Servant Of Freedom Series

There’s the story of the college professor who always began his first day of class at the University dramatically telling his students he could prove that God did not exist.

Looking up toward the ceiling he would say, "God if you are real, then I want you to knock me off this platform. I'll give you 15 minutes!"

For the next few minutes he kept taunting God, saying things like "Here I am God, I'm still waiting" and smugly smiling at the class.

Then - all of a sudden - a burly 240 pound halfback for the football team came flying through the door and collided with the professor, knocking him head over heels into the 1st row of students.

More shocked than hurt, the professor sputtered: “Why on earth did you do that?”

The football player smiled as he walked away… and replied,

"God was busy; He sent me!"

In our text this morning, we find God saying to Moses: “I will SEND YOU to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” Exodus 3:10

God was SENDING Moses to confront Pharaoh and free Israel from their slavery.

But as I was preparing the sermon today, a question to my mind: Why send Moses?

Why not just do it Himself?

Did God really need the help?

Was He busy or something?

No… God wasn't busy.

But there was something about sending Moses on this task that speaks to us about God’s plans for our lives.

First, we need to realize God doesn't need us.

It’s true.

He owns the cattle on a thousand hills

He has an army of angels at His beck and call.

And as Amos 4:13 put it

“He who forms the mountains, creates the wind, and reveals his thoughts to man, he who turns dawn to darkness, and treads the high places of the earth—the LORD God Almighty is his name.”

If God HAS all that, and can DO all that, what’s He need with me… or you… or Moses???

Psalm 8:4 asks “What is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?”

But, the fact of the matter is:

God IS mindful of us.

He DOES care for us.

And when it comes to doing His will, God graciously allows us to take part.

One of the most intriguing promises (for me) that Jesus made was this one:

“I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing.

He will do even GREATER THINGS THAN THESE, because I am going to the Father.” John 14:12

Jesus promised that we would do greater things than He did on earth?

Really?

But Jesus fed 1000s with just 5 loaves and 2 fish.

He healed the sick.

He raised the dead.

Have you ever done any of those things?

Me neither.

In fact, I have NEVER done anything even remotely like that.

And yet Jesus says I’ll do greater things than those?!!!

How’s that possible?

Well, consider these two stories out of the book of Acts.

The first story is found in Acts 8:26 where we’re told:

“AN ANGEL of the Lord said to Philip, ‘Go south to the road— the desert road— that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.’”

As we read the rest of the story we find that Philip does as he’s told and goes down to that road and sees a man riding in a chariot. He begins running alongside the chariot and hears a high official from Ethiopia reading from the 53rd chapter of the book of Isaiah (a famous chapter predicting many things about who Jesus would be), and he asks the man if he understand what he’s reading. The Ethiopian replies “"How can unless someone explains it to me?" Acts 8:31

So Philip climbs up in the chariot and begins talking about Jesus, and the conversation turns to how the Ethiopian can become a Christian.

As they’re riding along, the Ethiopian says: "Look, here is water. Why shouldn't I be baptized?" (Acts 8:36) and they went over to the water and Philip baptized this man into Christ.

Now, a couple of questions:

1. WHO sent Philip to meet the Ethiopian Eunuch? (An angel)

2. WHY didn't the angel go himself?

Hold that 2nd question in your mind for a second as we go the next story.

In Acts 9 we read about the conversion of Saul (who we know of as Paul).

Now, at the time, Paul was an enemy of the church. He hated Christianity and did everything in his power to undermine and hurt those who belonged to Christ. He was so committed to this task that, when he heard there was a body of Christians meeting up in Damascus he led men up there to take those Christians prisoners back to Jerusalem.