The Fog of Exercising Faith

Exodus 19:7-11

Exodus 19:7–11 NKJV

7 So Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and laid before them all these words which the Lord commanded him. 8 Then all the people answered together and said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do.” So Moses brought back the words of the people to the Lord. 9 And the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I come to you in the thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you, and believe you forever.” So Moses told the words of the people to the Lord. 10 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes. 11 And let them be ready for the third day. For on the third day the Lord will come down upon Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people.

Prayer

Message

The title of my message this morning is “The Fog of Exercising Faith.”

Our focal passage this morning is verse 9:

And the Lord said to Moses, “behold, I come to you in the thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you , and believe you forever.”

God is building the bedrock, the foundation by which Israel can enter into a flourishing, thriving, faith filled relationship with Yahweh God.

I want to be to the point this morning. Do you trust God?

Sometimes If I am leading someone to Christ or asking about their salvation, I may ask something along these lines:

Do you know that you know that you know if you were die right now, would you go to heaven? We all know that question must be answered with 100% surety. We all realize that if anyone answers that question with any insecurities, any doubts, any question then most likely, the person is not saved. We need to know 100% that if we died we are going to heaven. Let me say to anyone here this morning that if you do not have total confidence right now that if you were to die, if you question in any way your salvation, come down on the first stanza of the invitation hymn or come speak with me after church. You need solidarity in knowing your future is secure.

In complement to that same question is the idea of having undying, total trusting faith in God.

Now let me say something very clear, I am not talking about a faith that if you walk out here on Mt Zion Road and a car is going 60 miles an hour and you say, “the Lord will save me”, that is not faith, that is stupidity. And I say that in that “Jesus grew in stature with God and man.” There are some of creation’s rules of play at hand and if an object is in motion, it tends to stay in motion and God gives us the good sense that we will not slow down a 6,000 vehicle going 60 mph and we will die. That is not the kind of faith (and do not confuse that for faith)I am speaking about.

The kind of faith I am speaking of is this: Does your faith waver when you hear of some dreadful report from the doctor and the prognosis is not good? Does your faith stay strong when you walk into work and you are close to retirement and the company is closing or you have been given lay off papers? Is your faith put to the test or do you stay strong in the death of a loved one or your child is suffering a terminal illness?

So, let me put it this way. Do you know that you know that you know that regardless what befalls you, you trust the Lord?

I believe embedded in these few verses the Lord provides us a way of having steadfast faith. If we will commit to what the Lord laid out in these few verses, I believe we can all grow in a deepening faith and see God at work in our lives in the journey. Amen.

Firstly, we need to commit that we are going to trust the Lord.

Commit to Strengthen Your Faith

Exodus 19:7–8 “7 So Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and laid before them all these words which the Lord commanded him. 8 Then all the people answered together and said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do.” So Moses brought back the words of the people to the Lord.”

You will remember the last time we studied Exodus that Moses and the people of God are at the bottom of Mt. Sinai and God is in and on the mountain. It has been 90 days since they left Egypt. Our last time together, God said these words to Moses to say to the people:

Exodus 19:4–6 NKJV

4 ‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself. 5 Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. 6 And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.”

God made them remember, there were some rules to follow, and the reward was that they would be His special treasured people. And dearly beloved, the same goes for us. we must remember what Jesus did for us, how He pursued us. We remember it every time we look at the cross, every time we partake of communion, every time we watch one baptized, it is a constant reminder of the great sacrifice He made for us.

We as well out of our deep abiding love being this side of the cross and under grace want to do those things Christ calls us to do out of our love for Him and the fact His ways are best. And in doing so, He promises us an abundant life in Him, in communion with Him and in deep love for Him. Amen?

What comes from here and the remembrance, the rules, and the reward of action at the moment we were saved and our sins were justified by Christ’ blood, how do we put on spiritual pants to go out into the highways and byways on Monday Morning and maintain that faith out in the world?

The people of Israel were called to a decision. They had to determine at this point if they were going to follow God. Dearly beloved, our salvation is a free gift, but once we decide to follow Christ, discipleship comes at a price.

Luke 9:23 “23 Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.”

A. Deliberate

“all the Lord has spoken we will do.” They made a definitive decision.

Exodus 24:3 “3 So Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord and all the judgments. And all the people answered with one voice and said, “All the words which the Lord has said we will do.””

Exodus 24:7 “7 Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read in the hearing of the people. And they said, “All that the Lord has said we will do, and be obedient.””

Deuteronomy 26:17 “17 Today you have proclaimed the Lord to be your God, and that you will walk in His ways and keep His statutes, His commandments, and His judgments, and that you will obey His voice.”

Ina couple of weeks from now I will marry off a little couple.

And they will recite after me:

Now consider we are the bride and the Lord is the bridegroom, right there at your seat consider committing these words right there in the confines of your heart.

"In taking the Lord you hold by the right hand to be your wedded husband, before God and these witnesses do you promise to love him, to honor and cherish him in the relationship, and leaving all others, cleave only unto him, in all things a true and faithful bride, as long as I shall live." “I do”

Have you ever thought of that commitment to the Lord as you did to your spouse? Do you take the relationship as serious as the day you read those vows to marry your true love?

Now dearly beloved, I do not have to tell you that over the course of history, did Israel fail the Lord time and again just as you I fail Him daily? Sure. But it begins with a determination.

B. Denial

I referenced Luke 9:23 a moment ago, “let Him deny self.”

In order to be more committed what must you deny to fulfill your commitment to Christ?

Is there an elephant in the room of your heart that comes to mind right now of a sin that you know dominates you? Is there a battle raging within and you know the Holy Spirit has convicted you of something that you have to deny to be deeper in love with Jesus?

Any thing that separates us from Jesus is an obstacle to our deepening faith and we call it sin. Sin is the word in the Greek hamartia, missing the mark, missing the target of God’s will for our lives.

Matthew 6:24 “24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”

Is there another god, another barrier that is dominating your life? Do you realize that sin not only separates us from God, but from each other, even ourselves.

Idolatry-work, travel, family activities, materialism, sports gods. I need to spend time keeping up with my place, my things, I need to stay in my lane and cover all my basis. I need to be insured that my children or my grandchildren are well rounded and we need to invest the time taken to accomplish that-travel ball, advanced courses in scholastics where they can compete. Dearly beloved, those investments are temporal at best. When we live and lead in our lives that Christ comes first we make impact that has eternal reward.

Blasphemy-speaking irrelevantly or profanely of God; using God’ name to curse or revile anyone or anything.

Deuteronomy 5:11 “11 ‘You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.”

Do you allow “being out of control” to be your excuse for letting out expletives to another person?

There are others, resisting or disobeying the will of God. Let me say something important. 100% of the time when I heeded the will of God, it was the right decision. God has never led me wrong when I followed Him.

-surrendering to a calling-a call to teach, a call to lead youth, a missionary, a vocational calling, is the decision scary? It was for me, but it has been the greatest call with the greatest reward and blessings.

Discipline-what areas of your life do you need to be better disciplined to set out on the course the Lord has for you?

Hebrews 12:1 “1 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,”

Paul must have witnessed many sports heroes in the Roman Empire. He could have seen the Olympic games, the Isthmian Games to name a couple. There were great heroes from these arenas of a sporting nature, foot races, wrestling, boxing, chariot racing, etc.

Paul used metaphors relating to athletics. Listen:

2 Timothy 4:7 “7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”

1 Corinthians 9:24–27 “24 Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. 25 And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. 26 Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. 27 But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.”

A. Prayer

Is prayer a part of your discipline? One way we grow in our faith is to converse with the Lord. What is amazing He will answer the prayer, or address the problem, or settle our souls. This makes our faith grow and mature.

Philippians 4:6 “6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;”

B. Worship

Worship, you could say under your breath here right now, I’m here aren’t I? But let me ask you , how is your private worship? Worship aligns our hearts with His. It allows us time to express our reverence toward Him, to bring glory to Him. It exudes itself in singing, jubilation, and recognizing His worth in all aspects of our lives.

C. Fasting

In layman terms, fasting is giving up something to gain more of Jesus. For example, do you settle in at night with electronics and social media or do you settle in with the Lord. I’m preaching to me there. What do you need to give up to give more to Jesus?

Is there some financial waste you commit almost daily that you really do not even need but could be a blessing to the Lord’s work?

Notice there is a corporate message in this commitment as well.

Moses called for the elders of the people before he called for the commitment of all the people. I believe there is a message in this for the church. When God’s people as a group come to a decision as we have in recent days, for example, the Community Fair, let me salute you; you all got behind the decision. Faith is a corporate step as well. Trusting the leadership of God’s people and getting behind them when we agree collectively to that decision. Amen?

Clarity Comes to Sure up Your Faith

Exodus 19:9 “9 And the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I come to you in the thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you, and believe you forever.” So Moses told the words of the people to the Lord.”

I’ve thought and pondered, why did the Lord come as a cloud by day and a fire by night? Why did the Lord speak from a “thick cloud?”

As I thought about clouds, something began to dawn on me.

1. Clouds firstly are above us. Clouds are in lofty places. Clouds remind me to look up in strengthening my faith.

His ways are higher than our ways.

2. Clouds are a sign or what’s coming. Josh Johnson, one of our great meteorologist of our area can read clouds and with some probability can detect future occurrences in the weather. In other words, clouds are a sign of what’s to come.

3. Clouds are translucent. They are not opaque nor are they transparent, meaning you have partial visibility in the clouds or in the fog.

I have been caught several times out on the lake and a fog set in or start out in the mornings and the fog is heavy. I can see, but I can only see a short distance ahead.

I use to fly a great deal in years past. When you fly through the clouds, you can see, but you see limited distance.

Why did the Lord speak in the thick cloud to Israel? Why is the way of God as a cloud to us and He only let’s us see in small segments what He is doing?

God in His great love for you allows you to see what you can handle. Remember we are on a journey in sanctification, growing to be more like Jesus. We know that growth is maturing from milk to consuming the meat of the depth of God in our lives. If He showed you and me the whole picture, we probably could not handle it, let alone grasp it.

Dearly beloved, this topic circles us back to trust. God wants us to trust Him. He shows us enough to take another step, but He wants you to reach out again and again to call out to Him for your next steps. Why? His ways are best.

Could God be transparent and tell you everything and make everything crystal clear? Sure He could. You know why He doesn’t? He wants you to love Him, become secure in Him, and depend on Him.

Deuteronomy 4:12 “12 And the Lord spoke to you out of the midst of the fire. You heard the sound of the words, but saw no form; you only heard a voice.”

Cleanliness brings Steadfast Faith

Exodus 19:10–11 “10 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes. 11 And let them be ready for the third day. For on the third day the Lord will come down upon Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people.”

“Consecrate” & let them wash their clothes.

A Concise Dictionary of the Words in the Greek Testament and The Hebrew Bible קָדֹשׁ

qâdôsh, kaw-doshe´; from 6942; sacred (ceremonially or morally); (as noun) God (by eminence), an angel, a saint, a sanctuary:—holy (One), saint.

We sing the song, “Lord prepare me to be a sanctuary, pure and holy, tried and true, with thanksgiving, I’ll be a living sanctuary for you.”

The word consecrate means to prepare them for a holy convocation. To prepare their hearts to enter the sanctuary in a holy and righteous manner. They need to wash their clothes, they need to meet Me (the Lord) at their best.

You know the history of Israel’s actions. To be consecrated, only the chief High Priest could go into the holy of holies one time a year and there were all sort of sacrifices and even then, temporal in nature.

But listen to the good news, the Gospel News:

Hebrews 7:26–27 “26 For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens; 27 who does not need daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the people’s, for this He did once for all when He offered up Himself.”

"In the Old Testament, God’s presence with His people was represented by a cloud by day and a fire by night (Exodus 13:21-22). As they wandered through the wilderness, they never had to question where to go, because God was always with them—leading them, protecting them, and providing direction. The cloud shielded them from the scorching heat of the desert sun, and the fire illuminated their path through the dark nights. These were tangible signs of God’s faithfulness, a reminder that He would never abandon them.

But the reality is, that cloud and that fire were only temporary shadows of something far greater. Today, God no longer guides us through symbols, but through His Son, Jesus Christ, who came down to us as the full and final revelation of God’s presence. Just as the Israelites had to follow the cloud and the fire to make it to the Promised Land, you must follow Jesus, who is the only way to eternal life (John 14:6).

In closing, let me ask you this morning: how is your faith? You might say my faith is strong. I sense God’s presence, watch care and love everyday and I would say, amen. God bless you. There may be others that would say, this message was for me this morning, my faith is faltering, I am at a weak ebb and I need the strength of the Lord in my life. And, I would say exactly.

Listen to me: how can you deepen your faith? Begin with being committed. there needs to be a deliberate and determined nature-you will not be perfect, but deliberate. You must deny somethings you know are separating you from the love of God. Exercise some disciplines you know you have not done as you should-Bible study, prayer, fasting, etc. Clarity comes that sure up your faith by looking upward. Meeting Him and seeing the signs around you that He is placing in your path. He will offer His clarity in small doses at the level you and I can handle.

But lastly, clouds are covering. Jesus loves you and everything I have mentioned to this point you could not accomplish in your own power if you wanted. But, with Jesus’ covering, Jesus’ help, you can have a deep abiding faith.

Has Jesus ever covered your sins and offered you life anew?

How do you do that? Say Jesus, I’m sorry. I’m sorry for those sins I have committed. I want to commit to love you and make you Lord of my life. Will you come in and offer me life anew.

Let’s pray.