Moses on the Mountain with the Lord
Part 16: A Great Leader
Exodus 32:30-35
Sermon by Rick Crandall
McClendon Baptist Church October 13, 2010
BACKGROUND:
*How could they have done it? How could the Children of Israel have fallen so far so fast? -- After all they had heard and seen the Lord do they couldn’t even wait 40 days before they rebelled against God.
*So starting in Exodus 32:7,
7. The Lord said to Moses, "Go, get down! For your people whom you brought out of the land of Egypt have corrupted themselves.
8. They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them. They have made themselves a molded calf, and worshiped it and sacrificed to it, and said, `This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!’’’
9. And the Lord said to Moses, "I have seen this people, and indeed it is a stiff-necked people!
10. Now therefore, let Me alone, that My wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them. And I will make of you a great nation.’’
*Great leader that he was, Moses pleaded for God’s mercy on the Jews. God heard Moses’ prayer, and spared His people. Then Moses returned to camp to begin to make things right.
*The key question found in vs. 26 was this: “Who is on the Lord’s side?”
-Three thousand of the Lord’s enemies fell that day, but the terrible consequences of the people’s sin were not over. This is where we pick up reading tonight in vs. 30-35. It will be Moses’ sixth meeting on Mount Sinai with the Lord. (1)
30. Now it came to pass on the next day that Moses said to the people, "You have committed a great sin. So now I will go up to the LORD; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin."
31. Then Moses returned to the LORD and said, "Oh, these people have committed a great sin, and have made for themselves a god of gold!
32. Yet now, if You will forgive their sin—but if not, I pray, blot me out of Your book which You have written."
33. And the LORD said to Moses, "Whoever has sinned against Me, I will blot him out of My book.
34. Now therefore, go, lead the people to the place of which I have spoken to you. Behold, My Angel shall go before you. Nevertheless, in the day when I visit for punishment, I will visit punishment upon them for their sin."
35. So the LORD plagued the people because of what they did with the calf which Aaron made.
INTRODUCTION:
*One of the unexpected results of our Old Testament study is that my admiration for Moses has skyrocketed. What a great leader he was!
*Tonight Moses can show all of us how to be better leaders. Now you may be thinking, “I’m not a leader,” but all of us are leaders on some level. All of us have influence on other people. All of us are leading people either in the right direction or the wrong direction.
*How can I be the best leader God wants me to be?
1. First: Show people the error of their sin.
*Moses did this again in vs. 30: “And it came to pass on the next day that Moses said to the people, ‘You have committed a great sin. So now I will go up to the Lord; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.’”
*Moses told them, “You have committed a great sin.” By worshipping the golden calf, the Jews had broken several of God’s 10 Commandments:
-They broke the First Commandment, because in Exodus 20:3, God told them: “You shall have no other gods before Me.”
-They also broke the Second Commandment, for in Exodus 20:4 the Lord told them: “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.”
*On top of that, Aaron lied about making the golden calf, and some of the people probably committed adultery.
*These are all terrible sins. But we don’t want people to get the notion that there are some good sins. Obviously, on one level, killing someone is worse than calling them an ugly name. But all sin is sin, and any sin is bad enough to send you to hell. As James 2:10 says: “For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all.”
*On top of this, Matthew Henry reminds us that the great evil of sin can be measured by the price of pardon. (2)
*In vs. 30, Moses told the people, “You have committed a great sin. So now I will go up to the Lord; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin”
-Of course, by himself, Moses could never have made atonement for their sin!
-Only Jesus could make the atonement for our sin.
-And He did when He died on the cross for us.
*The highest price in the universe had to be paid for our pardon! The highest price possible was paid for our pardon, so our sins must truly be terrible.
*Moses told them, “You have committed a great sin.” And we need to help people see the greatness of their sin. That can be hard to do, because, guess what, most of the time people don’t want to hear about their own sins.
*And if they know you, they have a tendency to remind you of your own sins.
-But carefully and prayerfully, we need to show people the error of their sins.
*Several years ago, I had the privilege of going to a minister’s breakfast with Gov. Bobby Jindal. He spent most of the time talking about how he got saved. It was a spiritual journey that took 7 years. And it started the day that Bobby’s best friend in high school said: “Bobby, I feel sorry for you.”
*Bobby replied, “You feel sorry for me. -- Why?”
*“I feel sorry for you, because when I die I’m going to heaven to be with Jesus. And you’re not gonna be there. I’m going to miss you.”
*That young man was a leader!
-He was a friend who cared.
-He cared enough to speak-up.
-He cared enough to take a risk.
-He cared enough to have genuine sorrow over his lost friend.
*How can I be the best leader God wants me to be?
-Show people the error of their sin.
2. And strive to help others get right with God.
*This is another dimension of Moses’ leadership that we can see in vs. 30:
-“And it came to pass on the next day that Moses said to the people, ‘You have committed a great sin. So now I will go up to the Lord; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.’”
*Moses spoke-up, but he also strived to help them get right with God.
-Moses talked, but he also walked.
-He went back up that mountain for his people.
-He went the distance for them
-Moses did everything he could to help those people get right with God.
*I think of David Livingstone, the pioneer missionary to Africa, who walked over 29,000 miles, striving to help people get right with God. Livingstone’s wife died early in their ministry and he faced stiff opposition from his Scottish brethren. He ministered half blind. Yet he kept moving forward to reach people for Jesus.
*And he once wrote these words in his diary: “Send me anywhere, only go with me. Lay any burden on me, only sustain me. Sever me from any tie but the tie that binds me to Your service and to Your heart.” (3)
*How can I be the best leader God wants me to be?
-Strive to help other people get right with God.
3. And be willing to sacrifice yourself.
*Moses was willing to sacrifice himself completely for his people. We see this truth in the amazing statement Moses made in vs. 31-32:
31. Then Moses returned to the Lord and said, "Oh, these people have committed a great sin, and have made for themselves a god of gold!
32. Yet now, if You will forgive their sin but if not, I pray, blot me out of Your book which You have written.”
*John Gill explained that: “Moses asked for this, not as a thing either desirable or possible, but to express his great affection for this people, and his great concern for the glory of God. Rather than either should suffer, he chose, if it was possible, to be deprived of that eternal happiness he hoped for, and should enjoy.” (4)
*The Apostle Paul said something very similar in Romans 9:1-3:
1. I tell the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit,
2. that I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart.
3. For I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh,
*Paul had great sorrow for the lost, and he was willing to make the greatest sacrifice for the lost. He was even willing to give up his salvation for the lost.
*Of course no one could do that, but both Moses and Paul were willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for the lost. And here’s what Jesus tells all of us to do in Luke 9:23: “Then He said to them all, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.’”
*How can I be the best leader God wants me to be?
-Be willing to sacrifice yourself.
-In big ways and small, be willing to sacrifice yourself for the cause of Jesus Christ.
4. But also submit to the Lord.
*Moses was a great leader, because he submitted himself to the Lord’s perfect will. In vs. 32-35, we see 3 ways Moses submitted to the Lord.
[1] First: submit to the Lord’s discretion.
*We have to understand that the Lord is God. He is the Judge, and His will is perfect. This is the message that the Lord gave to Moses in vs. 33.
-In vs. 32, Moses had pleaded: “Yet now, if You will forgive their sin but if not, I pray, blot me out of Your book which You have written.”
-And in vs. 33, the Lord replied: “Whoever has sinned against Me, I will blot him out of My book.”
*In other words: “Moses, I am the Judge. I decide who goes to Heaven and who goes to hell.”
*God is absolutely sovereign when it comes to salvation. And His judgment is perfect. So we should submit to the Lord’s discretion.
[2] But also submit to His assigned duty.
*The Lord gave Moses His assignment in vs. 34: "Now therefore, go, lead the people to the place of which I have spoken to you. Behold, My Angel shall go before you. Nevertheless, in the day when I visit for punishment, I will visit punishment upon them for their sin.”
*“Well, it’s not all going to be pleasant, Moses, but I have a job for you.” -- And Christian, God has a job for you!
*Howard Hendricks told the story of a flight he was on in the summer of 1987. It was from Boston to Dallas, and it took off 6 hours late. Tired Friday-afternoon flyers were steamed about the delay. Howard said the man across the aisle from him growled at the flight attendant every time she walked by.
*Dr. Hendricks admired the flight attendant’s self-control and the way she handled the situation. So, he walked back to compliment her. He asked her name, and said he wanted to write American Airlines to express his appreciation.
*But she smiled and replied, “I don’t work for American Airlines. I work for Jesus Christ.” (5)
*I love that lady’s attitude. And I guarantee you that God loves it too. God has many assignments for each one of us, and He wants us to carry them out to the best of our ability. So we should Submit to the Lord’s duty.
[3] But also submit to His discipline.
*In vs. 34&35, the Lord told Moses:
34. “Now therefore, go, lead the people to the place of which I have spoken to you. Behold, My Angel shall go before you. Nevertheless, in the day when I visit for punishment, I will visit punishment upon them for their sin.”
35. So the Lord plagued the people because of what they did with the calf which Aaron made.
*The Lord disciplines His people, and sometimes His discipline is severe. God wants to change our lives, and this is so important that our loving Heavenly Father is willing to chasten us
*Christians, our Heavenly Father is willing to spank us to help us be all we can be in Him. Hebrews 12 tells us that this is one of the surest signs of God’s love.
*This is how Eugene Peterson paraphrased it in The Message:
5. Have you forgotten how good parents treat children, and that God regards you as his children? My dear child, don’t shrug off God’s discipline, but don’t be crushed by it either.
6. It’s the child he loves that he disciplines; the child he embraces, he also corrects.
7. God is educating you; that’s why you must never drop out. He’s treating you as dear children. This trouble you’re in isn’t punishment; it’s training,
8. the normal experience of children. Only irresponsible parents leave children to fend for themselves. Would you prefer an irresponsible God?
9. We respect our own parents for training and not spoiling us, so why not embrace God’s training so we can truly live?
10. While we were children, our parents did what seemed best to them. But God is doing what is best for us, training us to live God’s holy best.
11. At the time, discipline isn’t much fun. It always feels like it’s going against the grain. Later, of course, it pays off handsomely, for it’s the well-trained who find themselves mature in their relationship with God.
12. So don’t sit around on your hands! No more dragging your feet!
*Submit to the Lord for His discipline, for God surely disciplines those he loves.
*But get as close to the Lord as you can, and it won’t hurt as much.
-The great evangelist D.L. Moody explained it this way:
“When I was a boy my mother used to send me outdoors to get a birch stick to whip me with, when I had to be punished. At first I used to stand off from the rod as far as I could. But I soon found that the whipping hurt me more that way than any other. And so I went as near to my mother as I could, and found she could not strike me so hard. And so when God chastens us let us kiss the rod and draw as near to him as we can.” (6)
*If you want to be a good leader, submit to the Lord.
-Submit to the His discretion.
-Submit to His duty.
-And submit to His discipline.
CONCLUSION:
*How can I be the best leader God wants me to be?
-Prayerfully and carefully, show people the error of their sin.
-Strive to help other people get right with God.
-Be willing to sacrifice yourself. -- Take up your cross every day.
-And fully submit to the Lord. -- He will make us into the best leaders we can be.
1. Exodus 32:30-31 gives the starting point for Moses’ 6th ascent.
(Good explanation of Moses’ time on the mountain: “Seven Ascents” by Richard Gamble - www.heraldmag.org/2006/06mj_3.htm)
2. Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible - Exodus 32:30-35
3. Joseph Stowell, “Through the Fire”, Victor Books, 1988, p. 150. – Found at Sermonillustrations.com - Dedication
4. John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible - Exodus 32:32
5. Kenneth O. Gangel in Roy B. Zuck, DEVOTIONS FOR KINDRED SPIRITS (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1990), p. 372. (Found at Sermons.com)
6. SermonCentral sermon “God disciplines those he loves” by Anthony Hebb - Hebrews 12:1-11
