My God is Mighty to Save - Exodus 3

because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering.

So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians

and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land,

a land flowing with milk and honey,

the home of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites and Jebusites.

And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me,

and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them.

So now go.

I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.

But Moses said to God,

Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?

And God said,

I will be with you,

and this will be a sign to you that it is I who have sent you.

When you have brought the people out of Egypt,

you will worship God on this mountain.

Moses said to God,

Suppose I go to the Israelites and they say to them,

The God of your fathers has sent me to you,

and they ask me,

What is his name?

Then what shall I tell them?

God said to Moses,

I am who I am.

This is what you are to say to the Israelites.

I am has sent me to you.

God also said to Moses,

Say to the Israelites,

The Lord,

the God of your fathers,

the God of Abraham,

and the God of Isaac,

and the God of Jacob

has sent me to you.

This is my name forever.

The name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation.

Go,

assemble the elders of Israel,

and say to them,

The Lord,

the God of your fathers,

the God of Abraham,

and Isaac,

and Jacob

appeared to me and said,

I have watched over you,

and have seen what has been done to you in Egypt.

And I have promised to bring you up out of your misery in Egypt,

into the land of the Canaanites,

the Hivites,

the Amorites,

the Perizzites,

the Hivites,

and Jebusites,

a land flowing with milk and honey.

The elders of Israel will listen to you.

Then you and the elders are to go to the king of Egypt and say to him,

The Lord,

the God of the Hebrews,

has sent,

has met with us.

Let us take a three-day journey into the desert

to offer sacrifices to the Lord our God.

But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go

unless a mighty hand compels him.

So I will stretch out my hand

and strike the Egyptians with all the wonders that I will perform among them.

After that,

he will let you go.

And I will make the Egyptians favorably disposed towards his people,

so that when you leave,

you will not go empty-handed.

Every woman is to ask her neighbor

and any woman living in her house

for articles of silver and gold and for clothing,

which you will put on your sons and daughters,

and so you will plunder the Egyptians.

Jonathan.

Jonathan.

Thank you.

Let's just bow ahead and pray just as we come to God's word.

Father,

we do thank you for your word,

for that living and active word.

I pray indeed as we hear the words from Scripture

that indeed our hearts will be changed,

that our desire will be to know you more,

to live out our lives in service to you.

Help us, Lord,

to concentrate,

to focus on you,

and to be enthralled once again

at how mighty,

and what a great God you are.

Amen.

I'd like to ask you a question.

Do you like rescue stories?

You do?

You might remember a number of years ago,

there was these miners in Chile

got caught in a mine deep underground.

Do you remember that?

There was 33 men

were stuck over 2,000 feet down,

and for a few days,

nobody even knew they were alive.

Once they knew they were alive,

people made huge efforts to save them.

In fact,

for nearly 70 days,

they made efforts.

They were sending down food and water,

coming up with ways to save them.

By the 69th day,

when the first miners were coming up from the ground,

one billion people, it was estimated,

were watching it live.

So if you can imagine that,

all these people all around the world,

with all that was going on in their lives,

were tuning in to see 33 people

in a small part of Chile

being raised to the ground.

Why were people so interested in that?

Why was it the focus of so many conversations,

the focus of so many news reports?

Is it because we like to see people rescued?

We don't want people to suffer.

After all,

these were real men

who were down underground

in a desperate situation,

couldn't save themselves.

Maybe that's why we were so interested in them.

Our movies.

We do like rescue movies as well,

don't we?

Movies like Spartacus

or Braveheart.

And often in these movies,

there's a hero.

And we like heroes,

don't we?

We want to know what the hero is like.

If we think of Braveheart,

you think of William Wallace.

He was raised up

to try to save,

to rescue his people,

the Scottish people,

from being under the British.

And he said to them,

Scotland needs to be free.

And people were excited about that.

But William Wallace,

who was he?

After all,

is he going to be able to help them?

Because if it's going to be a rescue,

and there's going to be a hero

to do the rescue,

we actually want to know

what they're like,

don't we?

Because a hero needs to be able

to complete what he's doing.

There's no point in giving

false hope to somebody

if he's not going to be able

to do it.

In our reading this morning,

it's from Exodus chapter 3,

Exodus 3 · chapter mention

and we're going to see

a great rescue.

Now,

if we're familiar with Exodus,

different things will come

to our minds.

For example,

we might think of

the Ten Commandments,

or we might think of

the plagues in Egypt,

or we might think of

Moses in a basket,

going back to perhaps

if you've heard the stories

or seen pictures

in Sunday school

or something of the

Moses in a basket,

and being saved.

Well,

if you have your Bibles open,

turn back to chapter 1 of Exodus.

Our passage is right

at the start of Exodus,

and we see the context

for our passage.

chapter 1,

it speaks of the sons of Israel

who went from their land of Canaan

down into Egypt.

And when they arrived,

they started to have children

and more children and children

until the generations passed.

And for a long time,

everything went well.

Look at verse 7 of chapter 1.

But the Israelites were fruitful

and multiplied greatly

and became exceedingly numerous.

They were prospering.

But in their prospering,

they came to notice

of the king.

Look at verse 9.

Look, the king said,

the Israelites have become

too numerous for us.

Come,

we must deal with them shrewdly

or they will become

even more numerous.

And here was the main worry he had.

And if war breaks out,

they will join our enemies,

fight against us,

and leave the country.

So he came up with a solution.

I'll make them slaves.

And that's exactly what he did.

Look down in verse 11.

He put slave masters over them.

Verse 12.

He oppressed them

and he treated them ruthlessly.

In verse 14,

it tells us that their lives were bitter

and they had hard labor.

They weren't very happy about this,

were they?

How could this actually happen?

Because back in Genesis,

we're told when Israel

and all his sons

came down into Egypt,

the king actually welcomed them.

This was good.

This was a good thing to happen.

Yet, all these years later,

they were being treated as slaves.

And if that wasn't bad enough,

look at verse 22.

Because the slavery wasn't working

and the Israelites were still

growing in number,

Pharaoh had another idea.

And this time he said,

let's kill every boy

that is born

and throw them into the Nile.

This was going to be a solution

to the growing number

of the Israelites.

Now, if this happened nowadays,

there'd be an international outcry.

We'd hear about it on the UN.

It'd be all over social media.

There might even be military intervention

from a neighboring country.

But for the Israelites,

they were stuck.

They were in their slavery.

There was nothing they could do

except groan out and cry.

Look at verse 23 of chapter 2.

It says,

the Israelites groaned in their slavery

and cried out

because they were powerless.

There was absolutely no one

was going to help them.

All they could do was cry and groan.

Now, just pause for a moment.

You've got these people in Egypt.

They were slaves.

They were no power, no freedom.

They were fearing for their children.

They basically had no life.

They were in a desperate situation.

We see something like that

even in modern days

when we see the migrants

trying to flee North Africa,

trying to get to Europe.

They were desperate.

They couldn't do anything themselves.

They were hopping on boats to go across.

In one interview,

one man was interviewed

and he said,

I didn't know

whether I was going to live or die.

And I wondered

how the Israelites felt.

After all,

they didn't know

whether they were going to live or die.

I mean,

did no one care

about their circumstances?

Now,

bear in mind,

these are the children of Israel.

I wonder,

did it come to their mind,

where was God in all this?

Here they were,

slaves,

powerless,

they couldn't do anything.

Is it right to ask,

where is God?

Why isn't God doing anything about this?

After all,

was a promise not made

to their forefather Abraham?

Do you remember back in Genesis,

in Genesis chapter 12 and 17,

Genesis 12 · chapter mention

God made promises to Abraham.

He said,

I will bless you.

You will be the father of many nations.

I will be your God

and you will be my people.

And not only that,

but I'm going to give you this great land,

a land flowing with milk and honey.

But what were they looking around at now?

They were looking at half-built cities

that they were supposed to be building

or fields that they're supposed to work in

that never seem to be finished.

How could that happen?

Had God forgotten them?

Had God broken his promise?

Maybe God wasn't able

to fulfill his promise.

After all,

he said,

I'll bring you into this land,

but they weren't there.

Or maybe God had chosen someone else.

Maybe he'd chosen another people group

in the world

and said,

I'll forget about these guys.

I wonder if that goes through

the minds of the Israelites.

And so often for us,

when we're going through

different circumstances,

we too might think these things.

Where is God?

We might say it out loud,

but do we often find ourselves

in a situation

where we're thinking,

life isn't great at the moment.

It had so much promise.

I had ideas.

I was going to do this,

this,

this,

this,

and it's working out badly.

And to actually ask ourselves,

where is God in all this?

Did God forget about us?

I cry out.

I don't need to hear anything.

Is God concerned?

Well,

the Israelites were about to find out.

Look in our passage in verse 7,

what God had to say

about their crying out.

Verse 7 of chapter 3,

the Lord said,

I have indeed seen the misery

of my people in Egypt.

I have heard them crying out

because of their slave drivers.

And I am concerned

about their suffering.

Think about the words

that were used.

The Lord says,

I have seen them.

So he's able to see

what was going on in Egypt.

But not only did he see it,

but he also heard it.

He knew exactly what was going on.

He could see the misery they were in,

the hopeless situation.

But at the end of the verse,

it also says,

I am concerned.

In some verses it says,

I knew God had full knowledge

of what was going on in Egypt.

But not only that,

he was willing to do something about it.

Look at verse 8.

So I have come down to rescue them

from the hand of the Egyptians.

Isn't that going to be wonderful news

for the Israelites?

They're now hearing that God

not only hears their cries for help,

not only does he see it,

but he's actually going to come down

and help them.

He was willing to associate with them,

to identify himself with them

by coming down.

Isn't that an amazing thought

that the God of all creation

was willing to come down

and rescue his people?

We sing a popular song,

My God is Mighty to Save,

and the Israelites were about to find out

the truth of that song.

Now, God could have saved

the Israelites by himself.

Couldn't he?

He literally could have just

opened up the gates of Israel,

let all the people pass through,

and go up to the land.

But he didn't.

He had a certain plan

of action.

Look at verse 1,

when we're introduced to Moses.

Now, Moses was going about

his normal, everyday business

as a shepherd.

And he sees a burning bush,

and this is probably a story

that's very familiar to us.

And being curious,

as any of us was,

he went over to it.

And God calls out to him.

He says in verse 4,

Moses, Moses.

And Moses replies,

Here I am.

And then God identifies himself.

He says in verse 6,

I am the God of your father,

the God of Abraham,

the God of Isaac,

and the God of Jacob.

At this, Moses hid his face

because he was afraid

to look at God.

God was identifying himself

to Moses.

He was saying,

I am the God of your father.

He was linking Moses

with his family back in Egypt.

But not only that,

he was also the God of Abraham,

Isaac, and Jacob,

linking back to the entire people

of Israel.

And God had something

very important to say to Moses.

Look down in verse 10.

So now go.

I am sending you to Pharaoh

to bring my people,

the Israelites,

out of Egypt.

Moses was about to become

the mediator

between God and man.

Now to say Moses

didn't jump at the idea

of being a mediator

would be an understatement.

Look at verse 11.

But God said,

but Moses said to God,

who am I

that I should go to Pharaoh

and bring the Israelites out?

Moses was immediately

looking at himself

and saying,

I'm not going to be able

to do this.

Now,

God doesn't say,

oh actually Moses,

you're the perfect man

to do this.

You're qualified.

You're going to be able.

Look at what God says to him

in verse 12.

He says,

I will be with you.

Because that's what

Moses needed

to go

and rescue the people.

The fact that God

was with him.

Now,

this actually wasn't

good enough for Moses.

And he had

another question.

Look down

in verse 13.

Moses said to God,

suppose I go

to the Israelites

and say to them,

the God of your fathers

has sent me to you

and they ask me,

what is his name?

And then what

shall I tell them?

For whatever reason,

Moses wanted to know

what God's name was

so that he could

have authority

in going to the Israelites.

And the next two verses

reveal something

about God

that was never

revealed before.

And we learn something

about the nature

and character of God.

Reading from verse 14.

God said to Moses,

I am who I am.

This is what you are

to say to the Israelites.

I am has sent me to you.

Verse 15.

God also said to Moses,

say to the Israelites,

the Lord,

the God of your fathers,

the God of Abraham,

the God of Isaac

and the God of Jacob

has sent me to you.

This is my name forever,

the name by which

I am to be remembered

from generation

to generation.

God was giving

a name to Moses

that hadn't been given before.

We know that

because later on

in chapter 6,

God says,

this is something

I've never told them before.

And what is God's name?

Well,

it's a little confusing

when we read it first.

Look at verse 14 again.

He says,

I am who I am.

I mean,

what does that mean?

At the end of verse 14,

he says,

I am has sent you.

And then in verse 15,

look at the word

in caps,

in capitals,

the Lord,

which he's calling himself

the God of your fathers.

What is God

actually saying here?

Is he using the word

I am

and the word Lord

interchangeably?

In other words,

he's saying,

I am the same as Lord.

Well,

first looking at the word Lord.

If you ever see

in your Bible

the word Lord

in capitals,

L-O-R-D,

the Hebrew word

has only four letters in it.

You might be familiar with it.

Y-H-W-H

and we pronounce that word

Yahweh.

So,

God was giving

a name to Moses

that he hadn't given before.

Lord,

or Yahweh.

It was his personal name

or if you'd like,

his covenant name.

But he's also calling himself

I am.

Well,

what's the connection?

Well,

the root word for both

is the verb

to be.

So,

what God was saying was

I am.

I simply exist.

Now,

pause for a moment

to think,

what does that mean?

If God says,

I am,

I just am.

It's a very strange thing to say,

but think about

what it actually means.

If something

is just is,

it's just there.

There's no beginning

and there's no end.

So,

what we could say

is that God

is revealing something

about himself

that we can understand

to be

to be

an exciting

illustration

of what God is like.

We might say

God exists.

That might seem obvious.

We know God exists.

What he's saying is

I never didn't exist.

So often we can live our lives

as if God doesn't exist.

Well,

how are the Israelites

going to hear that?

Here they are

in their slavery.

Nobody seems to be

listening to them

and all of a sudden

Moses is going to come

and say to them,

I am.

In other words,

I exist.

Isn't that going to be

exciting for them after all?

Here they are.

They had no hope

in their lives

and God

was going to tell them,

well,

actually,

I exist.

So,

if there was a time,

no time

that God didn't exist,

then

God is more

powerful

than anything

or anywhere else

because

if God

always existed,

then nobody

created him.

There was no power

or authority

that was bigger than him.

In fact,

God wasn't influenced

or reliant

on anyone.

He was

totally

sovereign.

So when the Israelites

are hearing

that God

is coming

to save them,

they can be assured

of this,

that there was

no one

greater than him.

There was no one

God was reliant on.

there was no one

that was going

to tell God

what to do.

In fact,

if God

always existed

and he just

is,

he also

doesn't

change.

So when

God

was going

to tell the Israelites

that I am

has sent you,

what he was saying

was also,

I'm not going

to change.

I am a God

of love.

I will always

be a God

of love.

I am a faithful

God.

I will always

be a faithful

God.

When I made

you a promise,

when I made

a promise

to Abraham,

I'm going

to keep

that promise.

So,

what's

in a name?

Well,

tied up in

God's name,

the Lord,

is that

he's an

active God.

He's an

ever-present

God.

He's not

going to

change.

We're not

going to be

surprised.

He's not

going to do

anything out

of character.

And no

matter what

place or

what time

or what

circumstances,

any of

us are

in,

God is

always

going to

be there.

So,

we ask

ourselves,

is God

going to

be able

to save

the rest

of the

people of

Israel?

After all,

we always

want to

know,

if someone's

going to

save us,

are they

going to

be able?

Well,

God was

just about

to tell

the Israelites,

there was

no one

else able.

I am

able.

I am

mighty

to save.

So,

if he's

established

that God

is going

to be

able to

save the

Israelites,

how did

the rescue

work itself

out?

Look over

at verse

16.

God was

going to

reveal his

rescue plan

to Moses,

and in a

sense,

it was

actually quite

simple.

He'd already

told Moses

to go,

and in

verse 16,

he now

tells him

to go

again.

But this

time,

he was

going to

go to

the elders

of the

Israelites,

those who

were leading

Israel,

and he

was going

to tell

them the

good news

that God

himself was

going to

do the

rescue.

Verse 16,

go assemble

the elders

of Israel

and say

to them,

the Lord,

the God

of your

fathers,

appeared to

me and

said,

I have

watched

over you

and have

seen what

has been

done in

Egypt.

No doubt

they're going

to be very

excited at

that,

and even

more excited

from verse

17,

and I have

promised to

bring you up

out of the

land of your

misery into

the land of

the Canaanites

and all

these other

people groups,

a land

flowing with

milk and

honey.

So Moses

was going to

go to the

elders,

tell them the

good news

is coming,

and then,

in verse 18,

they were all

going to go to

Pharaoh and

say,

we're going to

take a journey

out into the

desert.

But God in

his providence

tells Moses

something.

He tells in

verse 19

that Pharaoh

isn't going to

like the idea

in fact,

he's going

to say no.

Now,

that's actually

not very

helpful,

really,

if you're

about to

be told

God's going

to rescue

and then

say,

well,

actually,

Pharaoh's

not going

to go

along with

the plan.

But God

was going

to do

something

amazing

in Egypt.

In

verse 20,

we see

that God

was going

to bring

judgment

on Egypt.

You see,

the Egyptians

hadn't treated

God's people

well,

and there was

going to have

to be a

price to pay

for that.

And God

was going

to bring

judgment,

and they

were going

to pay

for what

they've

done.

Look down

in the end

of verse 20.

After that,

he will

let you

go.

And surely

that's what

the Israelites

wanted to hear,

that they

can now

go.

But when

you're being

rescued,

you don't

want to be

just rescued

out of

your own

situation,

you want

to be

rescued

to

something.

Look at

verse 17

again.

The Israelites

are going

to hear

this great

news that

not only

are they

going to

be taken

out of

the misery

of Egypt,

but into

a land

that is

flowing

with milk

and honey.

And this

rescue of

the Israelites

is something

that was

going to be

remembered

for generations

to generation.

If you

think of

even the

passage that

Ralph was

reading earlier

in Exodus

Exodus 15 · chapter mention

chapter 15,

there were

songs written

about these

rescues.

We see

it in

the Psalms,

in Psalms

77,

78.

We know

it in

the Passover.

It's

remembered

that God

had rescued

his people.

But we

also see

it in

the New

Testament.

If you

ever read

Acts

Acts 7 · chapter mention

chapter 7

about the

stoning

of Stephen,

Stephen

refers to

this rescue

from Egypt

by God.

We also

see it in

Hebrews

Hebrews 11 · chapter mention

chapter 11,

that great

chapter of

faith.

the writer

speaks of

being saved

out of

that

exodus.

But this

rescue,

it's been

remembered for

generations to

generations.

But do we

see something

greater than

that?

You know,

if we're

watching a

movie and

we really

like it and

they bring

out a

sequel,

we often

want to go

and see the

sequel,

but it's

never as

good as

the original.

But in

this rescue

that we're

reading about

here, we

see that

there's

actually an

even greater

rescue.

Think of

the similarities

that we have

read in

our passage

just now.

You see,

a lot of

what we

read in

the Old

Testament

finds its

fulfillment in

the New.

There's so

many people

and events

that we read

about and

it's like a

shadow.

We see

something greater

in the New

Testament and

this rescue

is one of

those great

events.

Think of

the position

of the

Israelites.

They were

in slavery

and there

was nothing

they could

do about

it.

Now,

we don't

have slave

bastards over

us.

We're not

forced to

do things

we don't

want to

do.

Not all

the time

anyway.

But are

we still

not in

slavery?

Think of

the words

of Jesus.

In chapter

8, verse

34, he

said, everyone

who sins

is a

slave to

sin.

That's

everyone.

Now, you

might say

to yourself,

well, that

doesn't include

me because

I don't

sin.

But Paul

wrote in

Romans

Romans 3:23

chapter 3,

verse 23,

all have

sinned and

fall short

of the

glory of

God.

So, in

effect, all

of us were

once slaves

to sin.

Just like

the Israelites,

we were

slaves.

and like

the Israelites,

there is

nothing we

can do

in it.

We're

powerless

in ourselves

to save

ourselves.

Think also

of the

mediator.

God

chose

Moses to

be a

mediator.

Somebody to

come between

God and

the people.

But is

there not

a greater

mediator that

came?

In 1

1 Timothy 2 · chapter mention

Timothy

chapter 2,

Jesus is

referred to

as a

mediator.

it says

there is

one

mediator

between

God and

man,

the man

Christ

Jesus.

Moses,

he was

faithful as

a servant

in bringing

the people

out of

Israel.

But Jesus,

it speaks

in Hebrews,

he was

faithful as

a son

because Jesus

is greater

than

Moses and

we needed

a mediator

because there

was nothing

we could

do.

you might

recall we

spoke about

God coming

down to

rescue the

Israelites.

What an

amazing thought

that is.

In the

powerlessness

of the

Israelites,

God came

down.

Aren't there

wonderful verses

in the New

Testament that

speak of

Jesus coming

down to

rescue us

from our

sins?

Think of

Romans chapter

Romans 5:6

5,

verse 6.

It says,

you see,

at just

the right

time,

when we

were still

powerless,

Christ died

for the

ungodly.

That's all

of us.

There was

nothing we

could do.

God came

down to

rescue the

Israelites.

And we

see it in

the New

Testament,

Jesus coming

down to

rescue us.

Turn back,

if you will,

to verse 12

of Exodus.

Exodus.

When

Moses asked

his very

first question

and God

said,

I will be

with you,

he also

said something

else,

something very

interesting.

He said,

and this

will be the

sign to

you that

I,

who have

sent you,

when you

have brought

the people

out of

Egypt,

you will

worship

God on

this mountain.

So as

soon as

they came

out of

Egypt,

they were

going to

gather together

on the

mountain and

worship God.

And that

was fulfilled

on Mount

Sinai when

they all

came together

and worshipped.

A little

earlier,

Ralph referred

to it,

there's going

to be a

time for

us as

believers in

Christ when

we too are

going to be

finally rescued,

when we're

going to be

in eternity

with God,

when we

will gather

together and

worship.

Let me read

these verses

from Revelation

Revelation 7 · chapter mention

chapter 7,

which Ralph

mentioned.

And we

also,

you might

recall as

we read

it,

that we

also sang

in one

of our

songs.

In

verse 9

of chapter

7 of

Revelation,

it is

written,

After this

I looked,

and there

before me

was a

great

multitude

that no

one could

count,

from every

nation,

tribe,

people,

and language

standing

before the

throne and

in front

of the

Lamb.

they were

wearing white

robes and

were holding

palm branches

in their

hands,

and they

cried out

in a loud

voice,

salvation

belongs to

our God

who sits

on the

throne and

to the

Lamb.

There was

no one

else that

could save

the Israelites,

and there was

no one else

could save

us.

Salvation

belongs to

our God,

and that

will be

for us,

we can

look forward

to that,

that one

day we

will,

as believers,

we will be

together to

worship the

Lord.

But what

about sin?

What about

sin we've

just said,

that all

have sinned

and fall

short of

the glory

of God?

Think back

on the

judgment

that God

brought on

the Egyptians.

He said

to them

that he

would stretch

out his

hand and

strike them

because of

what they

had done.

But for

us, we

don't have

to pay

that penalty

for our

sin.

Listen to

these words

from 1

Peter 24.

He himself

bore our

sins on

the cross.

You see,

for us,

there was a

penalty to

pay as

well, but

we, unlike

the Egyptians,

didn't have

to pay it.

It was

Christ who

paid for

that penalty

penalty.

But there's

one other

thing that

we can

learn from

this rescue,

and that's

a further

revelation of

God.

We have

seen how

God was

revealing his

name, the

covenant name,

I am.

Does that

sound familiar

to you?

Have you

heard the

words I

am from

the New

Testament?

in John

John 8 · chapter mention

chapter 8,

Jesus

himself used

that phrase.

In chapter

8, verse

58, Jesus

said,

I tell

you the

truth.

Jesus

answered,

before Abraham

was born,

I am.

Jesus was

using the

very name

of God

for himself.

blasphemy.

Now, if

that was a

mere man

did that,

he would

have deserved

to be accused

of blasphemy.

But Jesus

said, I tell

you the truth,

because this

was the

truth.

And if we

think, oh

well, maybe

that wasn't

what Jesus

was saying,

well, the

people at that

time certainly

understood what

he was saying,

because the

following verse

says,

at this,

they picked

up stones

to stone

him, but

Jesus hid

himself.

They knew

exactly what

Jesus was

doing, because

Jesus was

identifying,

making himself

equal to

God.

And now

we have a

wonderful

opportunity to

know more

about God

through Jesus.

Jesus said

in John

John 14 · chapter mention

chapter 14,

that anyone

who has

seen him

has seen

the Father.

And Hebrews,

wonderful words

in Hebrews

Hebrews 1 · chapter mention

chapter 1,

they say

that Jesus

is the

radiance

of God's

glory, and

the exact

representation

of his

being.

We now

have the

benefit of

having further

revelation of

God in

Jesus.

So, what

can we learn

from this?

After all,

we've concluded

that God is

able to

save.

But you

know, as

believers, we

can go through

difficult times

we can go

through struggles,

we can get

tired, and

there can be

times, if

we're honest,

that we feel

God isn't

there, or

he's not

listening to

us.

So what

can we do?

Well, we

can reflect on

God's character.

We can learn

from this

passage about

the uniqueness

of God, the

fact that there's

no one greater

than God, and

the fact that he

is able to

save.

We can reflect

on the fact that

he keeps

his promises.

We have

his continuous

presence, because

we can lose

sight of God, but

we can pick up

God's word and

meditate on

various passages

that speak of

God.

Think of passages

such as Isaiah

Isaiah 40 · chapter mention

chapter 40, or

Colossians chapter

Colossians 1 · chapter mention

1, that speak of

the supremacy of

Christ.

When Moses met

with God and

God spoke, his

reaction was to

hide his face.

he was in

awe of God.

Do we

sometimes lose

that sense of

awe of God?

When we read

God's word and

we realize how

great God is, we

can relive that

sense of awe,

because God is

so much more

wonderful, and

when we think we

might have him

sussed, well, we

don't, because God

is far greater than

we can even ever

imagine.

rest in God.

Do you know when

we get up tomorrow

morning as a

believer, we don't

have to think about

how can we please

God today such that

he'll make sure he

saves us.

We don't have to

worry, well, what

if I do something

today and I don't

end up being among

that great throng in

Revelation.

When Jesus died on

the cross, he said,

it is finished.

We cannot add to

our salvation.

We can rest in

that.

But in that

resting in Jesus, we

can also find

refreshment.

Think of these

words in Isaiah

Isaiah 40 · chapter mention

chapter 40.

Let me read them

out.

Why do you say,

O Jacob, and

complain, O Israel,

my way is hidden

from the Lord?

My cause is

disregarded by my

God.

But look at what

Isaiah says.

He says, do you

not know, have you

not heard, the

Lord is the

everlasting God, the

creator of the

ends of the earth.

We can rest in

that God.

He will not grow

tired or weary, and

his understanding

no one can

fathom.

In verse 29, it

reads, he gives

strength to the

weary, because we

do get weary.

And increases the

power of the

weak.

Even youths grow

tired and weary, and

young men stumble and

fall.

But listen to this, but

those who hope in the

Lord will renew their

strengths.

And when we rest in

God, we can renew our

strength.

They will soar on

wings like eagles.

They will run and not

grow weary.

They will walk and not

be faint.

And finally, we can

rely on God.

We've just read that

about resting in

God.

We can totally rely on

him for our

salvation.

And when he makes

promises to us, he

will fulfill them.

So when he promises

that our sin is

forgiven, it's

forgiven.

And when he promises

that we will spend

eternity with him, we

will do that, because

we can, he is totally

trustworthy.

So is God a mighty

God?

Is he mighty to save?

The Israelites could

say yes, and we too

can say yes.

Let's just bow our

heads and pray.

Amen.

Father, thank you

indeed that you are

mighty to save.

I thank you that, as

we read, when you

saw the Israelites, you

saw, you heard, and

you were concerned.

But you also came

down.

And I thank you that

we can see that as a

picture of what Jesus