"no Excuses" Series

“NO EXCUSES” Ex. 3:1-17

FBCF – 4/18/21

Jon Daniels

INTRO – EVERYBODY WILL NEED A PIECE OF PAPER TO WRITE ON AT END OF SERMON.

Some people are pure geniuses when it comes to making excuses. Here are some that were given to insurance companies when they were investigating car accidents:

- “I had been driving my car for 40 years when I fell asleep at the wheel and had the accident.”

- “I pulled away from the side of the road, glanced at my mother-in-law, and headed over the embankment.”

- “The pedestrian had no idea which direction to go, so I ran over him.”

- “The guy was all over the road. I had to swerve a number of times before I hit him.”

- “The indirect cause of this accident was a little guy in a small car with a big mouth.”

Love what Deion Sanders, new head football coach at JSU, said about making excuses: He grew up on the mean streets of Fort Myers, Fla., where exposure to some would-be athletes spurred him to make a success of himself. He explains: “I call them Idas. ‘If I’da done this, I’d be making $3 million today. If I’da practiced a little harder, I’d be a superstar.’ They were as fast as me when they were kids, but instead of working for their dreams they chose drugs & a life of street corners.

When I was young, I had practice; my friends who didn’t went straight to the streets & never left. That moment after school is the moment we need to grab. We don’t need any more Idas.”

We don’t need any more “Yeahbuts” either. The “Yeahbuts” are a clan of people who reside inside many churches. When an idea or plan or new direction is presented for consideration, their first response is “Yeah, but.”

- “Yeah, but that’s going to cost too much $.”

- “Yeah, but we’ve never done it that way before.”

- “Yeah, but we used to do it this way.”

- “Yeah, but that means things will change,” or “Yeah, but that means I will have to change.”

“Yeahbuts” thrive on making excuses & can cause a church to stop walking by faith. They can sow seeds of discouragement, dampen enthusiasm, foster gossip, & form cliques.

Our walk w/ the Lord needs be a “no excuses” walk.

EXPLANATION – Exodus 3:1-17

Exodus 1 – Population of Hebrews increasing. Oppression increasing due to Pharaoh’s orders.

- Harsh labor & enslavement – didn’t work

- Have Hebrew midwives kill baby boys – didn’t work

- Entire Egyptian population empowered to kill Hebrew baby boys – didn’t work

Exodus 2 – Baby Moses in the Nile River. Rescued by Pharaoh’s daughter & raised as an Egyptian until he decides to identify w/ his own people & refused to be known. Ended up killing an Egyptian who was beating a Hebrew. Had to flee for his life from Pharaoh.

- Exodus 2:23-24 – The plan of God for Moses’ life begins to take shape as God “heard” His people crying out to Him. He “remembered” His promises to them; He “saw” them; & He “knew.” Knew what?

o Knew He loved them

o Knew what they needed

o Knew He had a plan for their deliverance

o Knew that He wanted Moses to be the one to deliver them

Just like He knows YOU. Psalm 139:1-4 – “O Lord, you have examined my heart & know everything about me. You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my thoughts even when I’m far away. You see me when I travel & when I rest at home. You know everything I do. You know what I am going to say even before I say it, Lord.” (NLT)

Which brings us to Exodus 3. We jump from baby Moses in the river & murderer Moses in Egypt to shepherd Moses in the wilderness. “Chapter 3 then is a very significant point of transition. It begins with the revelation of God to Moses from the midst of the burning bush. It develops with the commissioning of Moses to go back to Egypt & the Pharaoh & to deliver God’s people from their oppression & bondage. It ends with the beginnings of Moses’ reticence & resistance toward the task which God has given him.” (https://bible.org/seriespage/3-burning-bush-exodus-31-15)

Why was Moses in the wilderness keeping sheep?

- Maybe he was still running, still afraid b/c of killing the Egyptian

- Maybe he had just settled, resigned himself to a lonely life of a shepherd

- Maybe he was in a period of waiting, watching to see what the next chapter in his life would be – working this shepherd job until something better opened up

We’ve all been in those seasons in our lives. And it was in this season in Moses’ life that God clearly spoke to him. And God will do the same thing in your life in this season, too – whatever this season is for you right now.