Footprints
The Poem
by Mary Stevenson
One night a man had a dream. He dreamed he was
walking along the beach with the Lord. Across the
sky flashed scenes from his life. For each scene, he
noticed two sets of footprints in the sand: one
belonging to him, and the other to the Lord. When
the last scene of his life flashed before him, he
looked back at the footprints in the sand. He
noticed that many times along the path of his life
there was only one set of footprints. He also noticed
that it happened at the very lowest and saddest
times in his life. This really bothered him and he
questioned the Lord about it. "Lord, You said that
once I decided to follow you, You’d walk with me all
the way. But I have noticed that during the most
troublesome times in my life, there is only one set
of footprints. I don’t understand why when I needed
you most you would leave me." The Lord replied,
"My son, My precious child, I love you and I would
never leave you. During your times of trial and
suffering, when you see only one set of footprints, it
was then that I Carried You."
As the time approached for Moses to take up the lead of the Israelites, he became concerned as to the identity of the companion God had promised him (32:34; 33:2). He believed that a mere angel was no substitute for the presence of God. Moses beseeched God not to send the people out without his "Presence" to lead them (v. 15). Moses knew that God’s presence was essential to Israel’s testimony before the world (v. 16). Without it they would be indistinguishable from the rest of the world. That was the response the Lord was waiting for; so he told Moses that it would be as he requested (v. 17).
I The presence of God gives rest in the journey
{14} The LORD replied,
"My Presence will go with you, and
I will give you rest."
A This speaks to the presence of God on the journey
1 The rest that God will give the people of Israel
i Is based on the presence of God
ii Is based on the comfort of God for the journey
Illus Bike riding riding in a pelleton vs riding alone
iii God promises that He will be there with us
2 The road would be hard
i There would be battles that needed to be fought
ii God would be with them
a God had a plan to be with Hs people
b This plan had its foundation in God’s Covenants with His People
c God showed His grace in initiating covenants with the people of Israel
3 As Christians the New Testament talks about the Christian life as a walk
i The journey we travel at times be hard
ii Without Christ our life will be harder
iii Jesus invites us in Matthew 11:28 NIV
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
a We can rest easy knowing that he travel the road with us
b We can be assured of His presence with us
B It also speaks to the promised land
1 The imagery here speaks of the end of the journey where God will give His people the land of Canaan
i They will no longer be prisoners,
ii They no longer will be sojourners in foreign lands.
iii They will be home.
2 As Christians we have a home
i Right now we are sojourners in this world
a We are citizens of God’s Kingdom
b We live in this world as ambassadors
ii One day we will be home
a We will no longer have to put up with sin
b We will no longer have to put up with
> Pain
> sickness
c We will have rest
iii In the mean time
II The presence of God gives us Grace for the journey
{16} How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and
with your people
unless you go with us?
A Moses wanted to know that God was pleased with Him and the people
1 Chapter 32:1 – 33:11
i We see the people of Israel fall into sin
ii We also see the results of that sin
a Idol worshiping
b Drunkenness
c Death over 3,000 people
2 Moses wants to know if God has restored His favour on Him and the people
3 Without this undeserved favour of God (grace) Moses could not and would not go on
i So God promises His presence for His people in the journey
ii This is equated with the grace of God
iii It was God’s grace that
a delivered Israel from Egypt
b delivered Israel from Pharaoh’s armies
c Did not wipe them out when they sinned
iv It is God’s grace that would sustain the people for the journey into thee desert
v It is God’s grace that would protect the people from their enemies
vi It is God’s grace that gave the people guidelines to live by in the Ten Commandments
B As Christians we have the many promises of God’s presence in our lives
1 Rom 8:38-39 NIV
For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, {39} neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
2 This is Good to remember
i When life gets hard
ii When we feel persecuted
iii When we feel as though God is not there
C We have a God that loves us and has given us His grace for the journey
1 He has shown us his mercy
a He has accepted us into His family
b He has saved us
2 It is God’s grace that undergirds our life.
a God’s grace abides in us (2 Cor. 9:14);
b Our calling, our witness, our works are all based on the power of God’s grace in our lives (2 Thess. 1:11-12).
3 God’s grace in our life does not mean we can keep on sinning
a It is God’s grace that give us our Christian life
b It is God’s grace that gives us the power to be holy
III The presence of God sanctifies in the journey
(16b) What else will distinguish me and your people
from all the other people on the face of the earth?"
A God promises the people of Israel that His presence will set them apart from the rest of the peoples of the world.
1 The people of Israel would be a peculiar people
2 They would be different from the rest of the world
a They had one God
b The rest of the world had many
c They would be ruled by God and have no king
d The rest of the world was ruled by kings
3 The people of Israel would be dedicated to God
B The people of Israel would be Holy Because Their God is Holy
1 His name is holy (Pss. 99:3; 111:9)
2 All that is His must be holy
a The items in His temple
b His people
C As Christians we are on a journey
1 We have been freed from the bondage of sin
2 We have come to a place where we will Call Jesus Lord
3 We need to set ourselves apart wholly for Him
4 We are on a road to holiness
a A journey of obedience
b A journey of being more and more like Jesus each day
Conclusion
As Christians we have God’s presence in our walk.
In that walk Christ wants to sanctify us holy so that we can be called His people.
In our Christian walk we are to make the Lord Jesus central and live so as to show that He is our purpose for living.
