Transcription downloaded from https://sermons.cccharlotte.org/sermons/82343/a-very-present-presence-exodus-331-11/.

Disclaimer: this is an automatically generated machine transcription - there may be small errors or mistranscriptions.
Please refer to the original audio if you are in any doubt.


[0:00] Well, good morning, everybody. Welcome to Calvary Chapel Charlotte. What a beautiful day to be in the Lord's presence, right?

[0:11] ! Amen. You can turn your Bibles to Exodus 33.! Last week, we finished Exodus 32, as we continue line by line, verse by verse through the Scripture. And Moses is on the mountain with God, receiving the Ten Commandments.

[0:26] God tells him, Moses, go back down. My people are not operating in a way that's pleasing to me. They have turned to idols. So Moses goes down, and he knows what he's going to expect.

[0:37] But when he sees it, he just, he essentially gives them what they want, right? They've broken God's Word, so he throws the Ten Commandments at the base of the mountain, it says, and breaks them. We looked at how, with the Lord, God never goes back to fix what is broken.

[0:51] It's not like, man, I just wish I could get everybody back to Eden. That's not the goal. We're not heading back to Eden. He didn't take the crucified, broken, bruised, and bloodied body of Jesus and just say, you know, we can work with this.

[1:06] We'll just kind of heal it. And no, he made something brand new. Made something new. Something heal and something whole. That was very much like the old, but it was new. We're going to see the same thing is going to happen in a couple chapters when Moses goes back to the mountain to, again, receive Ten Commandments.

[1:22] God's going to do it a little different. It's going to be new. He wasn't at the base of the mountain with his Holy Spirit superglue putting the Ten Commandments back together. But Jesus bore our brokenness so that we might be made whole.

[1:35] We who are broken might be made new and made whole. He doesn't go back and say, let's go back and fix that. He says, hey, if any man be in Christ, he's a new creation. 1 Peter 2.24 says, He did that.

[1:58] It's his work. So that what? I can be whole. He was broken so that I don't have to be broken for sin. When you have an injury and you get healed and your body heals, what's left?

[2:11] A scar. It's the scars that are left. What's a scar? A scar is simply a wound that's no longer a wound. It's evidence of a wound that's been healed. It's not a wound.

[2:22] And Jesus, he's bearing scars, isn't he? He has the scars in his hands and the scar on his side. Those wounds, those scars don't remind him of, I can't believe that they did that to me, right? But it reminds us, or reminds him of the grace and the love that he has for us.

[2:36] So Israel, if you remember last week, they're asked to separate. Moses was told the people, hey, whoever's on the Lord's side, come unto me. And all the Levites did. And he says, all right, now you need to separate.

[2:47] You need to go through and strap every man on his side a sword and go through. I said, kill every man his neighbor and every man his brother. It's like, whoa, God, that's pretty harsh. But we find out the Lord had already said to them, hey, consecrate yourself.

[3:00] Fully set yourself apart unto me. And it seems like there's 3,000 that didn't. And those are the ones. God said, I'm going to wipe them all out. And in God's grace and mercy, those would consecrate themselves to the Lord.

[3:10] He said, hey, you're covered. But then it's only 3,000. So Israel is asked to separate to God, no matter how costly. And sometimes all the time, there is a cost in drawing near to the Lord.

[3:23] But, you know, as we're studying the Old Testament, I think sometimes we approach it with these ideas about who God is and what he is. Maybe we've grown up with that.

[3:34] Maybe we've heard that. And we think, well, God in the Old Testament, he's a little upset. Thankfully, Jesus came and calmed him down. And he took all God's upsetness on the cross, and now he's not upset with me anymore.

[3:46] And we approach the scripture with what's called a presupposition. Presupposition is just a suppose. I suppose so ahead of time. I presuppose. Right? Happens all the time if you have children.

[3:59] I can't believe. And then you talk to him. You're like, oh, I totally presupposed. When my kids were little, my one daughter, she's not here. She's serving the Lord in Mexico, so I can tell this story.

[4:12] But I had three girls and then a boy. All right? And Henry wasn't here yet. It was the three girls. Like, man, I got these girls. So I would tell them, girls, got to watch out for boys. Like, all right. Men, if they bother you or whatever, you know, you need to treat people politely.

[4:25] But if it's a boy and he's bothering you, you just knock him down. And maybe I was a little overzealous with that at such a young age. But we were at church, and the one little boy, well, we had a bunch of friends that were all the same age.

[4:38] We were all having kids at the same time. And one of the little boys, I don't know, maybe he was three. And Natalie had knocked him down. And he's crying. I was like, what did you do? And she was five or six, maybe.

[4:50] Like, Daddy, why did you? I pushed him down. And I'm like, well, why? Well, Dad, he was bothering Kitty. And you said, if that boy ever bothers us or our sisters, knock him down. I was like, well, I can't get upset at you for that.

[5:04] Good job. But I presupposed, like, what are you doing? What are you fighting with kids for? Why did you knock him down? Well, Dad, because you told me to. Oh, well, okay. That's not exactly what I meant.

[5:15] Not just he's annoying her. It'll make sense when you're older. But we approach the Scriptures that way. We have many presuppositions we bring to our study of the Bible. And we can do that with God sometimes. We can look at something and say, God, why would you say to wipe them out?

[5:27] You know, as we continue through Scripture, we're going to see what the Lord is going to say. Go in and wipe out everybody in the land of Canaan. Don't leave any of them alive. And you can almost think, like, well, maybe this God isn't the same all the way through.

[5:40] You see, we all have presuppositions. All of us. You can't help it. But the goal is to ensure that our presuppositions are derived from God's Word. I should have a presupposition. I should be predisposed to come to God's Word knowing God is good.

[5:55] God is gracious. God is holy. God is faithful. And I can look at the Scripture in that light because of the Scripture told me that. And it's not someone else who told me that, right? Psalm 19.7.

[6:07] The law of the Lord is perfect, complete, whole. It doesn't need anything else. Converting the soul. Hasn't it converted your souls? Converted mine. The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.

[6:21] We don't need an outside source. You say, well, you're not really smart enough to understand this. I've had years of education. I haven't had years of education yet. I haven't gone to seminary.

[6:34] But I tell you what. The Lord can take His Word and move you from simple and build you towards wisdom. If you'll take the time to be in it and let it be in you. So I think when we approach God's Word and we approach the teaching of God's Word, even, you say, well, wouldn't be teaching be considered an outside help?

[6:53] You know, I don't need to come then to a Bible study. I don't need to hear the God's Word taught because I can just go and dive into the Word and grow in that. Yes, you can. Yes, you should be in the Word.

[7:03] But Ephesians 4 tells us that God has given specifically gifts unto the church for the edifying, equipping, and maturing of the body. That there's a maturity that happens only in the presence of the body together.

[7:17] It's through the teaching of God's Word. If you want to, you don't have to. You can turn to Nehemiah chapter 8 real quick. We'll get to Exodus 33 eventually. And hopefully get through the first 11 verses.

[7:30] Nehemiah chapter 8. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job, Psalms. So if you hit Psalms, go back to the left a few books and you'll get to Nehemiah. It's one of the books of captivity. When Israel was in captivity in Babylon.

[7:42] Ezra goes back to rebuild the temple. Nehemiah then goes back to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Nehemiah chapter 8. I'll read a few verses there. In verse 5, it says, Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people.

[7:59] So the walls have just been completed. All the people are excited. And they actually go to Ezra and say, bring out God's Word. We want to hear God's Word. What does it have to say about all this, Ezra? So Ezra does.

[8:10] And it says, for he was above all the people. It doesn't mean he was greater than them. It says previously that they literally made him a wooden platform for him to be on so they could all hear and understand. That's why we do what we do, guys.

[8:21] We don't just do all this in this really cool old brown building. Because it just says awesome. The reason for all of this, for speakers, for whatever, is just to get God's Word out as clearly and effectively and efficiently as possible.

[8:37] But it says he was above all the people in verse 5 of Nehemiah 8. And when he opened the book, all the people stood up. We could do that the whole time I teach. You know, for the next 45 minutes to 50 minutes, you guys want to stand, feel free.

[8:49] And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God. And all the people answered, Amen, Amen, with lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshipped the Lord with their faces to the ground.

[8:59] It's their response to God's Word. Also, and then it's going to list a bunch of names, which I'm not going to read. The Levites, the names that were listed, caused the people to understand the law.

[9:10] And the people stood in their place. So as Ezra's reading this, it seems like in some form, you have the Levites there too. I don't know if they're taking turns, if there's so many people, as they all listen to God's Word. And then they kind of like got their individual group.

[9:22] They're like, let me tell you what this means. The Levites caused the people to understand their law. And then look at verse 8. Distinct, sensible, and to be understood.

[9:42] The teaching of God's Word is to be distinct, to be sensible, and to be understood. Those words there in the original language, in the Hebrew, the book of the law of God, they read it distinctly, means to be declared, distinguished, and clarified.

[9:58] Sensibly, with insight, with understanding, and intelligence. Understood, with perception, discernment, and application.

[10:10] The law of God makes wise the simple. It's distinct, it's sensible, it's to be understood, it's simple. And yet God is able to do so much more as we dive into His Word.

[10:23] So they read in the book of the law of God, and declared it, and distinguished it, and clarified it. And gave insight, understanding, and intelligence, and caused them to perceive, discern, and heed the reading of the Word.

[10:34] So we presuppose that God, that God revealed in the pages of Scripture, we presuppose that He's able to reveal that Scripture to His people. Right? That's what we're here for.

[10:45] Because we presuppose that, God, you wrote this, And I believe that if you wrote this, you are able then to reveal it in a way that is distinct, sensible, and to be understood.

[10:55] And we do that, why? Because we're all so smart and intelligent? No, the Bible says that God has chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise. We do that because we have His presence.

[11:07] Because we have the very Spirit of God to give us understanding. I'm not sitting around and arguing about what does this mean, and what does that mean. I'm coming to the Word and saying, what does it plainly say? And how is God leading us in that?

[11:18] Now, we have a very present presence. That's what we're going to look at today. All right, so now we'll jump into Exodus 33, verse 1. And the Lord then said to Moses, after He had called all the people to His side, the Levites to His side, and after they had dealt with the people, and He had ground up that golden calf.

[11:38] Remember the one that Aaron said, I don't know where it came from. I threw the gold in the fire, and out came a calf. So He grinds it up, and all the people drink that. And then they fully consecrate themselves.

[11:49] They're to be fully consecrated to the Lord. And it seems like the sense is that those that are remaining here in the camp, they are. So at the base of this mountain, where God's presence is on it in smoke and fire, you have Israel that has just sinned, and yet God has forgiven them.

[12:05] And the Lord says to Moses, now depart, and go up hence, thou and the people which you have brought up out of the land of Egypt. It's time to go, Moses. Time to go into the promise. The Lord is telling Moses, hey, it's time to go.

[12:26] We're doing what we need to here at the mountain. After you receive God's command, it's after you receive God's word. It's time to go and to go into the promise. The Lord here declares that He is the one who has the right to give it.

[12:41] Giving implies ownership, doesn't it? I can't give away something of yours, right? You go home, and you go, honey, where's the other car? The pastor gave it away.

[12:52] Well, that's nice. Why didn't he give his away, right? We can't do that. And no matter what culture or society you're in, they may have different ideas of communal property or whatever. There's a basic inherent in all of us that I can't give you away.

[13:05] I can't give what is yours away. Only you can do that. It implies ownership. Psalm 24, verses 1 and 2 says, The earth is the Lord's. It's His.

[13:17] And the fullness thereof, the world and they that dwell therein, for He has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the floods. Based on what? Because He's so powerful that He took it over based on creation.

[13:27] It is because He made it. It belongs to Him. One can only give what is rightfully theirs to give. So God is saying, hey, I'm going to give you this. God says, I'm going to give you a land. I'm going to give you a promise.

[13:39] And I'm going to give you a people. That's what He spoke to Abraham in Genesis chapter 12. That promise is not failed. There is still a land and a promise and a people that are the Lord's. People in this earth.

[13:50] That's Israel. This nation of Israel. As He promised to Abraham. When He told him, it's time to get out and to go from your country. Into a land I will show you. Genesis 12 verse 7.

[14:01] And the Lord appeared unto Abraham and said, Unto your seed will I give this land. And there He built an altar unto the Lord. Appeared unto him. God's promise. Because God owned it.

[14:13] And God still does. To give them a land, a promise, and a people. But He says to Moses now, based on this truth, He says, okay, depart and go up hence. Literally, it means rise up and go up.

[14:26] It's time to walk it out, Moses. Everything we've been talking about. It's time to walk by faith the road that's placed before you. Rise up and go out. Rise up and go up. Psalm 119.

[14:38] We all know verse 105. Even if we don't know, it's Psalm 119, 105. We've probably all heard it. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. But the verse that comes before, it's interesting. 104 says, Through your precepts, I get understanding.

[14:53] Therefore, I hate every false way. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. How do you know if you're walking in a false way? How do you know if the direction God's calling you to go?

[15:04] Is it the way He's called you to go? Well, it's through His word. You gain understanding. And you hate every false way. Every false way would be the path that's not being lit by His word before you.

[15:15] God will light that path with His word. His lamp. It's a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. As we say all the time, how far would a lamp shine in front of you? Just enough for the next step and the next step, right?

[15:28] It's not a spotlight. So God's word. God's word comes to Moses. And based off of His promise, based off of the word that He spoke to Abraham, now this word comes to Moses.

[15:40] And God gives Moses a command to go, a time to go, and a place to go to. Right? He said, Moses, here's the command to go. And here's the specific time to go. And then there's a place for you to go to.

[15:53] Verse 2, He says, And Moses, when you do this, I'm going to send an angel before you or a messenger before you. God's going to give a divine leader, in a sense, to go before Him.

[16:05] And I'll drive out the Canaanite and the Amorite and the Hittite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite. In other words, completely. Complete and utter victory the Lord is going to give.

[16:17] God clears the path and He prepares the place that He calls His people to go dwell. And when He calls us to go up and to go out, He says, I'm going to clear the path and I'm going to prepare the place for you.

[16:31] It's the Lord who's going to do this. 1 Corinthians 15, verse 20, tells us that Jesus did the same for us. That He is, Christ is risen from the dead and become the first fruits of them that slept.

[16:43] Verse 23, But every man in his own order, Christ the first fruits, and afterwards they that are Christ that is coming. Jesus cleared the path for us, didn't He?

[16:55] He cleared the path into everlasting life. And He's gone to prepare a place. If He goes to prepare a place, He will come again and receive us to Himself. God clears the path, prepares the place that He calls His people to dwell.

[17:08] What's our part? Get up and go. Get up and go. Maybe that's get up and go to the couch to read your Bible in the morning. Maybe it's get up and go to meet with God's people when you don't feel like it.

[17:24] There are real journeys and real enemies that must be faced by God's people. That's just a fact. But no matter how great either of those are, God's promise is greater.

[17:36] No matter how great the journey in front of you or how great the enemies may seem, God's promise is greater. God's promise. Has He defeated the enemies yet here for Moses? No, He hasn't. Are they in the land yet?

[17:48] No, they're not. But God's promise is greater. So we journey forward. Our journey forward is based upon God's word and God's promise. Not upon what we perceive to be the difficulty of the journey.

[18:00] Am I going to move forward or am I not going to move forward? That looks really difficult. And there's a lot of resistance. I think I'm just going to wait. The Lord says, no, arise and go.

[18:11] I'll take care of the difficulties. I'll remove the resistance. So we journey forward based upon God's word and God's promise. That's something that we should receive from the word. And then we should presuppose that when we come to the word.

[18:23] Right? When God speaks to us through His word, we don't think, well, that's great, God. When times are better, I'll follow that. No, we know that God's word and God's promise is what leads us forward.

[18:35] So will the enemy resist God's promise? Yes, the enemy is going to resist God's promise. When they get to the promised land, there's going to be a whole lot of resistance. But he's also going to be overcome by God's promise, isn't he?

[18:46] No matter how much he resists. Romans 1620 says, and the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. Remember when my sister was, I don't know, my older sister in her late teens, she was going to go on this missions trip.

[18:59] And it was through a very Pentecostal, our Pentecostal brethren establishment. And they did a song that was like, and the God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. And every time they said that line, everyone would jump.

[19:12] So the whole place is like, boom, boom. It was very impactful. But notice what it says. The God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly.

[19:24] It's not the God of peace will give the strength to knock down Satan. And that's how God looks at him. He's just like, hey, he's just, just step on him and move forward. Isaiah 54, 17.

[19:35] No weapon that's formed against you shall prosper. And every tongue that shall rise against you in judgment, you shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord. And their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.

[19:47] And Israel, move forward. How can you, how can you not move forward? What has God already done? And Pharaoh's defeated his army. They've been washed up on the shore. The mightiest nation on the planet at the time, Egypt.

[20:00] So go forward. What are these enemies? What's the enemy in front of you? Sin has been defeated. Death is overcome. What's that thing in front of you that God says, just step on it and keep walking.

[20:12] So I'll take you onto a land in verse three, flowing with milk and honey. As a kid, I was told you take the Bible literal. I'm like, okay. I always thought, I wonder what that looked like.

[20:23] A land flowing with milk and honey. That's pretty cool. Well, it's abundance and blessing. God's word commands God's people to go forward into a place of abundance and blessing.

[20:36] Into a place of promise. Promise of the promise to Abraham. Place of victory where he says, I'm going to defeat your enemies. And then we see a land flowing with milk and honey into blessing.

[20:47] God's word commands God's people to go into promise, into victory, into blessing. Guys, I like lists. I like checklists. I like checklists at work, too. Makes it easier than a check on the contractor, you know, to know what he's doing.

[21:01] And this section was like so many things like, oh. And I like it because I feel like God's word is like, like you read it on face value and it's like, that's really good.

[21:12] And then like you peel back a layer and you're like, oh. And then you peel another one. And before you know it, you have this massive tree almost of information that came from this one little root.

[21:23] That's what it's like. Like when you see a scripture like this, it's like, well, what has God just done? Well, God's word just commanded God's people to go forth into promise, into victory, into blessing. I really love that kind of stuff.

[21:36] Israel's sin did not remove Israel from God's promise, did it? Israel had sinned greatly. But God didn't remove the promise from Israel. God's promise to his people stand, God's promises to his people stand, even when his people don't.

[21:52] It's a principle. God's promises to his people stand, even when his people don't. The righteous man falls seven times, gets back up again, because God's promise stands.

[22:04] Numbers 23, 19 says, God is not a man that he should lie, neither the son of man that he should repent. Has he said and shall he not do it? Or has he spoken and shall he not make it good?

[22:15] God's promise stands, whether his people do or not. The promise still stands today. That if any man would put his faith in Christ, for God so loved the world, he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever would believe in him will not perish.

[22:28] That promise stands for every man, woman, and child. But not everyone wants to stand in that promise. Doesn't mean God's promise fails. First Corinthians, Paul writes in chapter one, verse eight, that God shall also confirm you unto the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

[22:47] God is faithful by whom you were called under the fellowship of his son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. God's the one who's faithful. God's the one who preserves us. God's the one who keeps us.

[22:57] Verse three, unto a land flowing with milk and honey, for I will not go up into the midst of you. Well, that's a bummer. We have some really good news. And now here comes the bad news.

[23:07] For I will not go up, God says, in the midst of you. For you are stiff-necked people, lest I consume you in the way. God is telling the people that they could have his promise, but not his presence.

[23:22] They say, I'm not going to go up in the midst of you. Remember, God was a forgiving God, but he's also a foreknowing God. He's like, yes, I forgive you. But you know what? If I'm among you, what is going to reconcile a sinful people to a holy God?

[23:36] How can I be among you? Who knows what you're going to do next? What is it that reconciles a holy God to a sinful people? Well, we know the answer to that. It requires sacrifice, a sacrifice.

[23:48] As Isaac says to Abraham, well, here's the fire and here's the wood, but where's the burnt offering? In Genesis 22. And Abraham said, my son, God will provide himself a lamb for burnt offering. God's already given the means for this on the mountain.

[24:02] He's given it. Now, they haven't implemented it yet. So what is God doing here? I think he's doing exactly what he did with Moses. When he said, Moses, step aside. I'm going to destroy these people. And Moses stepped in and says, no, Lord.

[24:14] No, no, no, no. And he intercedes. I think he's drawing the people out. Hey, you can have my promise. I'll give it all to you. You can have the promised land. You can have the flowing milk and honey fountains.

[24:26] You can have all of that. But my presence won't be with you. God is placing before Israel the option to receive the promise, but without the presence.

[24:38] To receive the blessing without the presence of the one who gives the blessing. And without God's presence, is there really a blessing? Is heaven heaven without God? What is his blessings without his presence?

[24:51] What does it matter? If you've got a promised land and a promised stuff and whatever, who cares? I'd rather have nothing in his presence. Because when I'm feeling low or condemned or that stuff doesn't do anything.

[25:05] So this is the first step for Israel on their path to spiritual renewal and revival. As God is calling them out of this momentary lapse where they totally just have been living in sin and idolatry.

[25:17] He's calling them out of this. He's like, all right, this is the path forward. I want you to walk. Arise and go into this path of spiritual renewal and revival. And in the South, revival means something very different.

[25:29] I'm from upstate New York, you know, and it's like, man, God send revival. Which is like a renewing of his spirit in people's lives. Down here is revival, something you have like every October 5th or something.

[25:41] We're going to have a revival. But it just means that our hearts would be reawakened to the things of the spirit. This is the first step. Do they desire God's presence more than his blessing?

[25:52] Are they willing to risk all just to be near him? And when the people heard these evil tidings, they mourned. Good response, Israel. Good response. Because of all the evils in this world, there is nothing so evil as separation from God.

[26:06] There is no evil greater being separated from God and from his presence. And also realize what this means. Israel stood out from all other peoples in the world. Their God promised to be in their midst.

[26:19] No other nation had that. God is remote. He's distant. He's, oh, he's so special. Only the priests can go near. And God is saying, yeah, we're going to have a order and a system of worship.

[26:30] You know, we're going to do this in a way so you can draw near. So I don't consume you. But I'm going to be in your midst. That was the promise that he gave to them. And they're mourning because they'd lost what made them unique among all peoples, that their God would dwell among them.

[26:46] And when the people heard these evil tidings, they mourned. And no man did put on him his ornaments. For the Lord had said unto Moses, say unto the children of Israel, you are stiff-necked people.

[26:59] God doesn't whitewash our sin. I will come up into the midst of you in a moment and consume you. Therefore, now put off your ornaments from you, that I may know what to do unto you.

[27:09] And there the children of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments by the Mount Horeb. So they were having a holiday to this golden calf. Moses comes down, puts an end to that.

[27:20] But they're still, and they've said, okay, we're going to join ourselves with the Lord. But they still had on the trappings and the outward ornaments from this ceremony or whatever.

[27:32] So verses five through six would actually come before the chapter. We're getting information here that's already happened. And the Lord had said, he said, say to the children of Israel, you're a stiff-necked people.

[27:43] I'll come up into the midst of you in a moment, consume you. Therefore, excuse me, now put off your ornaments and find out what I'm going to do to you. And they said, okay, we'll do that. They fully consecrated themselves.

[27:54] They fully consecrated themselves inside and outside, right? Exodus 32, 29, Moses had said, consecrate yourselves today to the Lord. And so then he says, put off your ornaments.

[28:06] They said, okay, we're going to do that. And Israel's outward life is revealing an inward change, right? It's matching with that. And so that's why it says, and they did not put on them their ornaments.

[28:20] Like, okay, that's interesting. Do you put on your ornaments to go to church? What's it talking about? It just means that they didn't then put back on those things. Even after they heard that the Lord said, hey, I'm not going to go up into your presence.

[28:33] My presence will not go with you. They didn't then say, well, fine, we're going to go back to the golden calf. They said, no, God, we're going to follow your way no matter what. Israel was willing to obey God's word at personal cost to themselves.

[28:47] The next step on their journey of spiritual renewal and revival. They were willing to obey his word at personal cost to themselves. We're going to leave that. That's fine. That's an ornament you said leave behind.

[28:57] I'll leave it behind, Lord. And I'll, you know what? Things aren't going well. I expected God's presence. I expected blessing. I'm going to go back to that. Like, no, it doesn't matter. I'm done with that.

[29:08] And I'm moving forward with the Lord. In verse seven, and Moses took the tabernacle and pitched it without the camp. Now you think, wait a minute. They made the tabernacle already?

[29:20] We just went through like four chapters or more about the design of the tabernacle and its layout and all of this. And that Aholiab and, I can't remember the other guys.

[29:35] Bezalel, Bezalel and Aholiab. Good names for your kids, guys. They were commissioned and anointed and called to build the tabernacle. It's like, they built it already?

[29:46] No, this is not that tabernacle. Moses took the tabernacle. Tabernacle just means tent. Literally, the idea is Moses took his tent and ran out and pitched it without the camp, afar off from the camp, and called it the tabernacle of congregation.

[30:02] And it came to pass that everyone which sought the Lord went out under the tabernacle of the congregation, which was without the camp. Moses here is initiating a radical and spontaneous effort to seek God in his personal life.

[30:19] He's like, all right. He's taking his own tent and he's running out outside the camp. He says, you know what, God? He's essentially saying, God, if you won't come to us, we're just going to go to you. If you won't dwell among us, man, I'm going to go where you are.

[30:31] Hebrews 13, 12 says, Wherefore, Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate. Let us go forth, therefore, unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach.

[30:46] For here we have no continuing city, but we seek one to come. And let's be radical, spontaneous. Do what? To seek the Lord, to get into his presence.

[30:57] Moses said, if you won't come to us, I'm going to go to you. Moses sought God radically. It's not a word we use much anymore. In the 90s it was. You know, it's rad. Radically, like outside the ordinary.

[31:09] Spontaneously. He didn't wait around. I wonder what I should do in this instance. Determinedly. Personally. And then singularly. He didn't wait for someone else to do it.

[31:21] So, you know what? Any volunteers? I don't feel like it today. Singularly. That, yes, it was him doing it, but he also did it alone. He just was willing to go.

[31:32] But it wasn't just for himself. But for the sake of the people, wasn't it? All who would. And it's kind of a sad statement because we don't get any instance of anybody going out there.

[31:42] It came to pass that everyone which sought the Lord, they would go out unto the tabernacle of the congregation, which was without the camp. You know, John writes in 1 John, the writer of the Gospel of John, then writes 1, 2, 3 John.

[31:56] He says, John is saying, We heard him.

[32:19] We saw him. We handled him. We fellowship with him. Guys, we're pretty special. We're pretty special. He says, No, the whole point of writing this isn't to brag, but it's so that you also may have fellowship with us.

[32:32] Truly, our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. Moses' personal walk and devotion to God was initiating a response in the lives of those around him. Those that were determined to meet with God would need to follow in Moses' example, wouldn't they?

[32:49] They would need to separate themselves. They would need to be determined. When Moses went out there, it was very evident. As you see him walking out across that distance, say, okay, there he's going.

[33:00] It's evident. What are you doing this morning? I'm going to church. Hey, you know, I was going to go do this Sunday morning. You want to come? Oh, I can't. Sorry. I'm determined to separate myself evidently under the Lord. It was personal.

[33:15] It was by faith, for fellowship, and in forgiveness. We do the same thing, guys. We've chosen to separate ourselves. We've determined to be where God's people are. It's evident in our lives, but it's a personal thing.

[33:29] Nobody can do it for you. It's like, well, I know that, you know, my relatives go to that church, so that probably covers me a little bit. But we do it by faith. We do it for fellowship with the Father, with His Son, Jesus Christ, and then with each other.

[33:43] And we do it in forgiveness. A life that moves towards the Lord, a life moving towards the Lord will move away from the world.

[33:54] Moses is walking. He's saying, I'm going out to meet with the Lord. I'm going into God's presence. If I go alone, I'm going to take that which is mine. As for me and my house, Joshua will eventually say, we'll serve the Lord. A life moving towards the Lord will move away from the world.

[34:08] The world's in the rearview mirror, guys, as we continue to move towards the Lord. And this is the next step in spiritual renewal and revival. Being willing to move away from the world and towards the Lord. James 4.8 says to draw near to God and He will draw near to you.

[34:23] But then it says, cleanse your hands, you sinners. Purify your hearts, you double-minded. The idea is you're not going to draw near to Him. If you don't have clean hands, an impure heart, and a double mind. And that's not because God rejects you.

[34:35] I can guarantee you, if you have unclean hands, an impure heart, and a double mind, you're not going to want to draw near to the Lord. Man, I don't want to draw near. But when you realize you need to draw near, that's where you find a way to cleanse your hands, purify your heart, and have a singular mind towards the Lord.

[34:51] Very simply, we who claim to love God should be about the things of God. Right? I love God, you know. I love my wife. When was the last time? Oh, we don't go out. We don't talk.

[35:02] You know. But I love her. I don't give her any gifts. I don't do anything she likes to do. Okay. We who claim to love God should be about the things of God. God's heart for His people is not just, He's like, you need to do what I tell you to do.

[35:22] But His heart is the same for these people that He's saying, get up and go. Go into a place of promise, a place of victory, and a place of blessing. We're not going to find that apart from the things God loves. Jesus says in Luke 6, 46, Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and don't do the things which I say?

[35:38] Jesus said things very, sometimes very plainly, and sometimes very obscurely. When you read some of the parables, you're like, what did that mean? Sometimes it's really simple. This is one of those really simple ones.

[35:49] Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and don't do the things which I say? I wonder what the original wording in the Greek is. I wonder what it means. Does He really mean I need to do what He says? 1 John 2, 15, Do not love the world, neither the things that are in the world.

[36:03] If any man loved the world, the love of the Father is not in him. Now, John is writing to the church. He's not writing to unbelievers. This isn't like, well, someone loves the world, they're not a Christian. Of course, unbelievers love the world.

[36:15] That's who they are. But he's saying, if any man loved the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that's in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life is not of the Father, but of the world.

[36:27] You see, when we choose to love the world, we're not going to find that we're going to have a love for the Father, or a love of the Father's being expressed in our lives. What we're going to have is we're going to have the desire of the flesh, the eyes, and the pride of life.

[36:41] It's not of the Father. It's of the world. The world needs to be in the rear view as we move forward in Christ. Moses radically makes a decision to separate himself and to go where God's presence is.

[36:59] Verse 8, Moses is a life that is seeking God's presence.

[37:17] Moses is a life that is desiring God's presence. It's identifiable. They knew it. They could tell. There goes Moses. It was effective. It had an effect on other people's lives around him.

[37:29] It was encouraging. People are very encouraged to see Moses going out and to be praying and be in God's presence. It was also lonely. They all stood in their tents.

[37:41] Say, hey, Moses, we'll go with you. Are you going to God's presence? That's awesome. You go to church on Wednesday nights? That's cool. God bless. It's great. It can be lonely when we decide to separate ourselves from the world.

[37:52] It can be lonely when it's like, hey, have you seen this? I don't want to see that. Have you heard this? I don't want to hear that. I'm just going to be over here alone. But we have God's presence.

[38:06] 2 Corinthians 6, 17. Wherefore, come out from among them. Be you separate, saith the Lord. Touch not the unclean thing. Why? Because God just wants a bunch of goody two shoes?

[38:18] No, because he wants to fellowship with us. I will receive you. Don't worry what you're separating from. Look where you're going to. I will receive you and will be a father unto you, and you shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.

[38:31] Well, that's a good deal. Whatever God's calling us out of, we're being called into a family relationship with our Heavenly Father. But like these people standing at their tent doors, it's not enough just to watch another, to honor another, and to stand for another.

[38:48] We must participate each ourselves. It's not enough. Just be like, well, I'm standing. I'm honoring. I'm watching. And you've got to participate. Personal participation is our next step in spiritual renewal and revival.

[39:02] We have to participate personally. I can set the table, but I can't make you eat it. I can shove your face into it. I tried doing that in youth ministry.

[39:12] You can eat that. It doesn't work. They still won't eat it. You just mess up a bunch of kids. And it came to pass in verse 9, as Moses entered into the tabernacle, as he goes into this tent, the cloudy pillar descends.

[39:29] Remember, God is leading them by day as a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. That that cloud, the physical representation of God's presence, would descend and stood at the door of the tabernacle.

[39:41] And the Lord talked with Moses. Moses is on the inside of the tent. I always thought it was the opposite. I thought, oh yeah, yeah. Moses goes out to the tent and God's glory makes the tent glow or whatever.

[39:53] It's not. Moses goes into the tent and the pillar comes down on the outside of the tent to give witness to what? To give witness to the rest of the camp that, hey, God's meeting with Moses. The Lord here responded to Moses' radical desire to enter into his presence.

[40:11] He's responding to that. How? He's responding by his witness. He's allowing the witness to be seen in Moses' life. That this is a man who has radically desired to enter into my presence.

[40:22] His condescension. He's descended. He's come down. That he would, God's presence and they would see this mighty presence of God is just going to be with Moses.

[40:33] His time to take time to be there with Moses. His very nearness that he's on the other side of this tent, the other side of this veil. And then lastly, it's his word that he talks with him.

[40:44] God is responding to Moses' desire. Moses runs out, pitches his tent and goes in it and says, God, I'm going to stay here and wait for you. All by myself. I just want to be in your presence. And God responds to that.

[40:55] Moses' life is having a great effect upon the people around him.

[41:09] But you know, Moses never saw that. Where's Moses? In the tent. He never saw the effect that his witness had on other people's lives around him. His time with the Lord had a great effect on the lives around him.

[41:23] But he never saw it. Because he was focused on the Lord. Because he's with the Lord. In 1 Corinthians 3, verse 6, Paul is writing to the church of Corinth about their crazy desire just to follow after man.

[41:37] He's like, listen, you're trying to follow people. Don't follow Paul. Don't follow Apollos. Don't follow Peter. Peter says, I've planted. Apollos has watered. But God gave the increase. And you know, sometimes you just plant and you plant and you sow and you sow and you sow.

[41:52] And you don't get to see the increase. You know, maybe you're a waterer. You just get a lot of water going. Like, man, I just don't get to see the increase. God, are you doing something?

[42:04] Here's Moses. Every time he goes into this tent and he meets with the Lord, the whole camp in their tents is causing worship to take place. In these individual homes. Moses never sees that.

[42:15] But he continues to faithfully pursue the Lord. Our last verse for today. The Lord spake unto Moses face to face as a man speaks unto his friend.

[42:25] God's going to tell Moses here shortly. Well, next week. You can't see my face lest you die. You're saying, well, what is this talking about? I think Numbers gives us some insight into this.

[42:35] Numbers chapter 12. This is when Miriam and Aaron, Moses' brothers and sisters, older brother and sister, will come and say, who do you think you are, Moses? We're prophet and prophecies too.

[42:47] And the Lord then comes and he says, hey, all of you come out to the tent of meeting with Moses and I'm going to speak to you there. And he says, hear now my words. This is the Lord speaking. If there be a prophet among you, I, the Lord, will make myself known unto him in a vision and will speak to him in a dream.

[43:03] This is how God spoke to the prophets in the Old Testament. Through a vision and a dream. He says, but my servant Moses is not so. Who is faithful in all my house. This is how God saw Moses.

[43:16] With him, I will speak mouth to mouth, even apparently and not in dark speeches. And the similitude of the Lord shall he behold. So in some form, in some way, in this cloud and shrouded pre-incarnate form of Jesus, essentially.

[43:31] And through the veil of his tent, he's able to see. God is speaking to him face to face as a man, as a friend. And with him, I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently and not in dark speeches.

[43:45] He's not hiding it. It's not like a parable. It's not like, what does this really mean? I mean, you read some of like the minor prophets and you're like, what? We're going through revelation on Wednesday nights, the off nights when we're not doing prayer.

[43:55] And it's like, what are all these signs, Lord? What exactly is this? And then sometimes we get those very plain meanings where Jesus just said, why do you call me Lord, Lord? And don't do what I say.

[44:05] Well, he's saying, I'm not, I'm not trying to hide anything from Moses. I'm just speaking to him here. As a man, it says in verse 11 of our text, as a man speaks with his friends.

[44:16] You know, I bet God is speaking to Moses distinctly, sensibly, and with understanding. I bet God is speaking to Moses with clarity, insight, intelligence, perception, and discernment.

[44:27] See, the great God of the universe who would condescend down to meet with his, his deliverer with Moses sees him as a friend.

[44:40] And that same God gave his life for his friends. John 15, Jesus says, greater love has no man than this, than a man lay down his life for his friends.

[44:51] He says, I'm speaking to Moses face to face as a friend. You are my friends. If you do whatsoever, I command you. Well, there we go again. What do I got to do? All right, Jesus, what do I got to do?

[45:03] I'll make the list to be your friend. Well, John, again, writing in first John chapter five, verse three, will say that his commands aren't grievous. This is the love of God that we keep his commandments.

[45:13] The apostles would come to God or come to Jesus and would say to him, Lord, what is the work of God that we may do it?

[45:24] He says, this is the work of God. Believe on him who he has sent. That's his work. The commands of God, they're not grievous because they're based in love and they're accomplished through faith.

[45:35] It's not something I have to figure out how to do. It's been done for me. And so this great God of the universe who had come down to speak with Moses, who would call him a friend, says, I call you friends.

[45:48] And John 15, 15, he says, I don't call you any more servants. For the servant knows not what his Lord does, but I have called you friends. For all things that I've made, that I've heard of my father, I've made known unto you.

[46:02] That he has called us friends. Same relationship that Moses had with God. We experience even greater in our friend, Jesus. A servant, you say, man, I'd like to be the Lord's servant.

[46:14] I want to serve the Lord. The Lord wants you to serve him too, but he doesn't see you as a servant. He sees you as a friend. See, a servant doesn't need to know why. Just go do this, says the master.

[46:25] Go do this. Okay, I'm going to go do that. But Jesus, as a friend, says, no, I want to speak to you. I want you to understand my heart. I want to tell you why I've made known unto you all things the Father has spoken unto me. I want you to come into my presence.

[46:38] And the Lord spake unto Moses face to face as a man speaks unto his friend. And then we get this last section tucked on, tagged on the end of verse 11. So cool. And he turned again into the camp.

[46:50] Moses leaves and goes back into the camp. Remember, he's gone out alone. Nobody goes with him. They're all standing in his tent. And we find out he's not alone. But we don't know how this guy got there. Joshua, Yeshua, Jehovah is salvation is already in the tabernacle, in the text.

[47:06] Like, obviously he went with Moses, but we're not given that. But his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, he didn't depart out of the tabernacle. Joshua doesn't leave the tabernacle.

[47:18] Moses does, but Yeshua stays. He's a type of our Joshua who would tabernacle among us. I like here too where it says a young man. Didn't need to say that.

[47:28] It points out to us, hey, Joshua is a young man. You know, age is never a limiting factor for God's presence. You got to have us be a certain age to be in God's presence. And then, well, now you're too old to be in God's presence.

[47:40] You have, Joshua is a young man and Moses is over 80 years old. And they're both in God's presence. Age is not a limiting factor. David, as a young man, was called because the Lord said that I have seen David, the son of Jesse, a man.

[47:56] He's a boy. He says, no, I see a man after my own heart. But at some point in his life, he would write in Psalm 84, verse 10, for a day in your courts is better than a thousand. I'd rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than to dwell in the tents of the wicked.

[48:11] Give me God's tent. I'll stay in God's tent. I'll be the doorkeeper. And to be in the tents of the wicked. Why? What's the difference? God's presence. God's presence.

[48:23] God's will for his friends is that they come into his presence. And we come into his presence by getting into his word. And the word was made flesh and dwelt among us.

[48:35] And we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the father. Excuse me. Just as Moses, he beheld some type of similitude. Well, we behold the similitude of Jesus, too.

[48:48] The word was made flesh. It dwelt among us. And we beheld his glory, the glory of the only begotten of the father, full of grace and truth. And of his fullness have all we received and grace for grace.

[49:01] What does Jesus look like? Grace and truth is what Jesus looks like. That Jesus would choose to dwell among us.

[49:14] The word there and the word was made flesh and dwelt among us is the word for tabernacle. To tent. That he came to tabernacle. Second Corinthians 5.1 describes our bodies as tabernacles as well.

[49:25] And remarkably, that today, our Joshua, his presence does not ever depart from this tabernacle either. Once we invite him in. Hebrews 9.24 says that Christ is entered into the holy place made with hands.

[49:40] I mean, not entered, I'm sorry, into the holy place made with hands. He has entered into the heavenly place. Now to appear in the presence of God for us. So when Moses was told to make the tabernacle, he's like, make it exactly as I instruct you, Moses.

[49:55] Because it's going to represent the heavenly tabernacle. And I want this to be a representation on earth to lead to the one who would tabernacle among us. To lead to Christ.

[50:07] Jesus has not entered into a holy place made with hands, but into heaven itself. Now to appear in the presence of God for us. He's entered into that tabernacle, the heavenly one, taking the blood of the everlasting covenant from the cross.

[50:18] And he's never going to leave that one. And then he enters in by his spirit into us. And he's like, I'm not going to leave that one either. Colossians 1.27. To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles.

[50:34] One of the mysteries Paul's speaking about. If you were here last Wednesday, we talked about how mystery, it just means secret. Something that can only be known by revelation. Doesn't mean you have to figure it out and discover it. You're only going to know it by revelation.

[50:44] God has made known this revelation, the riches of the glory of this revelation among the Gentiles. And it's this. Christ in you. The hope of glory. That Christ would tabernacle in you.

[50:56] This great, amazing revelation is that Jesus would dwell with us. That God himself is very present. Would tabernacle with us. Whom we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom.

[51:10] That we may present every man perfect, whole, complete in Christ Jesus. Please, receive Christ Jesus. Let him come and dwell in you and with you. So that then you might be received in him.

[51:23] He comes in us so that we can be in him. His presence will never depart from our tabernacle. Just as we read here at the end of verse 11.

[51:33] Joshua, Moses left, but Joshua stays there in the tabernacle in the presence of God. So now God's presence tabernacles with us and will not leave. Matthew 28.20. Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.

[51:48] There's no price too high to pay for the presence of God. There's no price too high to pay for God's presence. Philippians 3. Yea, doubtless, I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ, my Lord.

[52:03] For whom I've suffered the loss of all things. I do count them but refuse that I may win Christ and be found in him, not having my own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness, which is of God by faith.

[52:18] That I may know him. The power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings. There's no price too high to pay for God's presence. To know him. The power of his resurrection.

[52:31] Yes! The fellowship of his sufferings. Praise God. Praise God that his presence is there in the midst of my sufferings as well. We who claim to love God, we should be about the things God loves.

[52:42] Are we currently experiencing his presence? Are we currently living out a life that, like Moses, is evidence that the presence of God is working in our lives?

[52:55] I don't mean, has God rejected us? And, you know, am I saved? And if any man be in Christ, he's a new creation. Old things are passed away. But am I living that? Am I getting to experience that?

[53:06] Or is that something that I'm looking for someone else to do? You go do that. I'm going to stay over here with the things that I find enjoyable in the world. And listen, there's plenty of enjoyable things in the world. But we're not to love the world.

[53:19] And we're to live in the world in it, but not of it. So we presuppose, we presuppose that the God revealed in the pages of Scripture is able to reveal these Scriptures to his people.

[53:31] And what has God revealed to us today? He's revealed his presence. He's revealed that we're never alone as we journey in spiritual renewal and revival.

[53:42] We're not alone. As God says, go forward. Don't go back. Don't go back to the broken. Don't try and fix. Just leave it. Leave the junk at the base of the mountain. Leave it there. Yes, you've broken God's law.

[53:53] And there's all the ornaments. Leave it. The path to spiritual renewal and revival is Christ in you, the hope of glory. The path to spiritual renewal and revival.

[54:06] One, desiring God's presence more than his blessing. Understanding that the presence of God is the blessing of God. And I don't have to have that manifested in my life in a certain way to say, well, God has blessed me.

[54:19] Or God's not blessing me. God is a blessing himself. God is a blessing. Spiritual renewal and revival is desiring God's presence more than the blessings he gives. Being willing to obey God's word at personal cost.

[54:33] Being willing to obey God's word at personal cost. You know, my son turned 13. So we've been having man talks. Sorry, Henry. Being a man is not about acting like a man.

[54:44] You're a man whether you want to be or not. That's a given. But men who act like men. What does it separate? What does the difference between man and boy? Acting like a man and acting like a boy.

[54:55] A boy does what he feels like doing. What he wants to do. A man does what he knows is right. Whether he feels like it or not. Now there are many men today that act like boys. That only do what they want to do and what they feel like doing.

[55:07] A man does what he knows is right. Whether he feels like it or not. A man does what he knows God's word says. Whether he feels like it or not.

[55:18] Willing to obey God's word at personal cost. Am I willing to obey God's word when it costs me my desires, my plans, my feelings? Moving towards the Lord and away from the world.

[55:32] It's a hard one. It's hard to walk alone. Narrow is the way that leads to life and few there be that find it. Broad is the way that leads to destruction. Many there be that go therein. It can be hard. But guys, look around you.

[55:44] You're not alone. You have God's presence. You have Joshua. The Joshua. The fulfillment of that. Jesus himself is with you. And we have each other. We're not alone.

[55:56] And lastly, personal participation in the presence of the Lord. Get up, guys. And go up into his presence. Get up in the morning. Get up and go to that place. Get up and be with the Lord.

[56:09] Let him build into your life the reality of what's already a part of your life. Is Christ in you? You have the hope of glory. Live it. Live it by being a part of the things that God loves.

[56:23] The teaching of God's word is distinct, sensible, and understandable. And I pray, Lord, that today, Lord, you would impact those things upon our hearts, Lord. Lord, the things that you made distinct to each one of us, Lord.

[56:37] The things that you pointed out so clearly to us and said, yeah, that was for me today. Lord, I pray that it would make sense, Lord. Lord, you don't want us wandering around trying to figure things out on our own, Lord.

[56:49] You're very sensible, Lord. I think the enemy and even our own minds many times and sometimes well-meaning Christians and brothers and sisters in Christ, they tell us to do things that aren't sensible. Well, if you want to be right with the Lord, you need to do this.

[57:02] But Lord, you're so good. Just as the apostles when they said, Lord, what is the work of God? They were thinking something they'd have to do. And so simply, you said, well, just believe.

[57:13] Believe on the one whom he has sent. Except you come as a little child and believe. You shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

[57:25] Lord, it's very, very simple. And yet it's so vastly amazing and deep. Thank you, Lord, for your distinct, sensible word. Thank you that we can understand it, Lord.

[57:37] Lord, as we worship you now, Lord, as we close in song, Lord, I pray that, Lord, you would just write upon our hearts, Lord, the reality of our relationship with Jesus Christ, where his presence abides with us, where we don't have to go and seek him somewhere, but we should seek him.

[57:57] Lord, I pray that in each one of our lives, Lord, that we would be about the things you love. If we say we love God, we would do the things that God loves. We would do that by faith, in forgiveness, knowing that, Lord, you are the one who fulfills your promises.

[58:11]  We love you and we thank you. In Jesus' name, amen.