SIGNS BY THE MEDIATOR

EXODUS 008: SIGNS BY THE MEDIATOR SUNDAY, OCTOBER 10TH, 2021 PASTOR JOSH MINGS; M.DIV.

TEXT

EXODUS 3:16-4:9; ENGLISH STANDARD VERSION (ESV) 16 Go and gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, “I have observed you and what has been done to you in Egypt, 17 and I promise that I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, a land flowing with milk and honey.” ’ 18 And they will listen to your voice, and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; and now, please let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.’ 19 But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand. 20 So I will stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with all the wonders that I will do in it; after that he will let you go. 21 And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and when you go, you shall not go empty, 22 but each woman shall ask of her neighbor, and any woman who lives in her house, for silver and gold jewelry, and for clothing. You shall put them on your sons and on your daughters. So you shall plunder the Egyptians.”

Moses Given Powerful Signs

4 Then Moses answered, “But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you.’ ” 2 The Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, “A staff.” 3 And he said, “Throw it on the ground.” So he threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent, and Moses ran from it. 4 But the Lord said to Moses, “Put out your hand and catch it by the tail”—so he put out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand— 5 “that they may believe that the Lord, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.” 6 Again, the Lord said to him, “Put your hand inside your cloak.” And he put his hand inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous like snow. 7 Then God said, “Put your hand back inside your cloak.” So he put his hand back inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, it was restored like the rest of his flesh. 8 “If they will not believe you,” God said, “or listen to the first sign, they may believe the latter sign. 9 If they will not believe even these two signs or listen to your voice, you shall take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground, and the water that you shall take from the Nile will become blood on the dry ground.” [1]

SERMON BRIEF

CENTRAL IDEA OF THE TEXT The Lord makes a series of promises of exactly what He will do in leading the people out of the land of Egypt. Upon hearing this, Moses is afraid and list a series of objections that he believes will disqualify him from The Lord’s task. As God’s mediator, He provides Moses, with three signs and miracles that will serve as proofs of God’s instruction.

CENTRAL IDEA OF THE SERMON In The Lord’s providence He has chosen to work in history through a mediator to accomplish His great purposes. Moses is a fearful and reluctant mediator. Christ is our perfect mediator.

SERMON OUTLINE

001 / GOD’S WORD IS GIVEN 16 Go and gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, “I have observed you and what has been done to you in Egypt, 17 and I promise that I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, a land flowing with milk and honey.” ’ 18 And they will listen to your voice, and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; and now, please let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.’ 19 But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand. 20 So I will stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with all the wonders that I will do in it; after that he will let you go. 21 And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and when you go, you shall not go empty, 22 but each woman shall ask of her neighbor, and any woman who lives in her house, for silver and gold jewelry, and for clothing. You shall put them on your sons and on your daughters. So you shall plunder the Egyptians.”

GOD USES MEDIATORS

(vs.16) Go and gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, “I have observed you and what has been done to you in Egypt,

(vs.18) And they will listen to your voice, and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us;

Mediator. An intermediary, go-between, or expert in divine things, not to negotiate agreement or compromise but to approach the deity on behalf of others, and so to convey desired knowledge and reassurance with divine authority.[2]

MEDIATOR’S HELD ONE OF THREE OFFICES:

· Prophet

· Priest

· King

WORSHIP IS THE POINT

(vs.18) ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; and now, please let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.’

THE KING OF EGYPT WON’T LET THEM GO

(vs. 19) 19 But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand. 20 So I will stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with all the wonders that I will do in it; after that he will let you go

YOU WILL LEAVE WITH GREAT WEALTH

(vs.21-22) 21 And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and when you go, you shall not go empty, 22 but each woman shall ask of her neighbor, and any woman who lives in her house, for silver and gold jewelry, and for clothing. You shall put them on your sons and on your daughters. So you shall plunder the Egyptians.”

002 / THREE SIGNS BY THE MEDIATOR 4 Then Moses answered, “But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you.’

WHAT IS THAT IN YOUR HAND? ” 2 The Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?”

STAFF INTO A SNAKE. SNAKE INTO A STAFF 3 And he said, “Throw it on the ground.” So he threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent, and Moses ran from it. 4 But the Lord said to Moses, “Put out your hand and catch it by the tail”—so he put out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand— 5 “that they may believe that the Lord, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.”

HAND IN YOUR JACKET 6 Again, the Lord said to him, “Put your hand inside your cloak.” And he put his hand inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous like snow. 7 Then God said, “Put your hand back inside your cloak.” So he put his hand back inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, it was restored like the rest of his flesh. 8 “If they will not believe you,” God said, “or listen to the first sign, they may believe the latter sign.

WATER INTO BLOOD 9 If they will not believe even these two signs or listen to your voice, you shall take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground, and the water that you shall take from the Nile will become blood on the dry ground.”

003 / A BETTER MEDIATOR THAN MOSES

…and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant…[3]

Remember typology?

Jesus is the greater Prophet

Jesus is the greater Priest Jesus is the greater King

Jesus took the snake by the tail – and crushed his head.

Jesus has authority over all sickness and disease.

Jesus turned water into wine.

Hebrews 3

Therefore, holy brothers, you who share in a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession, 2 who was faithful to him who appointed him, just as Moses also was faithful in all God’s house. 3 For Jesus has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses—as much more glory as the builder of a house has more honor than the house itself. 4 (For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.) 5 Now Moses was faithful in all God’s house as a servant, to testify to the things that were to be spoken later, 6 but Christ is faithful over God’s house as a son. And we are his house, if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope. [4]

· Heavenly Calling / It comes from heaven. We need God to tell us how to get to God

· Consider Jesus!

· The apostle (the one sent) and high priest (our go between for reconciliation) of our confession /

So what the writer is saying is: You Christians, you who share in the calling of God from heaven to heaven, you have great confidence that you have heard from God (through your apostle) and you have great hope that you are going to God, loved and reconciled and secure, you Christians consider Jesus, think about Jesus, meditate on Jesus, listen to Jesus. Why? Because he is the Apostle from heaven who brought you your calling. And he is the final, once for all High Priest of God whose sacrifice of himself reconciled you to God and guarantees your homecoming to heaven. Consider Jesus, God's Apostle—the final word from God—and God's High Priest—the final way to God.

Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. 3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.[5]

[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Ex 3:16–4:9). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles. [2] White, R. E. O. (1988). Mediation, Mediator. In Baker encyclopedia of the Bible (Vol. 2, p. 1427). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House. [3] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Heb 12:24). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles. [4] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Heb 3:1–6). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles. [5] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Heb 1:1–4). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.