Sermon Central
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Moses And His Presence Series
Contributed by Scott Maze on May 24, 2021 (message contributor)
Summary: We are scouring the pages of the Bible for a series of encounters between ordinary people and God. These encounters are called visitations and they are almost always following a crisis of some kind. There’s a crisis, an extraordinary time when people seek God, and there’s a visitation.
Today, we look at God’s rich presence as He made it known to Moses in Exodus 33. It is evident Moses has been awakened. He’s been stirred and He wants more of God’s presence. There is a rich boldness to his prayers – “Moses said, ‘Please show me your glory.’” (Exodus 33:18) It’s important for you to see this: Moses has a hunger for more of the presence of God. Moses teaches us the value of experiencing God’s presence. And Moses teaches us the value of extraordinary prayer in order to experience a personal awakening.
A Brief Introduction to Moses
Let me circle the wagons for a moment to introduce all of us to Moses. The 3rd child born to Amram and Jochbed, Moses was miraculously rescued from the Nile by the very daughter of Pharaoh (Exodus 2:1-10; 6:20). Moses’ life can best be viewed in 3 stages: his early years in Egypt, his wandering years in the wilderness, and his final years in leadership.
Early Years in Egypt
Raised in Egyptian courts where he received the finest education available in Egyptian culture, Moses had studied mathematics, philosophy, military strategy, law and engineering. Yet, he was unknowingly by Pharaoh’s court, raised by his biological mother so also learned the value of worshipping the Hebrew God. In all he spent his first 40 years in Egypt, but his life turned dramatically when he killed an Egyptian man who was abusing a Hebrew (Exodus 2:11-15).
Wandering Years
Immediately Moses flees in fear of his life and he journeys to the wilderness of Midian. It was there he was married, had two sons, and became a shepherd. It was here at the bush that burned but wasn’t consumed that God awakened Moses to His holiness and His power (Exodus 3).
Final Years in Leadership
It was at the burning bush that God commanded Moses to lead His people from slavery to freedom. Moses successfully leads Israel out of slavery through a series of Ten Plagues, across the miraculously divided Red Sea, and the Egyptian army drowning as the Red Sea collapsed on their rebellious heads. Moses’ life is amazing and awe-inspiring. But what made Moses so noteworthy was his interaction with God.
A Return to Moses’ Prayer
At various and unexpected times, God has chosen to move in dramatic and powerful ways among his people. The Holy Spirit moves and brings about a revival of New Testament Christianity. It may impact only one believer or a large group of believers may be affected simultaneously. Again, this is called an awakening. Much like Moses in our story, we experience a visitation of God’s presence.
Revival is a time when God sends a heavenly rain. Essentially, this experience is simply the repeating of what you see in the book of Acts. And this is exactly what we see Moses pleading with God for in today’s story – the very presence of God.
Some of you who are serious students of God’s Word will know these as theophanies, where the very presence of God’s glory is made known. A theophany literally means “to show God.” As we see Moses praying in today’s passage, he’s asking for the Lord to show His presence. It is God coming down. Now, I don’t think you will experience a theophany on your way to work. Even for the people of the Bible, a theophany was an exception.
