WEBVTT 00:00:02.319 --> 00:00:02.959 Morning. 00:00:04.879 --> 00:00:06.799 It is a good morning indeed. 00:00:06.879 --> 00:00:18.800 I'm thankful for the opportunity to share the word this morning, and I'm even more thankful for God who has given us his word, both in flesh and on the written page, that we may celebrate and know him. 00:00:19.199 --> 00:00:20.719 And I'm excited to do that this morning. 00:00:20.800 --> 00:00:24.239 I'm especially thankful that I get to do it on a morning that there's just one service. 00:00:24.879 --> 00:00:32.399 It's a combined service because what we normally do is we normally allot 35 minutes for the sermon, but I get both both of those. 00:00:32.479 --> 00:00:34.719 So I get 70 minutes for the sermon today. 00:00:34.880 --> 00:00:40.799 So we're going to cover two full chapters of Old Testament narrative, and I'm really excited because I don't normally get to do this. 00:00:43.280 --> 00:00:44.000 But we are. 00:00:44.079 --> 00:00:45.840 We're going to cover quite a lot of ground today. 00:00:46.000 --> 00:00:50.079 I won't really take the 70 minutes, but we are going to cover quite a lot of ground today. 00:00:50.479 --> 00:00:55.840 I'm excited, but we're going to start by looking at just the first 10 verses, and then we're going to dig in. 00:00:55.920 --> 00:00:58.079 Okay, so let's look at Exodus chapter 3. 00:00:58.240 --> 00:01:00.079 If you'll turn there with me. 00:01:01.280 --> 00:01:03.200 It's a familiar passage. 00:01:04.079 --> 00:01:08.400 Moses at the burning bush and God's call to him. 00:01:10.159 --> 00:01:19.200 Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro, his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the desert and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 00:01:19.439 --> 00:01:24.079 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. 00:01:24.319 --> 00:01:28.879 Moses saw that the bush was on fire, it did not burn up. 00:01:29.040 --> 00:01:31.040 That though the bush was on fire, it did not burn up. 00:01:31.120 --> 00:01:33.760 So Moses thought, I will go over and see this strange sight. 00:01:33.920 --> 00:01:35.760 Why the bush does not burn up? 00:01:36.000 --> 00:01:43.280 When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, Moses, Moses, and he said, Here I am. 00:01:43.599 --> 00:01:45.599 Do not come any closer, God said. 00:01:45.840 --> 00:01:49.599 Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. 00:01:49.920 --> 00:01:55.840 Then he said, I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob. 00:01:56.079 --> 00:01:59.439 At this Moses hid his face because he was afraid to look at God. 00:01:59.840 --> 00:02:04.000 And the Lord said, I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. 00:02:04.239 --> 00:02:09.520 I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. 00:02:09.680 --> 00:02:23.919 So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey, the home of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perzevites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 00:02:24.080 --> 00:02:29.520 And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. 00:02:29.680 --> 00:02:30.800 So now go. 00:02:31.759 --> 00:02:39.199 I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt. 00:02:39.520 --> 00:02:40.560 Let's pray. 00:02:41.680 --> 00:02:43.680 God, we thank you for your word. 00:02:44.800 --> 00:02:54.960 We thank you for the examples that we see of your goodness and your kindness and your strength and your intentions and your integrity and your holiness and your justice. 00:02:55.120 --> 00:02:57.199 And the list could go on forever. 00:02:58.159 --> 00:03:12.000 And we ask that today as we look at your word that you would enliven us with your spirit, that you would meet us where we are, that you would show us who you are, and that you would reveal a way that we can start afresh in your strength. 00:03:13.680 --> 00:03:15.120 In Jesus' name. 00:03:15.439 --> 00:03:16.080 Amen. 00:03:17.039 --> 00:03:18.479 New Year's resolutions. 00:03:18.560 --> 00:03:21.120 They're on a lot of people's minds at this time of year. 00:03:21.280 --> 00:03:29.120 Here we are sitting between Christmas and New Year's, and maybe you've started thinking about it, maybe you've heard it on the radio, on TV. 00:03:29.199 --> 00:03:31.360 We see a lot of it in our culture at this time of year. 00:03:31.520 --> 00:03:40.159 New books, new uh stick to your goals, plans, and organizers, and all sorts of things that come out around this time of year. 00:03:41.759 --> 00:03:55.199 I'm aware of this because every year I find myself in this position of recognizing that there's this truth to the fact that in a new year we have a new beginning and an opportunity, and it's fitting to go, what? 00:03:55.840 --> 00:03:57.919 What's in front of me this year? 00:03:58.240 --> 00:04:03.840 To take stock, to evaluate, to go, to go, what is what is in front of me and where am I going? 00:04:03.919 --> 00:04:06.240 And to evaluate our goals. 00:04:06.560 --> 00:04:09.759 It's a fitting place to ask these questions. 00:04:10.479 --> 00:04:14.879 And I confess every year I kind of am asking the same question. 00:04:15.680 --> 00:04:18.560 See, for me, I have a struggle with my weight. 00:04:18.720 --> 00:04:24.959 Just be honest, in my adult life, I have lost and gained over 50 pounds six times. 00:04:27.279 --> 00:04:30.399 This year, as a matter of fact, last year I set this as a New Year's resolution to lose weight. 00:04:30.480 --> 00:04:34.720 I lost 42 pounds going into summer, and I've gained the majority of it back, if I just have to confess. 00:04:35.680 --> 00:04:37.199 And so I struggle with these things. 00:04:37.279 --> 00:04:44.000 I don't know if you like me find these moments for new beginnings and fresh starts and kind of take stock and ask questions. 00:04:44.560 --> 00:04:51.519 But but we all have different things that we might look at at this stage, but I didn't want to just go, what is our culture doing? 00:04:51.600 --> 00:04:52.240 What do I do? 00:04:52.319 --> 00:04:53.199 What have I done every year? 00:04:53.920 --> 00:04:59.199 I wanted to go, what does Scripture have to say about this new beginning concept? 00:04:59.439 --> 00:05:06.000 Who do we have in Scripture that serves as an example of somebody who was called to something new? 00:05:06.319 --> 00:05:12.160 And how did they take on this new direction, this new path, this new course? 00:05:14.319 --> 00:05:16.079 And Moses came to mind. 00:05:17.519 --> 00:05:21.680 See, Moses is being called to something new here. 00:05:22.560 --> 00:05:31.759 Moses grew up in a life of kind of a very interesting life of both privilege and this awareness of slavery and oppression at the same time. 00:05:31.839 --> 00:05:33.920 So he was raised by Pharaoh's daughter. 00:05:34.160 --> 00:05:42.879 And he had privilege, and yet he was very aware of who his real family was, and he was visited by them and even nursed to health by his real family. 00:05:44.319 --> 00:05:48.079 And so he had this kind of dual world that he was living in. 00:05:49.519 --> 00:06:00.079 And yet one day, as his people, who were enslaved in Egypt, as he witnessed one of them being beaten, from his position of privilege, he was enraged. 00:06:01.360 --> 00:06:04.000 And he struck out in anger and killed a man. 00:06:05.759 --> 00:06:14.560 And when he realized that the knowledge of that had gotten around, he fled in fear for his life. 00:06:15.120 --> 00:06:21.360 And he had found his way into Midian, and he had met a girl, and he married her. 00:06:22.399 --> 00:06:25.600 And here we meet him attending his father-in-law's sheep. 00:06:26.560 --> 00:06:30.959 And God says, I have something new for you. 00:06:32.240 --> 00:06:33.759 A fresh beginning. 00:06:34.160 --> 00:06:35.360 A new task. 00:06:39.920 --> 00:06:43.839 We come to chapter three, and he's been hanging out in Midian for a while. 00:06:44.319 --> 00:06:52.319 But the interesting thing here that I immediately notice is that Moses didn't just decide to free God's people. 00:06:52.959 --> 00:06:54.959 Moses was called to it. 00:06:55.519 --> 00:06:59.920 Moses was called by God to a specific task. 00:07:01.920 --> 00:07:10.079 And as we look at this, God does it through some very amazing circumstances. 00:07:10.240 --> 00:07:13.839 See, this story is in danger of the familiar familiar. 00:07:14.800 --> 00:07:17.279 I can't speak this morning, familiarity effect. 00:07:18.000 --> 00:07:23.759 See, sometimes we get so familiar with a story that we reduce the awe of it in our mind. 00:07:23.920 --> 00:07:26.240 And the story of Moses and the burning bush can be one. 00:07:26.319 --> 00:07:28.240 We've heard it growing up in Sunday school. 00:07:28.399 --> 00:07:35.040 I like to say that, you know, when I teach students all the time, and and and I and we talk about this, how some of these stories become old hat. 00:07:35.120 --> 00:07:42.240 You heard them time and time again in Sunday school, and our brains can kind of shut off, and we can reduce the awe and the wonder that should be present. 00:07:42.399 --> 00:07:52.000 But but when we see the burning bush, I don't know about you, but sometimes I see the little flannelgram picture, you know, the little cartoon picture of the bush on fire, and they stuck it up on the little flannel board. 00:07:52.079 --> 00:07:52.639 It's an old thing. 00:07:52.720 --> 00:07:53.759 You have to Google it, kids. 00:07:53.839 --> 00:07:56.319 You can Google, see what a flannelgram is. 00:07:56.560 --> 00:08:02.079 And we could just turn it into that little cartoon bush. 00:08:03.199 --> 00:08:08.800 But ladies and gentlemen, let me tell you, this was an awe-inspiring sight. 00:08:09.920 --> 00:08:24.240 God got Moses' attention through amazing circumstances of reaching into his life, exactly where he was, met him where he was, and grabbed his attention in a miraculous way. 00:08:24.399 --> 00:08:29.600 We have a bush ablaze with flames and yet vibrant and alive within it. 00:08:30.079 --> 00:08:35.519 And though the flame is burning bright, the bush is not consumed. 00:08:37.200 --> 00:08:39.440 This was not normal. 00:08:40.480 --> 00:08:43.440 See, you might find a bush on fire. 00:08:43.919 --> 00:08:48.080 You won't find one that is living vibrantly inside the flames. 00:08:50.879 --> 00:08:52.960 And this got their attention. 00:08:55.200 --> 00:09:08.639 This got Moses' attention, and it should get ours, and we should pause on the wonder of the power and the might of a God who meets us where we are in miraculous ways. 00:09:10.159 --> 00:09:19.039 The reality is that we have quite an amazing revelation of God's will that was custom-tailored to Moses' circumstances to get his attention. 00:09:19.279 --> 00:09:32.320 And I once had a conversation with a lady who talked about how she loved the symbolism of the bush of God, who's referred to in many places in Scripture as a consuming fire. 00:09:33.200 --> 00:09:38.960 And here, his consuming fire is burning this bush and it is not consumed. 00:09:39.039 --> 00:09:56.960 And she said, I think that's a lot how we come to God, that we can fear this consuming fire, and that we think that if we put our life inside of this consuming fire, that we will get consumed, and that we will lose ourselves, and that we will cease and he will begin. 00:09:57.039 --> 00:09:58.240 And yet that's not the picture. 00:09:58.399 --> 00:10:13.840 She said, I see us like the burning bush, that when we put ourselves within the flames of God's consuming fire, that then we become even more vibrant and more alive, just like this miracle that God used to get Moses' attention. 00:10:14.080 --> 00:10:29.919 And so as we're looking at ourselves on the cusp of potentially new beginnings and new paths that God might be calling us to, I want you to realize that to submit yourself into his flame is not one where you will lose yourself, but one where you will find yourself. 00:10:30.960 --> 00:10:33.519 As Moses found something that day. 00:10:57.440 --> 00:11:01.039 Are they just things we conjured up because we would enjoy them? 00:11:02.480 --> 00:11:05.519 Are they things that God is literally calling us to? 00:11:07.519 --> 00:11:12.639 I'll use the example of weight loss because I told you that's one that I struggle with, and it's one that a lot of people struggle with. 00:11:12.799 --> 00:11:17.919 If you Google New Year's resolutions, you will find that the one at the top of the list usually is weight loss. 00:11:18.159 --> 00:11:22.080 In America, this tends to be the highest seller of books at this time of year. 00:11:22.240 --> 00:11:25.120 Gym memberships skyrocket through the roof at this time of year. 00:11:25.200 --> 00:11:25.840 Gyms love it. 00:11:26.000 --> 00:11:30.240 They get a hundred people signed up, and then only five of them actually use the memberships they're paying for. 00:11:30.399 --> 00:11:42.320 And we we tend to do this thing in cycles, but the reality is weight loss or any other goal, we can do the same thing, the same action can be taken on for good motive and bad motive. 00:11:42.399 --> 00:11:44.879 And let me give you an example when I face this in my life. 00:11:45.120 --> 00:11:49.039 One when I had to ask myself, Am I doing this for me or for God? 00:11:51.519 --> 00:11:55.519 See, I I walked away from God in some very severe ways as a young man. 00:11:55.679 --> 00:12:06.480 Um, got involved in some things that I shouldn't have been involved in, ended up uh yeah, doing a lot of illegal things, and uh found myself gaining weight. 00:12:06.639 --> 00:12:09.519 Health was not a concern for me at a time. 00:12:11.279 --> 00:12:12.879 And then God called me out of that. 00:12:13.919 --> 00:12:27.919 And he placed me in the middle of this camp in a discipleship program where he nurtured me back to health, and while I was there, we had an opportunity to go on a mission trip to Panama to reach a group of people. 00:12:28.559 --> 00:12:34.240 And I was told that we were gonna go, and we were going to the Wai-Me Indians, and you know, that's a weird name. 00:12:34.320 --> 00:12:37.360 It's spelled G-U-A-Y-M-I. 00:12:38.000 --> 00:12:38.960 Huaymie. 00:12:39.039 --> 00:12:40.559 But it sounds like Wai Me. 00:12:43.039 --> 00:12:44.879 And so I said, well, tell me, tell me about this. 00:12:44.960 --> 00:12:56.480 And they said that this was a really interesting Indian tribe in the mountains of Panama, and and and the reason that we were going is because very few people ever tried to minister to this particular group of Indians. 00:12:56.559 --> 00:13:11.840 And the same reason that few people tried to minister to them was the same reason that they had another uniqueness, and it was that in that area of the world they were one of the few Indian tribes that had been defeated by the conquistadors that had taken over so much of that part of the world at a particular time. 00:13:12.000 --> 00:13:18.960 And the reason the conquistadors could not reach them and defeat them is because they really didn't have any central cities. 00:13:19.200 --> 00:13:29.600 You see, in the mountains you would have a hut, and there would be a hut and a family living in it, and then you'd walk five miles of mountainous terrain to another hut, and those huts were considered part of the same village. 00:13:30.320 --> 00:13:35.360 They spread out so far that there was no central place to attack. 00:13:36.159 --> 00:13:41.120 And for that same reason, few people ministered to them because there was no central place to gather. 00:13:41.279 --> 00:13:49.200 So you had to go and hike the five miles of mountainous terrain between one hut and another hut just to share with different families on the same day. 00:13:49.279 --> 00:13:54.639 And so your day could be really, really stressful and strenuous. 00:13:55.200 --> 00:14:00.879 And I'm going, okay, I'm gonna have to hike through mountainous terrain with 50 pounds on my back. 00:14:02.080 --> 00:14:03.759 I'm out of shape. 00:14:06.159 --> 00:14:23.919 And I began to realize that weight loss wasn't just something that might serve my desire of looking good in a swimsuit, but God might actually use my health to enable me to better reach people with the message of his gospel. 00:14:25.840 --> 00:14:34.000 See, I think for many of us, we can take good goals and make them self-serving or God-serving. 00:14:36.320 --> 00:14:46.399 And so, what I want you to ask yourself this year is when you're setting goals, is it a response to something God is calling to you to? 00:14:47.840 --> 00:14:49.840 Or is it your own ideas? 00:14:50.639 --> 00:14:56.000 And in what ways is God trying to reach you that are custom tailored to your circumstances? 00:14:56.159 --> 00:15:03.440 Just like he did with Moses, is God trying to speak into your life in a way that he is going, wake up? 00:15:06.960 --> 00:15:09.919 I want you to chart a new course. 00:15:10.080 --> 00:15:11.919 I'm calling you to new things. 00:15:12.080 --> 00:15:14.480 I'm calling you to leave certain things behind. 00:15:14.639 --> 00:15:17.440 I'm calling you to head new places. 00:15:17.759 --> 00:15:21.600 And are you ready to walk in obedience? 00:15:22.080 --> 00:15:27.279 See, to do this, we have to be open to hearing the unique ways that God may be calling you to a new beginning. 00:15:27.600 --> 00:15:32.320 Don't get me wrong, I think sometimes we're too eager to see the burning bush in our life. 00:15:32.399 --> 00:15:34.480 I think sometimes we create our own signs. 00:15:35.120 --> 00:15:38.080 We like you to go, God, give me a sign, and we do it in ways like this. 00:15:38.159 --> 00:15:42.799 Like, um, we might say, God, I'd really like a new Porsche. 00:15:43.919 --> 00:15:51.039 I would love to have a German sports car that could go faster than I could legally ever desire to go. 00:15:51.120 --> 00:15:54.559 And I just wonder if you want me to have one of those, God. 00:15:54.720 --> 00:15:56.639 So I'm looking for a sign. 00:15:56.960 --> 00:16:04.159 So if I see a Porsche in the next five minutes, God, I'll know you want me to get a new Porsche. 00:16:04.399 --> 00:16:08.240 And then we turn our car towards a Porsche dealership and drive by it, right? 00:16:10.480 --> 00:16:15.759 I want us to be careful when I say that we're looking to what God is calling us to and we're looking for the signs. 00:16:15.919 --> 00:16:17.759 This can be a tricky game. 00:16:18.000 --> 00:16:23.120 We don't all have the benefit of a burning bush calling out to us. 00:16:23.679 --> 00:16:26.320 So how do we know when God is getting our attention? 00:16:26.559 --> 00:16:33.279 How do we know when he is reaching into our specific circumstances in a way to get our attention and call us to something new? 00:16:36.639 --> 00:16:42.000 Well, there's some things that rank high on this list, but the primary one is this. 00:16:43.279 --> 00:16:52.000 God will never, ever, ever call you to something that contradicts his word. 00:16:53.919 --> 00:16:54.559 Ever. 00:16:55.679 --> 00:16:57.919 His word stands forever. 00:16:59.120 --> 00:17:01.600 Not one dot will pass away. 00:17:02.399 --> 00:17:08.000 And so if you are feeling inclined towards something and you're asking, does this match God's will? 00:17:08.160 --> 00:17:10.799 The best way to find that out is to search his will. 00:17:10.960 --> 00:17:15.839 And we have two primary tools of searching his will, and that is through prayer and the word. 00:17:16.079 --> 00:17:22.720 And sometimes, though, we can base a lot on our feelings, and it can get confusing because even in prayer, we can feel a certain way. 00:17:22.880 --> 00:17:29.680 But I will tell you that you should check your prayer against his word and go to his word and search his word. 00:17:30.400 --> 00:17:36.319 Meditate on his word and see how it aligns with the things he may be calling you to. 00:17:39.519 --> 00:17:46.960 And then we, like Moses, can know that God is calling us to something new. 00:17:50.000 --> 00:17:52.480 So, what has God been calling you to? 00:17:52.960 --> 00:17:54.079 I don't know. 00:17:54.880 --> 00:17:56.799 For each of us it's different, right? 00:17:57.039 --> 00:18:00.880 Here's a few examples of things that would be in alignment with his word. 00:18:01.119 --> 00:18:02.720 Maybe they they hit you where you're at. 00:18:02.880 --> 00:18:12.799 Maybe he's calling you to get out of debt so that you're free to respond to the needs of those around you instead of worrying about your own financial problems. 00:18:12.960 --> 00:18:19.759 Maybe he's calling you to take a less demanding job so that you can be more of an example of love and presence in your family. 00:18:20.000 --> 00:18:23.920 Maybe he's calling you to quit gossiping so that you can be a more effective witness for him. 00:18:24.240 --> 00:18:31.759 Maybe he's calling you to seek reconciliation in a relationship that's broken, whether that be with a brother, a sister, a mother, your own spouse, even. 00:18:31.920 --> 00:18:39.839 Maybe damage has come into a relationship and you know that things need to move forward, but pride is holding you back, and he's going, step. 00:18:41.359 --> 00:18:46.880 Because we see that all of these things are in alignment with his will. 00:18:47.680 --> 00:18:49.599 And there's a hundred other things it could be. 00:18:49.759 --> 00:18:54.319 The truth is God might be reaching you in a way that I can't even imagine. 00:18:57.279 --> 00:19:00.240 But I can tell you that it will fall into alignment with his word. 00:19:03.519 --> 00:19:06.400 So this year, let your goals be driven by God's calling. 00:19:06.720 --> 00:19:14.240 But the problem with this is that when Moses receives this call, he does something that we do too. 00:19:14.559 --> 00:19:16.240 And that's make excuses. 00:19:16.559 --> 00:19:20.319 Anybody here ever make excuses not to do the things you know you're supposed to do? 00:19:20.559 --> 00:19:21.039 Anybody here? 00:19:21.200 --> 00:19:22.160 Well, only a couple of hands. 00:19:22.400 --> 00:19:23.440 We're just okay, there we go. 00:19:23.519 --> 00:19:24.960 Now we're telling the truth. 00:19:26.240 --> 00:19:27.759 I'm great at excuses. 00:19:27.920 --> 00:19:29.279 Can I just be honest with you? 00:19:29.440 --> 00:19:30.960 I'm really good at them. 00:19:32.559 --> 00:19:39.519 And when I looked at the scriptures here, and this is where we're going to bounce all over chapter three and four to kind of look at it, I looked at Moses' excuses. 00:19:39.599 --> 00:19:43.519 They don't necessarily come in a particular order, but I broke them down into two primary categories. 00:19:43.839 --> 00:19:52.480 Moses' excuses fall into two primary categories, and they tend to reflect the same categories that I find myself struggling with time and time again. 00:19:52.960 --> 00:20:00.079 And that's the I can't do it excuse, and second, it's the everybody else is getting in my way excuse. 00:20:01.440 --> 00:20:04.480 So let's look at first at the I can't do it excuse. 00:20:04.720 --> 00:20:15.119 Moses, when God tells him these things right after verse 10, which is where we left off our reading, we come back at verse 11, and it says, But Moses said to God, right? 00:20:15.440 --> 00:20:21.279 God said, So now go, I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt. 00:20:21.359 --> 00:20:25.279 And immediately, but Moses said to God, Who am I? 00:20:25.599 --> 00:20:29.279 That I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt. 00:20:29.440 --> 00:20:31.440 He's going, I'm a nobody. 00:20:32.559 --> 00:20:33.599 Who am I? 00:20:33.920 --> 00:20:35.519 Why am I special? 00:20:36.960 --> 00:20:40.319 And God says, You're not. 00:20:41.119 --> 00:20:44.480 You're not special, but I am. 00:20:45.039 --> 00:20:47.279 Look at God's response to the who am I? 00:20:47.440 --> 00:20:49.599 And God said, I will be with you. 00:20:49.759 --> 00:20:52.960 And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you. 00:20:53.119 --> 00:20:56.240 When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this. 00:20:56.559 --> 00:20:57.599 And He goes, I'm gonna do it. 00:20:57.680 --> 00:21:05.519 You can do this not because you're special, but because I'm special, because I'm calling you, because I'm gonna enable you, because I'm gonna be with you. 00:21:06.799 --> 00:21:07.759 I love the phrase. 00:21:07.920 --> 00:21:16.960 God used this phrase in my life to call me into ministry when I was struggling with my own incapabilities and weaknesses and my past and my baggage. 00:21:17.119 --> 00:21:21.920 And a friend spoke to me the phrase, God does not call the qualified, he qualifies the called. 00:21:22.079 --> 00:21:26.400 And that's what he's basically saying to Moses here, is he says, Look, I'm going with you. 00:21:26.720 --> 00:21:27.920 Moses says, Who am I? 00:21:28.079 --> 00:21:29.039 I can't do it. 00:21:29.200 --> 00:21:30.319 I'm going with you. 00:21:30.559 --> 00:21:33.519 Moses uses the same excuse later down the road. 00:21:33.599 --> 00:21:35.200 If you keep going, I'm trying to make sure. 00:21:35.440 --> 00:21:36.720 Did I cross into chapter four here? 00:21:36.799 --> 00:21:46.319 Yeah, in chapter four, verse 10, Moses said to the Lord, Oh Lord, I've never been eloquent, neither in the past, nor since you have spoken to your servant. 00:21:46.480 --> 00:21:48.480 I am slow of speech and tongue. 00:21:48.640 --> 00:21:51.119 He goes, God, I'm not a good talker. 00:21:52.000 --> 00:21:53.279 Not fancy. 00:21:55.119 --> 00:21:57.039 God's going, I don't need that. 00:21:58.720 --> 00:22:02.720 And then Moses goes, He So far, is he just kind of basically just begs, please don't send me. 00:22:02.960 --> 00:22:04.720 Look at verse 13 in chapter 4. 00:22:04.880 --> 00:22:10.880 But Moses said, Oh Lord, please send someone else to do it. 00:22:11.680 --> 00:22:14.799 And I feel like sometimes when God calls us, we're going, God, not me. 00:22:15.759 --> 00:22:16.559 Please. 00:22:16.799 --> 00:22:17.519 I'm weak. 00:22:17.680 --> 00:22:18.319 I can't do it. 00:22:18.480 --> 00:22:19.119 I don't talk well. 00:22:19.279 --> 00:22:19.839 Who am I? 00:22:20.000 --> 00:22:20.799 I'm not special. 00:22:21.039 --> 00:22:21.359 Really? 00:22:21.519 --> 00:22:22.400 Come on. 00:22:26.240 --> 00:22:27.039 I'm old. 00:22:27.119 --> 00:22:28.799 I'm set in my ways. 00:22:29.680 --> 00:22:32.240 You can't expect me to start over at this point. 00:22:35.200 --> 00:22:38.720 Look at what God says to his I can't do it excuse about speech. 00:22:38.799 --> 00:22:43.440 In verse 11 of chapter 4, the Lord said to him, Who gave man his mouth? 00:22:43.839 --> 00:22:45.759 Who makes him deaf or mute? 00:22:45.920 --> 00:22:47.839 Who gives him sight or makes him blind? 00:22:48.000 --> 00:22:50.480 It is, is it not I, the Lord? 00:22:50.640 --> 00:22:51.359 Now go. 00:22:51.519 --> 00:22:52.559 I will help you speak. 00:22:52.960 --> 00:22:59.839 Again, the Lord is pointing to his strength, his power, his ability in the face of Moses' inability. 00:23:00.000 --> 00:23:04.640 And then when Moses just says, But please, and someone else, he says, The Lord's anger burned against Moses. 00:23:04.799 --> 00:23:05.599 He was getting irritated. 00:23:05.680 --> 00:23:07.119 He's like, look, okay, hello. 00:23:07.279 --> 00:23:11.920 The Lord is telling you he's gonna do it, and you're not getting it. 00:23:12.160 --> 00:23:15.839 The Lord's anger burned against Moses and said, What about your brother Aaron the Levi? 00:23:16.079 --> 00:23:17.200 I know he can speak well. 00:23:17.359 --> 00:23:21.119 He is already on his way to meet you, and his heart will be glad when he sees you. 00:23:21.599 --> 00:23:23.759 You shall speak to him and put words in his mouth. 00:23:23.920 --> 00:23:25.279 I will help both of you speak. 00:23:25.440 --> 00:23:26.559 I will teach you what to do. 00:23:26.720 --> 00:23:32.400 He will speak to the people for you, and it will be as if he were your mouth, and as if you were God to him. 00:23:32.559 --> 00:23:36.240 But take this staff in your hand, so you can perform miraculous signs with it. 00:23:36.480 --> 00:23:43.119 See, the Lord will not allow our weakness to hinder his greatness. 00:23:45.599 --> 00:23:47.839 And so there's two things that we said already. 00:23:47.920 --> 00:23:55.599 We said this year, are we gonna let our goals be driven by our desires, or are we gonna allow them to be driven by what God is desiring in our life? 00:23:56.240 --> 00:24:03.359 But see, there's not only that step of allowing our goals to be set by God, but they're allowing them to be accomplished by God. 00:24:03.839 --> 00:24:07.359 See, sometimes we go, I hear what you're asking me to do, I'll go do it. 00:24:07.519 --> 00:24:09.680 And that's not how it works. 00:24:11.759 --> 00:24:21.599 See, we need God not only to give us our goals, but to accomplish our goals in His strength and in His power, not our own. 00:24:21.759 --> 00:24:30.160 But see, sometimes we get so wrapped up in doing things ourselves that we think we think we should be able to conjure up the ability to do these great things. 00:24:30.960 --> 00:24:35.440 But as long as you're trying to do them in your own strength, you will, you will fail. 00:24:35.759 --> 00:24:38.079 Why do we pretend like we can do it? 00:24:38.960 --> 00:24:40.480 As if we have to believe in ourselves. 00:24:40.559 --> 00:24:42.000 Our culture is big in that. 00:24:42.160 --> 00:24:47.200 Look at all of the talk shows and the things that are going to be talking about your New Year's resolution. 00:24:47.279 --> 00:24:48.240 Just believe in yourself. 00:24:48.480 --> 00:24:49.039 Why? 00:24:49.279 --> 00:24:50.799 I'm a failure. 00:24:51.519 --> 00:24:55.039 I just told you how many times I've fought the weight loss battle. 00:24:56.160 --> 00:24:56.640 G.K. 00:24:56.799 --> 00:25:02.319 Chesterson once said, the men who really believe in themselves are in lunatic asylums. 00:25:06.880 --> 00:25:14.720 See, the whole basis of the gospel, the whole point of God's message of Jesus coming was the fact that we can't do it. 00:25:14.960 --> 00:25:20.880 That we don't have the strength, that we aren't able to accomplish these things in and of ourselves, that we need him. 00:25:21.200 --> 00:25:28.240 We come to him with the gospel and we say, Lord, I know I could not do this. 00:25:28.640 --> 00:26:01.680 I look at my life, I know that my heart is evil, I know that I fail, I know that I'm sinful, I know that I do not stack up to your perfection, and I know that I need you and your forgiveness given freely, not based on my merit, but on the work that Jesus accomplished on the cross, and we confess our inability in and of ourselves, and then somehow we allow the culture that we're in and the habits of time to tell us in our heart, now get out there and do it on your own. 00:26:02.240 --> 00:26:17.039 And we start striving for the Christian life in our own strength, and we start setting up Phariseeism and legalism and markers of what makes somebody good, and we stack ourselves up to it and we try harder. 00:26:18.480 --> 00:26:20.480 And that's not the message. 00:26:22.000 --> 00:26:26.160 When Moses says I can't do it, he says, Yeah, I know. 00:26:26.880 --> 00:26:27.839 But I can. 00:26:29.039 --> 00:26:35.599 So this year, let your goals be driven by God's calling and accomplished in his power. 00:26:35.920 --> 00:26:37.359 Then we look at the other excuse. 00:26:37.519 --> 00:26:40.640 It's the it's everybody else standing in my way excuse. 00:26:41.519 --> 00:26:43.119 I like this one. 00:26:44.079 --> 00:26:47.519 If I can blame somebody else, it's so much better for me. 00:26:50.319 --> 00:26:52.559 All those things God called you to. 00:26:59.599 --> 00:27:00.720 Whatever you were thinking of. 00:27:00.880 --> 00:27:09.599 Now think about the times that you've looked at that problem and convinced yourself that the reason you weren't working on it was because somebody else stood in your way. 00:27:11.279 --> 00:27:13.039 Because Moses goes there. 00:27:16.240 --> 00:27:23.119 Moses said to God, suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, the God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they ask, Well, what's his name? 00:27:23.359 --> 00:27:24.319 What should I tell them? 00:27:26.319 --> 00:27:28.079 They don't know I'm coming from you. 00:27:28.319 --> 00:27:29.680 They don't know who you are. 00:27:29.920 --> 00:27:30.160 What do? 00:27:35.440 --> 00:27:37.200 On and on and on. 00:27:41.359 --> 00:27:42.960 This is God's response. 00:27:43.279 --> 00:27:45.759 God said to Moses, I am who I am. 00:27:46.400 --> 00:27:50.400 This is what you are to say to the Israelites, I am, has sent me to you. 00:27:50.480 --> 00:27:54.720 And this is a very famous passage because this is where God reveals his name. 00:27:55.039 --> 00:27:59.440 A name that was so revered that the Israelites would not speak it. 00:28:00.319 --> 00:28:04.000 Then in our Bibles, we we don't write the name of either Yahweh or Jehovah. 00:28:04.079 --> 00:28:12.720 We write the Lord in all caps because there was this mystery behind his name because it was so revered, but the meaning of his name was basically I exist. 00:28:13.279 --> 00:28:15.039 You want to tell him who sent you? 00:28:15.279 --> 00:28:30.079 The real God, the one who is, the one who exists, the one who is not carved by human hands, the one who is a self-sustainer of all in the universe, the God that is sent you. 00:28:31.759 --> 00:28:38.319 And he reveals himself and he says, I don't let other people stand in my way. 00:28:40.240 --> 00:28:41.200 I don't. 00:28:44.400 --> 00:28:45.359 You look at. 00:28:47.680 --> 00:28:52.720 He tells him in uh chapter three, verse seven. 00:28:56.559 --> 00:28:58.240 That he's gonna show his power through him. 00:28:58.400 --> 00:29:00.799 He says, other people doubt you, this is what you do. 00:29:02.079 --> 00:29:03.279 Oh, let's back up. 00:29:03.440 --> 00:29:04.000 Hold on. 00:29:04.240 --> 00:29:06.319 I have too many pages of notes. 00:29:06.640 --> 00:29:08.319 This is a problem for me. 00:29:08.640 --> 00:29:11.279 No, chapter four, not chapter, chapter three. 00:29:11.359 --> 00:29:13.759 See, I gotta follow the numbers on the bottom of the page. 00:29:14.000 --> 00:29:14.559 Simple. 00:29:14.799 --> 00:29:19.039 Um, we're gonna back up to chapter four, verse two. 00:29:20.480 --> 00:29:22.079 And no, verse one. 00:29:22.240 --> 00:29:23.200 Let's just, you know what? 00:29:23.279 --> 00:29:24.240 We're starting over. 00:29:24.319 --> 00:29:27.200 Let's just scratch all the mistakes from the recording. 00:29:27.440 --> 00:29:29.359 Moses answered, what if they do not believe me? 00:29:29.519 --> 00:29:34.799 So after he tells them this name and all this stuff, and he talks to him about all this stuff, he said, What if they do not believe me or listen to me? 00:29:34.960 --> 00:29:37.279 And the Lord didn't appear to you. 00:29:37.839 --> 00:29:39.920 Then the Lord said to him, What is that in your hand? 00:29:40.079 --> 00:29:41.119 He said, A staff. 00:29:41.279 --> 00:29:42.960 The Lord said, Throw it on the ground. 00:29:43.119 --> 00:29:46.480 Moses threw it on the ground and it became a snake and he ran from it. 00:29:46.640 --> 00:29:50.079 Then the Lord said to him, Reach out your hand and take it by the tail. 00:29:50.240 --> 00:29:54.960 So Moses reached out and took hold of the snake and it turned back into a staff in his hand. 00:29:55.519 --> 00:30:03.599 This, said the Lord, is so that they may believe that the Lord, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob, has appeared to you. 00:30:03.839 --> 00:30:05.839 Then the Lord said, Put your hand inside your cloak. 00:30:06.000 --> 00:30:09.519 So Moses put his hand in his cloak, and when he took it out, it was leprous like snow. 00:30:09.680 --> 00:30:11.200 Now put it back in your cloak, he said. 00:30:11.279 --> 00:30:17.200 So Moses put it back into his cloak, and when he took it out, it was restored, like the rest of his flesh. 00:30:17.359 --> 00:30:22.240 Then the Lord said, If they do not believe you or pay attention to the first miraculous sign, they may believe the second. 00:30:22.319 --> 00:30:27.039 But if they do not believe these two signs or listen to you, take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground. 00:30:27.200 --> 00:30:30.240 The water you take from the river will become blood on the ground. 00:30:30.400 --> 00:30:32.880 This is God kind of flexing, okay? 00:30:33.519 --> 00:30:38.400 Moses is going, but people stand in my way, and God's going, Hey, hey, watch this. 00:30:39.599 --> 00:30:41.839 He's going, you don't stop me. 00:30:41.920 --> 00:30:42.799 You don't scare me. 00:30:42.960 --> 00:30:45.359 People, people, I created them. 00:30:46.000 --> 00:30:47.440 You need help convincing people? 00:30:47.599 --> 00:30:48.880 You let me convince people. 00:30:49.039 --> 00:30:51.279 You let me take care of the naysayers. 00:30:51.599 --> 00:30:53.279 You follow me. 00:30:54.640 --> 00:30:57.039 I will take care of the naysayers. 00:31:01.279 --> 00:31:02.559 This is huge. 00:31:03.599 --> 00:31:04.880 This is huge. 00:31:06.319 --> 00:31:17.839 Here we have the creator of the universe, the Almighty God, calling Moses to a task, saying, I gave you the goal. 00:31:18.160 --> 00:31:19.279 I'll accomplish it. 00:31:19.440 --> 00:31:24.240 I can overcome your weaknesses and the opposition of others. 00:31:24.799 --> 00:31:30.799 See, sometimes we set our own goals and we face opposition and we back down because there's no backing. 00:31:32.079 --> 00:31:51.519 But when you know beyond shadow of a doubt that this is what God desires of you, we have not self-confidence, but confidence based in his ability, his promises, his word, his integrity, his holiness, and the fact that he said, I will never leave you. 00:31:55.440 --> 00:32:00.720 And all of a sudden, I really like what's happening with Moses. 00:32:02.240 --> 00:32:16.559 Because as I look into another year that potentially marks my failure, I realize that if I allow him to guide my goals, I don't have to worry about the naysayers. 00:32:17.119 --> 00:32:19.200 I don't have to worry about my weakness. 00:32:21.039 --> 00:32:25.680 And if people criticize and people come at, you can say, you know what? 00:32:26.559 --> 00:32:27.279 Thank you. 00:32:30.079 --> 00:32:33.039 But this is how God has asked me to proceed. 00:32:35.519 --> 00:32:37.039 I'm gonna go forward. 00:32:42.880 --> 00:32:44.720 So how are you gonna respond? 00:32:45.680 --> 00:32:48.799 This upcoming week, you're gonna hear about New Year's resolutions everywhere. 00:32:48.960 --> 00:32:51.119 Maybe your friends and family are talking about it. 00:32:51.279 --> 00:32:52.319 Maybe it's on TV shows. 00:32:52.400 --> 00:32:55.920 You know, Beth and I, when we get ready in the morning, we we listen for the weather. 00:32:56.079 --> 00:33:02.319 And and uh, but you turn on the news to check the weather, see what you're supposed to wear that day, although usually at that time they're not showing the real news, right? 00:33:02.400 --> 00:33:11.200 They have like kind of this uh today show or something like that, and and it's mixed in with social commentary and reviews of the latest movie, and then every now and then they pause to give the weather. 00:33:11.279 --> 00:33:16.319 So you just turn on the TV in the background, and then when you hear the weather, you like run in the room and find out what you're supposed to wear. 00:33:16.400 --> 00:33:25.599 And and they always have something going on talking about the latest book, or they have some health fitness coming on, talking about how you stick to your goals this year, and you're gonna hear it everywhere, right? 00:33:28.160 --> 00:33:34.880 And our culture gets kind of obsessed with this, but are you gonna allow the culture to influence you this upcoming year? 00:33:35.359 --> 00:33:44.240 Are you gonna let God's calls push you towards his goals and his strength? 00:33:45.839 --> 00:33:48.480 And so today I want to do something just a little bit different. 00:33:50.160 --> 00:33:54.480 I want us to close in song differently than we normally do. 00:33:56.240 --> 00:33:58.960 It's just gonna be our voices, no instrumentation. 00:33:59.039 --> 00:34:00.319 We're gonna sing a very simple song. 00:34:00.480 --> 00:34:02.400