Same God: A Journey through scripture week 2

God of Moses: The God Who Speaks

Introduction: A Fugitive, a Desert, and a Fire That Wouldn't Quit

Imagine being forty years old, raised in the most powerful household on earth, with every opportunity imaginable—only to lose it all in a moment of failure.

That was Moses.

After killing an Egyptian, he fled into the wilderness and spent forty years tending sheep on the backside of a desert.

And that is where God met him.

Moses was not in a temple. He was not on a spiritual retreat. He was not searching for God.

He was simply doing ordinary work on an ordinary day.

Yet God showed up.

That truth introduces the theme of our message:

The same God who spoke to Moses still speaks, still calls, and still works through ordinary people today.

As we continue our series, Same God: A Journey Through Scripture, we discover that the God of Moses is not merely a God of the past. He is the same God yesterday, today, and forever.

Question: If God spoke to Moses in a desert, what might He be saying to you today?

I. God Shows Up in Ordinary Places

Exodus 3:1–6 ESV

1 Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. 3 And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” 4 When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” 5 Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” 6 And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

Moses arrives at Horeb and notices a bush burning without being consumed.

Horeb is consider to be Mount Sinai by many Theologians

Three truths stand out:

A. God's presence makes a place holy

The mountain was not holy because it was special.

It became holy because God was there.

The presence of God transforms ordinary places into sacred spaces.

B. God often uses ordinary things to get our attention

A bush was nothing unusual.

A Bush on Fire was not unusual ( lightning Strikes)

A bush that would not burn up was.

God used something familiar to reveal something supernatural.

C. God speaks when people stop and pay attention

"When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him."

Moses paused. Moses turned aside. Then God spoke.

Application

The question is not whether God is present.

The question is whether we are paying attention.

God is just as present in your workplace, your home, your struggles, and your daily routines as He was in Moses' desert.

Key Truth: God often reveals Himself in ordinary places to attentive people. it doesn’t take a Miracle to get noticed by God it takes and attentiveness

II. God Reveals Himself as the Great I AM

Exodus 3:7–15 ESV

7 Then the Lord said, “I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings, 8 and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 9 And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. 10 Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” 11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” 12 He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.” 13 Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” 14 God said to Moses, “I am who I am.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I am has sent me to you.’ ” 15 God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.

When Moses asks God's name, God answers:

"I AM WHO I AM."

This is one of the most important revelations in all of Scripture.

A. God is self-existent

Everything else depends on something.

God depends on nothing.

He simply is.

B. God is eternal and unchanging

He has no beginning. He has no end.

Because He never changes, His promises never fail.

C. Jesus identifies Himself as the I AM

John 8:58 ESV

58 Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.”

Jesus was not merely claiming preexistence.

He was claiming deity.

The God who spoke from the burning bush is the same God revealed in Jesus Christ.

Application

Your prayers are not directed toward a limited helper.

They are directed toward the eternal I AM.

Key Truth: The God who calls us is the eternal, unchanging God who has all power and authority.

III. God Uses Imperfect People

Exodus 4:10–12 ESV

10 But Moses said to the Lord, “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.” 11 Then the Lord said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? 12 Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.”

After receiving his calling, Moses begins offering excuses.

"I am not eloquent."

"I am slow of speech."

In essence:

"God, you've got the wrong person."

A. Moses focused on his weaknesses

His past. His failures. His limitations.

B. God focused on His presence

God did not say:

"Moses, you're more talented than you think."

Instead He said:

"I will be with you."

In other words: I want you to be Inadequate So I can shine not for you to get famous.

C. God's strength is displayed through human weakness

Throughout Scripture, God repeatedly chooses unlikely people:

Abraham: Provided a Son at an old Age

David: Defeated Goliath as a young Boy forgotten by his family

Gideon: Was hiding in a Winepress because of fear but still overcame a war in victory

Mary: Was a young Virgin Girl

Moses: Freed a People

God receives glory when His power works through weak vessels.

Application

What excuse have you been giving God?

"I'm not qualified."

"I'm too old."

"I've failed too much."

"Someone else could do it better."

God's answer remains the same:

"I will be with you."

Key Truth: God is not looking for perfect people; He is looking for available people. Your life situation does not matter to God your Heart situation does.

IV. The Same God Still Speaks

Hebrews 13:8 ESV

8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever."

If God has not changed, then His desire to reveal Himself has not changed either.

A. God speaks through His Word

The Bible remains God's primary and authoritative voice.

B. God speaks through prayer

Prayer is not only talking to God. It is listening to God.

C. God speaks through His people

Wise counsel, encouragement, and biblical community are often instruments God uses.

D. God speaks through ordinary moments

Just as God used a bush, He often uses everyday circumstances to capture our attention.

Application

Moses turned aside.

Many people miss God's voice because they never slow down long enough to listen.

The challenge is not merely to hear.

The challenge is to stop.

Key Truth: God is still speaking, but we must make room to listen.

Closing Question: If God spoke to Moses in a desert, what might He be saying to you today?