Title: Moses And Mt Nebo
Text: Deut 32:45 and 34:1-12
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Introduction:
- We all know that in the Word of God and with our experience with God there are valley experiences and mountain top experiences.
- We know that the Word does not specifically speak of mountain top experiences or valley experiences but rather the Word refers to these areas and shows us what takes place when we are in these geographical locations.
- Let me explain:
- The valley represents hardship and difficulty where the mountain represents victory and relief from struggles.
Lets talk about the valley for a moment:
- When people are in the valley, it can produce at times fear, rebellion, grumbling and sorrow.
- When we don’t put our faith in the Lord while in the valley, we just stay there longer until we change and trust in God.
- Our example is the Israelites who wondered in the wilderness for 40 years.
- According to Deut 1, it was only a 2 week journey to go from Horeb to Kadesh Barnea, but it took 40 years, why?
- Because they couldn’t trust the Lord to guide them and give them the promise land.
- The Bible says in Deut 1:26 that they grumbled and were unwilling.
- Those are emotions that God wants to erase out of there vocabulary.
- Failure to live in God’s will and by His Spirit can result in a delay in or even in a total loss of God’s plan for our lives.
- Why is the valley trying for the believer?
- There are many obstacles in the valley that can turn our attention off of the Shepherd and on to the surroundings.
- Here are a few of the obstacles that believers face while in the valley.
- Wolves and other wild animals that like to destroy sheep.
- There’s the un level ground that make it hard for the sheep to follow the Shepherd.
- There’s the lack of sunlight because of all the trees and brush that block it out, it makes it hard to see the path and direction of the Shepherd.
- So the valley experience teach us to keep our eyes on the true Shepherd which is Jesus Christ.
- The valley times show us what is inside of us and what needs to become more like Christ.
- It also teaches us how committed, and strong we are in following the Shepherd.
- Valley experiences are necessary for us to grow and experience the power of God.
- God doesn’t just want us to know that He heals, delivers, guides and talks. He wants us to experience those things.
- The only way we are going to experience them is to walk in the valley.
- The Israelites walked in the valley or wilderness as a time of testing, to see what was in them.
- And it’s unfortunate, they didn’t pass, they died in the wilderness.
Transition:
- What about the Mountain Top?
- What is the Mountain Top experience like?
- How do we get from the valley to the mountain?
- All the answers are found in our text, Deut 34:1-12
- I want to share with you how to get to the mountain from the valley, and 3 points of what you will experience while on the mountain top.
- Moses in verse 10 is described as being a friend of God.
- He was a man who spoke face to face with God, a privilege no man has had since.
- Here’s the secret that Moses had that we need to posses.
- It’s a character trait that we all struggle with but Moses excelled in.
- God disciplined Moses severely but still called him His friend.
- Now we will all experience the harsh discipline of the Lord, but how do we respond when God disciplines us or corrects us?
- A lot of the time we respond with anger, embarrassment or resentment.
- The people of Israel responded to God with resentment in Deut 1 thus they stayed in the valley until that attitude left them.
- It never did and they died there.
- We need to respond as Moses responded and he responded in a way that was open to God, loving towards God and a desire to do better.
- In order for us to leave the valley experience we need to accept that sometimes we disobey, and because we disobey God will discipline us.
- When we are getting disciplined remember to respond in love towards God, humble yourself and desire to do better.
- If we will practice those principals we will find ourselves leaving the valley experiences a little more often.
- God is in the business of making you more like Him and keeping His name holy.
- We need to remember that God will not be mocked, but His name will be holy.
- Now When We Are On The Mountain You Are Going To Experience 3 Things, They Are:
Point 1: We Are Going To See God’s Plan More Clearly
Gene Getz once said of God’s plan for Joseph that:
At age thirty, Joseph could never have handled this world-class task without
an intensive and experience oriented course in management. It began in
Potiphar’s house, where he managed all of his affairs. It continued in prison
where he was eventually responsible for all the prisoners. And thirteen years
later, he was “put. . .in charge of the whole land of Egypt.”
“God’s plan for Joseph was on schedule. His preparation was tailor-made for
the task God had for him. And because Joseph passed each test, learned from
each experience, and learned to trust God more, he was ready when God
opened the door of opportunity. He handled prestige and power without
succumbing to pride. He persevered with patience and performed his duties
faithfully and successfully. He was well prepared.”
- God has a plan for each of us, when we are on the mountain top experience we see it more clearly.
- Moses saw the plan as God laid it out for him in great detail.
- Moses not only heard about the plan, he saw with his own eyes.
- Spiritually speaking God will let us see His plan for our lives
- God will let us see the plan either from the beginning or from the end. But He will reveal it to us.
John 15:14-167 says, “You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit – fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. This is my command: Love each other.”
- Very straight forward that God has a plan for all.
- Joseph saw the plan of God from the end, where as Moses saw it from the beginning.
- Either way God needs you to get the job done, but we will need to go through some high waters and valley experiences to get the world out and Jesus in.
- Being on the mountain in the beginning or end will let you see the plan of God more clearly.
Point 2: We Are Going To Hear God’s Voice With More Clarity
- Yes Moses heard the voice of God in the wilderness but Moses heard God’s voice with more clarity on the mountain.
- On the mountain God showed him in greater detail what was to happen.
- It’s great to know that God speaks to us and shows us how much He wants to us.
One evening Sam left his bible study group where his pastor was teaching on listening to God, convinced that he would listen when he felt God was speaking to him. It was at that very moment that Sam felt the compulsion to buy a gallon of milk. So he pulled over at the nearest shopette and bought a gallon of milk— though he had no need for it because he is lactose intolerant and won’t drink the milk. Perhaps God is talking to him, he thought.
As he got into his car and began his trip home, Sam found himself turning onto a road that doesn’t lead to his door, in fact he was allowing himself to drive into the worst neighborhood in town, and after another turn he felt led to stop the car, right in front of a little house at the end of the street. Sam began to wonder if he was going crazy when a voice seemed to come out of thin air and said,"Sam, take the milk up to that house, and give it to the family inside, my people have need of it." Sam thought,"This is crazy! I’m going out of my mind!" Yet the urge to do as the voice requested was very strong, so up to the door Sam went. Just as Sam was about to knock, the door to the house opened to reveal a startled young man. Who are you? He asked.
"Hi, I know this is going to sound ridiculous, but I think God wanted me to give you this milk." Sam hesitantly said.
To which the young man replied," That is not at all ridiculous, my wife and I were just praying for food for our baby, we ran out of milk two days ago, and God said he would provide."
Sam gave the milk to the young man and drove away praising God that He had been listening.
Point 3: We Are Going To Feel God’s Presence More Closely
- In some cases we sense God’s presence carrying us through, but in other instances we don’t sense the presence of God.
- We call those moments dry times, or times God is testing us.
- We have all heard the foot prints poem where God shows the person why there was only one set of prints in the sand.
- Because in the difficult times God was carrying us.
- We all go through those times when God is carrying us, and we don’t see it until He puts us down.
- The point is God is always there, we may not feel Him, but He is there.
- When we are on the Mountain, His presence takes on a new meaning.
- Moses was in God’s presence in a greater way on the mountain then in the valley.
- His face shone like a bright star, because He was in God’s presence.
- We need to understand there will be greater times that we feel God’s presence and not so great times, but we need to know that He is always there.
- We walk by faith and not by feeling. But it’s always good to feel Him once and awhile.
- There is no question that God’s presence is greater at times then other, when it’s great I like to call those moments mountain top times.
Conclusion:
- It’s not that we don’t see these 3 points in the valley, they are just more intense on the Mountain.
- Moses experienced the voice, presence and plan of God in the valley.
- But He received it with more clarity at the burning bush which was on a Mountain.
- He received the plan, presence and voice when he received the 10 commandments while on the mountain.
- When he came down his face shone with brightness because he was in God presence.
- He was still in God’s presence in the valley, but when you are on the mountain it’s that much more amplified
- In order for us to move to the mountain, we need to be a friend of God.
- And how we do that is by allowing us to be corrected and disciplined by the Lord.
- Let Him mold you into His image, humble yourself and determine that you are going to do better for His glory.
Isa 64:5-8 says, “You welcome those who gladly do good, who follow godly ways. But you have been very angry with us, for we are not godly. We are constant sinners; how can people like us be saved? We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags. Like autumn leaves, we wither and fall, and our sins sweep us away like the wind. Yet no calls on your name or pleads with you for mercy. Therefore, you have turned away from us and turned us over to our sins. And yet, O Lord, you are our Father. We are the clay, and you are the potter. We all are formed by your hand.”
Jer 29:11 says, “For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord. They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”
- If we strive to respond the way Moses did we will see the plan of God in greater detail, hear God’s voice with greater clarity and feel God’s presence more intimately.
Lets Pray!!!
