Jesus, Creator, Savior, Lord and King #4 Jesus Calls Moses Text: Exodus 3:1-15

 

Jesus, Creator, Savior, Lord and King #4 Jesus Calls Moses

Text: Exodus 3:1-15

Introduction:

            Joke: A country boy was working in the hot sun of a Texas cornfield hoeing weed between the rows. He had been hoeing all morning and now the sun was fully up, and he was getting tired and covered in sweat. Finally, after another long row was finished the farm boy paused leaned on his long-handled hoe took off his hat and then glanced up toward heaven and addressed the Lord. “Oh Lord, this sun is so hot, these weeds are so tall and these rows are so long…I think I hear you calling me to be a preacher.”

So he went to see his preacher and told him the story of his calling but the preacher seemed a little doubtful that it was really a calling to preach. The country boy thought for a moment then added to his story, “But preacher as the sun set that day the clouds lit up like fire and I’m pretty sure I saw the Lord shape those clouds into the letters, “P C” up there in the sky. And that must mean “Preach Christ!”

The old preacher thought for a moment then gently said, “Bubba, I’m pretty sure that message written in the sunset with the letter P C was the Lord telling you to “Plant Corn”

Who is Calling In the Old Testament

This morning we are going to go back to Exodus 3 and look in as Moses is called into service by God. Now before we get into the text itself, I want us to do a little theological groundwork and think about the question of who exactly is calling when God calls people in the OT? We’ve seen that the Angel of the Lord is most often Jesus in His preincarnate state. We saw that Jesus called Abraham a friend and met with him in his tent before He destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. We saw that Jesus was the Captain of the Lord’s Host and called Joshua to serve in that army. He accepted his worship and told him to remove his sandal for he was on ground made holy by the presence of not just an angel but God. We know it was God the son.

Today we will look at the preceding call to service of Moses beside the burning bush. The bush which was showing the Shekinah Glory of God. Now before we get to our texts consider this verses from the hand of John the apostle and the mouth of John the Baptist. And think about the question.

Who Is Actually Seen When God Is Seen In the Old Testament?

John 1:15-18 John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before me. ¹⁶ And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace. ¹⁷ For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. ¹⁸ No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.

John 5:37-38 And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape. ³⁸ And ye have not his word abiding in you: for whom he hath sent, him ye believe not.

John 6:46-47 Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he which is of God, he hath seen the Father. 47 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.

1 John 4:12 No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.

If this verses are true, and the Bible cannot contradict itself then it means that when God appears in the Old Testament, it is Jesus, God the Son, acting as mediator, messenger and master of those He calls to serve him. Now lets look at the call of Moses in Exodus 3.

 Call To Separation - Exodus 3:1-4
 Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb. And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.  And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.

Called To Turn Aside

Moses is now 80 years old, he has been a shepherd in the desert for 40 years.

He waited until he was 40 years old and then tried to lead and protect his people by killing an Egyptian beating a Hebrew and then by trying to arbitrate a fight between two others. He fails and then he runs away in fear of his life. Now he is a shepherd, not a member of the royalty of Pharoah’s house. He leads a flock of sheep not the people of God. He protects his own children rather than the children of Abraham.

He has settled into the life of a runaway on the backside of the Midian desert and 40 more years have passed since he was a prince in Egypt. He was no longer that ambitious protector and pretender to the leadership of Israel, No, not at all, in fact in Numbers 12:3 Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.

He was no longer the same man and at this point, it would seem  impossible that Moses, the Hebrew with an Egyptian name, could be used of God now after all that his confidence, youth and strength has passed.

Then one day, this 80-year-old shepherd is watching the sheep on the backside of the desert as he is out shepherding the flocks, and he comes to Horeb, the mountain of God. Some believe it was called the mountain of God because this is where Abraham was led to sacrifice Isaac, before God stopped him. It could be that it is called the mountain of God, later Sinai, because of what will happen here when the children of Israel received the 10 commandments and build the Tabernacle. While at the foot of the mountain, he sees a bright fire burning and a voice calling from that fire that will separate him from his present world forever. This calling will separate him from his old life, his friends and livelihood of the past 4 decades.

Pay special attention to vss. 2 and 4, notice the clear identification of the Angel of the Lord being the Lord Jehovah who is God. Exodus 3:2 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: Exodus 3:4 the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush,

Do you see it. That’s right I’m not making this stuff up. It’s right there. Mose is called by God from the burning bush and you and I are still called by God though not quite so dramatically.

We Are Called To Set This World Aside

The call of God to us always calls us away from ourselves, our interests and our world, just as it called Moses away from his world. Also like Moses, the call of God does not occur when we think it should, God’s timing is rarely built around our calendar.

Nor can the call of God cannot be ignored. If it is truly God calling, then like the burning bush it will be too shining bright to ignore and walk away. It will demand our attention and then it will demand our separation.

The call of God moves from our world, our plans, our future and into God’s will.

John 15:16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.

1 Corinthians 1:27-28 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence.

After sanctification, it is difficult to state what your aim in life is because God has taken you up into his purposes. - Oswald Chambers (1874-1917)

Are we prepared for what sanctification will do? It will cost an intense narrowing of all our interests on earth and an immense broadening of our interest in God. - Oswald Chambers (1874-1917)

Die before you die. There is no chance after. - C. S. Lewis (1898-1963)

Now look back to Exodus 3 and verses 5-10, God’s call is a call of separation and it is also a call to service.

Call To Service - Ex. 3:5-10

 And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.  Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.  And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;  And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.  Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them.  Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt.

Called To Set Captives Free

God tells Moses to remove his shoe and stand on Holy Ground. He tells Moses who he is and what He intends for Moses to do. He give Moses a calling and in that calling there is a purpose. Moses was to return and do what he thought he was supposed to do 40 years ago, deliver the people from oppression and bondage.

God’s plan hadn’t changed for Moses, but Moses’ life had to change before God could use him. Moses wasn’t fully God’s man 40 years ago and it had taken 40 years of humbling in the wilderness of Midian to make him useful and obedient to God.

Acts 7:22- 25 And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was mighty in words and in deeds. And when he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren the children of Israel. And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him that was oppressed, and smote the Egyptian: For he supposed his brethren would have understood how that God by his hand would deliver them: but they understood not.

He thought God was ready to use him 40 years ago after he had been prepared in Pharaoh’s palace, but it was 40 more years in wastes of the wilderness before God had fully prepared him.

When God, the sheep and the desert finished with Moses, then he was ready. Oh, he did not in his own eyes think he was ready, but in the eyes of God he was prepped and empowered. Now he could fulfill the purpose of God’s calling him, to deliver those bound in the chains of slavery.

We Are Called to the Same Purpose

We as New Testament children of God,  are also called to serve the Lord and fulfill His purpose in our service. We are called, everyone of us, called to deliver those bound in the chains of sin and slavery of ignorance with the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Matthew 28:18-20 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power (authority) is given unto me in heaven and in earth.  Go ye therefore, and teach (disciple) all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

We will not be effective in this, the greatest calling every given to mortal man, unless we also are prepared by God to be His and not our own. Letting God use us His way and in His time took Moses 40 years, how long will it take us? And if God does not call us to the level of leadership of a Moses will we still be faithful and humble in our service to Him? Moses was wrong in setting his own timetable and agenda, that had to be up to God’s timing. We must trust God to work in us His tempering for service, His type of service and His time for that service.

God Told Me to be a kid.

A pastor was leading a revival in another church. While there, a young boy took a special interest in the preacher, sitting beside him every evening.  If the pastor sat on the platform, that's where the little boy sat; if on a pew, the little boy sat with him on the pew. The little boy was not a bother, that he just wanted to sit with the preacher. He found out that the boy’s parents didn’t attend church and he came on the church van.

"One evening I was sitting on the first pew," wrote Cashman.  "He came and snuggled up real close.  He looked up and asked me, 'Why are you a preacher?' "I replied to him, 'Because that is what God called me He to be.' The little boy thought for a moment and then said, 'God told me just to be a kid.' "

And that was right! Whatever your service is and whenever it is, do what God calls you to do. And remember He has called all of us in our own way to preach the good news of the Gospel. There is no exemption from that calling.

Transition: There is one more aspect of the fire that we should consider today.

Call to Strength - Exodus 3:11-15

And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt? ¹² And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain. ¹³ And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? ¹⁴ And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. ¹⁵ And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.

Called To Find Strength

In these verses we see God override Moses excuses and overcome Moses weakness. In doing so He also reveals the second purpose in calling him, to declare and glorify God. It was no longer a question of how weak Moses was, now it was to be a declaration of how strong Jehovah God was. He would be the answer to all the questions.

God gives Moses the second purpose in His calling and I believe that same purpose is also still true today for us today. When Moses asks Exodus 3:13 and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them?. God’s reply is Exodus 3:14 I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.

This was the first time that the personal name of God was revealed. I AM in Hebrew is Jehovah or Yahweh. It is the name of God and so sacred to the Jews that they will neither pronounce it nor write it. But God wanted it known, not hidden. His purpose in telling Mose, His name was that all people would remember Him for all generations. Exodus 3:15 “this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.”

The name of God stands like a high monument, or a sacred mountain, given here to stand for eternity, the glory of the name Jehovah would bring all people before the throne of God just as the fire of the burning bush brought Moses that day.

We Are Called To the Strength of God’s Glory

The great purpose of our calling today is also to bring a show forth the glory of God’s name. To show an world lost in sin and ignorance the beauty of who Jesus truly is. Just as Moses had no strength of himself but instead was given strength of God, we in our weakness will show the greatness of God.

Ephesians 1:11-14 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will: That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

And just as the revelation of the name Jehovah would bring glory in the Moses’ day, the revelation of Jesus, God’s Son will bring glory in our own day.

Do you remember the announcement of Jesus birth to Mary? Listen to Luke 1:30-33 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. ³¹ And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. ³² He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: ³³ And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

That shalt call His name Jesus is what we hear but what Mary heard was “Yeshua, Jehovah is Salvation.” It was the same name that Jesus himself had declared way back in Exodus 3. I AM hath sent you, Mose and now the angel Gabriel appears to Mary and tells her, “Jehovah Is Salvation” shall be his name.

Paul writing to the church at Philippi explains the full implication of the power and glory of Jesus name. Philippians 2:9-11 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: ¹⁰ That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; ¹¹ And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Our great purpose, like Moses’ is to tell the world of Jesus. Jesus who was crucified, buried and raised again. Jesus who death on the cross was the payment for sin and the gift of God for forgiveness. This is the glory of our calling to show the world the grace of God through the power of the Gospel of Jesus our Lord and Savior.

Jesus himself stated it plainly in “John 12:32 And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.” Where is our power, in the name of Jesus. How are people drawn to salvation? By telling them Jesus died for them!

Jesus was lifted up on the cross and now it is our calling to lift Him up before a world that needs to be drawn to the only One who can save their souls.

 David Livingstone’s calling

I place no value on anything I have or may possess, except in relation to the kingdom of God. If anything will advance the interests of the kingdom, it shall be given away or kept, only as by giving or keeping it I shall most promote the glory of Him to whom I owe all my hopes in time or eternity. - David Livingstone

Conclusion

God’s call to us is twofold, first to salvation when we hear the Gospel and then a call to service when we hear His Word. You cannot have experienced the first and not realize the second is also true.

Answer the call of God, to salvation and to service and He will provide all that is needed to save us for eternity and then fit us for the task of delivering the captives and glorifying His name.