October 13, 2019

Exodus 3:1-17

“Ordinary Places, Ordinary People”  

1.    Mt Everest 

  • 8800 m; 29,000 feet; Almost 9 km up!
  • “Breathtaking”
  • “Everest”—also named: “Holy Mountain” (Darjeeling), “Holy Mother” (Tibetan), “Holy Mother Peak” (Chinese)  

2.    Mt. Sinai

  • Also known as: “Mt Horeb,” “The mountain of Moses,” “The mountain of Yahweh” [the LORD]
  • This mountain is a “holy mountain” as well
  • It is not the highest mountain—only 2300 metres
  • It is not the most beautiful mountain
  • An “ordinary mountain”  

3.    “I Am Who I Am”

  • We should note that
    • Moses is not looking for God
    • Moses is not on some kind of religious “pilgrimage”
    • He is not looking for a burning bush
    • Moses is not waiting for God to speak to him 
    • Rather, Moses is just going about his ordinary day / work / routine . And then God shows up!—in the ordinary events of the day
  • “I am who I am” = God is. As one writer says: “This is the most basic fact and the most ultimate fact. Period. Of the billions of facts that there are, this one is at the bottom and at the top. It is the foundation of all others and the consummation of all others. Nothing is more basic and nothing is more ultimate than the fact that God is.” Nothing is more foundational to this church than that God is.”
  • “I am who I am” = I am not who you say I am; Yahweh defines Himself; I am not defined by others; The Creator is not defined by the creation . creatures  
  • “I am who I am” =
    • God has life in and of Himself
    • God is not the dependent one
    • Rather, we are dependent on him

4.    Revelation ·      

God is revealing Himself, revealing something about Himself

If God does not do show up and reveal Himself o   Moses will not know who He is o   And we would never know who God is  

5.    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 you shall call me     from generation to generation.  

6.    Blaise Pascal 

  • There is a story about Blaise Pascal
  • He was a 17th Century mathematician, philosopher, a “smart guy”    
  • From about half past ten at night until about half past midnight, FIRE. GOD of Abraham, GOD of Isaac, GOD of Jacob not of the philosophers and [scholars] of the learned. Certitude. Certitude. Feeling. Joy. Peace. GOD of Jesus Christ. My God and your God. Joy, joy, joy. Tears of joy

Church Membership  

QUESTIONS

1. Do you believe in one God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; and do you confess Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord?  

2. Do you accept the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments as the only rule for faith and life?  

3. Do you, relying on the grace of God, promise to confess Christ publicly before others, to serve Christ daily, and to walk in Jesus’ way?  

4. Do you promise to exhibit the joy of new life in Christ; to share fully in the life of the church; to be faithful in worship and service; and to offer your prayers and gifts?  

5. Do you promise to accept the spiritual guidance of the church; to walk in a spirit of Christian love with this congregation; and to seek those things which make for unity, purity, and peace?

We do, God helping us.  

QUESTION FOR CHURCH COMMUNITY

Do you promise to love, encourage, and support Roger, Arina and Ayanna by sharing in the gospel of God’s love with them, by being an example of Christian faith and character, and by giving the strong support of God’s family in fellowship, prayer, and service?

We do, God helping us.      

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