We Are Standing On Holy Ground!

We Are Standing on Holy Ground!

Exodus 3:1-15

Sermon by Rick Crandall

(Prepared August 10, 2023)

(Revised September 26, 2023, to remove Genesis 15:13 statement that the Children of Israel were afflicted for 400 years. Bible scholars have different views on when the affliction started during the 400-year period.) (6)

BACKGROUND:

*Of all the heroes in the Old Testament, nobody stands out more than Moses. We see him leading the Children of Israel across the Red Sea on dry ground. We see him on the mountain with God as the LORD writes out the Ten Commandments. And God used Moses to give us the first 5 books of the Bible.

*But Moses also had a past. He was a murderer, and he spent 40 years in the middle of nowhere taking care of sheep. Then the LORD met with Moses, and his life was changed forever. Let's read about it in Exodus 3:1-15.

INTRODUCTION:

*You may not see a burning bush here this morning, but just like Moses, we are on holy ground. You see, that little piece of desert Moses was standing on was holy for just one reason: God was there. God was there, and He is just as surely here today. We are in the presence of the living Lord, and we know this because of Jesus' promise in Matthew 18:20. There the Lord said, "Where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.''

*We are on holy ground today. And this truth has great meaning for our lives.

1. FIRST IT MEANS THAT GOD WANTS US TO CONTACT US.

*We see this great truth in vs. 1-5:

1. Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian. And he led the flock to the back of the desert, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.

2. And the Angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. So he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed.

3. Then Moses said, "I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn.''

4. So when the LORD saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, "Moses, Moses!'' And he said, "Here I am.''

5. Then He said, "Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.''

*God contacted Moses. And God wants to contact us. Notice in vs. 4, that the LORD called Moses' name, and God calls out to us in a personal, individual way. There are over 8 billion people in the world. But that's no problem for God!

*He wants us to be conscious of His presence, and He can show up at any time. This day started out like any ordinary day for Moses, but out of the blue, God showed up! And Moses was never the same.

*God shows up. He wants to be the biggest part of your life every day. He wants to fill your heart. And we don't need a burning bush. because we've got something better! We've got the Bible, the written Word of God. I am so glad we don't have to go looking for a burning bush. We can hear from God anytime we open His Word!

*God meets with us, not through a burning bush, but through a burning heart. Jesus died on the cross for our sins about 2,000 years ago. Three days later, He rose again from the dead, and on that day, two of the Lord's disciples were walking to the village of Emmaus. Jesus joined them on the way. But somehow He miraculously blocked their vision at first, so they didn't recognize who He was.

*Those disciples were terribly sad, because they didn't yet believe that Jesus was alive. Of course they were talking about the crucifixion. Jesus asked them about their conversation, and why they were so sad. They were shocked, and basically responded by saying, "What? Don't you know what happened in Jerusalem? The mighty prophet, Jesus was crucified. We were hoping that He was the one who was going to redeem Israel, but He died on the cross. Some of the women went to the tomb this morning, and they could not find His body. But they said they saw angels, and the angels told them that Jesus is alive."

*After Jesus listened to His doubting disciples, Luke 24:25-32 says:

25. Then He said to them, "O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken!

26. Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?''