Resurrection and the Gospel; 1 Corinthians 15:1-8

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04/08 Resurrection and the Gospel; 1 Corinthians 15:1-8

Today is Resurrection Sunday. We celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The resurrection of Jesus is an essential part of the gospel message.

1 Corinthians 15:1 Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, 2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you–unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.

The gospel, or ‘good news’, is the good news message of salvation. Paul says we are being saved by it if we receive it, stand in it, and cling only to it. This is central. This is important. This is the focal point of the whole bible. Let’s look at this message.

Christ the Messiah

First, the good news message is a proclamation of good news about a person. The person is Christ. This is a message about Christ. But Christ is not a name, it’s a title. ‘Christ’ is a Greek word that means ‘anointed one’. It is a translation of the Hebrew word ‘Messiah’, the anointed one. What does it mean to be the anointed one?

In the Old Testament, anointing with oil was used as a way to set a person or thing apart for a particular role, office or use. Kings were anointed (1Sam.10:1), and priests were anointed (Ex.30:30). Even the tabernacle was anointed to set it apart as holy (Ex.40:9). The prophet Samuel was sent by the Lord to anoint Saul and then David to be king over Israel. God promised David an heir who would sit on his throne, who would rule forever (2Sam.7:12-17). Isaiah expands on this promise, explaining that this coming king will be Immanuel, God with us, born of a virgin (Is.7:14); that he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighy God, Father of Eternity, Prince of Peace, and he will rule on the throne of David forever (Is.9:6-7). The Jews of Jesus’ day were looking for this coming king who would free them from Roman oppression and restore Israel as a nation to her former glory. They were looking for a king, a political and military leader who would lead them in victory over their enemies and give them peace. That is what God’s anointed king would do. When Jesus provided food for the multitudes, they wanted to make him a king by force, but he avoided it (Jn.6:15). When Jesus asked his disciples privately who they believed him to be:

Matthew 16:16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

After Jesus commended Peter for having divine insight into his true identity,

Matthew 16:20 Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ.

Christ Died

Then Jesus began to expand their view of what God’s Messiah must do.

Matthew 16:21 From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.

They had no category for this kind of Messiah. The Christ doesn’t hide his true identity; he comes with fanfare in glory. The Christ doesn’t suffer; he alleviates the suffering of his people. The Christ doesn’t die, he wins.

Matthew 16:22 And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.”

This is not what Peter or any of the other apostles had signed up for. They were his select men, appointed to rule with him when he ascended the throne and began to rule. They had already been jockeying among themselves for the chief positions. So Peter takes it upon himself to give campaign advice to his Lord. ‘Don’t talk like that Jesus! It’s bad for publicity.’ You see, Peter, and the rest of the apostles didn’t yet get it. They didn’t understand the full role of the coming Christ. This is probably a key reason why Judas defected. During the trial and after the crucifixion the disciples seem lost. This wasn’t part of the plan. This wasn’t supposed to happen. The Messiah wins. We thought it was Jesus. But now he’s dead.

What Jesus was beginning to teach his disciples, what they wouldn’t get until after his resurrection, was that there was another vein of prophecy that the Messiah must fulfill. True, the Christ would be the Conquering King who reigns forever, the divine Son who would sit on his Father’s throne. But the Christ must also be the suffering servant. Look back to Isaiah, chapters 52-53. In 52:7, we are pointed to the good news, good news of peace, of happiness, of salvation, good news of God reigning over his people. Messiah, the divine conquering king. In verse 13, he shall act wisely, he shall be high and lifted up, exalted. The Christ, ascending his throne. But as he goes on, we begin to wonder what kind of ‘lifted up’ this might be.

Isaiah 52:13 Behold, my servant shall act wisely; he shall be high and lifted up, and shall be exalted. 14 As many were astonished at you– his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance, and his form beyond that of the children of mankind– 15 so shall he sprinkle many nations; kings shall shut their mouths because of him; for that which has not been told them they see, and that which they have not heard they understand.

Isaiah 53:1 Who has believed what they heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? 2 For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. 3 He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Christ Died For Our Sins

The shock of a disfigured Messiah, marred beyond human semblance, a sight so horrific that men hide their faces. A despised and rejected Messiah, a man of sorrows? Why? How? He goes on:

Isaiah 53:4 Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. 5 But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed. 6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. 7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth. 8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people? 9 And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth.

The Messiah, stricken, smitten by God, afflicted, wounded, crushed, chastised, scarred, oppressed, led to the slaughter, taken away in judgment, cut off out of the land of the living. Why? What has he done to deserve this? And the answer resounds ‘Nothing!’ He has borne our griefs, carried our sorrows, wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities, chastised to bring us peace, scarred to bring us healing. It’s our fault. We like sheep have gone astray. We insist on rebelling against him and doing life our own way. But the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

Isaiah 53:10 Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for sin, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. 11 Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities. 12 Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.

You see, for the conquering King to bring in his reign of righteousness and everlasting peace, he must make peace between God and sinful man. The first thing he must conquer is not the Romans, but our hard, rebellious hearts. He must make us, sinners, righteous! He bears our iniquities. He is the final offering for sin. He satisfies the justice of a holy God, being crushed for our sins. He, the righteous one, made intercession for us, and makes us to be accounted righteous.

So the gospel message begins: “Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures.” Christ, the conquering King, the Divine Son of God, the One who will reign forever, died. He died, not of old age, not of natural causes, not for anything he had done, but ‘for our sins’; to pay the price our sins deserve. He substituted himself for us in order to make peace between God and us. Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures. The Messiah came as suffering servant to fulfill the the prophecies. He came to give his own life a ransom for many. He came as the seed of the woman to crush the head of the serpent. He came to be the sacrificial Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures.

That He Was Buried

The second point of the gospel message is ‘that he was buried.’ What is the significance of the Roman soldiers hastening the crucifixion by breaking the legs of their victims, but finding Jesus already dead and running him through with a spear? What is the significance of Joseph’s request to bury the body and Pilate’s demand to verify that he was indeed dead, the hurried wrapping in burial cloths and spices, the placing in a new tomb and rolling a huge stone to seal the entrance? What is the significance of the Jewish leaders’ fears that the disciples might steal the body and securing a guard of soldiers and an official edict to seal the tomb and verify that it was undisturbed? The significance of ‘that he was buried’ is to certify that he was indeed dead. The Christ was dead and buried.

That He Was Raised On The Third Day In Accordance With the Scriptures

The third point of the good news is that Jesus did not stay dead. He is alive! Jesus was raised from the dead on Sunday morning! The significance of the resurrection is that Jesus accomplished what he set out to do. He was perfectly obedient to his Father. He took the cup of God’s wrath against us, and drank every dark drop. He carried our sins to the cross, paid for them in full, and cried out ‘it is finished’. Jesus voluntarily gave his life as a ransom for us. The Father was pleased with his sacrifice, and showed his approval by raising him from the dead.

The resurrection of Jesus is also said to be ‘in accordance with the scriptures’. The passage we read in Isaiah 53 requires a resurrection. God promises, because of his obedience to death, to divide him a portion with the many.

The New Testament writers point to Psalm 16, a Psalm of David, that says ‘you will not abandon my soul to Sheol, or let your holy one see corruption’ (Ps.16:10), and they make the point that this was not fulfilled in David, because he died and stayed dead. It must be pointing to Jesus, David’s greater Son. Paul in 1 Corinthians 15 tells us that Jesus is the firstfruits of the resurrection – pointing to our future physical resurrection that will be like Jesus’ resurrection. Leviticus 23:10-11 describes the offering of firstfruits, which was to be presented on the day after the Sabbath; the Sunday after the Passover.

And That He Appeared

The final point in the proclamation of the gospel is that the resurrected Jesus appeared.

5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.

The apostle here lays out the incontrovertible evidence of the authenticity of the resurrection. The resurrection of Jesus was no hallucination, no trick of the active imagination, no wishful thinking on the part of his disciples. Jesus appeared numerous times to different groups of people, many of whom were skeptical and certainly not expecting it. On one occasion the resurrected Jesus appeared to more than five hundred brothers, and Paul invites his original readers to go interview them to verify the claim.

In our culture, faith is often defined as believing something that has no evidence to back it up. We hear things like ‘it takes a lot of faith to believe that,’ indicating that the less evidence there is to support a claim, the more faith it takes to believe it, and the greatest amount of faith is required to believe something that is contradicted by the facts. This is not biblical faith, and God does not expect us to believe things for which there is no evidence. Biblical faith is placing trust or confidence in God and his word because he has proven himself trustworthy.

God is not opposed to giving us a foundation of solid evidence on which our faith can rest. In the Old Testament, God pointed to his ability to declare things that had not yet happened, so that when they happened, it would prove that he is who he claims to be. Consider the disciple Thomas. In God’s providence, he was not in the room when Jesus first presented himself alive to his disciples.

John 20:24 Now Thomas, one of the Twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.”

Thomas was a committed follower of Jesus. He believed that Jesus was the promised Messiah, the coming King. On one occasion, he declared his readiness to follow Jesus to the death if that was what he required (Jn.11:16). Thomas believed, but now the evidence was pointing in a different direction. Jesus was dead. This didn’t fit what he knew of the scriptures, so he must have been wrong about Jesus. He had been deceived. He had given three years of his life to following a lie. He would not be duped again. He demanded hard evidence. It would take more than a vision to convince him. He demanded proof that the one who was claiming to be Jesus resurrected was really the same Jesus he had known. He needed to know that this was not an identical twin or a look-alike. He wanted to see the unmistakable evidence of continuity that this was the same Jesus who had been nailed to a cross, who had a spear thrust into his side penetrating his heart.

John 20:26 Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.”

Jesus appears, and he does not rebuke Thomas for his lack of faith. He invites him to test the evidence for himself He does not condemn him for doubting, but he tells him that the time for doubting is over now that the evidence is here. Thomas, who up to this point was resolved in his skepticism, is persuaded by the evidence.

John 20:28 Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” 29 Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

Thomas believes. He believes that this crucified Messiah is indeed the Lord of the universe, God in the flesh. Thomas trusts him personally as his own Lord and God. Thomas is persuaded by the evidence, a converted skeptic. The statement of Jesus is often misunderstood as scolding Thomas for his demand for proof. In the context this cannot be. Jesus did not deride Thomas for being skeptical. He gladly offered himself as evidence. Jesus doesn’t say that it would have been better if Thomas had believed something he thought was not true. God never asks us to believe something that is not true. Thomas was called by Jesus to be a witness. Thomas, like the other Apostles, was called to bear witness to Jesus, to his life, death and resurrection. He saw, and he testified, so that we who have not seen, who could not be there, can read his eye-witness account and believe. Jesus was looking beyond Thomas to those skeptics today who would be persuaded by the historical evidence of Thomas’ testimony and believe. And he calls us blessed. This is the context of Thomas’ statement in John’s gospel.

John 20:28 Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” 29 Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” 30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

This is the good news message of salvation. That the Messiah died for our sins according to the scriptures, that he was indeed dead and buried, that he was raised back to life by his Father as proof that he is who he claimed to be, and that this proof was documented by multiple eyewitnesses, including skeptics, so that we, today, reading the historical record, can be convinced to place our trust in the sin bearing work of God’s Messiah. 

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Good Friday Devotional; Matthew 27:41-42

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04/06 Good Friday

He saved others; he cannot save himself

Matthew 27:41 So also the chief priests, with the scribes and elders, mocked him, saying, 42 “He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him.

Mark 15:31 So also the chief priests with the scribes mocked him to one another, saying, “He saved others; he cannot save himself. 32 Let the Christ, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross that we may see and believe.” Those who were crucified with him also reviled him.

Luke 23:35 And the people stood by, watching, but the rulers scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!”

The mocking of the religious leaders is dripping with irony. They meant it to be ironic; he who saved others is now rendered completely helpless. But the irony is deeper than even they knew. Could Jesus save himself? What would be the implications of that? What does it mean to be saved?

Jesus claimed to be able to summon more than twelve legions of angels to come to his assistance (Mt.26:53). If we really understand who Jesus is, we know that it was not the soldiers and the nails that held him on the cross. Hours earlier, he had spoken a word and the whole group that came to arrest him drew back and fell to the ground. In a few days, he will appear inside a locked room. No, it was not the nails or the soldiers that prevented him from saving himself. It was not his weakened physical condition, so weakened from the beatings and blood loss that he could not carry a wooden beam to the site of crucifixion, that kept him from coming down from the cross.

To understand what it means that he could not save himself, we need to look more carefully at what it means to be saved. The religious leaders acknowledged that Jesus had saved others. He had rescued others from sickness, from disease, from physical disabilities, even from death. But Jesus also saved in a more profound way. When a small group could not access Jesus because of the crowd, they startled everyone by digging through the roof and lowering their paralyzed friend down through the hole right in front of Jesus. Jesus startled everyone even more by the way he responded. Clearly the friends brought their paralyzed friend to Jesus because they believed he could make him walk again. But Jesus intends to save him on a much deeper level. He says “Take heart, my son; your sins are forgiven.” (Mt.9:2; cf. Mk.2:5; Lk.5:20).

When the angel told Joseph to name his fiance’s baby ‘Jesus’, it was because ‘he will save his people from their sins‘ (Mt.1:21). The name ‘Jesus’ or Yeshua means ‘YHWH saves’.

When people grumbled because Jesus went to eat with a tax collector, a sinner of the worst kind, Jesus replied “today salvation has come to this house” and he said “the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” (Lk.19:9-10).

When a woman of the streets came in and wet Jesus’ feet with her tears and let down her hair to dry them, everyone at the table was outraged, because of the reputation of this woman. Jesus highlights the fact that she was not just your average sinner, but someone whose sins were many, and he turned to her and said “your sins are forgiven” (Lk.7:48).

Each time Jesus claimed to forgive sins, the crowds were shocked, because they rightly understood that all sins are ultimately an offense against God, and only the offended party can forgive sins. Jesus was making, in their opinion, the blasphemous claim to be God. We know that he was indeed claiming to be God, and that he was telling the truth. But even God does not forgive sins without appropriate sacrifice. God will by no means clear the guilty” (Ex.34:7; Num.14:18; Nah.1:3). A judge who says to a rapist or a murderer ‘it’s okay, I forgive you’ would simply not be doing his job. He has an obligation to the state and to society and to the offended party to promote justice. God has an obligation to himself, to his own character. That is why Jesus is hanging on that cross. Because my sin has dishonored the infinite God, it demands and infinite punishment. I, a finite creature, could be punished for an infinite period of time; or the infinite God could pay the infinite price in my place. That is what is happening on the cross. Jesus, the infinite God, takes the guilt of my sins on himself and suffers infinite punishment. So when Jesus says to the paralyzed man or to the tax collector or to the woman of the city ‘your sins are forgiven’, he is saying not only that he is God, the offended party, but also that he can justly forgive because he is about to pay the infinite price. Jesus said he “came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mt.20:28; Mk.10:45).

When the rulers mocked Jesus, saying ‘he saved others; he cannot save himself’, the irony was that they spoke a truth deeper than they knew. In order to save others in the deepest sense, he could not save himself.

They also said “let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him.” This, too, on a superficial level was probably true. If Jesus summoned twelve legions of angels and supernaturally freed himself from the nails and healed himself of the scars and revealed his true identity in a blaze of transfiguration glory, the religious leaders would have to eat their words and would be forced to acknowledge that this Jesus must indeed be who he claimed to be. But that is not what believing, in the distinctly Christian sense, is. When a Christian says ‘I believe in Jesus’, what they mean is ‘I am trusting in Jesus to forgive my sins based on the payment he made on the cross.’ A Jesus who came down from the cross would be a Jesus who chose to disobeyed his Father. A Jesus who came down from the cross would be a Jesus who aborted the saving work he came to accomplish at its most critical point. That would be a Jesus who offered forgiveness but refused to make the necessary payment. A Jesus who came down from the cross would not be a Jesus worthy being believed in, in the truest sense of the word. For Jesus to be the object of our saving faith, he could not come down from the cross. He could not come down, not because of inability, but out of obedience and love. Jesus willfully chose to endure the cross so that we who believe in him could be saved.

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Palm Sunday – John 12:12-33 – We Would See Jesus!

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04/17 Palm Sunday – John 12:12-33

Intro:

Today we celebrate Palm Sunday. I want to look at the text from John’s account of the gospel that is the history behind this day. We find this in John chapter 12. (The events are also recorded in Matthew 21, Mark 11 and Luke 19). Jesus is in his final week, the passion week, leading up to his crucifixion. He had raised his friend Lazarus, who had been in the tomb four days, from the dead. Jesus was now back at Lazarus’ house in Bethany, the home of his dear friends Martha and Mary. Mary, in an act of devotion and love, broke open a vial of ointment worth about one year’s salary, and anointed Jesus. Jesus defended her action, saying that she was anointing him for his burial. Crowds were gathering in Jerusalem for the upcoming Passover celebration, and many were taking the short trip to Bethany to see Jesus and the man he had raised from the dead. So many Jews were believing in Jesus because of this, that the chief priests were plotting to have Lazarus put to death. This is where we’ll pick up the story:

John 12:12 The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. 13 So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!”

Hero’s Welcome

This is where we get the name ‘Palm Sunday’. This was a hero’s welcome; a royal welcome. This was a king’s welcome. The newly crowned king would be welcomed in this way by his subjects as he came to take his throne and rule. The people are welcoming Jesus as king. But not just any king. The people are quoting Psalm 118, a Psalm of victory over the enemy, a song of triumphant return from battle. This is the valiant king, commanding that the gates be opened to welcome him. In Psalm 118:22-29, it says:

Psalm 118:22 The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. 23 This is the LORD’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes. 24 This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. 25 Save us, we pray, O LORD! O LORD, we pray, give us success! 26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD! We bless you from the house of the LORD. 27 The LORD is God, and he has made his light to shine upon us. Bind the festal sacrifice with cords, up to the horns of the altar! 28 You are my God, and I will give thanks to you; you are my God; I will extol you. 29 Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!

Hosanna!

Verses 25 and 26 say ‘Save us we pray, O LORD!… Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD!…’ This is what the people are quoting as their King rides to Jerusalem. The Hebrew word “Hosanna” means ‘save us we pray’. Israel is under Roman occupation. The Jews are looking for their Messiah, the anointed king that would rescue them, that would deliver them from the power of the Romans and give them back their freedom. The people are looking to Jesus to be this victorious king. In John 6, after Jesus had fed the multitudes, the people declared that he was the promised Prophet who was to come, and they wanted to take Jesus by force and make him their king, but Jesus withdrew by himself to the wilderness. This time, when the people are crying out ‘Save us, King of Israel who comes in the name of the LORD’ and giving him a royal welcome, he does not avoid them; in fact, he encourages them.

14 And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written, 15 “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt!” 16 His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him.

The Donkey

Here we see Jesus intentionally fulfilling prophecy. The quote is from Zechariah 9:9

Zechariah 9:9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

In the other three gospel accounts, we are told that Jesus sent disciples ahead to get this donkey so that it would be ready. Typically, the king would come triumphantly riding his war horse. But Jesus is a different kind of king. He comes in humility, riding on a donkey.

17 The crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to bear witness. 18 The reason why the crowd went to meet him was that they heard he had done this sign. 19 So the Pharisees said to one another, “You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him.”

The World has Gone After Him!

The Pharisees entirely miss the point. They think they are in a popularity contest and they are losing. Jesus by his actions is teaching the people that he is a different kind of king than what they expect, and his salvation will be different from what they expect. He is indeed coming as King to save them, but in humility, not pride. And he will save the people, not from the Romans, but from themselves. The Pharisees, though, unknowingly make a profound analysis. Look, the world has gone after him. John uses this statement as a connection to some Greeks who were seeking Jesus.

20 Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks. 21 So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” 22 Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus.

The Greeks Seek Jesus

Greeks were coming to see Jesus. Among the crowds of Jews who came to worship at the Passover feast, were some Greeks, probably God-fearing Greeks, those who were intrigued by the Jewish scriptures and believed that the God of the Jews was the one true God. Possibly proselytes – those who had no Jewish genealogy, but who believed in God and became Jews through circumcision. They would be allowed into the temple’s court of the Gentiles to worship. They don’t feel they have any access directly to Jesus, so they go through the disciples. Their request is simple yet profound. ‘Sir, we wish to see Jesus’. Simple faith! Would that we had this kind of desire, this kind of boldness. The world has gone after Jesus. Now there are Greeks that want to know Jesus. They come to Philip, Philip goes to Andrew, Andrew and Philip tell Jesus. Look how Jesus answers:

23 And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. 25 Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.

The Glory of a Seed

At first read, this seems like a strange answer, if it is even answering the question at all. Greeks want to see you Jesus, and you start talking about being glorified and planting wheat and hating life. How does this answer their question? We need to understand what Jesus means when he says ‘The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified’. Throughout the gospels, Jesus had been saying ‘my hour has not yet come’. Now he says ‘The hour has come’. The time is now. His whole life was leading up to some focal point, some climax. He uses his favorite title for himself ‘the Son of Man’, a title that comes from Daniel 7, a title showing his perfect humanity, but a title of the one who is the everlasting King. ‘The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified’. What does he mean ‘glorified’? To glorify is to honor, to cause the dignity and worth of someone to be made known. The climactic time has come for Jesus, the perfect human representative, to be put on display and seen for the all the excellencies of who he is. What climactic event is he referring to that would put his glory on display? This royal welcome into Jerusalem where he was hailed as king, with everyone laying down cloaks and palm branches for him to walk on was pretty impressive, but that is already past. What is going to bring him the greatest glory? He tells us clearly in the context. He chooses the metaphor of a seed. A seed is very unimpressive if it is kept on the shelf. To unlock the potential of the seed, it needs to go into the dirt. A seed on a shelf is not seen for what it really is. It might be safe, but its real potential is lost. It remains alone. Jesus talks about the necessity for wheat to fall into the ground and die so it can bear fruit.

Remember, this is all in response to the Greeks who want an audience with him. How is this answering their request? ‘We want to see Jesus.’ It is time for the Son of Man to die so that he can produce much fruit and be seen for who he really is. Jesus is the Jewish King, coming to save, but he will save not just the Jews, but also the Greeks, and he will save, not by military might from political oppression, for that would be no help to the Greeks; but he will save us from our sins by dying for us. King Jesus marches in to Jerusalem to take his throne, but his throne is in the shape of a cross. He will be nailed to this throne and lifted up for all to see. The hour has now come for the Son of Man, the representative of all men not just Jews, to be exalted by dying in order to bear the fruit of salvation for anyone that will follow him, including these Greeks. The whole world has gone after him! ‘Whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves me he must follow me, he will be with me, and my Father will honor him’. Jesus is pointing the Greeks to his death as the event that will open up to all men the way of salvation. Are we on the right track in understanding what Jesus is saying? Let’s keep reading:

27 “Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. 28 Father, glorify your name.”

The Troubled Soul of Jesus

Jesus’ soul is troubled? What would trouble the soul of the Prince of Peace? What would cause anxiety in the heart of the one who taught us not to be anxious? What would incline him to desire to be rescued by his Father out of this hour? What would the Savior want to be saved from? If we ask why he came, we get some indication of what is troubling his soul. In John 10, Jesus said ‘I lay down my life for the sheep’ (v.15, 17). ‘I give [my sheep] eternal life and they will never perish’ (v.28). In John 6, Jesus said ‘the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh’ (v.51). In Mark 10, Jesus said:

Mark 10:45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

2 Corinthians 5:21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

1 Peter 2:24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.

Isaiah 53:5 But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed. 6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

What troubled the soul of Jesus to the point that he would desire escape is the prospect of bearing my sins. For the holy God who abhors sin to bear my sin, to take my sin upon himself, for the spotless lamb of God to become sin, for the innocent guiltless one to have my iniquity laid to his account would be unthinkable. For the first time in eternity the Father would look on his beloved Son not with love, affection and approval but disgust, anger, and judgment. Yet Jesus says ‘But for this purpose I have come to this hour. Father glorify your name’. Jesus, the eternal Son of God, took on flesh, entered history and became human, with the sole purpose of being executed as a sin-bearing substitute for guilty mankind. Jesus looked at the prospect of being forsaken by his Father and it sent his soul into turmoil. ‘Nevertheless,’ he prayed, ‘not my will, but yours, be done’ (Lk.22:42)

28 …Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” 29 The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” 30 Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not mine. 31 Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. 32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” 33 He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die.

So here we are explicitly told that he is talking about his crucifixion – the death of being lifted up. The deepest expression of love and obedience – ‘Father save me’? No, but ‘Father, glorify your name’. His Father answered him from heaven. The glory of the Father and the glory of the Son is seen in the crucifixion. God’s character and nature is displayed for all to see. Absolute in holiness, perfect in righteousness and exacting justice, impossible to let sin slide, yet abounding in mercy and grace, eager to forgive offending sinners, slow to anger and abounding in loving kindness. Satisfying the demands of justice and righteousness while extending undeserved mercy to wicked sinners by absorbing in his own person the weight of the injury. ‘Now is the judgment of this world’. God’s holy wrath against all our sin is poured out now – absorbed in the perfect Lamb that God himself provided. ‘Now the ruler of this world is cast out’ -because the rightful ruler has taken his throne. Jesus the King, lifted up on a cross, enthroned in glory dying for the sins of the world, now draws people from every tribe and tongue and people and nation to himself.

Jesus wants to draw you today. Jesus is a different kind of King and offers a different kind of salvation. He comes to conquer, but to conquer by dying. He comes to conquer, not our enemies, but us. He comes to conquer our hard hearts by loving us, by entering our pain and bearing our guilt before his Father. Do you see him as glorious? Do you recognize the glory of the Father and the glory of the Son revealed on the cross? Do you see the point at which absolute holy justice and free and undeserved mercy meet? We would see Jesus! We would see Jesus! We would see Jesus!

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Exodus 16:1-18; Hunger Satisfied

http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20110403_exodus16_1-18.mp3

04/03 Exodus 16:1-18 Hunger Satisfied

Intro

We’ve been walking with Israel as God led his reluctant people out of Egypt. He told his people to stop fearing anyone but God, to be still and to watch as God saved them, because salvation belongs to the Lord. God humbled Egypt and crushed their pride at the bottom of the Red Sea. His people saw his great power, they feared the Lord, they believed in him, and they sang his praises. And then they grumbled. They were three days into the wilderness and when they found water it was bitter. But God revealed himself as their healer, their physician, and he made the bitter become sweet. Then he led them to Elim, an oasis in the desert, with twelve springs of water and seventy palms. God is abundantly able to provide for his people. Now, we catch up with them one month after the first passover and their exodus from Egypt.

Grumbling

16:1 They set out from Elim, and all the congregation of the people of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had departed from the land of Egypt. 2 And the whole congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness, 3 and the people of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

When the Egyptian army pursued and trapped them by the Red Sea, the people complained that Moses led them out to die in the wilderness because of a grave shortage in Egypt. They complained that it would have been better to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness. Then, on the other side of the sea, they complained because they had no water. The people grumbled against Moses and said ‘what shall we drink’.

This time it is lack of food. Now they are hungry. As Paul said ‘their god is their belly …with minds set on earthly things’ (Phil.3:19). And grumbling stomachs distort history. They wish that the LORD had killed them in Egypt rather than bringing them out in the desert to starve. In this complaint, they acknowledge the hand of the LORD against their enemies. God revealed his power against the Egyptians, ultimately killing their firstborn and drowning their army in the sea. Now they are saying ‘We wish God would have killed us along with them’. They reminisce about the good old days back in Egypt ‘when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full’ Forgotten are their bitter lives of hard service, ruthlessly made to labor as slaves. Forgotten are their groanings and cries for rescue from slavery. Now that they are hungry and don’t know where their next meal is coming from, they only remember the wonderful meals they had as slaves. They would prefer to die as slaves with full bellies than to serve God and live in dependence on him.

We who look on as readers of the narrative want to shout out ‘you fools! Don’t you remember God’s ten mighty acts of judgment against the cruel Egyptians and the hard hearted Pharaoh? Don’t you remember how God saved you from the Egyptians at the sea? God has taken you this far; he surely will not leave you to die for lack of food. Remember how God made bitter water sweet? Remember God’s past provision and trust him! Stop grumbling and believe in him. Stop complaining and humbly make your requests to him.’ From our perspective it is so clear.

But then we could think about the trials and inconveniences we face and wonder if the great cloud of witnesses surrounding us (Heb.12:1) want to shout out some of the same things to us.

God’s Gracious Response

How do you think God would respond to this kind of gross unbelief in his people, this lack of faith in his promises, this wish for death and longing for a return to slavery and the pleasures of Egypt? I’m thinking hundred pound hailstones would be in order, but that’s not what God does.

4 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in my law or not. 5 On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather daily.”

Not a word of rebuke! No anger. No judgment. No condemnation. God meets their grumbling with his already planned provision. This is unmerited grace! The Israelites are not getting what they deserve. In response to thankless grumbling God showers them with his good provision. He literally pours out bread from heaven. He promises a daily portion of bread in the desert. This will be a test of the hearts of his people. Will they walk in his Torah, in his law, in his instruction or not? Will they listen to his voice? God is providing abundantly for physical and spiritual needs. Seven days worth of provision given in six days, double the amount given on the sixth day so that they can rest and worship and be refreshed on the seventh day, so that they can feed not only their physical needs but their souls in communion with God. The purpose is relationship with the living God.

6 So Moses and Aaron said to all the people of Israel, “At evening you shall know that it was the LORD who brought you out of the land of Egypt, 7 and in the morning you shall see the glory of the LORD, because he has heard your grumbling against the LORD. For what are we, that you grumble against us?” 8 And Moses said, “When the LORD gives you in the evening meat to eat and in the morning bread to the full, because the LORD has heard your grumbling that you grumble against him––what are we? Your grumbling is not against us but against the LORD.” 9 Then Moses said to Aaron, “Say to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, ‘Come near before the LORD, for he has heard your grumbling.”’ 10 And as soon as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, they looked toward the wilderness, and behold, the glory of the LORD appeared in the cloud. 11 And the LORD said to Moses, 12 “I have heard the grumbling of the people of Israel. Say to them, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread. Then you shall know that I am the LORD your God.”’

The Knowledge of the LORD

Knowledge of the LORD is the goal. God acts for the good of unbelieving thankless rebellious sinners so that they will know who he is. God will reveal to them his hand of salvation. ‘You shall know that it was the LORD who brought you out of the land of Egypt’. He will reveal his fearful awesomeness, ‘you shall see the glory of the LORD’. God reveals himself as provider ‘when he gives you meat to eat and bread to the full’. You will recognize that your grumbling is against the LORD. In a God-centered universe, when we grumble, we grumble against God. Moses and Aaron are quick to point this out. What are we? This is not about us! Your grumbling is against the LORD. This is all about the LORD. ‘You shall know that I am the LORD your God.’ God gives abundant gifts to undeserving sinners to show off his nature and character. He is ‘the God of all grace’ (1Pet.5:10). He is patient, he is faithful, he is compassionate, he is slow to anger and abounding in loving-kindness.

Abundant Provision

13 In the evening quail came up and covered the camp, and in the morning dew lay around the camp. 14 And when the dew had gone up, there was on the face of the wilderness a fine, flake–like thing, fine as frost on the ground. 15 When the people of Israel saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, “It is the bread that the LORD has given you to eat. 16 This is what the LORD has commanded: ‘Gather of it, each one of you, as much as he can eat. You shall each take an omer, according to the number of the persons that each of you has in his tent.”’ 17 And the people of Israel did so. They gathered, some more, some less. 18 But when they measured it with an omer, whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack. Each of them gathered as much as he could eat.

God provided meat for them to eat that very night, so that they would not even have to go to bed hungry and wait for the morning. Amazing grace! That next morning the people saw a curious new thing in the wilderness. They had to ask ‘What is it?’ Moses points to it as ‘the bread that the LORD has given you to eat’. God supernaturally provided for his people. An omer was approximately half a gallon. Everyone was responsible to get out and do their share. If you don’t work, you don’t eat. All they had to do was gather each morning what they needed for the day. God made sure each had enough and there was equality. In spite of their grumbling, God provided for the needs of his people. We can wonder what this might have looked like had God’s people simply trusted God’s promises and humbly prayed for God’s provision. But we don’t have to wonder.

Jesus’ Perfect Obedience in the Wilderness

We can compare and contrast Israel’s grumbling unbelief when they faced hunger in the wilderness, and Jesus’ hunger in the wilderness, and his response to temptation with perfect obedience to his Father.

Matthew 4:1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” 4 But he answered, “It is written, “‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.”’

Both Jesus and the Israelites were led by God into the wilderness. The Israelites were less than 30 days in the wilderness, and they had only recently run out of food. Jesus was forty days without food and he was hungry. The Israelites had the pillar of fire and cloud to guide them, they had Moses and Aaron to lead them, they had the whole community to encourage one another; Jesus was alone with the tempter. The Israelites had no power over their circumstances – they could only grumble. Jesus, the Son of God, had all power over his circumstances, and could easily have turned the very rocks into bread to satisfy his hunger. But he responded with the words of Moses from Deuteronomy 8:3, stating his total trust in and dependence on his Father. Bread is not what sustains anyone, God sustains life. Jesus, as the perfect man, demonstrated a God-centered perspective on hunger. This life is not all about me and my needs being met. Life is to be lived to the glory of God, in total surrender to God’s will, total trust in God to provide, dependently listening to God’s voice. God is the center. I exist to bring him praise. Jesus’ temptation concluded with a refusal to worship or serve anyone but God. Jesus showed us what simple trust and perfect obedience should look like.

Jesus the Bread from Heaven

Jesus takes us back to this manna in the desert as a pointer to himself. He had himself fed thousands in the wilderness, giving substantial evidence that he is the promised one; God come in the flesh. Many began to follow him simply to get a free lunch.

John 6:26 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. 27 Do not labor for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.”

Jesus attempted to get their eyes off their own temporary hunger and put their trust in him for eternal life. But they continued to insist on a mere momentary appeasement of their appetites when he was offering so much more.

John 6:30 So they said to him, “Then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? 31 Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.”’ 32 Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” 34 They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.”

They are so consumed by their own felt needs that they can’t hear what Jesus is saying to them. So Jesus says something that would shock them.

35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. 36 But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe.

Jesus claims to have come down from heaven to be the true bread that gives life. We see the theme of grumbling in the face of God’s abundant provision surface once again.

…41 So the Jews grumbled about him, because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” … 48 I am the bread of life. 49 Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50 This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

This shocked and offended his hearers. They were troubled at the implication that this new rabbi might be teaching his followers some form of cannibalism.

52 The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” 53 So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. 54 Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. 55 For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. 56 Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. 57 As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me. 58 This is the bread that came down from heaven, not as the fathers ate and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.”

Jesus points back to the manna that God rained down from heaven as provision for physical sustenance and claims that he is the greater fulfillment of that picture. Jesus is the one the Father sent from heaven to meet the spiritual need of humanity. With startling language Jesus turns our thoughts from our sensual appetites to the deepest need of our souls. We have dishonored and offended a holy God. We have failed to give him the honor that is his due. We have sinned and the wages of sin is death (Rom.6:23). Jesus, our sin-bearing substitute, bore our sins in his body on the tree (1Pet.2:24). He was made to be sin for our sake (2Cor.5:21). We must come to him, to see in him the satisfaction of our true need, to take him as our own, to embrace him as our sustenance, our only hope. ‘Take, eat; this is my body which is given for you’ (Mt.26:26; Lk.22:19). ‘Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins’ (Mt.26:27-28). Just as an Israelite could have refused to gather God’s provision of life giving food in the wilderness, and willfully chosen to starve, so we can refuse to take God’s only provision that will sustain our souls for eternity. The question we must each answer is ‘Will we come to Jesus for eternal life? Will we trust in him and feed on him? Will we abide in him and draw our spiritual sustenance from him alone?’ We, like the Israelites, don’t deserve God’s grace to meet our need, but

Romans 5:6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. …8 while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 10 …while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son,…

God gives abundant grace to undeserving sinners to put on display the greatness of his character.

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Exodus 15:22-27; Bitter Waters Sweet

http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20110327_exodus15_22-27.mp3

03/27 Exodus 15:22-27 Bitter Waters Sweet

From Worship to Discontent

Last time we watched as the Lord saved his people. They saw his great power, they feared the Lord, they believed in the Lord, and they sang his praises. God is victorious; he is the source of strength; the theme of worship; he is rescuer; proven faithful; warrior, fighting for us; he is self-existent; all powerful; conqueror; he is rightly proud; he is justly angry; he is unrivaled; incomparable; totally set apart; awe-inspiring; he is active in power; he is our faithful lover; our purchaser/ redeemer; our caring guide; he dwells with his people; he is the perpetual king. 72 hours after they see their enemy crushed by God at the Red Sea, after they had praised his awesome attributes in song, now they are grumbling. It did not take God very long to get his people out of Egypt. As we will see, it takes much longer to get Egypt out of his people. But God is faithful. God saved his people by sheer undeserved grace. Now they must learn to walk by faith in that same grace. Here we see an amazing example of his grace toward undeserving people.

15:22 Then Moses made Israel set out from the Red Sea, and they went into the wilderness of Shur. They went three days in the wilderness and found no water. 23 When they came to Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter; therefore it was named Marah. 24 And the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” 25 And he cried to the LORD, and the LORD showed him a log, and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet. There the LORD made for them a statute and a rule, and there he tested them, 26 saying, “If you will diligently listen to the voice of the LORD your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the LORD, your healer.” 27 Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees, and they encamped there by the water.

The first observation we can make in this passage, is that Moses made the people set out from the Red Sea. They had just seen great victory, and we often want to camp out in the place of victory. But God was guiding by fire and cloud. And he was guiding into the wilderness. The people were understandably reluctant to follow. But God’s purpose was that they move from bondage to Pharaoh into glad service to their true King. They must learn what it is to walk with God and serve him, and that is a lesson that must be learned in the desert. God’s aim was that his people know him, that they know the LORD, and some of God’s attributes are only taught through difficult circumstances. This day they will learn a new name for their God.

We must not be too quick to judge the Israelites. Three days in the desert with no source of water would be disconcerting. They were traveling with families and flocks to water, and a three day supply would be a lot to carry. When water came into sight, they would drink whatever remained and prepare to refill. When they discovered that this water was undrinkable, they panicked. They targeted Moses, the visible representative of God, and they grumbled. They complained. They murmured. The root of this word means ‘to stay the night, to remain, abide, or dwell’. They camped out on their problem. They focused on their situation. They dwelt on their lack and it consumed them. All they could talk about was what they didn’t have.

Ruth and Naomi

The place was named Marah because the water was bitter. Marah is the Hebrew word for bitter. And bitter circumstances made bitter Israelites. There is another naming in the Old Testament, not of a place, but of a person who named herself ‘Mara’

Ruth 1:19 …And the women said, “Is this Naomi?” 20 She said to them, “Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. 21 I went away full, and the LORD has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi, when the LORD has testified against me and the Almighty has brought calamity upon me?”

Naomi’s name meant – ‘my delight, beauty, or pleasantness’. She asked that her name be changed from ‘delight’ to ‘bitterness’. She said:

Ruth 1:13 … for it is exceedingly bitter to me for your sake that the hand of the LORD has gone out against me.”

Ruth and her family had moved from Bethlehem in Judah to Moab because of famine. They remained in Moab for about ten years. Her husband and both her married sons died. Her life was bitter, and she blamed God. ‘The Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. The LORD has brought me back empty. The LORD has testified against me, the Almighty has brought calamity upon me. The hand of the LORD has gone out against me’. She dwelt on her painful circumstances and delight was changed to bitterness. But this was not the end of her story. When she began to see the big picture, she exclaimed ‘…the LORD, whose kindness has not forsaken the living or the dead!’ (Ruth 2:20). Out of Naomi’s bitter circumstances comes the most beautiful picture of redemption we have in all of the Old Testament. The women whom she asked to call her ‘bitter’, by the end of the story say to her “Blessed be the LORD, who has not left you this day without a redeemer, and may his name be renowned in Israel! He shall be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age, for your daughter-in-law who loves you, who is more to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.’ (Ruth 4:14-15). Bitterness was turned to beauty again as Naomi became the great great grandmother to David the King.

Hebrews and James

The author of Hebrews argues that God’s discipline is evidence of his love toward us, and that ‘for the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.’ (Heb.12:11) He goes on to say:

Hebrews 12:15 See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled;

Bitterness is a highly infectious cancer that spreads rapidly and brings death. God provides bitter circumstances to train us in his grace. We can be teachable and allow it to blossom into righteousness, or we can allow bitterness to fester and erupt in a rottenness that contaminates those around us. Painful circumstances are evidence of God’s grace, an undeserved kindness to keep us looking to him, trusting in him, depending on him. Bitter circumstances can keep us from becoming self-sufficient and complacent and unbelieving. This is how James can write:

James 1:2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.

Will you look at your bitter circumstances, or will you look through you bitter circumstances? God provides us with circumstances to train us, to test us, to prove us. We can be patient and teachable, keeping our eyes on God and believing that he loves us and has good in store, or we can focus on the circumstances and putrefy in our own bitterness to the harm of those around us. Bitter circumstances do not cause bitterness. They only bring the bitterness that is already in our hearts to the surface so that we can see it and deal with it. Amy Carmichael, missionary to India (1867-1951) wrote:

“For a cup brimful of sweet water cannot spill even one drop of bitter water, however suddenly jolted.” (Amy Carmichael, If p.46 cited in Jim Wilson, How To Be Free From Bitterness, p.15)

This is what Jesus told us:

Luke 6:45 The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

This was a test

God had saved them and they had seen and believed in him, but now he was sending them into the wilderness, sending them a test to shake them, to see what was really in them.

15:25 …There the LORD made for them a statute and a rule, and there he tested them, 26 saying, “If you will diligently listen to the voice of the LORD your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the LORD, your healer.”

This was a test. You just sang that God is victorious, that God is sovereign over his enemies, that God is sovereign over the waters. Now will you live like you sing? Will your deeds and your attitudes match your words? They were self-centered, and focused on their own needs and what they could see. They had been three days in the desert with no source of water and they began to fear. They saw water and put their hope in what they saw. The water was bitter and they lost all hope and grumbled. God is gently lifting their eyes to look at him. Get your eyes off yourself and your problems and look to me! Your problems are simply a stage for me to show myself strong on your behalf. Listen listeningly to YHWH your God, do what is right in his eyes, give ear to his commandments, keep all his statutes. Get your focus off of you and your perceived needs and get your focus on God and what he wants. Become God-centered in your thinking and feeling. God allows our needs to go unmet to teach us that what we really need is him. He gives us wants to teach us to want him more.

Amazing Grace

God gives his people a promise. If you remain in relationship with me, I will not judge you like I judged the Egyptians. I will not give you what you deserve. I will deal with you out of my grace.

God’s grace is amazing in this passage. So quickly after God’s sovereign rescue of his people at the sea, they are grumbling and complaining, hearts filled with bitterness rather than praise. There is not a word of rebuke here from God. God met their grumbling with provision, with promise and with revelation. God provided for their immediate need. God showed Moses what to do and the bitter water was made sweet. God met their grumbling with a promise. He promised escape from judgment based on relationship. He met their grumbling with self-revelation. He responded by teaching them a new name for himself. He said ‘I am YHWH-Rapha or Jehovah-Rapha, the self-existent one, our Healer; our Physician. This is not the name I would expect in this context. God provided them with a basic need. I would expect ‘Jehovah-Jireh’, the Lord our provider. He is promising exemption from judgment; I would expect YHWH-El-Rakhoom, the Lord our merciful God. Instead we have Jehovah-Rapha – the Lord our healer, our doctor. In Ezekiel 47 this same word ‘rapha’ ‘heal’ is used to describe bitter water becoming fresh. The water is healed of its bitterness. God promises to put none of the diseases on the people in relationship with him that he put on the Egyptians. When we look at the ten mighty acts God unleashed against the Egyptians, most of them would not be described as diseases. Only the sixth plague, boils, and possibly the tenth, the death of the firstborn, could be described as sicknesses or diseases. But what God said he would do throughout the narrative was to cause their hearts to become hard. This fits well with the bitterness we see in this passage. God is the healer of bitter waters, and he is the one who heals our sick hearts that are callous toward God and are consumed so easily with bitterness and self-centeredness. Praise God he is a physician of sin-sick souls! He has the wisdom to properly diagnose my condition, and he has the power to apply the cure. We see this so beautifully in Jesus, the Great Physician.

When some people carried a paralyzed man on his bed to Jesus, Jesus responded ‘Take heart, my son; your sins are forgiven’ (Mt.9:2). When a religious leader in Israel came to him under cover of darkness impressed by his miracles, Jesus saw his heart and said to him ‘you must be born again’ (Jn.3:7). When a disreputable sinner came to a well to get water, Jesus pointed her to himself as the source of living water that would satisfy her deepest longings (Jn.4). He confronted the unbelieving Jews who refused to hear him, to honor him, to come to him, to believe in him, to set their hope in him so they can have life (Jn.5). Jesus confronted the crowds who were following him for a free lunch “do not labor for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you.” (Jn.6:27). To the Jews who boasted in Abraham he said “everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin… if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (Jn.8:34-36). To a woman grieving the death of her brother, Jesus said “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die” (Jn.11:25-26). When a condemned criminal who was being executed confessed his own sins and recognized the sinlessness of Jesus and cried out to him, Jesus said “Today you will be with me” (Lk.23:43). When Thomas was wrestling with doubts about the resurrection, Jesus said to him “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe” (Jn.20:27). Jesus, the Great Physician, can see right into the sin-sick condition of our heart and give us himself as the cure.

The Tree

Did you notice how the bitter waters were made sweet?

15:24 And the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” 25 And he cried to the LORD, and the LORD showed him a log, and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet.

The Lord showed Moses a log. In Deuteronomy 21:22-23, this same word is translated ‘tree’ and it is a means for execution of someone convicted of a capital crime. This verse is quoted by Paul in Galatians:

Galatians 3:13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us––for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”––

Moses threw a tree into the bitter waters and they were made sweet. Jesus became a curse for us by being nailed to a piece of wood. He redeemed us from the curse of the law by paying the death penalty we deserve with the price of his own perfect life. He turned God’s curse into a blessing for us. Peter puts it this way:

1 Peter 2:24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.

The tree that brings healing to hearts bitter with the guilt of sin is the cross. Jesus, the Great Physician, bore our sins, sins of hard heartedness, bitterness, self-centeredness, pride. He bore our sins in his body on the tree. Because of his wounds he is YHWH-Rapha, the Lord our Healer. When the cross is applied to us, it brings death to the bitter bondage of sin, and makes us alive to God in his righteousness.

Galatians 2:19 For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God. 20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Oh, let Christ the Great Physician cure your heart today!

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Exodus 15:1-21; The Song of the Sea – Worship

http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20110320_exodus15_1-21.mp3

03/20 Exodus 15:1-21 The Song of the Sea

God’s stated purpose in the exodus was to make himself known. They Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD; you shall know that I am the LORD; I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his hosts.

Exodus 9:14 For this time I will send all my plagues on you yourself, and on your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth. 15 For by now I could have put out my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth. 16 But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth.

‘I could have done it differently’ God says. ‘But I do things the way I am doing them so that you may know that there is none like me. I am doing this for the good of my people and for the fame of my name in all the earth.’

Exodus 14:4 And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will pursue them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, and the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD.”…

Exodus 14:18 And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I have gotten glory over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.”

God is out to get glory for himself. He is out to display his power, so that his name will be proclaimed in all the earth. God is out to display his sovereign uniqueness, his unmatched supremacy. We are told to stop being afraid of anyone but God, to be still and stop stirring up dust that obscures God’s glory. We are told to be spectators of God’s great salvation as God works salvation for us. The LORD fights for his people. God acts alone for our salvation. We have only to be silent.

Exodus 14:13 …“Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. 14 The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”

The prophet Isaiah puts it this way:

Isaiah 64:4 From of old no one has heard

or perceived by the ear,

no eye has seen a God besides you,

who acts for those who wait for him.

We have seen God take his people out of Egypt. God’s people were unbelieving, complaining, fighting against God’s plan, questioning God’s wisdom and capability. They cried out for help, but when God stepped in to help, they didn’t like how he was helping. God was acting for their good, but they didn’t know what good was. They considered slavery in Egypt better than the presence of God in the wilderness. They needed their sense of ‘better’ re-calibrated. But praise God, he took his grumbling doubting complaining discontented argumentative people and he saved them anyway! He saved them without their help or cooperation. He saved them in the most inconceivable way. He saved them by himself. Chapter 14 concludes:

14:30 Thus the LORD saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. 31 Israel saw the great power that the LORD used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the LORD, and they believed in the LORD and in his servant Moses.

I wish I had a recording of this song as it was originally sung. The bible tells us that there were about 600,000 men, besides women and children (Ex.12:37; 38:26; Num.1:46). I’ve sung with a group of pastors at the Minneapolis convention center numbering close to 2,000 and it was ground shaking and heart stirring. This is exponentially more, 300 times more men than that – and that’s not counting the women and children that were part of the crowd. I wonder how it happened – if it started with Moses at one end of the multitude and slowly mounted and spread and reverberated back until all were belting out at the top of their lungs worship and praise to their awesome God. Remember, these are the people that were gripped with terror as Pharaoh’s army overtook them by the sea and they had no hope and no way out. These are the people who saw God supernaturally part the sea and make a dry path for them to escape from their enemies. These are the people who saw with their own eyes the highly trained military of Pharaoh pursuing them into the sea, the same people who saw God crush their enemies under the sea so that not one was left. The text says the LORD saved Israel that day. They saw, they feared, they believed. And then they sang. Let’s try to hear them as they respond to God’s awesome salvation with worship.

15:1 Then Moses and the people of Israel sang this song to the LORD, saying,

“I will sing to the LORD, for he has triumphed gloriously;

the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea.

2 The LORD is my strength and my song,

and he has become my salvation;

this is my God, and I will praise him,

my father’s God, and I will exalt him.

3 The LORD is a man of war;

the LORD is his name.

4 “Pharaoh’s chariots and his host he cast into the sea,

and his chosen officers were sunk in the Red Sea.

5 The floods covered them;

they went down into the depths like a stone.

6 Your right hand, O LORD, glorious in power,

your right hand, O LORD, shatters the enemy.

7 In the greatness of your majesty you overthrow your adversaries;

you send out your fury; it consumes them like stubble.

8 At the blast of your nostrils the waters piled up;

the floods stood up in a heap;

the deeps congealed in the heart of the sea.

9 The enemy said, ‘I will pursue, I will overtake,

I will divide the spoil, my desire shall have its fill of them.

I will draw my sword; my hand shall destroy them.’

10 You blew with your wind; the sea covered them;

they sank like lead in the mighty waters.

11 “Who is like you, O LORD, among the gods?

Who is like you, majestic in holiness,

awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?

12 You stretched out your right hand;

the earth swallowed them.

13 “You have led in your steadfast love the people whom you have redeemed;

you have guided them by your strength to your holy abode.

14 The peoples have heard; they tremble;

pangs have seized the inhabitants of Philistia.

15 Now are the chiefs of Edom dismayed;

trembling seizes the leaders of Moab;

all the inhabitants of Canaan have melted away.

16 Terror and dread fall upon them;

because of the greatness of your arm, they are still as a stone,

till your people, O LORD, pass by,

till the people pass by whom you have purchased.

17 You will bring them in and plant them on your own mountain,

the place, O LORD, which you have made for your abode,

the sanctuary, O Lord, which your hands have established.

18 The LORD will reign forever and ever.”

19 For when the horses of Pharaoh with his chariots and his horsemen went into the sea, the LORD brought back the waters of the sea upon them, but the people of Israel walked on dry ground in the midst of the sea.

20 Then Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women went out after her with tambourines and dancing.

21 And Miriam sang to them:

“Sing to the LORD, for he has triumphed gloriously;

the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea.”

Worship. Worship is an act of adoration or affection; declaring the worth of God to God. Worship, although not limited to singing, often finds expression in singing. We proclaim the truth about God and the things God has done in an emotionally charged celebration that we all vocally participate in.

It has been said that songs of worship are the take-home theology of the church. As you’re doing the dishes or disciplining the kids or celebrating God’s provision or facing a great trial, whether you start humming the tune or full-on belting out the words when no one is there to hear you, if the song is solid, you are rehearsing your theology and declaring your doctrine. Music is powerful. Two days from now you probably won’t remember much of what I’ve said this morning, but you might catch yourself humming a tune that we sang this morning. Sometimes I find myself whistling a hymn that I haven’t sung for over 20 years.

So I want to look at this song and ask the question ‘what makes a good worship song?’ What patterns do we see in this song that we could follow to enhance our worship of God?

Is it even legitimate to take this song as a good example to follow? I think we are justified in taking this song, because this song gets sung again. This song is sung in heaven.

Revelation 15:3 And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying,

“Great and amazing are your deeds,

O Lord God the Almighty!

Just and true are your ways,

O King of the nations!

4 Who will not fear, O Lord,

and glorify your name?

For you alone are holy.

All nations will come

and worship you,

for your righteous acts have been revealed.”

What’s not in this song?

Let’s start by looking at what’s missing. What is absent from this song? Me. I am missing. The song begins “I will sing; I will praise; I will exalt him‘ and it quickly forgets about self and focuses on God. I am not the center of the song. It is personal; it comes from my heart. But this is God-centered worship. In Miriam’s refrain the declaration ‘I will’ is left off and it becomes an imperative command; sing! Everyone, sing to the LORD. God is the subject and the object of the song. It is a song about God and it is sung to God. This song is characterized by an utter forgetfulness of self.

Psalms 115:1 Not to us, O LORD, not to us, but to your name give glory,

for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness!

God here fulfills his purpose of making himself known and getting glory for himself. His people forget about themselves, their successes, their fears, their failures. They sing about God.

What does this song say about God?

So what does this God-saturated God-centered song say about God? We could divide it into two main categories: who God is and what God does.

Who God is

This song celebrates who God is. God’s people declare the character and nature of God. They sing the attributes of God.

15:1 …he has triumphed gloriously; -risen risingly; gloriously triumphant; -the victor, conqueror

2 The LORD is my strength and my song, -supplier/source of strength; theme of my music, worthy of worship; Yah (shortened form of YHWH)

and he has become my salvation; -God who saves, rescues

this is my God, and I will praise him, -personal intimate connection

my father’s God, and I will exalt him. – historical tie – not a new god; legacy

3 The LORD is a man of war; -warrior; the one who fights the battle

the LORD is his name. -proper name YHWH not title; the one who is; self-existent

6 Your right hand, O LORD, glorious in power, -majestic force

your right hand, O LORD, shatters the enemy. -supreme over adversary

7 In the greatness of your majesty you overthrow your adversaries – multiplied excellency; pride –only being for whom pride is not a sin – throws down or tears down enemies

you send out your fury; it consumes them like stubble. -fierce heat of just wrath

11 “Who is like you, O LORD, among the gods? -unrivaled; incomparable;

Who is like you, majestic in holiness, -gloriously set apart; totally separate; other

awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders? -terrifying in fame or renown; awe inspiring; acting in extraordinary ways;

13 “You have led in your steadfast love the people whom you have redeemed; -faithful lovingkindness; unfailing love toward his people; ‘goel’ redeemer – pays the purchase price, protects and rescues because of family obligation

you have guided them by your strength to your holy abode. -one who leads to a place of rest and refreshment; mighty power; brings us apart to his dwelling place

16 Terror and dread fall upon them; because of the greatness of your arm, -inspires horrific terror; power is great in magnitude

… till the people pass by whom you have purchased. -becomes the owner by acquisition; possessor

18 The LORD will reign forever and ever.” king perpetually from ancient times throughout eternity

God’s people celebrate in song God’s attributes; he is victorious; he is the source of strength; the theme of worship; he is rescuer; proven faithful; warrior; he is self-existent; all powerful; conqueror; he deserves to be proud; he is justly angry; he is unrivaled; incomparable; totally set apart; awe-inspiring; he is active in power; he is our faithful lover; our purchaser/ redeemer; our caring guide; he dwells with his people; he is the perpetual king. That is who he is.

What God does

The song celebrates not only the character and attributes of God, but the real historical actions of God. Let’s look at what he does.

15:1 for he has triumphed gloriously;

the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea. -thrown off /thrown down

2 and he has become my salvation;

4 “Pharaoh’s chariots and his host he cast into the sea, -thrown, hurled, shot

and his chosen officers were sunk in the Red Sea. -even the elite were drowned

5 The floods covered them; -primordial abyss, destructive chaos waters of judgment, ancient deeps

they went down into the depths like a stone.

6 your right hand, O LORD, shatters the enemy.

7 In the greatness of your majesty you overthrow your adversaries; -tear down, beat down, destroy

you send out your fury; it consumes them like stubble. -heat of his fierce wrathful displeasure -let go; as God demanded Pharaoh to send out his people

8 At the blast of your nostrils the waters piled up; -anger; flared nostrils

the floods stood up in a heap; -running waters piled up

the deeps congealed in the heart of the sea. -primordial abyss thickened or curdled

10 You blew with your wind; the sea covered them; -wind, spirit, breath

they sank like lead in the mighty waters. -not just a marshy swamp!

12 You stretched out your right hand;

the earth swallowed them. -could mean sheol or the underworld; engulfed

God kills his enemies

What they are memorializing in song seems to be all about God destroying his enemies. God triumphs; throws down; hurls; covers with the deep; shatters; tears down; consumes with fury; flares his nostrils; congeals the abyss; immerses in the mighty waters; swallows his enemies up in the underworld.

Isn’t killing people mean? Doesn’t God have to follow his own commandments? The short answer is ‘no’. God is just. God is the judge. God says ‘vengeance is mine, I will repay’. It belongs to God to give life and to take life. That is his right, not ours. Remember, these are the sworn enemies of God. They had seen God’s mighty acts first hand. They could have joined with the Israelites in the mixed multitude as they left Egypt but they did not. Verse 9 chronicles in six ‘I will’ statements their rebellious attitude:

9 The enemy said, ‘I will pursue, I will overtake,

I will divide the spoil, my desire shall have its fill of them.

I will draw my sword; my hand shall destroy them.’

This is as they are pursuing God’s people into the parted Red Sea! They have demonstrated that they are persistently evil and unrepentant. God is not obligated to give them a second chance (or, in this case, an eleventh chance!) God as savior of his people now crushes his enemies so they can no longer pursue them. In a fallen world hostile to God’s purposes, YHWH must be a warrior. God’s anger against evil and his destruction of those who oppose him are inherent aspects of his majesty. God is just and will not tolerate evil. God is abundantly patient, but evil will be totally eradicated. That is something we should celebrate!

The song goes on to describe the terror that is planted in the hearts of the future enemies of Israel.

14 The peoples have heard; they tremble;

pangs have seized the inhabitants of Philistia.

15 Now are the chiefs of Edom dismayed;

trembling seizes the leaders of Moab;

all the inhabitants of Canaan have melted away.

16 Terror and dread fall upon them;

because of the greatness of your arm, they are still as a stone,

till your people, O LORD, pass by,

till the people pass by whom you have purchased.

God cares for his people

The song also talks about what God does for his own people.

13 “You have led in your steadfast love the people whom you have redeemed;

you have guided them by your strength to your holy abode.

16 …the people pass by whom you have purchased.

17 You will bring them in and plant them on your own mountain,

the place, O LORD, which you have made for your abode,

the sanctuary, O Lord, which your hands have established.

18 The LORD will reign forever and ever.”

19 For when the horses of Pharaoh with his chariots and his horsemen went into the sea, the LORD brought back the waters of the sea upon them, but the people of Israel walked on dry ground in the midst of the sea.

This is quite the switch from ‘you have led us out here to die!’ He leads in steadfast love. He redeems. He guides into his house. He purchases his people. He brings us in and plants us, roots us in his presence, the place he has prepared for us. He reigns.

Jesus

They sing the song of Moses and the song of the Lamb. Christ our passover is slain for us. All of this points us to Jesus. Jesus is the victorious conqueror of sin and death and hell; he is the source of our strength; the theme of our worship; he is rescuer, God our savior; proven faithful; the warrior who fights for us; he is self-existent; omnipotent LORD; he is lifted up and seated at the right hand of his Father; he is justly angry and will tread the wine-press of the wrath of God; he will eradicate all evil; he is unrivaled; incomparable; totally set apart; awe-inspiring; he is active in resurrection power; he is our faithful lover; our purchaser and redeemer who paid for our sins at the cross with his own blood; he demonstrates his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, while we were his enemies Christ died for us. Jesus is our gentle shepherd and caring guide who leads us in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake; he is Immanuel, God with us, he goes to prepare a place for us; Jesus is the King of kings and Lord of lords and every knee shall bow to him and give him glory! That is who he is.

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Matthew 28:18-20; Disciple-Making Disciples

http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20110102_make_disciples.mp3

01/02 Make Disciples by Immersing and Teaching

Introduction:

Last time we took a good hard look at who Jesus made himself out to be and some of the amazing claims that he made. If he really is who he says he is, then we would do well to pay careful attention to what he says. Today I want to look at Jesus’ final command to his disciples before he left the planet.

Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

In this passage, Jesus claims to be the fulfillment of a passage we looked at briefly last week. Jesus claimed to be the ‘Son of Man’. We find that title in Daniel:

Daniel 7:13 I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him.14 And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed

Jesus, after his crucifixion and resurrection, claimed that this prophecy in Daniel had been fulfilled in him. “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” The Ancient of Days had given to the Son of Man “dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him”.

Jesus himself connected his title ‘Son of Man’ with an authority that he possessed:

Matthew 9:6 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”––he then said to the paralytic––“Rise, pick up your bed and go home.” (cf. Mark 2:10, Luke 5:24)

Jesus, the second person of the Trinity, has always been and will always be God, and retains the authority of God. But he became human so that he could bear our sins and become the Savior of the world. In Peter’s preaching recorded for us in the book of Acts, he pointed to this new role as Savior

Acts 5:31 God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.

Jesus was given all authority in heaven and on earth, specifically to be the savior and judge.

John 5:22 The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, 23 that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father… 27 And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man.

When Jesus prayed as he anticipated the cross, he said:

John 17:1 … “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, 2 since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him.

So Jesus, in claiming that he has been given all authority, authority to be the savior and judge, was fulfilling Daniel’s prophecy, that he “was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him.”

Who?

And he was claiming this authority as a basis for the command that he would give to his followers in Matthew 28. Before we look at what Jesus commanded, let’s look at who he was talking to. It says ‘Jesus came and said to them‘. We have to look back a few verses to see who the ‘them‘ is. If we drop back to verse 16, we see:

Matthew 28:16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them,

So what Jesus said was addressed to the eleven disciples. But we learn more about them if we are paying attention to the details. These are the twelve, the disciples whom Jesus had selected after praying all night, minus Judas Iscariot who betrayed him. And we see these are disciples who are still following Jesus; still obeying him. Verse 16 tells us that they went to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. So they were still obeying Jesus, still doing whatever he commanded. That is what a disciple is. We learn something else about these disciples. They were worshipers of Jesus. When they saw their resurrected Lord, they bowed the knee. They paid homage to him as their king. They acknowledged that he is the one who is in charge, in control. They declared that he is most valuable, of the highest worth. But some doubted. They had questions. They worshiped and they obeyed, but they didn’t have all the answers. Some doubted. But Jesus spoke to all of them.

Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Another thing we can say about who it was that Jesus addressed is although it was primarily addressed to his eleven obedient worshiping doubting followers, it was not limited to only those eleven. We know this for several reasons. First, the command to baptize and teach was carried out by a much wider circle than just the eleven. We see, for instance, in the book of Acts, Philip the evangelist, who was not one of the eleven, teaching and baptizing. (Acts 6:5; 8:38). Throughout the history of the church after the eleven apostles, we see teaching and baptizing going on, and this is just what Jesus intended, because he instructs his disciples to make disciples and teach them to obey all that he has commanded. That must at least include his command to make disciples by baptizing and teaching. So his disciples were to make disciple making disciples.

And his concluding promise indicates that his purpose is exponentially bigger than this initial group of eleven. Jesus says ‘Look, I am with you always, to the end of the age’. Jesus’ promise is for successive generations of disciples. Jesus is about to leave the planet. He is about to ascend into heaven and disappear from sight. But his promise is that he would be with us always, to the end of the age. His presence was not limited to the original eleven. That promise is for us today! “I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Although Jesus is not physically or visibly with us, he is truly with us in a real authentic way. We have his promise on that!

We can also see that Jesus purpose reaches far beyond his original disciples when we see how he prays for those disciples. Look at John 17:

John 17:20 “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, 21 … so that the world may believe that you have sent me.

Jesus is praying here specifically for us – for those who will believe in him through their word – through the word of the original eleven. I’d like to come back around to this passage in a few minutes to reinforce what we are seeing here.

So far we have established who Jesus was addressing when he gave his great commission command – doubting but worshiping disciples who would follow him and do what he commands – including us! And we have established what kind of authority Jesus was given by his Father – specifically authority to save and authority to judge all flesh – people of every tribe and tongue and people and nation. Now let’s turn our attention to what it is that Jesus commands them and us.

What Jesus Commands

Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Our English translation can be somewhat misleading here. ‘Go’ is not the focus of the text. The imperative verb in the sentence is ‘make disciples’, and it is modified by three participles. Going is simply a necessary part of discipling all nations. Make disciples is the central command Jesus gives to his disciples. A disciple is one who accepts and follows a teacher or a doctrine.

Every disciple was called to leave everything.

Matthew 4:19 And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”

Matthew 8:21 Another of the disciples said to him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” 22 And Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.”

Matthew 9:9 As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him.

Matthew 10:38 And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.

Matthew 16:24 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.

Matthew 19:21 Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”

Jesus doesn’t have weekend disciples – those who have other priorities but follow Jesus in their spare time. Jesus demands to be first in everything. That doesn’t mean that if you follow Jesus you will automatically quit your job.

The primary objective for every disciple of Jesus is to disciple others. We follow Jesus and we want everyone else to follow Jesus. The two participles that come next give us the ‘how’ of discipling. Disciple making happens through immersion and teaching.

Immersion

I use the word ‘immersion’ because that is the translation of the Greek word ‘baptizo’. Make disciples of all nations, immersing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. The immersion of a convert into water was a symbolic statement that they were leaving their old belief system behind and were turning from it to follow a new path. That is what the bible word ‘repent’ means – to have a change of heart and mind. Being immersed in water was the public declaration to family and friends and the community that a radical change had taken place.

And this is at its core a trinitarian commission. Jesus commands that we immerse disciples into the one Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. A name in the bible stands for the character and reputation and authority of the person. So we are to immerse followers of Jesus in the one authority of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. We are to be immersed into the character and personality of the one triune God. We are to be saturated, drenched with the Name.

Teaching

One part of the disciple-making process is the public proclamation that a person is abandoning self to become immersed as a follower of Jesus. The other part of disciple-making is teaching. The disciples referred to Jesus as their rabbi or teacher, and they were to pass on his teaching to the coming generations of Jesus’ disciples. There is a content that is to be communicated. The apostles refer to it as ‘the teaching’ or ‘the doctrine’ (Acts 2:42; Rom. 16:17; Eph.4:11-15; 1 Tim.4:6, 16, 6:1-3; Titus 1:9, 2:1, 10; 2 Jn.1:9-10). This is why the bible is written with words. There is concrete objective historically anchored truth that is to be kept pure from error and can be communicated to others. There is content to the teaching that we can lay on the table and evaluate biblically to determine if it is true or false. But teaching encompasses more than just the passing on of accurate information. A disciple was to imitate his rabbi. Discipling is relational and passes on not only truth but also character and passion. This presupposes that God’s words are true and that they are transformational. Jesus said:

John 6:63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is of no avail. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. …68 Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, 69 and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.”

John 8:31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

So teaching is not merely passing on information. Teaching in the disciple-making process is bringing a person into interaction with the words of Jesus in such a way that they are personally transformed. Making disciples should transform the thinking, the feeling, and the acting of the disciple. Teaching must convey information, character and passion and translate into a changed life.

Disciple-making requires that we ‘teach them to observe all that Jesus has commanded us.’ This is more than subscribing to a particular belief system or reciting a prayer. To be a disciple is to be a follower of Jesus, to submit to him as Lord and to do everything he tells us to do.

Matthew 28:And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

John 17

Let’s look back at John 17 and see what we can learn from how Jesus prays for his disciples. Jesus claims that those eleven had been given to him by the Father, and he had kept and guarded them in his name. Jesus says:

John 17:6 …they have kept your word. 7 Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you. 8 For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me.

So they have been given specific content: God’s words; they have received, believed and kept them. He says again in verse 14:

John 17:14 I have given them your word,

And Jesus asks that the Father would sanctify them with the word of truth.

John 17:17 Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.

The disciples are to receive, believe and keep Gods word, to be sanctified by it, and Jesus sends them into the world just as the Father sent Jesus into the world. The Father sent the Son, the Son sent the disciples equipped with and transformed by his word, and then he prays for those who would believe in Jesus through their word – for us.

John 17:20 “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.

Jesus prays with the ultimate purpose that the world may believe in Jesus through his word spoken by future disciples.

Summary:

So we see that Jesus has been given all authority. As a result of this he commands his disciples to make disciples of all nations. We are to make disciples by immersing them in the trinitarian Name of Father, Son and Spirit. We are to make disciples by teaching – conveying information, character and passion that will translate into a transformed life. Every Christian is to be a disciple-making disciple of our Lord Jesus Christ. There are no exceptions. Jesus doesn’t say that we should convert everyone and disciple some of them. He doesn’t say that some Christians will make disciples and others will warm the benches. This is a command. It is from Jesus and it is to each one of us who claims the name of Christ. We all must be disciple-making disciples of our Lord Jesus.

Practical Illustration:

So what does this look like? We can gain some insight from Luke’s version of the great commission:

Luke 24:45 Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46 and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, 47 and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

Acts 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

So the Scriptures are foundational. And the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus is central. The message to be proclaimed is repentance and forgiveness of sins. And discipling is to be done not with human wisdom or ingenuity, but empowered by the Holy Spirit. So we need to be bible-saturated, Spirit-filled, and gospel-centered as we point all people to Jesus.

Let’s look at some bible examples of disciple-making in action.

Philippians 4:9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me––practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

2 Timothy 2:1 You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, 2 and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.

2 Timothy 3:10 You, however, have followed my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness, 11 my persecutions and sufferings…

Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

So be a disciple-making disciple. Saturate yourself in God’s word, follow Jesus completely, and humbly, prayerfully, empowered by the Spirit, you teach and admonish one another, use God’s word to encourage one another, set the example in your attitude of gratitude toward God. Make disciples of all nations! This comes back around to Jesus as the fulfillment of Daniel’s vision.

Daniel 7:13 I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him.14 And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed

To Jesus is given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations and languages should serve him. We, his disciple-making disciples are given the privilege of inviting men and women into this indestructible kingdom; into relationship with the King!

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Exodus 8:20 – 9:12; The Discrimination of God

http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20101031_exodus08_20-9_12.mp3

10/31 Exodus 8:20-9:12 The Discrimination of God (Mighty Acts of God 4-6; flies, livestock, boils)

Intro:

So far, we’ve seen God begin to judge Egypt by unleashing the first cycle of his mighty acts. He turned the waters of Egypt to blood and destroyed the Nile, he caused frogs to overrun the land and be piled in heaps; and caused gnats or lice to infest the land. Today we will look at the second cycle of God’s might acts of judgment against Egypt.

Structure of the Mighty Acts Narrative

This second cycle of three mighty acts of God following the introductory sign of the staff-turned-serpent. There will be one more cycle of three judgments leading up to the final climactic act of God in the Passover and the death of the firstborn. Like the others, this second cycle begins with a morning outdoor confrontation with Pharaoh, warning him of what is to come, followed by a confrontation in the courts of Pharaoh, again warning him of what is to come, then followed by an unannounced mighty act unleashed on unbelieving Egypt.

God is not dependent on means

This cycle is different from the others, in that there is no rod or staff used. In the first three, it is Aaron’s staff that is used to unleash God’s mighty acts. In the final cycle of three, it is Moses’ staff that is used. But in these three, there is no mention of a staff at all. This is significant, because the staff was a symbol of status and power, and the magicians of Egypt used their staffs to duplicate the signs (at least until Aaron’s staff swallowed up their staffs). God is demonstrating that his power doesn’t come from some magic stick. God is free to use means or no means to accomplish his ends. He can work through an instrument, or he can work independent of any instrument. He can use a shepherd’s stick, or simply the spoken word to cause the laws of nature to be altered. God spoke the whole universe into existence by his word; he can choose to violate the normal laws of nature just as easily by his word. In fact, if we understand what Hebrews (1:3) says, that Jesus ‘upholds the universe by the word of his power’, all that is necessary for creation to run a muck is for him to momentarily withdraw his sovereign power of restraint and all hell will break loose.

Swarms (Mighty Act # 4)

8:20 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Rise up early in the morning and present yourself to Pharaoh, as he goes out to the water, and say to him, ‘Thus says the LORD, “Let my people go, that they may serve me. 21 Or else, if you will not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies on you and your servants and your people, and into your houses. And the houses of the Egyptians shall be filled with swarms of flies, and also the ground on which they stand. 22 But on that day I will set apart the land of Goshen, where my people dwell, so that no swarms of flies shall be there, that you may know that I am the LORD in the midst of the earth. 23 Thus I will put a division between my people and your people. Tomorrow this sign shall happen.’””

The first thing we are reminded of is God’s purpose in the Exodus. Moses is to ambush Pharaoh by the river and proclaim to him ‘thus says the LORD: let my people go that they may serve (or worship) me’. The demand of the Lord was clear: Pharaoh must relinquish his claims on the Hebrew slaves so that they are at liberty to worship and serve their rightful Master. This is a battle for allegiance, for worship.

The next thing that should catch our attention in the text here is that the Pharaoh is going out to the water again. Archaeologists have excavated the remains of Egyptian palaces, and they include what appear to be bathing areas. The most likely reason the Pharaoh would go to the banks of the Nile would not be to take a bath, but to worship the gods of the Nile. This is interesting because in the first mighty act, Moses intercepted Pharaoh on the banks of the Nile, and the first mighty act of God was against the Nile, turning it to blood for seven days, causing all the fish to die, causing it to stink and be unusable. God showed his triumph over the life source of Egypt and over her gods, and now Pharaoh is back at the water again, presumably worshiping his defeated gods.

This is the second round of judgments against Egypt. God had warned Pharaoh of the judgment on the Nile, and of the judgment of the frog infestation. Pharaoh begged for relief from the frogs and promised the release of the Israelites. But when Pharaoh did not honor his word, God struck Egypt with the infestation of gnats or lice or biting insects without warning. Now again God sends Moses and Aaron to warn Pharaoh of what is coming. This is really an ultimatum. Release my people. If you refuse, this is what I will do to you. I will send swarms on you and on your servants and on your people and into your houses and covering all your territory. The word is not specific – swarms of what? Our translators have added the descriptive ‘of flies’ to help clarify the situation. This was probably some swarming mixture of biting insects. We deduce that they were biting insects from the inspired commentary we find in the Psalms:

Psalms 78:45 He sent among them swarms of flies, which devoured them, and frogs, which destroyed them.

If you’ve ever been in the north woods of Minnesota on a calm summer evening, you have just a hint of what this might be like. Devoured is a good description. And there was no refuge. There was no place to hide. There was no relief, day or night. They were swarming in your house and in your bedroom. It says in verse 24 ‘the land was ruined because of the swarms. I can’t stand to have a single non-biting fly buzzing around my kitchen. But this was beyond mere annoyance. This was a devastating judgment.

But there is another unique thing about this mighty act. God made a distinction. God discriminated between the Pharaoh’s people and his own people. This is the first time in the sequence of God’s mighty acts that he explicitly says that he will discriminate.

22 But on that day I will set apart the land of Goshen, where my people dwell, so that no swarms of flies shall be there, that you may know that I am the LORD in the midst of the earth. 23 Thus I will put a division between my people and your people. Tomorrow this sign shall happen.’””

God’s people are not always exempted from suffering. But God does promise to treat his people differently than those who do not follow him.

John 1:11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,

John 3:18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.

John 3:36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.

1 Thessalonians 5:9 For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,

There is no mention of whether the first three mighty acts of God affected the Egyptians only, or all the people who lived in the land. But here God highlights the distinction he is making to drive home a theological point. God says I will set my people apart ‘that you may know that I am YHWH in the midst of the earth’. If there was mass swarming of creatures all over the land, it could be attributed to a freak natural occurrence of some sort, but if there was an artificial ethnic boundary where God’s people were exempted from the judgment, that would be inexplicable outside of a direct intervention of the sovereign Lord of creation. Only God could command the flies to swarm only in designated areas and leave other areas alone. Have you ever tried to train a fly not to cross an imaginary line? But this is exactly what happened. YHWH, whom the Pharaoh did not acknowledge, is indeed showing himself to be mighty and powerful, even in the middle of Pharaoh’s own playground.

24 And the LORD did so. There came great swarms of flies into the house of Pharaoh and into his servants’ houses. Throughout all the land of Egypt the land was ruined by the swarms of flies. 25 Then Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and said, “Go, sacrifice to your God within the land.” 26 But Moses said, “It would not be right to do so, for the offerings we shall sacrifice to the LORD our God are an abomination to the Egyptians. If we sacrifice offerings abominable to the Egyptians before their eyes, will they not stone us? 27 We must go three days’ journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to the LORD our God as he tells us.” 28 So Pharaoh said, “I will let you go to sacrifice to the LORD your God in the wilderness; only you must not go very far away. Plead for me.” 29 Then Moses said, “Behold, I am going out from you and I will plead with the LORD that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people, tomorrow. Only let not Pharaoh cheat again by not letting the people go to sacrifice to the LORD.” 30 So Moses went out from Pharaoh and prayed to the LORD. 31 And the LORD did as Moses asked, and removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people; not one remained. 32 But Pharaoh hardened his heart this time also, and did not let the people go.

The swarms are so intolerable that the Pharaoh summons Moses and Aaron and concedes to their request. Actually, he attempts to bargain with them. This is customary in eastern cultures. I say my item is worth $500 and you come into my shop and say you wouldn’t pay a penny more than $75. After a bit of haggling, we will end up somewhere in the middle. We will reach a compromise. God has made his demands. The Pharaoh must release his Hebrew slaves so that they can serve YHWH in the wilderness. Pharaoh starts low and makes an offer. “Go, sacrifice to your God within the land”. You are not permitted to leave, but you can sacrifice to your God here.

Moses counters with a restatement of the original demand and a logical explanation of why that is necessary. He doesn’t come down on his price one bit. His reason is clear. What the Israelites must do would be offensive to the Egyptian culture and would cause riots and civil unrest. This would be the equivalent of killing a pig in a Muslim mosque or slaughtering a cow in a Hindu temple. But why? Was Moses bluffing? Why would it be offensive for the Hebrews to sacrifice when the Egyptians offered their own sacrifices? And why, in our own day of tolerance, is Christianity the only religion that is not tolerated? It is simply this. The Old Testament sacrificial system, as the New Testament good news message, has one aim; to decisively deal with sin. And that’s offensive. We don’t want to acknowledge sin. We don’t want to believe there is such a thing as a violation of the standards of a holy God for which we will be held accountable. We certainly don’t want to admit that we have missed the mark and fallen short. Jesus teaches us that this is the job of the Holy Spirit:

John 16:8 And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment:

In order to be forgiven of our sins, we need to know that we are sinners and confess that to God.

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

This is what Jesus means when he says:

Luke 14:27 Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.

The only person who carries a cross is a condemned criminal. Bearing a cross was a public display that I am guilty and deserve the death penalty. All the religions of the world seek to be good enough to earn God’s favor. Jesus tells us we need to own our guilt and daily come face to face with how bad we really are. I truly deserve hell. That’s not a popular message. That is a message that flies in the face of our culture of positive self image and inherent goodness. That’s offensive. And that’s what Jesus is all about.

Romans 9:33 as it is written, “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense; and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”

This is what Paul refers to as the ‘offense of the cross’ (Galatians 5:11). This is what Moses is telling the Pharaoh; if we start killing animals because we believe that we are so bad that we deserve the death penalty and our only hope is if someone or something dies in our place, and blood is shed to cover our sin, that raises the issue of guilt with our neighbors. And our neighbors would rather kill us than face their own guilt before a holy God. That is why we need to travel a significant distance into the wilderness; because our God is holy and just and must punish sin. Pharaoh apparently concedes to Moses’ point, and counters that he will allow them to go into the wilderness to sacrifice to YHWH your God, but just don’t go too far away. I still want you close enough that I can control what you do and bring you back.

Pharaoh is desperate, and as with the frog infestation, again he begs Moses and Aaron to plead with their God on his behalf. Even unrepentant sinners are driven to seek prayer when things get bad enough. Moses does not counter Pharaoh’s offer, probably because he knows it is not genuine. Pharaoh still thinks it is in his power to let the people of Israel go. He will be shown that it is not in his power at all – they are completely in the hands of their YHWH. Moses calls Pharaoh on his lack of integrity, and there is a marked contrast between the words of God and the words of the Pharaoh. God promises and delivers. God speaks and it happens. Even nature itself responds to his command. Pharaoh’s words are hollow and powerless, and he repeatedly fails to deliver his promises. Moses calls him a liar and lets him know that he is on to him. You’ve lied once and proved you can’t be trusted. I will pray for you, but don’t do it again. Moses prays, God answers and relents, and as expected, Pharaoh refuses to keep his own word.

Death of the Livestock (Mighty Act #5)

9:1 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, “Let my people go, that they may serve me. 2 For if you refuse to let them go and still hold them, 3 behold, the hand of the LORD will fall with a very severe plague upon your livestock that are in the field, the horses, the donkeys, the camels, the herds, and the flocks. 4 But the LORD will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, so that nothing of all that belongs to the people of Israel shall die.’”” 5 And the LORD set a time, saying, “Tomorrow the LORD will do this thing in the land.” 6 And the next day the LORD did this thing. All the livestock of the Egyptians died, but not one of the livestock of the people of Israel died. 7 And Pharaoh sent, and behold, not one of the livestock of Israel was dead. But the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go.

This is an escalation of God’s mighty acts. This is the first time that God’s actions result directly in death, even though it has not yet escalated to the level of human death. After the gnats, the final mighty act in the first cycle, the magicians of Egypt confessed to Pharaoh that this was the finger of God. Now God says ‘the hand of the LORD will fall’. You think his finger was bad; wait ’till you see what his hand can do! The mercy of God is amazing, warning, incrementally judging, answering prayer and relenting, warning again, giving an abundance of evidence to believe, giving time to reconsider. God is patient and slow to anger, but he is just. And judgment does fall on the stubborn hardhearted Pharaoh. But first it falls on his livestock. All kinds of livestock all over Egypt will suffer from a severe disease and die, but again a distinction will be made. Not one of the livestock of the people of Israel died. Again, what will happen is told in detail in advance so that it will be evident that Pharaoh is up against the God who controls the future. But even in the face of undeniable evidence, Pharaoh’s heart remains hard.

Severe Skin Disease (Mighty Act #6)

8 And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot from the kiln, and let Moses throw them in the air in the sight of Pharaoh. 9 It shall become fine dust over all the land of Egypt, and become boils breaking out in sores on man and beast throughout all the land of Egypt.” 10 So they took soot from the kiln and stood before Pharaoh. And Moses threw it in the air, and it became boils breaking out in sores on man and beast. 11 And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for the boils came upon the magicians and upon all the Egyptians. 12 But the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he did not listen to them, as the LORD had spoken to Moses.

This is poetic justice. The Hebrews were forced to make bricks, and now some of the ash from the brick kilns is used to bring judgment on the Egyptians. Moses threw handfuls of soot into the air, and God caused it to spread and settle all over Egypt and become boils breaking out in sores. The word here is emphatic – angry boils, boils which become ulcerous and leave deep, painful scars. This might act crosses lines that have not yet been crossed. Up until now, the effects on people were indirect – severe inconveniences and irritations, loss of property and possessions. This judgment is personal – it attacks personal health and well-being; it creates sores in the flesh of each Egyptian. We are reminded of Job, where God allows Satan to take all that he has but not to stretch out his hand against him personally. When Job responded to this with worship, Satan rejoined ‘Skin for skin! All that a man has he will give for his life. But stretch out your hand and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face’ (Job 2:4-5)

The magicians of Egypt are mentioned for the last time here in this section. These powerful sorcerers who had duplicated the first of God’s mighty acts, cannot even protect themselves from these painful sores. To a lesser degree, they had replicated the staff to serpent, the Nile to blood, and they had worsened the frog infestation, but they admitted their failure to reproduce the gnats. They were up against the finger of God. Now as Moses is standing in the presence of Pharaoh, these magicians, the physicians of Egypt, are so incapacitated by these painful boils that they can’t even stand in the presence of Moses. God had decisively demonstrated his superiority over the most powerful men in Egypt, he has outdone them in their secret arts, elicited a confession from them of his awesome power, and left them totally incapacitated and unable even to stand in the presence of his servant.

James 4:6 …“God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”

The knees of the sorcerers had buckled under the sovereign hand of God. Nothing but the sovereign hand of God himself could prevent the Pharaoh’s knees from buckling as well under this kind of overwhelming pressure, and that is exactly what we are told is going on – YHWH hardened the Pharaoh’s heart so that he would not listen, just as he had promised he would do. But in the end, at the right time, even Pharaoh’s knees will buckle and he will admit his sin and God’s superiority. He will obey the command of the Lord. In Philippians 2, it says of Jesus:

Philippians 2:9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Exodus 6:9-30; …we’ll be right back after these messages…

http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20101003_exodus06_9-30.mp3

10/3 Exodus 6:9-30 …we’ll be right back after these important messages…

Introduction:

So far everything has gone terribly wrong in the exodus. Moses is reluctant to go in the first place, and when he finally goes, things go from bad to worse. Pharaoh doesn’t budge and turns up the heat on the Israelite foremen. The Israelites feel that Moses must have flubbed up in his role as deliverer and so they call down God’s curse on him. Moses, more concerned about how he is doing in the popularity polls than with what God has said he would do, turns to God and hurls accusations his way. ‘Why have you done evil to this people? Why did you ever send me? I spoke to Pharaoh in your name, but you have not delivered your people at all.’ God patiently and mercifully responds with a fresh revelation of who he is. He sends Moses to the people with a fresh message of hope; a message of who God is and what God will do. I am YHWH. I will bring you out; I will deliver you; I will redeem you; I will take you to be my own and I will be yours; I will bring you into; I will give it to you. I am YHWH.

6:6 Say therefore to the people of Israel, ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. 7 I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. 8 I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. I am the LORD.”’

Moses Speaks to the People

So Moses, renewed with this fresh revelation, goes to the people and gives them the message. This should cheer their weary souls.

9 Moses spoke thus to the people of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses, because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery.

Is there ever a time in your own life where you can’t see past the end of your own nose? You allow what is possible to be determined by your circumstances, and you can’t see anything but more problems. The difficulties loom so large that you can’t imagine that God cares or is involved at all. Remember, Jesus said:

Matthew 10:29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. 30 But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.

But things are clearly not going the way they should go, and God’s encouragements to you fall on deaf ears. That is what is happening here. According to outward appearances everything that could possibly go wrong has gone wrong. God has a word for you and is speaking into the situation, but your problems drown out his still small voice. God is about to show up like never before in history and demonstrate his absolute supremacy over every created thing, to show his unfailing passionate commitment and love toward his people and triumph over their enemies, and his people don’t even have ears to hear him. They don’t listen because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery. This could be better translated ‘because of their impatience and harsh slavery’. Do you ever have a schedule and God doesn’t seem to be the least concerned with what you have written in your day planner? God had promised deliverance and instead things got worse. ‘You said you’d rescue me and I want you to do it right now!’

God’s Commission and Moses’ Complaint

10 So the LORD said to Moses, 11 “Go in, tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let the people of Israel go out of his land.”

This seems contrary to all semblances of common sense. Moses spoke to the people – God’s people – the people who should be on his side – and they did not listen. So the Lord sends him off to the enemy who has no motivation to listen or care and has in the past been stubbornly resistant. God sends you off to do the easy thing, the thing that you could reasonably expect to be successful at, the thing that seems like there is great probability of success, and you fail miserably. You meet resistance and apathy where there should be hope and joy and excitement. You go away with your tail between your legs feeling like a pathetic excuse of a failure and God says ‘good, now that you’ve totally failed at the easy thing, I’m going to send you off to do the hard thing – the impossible thing. Now that our people won’t even listen to you, go tell our enemy the king of Egypt to let all his slaves go. This is Moses’ objection:

12 But Moses said to the LORD, “Behold, the people of Israel have not listened to me. How then shall Pharaoh listen to me, for I am of uncircumcised lips?”

Moses ties his objection back to the incident in chapter 4 at the lodging place on the way. God met him and threatened to kill him for his failure to keep the covenant of circumcision in his own family. How can you be God’s representative when you don’t even have your own family in order? Moses is reminding God of his own past moral failure. I’ve failed to keep your commandments. You can’t send a man who is a moral failure on mission for you. Maybe Moses is feeling guilt over his recent outburst toward God. He accused God of evil, of foolishness, and of failure to come through in the moment of greatest need. Now Moses asks ‘how can someone who said those things to you be fit to carry your message to the king?’ Moses, too, cannot see past the end of his own nose. He is so consumed with his own failures and rejection, that he cannot see the patient, forgiving, redeeming, loving, passionate covenant keeping character of the great God he is supposed to be representing.

13 But the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron and gave them a charge about the people of Israel and about Pharaoh king of Egypt: to bring the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt.

God responds to the objections with a command. This is not a discussion. I am not looking for your advice on how to handle the exodus problem. There is a time for patient encouragement and gentle reminders. And there comes a time for command. God is God. I am in authority here and you will do this. I am giving you a charge. I demand obedience. Bring the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt.

The Genealogy

And now for a message from our sponsors. We interrupt this broadcast to bring you a genealogy. Reuben, Simeon, Levi, blah blah blah. Names, names, names. We have an interruption in the story of 12 verses of some 44 names. Our eyes glaze over and our brain disengages as we think ‘why is this here?’ and ‘I can’t pronounce these anyway’ and ‘who really cares who begat who?’ and ‘why would anyone ever name their son that!?’

So why is this here? Why should we care? Who are these guys? This genealogy is inserted carefully at this point in the narrative, not only to give a dramatic suspenseful pause just preceding the climax of the story, but also to give us some important details and answer some pressing questions.

God commanded Moses and Aaron to be the leaders who would bring the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt. Who are these guys anyway? Who do they think they are taking it upon themselves to march into the presence of the king and speak on behalf of the people? We didn’t vote for them! We don’t like how things are going. We don’t like how they are handling the situation. We certainly don’t like the results they are getting. This genealogy gives us a historical anchor for the story. The exodus is not the result of some ancient creative writing class, a theological fiction that begins ‘once upon a time in a land far far away…’ It doesn’t end with ‘and they all lived happily ever after.’ This is a real historical narrative. The events described really happened. The names have not been changed to protect the innocent.

This genealogy connects the narrative all the way back to Israel, the patriarch we know better as Jacob, (Abraham, Isaac and Jacob) from whom come the twelve tribes. This also connects the narrative forward all the way to Aaron’s grandson, who lived at the time of the book of Judges, and gives future generations a way to identify with the story.

It helps me to see this laid out visually, so I’ve attempted to diagram it in a way that we can see the connections and trace the paths of the genealogy. I’d invite you to try to follow along on the screen as I read from the text:

14 These are the heads of their fathers’ houses: the sons of Reuben, the firstborn of Israel: Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi; these are the clans of Reuben. 15 The sons of Simeon: Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, and Shaul, the son of a Canaanite woman; these are the clans of Simeon. 16 These are the names of the sons of Levi according to their generations: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari, the years of the life of Levi being 137 years.

Up to this point in the genealogy it follows what we would expect of a typical list of the descendants of Israel. It starts with the firstborn Reuben, then Simeon, then Levi. But rather than going on with Judah and the rest of the 12, it breaks off here and the focus is all on the descendants of Levi with Aaron right in the middle of it.

17 The sons of Gershon: Libni and Shimei, by their clans. 18 The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel, the years of the life of Kohath being 133 years. 19 The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. These are the clans of the Levites according to their generations. 20 Amram took as his wife Jochebed his father’s sister, and she bore him Aaron and Moses, the years of the life of Amram being 137 years. 21 The sons of Izhar: Korah, Nepheg, and Zichri. 22 The sons of Uzziel: Mishael, Elzaphan, and Sithri. 23 Aaron took as his wife Elisheba, the daughter of Amminadab and the sister of Nahshon, and she bore him Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. 24 The sons of Korah: Assir, Elkanah, and Abiasaph; these are the clans of the Korahites. 25 Eleazar, Aaron’s son, took as his wife one of the daughters of Putiel, and she bore him Phinehas. These are the heads of the fathers’ houses of the Levites by their clans.

A few things we can learn from this listing of names:

Aaron is shown to be in the priestly tribe of Levi, but not from the branch of the tree that produced the rebellion of Korah in the wilderness (Numbers 16). Phinehas his grandson had a prominent role in ending the cultic prostitution scandal at Baal-Peor in Numbers 25 and was rewarded with the “covenant of perpetual priesthood, because he was jealous for his God and made atonement for the people of Israel” (Numbers 25:12-13). There are four women mentioned in the genealogy, the first highlighting the fact that the Israelite nation was not ethnically pure, by including Simeon’s Canaanite wife. The next three women center around Aaron, demonstrating that the focus of the genealogy is the legitimacy of Aaron as a leader. His mother, his wife and his daughter-in-law are named. Aaron’s father married his aunt, which at the time was prior to the giving of the law abolishing this practice. This makes Moses and Aaron’s parentage on both sides from the tribe of Levi. Aaron married a woman from the tribe of Judah, who if we trace her family connections, we find both her father and brother in the lineage of Jesus the Christ (Matthew 1:4)

The Conclusion:

The genealogy is concluded by this statement:

26 These are the Aaron and Moses to whom the LORD said: “Bring out the people of Israel from the land of Egypt by their hosts.” 27 It was they who spoke to Pharaoh king of Egypt about bringing out the people of Israel from Egypt, this Moses and this Aaron. 28 On the day when the LORD spoke to Moses in the land of Egypt, 29 the LORD said to Moses, “I am the LORD; tell Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I say to you.” 30 But Moses said to the LORD, “Behold, I am of uncircumcised lips. How will Pharaoh listen to me?”

This is a restatement of the main concepts from verses 10-13, which provides a frame for the genealogy. This is the family background and historical anchor of the Aaron and Moses whom God called to lead his people out of Egypt. They were the human instruments. But the focus is again on the Lord. The Lord said to Moses ‘I am YHWH’; tell Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I say to you. We have this contrast between the Lord who is the true hero of the story, and Moses, who lacked confidence in his own character and doubted his ability to carry out God’s orders. Moses needed God’s constant reassurance and strength throughout the process. YHWH was the one who called him to do the impossible, and YHWH was the one who sustained him from beginning to end.

God says I am YHWH. I will bring you out, like a captive out of prison. I will deliver you out of the hands of your enemy. I will redeem you – as a close relative who fights for the honor of the family. I will take you to be my own with deep covenant commitment; you will be mine and I will be yours. I will bring you into a relationship with me. I will give to you exceeding, abundantly, beyond what you could ask or imagine. And I will sustain you from beginning to end.

1 Corinthians 1:4 I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, …8 who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

1 Thessalonians 5:23 Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.

Numbers 23:19 God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?

Philippians 1:6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

Jude :24 Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, 25 to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

This is the message of the cross, where God showed up like never before in history bringing us out of captivity, delivering us out of the hand of the enemy, redeeming us with his own blood, taking us to be his own, bringing us to himself and giving us graciously what we do not deserve. At the cross, God demonstrated his absolute supremacy over every created thing, showing his unfailing passionate commitment and love toward his people and triumph over their enemies. God will sustain us guiltless to the end. He is faithful, he will do it. He will finish his work and bring us to completion and present us blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy through the finished work of Jesus on the cross.

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Exodus 5:20-6:5; Accusations Fly – Avoiding the Cross

http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20100919_exodus05_20-06_5.mp3

9/19 Exodus 5:20-6:5 Accusations Fly; Avoiding the Cross

Introduction:

Moses is God’s chosen instrument to deliver his people out of Egypt and into the glad service of their true King. Moses has reluctantly gone to his people. They responded by hearing, believing, and worshiping God. After this positive reception, Moses and Aaron went to the Pharaoh and demanded release. They were met with a less than favorable response. Rather than belief and worship, the king of Egypt disrespected God by discounting his power and authority.

2 But Pharaoh said, “Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the LORD, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.”

‘Your so-called God has no right to tell me what to do with my slaves.’

Then this shrewd pharaoh institutes a plan that will discredit Moses and Aaron and dishearten his Hebrew slaves. And his plan works. He demands the impossible: gather stubble wherever you can find it in place of the previously provided cut straw, but still meet the same quota of finished product each day.

The Hebrew foremen are beaten because their work crews have failed to meet the impossible demands. In desperation the foremen cry out to the Pharaoh, acknowledging repeatedly that they are his servants, and appeal for relief. But the Pharaoh is a cruel taskmaster and will not listen to their cry for help. He accuses them of laziness and demands them to accomplish the impossible.

5:15 Then the foremen of the people of Israel came and cried to Pharaoh, “Why do you treat your servants like this? 16 No straw is given to your servants, yet they say to us, ‘Make bricks!’ And behold, your servants are beaten; but the fault is in your own people.” 17 But he said, “You are idle, you are idle; that is why you say, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to the LORD.’ 18 Go now and work. No straw will be given you, but you must still deliver the same number of bricks.” 19 The foremen of the people of Israel saw that they were in trouble when they said, “You shall by no means reduce your number of bricks, your daily task each day.”

After their appeal to the Pharaoh fails miserably, they turn on Moses and Aaron.

The Accusation of Moses and Aaron by the Foremen

20 They met Moses and Aaron, who were waiting for them, as they came out from Pharaoh; 21 and they said to them, “The LORD look on you and judge, because you have made us stink in the sight of Pharaoh and his servants, and have put a sword in their hand to kill us.”

This is a stinging rebuke. Their wording is the typical wording used in the Psalms as a prayer to God for justice. Someone who is being unjustly treated by a superior would cry out ‘The LORD look on you and judge’. ‘I am not in a position to defend my own rights, but may God bring down on your head everything you deserve for treating us so badly’. They assume that Moses and Aaron are guilty because the outcome was not what they had hoped it would be. Their false assumption is that a good God would never allow bad things to happen to his people. They use graphic colorful language – ‘you have made us stink in the sight of Pharaoh and his servants, and have put a sword in their hand to kill us’. They are in a hopeless situation and they only see it escalating to the point where their very lives are at stake.

The irony of this is that in chapter 7, God will make the revered river Nile stink in the sight of the Egyptians, and ultimately, the hands of the Egyptians holding the swords will be washed up on the shores of the Red Sea. But for now, the people who were believing and worshiping have now lost hope and faith and are slandering the leader God has sent to help them.

So what is a leader to do when the people he is called to lead attack him for doing what is right? Things got hard for the people and they turned to Pharaoh for help. Moses steps out in obedience to God and now the people hate him. Look where Moses turns when things get hard.

The Accusation of God by Moses

22 Then Moses turned to the LORD and said, “O LORD, why have you done evil to this people? Why did you ever send me? 23 For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has done evil to this people, and you have not delivered your people at all.”

Moses says some hard things here. He accuses God of doing evil. He accuses God of not knowing what he is doing. He basically says ‘I told you so – I knew this was a bad idea’. And he accuses God of laziness – doing nothing when something must be done. These are serious accusations. But take note, in spite of all these accusations that he brings to God, he does bring them to God. He doesn’t run, like the Hebrew foremen ran, back to their old taskmaster. He turns to the Lord and brings his complaint before the Lord. Moses turns to the right place. He has some very hard things to say, but he goes to the right place. And notice, God doesn’t strike him dead for asking hard questions. God is not threatened by hard questions. In fact, God honors him by responding to his questions. God could have gotten his feelings hurt and given Moses the silent treatment. He could have gotten angry and started throwing thunderbolts. Instead he responds. But before we look at God’s response to his questions, let’s look at the questions.

Moses asks ‘why have you done evil to this people?’ Before we get down on Moses for asking such a question, let’s try to get into his sandals. Moses has done what God asked him to do. The result is that the foremen have been beaten. That’s evil. The Pharaoh has responded ruthlessly to reasonable requests. That’s evil. The people are now required to do the impossible. They’re sent chasing after stubble blown by the wind in a fruitless effort that is bound to result in failure. That’s evil. The foremen quite possibly might resort to beating their fellow Israelites in an effort to meet the quota and avoid a beating themselves. That’s evil. The people’s spirit has been crushed and they are losing faith and without hope. That’s evil. They are driven to the point of cursing their God given leader. That’s evil. So Moses is looking at the situation, feeling the pain of the situation, and he knows that all this is a direct result of God’s command. So he says – ‘why have you done evil to this people?’ Moses feels that he is more compassionate toward the Hebrew people than God is. He is saying ‘if I were God, I would do things differently’. God, I know how to handle this whole exodus thing. This is amazing in light of the fact that just a few chapters earlier, Moses is coming up with every excuse imaginable to weasel his way out of the call that God is giving him. Now he suddenly feels that he cares about the people more than God does.

Then he says ‘Why did you ever send me?’ His same old argument is still in his mind. I’m not qualified. I’m not the right man for the job. I told you so. Remember, I said ‘who am I that I should go to Pharaoh’ (Ex.3:11). Remember, I told you they wouldn’t believe me or listen to my voice (Ex.4:1). Remember, I told you I am not eloquent, but slow of speech and of tongue (Ex.4:10) Remember, I said ‘please send someone else’ (Ex.4:13). God, your plan isn’t working because you chose the wrong guy. Now I’m taking the heat from the disgruntled people. Why me?!

Then he says ‘since I came to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has done evil to this people, and you have not delivered your people at all’. God, I’m being obedient. I’m doing my part of the deal. I spoke in your name to Pharaoh. But he’s done evil to the people and you have not delivered your people at all. God, you’re not holding up your end of the bargain. You promised deliverance for your people but instead they are experiencing evil at the had of the Pharaoh. It would have been better for them if we had just kept quiet. God, you’re making me look bad. You have not delivered your people at all. Not even a little bit of deliverance. God, I’ve done my part, but you have done nothing at all.

Moses has vented. He’s laid it all on the table and told God how he feels. Now the Lord responds.

The Apology of God

6:1 But the LORD said to Moses, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for with a strong hand he will send them out, and with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land.” 2 God spoke to Moses and said to him, “I am the LORD. 3 I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by my name the LORD I did not make myself known to them. 4 I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they lived as sojourners. 5 Moreover, I have heard the groaning of the people of Israel whom the Egyptians hold as slaves, and I have remembered my covenant.

God responds to Moses’ accusations. He says ‘Now you shall see what I will do.’ Now is the time. Now, because now nobody is on my side. The Pharaoh is decisively and publicly against setting his slaves free. The people responded with initial excitement and worship, but when adversity came, they gave up hope. They want things back the way they were – a more comfortable slavery. And Moses, my chosen instrument, you are accusing me of evil and laziness and a lack of compassion. Now that nobody is on board with my program, now I can act in such a way that no one will try to steal my glory. God is the hero of this story. Not Moses, not the people, not the Pharaoh. Pharaoh didn’t believe God was capable of setting the people free. The people had given up hope and cursed the man God had sent to help them. Moses accused God of evil and questioned his motivation, wisdom and compassion. Now that no one is on my side, I can act alone. He says ‘Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh.’ I will act. After I am done with Pharaoh, he will use all his power to drive you out, to be rid of you, to expel you from his land.

God does not take Moses’ list of questions and answer them one by one. In fact, he doesn’t directly answer them at all. God doesn’t defend himself against Moses’ accusation that he has brought evil on the people. He doesn’t defend himself against the charge that he picked the wrong man for the job. He doesn’t defend himself against the charge that he has done nothing to deliver his people at all. Instead, he communicates to Moses who he is. Moses’ main problem is that he needs to know God better. So God responds to Moses’ challenges by revealing who he is and what he is going to do. “God spoke to Moses and said to him, ‘I am YHWH’”. Moses, you need to know who I am. I am the I AM. The self-existent one. The independent one. The uncaused cause of all that is. I am the active one. The one who is being and doing. I am the God who makes promises and keeps them.

God connects himself with history. This is not a new god on the scene. This is the God who has been active in history. This is the same God who appeared to Abraham and Isaac and Jacob as El Shaddai – God All-Powerful. He is the God who made covenant with his people. He made promises to them. But Abraham and Isaac and Jacob had not experienced the fulfillment of those promises. The author of Hebrews tells us:

Hebrews 11:13 These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.

The people of the exodus generation would experience God in a new way. They would get to see how God keeps his promises. God made staggering promises to Abraham and Isaac and Jacob. Now God is going to display himself in power and fulfill these promises to this generation. God reiterates that he hears – even the accusations of the people toward Moses, he knows, he remembers, and he cares.

Application

We will all face hard things in life. Our tendency is to run back to our old taskmaster. Our false assumption is that because I am a King’s kid, I should be exempt from suffering. We tend to shrink from the cross. The good news of redemption and rescue sounds good until we hear Jesus say:

Luke 9:23 And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.

We want to enjoy the crown without enduring the cross. The cross is strong medicine. We would rather die a slow death under the anesthetizing effects of sin than feel the piercing pain of God’s remedy for our desperate and sick condition.

Romans 6:5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6 We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. 7 For one who has died has been set free from sin.

Galatians 5:24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

What we need to be told, again and again and again, is who the hero of the story is. I am YHWH. I will do it. It will be painful. It will cost you your life.

Luke 9:23 And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.

(cf. Matt.10:39; Matt.16:25; Mk.8:35; Lk.9:24; 17:33)

Things may get worse before they get better. It may feel like I have abandoned you. You may feel that I have wronged you. You can come to me with any questions. I may not answer all your questions, but I want you to bring them to me. I am good. You can trust me. I will keep my word to you. I will carry you safely through to the other side. What you need to know is me. You need to know who I am. I am the hero of your story. You need to know me.

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org