Part 19: Follow The Lord! Series

Moses on the Mountain with the Lord

Part 19: Follow the Lord!

Exodus 34:1-33

Sermon by Rick Crandall

McClendon Baptist Church - Nov. 3, 2010

*Moses is certainly one of the greatest heroes of our faith, one of the greatest men of all time and one of the greatest leaders of all time.

*But why was he so great? -- There are many good ways to answer that question, but here’s something we must not miss: Moses was a great leader, because he was a great follower. Moses followed the Lord, and in this story we see why we should follow the Lord.

1. First: Follow the Lord, because He has a vital mission for you

*In vs. 1-4 the Lord had another vital mission for Moses:

1. And the LORD said to Moses, "Cut two tablets of stone like the first ones, and I will write on these tablets the words that were on the first tablets which you broke.

2. So be ready in the morning, and come up in the morning to Mount Sinai, and present yourself to Me there on the top of the mountain.

3. And no man shall come up with you, and let no man be seen throughout all the mountain; let neither flocks nor herds feed before that mountain."

4. So he cut two tablets of stone like the first ones. Then Moses rose early in the morning and went up Mount Sinai, as the LORD had commanded him; and he took in his hand the two tablets of stone.

*God said “be ready in the morning,” and Moses got busy cutting those stones.

-God said, “Come up in the morning,” and Moses didn’t waste a minute. Verse 4 tells us that he “rose early in the morning and went up Mount Sinai, as the LORD had commanded him.”

*God had a vital mission for Moses, and he was the only one who could complete this mission, for in vs. 3, God had said: “No man shall come up with you, and let no man be seen throughout all the mountain.”

-No one else could do what the Lord wanted Moses to do.

-And there are things in this world that no one else can do for the Lord, but you.

*Because of who you are, and where you live, the people you know and the gifts you have, you may be the only person in the world who can touch that person in your circle of influence. God had a vital mission for Moses, and I want to remind you tonight that God has vital missions for you.

*Follow the Lord, because He has a vital mission for you.

2. And follow the Lord, because He is the true Master for all time.

*God made this clear through the proclamation of His name in vs. 5: “Now the LORD descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the LORD.”

*There is so much importance in the name of the LORD! In Hebrew this name was “I AM” or “Jehovah” or “Yahweh.” Marc Kelley tells us that it could be described as God’s most personal name. This great name for God shows up 6,823 times in the Old Testament.

*The exact pronunciation and spelling has been lost, because this name was considered to be so holy that scribes and teachers would not even pronounce it or completely write it out. So instead, in Hebrew letters, the name was written in the English equivalent of YHWH. In many of our English Bibles it shows up as “LORD” written with all capital letters. (1)

*This was the name the Lord used for Himself in Exodus 3:13-15, when He first appeared to Moses in the burning bush:

13. Then Moses said to God, "Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, `The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they say to me, `What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?’’

14. And God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM.’’ And He said, "Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, `I AM has sent me to you.’ ’’

15. Moreover God said to Moses, "Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: `The Lord 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, and this is My memorial to all generations.’

*God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM.’’ And He said, "Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’’’

*Jerry Shirley asks:

-“Have you ever stopped to think why God did not add to that phrase?