Trusting God
Notes
Transcript
Trusting God
Exodus 6:10-7:13
God has gone to great lengths to assure Moses He will deliver His people. That’s illustrated in the 7 “I will’s” in 6:6-8.
Moses’ issue now is the suffering of the people. Moses told the people they would be delivered but they didn’t believe him.
Why ? Look at 6:9 “because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery.”
When Moses told Pharaoh to let the people go the opposite happened. He made their lives more difficult. He increased their workload, took resources from them, and punished them with beatings.
The people:
Feared Pharaoh
Hated Moses
Didn’t trust God
Moses is moved by circumstances rather than the word of God.
Driven by fear rather than faith.
We’re going to see that Moses is ready to give up. While Moses may have given up on Israel’s deliverance, God has not. In our text we’re going to see five reasons why Moses should trust God even when the future appears bleak.
1. God knows what He is doing (6:10-13).
God’s message has not changed “Go tell Pharaoh to let the people go.”
Moses says, “I can’t even get the people of Israel to listen to me, how can I get Pharaoh to listen to me?”
“I am of uncircumcised lips”- unprepared, not fit for use.
Moses is discouraged because of what the people said to him in 5:21:
You made us stink in the sight of Pharaoh
You put a sword in their hand to kill us
But he is not emboldened by what the Lord said to him in 6:1 “with a strong hand he will send them out.”
Too often:
It takes very little for people to discourage us.
It takes a whole lot for God to encourage us.
Man says one little thing and we are ready to quit.
God has given us a whole Bible full of promises and yet still we are not motivated.
The Lord speaks to Moses and tells him what He is doing. Look at the end of verse 13:
He is bringing the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt.
He is going to do it because this is part of His sovereign will to redeem His people.
Not just Israel.
God is going to deliver this nation because:
He is going to fulfill His covenant with Abraham- take them to a promised land.
He is going to bring a Redeemer through this nation.
This Redeemer will not be born in Egypt. The prophet tells us He will be born in Bethlehem.
This isn’t just about Moses or Israel. This is about the redemption of God’s people from the four corners of the earth.
Whether God’s people realize it or not they need to be set free!
God said tell Israel and tell Pharaoh (6:13).
The people and the politicians need to hear it.
What is God doing?
He is redeeming a people for Himself and He is using common people to speak His Word to accomplish the task. You can trust that!
2. God knows who He is using (6:14-30).
The genealogy of Aaron and Moses is inserted in 6:14-26.
Why?
1) To show that God still had a people, and they knew who they were. Over 400 years of slavery did not change this. The Jews kept meticulous records about which tribe they were from.
They were an organized people. When they left Egypt, they would travel by tribe “by their hosts” (6:26).
2) To show that Moses was no one special.
To the Jewish person “firstborn” was the privileged position.
Moses isn’t from the firstborn tribe (Reuben)
He isn’t the firstborn himself (the youngest child)
Moses is so afraid he requires the help of his older brother (6:26).
Moses and Aaron were both old men (7:6)
Notice 6:27 It was “this Moses” and “this Aaron”.
This Moses who continually said, “I can’t do it!” (6:30)
DL Moody said of Moses:
Moses spent the first 40 years thinking he was somebody. He spent the second forty years learning he was a nobody. He spent his third 40 years discovering what God can do with a nobody.
Normally God uses the nobody.
Illustration: When I was little I would watch wrestling. There were in those days “nobodies”. Not everyone was a star. You knew who was going to win. I didn’t know it was fake. I always held out hope one day a nobody would beat a somebody.
Moses was a nobody, Pharaoh was a somebody.
This is why Israel believed Pharaoh over Moses.
God uses nobodies because He get’s more glory when they get the victory.
Listen: We doubt God because we are trusting ourselves. We have a choice. We can doubt ourselves and trust God or trust God and doubt ourselves.
Listen closely Christian:
You are who God says you are (by virtue of your salvation)
You can do what God says you can do (through the power of the Holy Spirit)
Notice verse 29: “I am the Lord”. When God commands us to do something the last thing we should think about is who we are in ourselves. We should think of the Lord.
We obey the Lord. When someone asks, “Who are you?” We say “Nobody!” But He is the Lord!
Don’t doubt God because He has called you. Trust that God chose you because His work will be more obvious through a weak vessel like yourself.
3. God knows how the world will respond (7:1-7).
A. When Moses spoke to Pharaoh it was as if God were speaking to him (7:1-2).
Moses will be like God
Aaron will be like Moses’ prophet.
God will speak to Moses.
Moses will tell Aaron what to say.
Aaron will speak to Pharaoh.
This isn’t Moses’ idea. If it were up to him, he’d still be in the desert.
The Christian needs to take this to heart. We are telling the world what God has already said.
The world is not rejecting us. They are rejecting God.
If I were preaching what I wanted to preach I’d tell you everything I needed to so I could:
Fill this church up
Make you feel good
Get plenty of money
Please everyone
In fact, we probably wouldn’t even have much preaching.
But we have a book. This book is exactly what God says.
Notice something in verse 2. “You shall speak ALL that I commanded you.”
Not just heaven- hell too.
Not just what’s right- what’s wrong too.
Not just the easy parts- the difficult parts too.
God spoke to the holy men who recorded Scripture.
Scripture speaks to us.
We speak to the world.
When the Christian tells the world what the Bible says God is speaking through the Christian and to the world.
B. God hardened Pharaoh’s heart.
Look at verse 3.
The Bible says in some places that Pharaoh hardened his own heart.
The Bible says at other times God hardened Pharaoh’s heart.
Both are true.
How do you harden your own heart?
You refuse to obey God. The more you refuse to obey him the harder your heart gets.
How does God harden a heart?
Illustration:
How does the ground get hard? God withholds the rain. The longer He withholds it the harder it gets.
God withdraws Himself.
You say, “That’s not fair!” Why not?
If you were to pray “God soften my heart!” Would it be right for Him to soften it?
Of course!
What about when you say to God through your actions:
I don’t want anything to do with you.
I’m not interested in you.
If you treat the nosy neighbor badly when he comes around too often you expect him to stop coming around. You’re glad when he does.
It’s the same with God. When you tell God you are not interested in His ways, He may leave you alone. He may say “Thy will be done.”
You can’t be angry at God for this. He gave you what you wanted. He left you to yourself.
Now we see why people will not listen to God. A hardened heart!
Illustration: Rich man and Lazarus died. Rich man begged that Lazarus would be resurrected to go and preach to his hell bound brothers. He was told “they have Moses and the prophets. If they do not listen to them neither will they be believed someone who is risen from the dead.” Luke 16
It doesn’t matter who the preacher is because they are not rejecting the preacher. They are rejecting God.
God will harden the heart of a government.
They may not listen when we warn against the sins of:
Homosexuality
Trans movement
Abortion
Drunkenness
The profane
We are still to preach to them as Moses was to Pharaoh. Why?
So people will have no excuse.
For our own sanctification (humbles us).
C. Egypt would know who the Lord is (4-7).
God would lay His hand on Egypt- acts of judgment.
It’s going to be ugly.
People are going to suffer.
People are going to die.
The Egyptians would see the mighty power of God.
“When I stretch out My hand against Egypt” (5).
It frightens me to think of the day when God stretches out His mighty hand against this country.
How will we know when it is near?
The heart of our nation will be hardened against the Word of God.
That’s already happening folks!
You say, “I don’t believe!”
You will!
When Christ begins opening those seven seals.
When Christ begins pouring out those seven bowls.
When those four horsemen are let loose.
What Egypt saw was nothing compared to what folks are going to see one day.
Even this is God’s grace to Egypt. We know that some Egyptians were saved.
Exodus 12:38 tells us some Egyptians believed and fled with Israel.
For those who don’t believe I hope you will take heart. There was a day I did not believe either:
Mocked righteousness
Mocked hell
Mocked God
By God’s grace I came to know that He is the LORD!
God knows hearts are hardened. He still requires us to faithfully proclaim the truth:
So the world will have no excuse
For our own sanctification
For those who will be saved
4. God knows the devil will fight back (7:8-12).
When Moses & Aaron confronted Pharaoh, he did not believe they represented a powerful God.
They were forced to submit the first sign the Lord told them to give. Aaron cast down his rod and it turned into a snake.
Pharaoh believed his own sorcerers skilled in magic could replicate the miracle. Surprisingly they did. Then Aaron’s serpent swallowed them up showing dominance.
You might ask how they did that.
The answer is simple- through the power of Satan.
God will allow Satan to have a measure of power.
Even this was in the wisdom of God.
In allowing Satan to replicate the miracle God showed His power over Satan by swallowing up the Egyptians snakes.
Folks, Satan is real. He has limited power. He may do things that amaze people.
Paul tells us the names of the sorcerers: Jannes & Jambres.
Jesus said in the last days:
For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.
Some people trust false teachers because they:
Tell the future.
Tell them something about themselves no one knew.
Appear to do some miracle.
When God begins to move the devil sends his prophets. He will always fight back.
He will have a counterfeit.
Here’s the truth: Pharaoh wanted to believe a lie.
He denied the Word of God.
He denied the power of God.
He manufactured his own authentication.
That’s what the devil wants you to do.
Reject God’s truth- receive the devil’s lie.
Reject God’s power- receive the devil’s lesser power.
He’ll have a rebuttal to everything God says.
He’ll have a counterfeit for everything God gives.
Eventually you will see:
God’s Word is the truth.
The devil’s power will run out.
I have tested God’s Word for 27 years!
I have lived in God’s power for 27 years!
5. God knows what He has said (7:13).
Look at the end of verse 13. Everything was happening just as the Lord had said.
I could reference prophecies of kingdoms rising and falling and show you they happened “just as the Lord said.”
I could list details of our Lord’s birth, life, death and resurrection and show you these things happened “just as the Lord said.”
I could tell you experiential things.
God saved me “just as He said He would”.
God delivered me “just as He said He would”.
God has answered prayers “just as He said he would”.
We could be here for hours talking about these things.
I don’t think that would be in the spirit of the text.
The point being made is God hardened Pharaoh’s heart just as He said He would. Therefore, he would deliver Israel, just as He said He would.
To keep with the spirit of the text I don’t want to talk about what God has done. I want to show you that because God has kept His past promises we can expect Him to keep His future promises as well.
Just as the Lord said:
He will build His church (Matthew 16:18)
He will keep His people (John 10:28) “no one will snatch…”
He will return for His people (John 14:3) “I will come again and take you to Myself…”
He will establish His kingdom
Daniel 7:14
And to Him was given dominion,
Glory and a kingdom,
That all the peoples, nations and men of every language
Might serve Him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion
Which will not pass away;
And His kingdom is one
Which will not be destroyed.
God knows what He said!
The Ancient of Days does not have a memory problem. You can trust Him. Moses was about to see that. God is about to deliver His people.
What about you, friend?
Are you one of those God is leading out? Trust the Lord.
Are you one of those who need to be saved? Come to Christ.
Are you one of those whose heart is being hardened? Be careful. Don’t wait any longer.