14 June 2026 — Back to Egypt

On pulpit

Great to see you here this morning and welcome to the Second Sunday after Pentecost.

[Go down from platform]

Announcements

VBS at Our Redeemer Lutheran Church taking place June 15th through the 19th from 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm still time to sign up kids if you know of any.

Sunday June 21st 2026 3rd Sunday of the Month, Holy Communion will take place, and an offering for the Benevolence Fund will take place after Worship.

Special Thank you for Obed leading worship and Myla playing piano this morning Any other announcements?

Prayers: Continue to pray for those on our prayer list.

I want to take a moment to share some of the prayer needs we will be lifting up together.

We will be praying for several who are facing serious health challenges and difficult recoveries. We are remembering Ashkan as he continues to recover after falling into icy water on Easter. We are also giving thanks that Ellie is home from the hospital and praying for her full recovery after falling into icy water at her grandparents’ home. We will also be lifting up Maddison as she recovers from being hit by a car while riding her bicycle, asking the Lord to bring healing, strength, and comfort to her and her family.

We also want to pray for those who are dealing with cancer. We will be remembering Sandra as she continues her cancer journey, Josh as he faces cancer, and Red, who is in the final stages of terminal cancer. We ask God to be especially near to each one, giving peace, strength, courage, and the comfort of His presence.

We will also be praying for Mary and for the Ott family as they continue to mourn the passing of Marv. We ask the Lord to surround them with His comfort and hope during this time of grief.

We also want to lift up Tony and the Schmid family as they mourn the passing of Tony’s great uncle. May God bring peace to their hearts and remind them of His faithful love.

We will also be praying for the CLBA Biennial Convention in Fergus Falls, asking God to bless all who are traveling, all who will be speaking, and all who will be participating. We pray that the Lord would guide the meetings, protect those on the road, and use this gathering to strengthen His church.

And along with these needs, we will be praying for Obed and his family, for our families, for our homes, for our church, and for our nation—that God would guide us, strengthen our faith, comfort those who are hurting, and help us to reflect Christ in our daily lives.

Please stand as we begin our worship for today.

Invocation:

Please bow your heads for the invocation.

Our gracious heavenly Father, we come before You with thankful hearts, trusting in Your promise that You are near to all who call upon You. As we gather in worship today, we ask You to fill this place with Your Spirit. Open our hearts to Your Word, lift our eyes to Jesus, and shape us more fully into His likeness. We begin this service in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Call to Worship: [stay below the stage]

Our Call to Worship for this morning comes from Psalm 100 which is on the screen in front of you, lets say that together responsively.

Psalm 100 ESV

A Psalm for giving thanks. Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! Know that the Lord, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.

Our opening hymn today comes from Hymn 51 Guide Me O Thou Great Jehovah

[Move to the platform]

Verse 1 Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah, Pilgrim through this barren land; I am weak, but Thou art mighty; Hold me with Thy pow'rful hand; Bread of heaven, Bread of heaven, Feed me till I want no more, Feed me till I want no more.

Verse 2 Open now the crystal fountain, Whence the healing stream doth flow; Let the fire and cloudy pillar Lead me all my journey through; Strong Deliverer, strong Deliverer, Be Thou still my strength and shield, Be Thou still my strength and shield.

Verse 3 When I tread the verge of Jordan, Bid my anxious fears subside; Bear me thro' the swelling current, Land me safe on Canaan's side; Songs of praises, songs of praises I will ever give to Thee, I will ever give to Thee.

Please be seated for the reading of scripture

Old Testament Reading Exodus 4:18–31

Exodus 4:18–31 ESV

Moses went back to Jethro his father-in-law and said to him, “Please let me go back to my brothers in Egypt to see whether they are still alive.” And Jethro said to Moses, “Go in peace.” And the Lord said to Moses in Midian, “Go back to Egypt, for all the men who were seeking your life are dead.” So Moses took his wife and his sons and had them ride on a donkey, and went back to the land of Egypt. And Moses took the staff of God in his hand. And the Lord said to Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you do before Pharaoh all the miracles that I have put in your power. But I will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go. Then you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the Lord, Israel is my firstborn son, and I say to you, “Let my son go that he may serve me.” If you refuse to let him go, behold, I will kill your firstborn son.’ ” At a lodging place on the way the Lord met him and sought to put him to death. Then Zipporah took a flint and cut off her son’s foreskin and touched Moses’ feet with it and said, “Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me!” So he let him alone. It was then that she said, “A bridegroom of blood,” because of the circumcision. The Lord said to Aaron, “Go into the wilderness to meet Moses.” So he went and met him at the mountain of God and kissed him. And Moses told Aaron all the words of the Lord with which he had sent him to speak, and all the signs that he had commanded him to do. Then Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the people of Israel. Aaron spoke all the words that the Lord had spoken to Moses and did the signs in the sight of the people. And the people believed; and when they heard that the Lord had visited the people of Israel and that he had seen their affliction, they bowed their heads and worshiped.

Epistle reading

Romans 5:6–15 ESV

For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned— for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come. But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many.

We will now sing the next song. Hymn #379 Take my Life and Let it Be

verse 1 Take my life and let it be Consecrated, Lord, to Thee; Take my moments and my days— Let them flow in ceaseless praise, Let them flow in ceaseless praise.

verse 2 Take my hands and let them move At the impulse of Thy love; Take my feet and let them be Swift and beautiful for Thee, Swift and beautiful for Thee.

verse 3 Take my voice and let me sing Always, only, for my King; Take my lips and let them be Filled with messages from Thee, Filled with messages from Thee.

verse 4 Take my silver and my gold— Not a mite would I withhold; Take my intellect and use Ev'ry pow'r as Thou shalt choose, Ev'ry pow'r as Thou shalt choose.

verse 5

Take my will and make it Thine— It shall be no longer mine; Take my heart—it is Thine own, It shall be Thy royal throne, It shall be Thy royal throne.

verse 6 Take my love—my Lord, I pour At Thy feet its treasure store; Take myself—and I will be Ever, only, all for Thee, Ever, only, all for Thee.

Please rise for prayer. During the prayer, you will hear “Lord in your Mercy” the congregational response will be “hear our prayer.”

Prayers of the Church:

Please rise for prayer: Let us pray for the whole Church of God in Christ Jesus and for all people according to their needs.

Almighty God, You have called us to be Your people through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Deliverer. As You called Moses to go forward in obedience, help us hear Your Word, trust Your promises, and surrender every part of our lives to You. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

God of the harvest, raise up faithful pastors, missionaries, teachers, church workers, and willing servants to speak Your Word with humility and courage. Bless all who preach and teach the gospel, that many may come to Christ and prepare their hearts for His soon return. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Holy Father, strengthen all who walk difficult roads of obedience, trial, weakness, or fear. Give courage to the discouraged, faithfulness to the weary, and grace to all who bear witness for Christ. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

God of love, bless our homes and families. Teach parents to guide their children in Your ways, and fill our homes with forgiveness, patience, humility, and peace. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

O Lord, guide the nations with righteousness. Give wisdom to those who govern, restrain evil and injustice, protect the vulnerable, and help Your people live as faithful witnesses to Christ. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Gracious Father, bless the CLBA Biennial Convention in Fergus Falls. Protect all who are traveling, guide all who are speaking and leading, and use this gathering to strengthen Your church and advance the work of the gospel. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

O God of all comfort, be near to those who are grieving. We pray for Mary Ott and the Ott family as they mourn the passing of Marv. We also pray for Tony and the Schmid family as they mourn the passing of Tony’s great uncle. Surround them with Your peace, strengthen their faith, and remind them of the hope we have in Christ. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Merciful Lord, bring healing to those who are injured or recovering. We pray for Ashkan as he recovers after falling into icy water on Easter. We thank You that Ellie is home from the hospital, and we ask for her full recovery after falling into icy water at her grandparents’ home. We pray for Maddison as she recovers from being hit by a car while riding her bicycle. Strengthen each one and comfort their families. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Loving Father, we lift up those facing cancer. Be near to Sandra and Josh, giving wisdom to their doctors, strength to their bodies, and courage to their hearts. Be especially close to Red, who is in the final stages of terminal cancer. Surround Red and all who love and care for him with Your mercy, comfort, and peace. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Heavenly Father, we also pray for Mary and for all whose needs are known to You. As You saw the suffering of Israel in Egypt, look with compassion on all who cry out to You today. Visit them with Your grace, sustain them by Your Spirit, and help them trust Your goodness. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Gracious Lord, please bless my family and all th other families here present. Guide, protect, and strengthen us in faith, love, and peace. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Lord of mercy, prepare our hearts for worship and for the hearing of Your Word. As Moses learned on the road back to Egypt, You do not only send Your servants; You also sanctify them. Search our hearts, bring the hidden places of our lives under the lordship of Christ, forgive our sins, and give us willing hearts to obey You. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

O blessed Lord, You delivered Israel from bondage, and in Jesus Christ You have visited us with a greater deliverance. Through His life, death, resurrection, and heavenly ministry, You have given us hope beyond sin, suffering, and death. Keep us faithful until Christ returns. Help us go forward in faith, bow our heads in worship, and live as Your redeemed people in the world.

Into Your hands, O Lord, we commend all for whom we pray, trusting in Your mercy, wisdom, and unfailing love; through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

We now join together in the prayer that our Lord Jesus taught us to pray.

Lord’s Prayer

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thywill be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.

Offering

Please be seated for the Offering

Collect the offering and place it on the alter.

Gospel Reading

Please rise for the reading of the Gospel.

The reading in on Matthew 9:35–10:8 Hear the word of the Lord.

Matthew 9:35–10:8 ESV

And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction. The names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them, “Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And proclaim as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying; give without pay.

This is the word of the Lord. You may be seated.

Sermon

Grace, peace and mercy unto all of you. Today and always from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.

I have been preaching… START TIMER

Introduction — Obedience Begins on the Road Back

In the summer of 1924, Eric Liddell stood on one of the brightest stages in the world. He was a Scottish runner at the Paris Olympics, and many expected him to run the 100 meters, his strongest event. But when the heats were scheduled for Sunday, he refused to compete. That decision cost him the race many thought he was born to win, but he entered the 400 meters instead and won Olympic gold. The world saw a champion, but Liddell understood something deeper: a calling is not proven only in public victory, but in quiet obedience before God.

After the Olympics, Liddell did not build his life around fame or applause. In 1925, he returned to China, where he had been born to missionary parents, and served as a teacher and missionary. As war spread, the road became dangerous. His pregnant wife and children were sent to safety in Canada, but Liddell stayed behind because he believed God had called him to serve. Eventually, he was placed in a Japanese internment camp, where food, medicine, and hope were often scarce. Yet even there, he taught children, organized games, helped the weak, and became a steady Christian presence in a place filled with fear.

His life reminds us that God’s call is not finished when we say yes in a holy moment. The call must be carried into the dust of the road, into family tensions, danger, weakness, sacrifice, and daily obedience.

That is where we find Moses in Exodus 4. The burning bush conversation is over. The questions have been answered. The excuses have run out. Moses must now go back to Egypt—back to the place of his failure, back to the empire that enslaved his people, back to the mission he once tried to accomplish in his own strength.

Exodus 4:18–31 is the road back to Egypt. It is the movement from calling to obedience, from holy ground to dangerous ground, from the burning bush to Pharaoh’s throne. Moses has received the call of God, but now that call must be lived in the dust of the road, in the seriousness of covenant, and before a suffering people who need hope.

This passage teaches us a necessary truth: the God who calls us also claims us. The God who sends us also sanctifies us. We cannot represent the holy God while treating His commands lightly. We cannot preach deliverance while keeping disobedience hidden in our own tent.

But the passage ends with hope. The people hear that God has visited them and seen their affliction. They believe, bow their heads, and worship. That is where every true work of God leads: not to the glory of the servant, but to the worship of the Deliverer.

I. The Return of the Reluctant Servant

Exodus 4:18 ESV

Moses went back to Jethro his father-in-law and said to him, “Please let me go back to my brothers in Egypt to see whether they are still alive.” And Jethro said to Moses, “Go in peace.”

Moses has argued with God long enough. At the bush he had many questions, many fears, and one final request that sounded almost like refusal: “Oh, my Lord, please send someone else.” But now the reluctant servant begins to move. He does not yet sound like a hero. He does not tell Jethro the whole story. He simply asks permission to return to his brothers. Yet this small step matters. Obedience often begins before courage feels complete.

There is something beautiful here. Moses does not storm out of Midian as if God’s call released him from ordinary duties. He honors his father-in-law. The God who met him in fire does not teach him to despise family order, courtesy, or responsibility. A divine calling never makes a man careless. The servant of God must learn to obey God in the great things while still walking humbly in the small things.

Exodus 4:19 ESV

And the Lord said to Moses in Midian, “Go back to Egypt, for all the men who were seeking your life are dead.”

God repeats the command, but He also gives reassurance. Egypt is still Egypt. Pharaoh’s throne is still dangerous. Israel is still enslaved. But the men who sought Moses’ life are dead. God is not sending Moses blindly into the dark. He knows the dangers on the road before Moses takes the first step.

In the great controversy, this matters. God’s work moves forward in enemy territory, but never outside God’s knowledge. Satan works through fear, accusation, and the memory of failure. Moses had once fled Egypt as a failed deliverer with blood on his hands. Now God sends him back, not because the past never happened, but because grace has not finished its work. The call of God does not deny our weakness; it places our weakness under His authority.

Exodus 4:20 ESV

So Moses took his wife and his sons and had them ride on a donkey, and went back to the land of Egypt. And Moses took the staff of God in his hand.

That staff had once been only a shepherd’s staff. It was the tool of an exile, the reminder of forty quiet years in Midian. But when surrendered to God, the ordinary became holy. The staff of Moses became “the staff of God.” Not magic. Not human greatness. Not Moses’ eloquence. The power was in the God who claimed it.

Beloved, this is how God still sends reluctant servants. He does not wait until we feel strong. He calls, reassures, and places His word in our hands. Paul heard the same principle:

2 Corinthians 12:9 ESV

…“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”…

So Moses goes back to Egypt—not as prince, fugitive, or self-appointed savior, but as a servant under command, carrying in his hand the sign that deliverance belongs to God.

II. The Warning About Pharaoh and the Firstborn Son

Exodus 4:21 ESV

And the Lord said to Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you do before Pharaoh all the miracles that I have put in your power. But I will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go.

Before Moses reaches Egypt, God tells him the truth. The mission will not be easy. The signs will be real. The power will be divine. But Pharaoh will not surrender quickly. Moses must not mistake resistance for failure. He must not think that because Pharaoh refuses, God has lost control.

This is important for every servant of God. Obedience does not always make the road smooth. Sometimes obedience brings us directly into conflict. Moses is going back to Egypt with the staff of God in his hand, but the staff does not mean Pharaoh will immediately bow. The presence of God does not remove the controversy; it reveals who is truly Lord.

In the great controversy, God does not win by manipulation or by careless force. His character must be revealed. Pharaoh’s hardening shows a terrible reality: light received and resisted becomes darkness. God’s miracles would expose what was already in Pharaoh’s heart. The same sun that softens wax hardens clay. God’s word came as mercy, warning, and evidence, but Pharaoh would turn that mercy into rebellion.

Exodus 4:22 ESV

Then you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the Lord, Israel is my firstborn son,

Now the issue becomes personal. Israel is not merely a labor force. Israel is not merely an oppressed ethnic group. Israel is God’s firstborn son. Pharaoh sees slaves; God sees family. Pharaoh sees property; God sees children. Pharaoh says, “They belong to me.” God says, “They belong to Me.”

This is the heart of deliverance. God is not simply freeing workers from an unjust economy. He is reclaiming sons and daughters for worship. Hosea later remembers it this way:

Hosea 11:1 ESV

When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son.

Love is behind the exodus. Covenant love. Fatherly love. Holy love. God has heard their groaning, seen their affliction, and remembered His covenant. Now He speaks to the empire as a Father defending His child.

Exodus 4:23 ESV

and I say to you, “Let my son go that he may serve me.” If you refuse to let him go, behold, I will kill your firstborn son.’ ”

This warning is severe, but it is not arbitrary. Pharaoh has already been part of a system that killed Hebrew sons. Egypt threw Israel’s baby boys into the Nile. Now God warns Pharaoh before judgment falls. The God of Scripture does not delight in death. He warns before He strikes.

And notice the purpose: “that he may serve me.” Freedom is not independence from God. Freedom is release from false masters so we may worship the true God. Jesus said:

John 8:36 ESV

So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

Moses must carry this warning to Pharaoh: God’s son must be released, God’s word must be obeyed, and God’s worship must not be withheld.

III. The Covenant Crisis on the Way

Exodus 4:24 ESV

At a lodging place on the way the Lord met him and sought to put him to death.

This is one of the strangest and most sobering moments in Exodus. Moses has just been sent by God. He has the staff of God in his hand. He is going to confront Pharaoh. But before he can stand before Egypt, he must first be confronted by the Lord. The danger on the road is not Pharaoh’s army. The crisis is covenant neglect.

The text does not explain everything we wish to know. But it tells us enough. Moses, the messenger of covenant deliverance, has failed to bring his own household under the sign of the covenant. God had said to Abraham:

Genesis 17:13–14 ESV

both he who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money, shall surely be circumcised. So shall my covenant be in your flesh an everlasting covenant. Any uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin shall be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.”

Moses cannot call Pharaoh to obey God while treating God’s covenant as optional in his own home. God is merciful, but His mercy is not permission for presumption. In the great controversy, God’s character is at stake. His government is not arbitrary force; it is holy love, covenant faithfulness, and moral order. If God ignored disobedience in His servant while judging rebellion in Pharaoh, the enemy would have grounds to accuse Him of partiality. The Deliverer must be seen as righteous in the way He delivers.

Example of a guy giving a girl his pin in the 50’s (pinning a girl).

Exodus 4:25 ESV

Then Zipporah took a flint and cut off her son’s foreskin and touched Moses’ feet with it and said, “Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me!”

Zipporah acts quickly. The passage is mysterious, but her action is clear enough: blood is shed, the covenant sign is applied, and the danger is turned away. Before Israel ever sees the blood on the doorposts at Passover, Moses’ own family must learn that life is preserved under the blood of the covenant.

This is not salvation by ritual. Circumcision had no power apart from faith and obedience. But the outward sign mattered because God had commanded it. Love does not make obedience unnecessary. Obedience is not a mere outward compliance, but the service of love. True faith does not excuse disobedience; true faith surrenders the whole life to God.

Exodus 4:26 ESV

So he let him alone. It was then that she said, “A bridegroom of blood,” because of the circumcision.

“So he let him alone.” That little sentence is mercy. God corrected Moses severely, but He did not abandon him. He stopped him in order to save him. The Lord would rather wound our pride on the road than let us perish in hidden disobedience.

Beloved, before Moses could preach deliverance to Israel, God brought deliverance into Moses’ own tent. Before he could speak of covenant to Pharaoh, the covenant had to claim his household.

Hebrews 3:15 ESV

… “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”

The road back to Egypt is holy ground too.

IV. The Brother Who Meets Him

Exodus 4:27 ESV

The Lord said to Aaron, “Go into the wilderness to meet Moses.” So he went and met him at the mountain of God and kissed him.

While Moses is traveling back toward Egypt, Aaron is being moved by the same Lord from another direction. Before Moses faces Pharaoh, before he stands before the elders, God gives him a brother at the mountain of God.

This is mercy. Moses had asked God to send someone else, and God did not excuse his unbelief. Yet God also did not leave him alone. The Lord corrected Moses, but He also provided companionship for Moses. In the great controversy, God’s work is not advanced by isolated pride. The enemy loves to make servants feel alone, ashamed, afraid, and inadequate. But God builds His mission through fellowship, shared calling, and encouragement.

Ecclesiastes 4:9–10 ESV

Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up!

Exodus 4:28 ESV

And Moses told Aaron all the words of the Lord with which he had sent him to speak, and all the signs that he had commanded him to do.

Notice what Moses gives Aaron first: not strategy, not personality, not his own version of the plan, but “all the words of the Lord.” The mission will move forward by revelation. Aaron can speak well, but eloquence is not enough. He must speak what God has spoken.

That is still true. Paul says,

Romans 10:17 ESV

So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

The servant may be weak, the helper gifted, but the power is in the word God gives. Moses and Aaron must go together, but they must go under God’s revealed word.

V. The People Believe and Worship

Aaron speaks, and the signs are done just as God commanded. But the center is not Aaron’s eloquence or Moses’ staff. The center is “all the words that the Lord had spoken.” The signs serve the word; they do not replace the word.

Conclusion — The God Who Sends, Corrects, and Receives Worship

Exodus 4:18–31 brings Moses back to Egypt. They show what happens when the call of God begins to take shape in obedience.

Moses leaves Midian with Jethro’s blessing. He takes his family. He carries the staff of God. He is warned that Pharaoh will resist. He hears that Israel is God’s firstborn son. He faces a severe covenant crisis on the road. He meets Aaron at the mountain of God. Together they speak the Lord’s message, perform the signs, and the people believe and worship.

This passage teaches us that obedience is not casual. The God who sends also sanctifies. The God who gives a mission also claims the messenger. Moses cannot go to Pharaoh while neglecting the covenant in his own household. God is too holy for that, and the mission is too sacred for that.

But God is also merciful. He sends Moses in peace, places the staff in his hand, sends Aaron to meet him, preserves him through discipline, confirms His word, and awakens faith in His people.

And Jesus is the greater Deliverer. Moses returned to Egypt carrying the staff of God. Jesus came into our world carrying the mission of God. Moses faced Pharaoh. Jesus faced sin, Satan, and death. Moses brought the message that God had visited His people. Jesus is God visiting His people.

So take the staff God has placed in your hand. Listen to His word. Trust His promise. Bring your household under His covenant. And when you hear again that the Lord has visited His people and seen their affliction, do what Israel did.

Bow your head and worship.

Closing Story Before Appeal

Dr. Paul Brand was born in India in 1914 to missionary parents and later trained as a surgeon in England. When he returned to India after World War II, he encountered leprosy patients whose hands and feet were deformed, injured, and often treated by society as hopeless. Many people believed their bodies were simply rotting away because of the disease itself, and the stigma surrounding them was so severe that they were often pushed to the margins of life. Brand looked at those wounded hands and feet and began asking questions others had stopped asking.

At Christian Medical College in Vellore and later in leprosy research and training work, Brand discovered something that changed the treatment of leprosy. The deepest danger was not that these patients felt too much pain, but that they had lost the protective gift of pain. Because their nerves were damaged, they could injure their hands and feet without realizing it, and repeated unnoticed injuries led to wounds, infection, and deformity. That discovery did not make him turn away from them; it made him move closer. He developed reconstructive surgical techniques, taught patients how to protect their bodies, and helped restore dignity to people who had been treated as untouchable.

There is something deeply spiritual in that story. Pain was not the enemy Dr. Brand first assumed it to be; in many cases, pain was the warning mercy that could save a person from destruction. That helps us understand the strange mercy of Exodus 4, where God stops Moses on the road before Moses stands before Pharaoh. The Lord’s correction may feel severe, but it is not cruelty when God wounds our pride to save our lives. Sometimes the most loving thing God can do is stop us, confront us, and bring the hidden places of our lives under His covenant before we go forward in His name.

5. Appeal Section

Beloved, the road back to Egypt reminds us that obedience is not merely agreeing with God in a sacred moment. Obedience is carrying the call of God into the ordinary and difficult places of life. Moses had heard the voice from the bush, but now he had to walk the road. He had received the staff of God, but now his household had to be brought under the covenant of God. He was called to confront Pharaoh, but first God confronted him.

And that is where this message comes close to us. It is possible to speak about deliverance while keeping one area of our lives unsurrendered. It is possible to carry the staff of ministry, service, family responsibility, church leadership, or Christian profession while neglecting the covenant claims of God in the home, in the heart, in the habits, or in the hidden places. The issue is not whether God is merciful. He is wonderfully merciful. The issue is whether we will let His mercy correct us before disobedience hardens into rebellion.

The good news is that God does not stop Moses in order to destroy the mission. He stops Moses in order to save the messenger. He sends Aaron to meet him. He gives His word to Moses and Aaron. He gathers the elders. He confirms the message. And when the people hear that the Lord has visited them and seen their affliction, they bow their heads and worship. That is the goal of the whole passage, worship before the God who sees, sends, corrects, delivers, and saves.

So today, the appeal is simple and serious. Take the next step of obedience. Bring the neglected place under the lordship of Christ. Do not wait until you feel brave enough, eloquent enough, worthy enough, or strong enough. Moses went back with weakness, but he went back with God’s word, God’s staff, God’s correction, and God’s mercy. And you can go forward the same way.

Maybe the Lord is calling you to return to a responsibility you have avoided. Maybe He is calling you to repair something in your household, confess something hidden, obey something you have treated as optional, or trust Him in a mission that feels larger than you. Do not harden your heart. The same God who called Moses is still calling His people today, and the same God who visited Israel in affliction has visited us in Jesus Christ. Jesus is the greater Deliverer, the One who came into our Egypt, faced sin, Satan, and death, and opened the way for us to worship God in freedom.

I want to pray for you. If any of you want to say with me, “Lord, I will stop making excuses, surrender the hidden places, bring my life and household under Your covenant, and go forward in obedience wherever You send me,” would you lift your heart to God right now?

END

We continue with our last hymn. Hymn #349 Trust And Obey.

Verse 1 When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word, What a glory He sheds on our way! While we do His good will He abides with us still, And with all who will trust and obey.

Chorus Trust and obey, for there's no other way To be happy in Jesus, But to trust and obey.

Verse 2 Not a shadow can rise, not a cloud in the skies, But His smile quickly drives it away; Not a doubt nor a fear, not a sigh nor a tear, Can abide while we trust and obey.

Verse 3 Not a burden we bear, not a sorrow we share, But our toil He doth richly repay; Not a grief nor a loss, not a frown nor a cross, But is blest if we trust and obey.

Verse 4 But we never can prove the delights of His love Until all on the altar we lay; For the favor He shows and the joy He bestows Are for them who will trust and obey.

Verse 5 Then in fellowship sweet we will sit at His feet, Or we'll walk by His side in the way; What He says we will do, where He sends we will go— Never fear, only trust and obey.

Benediction

(And now receive the benediction of our Lord.

The Lord Bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord look upon you with favor and give you peace. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen

We conclude with our final hymn Doxology #625

Praise God from whom all blessings flow; Praise Him, all creatures here below; Praise Him above, ye heav'nly host; Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Amen.

Thanks for being here have a blessed week. Go in peace to love God and to love your neighbor. Amen