way, only angels are intended to fly. 23:49 That's never going to happen. 23:51 But Bishop Wright didn't have the same kind of vision 23:55 that his two boys had and they were at home 23:58 conducting their own experiments 24:00 and developing their own inventions 24:03 and his two sons Orville and Wilbur Wright are credited 24:07 with conducting the first manned flight. 24:12 Our vision should not be restricted 24:14 to the little bit that we can see. 24:17 We need to have a clear perspective 24:19 of how God is leading and what God is doing. 24:23 One of the perspective that we need to have in life 24:25 is to avoid the clutter of all the little things. 24:28 Jesus warned against the cares and anxieties 24:31 of this life weighing us down so that-- 24:33 so that we loose track of those things 24:35 that are most important. 24:37 We can never take our eyes off of Jesus in His leading. 24:42 We need to see the big issues, the important issues of life. 24:46 We need to recognize that the greatest priority 24:50 is that we have a personal relationship 24:53 with Jesus Christ and that we maintain that day by day 24:57 and there is no daily pressure 24:59 that's more important than that time with Jesus Christ. 25:03 We also need to be willing to let the past be the past. 25:07 There's nothing we can do to-- 25:09 to change events that have taken place before. 25:13 The people of Australia have chosen 25:16 as a part of the symbol on their-- 25:18 their crust of arms the emu and kangaroo 25:22 and what's unique about the emu and the kangaroo 25:24 is that neither one of them can move backwards, 25:27 they can only go forward because of the-- 25:29 the three toes on the emu they have to move forward 25:32 or they'll fall and because of their strong tail 25:34 that the kangaroo has it can only jump forward. 25:38 And that's the way the people of Australia 25:40 want to conduct themselves. 25:42 And as Christians that's what we do as well. 25:44 We look forward to the hope 25:46 of what Jesus Christ has promised to us. 25:49 We learn lessons from the past 25:51 from those who have gone before us in history 25:55 but we look to the future and the promises 25:57 and the fulfillment of God's word 26:00 and we must know where we are going. 26:02 We must recognize that God is unfolding 26:07 events in history and in our life 26:09 to fulfill His promises, 26:11 to bring us the greatness of His provision in our lives. 26:17 I like to close with a few words, 26:20 from the book Patriarchs and Prophets 26:22 there's a chapter entitled the Death of Moses 26:24 that describes his experience 26:26 as he climbs to the top of the mountain Nebo. 26:31 Says, "The great Ruler of nations had declared 26:34 that Moses was not to lead the congregation of Israel 26:36 into the goodly land, 26:38 and the earnest pleading of God's servant 26:40 could not secure a reversing of His sentence. 26:42 He knew that he must die. 26:45 Yet he had not for a moment faltered 26:47 in his care for Israel. 26:49 The work of Moses as leader of Israel was ended. 26:53 As the people gazed upon the aged man, 26:55 so soon to be taken from them, they recalled, 26:58 with a new and deeper appreciation, 27:00 his parental tenderness, his wise counsels, 27:03 and his untiring labors. 27:04 How often, when their sins had invited 27:07 the just judgments of God, the prayers of Moses 27:10 had prevailed with Him to spare them! 27:13 Their grief was heightened by remorse. 27:16 God speaks to His people in blessings bestowed 27:20 and when they are not appreciated, 27:21 He speaks to them in blessings removed, 27:24 that they may be led to see their sins, 27:26 and return to Him with all their heart. 27:28 Moses turned from the congregation, 27:30 and in silence and alone made his way up the mountainside. 27:35 In solitude Moses reviewed the life of vicissitudes 27:38 and hardships since he turned from courtly honors 27:41 and from a prospective kingdom in Egypt, 27:43 to cast in his lot with God's chosen people." 27:46 And then the tired worrier 27:49 lay down and rested in the promises of God 27:54 just as each one of us can do as well. |
Revised 2014-12-17