Sermon Tone Analysis

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I’m a sucker for homecomings…military homecomings…or like this mom who was reunited with her child down in south TX.

I’m not getting political today, but It must be awful to be separated from your kids.

Reconnecting to our loved ones or someone you have been longing to meet moves us because presence is a very real thing.

Presence affects us at every level.

On Thursday we had a charge wide meeting to plan some ministry efforts with our sister churches here in Rock Hall and we got to talking about how folks who aren’t as mobile as they once were tend to struggle with loneliness, and how we as a charge might be able to help show our neighbors some hope, simply by visiting them.

It’s called the ministry of presence.

You remember when you couldn’t get the kids to go to sleep, but if you just walked in they would calm down…ministry of presence.

You are going in for surgery, but having friends and family with you brings comfort, ministry of presence.

Stressful events in life, you want someone to go with you, ministry of presence.

You can trace it back all the way to the way we were created, together - in the Garden with God.

This presence of God is what we were created to experience.

And until we are in His presence, we will always long for it, we will always be missing something because we were created to be in his presence.

This is where our study of Exodus is moving.

God redeeming the nation of Israel, Making them His people, God showing them how to live.

Last week we saw the Tabernacle as we learned how unique it was that God had chosen to be with us.

The problem is, for the Israelites just what it has always been, our sinfulness.

So here we have God with Moses up on the mountain explaining how the Israelites would live as a holy nation, a people set apart by God.

Tabernacle: Dwelling place of God…God with us.

But what about the people coming into the presence of God?

We will see here today that there were all sorts of requirements to come into the presence of God.

Holy Garments

Exodus 28:1-5

Ephod - Breastplate - Robe - Turban - Headband - Tunic - Sash - Undergarments

Only one to serve as high priest at a time…and the other priests

Consecrated Priests

Exodus 29:1-9

Atonement of Sin

Exodus 29:36-37

Lamps and Incense

Exodus 30:1-10

Representing us before God.

Bringing our sin before God.

Bringing our needs before God.

We want a priest for that very reason.

We want a priest who understands us…like us.

But that’s not what we need.

The priest you need isn’t the priest you want.

High priest could sympathize with us…he sinned too.

He felt sorry for us, had compassion on us, because he was one of us.

After he served he went back to being a man

He continued to struggle with sin.

So before he could approach God he had to purify himself…put on our names in order to remember our burden.

What we needed was a reliable presence before God.

Look at what Jesus did.

After Jesus served, he went to sit with God.

The High Priest had no where to sit in the Holy of Holies…but Jesus does.

God is always there…the Lamp

God hears our prayers

Presence and Power

I shared earlier how the presence of God is such a powerful reality.

Where does that power come from?

It comes from our connection with How are we to enter in to this presence and experience this power today?

The Presence Based Church…about becoming a church that seeks the presence of God in everything they do.

In Jesus God displayed his power and authority.

I am

In Jesus God communicates his will for us.

Prayer

IN Jesus God gives us victory over our enemy

“You are the son of God”

In Jesus God demonstrates his favor toward us

Blessing/accepting us right where we are

In Jesus God confirmed his mystery

Torn Curtain

In Jesus God offered atonement for sin

It is His presence that is truly powerful

What does it mean to seek His presence?

The power of His presence

Acceptance - a first step - a decision

everyone has opinions about who Jesus is…what we are called to have is a decision?

Who do you say that I am?

Not what do you think??? What have you decided?

Surrender - a series of decisions

daily seek his presence in your life