Responding In Faith
Joining God to Set Them Free • Sermon • Submitted
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22 Then Moses made Israel set out from the Red Sea, and they went into the wilderness of Shur. They went three days in the wilderness and found no water.
23 When they came to Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter; therefore it was named Marah.
24 And the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?”
25 And he cried to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a log, and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet. There the Lord made for them a statute and a rule, and there he tested them,
26 saying, “If you will diligently listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, your healer.”
27 Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees, and they encamped there by the water.
Worship helps us process, remember, and share who God is and what He has done.
Worship helps us process, remember, and share who God is and what He has done.
Have you ever noticed that when something, whether terrible or incredible, you have a massive desire to talk about it with someone?
Talking through what we just experienced helps us more fully understand it.
Saying it out loud helps the transition from abstract to concrete.
Worship allows us to not only uplift God, it is also allows us to communicate with Him and understand what we are experiencing.
Notice that Moses song is listing the things that God has done? This is to not only help future generations to hear and remember.
In addition it helped them to fully understand exactly what God had just done.
You may wonder why that is necessary, but if you have ever been in something traumatic i.e. a car crash, you know that things happens so fast that your brain doesn’t fully process in the moment.
By Moses listing out all of this events, it is making sure that all of them have had an opportunity to understand.
All of this is also true for us. As we worship, both corporately and personally, God uses the lyrics of the songs to process what He is doing in that moment.
Worship matters because it gives us a more complete understanding of God.
once we understand we can then share.
What songs have helped you have a better understanding of who God is?
Our worship is an important part of how we share the truth about who God is.
So, they worship, and now Moses tells them it is time to move on. Remember that God has told them that he is taking them to the promised land and so they move forward.
22 Then Moses made Israel set out from the Red Sea, and they went into the wilderness of Shur. They went three days in the wilderness and found no water.
23 When they came to Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter; therefore it was named Marah.
24 And the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?”
25 And he cried to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a log, and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet. There the Lord made for them a statute and a rule, and there he tested them,
God wants us to rely on Him.
God wants us to rely on Him.
In chapter 12 God tells Moses what he is about to do and that Pharaoh is going to release them. - God is instructing...
17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near. For God said, “Lest the people change their minds when they see war and return to Egypt.”
18 But God led the people around by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. And the people of Israel went up out of the land of Egypt equipped for battle.
God is the one leading...
1 Then the Lord said to Moses,
2 “Tell the people of Israel to turn back and encamp in front of Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, in front of Baal-zephon; you shall encamp facing it, by the sea.
God is doing the leading…
15 The Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward.
16 Lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the people of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground.
God is doing the leading...
22 Then Moses made Israel set out from the Red Sea, and they went into the wilderness of Shur. They went three days in the wilderness and found no water.
Moses did the leading...
Remember that we talked about earlier in this study that the route that Moses took when he left his family to go to Egypt was a very similar route to the one he would led Israel on as they left Egypt.
How often do we get a word from God and instead of asking how he wants to accomplish the work, we just dig in using our own abilities?
It has taken me a long time to realize that just because I can do something, doesn’t mean that I should.
Joining God means that at no time are we to strike out on our own and just do something.
We cannot “join” God in setting people free if we are the ones doing the leading.
That isn’t joining...
The result of Moses leading, instead of God, was that they found bitter water.
Bitter is nature’s way of telling us that something is bad for us.
Thankfully we have the Holy Spirit living inside of us that guides us as we abide.
Moses didn’t have this benefit.
Thankfully, even when we wander off, God can redeem our actions.
25 And he cried to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a log, and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet. There the Lord made for them a statute and a rule, and there he tested them,
26 saying, “If you will diligently listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, your healer.”
After God redeems Moses he sets forth a rule...
Just listen to Him and he will take care of you.
By making a statute, God is defining for Moses and Israel the kind of relationship he wants to have with them.
He doesn’t want to have punish them constantly because they aren’t listening to him.
This is the same kind of relationship that God wants with us. He doesn’t want us to do things because we have too, but because we love Him.
But it also says that he tested them. He gave them a command and then gave them an opportunity to obey.
We are given opportunities to respond in faith to what God tells us.
We are given opportunities to respond in faith to what God tells us.
27 Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees, and they encamped there by the water.
Whether life is going well or is really hard, God uses our circumstances to test and grow our faith.
He gives us opportunities, just like He did for Israel, to respond in obedience.
If we will just obey God, He will provide for us exactly what we need.
God provides for Israel because they choose to respond in faith.
When have you responded in faith and had God provide?
They needed water and he gives them twelve springs and shade!
God defines the relationship, gives them instruction, and when they obeyed God did exactly what he said he would do.
Throughout biblical history, God tells Israel over and over again this same message and it hasn’t changed today.
God is again defining for us the kind of relationship He wants.
I love the testimonies that Miki and Debi shared today.
In both stories, there was a need, and in both God provided exactly what was need.
Both were in unlikely ways and certainly in ways that neither would have thought of on their own.
This is the beauty of Joining God. He does it.
I can tell you, based on the conversations I’ve had with both, that they were blown away with God’s attention to them.
This the kind of relationship God wants with all of us.
God doesn’t want us striking out on our own. He wants to rely on Him by seeking his direction and responding in faith.
Just like Isreal...
Our stories help us to process, they help us uplift, and they help us share.
Our stories are our songs.
God wants to work in your life in such a way you want to shout songs from the rooftops and sing them in the streets.
All that is required in order for us to experience God in this way is for us to listen, respond, and share.