Sermon Central
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Abounding Love Series
Contributed by Rev. Dr. Andrew B Natarajan on Nov 18, 2023 (message contributor)
Summary: The Lord is available for all of us with his forgiveness, eternal life and blessings needed for our earthly lives. Where we stand with him or without him. Blessed are those who are near to him. Amen.
Text: Exodus 34:1-8
Theme: Abundant Love
Greetings: The Lord is good and His love endures forever.
Remember our theme verse: “Oh, how abundant is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you and worked for those who take refuge in you, in the sight of the children of mankind!” (Psalm 31:19).
Introduction:
The appearance of Yahweh to Moses is found in Exodus 34:1-8. It was an answer to his desirous request in the previous Chapter. Moses prayed to God, “Please show me your glory.” Moses had seen the glory of God in many occasions.
God revealed His name to him as “I am that I am”, God enabled to Moses to perform many miracles through ten Plagues and demonstrated His glory, His power, and His judgment. God delivered Israelites out of slavery in Egypt. Moses saw God split Red sea and lead his people through on dry land. Moses saw God lead his people with a pillar of cloud by day and fire by night. Moses saw God give bread from heaven and water from rocks. Moses saw the glory of God than anyone else in his time.
Then Why Moses prays, “Please show me your glory.”(Exodus 33:18). Moses was struggling within his understanding of God because he is a God who has a bipolar identity. It seems that there is a tension between his two sides a fact that is not unknown in the world. Then, God showed his character.
Exodus 34:6-7: And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.”
Moses received the law at Sinai and also this classic declaration of God’s character. The words and phrases of this declaration reverberate through the rest of the Old Testament.
“Yahweh, Yahweh, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, overflowing with loyal-love and faithfulness.” The words compassionate, slow to anger, abundant love, faithfulness, forgiveness and not leaving the guilty are the signs of abundant love. He is a trustworthy and graceful God.
This verse is the most quoted and reused verse in the Hebrew Bible. Exodus 20:5 -7; 33:19; Numbers 14:18; Deuteronomy 5:9-11; 7:9; 2 Kings 13:23; 2 Chronicles 30:9; Nehemiah 9:17; 9:31; Psalms 25:6; 78:38; 86:5, 15; 99:8; 103:8; 106:45; 111:4; 112:4; 116:5; 145:8; Jeremiah 30:11; 32:18; Daniel 9:9; Joel 2:13; Jon 4:2; Nahum 1:3; Micah 7:18-20. It is a liturgical credo of the OT.
God told Moses that he is:
He’s a God of mercy (refraining from giving to others what they do deserve). Which means compassion and tenderness, almost like a mother towards her children. Psalm 86:15.
He’s a God of grace (giving to others that which they don’t deserve). Psalm 145:8
He is slow to anger (ever-so patient with stiff-necked sinners). But very terrifying the punishments he brought upon the people of Sodom and Gomorrah and the worldwide flood.
He is forgiving (pardoning us of our sins and not holding them against us). Psalm 103:8-13, Nehemiah 9:17, Micah 7:18.
He is just (rightly punishing sin and not just overlooking it as if it never happened).Number 14:17-19
This verse has poetic description of God is an often-repeated statement of belief (Numbers 14:18; Psalm 103:8; 145:8; Joel 2:13; Jonah 4:2). All the terms describe God’s relationship to the covenant people.
ABUNDANT LOVE:
He described it with a great emphasis on ABUNDANT LOVE. In this passage, the prominence is given not to what Moses saw, rather what God said. Abundant Love of God reveals his FULLNESS OF LOVE, it reminds my EMPTINESS OF MY STATE and it propels me TO PREACH GOOD NEWS.
It reveals the FULLNESS OF LOVE
He’s a God of mercy means refraining from giving to others what they do deserve. It means compassion and tenderness, almost like a mother towards her children.
This abounding love is even stronger as it is not just a gift but implies some kind of intimate relationship between the giver and receiver. It indicates the Lord’s steadfastness or being true to himself.
In the dialogue we see the precarious nature of the relationship between Yahweh and his people and it is only after many verses that Yahweh speaks the confession that He will forgive and we learn that he is indeed a stern Judge, but that his love is stronger. The second meeting and second writing on the tablet itself the sign of mercy of God.
Yahweh’s presence, which goes hand in hand with the threat of his absence.
Exodus 34:6-7 reacts to the crisis of the golden calf incident – the crisis of “covenant breaking” and the words provide the basis for life beyond the crisis. The Yahweh’s forgiveness and his continuing presence in post-exilic Judah after the destruction of the temple is central. Will Yahweh still be present, although his temple, the symbol of his tabernacle presence has been destroyed?
