Experiencing God
Experiencing God
February 26, 2005 and February 27, 2005
Background: Moses had been raised in Egypt. You know the story. He saw an Egyptian mistreating a fellow Hebrew so he helped him and killed the man. He ended up in Midian-modern Saudi Arabia where he has been married living a shepherd’s life for about 40 years. Then he encounters God in the bush in the wilderness.
Exodus 3 NIV
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. 2 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. 3 So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.”
4 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.”
5 “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” 6 Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” (In other words; I knew your fathers and I want to know you.)
At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.
7 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. 8 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. 9 And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. 10 So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt/.” [1]/
11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”
12 And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you a will worship God on this mountain.”
13 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?”
14 God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. b This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”
15 God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord, c 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, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation. [2]
-Notice that the answer to both of Moses’ questions; who am I ? and who are you? Both are answered the same way-I will be. God doesn’t answer according to whether or not Moses seems qualified for the task. He simply makes it known that He will be there not because of what Moses can do but because He is God.
-Jehovah or Yahweh means “I will be what I will be.” Another way to say that is “The self-existent one who reveals Himself.”
-Who is this God you are following? What does it mean to you? What difference does it make and what are the possibilities.
-If you look at Exodus 6 you see that God revealed Himself to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as El Shaddai and even though that had access to the name Jehovah or Yahweh; the character and essence of who God wasn’t clearly revealed.
-God is saying ‘Moses, I am going to reveal myself to you and the Israelites by my name and what it means to you.’
Introduction
We are looking at “Experiencing God.” In the O.T. when they had an encounter with God they would build an altar. The reason for that was to mark the place where God helped them or they saw a glimpse of God. An altar is a place or experience where God changes you or altars you.
Genesis 12
8 From there he went on toward the hills east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel/ on the west and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to the Lord and called on the name of the Lord.[3] /
Genesis 26
25 /Isaac built an altar there and called on the name of the Lord. There he pitched his tent, and there his servants dug a well. [4] /
-Notice the connection between building an altar and calling upon the name of the Lord.
-Calling upon the name of the lord is asking God for His power to be released into your area of need.
-It is an encounter and experience with the Living God.
-The boundaries and possibilities in our relationship with God are limited by who God is and even by who we think God is. In order to receive properly we have to see who He really is.
Jehovah/Yahweh
-God is the self existent on who reveals Himself.
-He begins to unfold who He is by His encounters and dealing with man.
-Seven times in the Torah and Ezekiel God appears as El-Shaddai the all powerful one always in connection to do the impossible for instance by enabling Abraham and Sarah to have a child.
-Yahweh is a covenant redemptive name of God. He is beginning to get personal and reveal Himself.
-It is a great picture of God opening Himself up to mankind to reveal who He really is.
-The Israelites were going to have God actually with them and they were to come to know Him as friend.
-Often times when a significant event occurred, the place or the Lord would be given a name to signify it.
-That would serve to tell others what God was like and the possibilities.
-He reveals Himself to us in our need.
1. Yahweh Jireh
-We call this Jehovah Jireh.
-The account is in Genesis 22. Abraham is asked to sacrifice his son to God. At the last minute God stops him and tells him to look at the thicket where God has already provided a sacrifice. Of course that is pointing to Jesus in the future.
Genesis 22
13 /Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram a caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.” [5] /
-This is about the God who sees our need and provides.
-The implication is “the God who sees into the future and provides.”
What does that mean to us?
-He saw our needs as a sinner and provided for our salvation.
-He sees your future needs in every area and is your answer.
-Certainly Israel knew God as provider of their clothing, food, and everything else.
-He is our provider if we ask Him.
-You can know Him as the God who sees your future and He is ready for you!
-The N.T. says God supplies all of your needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
2. Yahweh Nissi
-This is the Lord our victory or banner.
Exodus 17
10 So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. 11 As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. 12 When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset. 13 So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword.
14 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure that Joshua hears it, because I will completely blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.”
15 /Moses built an altar and called it The Lord is my Banner. 16 He said, “For hands were lifted up to the throne of the Lord.[6]/
-When God led them in victory over their enemies the altar was called Yahweh Nissi.
The New Testament says that God always leads us in triumph or victory in Christ Jesus.
-When you are facing something that is defeating you…call on Yahweh Nissi. Jesus will come to your aid.
- If it is temptation, a literal enemy, or anything that is getting the best of you……Jesus is our captain.
3. Yahweh Shalom
-Shalom is peace or wholeness.
-It is still a Middle Eastern greeting.
Judges 6
22 When Gideon realized that it was the angel of the Lord, he exclaimed, “Ah, Sovereign Lord! I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face!”
23 But the Lord said to him, “Peace! Do not be afraid. You are not going to die.”
/24 So Gideon built an altar to the Lord there and called it The Lord is Peace. To this day it stands in Ophrah of the Abiezrites. [7]/
-In its simplest meaning it means we have peace with God. We can be friends with God and not die.
-It also includes wholeness and peace.
-By faith we have peace with God. That peace impacts our entire being.
-A heart at peace gives life to the body.
Jesus said he gives us His peace in the midst of tribulations.
-He Himself is our peace.
4. Yahweh Tsidkenu
-This is the lord our righteousness.
Jeremiah 23
5 “The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will raise up to David a a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land. 6 In his days Judah will be saved and Israel/ will live in safety. This is the name by which he will be called: The Lord Our Righteousness. [8] /
-This is a reference to a future Davidic king who would lead His people to righteousness.
-Of course we know this is Jesus.
-Our righteousness is as filthy rags but Jesus provides the gift our righteousness.
-We are made the righteousness of God in Christ.
5. Yahweh Shammah
-This is the lord who is present.
-He is omnipresent but He is with us in a unique way.
Ezekiel 48
35 /“The distance all around will be 18,000 cubits. “And the name of the city from that time on will be: THE Lord IS THERE.” [9] /
Revelation 21
1Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2 I saw the Holy City/, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” [10] /
-We will forever be in the presence of the Lord.
-I was reading this week about heaven and it brought out that God was making a new heaven and a new earth to relate to who we will be in the future; spiritual and physical.
-He is with us now.
Jesus said He would never leave us or forsake us and And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” [11]
6. Yahweh Raah (ra-ah)
Psalm 23
1/ The Lord is my ashepherd, I 1shall bnot want.[12]/
-The Lord is our shepherd.
-He leads us and feeds us.
-In a sheep raising society we see the importance of this picture.
-The shepherd can whistle or call and the sheep respond.
John 10
11/ “aI am the good shepherd; the good shepherd blays down His life for the sheep. 12“He who is a hired hand, and not a ashepherd, who is not the owner of the sheep, sees the wolf coming, and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them.13“He flees because he is a hired hand and is not concerned about the sheep.14 “aI am the good shepherd, and bI know My own and My own know Me,[13] /
-What does that mean to us?
-He leads us daily in the details of life.
7. Yahweh Rapha (raw·faw)
-He is the Lord our healer.
Exodus 15
/26 And He said, “aIf you will give earnest heed to the voice of the Lord your God, and do what is right in His sight, and give ear bto His commandments, and keep all His statutes, cI will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians; for I, dthe Lord, am your healer.”[14] /
-The New Testament says Himself took our infirmities and carried our diseases. It says in Peter that with His stripes we are healed.
-Jesus certainly demonstrated that in His ministry and it was throughout the O.T. as well.
-Jim Carlson knows Him as Jehovah Rapha. Carville knows Him as Jehovah Rapha.
-Many others of us do as well.
-Where are you in your relationship and perception of God?
-Have you limited Him to a supreme being or the God of Bible stories?
-He is an ever-present help in time of need.
-How many more ways do you need to experience Him as the solution to your needs?
-These names represent not just what He does but who He is.
Psalm 23
1 The Lord is my shepherd,
(Yahweh Raah)
I shall not be in want.
(Yahweh Jireh)
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
(Yahweh Shalom)
3 he restores my soul.
(Yahweh Rapha)
He guides me in paths of righteousness
for his name’s sake.
(Yahweh Tsidkenu)
4 Even though I walk
through the valley of the shadow of death, a
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
(Yahweh Shammah)
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.
5 You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
(Yahweh Nissi)
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
6 Surely goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord
forever.
[15]
1) We are no longer estranged from God. Jehovah-Tsidkenu, the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus, has been imputed to us. Our dignity has been restored!
2) We no longer live in fear. Jehovah-Shalom, the God of peace, has become our peace and we have rest. Our peace has been recovered!
3) We are no longer misguided through confusion and wrong decisions. Jehovah-Raah, the Lord our Shepherd, through the Holy Spirit guides us in every detail of life. Our signals have been refocused!
4) We are no longer dominated by sickness and disease. Jehovah-Rapha is the Lord our physician. Our health has been renewed!
5) We are no longer doomed to live destitute and in need. Jehovah-Jireh is the Lord our provider. Our prosperity as a member of God’s family has been regained.
6) We are no longer alone. Jehovah-Shammah, through the Holy Spirit is always present with us. Our friendship with God has been resumed!
7) We are no longer defeated in lifes battles. Jehovah-Nissi, the Lord our Banner is our victory. Our victory has been retrieved!
All of these are provided in our salvation. ( 1-7 from an internet quote)
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[1]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (Ex 3:1). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.
a The Hebrew is plural.
b Or I WILL BE WHAT I WILL BE
c The Hebrew for LORD sounds like and may be derived from the Hebrew for I AM in verse 14.
[2]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (Ex 3:11). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.
[3]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (Ge 12:8). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.
[4]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (Ge 26:25). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.
a Many manuscripts of the Masoretic Text, Samaritan Pentateuch, Septuagint and Syriac; most manuscripts of the Masoretic Text a ram behind him
[5]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (Ge 22:13). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.
[6]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (Ex 17:10). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.
[7]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (Jdg 6:22). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.
a Or up from David~s line
[8]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (Je 23:5). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.
[9]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (Eze 48:35). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.
[10]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (Re 21:1). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.
[11]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (Mt 28:20). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.
a Ps 78:52; 80:1; Is 40:11; Jer 31:10; Ezek 34:11–13; John 10:11; 1 Pet 2:25
1 Or do
b Ps 34:9, 10; Phil 4:19
[12]New American Standard Bible : 1995 update. 1995 (Ps 23:1). LaHabra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
a Is 40:11; Ezek 34:11–16, 23; John 10:14; Heb 13:20; 1 Pet 5:4; Rev 7:17
b John 10:15, 17, 18; 15:13; 1 John 3:16
a John 10:2
a John 10:11
b John 10:27
[13]New American Standard Bible : 1995 update. 1995 (Jn 10:11). LaHabra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
a Ex 19:5, 6; Deut 7:12
b Ex 20:2–17
c Deut 7:15; 28:58, 60
d Ex 23:25; Deut 32:39; Ps 41:3, 4; 103:3; 147:3
[14]New American Standard Bible : 1995 update. 1995 (Ex 15:26). LaHabra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
a Or through the darkest valley
[15]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (Ps 23:1). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.