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The book of Exodus is one of most intriguing and captivating stories of all time—the story of God rescuing His people in power, showing His might and His mercy, displaying His glory and goodness.
It’s not, however, just a story of what happened to God’s people way back then; it’s a story of what happens in the lives of God’s people now.
Exodus is more than a story; it’s an illustration of God’s work in our lives; it’s pointing us to Jesus.
It’s a story about us.
We have been delivered from slavery. We used to be slaves to sin…but now have been set free from sin and have becomes slaves to righteousness.
Over the last several months, as we’ve traced the journey of the Israelites, we have (hopefully) discovered that we need now exactly what the Israelites needed then:
We need a Deliverer: someone who will save us from slavery and destroy our enemies.
We need a Provider: someone to feed us and give us what we truly need.
We need a Lawgiver: someone to command us how to live and love and serve Him.
We need a Friend: someone to stay with us day and night, and forever.
The late, great J. Alec Motyer summed up the Christian’s relationship to Exodus in the way only he could. He said this, many years ago:
“Think about it. Think of what an Israelite would say on the way to Canaan, having come out of the Red Sea and so forth. Here’s what an Israelite would say: If you asked, ‘Who are you?’ he would say, ‘I was in a foreign land under the sentence of death, in bondage, but I took shelter under the blood of the lamb. Our mediator led us out, and we crossed over, and now we’re on our way to the Promised Land. We’re not there yet, but He’s given us His law to make us a community. And He’s given us the Tabernacle because you have to live by grace and forgiveness. And His presence is in our midst, and He’s going to stay with us until we get home.’ This is exactly what the Christian says—almost word for word.”
Exodus is not just some historical, ancient story from a few thousand years ago. It’s our story. It’s the story of God at work—rescuing, redeeming, delivering, teaching, providing, leading, and living with His people.
>Lest we leave this study in the book of Exodus and move on to the next, I want us to think about where we go from here. I want us to ask and answer four questions the text raises for us.
So, then, if you have your Bible (and I hope you do) please turn with me to Exodus 33. We are going to focus on Exodus 33-40 this morning, so just keep your Bible open in front of you and we’ll make our way through these final chapters in this God-breathed book of the Bible.
1 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Leave this place, you and the people you brought up out of Egypt, and go up to the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, saying, ‘I will give it to your descendants.’ 2 I will send an angel before you and drive out the Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. 3 Go up to the land flowing with milk and honey. But I will not go with you, because you are a stiff-necked people and I might destroy you on the way.”
At first glance, these verses seem to be good news. Despite their great sin (their idolatry, their setting-up a golden calf as their god, their spiritual prostitution) despite all of that, the Lord—good and gracious—was still leading them to the Promised Land, the land flowing with milk and honey.
Good News!
But then, the last half of verse 3 reveals a problem:
3 Go up to the land flowing with milk and honey. But I will not go with you, because you are a stiff-necked people and I might destroy you on the way.”
God says He is not going to go with them. This is a big deal. And notice why God says He isn’t going with them—because I might destroy you all on the way!
Kind of sounds like the Dread Pirate Roberts: “Good night, Westley. Good work. Sleep well. I'll most likely kill you in the morning.”
God is righteously, justifiably angry. His people have committed a great sin against Him. It’s understandable that God would say, “I’ll most likely kill you in the morning”, “I might destroy you all on the way.”
Notice also how God refers to the Israelites. In verse 1, God calls them the people rather than My people.
A distance exists between this stiff-necked people and God.
This is what sin does. This is what idolatry does.
God tells the people that He isn’t going to go with them; He’s angry with them. There’s a distance that exists between them and God, a distance created by their sin.
Rather than shrugging their shoulders and saying, “Eh, whatever. We’ll be fine. We’ll make it. We’ve made it this far,” the people mourn:
4 When the people heard these distressing words, they began to mourn and no one put on any ornaments. 5 For the Lord had said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites, ‘You are a stiff-necked people. If I were to go with you even for a moment, I might destroy you. Now take off your ornaments and I will decide what to do with you.’ ” 6 So the Israelites stripped off their ornaments at Mount Horeb.
Upon hearing that God wasn’t going with them, they grieve and mourn. It’s almost like they stay in bed for the day; they don’t change out of their PJs, don’t do their hair or put on their makeup.
By removing their jewelry/ornaments they demonstrate contrition (sadness) at the fact that the Lord isn’t going with them. This might even hint at repentance.
They are desperate for God’s presence.
Are You Desperate for God or Dependent on Yourself?
Are You Desperate for God or Dependent on Yourself?
Israel realizes that their greatest need was to have God.
If you think about it, what God offers the Israelites would be just fine with most people.
God is not going with them, but they still get the Promised Land. They get the land of milk and honey, they get their enemies taken care of for them, they get to waltz into the land of blessing.
A lot of people would be fine to have the blessings God provides, even if that meant they didn’t get God.
A lot of people would be a-okay to have the blessings, even if that meant they didn’t get the Blesser.
People want to go to heaven, but it doesn’t really matter to them if God is there or not.
Experiment: the next time someone mentions heaven, ask them what most excites them about heaven. I’ll give you 10-1 odds that they’ll say they’re most excited to see their loved ones who passed on before them.
Hardly ever will you hear someone rejoice that in heaven they’ll get to be with God, to see Him face-to-face, to worship before His throne. It’s almost always, “I’ll get to see Grandma and Grandpa again!”
Sometimes people even present the gospel like this: “Pray this prayer, you’ll be forgiven, and you’ll go to heaven when you die.”
There’s no mention of restored, reconciled relationship to the Father. Heaven is a wonderful gift, a wonderful benefit of salvation, but the greatest gift, the greatest benefit of being a Christian is getting God Himself. If being with God, worshipping God doesn’t thrill you, you won’t like heaven, not even a little.
The greatest gift is a relationship with God. Knowing God is better than anything else.
The Israelites understand their need for God; they don’t want the Promised Land without God, they don’t want anything without God. They are desperate for Him.
>In Exodus 33:7-11, we read about Moses taking a tent and setting it up outside of camp. This was called the tent of meeting.
Don’t confuse this tent with the tabernacle (that hasn’t been built yet). This was Moses’ own private tent to meet with God. This tent was outside of the camp; the tabernacle was going to be the center of the camp.
7 Now Moses used to take a tent and pitch it outside the camp some distance away, calling it the “tent of meeting.” Anyone inquiring of the Lord would go to the tent of meeting outside the camp. 8 And whenever Moses went out to the tent, all the people rose and stood at the entrances to their tents, watching Moses until he entered the tent. 9 As Moses went into the tent, the pillar of cloud would come down and stay at the entrance, while the Lord spoke with Moses. 10 Whenever the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance to the tent, they all stood and worshiped, each at the entrance to their tent. 11 The Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend. Then Moses would return to the camp, but his young aide Joshua son of Nun did not leave the tent.
This doesn’t mean that Moses could see God (we’ll read later in Exodus 33 that no one can see God and live). It means that Moses and God shared direct communication. This was an intimate relationship.
What a privilege!
Here’s the thing: we don’t have to be jealous of this privilege! We have it even better than Moses.
We don’t have to go anywhere. We don’t have to pitch a tent or enter a building.
As those who believe in Jesus, we have immediate access to God through the Spirit.
We can approach God anytime, anyplace, without the help of anyone else. You don’t have to go through a priest, or a pastor, or an elder. You, Christian, go to the Father directly; Jesus has opened the way.
What a privilege!
>The Israelites were desperate for God’s presence because without Him, they could not go on.
Moses asked the Lord for help in leading the people. What Moses says is, essentially: “We do not have what it takes. We need you!”
At Moses’ plea, the Lord makes a promise:
14 The Lord replied, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”
Moses knows that without the presence of God, without God going with them, they are sunk:
15 Then Moses said to him, “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. 16 How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?”
Moses is proclaiming—for himself and for all of Israel—that they could not go one step without God.
In our lives, we need God to go with us. We must have God’s presence to fulfill the mission He has given to us.
What distinguished Israel was not their land (the didn’t have it yet). It wasn’t their wealth (they had none, slaves as they were). It wasn’t their righteousness (they had just bowed down to a stinking calf).
What distinguished them? It was their relationship with God.
The only thing that distinguishes us from others is our relationship with the one true God through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ.
We have to rely on God’s mighty presence to reach the nations, to care for orphans and widows, to parent our children, to love our spouses, and everything else.
We must have God!
Perhaps the greatest problem with the church today is the attempt to do the work of God apart from the presence and power of God.
We must say, “Lord, we do not want to go another step without You!”
The mark of the true Christian is dependence upon and desperation for God.
If you’re depending on yourself, stop. Stop it. Let us all be desperate for the Lord.
Do You Long to See God’s Glory, or Have You Seen Enough?
Do You Long to See God’s Glory, or Have You Seen Enough?
God has just promised Moses what he asked for, but then Moses makes this audacious request:
18 Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.”
Charles Spurgeon wrote that this was “the greatest petition man ever asked of God.”
Moses wants to see the radiance and splendor of God.
But think about it: Moses had already seen glory. He saw it in the burning bush, with the 70 elders on the mountain of God, in the tent of meeting, through all the miracles God performed.
Yet Moses longed to see more. He has not grown tired of seeing the glory of the Lord.
That’s what a glimpse of God’s glory will do for you—it will leave you wanting more.
I believe one of Satan’s most clever schemes is tricking us into thinking we’ve seen enough or having us bored with the things of God so that we’re not hungry for His glory.
Do We Long to See God’s Glory, or Have We Seen Enough?
Do We Long to See God’s Glory, or Have We Seen Enough?
God would give Moses another glimpse of His glory, this purely of His grace (God will do what He will do).
19 And the Lord said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
The Lord Yahweh shows Moses His goodness. He proclaims His name—Yahweh—in His presence. And all this, purely of His grace.
God is bound to no one. He will show mercy and grace to whomever He pleases.
Here with Moses, the Lord gives him just a glimpse, placing Moses in the cleft of the rock. Moses is protected from God by God.
Do you want to see God’s glory?
I believe you do. I believe it’s the cry of every heart. We, however, substitute created things for the glory of God. We give up on seeing God’s glory and settle for much, much less.
We either forget God altogether or we make God in our own image. Instead of beholding God for who He is, seeking His glory, we’re content with what we’ve seen. We’ve seen enough.
Not so with Moses.
In Exodus 34, God gives Moses a fresh copy of the law and reveals more of Himself to Moses.
5 Then the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the Lord. 6 And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, 7 maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.”
8 Moses bowed to the ground at once and worshiped. 9 “Lord,” he said, “if I have found favor in your eyes, then let the Lord go with us. Although this is a stiff-necked people, forgive our wickedness and our sin, and take us as your inheritance.”
To those in need, God is compassionate.
To those who cannot measure up, God is gracious.
To those who are rebellious, God is slow to anger.
To the unfaithful, God abounds in faithful love and loyalty.
To the guilty, God is forgiving.
To the unrepentant, God is just.
>This, the character of God, reveals His glory. We should revel in and celebrate who God is: compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in hesed (love and faithfulness), maintaining love to thousands, forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin.
Reminding the people of His glory, the Lord renews the covenant and gives instruction on true worship.
28 Moses was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights without eating bread or drinking water. And he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant—the Ten Commandments.
And at the end of His time, when Moses comes down from the mountain, his face was so radiant, he had to put a veil over his face.
Moses radiated the glory of God. Why? How?
He had been talking with God; He had been with God.
When we are with God, we will shine. If we long to see Him and hear from Him, if we continually seek Him and fix our eyes on Him, we will be transformed.
18 And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
If you’ve seen enough, ask the Lord to renew the longing to see His glory, to gaze on His beauty.
Are You a Faithful Steward or a Selfish Consumer?
Are You a Faithful Steward or a Selfish Consumer?
Exodus 25-31 explain the instructions for building the tabernacle and everything that goes into the operation of the tabernacle.
Then Exodus 35-40 shows the actual building of it.
What’s remarkable is that some 20 times (See 39:1,5,7,21,26,29,31,32,42,43; 40:16,19,21,23,25,26,27,29,32), we read that the Israelites did exactly what God commanded them to do.
This is something. We’re not building a tabernacle, but we have been commanded by God to make disciples. We must do what the Lord has commanded.
Here in Exodus 35 the supplies needed for building the tabernacle are listed. Supplies are need, as are craftsmen.
There’s a repeated phrase:
21 and everyone who was willing and whose heart moved them came and brought an offering to the Lord for the work on the tent of meeting, for all its service, and for the sacred garments.
22 All who were willing, men and women alike, came and brought gold jewelry of all kinds: brooches, earrings, rings and ornaments. They all presented their gold as a wave offering to the Lord.
26 And all the women who were willing and had the skill spun the goat hair.
29 All the Israelite men and women who were willing brought to the Lord freewill offerings for all the work the Lord through Moses had commanded them to do.
Morning after morning the people continued to bring freewill offerings for the tabernacle.
They give so much, Moses has to tell them to knock it off:
6 Then Moses gave an order and they sent this word throughout the camp: “No man or woman is to make anything else as an offering for the sanctuary.” And so the people were restrained from bringing more, 7 because what they already had was more than enough to do all the work.
These people are far from selfish. They are unbelievably generous. That kind of generosity comes only from a heart that’s been moved by God’s grace.
I know what it is to be around people who are unfailingly generous.
You are generous with your time, talents, and finances. If there’s a need, you’re there. If you can give, you do. When we need sponsors at church camp or workers for VBS, you sacrifice to help.
Those who understand grace, give freely, as faithful stewards.
Those who don’t understand grace will hoard, selfishly.
If you’re a selfish consumer, seeking what’s in it for you, demanding the Lord give you more and more for your own sake, repent and ask Him to make you a faithful steward.
Are You Amazed by the Good News or Have You Grown Cold to it?
Are You Amazed by the Good News or Have You Grown Cold to it?
If you hadn’t ever read the book of Exodus, it would be pretty suspenseful: would God dwell among a sinful people?
If we didn’t know the story, we’d probably say, “No, no way is God going to set up shop among these silly, sinful, stupid idolaters.”
In these chapters—Exodus 35-40—the craftsmen start making the various items needed for the tabernacle: curtains and poles, the ark and the table, the lampstand and altar of incense, the altar for burnt offerings and the basin for washing, the priestly garments (ephod, breastpiece, tunic, robe).
And then, at the end of all that, here at the very end of the book:
34 Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.
And there the Lord would remain until it was time for the people to move. God Himself, come to dwell with His people. That’s the Good News!
It’s amazing! I hope you see how amazing it is!
Are You Amazed by the Good News or Have You Grown Cold to it?
Are You Amazed by the Good News or Have You Grown Cold to it?
It’s amazing that God would have anything to do with this people. That out of all the peoples on earth, He’d choose them. Save them. Redeem them. Bring them out of slavery. Provide for them. Forgive them. Be present among them.
It’s amazing.
Even more amazing is that God would come to live among us. To tabernacle among us, to take on flesh and blood and move into the neighborhood. And then, that He would take our place, pay for our sins, and die for us.
It’s absolutely miraculous. It’s unimaginably Good News.
Does it still amaze you? Is it still Good News? Or is it just news?
If you’ve grown cold to the Good News, I pray it would capture your heart again. That you’d be amazed anew by what God has done for you in sending His One and Only Son to save you, redeem you, to make you right with God.
It’s amazing that He would. It’s amazing that He did. It’s amazing, amazing Good News.
>Exodus is more than a story; it’s an illustration of God’s work in our lives; it’s pointing us to Jesus.
It’s a story about us.
We have been delivered from slavery. We used to be slaves to sin…but now have been set free from sin and have becomes slaves to righteousness.
These final chapters speak of our need for God, the glory of God, our stewardship of what God has given us, and the amazing Good News that God has come to us, to save us, to bring us to Himself.
I pray you’ll ask yourself these questions:
Am I desperate for God or dependent upon myself?
Do I long to see God’s Glory, or have I seen enough?
Am I a faithful steward or a selfish consumer?
Am I amazed by the Good News, or have I grown cold to it?