EXCUSES, EXCUSES

EXCUSES, EXCUSES Exodus 3 - 4 March 18,  2001 Given by: Pastor Rich Bersett [Index of Past Messages] Introductory So far in the book of Exodus we have studied the Providence of God-how He works toward the accomplishment of His perfect will among us mortals. His purposes are stubborn and unyielding. The only ones who do not benefit from His providence are those who refuse to participate with Him. He is always at work, and He is always inviting men and women, boys and girls to be involved in His plan. His invitations to participate go out all the time-but we seldom hear them, and even less often obey them. On occasion, it seems God goes way out of the way to invite a person to get involved with His program. For instance, there was a Jewish leader, also a Roman citizen, who was busy persecuting Christians a year or two after Jesus' physical return to heaven. But God had different plans for this man named Saul. He wanted him to take the gospel to the Gentile people of the world. So the Lord had a major recruiting task on His hands-first to get this guy to stop killing disciples, then get him to make disciples! The Lord met up with him as he was on the way to Damascus one day to arrest Christians. He blinded him with a very bright light and knocked him to the ground. When Saul said "Who are you, Lord?" He said, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do." Now, there was not a lot of tact and diplomacy in that recruitment pitch, was there? You can't help wondering to yourself, "How much choice did Saul really have in this matter?" Have you ever been accosted by God like that? Maybe some of you feel as though God's calling on your life is every bit that strong. He has a way, doesn't He, of convincing you that the gifts and character development He has overseen in your life were all carefully planned to prepare you and maneuver you into just the right place of ministry. Today we consider another man God went after. His name was Moses. He should have been killed as a baby (Pharaoh tried that), but in a wonderful act of irony, he was raised in Pharaoh's own home (God had arranged that). When he was older he murdered an Egyptian who was beating a fellow Israelite (that was Moses' doing-but God worked it into His plan). In the providential plan of God, Moses spent 40 years in the desert tending sheep. And as the story unfolds we'll see that God used that as well. God used the desert experience to develop some important skills in this man who would lead God's people through the desert forty years. Nothing was wasted. So God has carefully developed this man, nurturing and guiding his life, getting him properly schooled, tooling him perfectly. But how do you suppose Moses felt all this time? Like a failure! Moses was not a failure. Those whom God chooses for significant ministry He often sends through lengthy training seasons. Even Jesus was 30 years in preparation for three years of earthly ministry. But now it was time to put this finely crafted trainee named Moses, this uniquely designed leader to work. So the Lord God set out to recruit him. Exodus 3:1-10 - "Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the desert and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that thought he bush was on fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, 'I will go over and see this strange sight-why the bush did not burn up.' When the lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, 'Moses! Moses!' And Moses said, 'Here I am.' 'Do not come any closer,' God said. 'Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.' Then he said, 'I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.' At this, Moses hid his face because he was afraid to look at God. The Lord said, 'I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey-the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.'" What do you say to the Lord Almighty when He recruits you like that? What do you say when God clearly invites you to be involved in something so big, so staggering, so impossible? Well, what Moses did was to come up with four of his best excuses. Excuse Number One: "I'm Nobody!" Moses was so convinced he was a loser and a failure that the first thing that came out of his mouth in response to the greatest challenge he ever dreamed of was: Verse 11: "Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?" Moses goes from "Here am I" to "Who am I" in a matter of a minute or two. Notice God's answer to this excuse. He tells Moses in no uncertain terms that of course he is not powerful or influential enough to convince Pharaoh. Verse 12: "And God said, ' I will be with you.' In other words, "Moses, it isn't about you, really, it's about Me!" I'm the convincer. It is I who am going-I'm just dressed up in you! Trust Me. Then the Lord gives Moses a "sign". Hey, a sign would be nice, wouldn't it? This might help convince me that You're really God and You really want me to do this. Never mind the bush right in front of him that's burning but won't burn up. Never mind that this booming voice is coming at you from a plant; never mind that you are having a conversation with a bush, Moses! But notice the nature of the sign God gives Moses. Not another miracle to convince him, not a power display or some glitzy demonstration. No, God tells him that some day he and rescued Israel will be back on this same mountain worshiping Him (verse 12). It was one of God's "one of these days" promises. Don't you know Moses was thinking, "That's a nice prophecy, but it goes nowhere in helping convince me to take this job!"  But it's just like God to wait until the faith test is over to prove Himself faithful. He will put you to the test-give you something impossible to believe-just to see if you'll trust Him. And not until after you pass the trust test does He show you his trustworthiness. The fact is, God did bring the Israelites back to this mountain to worship Him. In fact on this same mountain God will give Moses the ten commandments. And it was a great reassurance to him; but that would be many hard months later--and it wasn't helping him now. How would you respond if God were to tell you He wanted you to go to Washington with the message that all the Christians were to not pay taxes anymore? (That's the kind of economic impact this message to Pharaoh carried!) "Who, me!" What is God's answer to our excuse, I'm nobody? He says, "Trust Me." Excuse Number Two: "I'm afraid Your people won't believe me" Verses 13-14 - "Moses said to God, 'Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, "The God of your fathers has sent me to you," and they ask me, "What is his name?" Then what shall I tell them?' God said to Moses, 'I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: "I AM sent me to you."'" God went on to reassure Moses that this is all that he would need to tell the Israelites. Just tell them, "I AM has a plan, and it's time to obey!" When God named Himself "I AM" He was saying that He is eternally and independently existent, depending on no one else. "I am the one who is." He says, "I am total "am"-ness. The one who IS (and it makes no difference what your definition of "is" is!). There is a popular expression these days: "You da' man!" which means you are important, the key individual. Multiply "You da' man!" times ten thousand, and you come a little closer to understanding "I AM". At the close of verse 15 God says, "This is my name forever, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation." When Jesus referred to Himself as "I AM" the religious leaders knew exactly what He meant and accused Him of blasphemy. One man wrote to Reader's Digest with this anecdote: One day my four-year-old son asked me about God's name. I explained that God had many names, including Father, Lord, Jehovah, "I am", Ancient of Days, and a few others. After listening to my long explanation, my son asked, "Can I just call Him Steve?" What's God's answer to Moses' excuse that he's afraid God's people won't believe him? "Just tell them 'I AM said so, and leave the convincing to Me!" I want to confess to you this morning that every time I share our Vision Statement with a believer who visits MECF, I get a little chill like Moses did. I'm getting ready to tell this person that MECF is going to be instrumental in the planting of 1,000 cell groups in the metro-east area, and they're going to look at me like I just escaped a mental institution. Many do look at me a little funny, but I've found that among people of faith, those who are ready to hear from God and believe Him, something stirs in them when they hear that vision. An old friend of mine, a man who made millions in farm equipment in north-central Illinois, used to say, "When God is your partner, make your plans BIG!" Zig Ziglar echoed that sentiment when he said "Make your goals huge-huge goals have the power to stir men's blood." Frankly, I don't need this human reasoning to help me. I know what God said. And it will be. "But you're down to just a few cell groups-how do you expect to have a thousand?" All I can say is "I AM" said it-trust Him and hang on to your hat! And the only sign He has given us is that old "one of these days" promise when it happens you will worship Me for My faithfulness! What dream has God given you? What has He whispered in your ear that you almost dare not tell others because it sounds ridiculously large? I want to suggest to you that it doesn't matter if any other human being on earth believes it's possible, PRESS ON, because if God said it, He will do it! If you let "impossibility thinkers" affect you, you will never have the faith to go to Pharaoh. If God said it, don't believe anyone who says otherwise. God's answer to our wimpy worries about no one else who will believe what God told us? "Don't worry about it-trust Me and press on!" Excuse Number Three: I'm afraid they won't believe it's really You Exodus 4:1 - "Moses answered, 'What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, "The Lord did not appear to you?"' Moses knew something that most never understand--spiritual leadership can be very lonely. If you are willing to step out into what God has called you to do, you will often be by yourself. There will be days when the others around you will not be ready to believe with you. But in those times you must be confident in what God called you to do, and do whatever it takes to get it done. We are currently challenging individuals to consider becoming cell leaders, so that our overcrowded cells can multiply and move on to greater growth. I would love to tell you that cell leadership will be easy and fun and everyone in your cell group is always going to love you and make it very easy for you. But it's not true. The "stuff" of leaders is proven when they have to go on serving and ministering when they don't have 100% agreement. As a church leadership, we've had to step out under God's direction and make some very painful and unpopular decisions in recent months. If we had waited until we were confident there was absolute unanimity, we would never have done what needed to be done. Decisions we made were made in full integrity and prayer, and making them cost us. Several families left this church directly or indirectly because of those decisions. But it was right, and your elders prayed hard, sweat through the process and stood by what they believed God was leading them to do. May I say that while some gaffed, and most others stood by with a "watch and see" attitude, these men stood strong. They continued to seek the Lord, deal patiently with those who were upset, deal comfortingly with those who were confused, and tenderly counsel anyone who had a question or problem. That, friends in Christ, is strong spiritual leadership. That's what God was calling Moses to, and Moses knew it. So He sincerely asked the Lord for the credentials he needed to get the job done. And in answer, God gave Moses the power to turn his staff into a snake (and the courage to pick it up again!), and to transform his healthy arm into a leprous one and back again. Furthermore, the Lord told Moses about the plagues He would send on Pharaoh and Egypt through Moses. God will always authenticate His chosen servant. That is to say, if God has called you into some work for Him, you can be sure there will be sufficient evidence for others that He is at work through you. But God warns Moses that even miraculous signs will not be enough to convince Pharaoh at first. It will take a long time, and a lot of God's power to convince Pharaoh. Verses 8-9 - "Then the Lord said, "If they do not believe you or pay attention to the first miraculous sign, they may believe the second. But if they do not believe these two signs or listen to you, take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground. The water you take for the river will become blood on the ground." What is God's answer to the excuse, "I'm afraid they won't believe it's You"? Trust me, I will equip you with all you need, and ultimately people will know it's me at work in you. In essence, God says to each of us that all we need to worry about is being obedient to Him-we don't need to worry about how God comes across to people, or be afraid that people won't understand Him, or that they will think badly of God. He can take care of Himself. That truth translates well into the realm of evangelism. We don't have to have all the right answers, we are just called, like Moses, to deliver the message. We are to tell people, "God loves you, and He has given His Son so you can have relationship with Him again." While we are to share that message as creatively and compellingly as we can, God will empower it. He may use miracles, the love of Christians or even speak to people in dreams. The point is, He can convince people, and we can't. This truth also applies to praying for people. We often feel we have to make God look good when we pray. For instance, if we really have a tough time believing God is going to answer our prayer, we hedge our bets a little with expressions like "If it's His will." Or, worse yet, we don't even pray. But God is saying to us that we don't have to protect His reputation. "What if we pray and this poor woman's son is not healed? What will she think of God then?" God can take care of Himself. Just pray for people. The Fourth Excuse: "I'm Not Good Enough" God has just about got Moses recruited. But Moses, almost in desperation now, throws out one more excuse to hide behind-and it sounds a lot like our favorite excuse, too. Moses was telling God he couldn't speak eloquently, because God was recruiting him to go and talk with Pharaoh. Moses knew this would be a frightening task, to go and confront the powerful Pharaoh, so he offers his last flimsy excuse: "Anyway, I don't talk so good." God already knows how well or how badly Moses can speak-He doesn't need Moses' self-assessment. It is quite beside the point how eloquent Moses thinks he is. The Lord says He can use Moses, and whatever Moses may lack naturally, He can make up supernaturally. When the Lord says He can use you, just the way you are, don't question Him. He knows! Verse 11 - "The Lord said to him, 'Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or mute? Who gives him sight or makes him blind? It is not I, the Lord? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.'" You can sense the Lord is just about out of patience with Moses' excuses. He will not bear long with ours either. The bottom line issue is not do I have the ability; it is will I trust and obey? That is, will I trust His decision to work through me, and will I step out in faith and just DO what He wants me to do, knowing He will supply the power to get it done? We must understand the difference between humility and faithlessness. Yes, we are not good enough to do ministry. We are sinners, we are as fragile as cheap pottery-we re hopelessly inept on our own. But God is able! In light of that fact, if we continue to hide behind our inability, it is no longer simple humility, it is outright denial of God's power. This was Moses' mistake. He wasn't just saying, "I'm not a good speaker"; he was saying, "I don't believe You will do what You said You will do, God!" Finally, in verse 13 Moses says, "O, Lord, please send someone else to do it!" And, verse 14 says God's anger toward Moses began to smolder. Incredibly, God allows Moses to negotiate with Him to let Aaron, his brother, go with him to Pharaoh. Moses would still be the leader of the Israelites, and God would still speak directly to him and teach him what he should do. And Aaron would in turn share it with the people, but there is a note of sadness in this whole arrangement. Because of his stubbornness, Moses forfeited the privilege of being God's spokesman to Israel. What great privileges will you give up if you resist God's plans for you? How much better it is to step in full obedience to God's marching orders. Don't worry about being good enough or powerful enough. He will take care of it. Just trust Him and obey Him. It is not your ability-it is your availability. You must step out in faith in whatever venture God has set before you, and do your best, knowing two things: 1. You are not able to do this thing well on your own power and ability-only when we know we can't do it, can we do it by the grace and power of God 2. God will meet you at the corner of faith and obedience, and He will empower you for the task. The New York Marathon is famous for its daunting challenge. Hundreds and hundreds sign up, but far more drop out of the race than finish it. The winning time for the marathon is almost always between two and three hours. In the 1984 New York Marathon, Linda Down was the last person to finish the race. It took her eleven hours. She has cerebral palsy, and she runs with the help of crutches. When asked by and interviewer why she even tried, Linda said, "We are living in negative times. Things feel impossible today. I thought that if I could try to do it, it might be an inspiration to others, and maybe they would try some big things, too." "But," she said, "the last eleven miles were an act of God." "What do you mean, 'an act of God'?" asked the interviewer. Linda Down said, "With eleven miles to go, I ran out of my own strength. I didn't have any more. I finished the race on borrowed power!" God wanted Moses to know, and He wants us to know, that, though we will never accomplish for Him what He has given us to do without borrowed power from Him, neither can we have that borrowed power until, with faith and commitment, we obey the call He has given us.       [Back to Top]