Latest / Calvary Church with Ed Taylor Podcast / #10205 - Excuses, Excuses Pt. 2 - Exodus 4

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#10205 - Excuses, Excuses Pt. 2 - Exodus 4 · Calvary Church with Ed Taylor Podcast

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Welcome to the Study of God's Word with pastor and author Ed
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Taylor recorded live at Calvary Church in Aurora, Co.
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To learn more about the many resources available through a
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bounding grace media or to tune into our live stream services,
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visit us online at Calvary Co dot Church or download our free
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Calvary Church app. Now here's Pastor Ed to take us
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into our study. Pray that in Jesus name.
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Amen. Amen.
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All right, well, open your Bibles to Exodus Chapter 4,
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Exodus Chapter 4. So we continue our verse by
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verse study in the book of Exodus.
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We're going to continue on our study from last time, and I've
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entitled this Excuses, Excuses Part 2.
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Here in Exodus, the time of deliverance has come for the
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children of Israel, that God has sent help for them.
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After hundreds of years of slavery and bondage and hard
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labour, at just the right time, God intervenes.
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He acts on their behalf out of the burning Bush.
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God's voice speaks powerfully to Moses.
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So he's working on both sides. Where there's an and there's an
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anticipation among the people and there is a call upon the man
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and God's going to bring them together.
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Deliverance will come through the hand of a man.
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How does God choose to do it? Will he send his most powerful
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angels to deliver the children of Israel out of bondage in
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Egypt? No.
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Will he send a well trained, well groomed, perfect man?
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No. Will he create?
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An army and March them in No. Well, he sent a legion of angels
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to take care of not just the most powerful angels, but the
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most. Powerful of powerful in the
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angelic realm? No.
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Does he have a new scheme and plan that he's going to put out
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for them on stones of on tablets of stone?
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No. How does God do it?
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He enlists an 80 year old failure.
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Someone at the end of themselves.
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Someone that perhaps if we were to choose the deliverer, we
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wouldn't choose them. God chooses a man who tried on
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his own to deliver the nation miserably and failed.
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A man that learned that without God he was weak. 40 years in the
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wilderness has created a reluctance in Moses, almost like
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the pendulum has swung to the other side.
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Where on the beginning he was ready to deliver the nation one
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Egyptian at a time. But his self-sufficient attitude
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is now gone and it seems like the pendulum is swung to the
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other side, where his eagerness to lead has now disappeared.
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And now we find Moses Timid, hesitant.
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A little afraid and. Full of excuses.
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And not everybody, as you read through different commentaries,
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agree that these are excuses. Some just call them reasons, and
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certainly they could be reasons. But he's talking to the Almighty
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God who has spoken to him in a burning Bush and giving him very
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clear direction. I come from the school of
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thought that these weren't mere reasons, but really excuses.
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Certainly you've seen in your own life where good reasons can
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become very bad excuses, limiting yourself from
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obedience, holding back yourself from the clear call and
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direction of God. And he gave at least five of
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these we looked at a couple last time, in chapter 3, verse 11.
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His first reason or excuse was who am I declaring his own
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inadequacy? And what is God's answer?
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It's not about you. I'm going to be with you, You
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don't worry about. That Moses, I am with you.
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The second one was, well, who should I tell them You are Who's
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who's? Who am I going to say sent me,
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Which is reasonable, I think, because of the multiplicity of
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gods and the children of Israel aren't just going to follow
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anybody. Like who?
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Who is he going to say? And what does God respond?
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You tell him I am sent you the great I am.
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We spent a whole week looking at the names, some of the names of
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God, and the sufficiency. Of who he is, he's the becoming
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one. And you'll notice a pattern with
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the excuses. God always has an answer.
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For your excuses. He has an answer for Moses,
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Excuses, and he always has an answer for your excuses and
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mine. I think of the same thing
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happening with Gideon and the Fleece.
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You know, some people, they kind of put out fleeces these days.
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But you remember, Gideon put out a Fleece because of his
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hesitancy, not for his confirmation, like he heard what
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God said. He knew what God said, and he
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didn't want to do it, and he didn't want to do it.
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And God met him where he was at, to encourage him to go.
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And with Moses the answers come, and bring him to a place where
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we'll. See, he ends up going, and he
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ends up obedience. He just went the long way.
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Chapter one, or excuse me, Chapter 4, verse one.
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Then Moses answered and said. But suppose they will not
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believe me or listen to my voice.
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Suppose they say the Lord has not appeared to you, and here is
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excuse #3. What if they don't listen to me?
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What if they don't listen to me? OK, God, I agree.
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You're sending me and I'm ready. You'll be with me.
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But what if it's amazing to me? It's amazing to me how many
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ventures of faith are stopped. Because of the what ifs, the
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analyzing, the scrutinizing, the dissecting.
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If you do it long enough, you'll always find a good reason not to
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obey God. You'll get there eventually.
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You'll keep asking and keep asking and keep asking until
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finally. The your all your questions are
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taking you to the direction where Yeah, yeah, you're right.
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I shouldn't do it. What if suppose, is the word he
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uses here in the new King James? Suppose suppose instead of going
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forward with the clear call and command of God.
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The leading of God is squashed by what if this and what if
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that. And suppose this and one of the
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things we learned not too many years ago, four years ago,
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exact, is when the pandemic began and all of the
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restrictions and such. But during that time, one of the
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things we learned as a leadership team, and one of the
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things I learned is to really discipline myself, not to live
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in the what ifs. I don't know what the I don't
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know what's going to happen in the future.
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I can only live. Today and with all those
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questions and what if? And what about this and what
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about this? And there it's like, hey, I I
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don't know. I don't live in the
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hypothetical. I live in the reality.
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And it was a good thing, a good lesson to learn, I think.
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I think in my life I've I've lived that way a lot.
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But it. Was just really drilled.
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Down I'm not going to live in all the hypotheticals.
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I don't know what's going to happen.
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I'm not sure what the future holds.
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But my faith in God today is strong.
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That no matter where we walk in, what we need to walk into the
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future faithful. Today.
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And that's how we live our lives.
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Notice verse 2 now. So the Lord said to him, excuse
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is met with what an answer. God met him there.
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He doesn't condemn him. He doesn't like flip him in the
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head. You know, he's like OK here what
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is it that in your hand? And he set a rod And he said,
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cast it to the ground. So he cast it on the ground and
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it became a serpent and Moses fled from it.
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And the Lord said to Moses, reach out your hand and take it
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by the tail. Quite the answer, isn't it?
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And he reached out his hand, and he caught it, and it became a
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rod in his hand, that they may believe the Lord God of their
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fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob,
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has appeared to you. What he had in his hand was a
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standard shepherd's rod. This was quite a surprising
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response from. God.
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But God demonstrated to him miraculously that he was with
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him and that that rod would be as ordinary, as common as it
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was. That in the hands of God would
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become an awesome tool. Moses, I want you to know I'm
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with you. I'm going to show you right now.
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He uses that rod to teach Moses a lesson.
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Here's the lesson. You ready?
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As much as it's miraculous and and much of it is, this was just
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this little episode, for Moses sake.
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This is what I believe he was teaching Moses.
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Moses. I can take someone, something
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common and do something miraculous with it.
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And by extension I believe he's telling Moses, Moses, you're
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common and I can do something special with you.
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And it was solidified in his mind many times.
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In the Bible we read of the same thing happening over and over
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again. David's sling in the hands of
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God took down giants. It was just a sling.
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Samson's jawbone of a donkey in the hands of God becomes a
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mighty military weapon, killing 1000.
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Philistines, Gideon's torches and buckets in the hands of God
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were used to defeat the enemies, and what seems insignificant and
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unnecessary can become very powerful and strong in the hand
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of God. You have to.
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Personalize this. It's more than a.
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Stick. And a sling.
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It's the person holding the stick and the sling and the
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buckets. You need to take this truth and
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say, OK, you look at yourself and you measure yourself up.
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And I don't have much education, or I don't have many resources,
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or I don't, and I don't. And what if?
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And suppose in the hand of God, exactly as you are, you become a
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very supernatural tool in his hands.
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It's almost as if the Lord's reminding us today, it's not
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about you. It's what God wants to do
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through your life. It's how he wants to use you.
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All of your talent, whatever you have.
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You bring it to the Lord, you throw it down before him.
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All of your. Willingness.
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You go well, You know, on a scale one to 10, my willingness
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is about a one right now. You bring it to the Lord.
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All, all of your heart for the Lord.
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Well, but Ed, you know, I don't know.
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I don't know. I I don't really think I have
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Much harder for the Lord. You just bring what you have.
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Isn't that what Jesus said? Just bring it to me.
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Yeah, but all these? Thousands of people want to eat,
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and all we could find is this little bread of few pieces of
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bread, rolls of bread, and some fish.
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Jesus, you bring that to me. You bring it to me in your
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hands. It's not much.
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How would they ever know? How would they ever know that
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Jesus wanted to multiply miraculously what they had until
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they brought it to him? So this excuse is not enough to
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cower away from the will of God. He's ready to use.
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You mightily, you just got to come surrendered.
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You got to throw yourself down. You've got to come and go.
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Here I am, Lord, and the rod becomes a serpent and a rod
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again. Is that enough?
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Let's read on verse 6. Furthermore, the Lord said to
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him, Now put your hand in your bosom.
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And he put his hand in his bosom, and when he took it out,
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behold, the hand was leprous like snow.
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And he said, Put your hand in your bosom again.
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And so he put his hand in his bosom again and drew it out of
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his bosom, and behold, it was restored like his other.
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Then it will be, if they do not believe you, nor heed the
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message of the first sign, that they might believe the message
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of the latter sign. And it shall be that if they do
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not believe even those two signs or listen to your voice, that
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you shall take water from the river and pour it on the dry
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land. And the water which you take
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from the river will become blood on the dry land.
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A couple of things here. First of all, God is giving him
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a little insight that it's not going to be easy when he gets
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back. So he's preparing him.
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It's like I want to give you ahead of time knowing that,
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Yeah, you're right. Not everybody's going to believe
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you. Some of your suppositions or
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your what ifs are actually going to come to pass.
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But I got it all. Covered.
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Don't worry about it. If they don't believe that one,
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I'll give you this one. And if they some people don't
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even believe that one, I've got another one.
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And it's almost like God is saying I have unlimited
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resources for every single obstacle that you face.
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You just look to me, Moses. All of your answers, it would be
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almost like God saying you can come up with excuse and reason
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and reason, but I've got an answer for every one of them,
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Every one of them. And you would think, you know,
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after a burning Bush and hearing the voice of God, seeing the
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signs and wonders, that Moses would just go for it, the rest
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of each other is all right, let's go.
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I'm in. You point the way, but he's not
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there yet. Is God's taking him little by
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little, helping him and preparing him?
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Why? Why isn't he there yet?
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I believe he has a heart issue, but more than that, he has a
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matter of the will. I think his heart like his
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desire. He's learning to trust God.
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He's taking it in what he's experiencing, but God is drawing
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out of him a willingness, a willingness.
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It's not the issue of his inability.
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I believe he's still not willing.
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His heart has a hardening toward God right now, toward the clear
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direction of God. Notice in his next excuse in
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verse 10 then Moses. Said to the Lord.
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I'm out of here. I'm never going to doubt you
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again, Lord. No, no, no, that's actually not
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what it says, he says. Moses said to the Lord, Oh, my
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Lord, I'm not eloquent, neither before nor since have you have
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spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech, and slow of
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tongue. And the Lord said to him, Who
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has made man's mouth? Or who makes the mute, the deaf,
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the seeing, or the blind? Have not I the Lord now?
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Therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what
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you shall say. Here's his last or his next.
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Excuse #4. I'm not eloquent or what you
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might hear today. I'm not good enough.
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I'm not eloquent as he. Shares this he is.
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Speaking. Many commentators look at this
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from the original language, and they see that he's speaking from
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a place where he has a speech impediment.
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There's something about his speech, maybe a stuttering,
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maybe a lisp, something that would draw attention that he's
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not as eloquent as you would expect somebody to be used by
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God, because we have those categories of who's used by God
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and who's not used. By God or.
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And he has a serious speech impediment.
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But really, Moses is expressing his fear that the people might
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not see him as their leader, expressing worry, anxiety and
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true concern. And I think.
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It's a common thread for many leaders expressing this, you
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know, coming face to face with what God has called you to and
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measuring it with your own resources.
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And that always leads you to a place where I don't have enough,
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I'll never measure up. Many feel they're total, totally
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inadequate to lead because of the weaknesses of their natural
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abilities, where they grew up, the family they were born into,
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the resources available to them. But we learn in the New
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Testament, in the New Covenant we have this clarified for us.
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Really, you could say you could overlay First Corinthians
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chapter one with here in Moses, that not many wise, not many
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noble, not not many that have it all together.
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Paraphrase are called but what God says.
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I've called the foolish things of the world to confound the
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wise. In Proverbs chapter 29 and verse
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25 it says the fear of man brings a snare, but whoever
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trusts in the Lord shall be saved, and so Moses.
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He tells God I have a speech. Problem.
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You can't use me. I can't speak in front of
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others. I'm not good enough.
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But when you read Stephen's account of in Acts Chapter 7,
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inspired by the Holy Spirit, what does he say about Moses?
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Moses has a view of himself, but what does Stephen say?
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You don't need to turn there. I'll remind you, Acts 7, verse
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22, Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptian and was
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mighty in words and deeds. That's God's perspective of
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Moses, that he was the one mighty in words and deeds.
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But Moses is there, and that's why I believe it's not merely
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leaning upon a speech impediment.
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He's offering up another. Excuse.
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It's not enough. I really don't want to do this.
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I learned my lesson. God, the desert is done.
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You know, I can just live in the desert the rest of my life and
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just ride it out. I really don't want to do it
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anymore. I don't want to make.
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I just don't want to do it, which is what ends up being his
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last excuse. You see, Moses had it in him.
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But it wouldn't. Come out of him until he was
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fully surrendered. It made me think of what's being
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held back. It's perfect timing tonight,
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too, for the testimony. Perfect timing What God's doing
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because? It made me think as I was
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putting the message together, like what is being held back in
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our church right now because of unbelief?
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What is being held back in your life right now because of your
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unwillingness? What's being held back for the
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Kingdom of God? Because you just won't surrender
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that area. You just won't surrender that
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situation. You just won't surrender.
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And and you're looking at this and you're looking like, well,
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you know, I can't this and I can't that when it's just
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surrender. Somebody came up after service
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this last weekend to tell me about things that they put on
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our as a husband and wife came in and and as they were
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describing it the the the woman was telling me how it was hard
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for her to come up. She's been waiting to do this
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for two years to share something was on her heart and how hard it
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was. And I I looked at her and I
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said, yeah, it was only hard until you did it right.
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And now it's not hard anymore, because you're standing right
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here. And what you've been delaying
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for two years, you could like, right, here we are.
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It's no big deal, is it? You know, it's not that big a
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deal, Ed. And I know why.
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Because it took you two years. And I wonder right now, I mean,
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coming up to talk to a pastor is one thing, but I wonder what
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else God has put on your heart where now that's a breakthrough.
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That's just a breakthrough that that's something that God LED
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you to. That's simple.
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That's going to lead to something else.
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That's going to lead to something else.
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You really have to deal with your heart, church.
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You really have to deal with that yieldedness, surrendered
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heart or lack thereof. That's where obedience begins.
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What's waiting to be unleashed in our church because of a
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refusal to surrender? I don't have the natural
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qualities. God can't use me.
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All you can see what you can't do, but somebody's watching your
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life and going man. That dude's mighty in words and
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deeds, and you're sharing with people.
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I don't know what to say, and you just need to step into it.
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And I think, like Stephen, the Holy Spirit, this is where the
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gift or the the practice of encouragement and the spiritual
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gifting of exhortation is very important in the body of Christ.
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For example, if you're like Stephen here, perhaps, and
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you're looking at someone's life that's in your contemporary,
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right, because he's writing way after the Holy Spirit's
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inspiring him and he's writing way after Moses.
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But let's just say it's now and you have a contemporary friend
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and you just see something in them.
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You should tell them. You should tell them what I see.
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In you is you're encouraging or what I see in you is you love to
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pray with people. What I see in you is your
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faithfulness. You should tell them because
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they may be at home wondering. You know, I'm just so
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unfaithful. I'm just so God can never use
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me. And there's like 20 people
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around them that's so blessed by them, so encouraged by them,
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just like they share a scripture or they like if you don't tell
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them, they may talk themselves out of being used by God, and
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then here you are as well. But I don't want to tell them.
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And God saying tell them, tell them even as you go out to
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shovel the snow tomorrow, begin to pray about who the Lord has
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put in your life. You're going to have a lot of
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time, I hear out there shoveling.
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You have a lot of time to think. A lot of time alone and just,
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you know, put the head, the earbuds in and put on a Bible
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study, put on some worship music and then praying for people that
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you can encourage, that you can stir up, like the Bible says,
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love and good works. There might be a Moses in your
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life that thinks, I'll look at my I I can't even speak.
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And it could be a literal true speech impediment.
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But then there's there's a person in your life that has a
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literal true speech impediment who's such a blessing that just
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brought to mind right now. I don't have permission to share
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his name, but I just think of a brother who has a real speech
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impediment as a part of our church for many years who truly
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was an encouragement in many different ways.
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I mean, right now there's the Holy Spirit put a brother.
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I'm going to have to text him after service.
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He said, brother, as I was teaching, I was just reminded of
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you. I was reminded of you and your
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blessing that you have been to our church for many years.
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Think about this. If God was only looking for the
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best or the perfectly qualified, we would look.
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At them and say, well of course they're the ones that God uses.
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Of course that's the one I would pick too.
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And you just step back and go, well, they're not me and I'm not
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them, So God will never pick me, but God can and God will.
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And God delights in using knuckleheads in this world.
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Unless you wonder if that's even true.
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Just look who's standing in the pulpit tonight of what God has
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chosen to use, right I shared with you this week.
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And you need to share your testimony because you're sitting
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in there at the table, sharing what God has done in your life,
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and you will have no other conclusion but to see the great
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grace of God. You could not have arrived where
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you are today without the grace of God.
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You could not be even thinking about what God wants to do in
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here if it wasn't for his faithfulness.
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I mean, for some of you, God had to so radically rescue you from
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your sinful life, but he did. He did.
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And you want to be stirred up yourself if God just chose?
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The people we. Thought the people that might
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this world might value then we'd all be bummed out and think we
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can't be used but God uses us. Notice chapter 4 again.
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Verses 11 and 12 has posed challenges for people.
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Very difficult passage of Scripture.
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Often used in a variety of different.
22:57
Ways like God takes responsible some type of responsibility over
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how people are, you know, don't let it stumble you let's just
23:06
when you have difficult passages, let's just understand
23:08
what's being said clearly. Number one, we see God's
23:12
sovereignty here. Number two, we know that he
23:16
allows things to happen. Thirdly, we know that he uses
23:20
them in his plan and his purpose and God just lays it out.
23:24
He says, look, this is who I am. Living in the sovereignty of God
23:28
enables us to face even the hardest, most difficult
23:32
circumstances. God is in no way taking
23:35
responsibility for sin, but he recognizes that he is over all
23:43
things, even the difficult things.
23:45
And I always like when I come to a passage like this, I always
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like to remember that God clearly tells us.
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That he works. All.
23:52
Things. He's working all things together
23:54
for the good, for those that love him and those that are
23:57
called according to his purpose. One more thing we have to
24:00
understand when it comes to a difficult passage like this.
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Who has made the mouth? The mute, the deaf?
24:05
The seeing? The blind have not I?
24:07
And by the way, notice he starts with the mouth and then the
24:10
other things are consequences of sin.
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So keep that in mind where you have mute, deaf, blind.
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Looking at that he says the mouth, that's what he starts
24:21
with. But I want you to consider that
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we that we need to understand that the world we live in is not
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what God intended. He moved on with.
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The world has moved on from the perfect mouth because of sin.
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It's tarnished and it's ravaged by thousands of years worth of
24:38
amplified sin. Sin has discouraged but God can
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lift up and sin is destroyed. But God can build up and sin has
24:46
brought sickness and death, but God heals.
24:50
And I've seen people healed. I've watched it, but I've also
24:53
seen people die. And God is sovereign.
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We can't manipulate the power of God.
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We simply choose to follow. You see both sides.
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Verse 13 now. But he said, Oh, my Lord, please
25:05
send by the hand of whomever else you may send.
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And so the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses.
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And he said, Isn't Aaron the Levite your brother?
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I know the deacons speak well, and look, he's also coming out
25:17
to meet you. When he sees you, he will be
25:19
glad in his heart. So pause there for a second.
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Here's his last and final excuse.
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Just send someone else, Anyone else but me.
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I don't want to go. And this arouses A righteous
25:34
anger from God toward Moses. God doesn't give up on him.
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He doesn't take away the calling that he gave him.
25:42
Just because Moses is waffling and wavering.
25:45
God is still working with him. Why?
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We have a new New Testament. We have a new covenant
25:49
principle. Romans Chapter 11, verse 29.
25:51
The gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.
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God is going to continue the work that he wants to do.
25:58
When God calls you and gifts you, he doesn't take them back.
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He's patient. He waits, He develops, he
26:05
persists to see us move out, but we see a glimpse into Moses
26:09
heart. Here he's really resisting the
26:12
will of God. Here he's refusing and
26:15
resisting. Moses addresses in verse 13.
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Notice Moses addresses Jehovah as my Lord, but that's his
26:26
problem at this point. In verse 13, he's not treating
26:29
God like his Lord. He's addressing him as Lord, but
26:35
he's not living with God as his Lord.
26:39
Peter was in a similar state in Acts chapter 10.
26:42
Remember he used that phrase where the words were they call
26:45
oxymoron. They don't go together.
26:46
Remember what he said? Not so Lord.
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Well, if Jesus is your Lord, not so.
26:53
Can't go together. What God has declared is right
26:57
and righteous. That was at the point where he
27:00
received the vision of the. Animals coming down?
27:02
Not so, Lord. I'm not eating.
27:04
I'm never eating anything like that.
27:06
No Lord's servant relationship means total, complete obedience.
27:10
But again, God comes. Low to the spiritual.
27:12
Level of Moses gives him Aaron, gives him Aaron.
27:15
It says, Hey, Aaron's there. Verse 15.
27:18
Now you shall speak to him and put the words in his mouth, And
27:21
I'll be with your mouth and with his mouth, and I'll teach you
27:24
what you shall do. So he shall be your spokesman to
27:27
the people, and he himself shall be as a mouth for you, and you
27:30
shall be to him as God. And you shall take this rod in
27:33
your hand and with with which you shall do the signs.
27:39
And this was enough. Aaron's going to be your
27:41
spokesperson. Moses does go not so strongly,
27:46
but this was not God's highest ideal.
27:48
You guys know that? Have read the Bible ahead.
27:50
You've studied the Bible. You can read ahead.
27:53
Aaron is going to cause Moses some problems when he's up on
27:57
Mount Sinai. He's going to lead the people
27:59
astray. This is not the perfect
28:03
solution. This is not God's best for
28:06
Moses, but God met him where he was at, and Aaron's going to
28:11
create more problems. It's going to create.
28:15
Difficulties for Moses, and I've just found it.
28:20
This is, this is something that's happened in the church a
28:22
lot, where so many trust in the word of man over the word of
28:27
God. It gives them more faith in the
28:30
trust God's word, because some somebody made a commitment to
28:33
you. Somebody said they'd be with
28:34
you, I'll go with you. Well, but the Lord called you
28:37
to. Go alone.
28:37
I'll be with you. OK, let's go instead of just.
28:41
Going at God like Moses refuses. Aaron reluctantly goes.
28:45
It sounds like it's a good deal, but in a few chapters we're
28:48
going to see Aaron brings challenges.
28:52
He becomes a serious stumbling block to the people.
28:55
And I just this again, we don't have time to develop today, but
28:58
God wants to raise you to higher levels, not lower levels.
29:03
He'll meet you where you are, but he wants to take you from
29:06
where you are. He wants you to grow in His
29:09
grace and his knowledge, and then he wants to take you from
29:13
where you're at and do mighty things.
29:15
Remember in Second Peter Chapter 3, we're encouraged to grow in
29:18
the grace and the. Knowledge of our Lord and Savior
29:21
Jesus Christ. And yet what I find too often is
29:25
we settle for the second and third and fourth thing that
29:28
comes our way and are satisfied with that.
29:32
And then you become Now it's not even like an issue of
29:35
resistance, and now it's just an issue of complacency.
29:40
But God has so much more for you.
29:43
So he heads out in verse 18. It says Moses went and returned
29:46
to Jethro, his father-in-law, and said to him, please let me
29:49
go and return to my brethren who are in Egypt and see whether
29:52
they're still alive. And Jethro, Jethro said to
29:54
Moses, go in peace. What did Jethro need?
29:57
Nothing. Hey, I want to go back.
30:00
Go ahead. Go for it.
30:02
It needs nothing. Even Moses doesn't even tell him
30:05
about all the things that are going on.
30:06
Notice the Lord said to Moses and Midian go return to Egypt,
30:10
verse 19. For all the men are dead who
30:12
sought your life. And Moses took his wife and his
30:14
sons and set them on a donkey. Return to the land of Egypt.
30:17
And Moses took the rod of God in his hand.
30:20
And the Lord said to Moses, when you go back to Egypt, see that
30:23
you do all those wonders before Pharaoh which I have put in your
30:27
hand. But I will harden his heart so
30:29
that he will not let the people go.
30:32
Then you shall say to Pharaoh, Thus says the Lord God, Israel
30:36
is my son, my first born. So I say to you, let my son go,
30:40
that he may serve me. But if you refuse to let him go,
30:43
indeed, I will kill your son and your first born.
30:48
Keep in mind, Moses. Is 80 years old at this and he's
30:52
still asking his father in law's permission to go.
30:56
He's an 80 year old man and he's asking his father in
31:15
True keys to spiritual service. What we notice now at verse 22
31:21
that when he took his wife and his sons noticed what he took at
31:24
the end of verse 20, he took the rod of God in his hand.
31:28
It wasn't his anymore. He recognized it belonged to
31:32
God. God was going to use this.
31:34
I bet he clutched that thing and never let it go.
31:37
He probably slept with it. It's like I'm not letting this
31:40
go because it would be assigned personally to him before it was
31:43
assigned to anyone else of God's faithfulness and he held on to
31:49
it. The rod reminds me of the word
31:51
of God. Isn't that what you go to bed
31:53
with at night clinging? Some of you are clinging to a
31:55
promise right now. You've got the verse, You've
31:57
memorized it. You say it.
31:59
It's in your back pocket. It pops up on your screen like
32:03
it is the rod of God in your hand.
32:06
It is what gets you to sleep at night and wakes you up in the
32:09
morning. God's promises to us.
32:12
God's Word is a is something that we're to hang on to.
32:17
We're to hang on to His words, clutching to them, memorizing
32:19
them, meditating on them. Because there's going to come
32:22
the word. In verse 21, I'm going to send
32:24
you to Pharaoh and notice he's already prepared him.
32:27
It's going to be hard when you go to Pharaoh because I'm going
32:29
to harden his heart, use human reason and logic here.
32:34
Just as if you were Moses, you just had all this big battle
32:37
with God and your got your own resistance.
32:39
And now God tells you, you finally.
32:41
OK, I'll go. I'll get Aaron.
32:42
OK, finally I'll go. I'm going to hold on to my rod,
32:45
this rod like you wouldn't believe.
32:47
This is like I'm going to hold on to your promises, God.
32:49
And then God says I'm going to send you to Pharaoh.
32:51
But I'm going to, I'm going to make it hard for you because I'm
32:54
going to harden his heart and you're like, I don't think I
32:58
want to go. It's like a test of just where
33:02
he's. Been he's not too far from where
33:04
he was. Which tells me this.
33:08
Perhaps after the next breath, after your obedience, you'll be
33:13
tested on the same thing again. You know how much it took you to
33:18
make the decision, and you made it, and it starts all over
33:22
again. Why?
33:23
Because God is taking you from glory to glory and strength to
33:26
strength. He's preparing you for the next
33:30
one. For the next one.
33:31
We're just stuck on this one. I'm going to do it.
33:33
I'm going to do it. I'm going to do it.
33:35
I did it. Oh, no, you're not.
33:37
Done. That's just the beginning of
33:39
something new. That's just one step away from
33:42
where you were, because God has. So much for us.
33:46
But man, if I was Moses, I'm like, I don't know what do you
33:48
mean you're going to harden him? But he tells him in verse 22,
33:51
you're going to tell him, this is this is my son.
33:54
You need to let him go, Israel. You need to go.
33:57
You're if you don't do it, you don't.
33:58
It's going to personally cost you Pharaoh.
34:00
Verse 24. It came to pass on the way at
34:02
the encampment that the Lord met him and sought to kill him.
34:06
What poor Moses. Like if you charted this out as
34:10
you go through, as you're going to learn in our Inductive Bible
34:13
studies seminar, that's coming, You're going to learn.
34:14
You start charting out the text. You're like wait a minute,
34:18
wrestling like what do you. He's got through, he's got
34:21
through. He's got through and now now
34:23
he's facing God. He's facing God in a place where
34:26
man the Lord met him and sought to kill.
34:28
Wait a minute, what is happening here?
34:31
Notice his wife in verse 25 took a sharp stone and cut off the
34:35
foreskin of her son and cast it at Moses feet and said surely
34:39
you're a husband of blood to me so he let him go and then he she
34:43
said you are a husband of blood because of.
34:47
The circumcision. Now let's just step back for a
34:51
second and let's consider a few things.
34:54
God loves his people, no doubt about it.
34:58
And God is personally interested in this group of people at this
35:01
time. But before he launches out to
35:04
pronounce judgment on Egypt, Moses has to face judgment at
35:08
home. Does that sound familiar?
35:12
We learn in the Bible that judgment always begins in the
35:16
House of the Lord. It always begins at home.
35:21
Whatever reason in Moses life and his time in Midian, he never
35:26
got around to circumcising his son as a part of the covenant.
35:31
He never did do it. Full new life.
35:36
Maybe there were seasons of discouragement, maybe there's a
35:39
lot of maybes. We aren't told why.
35:43
But whatever the reason, his home was neglected and that
35:47
makes sense to our present day reality.
35:51
There's a lot of upside down homes in our church today.
35:55
You notice I was careful with my words.
35:57
I didn't say the church. I said our church.
36:00
There's a lot of upside down homes.
36:02
There's a lot of upside down homes with a husband and a wife.
36:06
There's a lot of upside down homes with a mom and a dad.
36:09
There's a lot of upside down homes with a single man or a
36:13
single woman, and before you ever are able to be used
36:18
mightily of God, you need to get your house in order and just be
36:22
real. With the Lord, Moses almost died
36:25
because of his failure in his home, he almost lost everything
36:29
that was before him. We know the full story.
36:32
We know how it all ends. But Moses doesn't know.
36:35
Moses doesn't understand what's happening.
36:37
He's facing these things. He's overcome.
36:40
God is working with him, is patient with him, and even in
36:43
James Chapter 3, verse one, we are learned that brethren, let
36:47
not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive
36:50
the stricter judgment. And it's not uncommon to find
36:53
many like Moses in the ministry. They set out to minister in
36:58
fixing other people's homes, fixing other people's lives,
37:01
fixing other people's marriages and they haven't been fully
37:04
obedient in their own house. It just doesn't work.
37:09
You need to rule your own house. Well, and first Timothy chapter
37:12
three. We learn that the
37:13
characteristics of a leader is that he knows leads to learn to
37:16
rule his own house. Well.
37:18
Unfortunately that's been a misinterpreted like guys will go
37:20
home with an iron fist and start bossing everyone around.
37:23
I don't believe that's the heart of the matter when it comes to
37:26
first Timothy three. I think what Paul is reminding
37:30
Timothy as he is looking for men, and by extension women in
37:34
places of leadership, but men in particular as elders.
37:38
What Paul is telling Timothy is the men that lead in the church
37:42
must have already demonstrated strong leadership in the home.
37:48
Not that they're rulers and dictators, but ministry comes
37:53
from the home. It doesn't start in the church.
37:59
And truly, no matter how successful you might be, how
38:02
successful I might be, whatever we measure successes in in
38:07
ministry, but I'm failing in my home, it's truly not a success
38:15
in the eyes of the Lord. I know it's hard words for some
38:19
of you because you're sitting here with a broken home or
38:21
coming out of a broken home. And God is very gracious.
38:25
He can mend and restore. He can restore to you years that
38:28
the locust is eaten. You can learn from your mistakes
38:32
for sure. You can even be blessed, like
38:37
many of us are, with a with a wife, that if they see their
38:40
husband not taking care of business, they take care of
38:42
business and go, you know what? This is something that's been
38:45
neglected and I'm going to take care of it.
38:50
And men that should get your attention because it's not God's
38:53
will for your wife to lead your home spiritually.
38:58
It's not. It's God's will for you to lead
39:01
your home spiritually and then collaboratively and
39:04
cooperatively. You have a home that honors God.
39:08
Don't forget this. You go what is this all about?
39:11
You just remember rule your own house well before you ever step
39:15
into someone else's family. Make sure your family's in
39:19
order. Doesn't mean you're perfect
39:20
family. Doesn't mean doesn't mean what
39:22
we have made it to mean over the years.
39:25
Like, well then I I need to have a perfect family.
39:27
None of us have a perfect family.
39:30
And this is where the the issue with pastors, kids and stuff
39:33
comes in. He's like, well, you know,
39:34
there's a different standard for no, no, no, don't, don't do
39:37
that. Just go into your prayer closet,
39:40
ask the Lord for wisdom in your home, because God has something
39:44
great for you up ahead. He doesn't want you stopping
39:47
along the way. He he wants you to go and
39:50
fulfill what God has called you to do.
39:53
And if you do need to stop. Then let it be and through the
39:57
through the partnership of Zipporah and Moses.
40:00
I love this. It just says in verse 26 God let
40:03
him go. Not only did he call him, not
40:07
only do you equip him, not only did he meet him where he was at.
40:10
I love this phrase than the English.
40:12
It's just he let him go. Go ahead, go ahead, Moses.
40:17
All is well. Well in verse 27 the Lord said
40:20
to Aaron go into the wilderness to meet Moses.
40:23
So he went and met him on the mountain of God, and kissed him.
40:26
And Moses told Aaron all the words of the Lord who had sent
40:28
him, and all the signs which he had commanded him.
40:31
And Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders
40:34
of the children of Israel, And Aaron spoke all the words which
40:37
the Lord had spoken to Moses. Then he did the signs in the
40:40
side of the. People.
40:41
So the people believe verse 31 And when they heard that the
40:44
Lord had visited the children of Israel and that he looked on
40:47
their affliction, then they bowed their heads and
40:51
worshipped. Which is really the summary of
40:53
the of the chapter, isn't it? Obedience leads to worship.
41:00
It's just a great place to be where you can freely worship and
41:04
freely enjoy. As you come through a place of
41:08
willingness, surrender and obedience.
41:11
They gather the elders together, share the good news.
41:14
The people at this point are excited.
41:17
Deliverance. Thank you Moses.
41:19
This is going to be the best. Sounds like a good start to a
41:21
long, strong relationship, but not so fast.
41:25
Read ahead, read the next few chapters.
41:28
They're worshiping now, but that worship will soon be replaced
41:33
with murmuring and complaining, Which always reminds us I got to
41:37
guard my heart and I got to guard my eyes.
41:40
I'm not immune to a complaining, murmuring my spirit myself or
41:45
seeing what some would call a pessimistic view of life, what I
41:50
call a realistic view of life. But nonetheless, I want to be
41:55
optimistic of what God is doing. I want to fulfill First
41:59
Corinthians 13. Love, what hopes all things,
42:02
That's what I want to live out of my life, believes all things
42:08
so that the Lord might use us greatly.
42:11
Father, thank you for your word today and and just putting Moses
42:14
in the Bible for us. I'm especially thankful for
42:17
Stephen's faithfulness, where he could look back and be faithful
42:20
to you as he's teaching, as he's sharing in his final message
42:24
some of his final words. Some of his final words were
42:28
encouragement toward Moses that Moses didn't currently feel in
42:33
his life as we were studying him.
42:35
And so I just pray there were those stirred by faith.
42:37
Tonight, there were those that were met with their reasons or
42:42
their excuses. There are some that are a little
42:44
bit willing, a little bit obedient, like there's a lot
42:47
that you're doing in our lives. You had us here for a reason.
42:50
You have us connected by technology because this is the
42:53
word that you have for us. And I pray that you would pour
42:57
out more willingness in US, like like we would have more of your
43:02
spirit. I like we would be open to a
43:04
word and we would receive the vision and we would be obedient,
43:07
like like they said, be obedient to the heavenly vision.
43:11
And then we would just be in a place where our homes you know
43:14
we're we're we're loving and caring for one another.
43:20
That we're taking care of the kids.
43:23
That we're desiring God to live out our lives everywhere.
43:33
Not just here. You have great things planned
43:37
for us, Lord you. You haven't.
43:38
You haven't abandoned us. You haven't left us.
43:40
You haven't turned your back on us.
43:43
So here we are, open and ready to receive from you.
43:47
Pour out your spirit. Calm, Holy Spirit, Feel this
43:51
place. Bring forth the confirmation and
43:55
the clarity of your word. Release bondage tonight, Lord in
43:58
strongholds, take away the chains of reasons and excuses.
44:03
Lord, comfort the downhearted. Encourage the discouraged.
44:07
Bring a a spirit of of joy. Lord bring mercy where there's
44:15
judgment. Remove self condemnation.
44:18
Help us to see us the way you see us and our potential of what
44:23
we can be, not who we're not. And let us live in this
44:28
sanctifying relationship, being conformed into the image of
44:32
Christ, that we might cooperate through regular, steady
44:37
obedience. And thank you for meeting us
44:39
where we are. You don't have to do that.
44:42
You did not have to condescend and send your Son, Jesus Christ
44:46
on our behalf, but you did. We receive it.
44:49
We remembered it in communion today.
44:51
So now, Lord, take our lives. Use them greatly in Jesus name.
44:56
Amen. We pray that you've been
44:58
encouraged by this Bible study delivered live from the
45:00
sanctuary of Calvary Church. For prayer, call us at 87730
45:06
Grace. That's 877-304-7223.
45:12
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45:15
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45:21
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45:25
Worship Jesus this week.