PP0811 DATE
THE BUSH THAT DIDN’T BURN!
Ex 3:1 Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.
2 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.
3 And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.
4 And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.
5 And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.
6 Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.
7 And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;
8 And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
9 Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them.
10 Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt.
11 And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?
12 And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain.
13 And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them?
14 And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. (KJV)
INTRODUCTION: This particular event in the Bible is one of the Old Testament Jewels. It is a historical highlight to the Jews. It was in this event that God pronounced the redemption for His people.
This is a Christophony – Christ appearing on earth in another form.
The omnipotence of God – Yet He can contain all His fullness in a desert bush.
I. THE BUSH THAT DID NOT BURN DEMANDED ATTENTION Vs. 2-3.
Ex 3:1 Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.
2 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.
3 And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. (KJV)
Moses was busy doing what his daily job was. He had no intention of coming into the presence of God that day. Ex 3:1 Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb. KJV)
There is nothing in Vs. 1 that would be different from your typical Monday morning. Yet there was an event that took place there that has never been experienced by anyone before nor since. Even through Vs. 3 nothing really that would identify God, until God spoke to Moses. We don’t know but what this is the first encounter Moses had had with God. He certainly recognizes that God is in the bush.
Now something happens:
A. He Couldn’t Ignore It.
Ex 3:3 And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. (KJV) It is most unusual for a bush to be on fire an not be consumed. This one fact alone caused Moses to draw to the bush.
B. He Couldn’t Identify It.
Ex 3:3 And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. (KJV) He was puzzled by this event.
C. He Couldn’t Escape It.
He couldn’t walk on by it. He had to stop and give it his attention. He didn’t give it a casual glance and pass on by. Something was going on that Moses knew was divine. The bush that didn’t burn caused Moses to turn from what he was presently engaged in to the happenings in the bush.
It demanded his attention. God will do that for any person who will allow Him to have control of their life. This whole episode of God’s glory and magnificence was demonstrated, not for man’s glory, but for God’s. The only person who saw this was Moses. He know that God was there with him on that mountain. Only one human being saw this event, yet the world over knows of it, and many believe it.
II. THE BUSH THAT DID NOT BURN BORE THE PRESENCE OF GOD. Vs. 4-6
Ex 3:4 And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.
5 And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.
6 Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God. (KJV)
The presence of God is not restricted by circumstances, nor by man’s inabilities.
God acts independently of man. He may use man, and He may bless man, but his actions and doings are not dependent upon what man does. When Moses saw the bush burning – he looked at it to see why it was not consumed – in this we see man attempting to explain God. What a farce. Yet it happens all the time.
There has been a lot of news lately regarding religious matters, both in politics and in general summary. For the most part none of those talking about religious matters have any idea what they are talking about.
Why was God interested in Moses? Ps 8:4 What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? (KJV)
What is wretched, miserable man; man in his fallen state, full of infirmity, ignorance, and sin – what is that person to God?
Ps 8:3 When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; (KJV)
A. Why Was The Ground Holy?
Because God was there. God was causing all of this to take place to show Himself to Moses.
B. Why Did The Bush Not Burn?
1. It Represented God.
2. The Fact That It Didn’t Burn Speaks Of His Eternality, And His Deity. It Also Speaks Of His Omnipotence.
C. Take Note Of Its Location.
Ex 3:1 Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.(KJV)
It was “The Mountain Of God”.
It was the mountain Horeb. Had I given you an assignment to look this up you would find it was the same mountain as Sinai. What else is significant about this mountain? The Tables of Stone were given to Moses on Sinai – what else was less significant? The Israelites encamped there for nearly a year. Their entire first year after leaving Egypt was connected with this region, particularly, Sinai, or Horeb. Most of them had on knowledge of Moses’ encounter with God on that same mountain before hand
It was a mountain in which Moses, individually, experienced the presence of God, but later all of the Israelite Nation also experienced the presence of God.
Moses wasn’t aware of the history or the significance that would be attached to this scene.
More likely than not, each of us present today have a “Mountain of God” that we have experienced in our Christian life. For some it could be a answer to a mighty prayer, maybe a miracle of some sort, or maybe some event that God brought into your life to strengthen or direct your steps for future service. Nevertheless it was a “Mountain of God”.
III. THE BUSH THAT DID NOT BURN WAS GOD’S WAY OF SPEAKING TO MOSES Vs. 7-10.
A. Moses’ Calling Was Given At This Bush.
Had Moses not responded to the presence of God it is likely God would have departed and said nothing to him, and would have looked for another to fulfil His will.
Always remember – God uses events such as this one for specific purposes. He doesn’t allow His glory, nor His omnipotence to be witnessed for mere men’s boasting rights. Moses never used this holy moment to lift himself above any other person. Moses didn’t go around saying, “I was on the mountain of God, I was no the mountain of God – I saw a burning bush – and you didn’t. Ah-ha-ha-ah. Much to holy for any of man’s floundering.
God used it to get Moses’ attention, and to give him his assignment in the will of God.
There are some churches and groups of religious people who will attempt to sensationalize the glory of God. Probably each time this is done it is fleshly, selfishly display of man’s ego or spiritual ignorance. The slapping of someone’s forehead and then that person falling backwards in a daze supposedly in a spiritual trance is so done for man’s glory. God doesn’t work like this.
Ex 3:7 And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;
8 And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
9 Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them.
10 Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt. (KJV)
The point is this: Many of you set in a service such as this one right now – God comes to you and speaks to your heart and you do not say, “Here am I.” Therefore God goes away and may never come again. What you don’t know is that God was going to use you to shape a certain part of the world. Who knows where or what that calling would have been. Since you didn’t respond to it then you will have to give an account unto God for not heeding His call.
We stand here during the invitation time and sing the hymn and don’t think one thought that God is dealing with us in an individual way.
Moses was out doing His daily duty, caring for his father-in-laws sheep. He wasn’t in a church service. No one was singing “Wherever He Leads I’ll Follow” or “I Surrender All.” Yet God was preparing to use Moses to shape the whole course and future of Israel. God will speak to you on the job, in the class room, or in the laundry room. It doesn’t have to be in a church service.
It was Moses that God used to organize and take three million people out of bondage.
It was Moses that God used to part the Red Sea.
It was Moses that God used to feed the Israelites for 40 years.
It was Moses that God gave the Ten Commandments.
It was Moses that wrote the first five books of the Bible.
It was Moses that had a great report in Heb. 11.
It was Moses that was one of the three most important men that ever lived.
It all started on that hillside beside that burning bush.
What if Moses had not turned aside to see what God was wanting from him? What if Moses had just stood by and looked? Suppose Moses had responded as most Christians respond when God speaks to them today?
Ask yourself this – what has been lost because I have not answered the call of God in my life?
What will the future be if I continue to refuse to do what God wants from me.
God wants something from you. He did not save you to just warm and fill a pew. He has a specific place of service He wants from each of you.
Moses was on holy ground whether he knew it or not. The presence of God made it holy ground.
It wasn’t Moses who determined the holiness of the ground. When we are in this building, or you are in your auto, or wherever you are, if you are communing with God then it is holy ground, because God is there.
IV. THE BUSH THAT DID NOT BURN WAS GOD’S METHOD OF IDENTIFYING HIMSELF Vs. 11-14.
Ex 3:11 And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?
12 And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain.
13 And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them?
14 And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. (KJV)
The phrase “I AM THAT I AM” became God’s identity all throughout Israelite history.
The N.T. is filled with various “I AM’s”. The N.T. Jew always associated that phrase with Jehovah God. John 18:5-6.
Joh 18:5 They answered him, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus saith unto them, I am he. And Judas also, which betrayed him, stood with them.
6 As soon then as he had said unto them, I am he, they went backward, and fell to the ground. (KJV)
Notice that God doesn’t state what He is – He says, “I AM THAT I AM”. That meant He could be anything that He needed to be.
He is a companion to the lonely.
He is strength to the weak.
He is comfort to the suppressed.
He is joy to the downhearted.
He is salvation to the lost.
He is courage to the fearful.
He is whatever you need Him to be.
God cannot be measured by man’s yardstick.
God is omnipotent.
God is omniscient.
God is holy.
V. THE BUSH THAT DID NOT BURN IS OUR ASSURANCE THAT GOD IS STILL AT WORK IN THE LIVES OF MEN TODAY. Vs. 11.
Ex 3:11 And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt? (KJV)
Moses’ Excuses When God Calls On Him:
“Who am I?” (3.11)
“What shall I say?” (3.13)
“They will not believe me.” (4.1)
“I am not eloquent.” (4.10)
“Send by the hand of him whom thou will send.” (4.13)
God has a mountain and a bush for you. The mountain may be a bus route, a S/S class, a visit to a shut-in, but he has a place for you to present yourself ready for His service.
We see in Chapter 4 how God worked out the matter of Moses speech and his timidity. Moses became a mighty man that was used of God.
So that tells us that none of us have an excuse for not doing what God has called us to do. What is it that God has spoken to you about doing for Him and His kingdom? Will you do it or must He look for another?
INVITATION
