Keys to Obedience

Exodus 4:18–31 NASB95

18 Then Moses departed and returned to Jethro his father-in-law and said to him, “Please, let me go, that I may return to my brethren who are in Egypt, and see if they are still alive.” And Jethro said to Moses, “Go in peace.” 19 Now the Lord said to Moses in Midian, “Go back to Egypt, for all the men who were seeking your life are dead.” 20 So Moses took his wife and his sons and mounted them on a donkey, and returned to the land of Egypt. Moses also took the staff of God in his hand. 21 The Lord said to Moses, “When you go back to Egypt see that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders which I have put in your power; but I will harden his heart so that he will not let the people go. 22 “Then you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the Lord, “Israel is My son, My firstborn. 23 “So I said to you, ‘Let My son go that he may serve Me’; but you have refused to let him go. Behold, I will kill your son, your firstborn.” ’ ” 24 Now it came about at the lodging place on the way that the Lord met him and sought to put him to death. 25 Then Zipporah took a flint and cut off her son’s foreskin and threw it at Moses’ feet, and she said, “You are indeed a bridegroom of blood to me.” 26 So He let him alone. At that time she said, “You are a bridegroom of blood”—because of the circumcision. 27 Now the Lord said to Aaron, “Go to meet Moses in the wilderness.” So he went and met him at the mountain of God and kissed him. 28 Moses told Aaron all the words of the Lord with which He had sent him, and all the signs that He had commanded him to do. 29 Then Moses and Aaron went and assembled all the elders of the sons of Israel; 30 and Aaron spoke all the words which the Lord had spoken to Moses. He then performed the signs in the sight of the people. 31 So the people believed; and when they heard that the Lord was concerned about the sons of Israel and that He had seen their affliction, then they bowed low and worshiped.

INTRO: How many of you have had to oversee people? Maybe you’ve managed employees or classrooms. Or maybe you are a parent and you oversee your kids and from time to time other people’s kids.

I think one of the most challenging things in oversight is someone who knows what they are supposed to be doing and yet they just don’t do it. Am I right?

There are all kinds of reasons why someone might behave this way- maybe they are not a team player or maybe they haven’t bought into the plan. It could be that they are uncomfortable with their assignment or that they have priorities that are not in line with yours.

Now, that’s easy to identify in other folks, but what if we turn it back on ourselves. How well do you obey? Perhaps you do well in some areas, so we’ll get specific. How well do you obey God?

Some Christians spend a lot of time asking God to give them direction, but little time reading His Word. Perhaps even you are begging God for a burning bush, yet have not taken steps to obey what is already clear in the Bible… I know I’ve been there!

Why do you think that is? I think that this goes back to the reality that we are all rebels… and because of this, we sometimes struggle to obey.

I want to teach you a song- maybe you have heard it before- I think it was either our first or second trip to PA when I was introduced to this song. It’s called the OBEDIENCE song.

[teach song]

I encourage you to sing that around the house this week…

Anyway, as we look back to our guy Moses, we recognize that he had a burning bush- clear instructions from God and he still struggled to obey. If you were here last week, you saw any number of excuses and fears that Moses presented as to why he could not obey.

Thankfully, our God is gracious with us even as He was with Moses. And so what we get to see today is really the turning point in Moses’ life. It’s when he took the necessary steps to obey God. And as we trace his steps, I want to point out 4 keys to obedience that I believe will help you and I in our own obedience to God, and perhaps even help you as you direct others.

So, let’s learn together. If you picked up a bulletin, use your sermon guide and take notes as we study. The message is titled Keys to Obedience.

Now you might have noticed, as Josh pointed out earlier, that the first letters of each key spell out the word CUSS. But I don’t want you going around telling folks that Pastor Marc told you the key to obeying God is to cuss… unless you remember each point and elaborate on this acronym.

The first key that we see is:

Commit to God’s Mission (18-20)

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Moses was finally convinced that God’s mission was right and worth following. Now remember, he wrestled with this for a time! And so really the first step for Moses to obey God was to leave behind his old way of life, and go all in on God’s plan.

This was no small step. He had been with Jethro for half his life. He had a rhythm and was comfortable. His life was safe and predictable, but God’s mission required Moses to leave- to let go of all that and take up this mission.

Moses acted on this commitment by first seeking release from his current role. This release was affirmed by Jethro when he told Moses to ‘go in peace.’ Now this may not have been as clear for Moses as we see it, but what we read here is that as Moses made this commitment to God’s mission, he was given both release from current obligations and clarity in his next steps.

And this is the same kind of commitment that Jesus demands for His followers.

Luke 9:23 NASB95

23 And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.

Or as Paul explained it:

Ephesians 4:22–24 NASB95

22 that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, 23 and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.

Our commitment to God’s mission means that we let go of whatever would hinder us from that mission. It means that we seek the Kingdom of Heaven above all… for Moses, it meant seeking God’s plan above the family business. It was the same for Jesus’ disciples who were told to lay down their nets, let go of their greed, etc. and follow Jesus.

When it comes to our obedience to God, the first thing I must ask you is: Are you bought in to God’s Mission?

If God asked you to quit your job and become a missionary, would you? If He asked you to lay down your hobby and begin leading a small group, would you? Moses’ commitment to God’s mission was not because he didn’t like what he was doing- Rather it was that he was convinced that God’s mission was worth it.

The first key to our obedience to God is our Commitment to His Mission.

The second key to obedience demonstrated here is:

Understand Your Role (21-23)

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Moses was being sent to Pharaoh to demand the release of the Israelites. And look here- God tells him that Pharaoh won’t listen!

Now, Moses had to be thinking, “Really? What am I supposed to do with that?” BUT, Moses’ role was not that he had to convince Pharaoh, but instead that he had to simply tell Pharaoh what God would tell him. That was his role here.

Moses was not to go and punch Pharaoh in the face or challenge him to a duel- winner take all. Nope- he was to go to Pharaoh- recognizing the hostility and rejection that he would face and simply do what God says.

This whole thing looked like it was going to get hairy- Look at v. 23 - God was going to strike down Pharaoh’s first born son? But what was Moses to do? He was to pass along the message.

You know, that’s what we are to do as well. We are called to tell the world about Jesus. That’s good news- unless you reject Him, then it’s bad news. But our role is not savior or judge, it’s messenger and advocate.

And when we take the message of repent and believe to some, they will reject us. But, you see it’s God’s role to call them and to save them, not ours. We are to GO and to share the hope of Christ. We are to preach the Gospel and shine the light of a God who is good and holy. That means that we tell them of a place called heaven where those who have trusted in Christ will spend eternity. And it means that we tell them that rejection of Christ means hell and wrath.

You might wonder how Moses could go to Pharaoh and not get mad or take his comments personally. It’s because he had to understand his role. God showed him. And God tells us through His word that MANY will reject the Gospel. We can’t take that personally.

Our role is to be witnesses; agents of reconciliation to help connect those who will to Jesus. So let me ask you, Do you understand your role in God’s Mission?

How has God uniquely gifted you to be a witness for Him? If his mission is worthy of our commitment, than it’s paramount that we understand our role. God wants to use you. So obey.

Commit to God’s Mission, Understand Your Role. The 3rd key to obedience that we see here is:

Set Your Priorities (24-26)

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This is an obscure passage. I struggled with it a bit- asked Josh if he wanted to preach it… he said no. Dean wasn’t interested either, so I had to dig in a bit more.

I don’t know exactly how God met Moses here nor how exactly Moses’ life was threatened. But, based upon Zipporah’s actions, here’s what I can deduce:

Moses had neglected to circumcise his son, even though this was a command as a sign of God’s covenant with Abraham’s people. We have to speculate a bit here- it seems Zipporah was not a fan of this practice and Moses had capitulated the command of God in favor of pleasing his wife. She probably didn’t understand this command- maybe she thought it was unnecessary or ‘stupid’..

And Moses maybe thought, “Happy wife, happy life… what’s the big deal?” Now, you might be smiling here, but I want you to listen close: If we neglect God’s commands because they make someone else uncomfortable, then we are in effect saying that God is not as worthy of obedience as someone else is.

Friends, let me tell you, it is here that we need to set our priorities. Jesus said some hard things to his followers. Things like,

Luke 14:26 NASB95

26 “If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.

This does not mean that we are miserable scrooges who hate everyone and everything. Instead, he means that we must have the right priorities. Look, your spouse is important. Your parents are important, and so are your brothers and sisters. But, none of them is God.

There are things about following God’s mission that will make your wife mad or make your husband mad. But your devotion must be first to God!

I think Zipporah finally came to understand what what going on and realized that this act of disobedience- even though it didn’t make sense to her- was a matter of life and death. If Moses were to live, she would have to lay down her pride and submit to God. And that’s what she did.

I wonder what priorities you may have out of order today. Maybe you have neglected God’s word in some area of life- perhaps you are trying to obey God while holding onto some sinful vice or maybe it’s as simple as you are neglecting God’s command to lead your family to love and worship God.

Are your priorities in order?

So far, we’ve discussed 3 keys to obedience: Commitment to God’s Mission, Understanding your role, Setting your priorities, and now the final key in our text:

Step Out in Faith (27-31)

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All the provisions were made- God sent Aaron to meet Moses and together they went to the Israelite elders. Moses performed the signs God equipped him and instructed him to do and the elders believed him. It seems so simple, doesn’t it?

Well, the journey is far from over, but Moses has taken crucial steps to obey God’s command. And even though the deliverance was still yet to come and even though there was hardship yet to endure, the reality is that God had a mission and Moses’ obedience to God was a testimony of God’s mercy.

So, why was Moses making such a big deal about all this earlier? Why all the fear and the excuses?

I think that new or unfamiliar actions are always difficult. Think about when you were in that middle school English class and you had to get up and speak about the book report you turned in. Think about the first time you got on the water skis or the first time you used a chainsaw. Thinking about it and doing it are two different things. That’s true as we step out in obedient faith as well.

God has promised to do all the hard work- He told Moses that he would make the elders believe him. He told Moses all about the stuff that he would do with Pharaoh. And he has told us through His word that He will do the hard work of rescue.

He has promised to bring to our minds the Scriptures we’ve learned, if we’ll just step out in faith and be a witness! And I know that it can be scary to shine for Jesus in such a wicked world. But even as He has told us that He is sending us out as sheep in the midst of wolves, He has promised to be with us.

And this is where I believe the big problem is within the church today. Too many believers who are unwilling to step out and do the work of the ministry. Too many people occupying church pews who believe that being a witness is for the pastor or perhaps some super-Christians.

Ephesians 4:11–12 NASB95

11 And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ;

He has made the provision. You being part of this church is a provision so that you may grow and have Christian community, fellowship, and accountability. You simply must obey God.

So I want to ask one final question, “What is keeping you from stepping out in faithful obedience?”

As we close our time together, I want to encourage you- apply these keys to obedience to your Christian walk today and see what amazing things God will do!

[PRAY]

Discuss: What does it mean to obey? Who deserves to be obeyed?

Discuss: What does it look like to be ‘sold out’ to God’s Mission?

Discuss: What key to obedience do you find most challenging? Why?