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Four Spiritual Secrets

Exodus 3:11-12

"But Moses said to God, ‘Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?’
And God said, ‘I will be with you.’"

Introduction

The story of Moses is one of the most powerful stories in all of Scripture. His life can be divided into three stages of roughly forty years each.

First, Moses was a Prince in Egypt. During that time he was confident, educated, and powerful in the eyes of the world.

Second, Moses became a Shepherd in Midian. For forty years he lived quietly in the desert. The palace was gone. The prestige was gone. God was humbling him and preparing him.

Third, Moses would become the Leader of God’s people. This would be the final forty years of his life, when he would lead Israel out of bondage and toward the Promised Land.

By the time we arrive at Exodus chapter 3, Moses is about eighty years old. He has spent half his life as a shepherd in the desert.

Then one day something extraordinary happens.

He sees a bush that is burning but not consumed.

When Moses approaches the bush, God speaks to him.

God tells Moses that He has heard the cries of the Israelites in Egypt and that He is going to deliver them from slavery.

Then God says something that completely changes Moses’ life:

“I am sending you.”

God’s Compassion and Faithfulness

Before we talk about Moses, we must understand something very important about the Exodus story.

The Exodus is not primarily about Moses.

It is about God.

Exodus 2 tells us that the Israelites groaned under their slavery. Their cries went up to God, and God heard them. The Bible says that God remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

This shows us three important truths.

First, it shows us God’s compassion. God hears the cries of His people.

Second, it shows us God’s faithfulness. God keeps His promises.

Third, it reminds us of the power of persistent prayer. Throughout history, every great revival has been preceded by sincere and desperate prayer.

God hears the prayers of His people.

Moses’ Objections

When God called Moses, Moses immediately raised several objections.

First, Moses said, “Who am I?”

Moses saw himself as unqualified. He had once been a prince, but now he was just a shepherd. He had even committed murder and had fled Egypt as a fugitive.

Second, Moses said, “What if they ask questions I cannot answer?”

He feared that the people would challenge him.

Third, Moses said, “What if they don’t believe me?”

God responded by giving him miraculous signs.

Fourth, Moses said, “I am not a good speaker.”

He believed his weakness disqualified him.

Finally, Moses said something that caused God’s anger.

He said, “Please send someone else.”

Moses simply did not want the assignment.

Yet God was patient with Moses. God understood that Moses needed to learn some important spiritual lessons before he could become the instrument of deliverance.

Four Spiritual Secrets

Before Moses could lead Israel out of Egypt, God had to teach him four spiritual truths.

These truths are not only for Moses.

They are truths for every believer who desires to be used by God.

Secret One

I am not — but He is, and He is with me.

At the burning bush God taught Moses this first truth.

Moses thought the question was “Who am I?”

But God shifted the focus away from Moses.

God said,

“I will be with you.”

The success of God’s work does not depend on who we are.

It depends on who God is.

Moses was not the deliverer.

God was the deliverer.

Secret Two

I cannot — but He can, and He is with me.

God also taught Moses another important lesson.

Moses could not deliver Israel.

But God could.

In fact, God often teaches His servants this truth through failure.

Years earlier Moses had tried to deliver his people by his own strength. That attempt failed.

Now God was teaching him the lesson that every servant of God must learn:

You can’t — but God can.

Secret Three

I do not want to — but He wants to, and He is with me.

Many of God’s servants in Scripture initially resisted God’s call.

Jeremiah said he was too young.

Gideon said he was too weak.

Peter said he was a sinful man.

Moses said, “Send someone else.”

Sometimes the person who most eagerly wants power is the person who should not have it.

But God reminded Moses of something important.

The issue was not what Moses wanted.

The issue was what God wanted.

And God wanted to deliver His people.

Secret Four

I didn’t — but He did, because He was with me.

After the Red Sea parted and Israel walked through on dry ground, Moses would understand the final secret.

He would know that he did not deliver the people.

God did.

One of the great dangers in ministry is what we call acclamation — when people praise the human instrument instead of recognizing the work of God.

But we must always remember the truth.

God does extraordinary things through very ordinary people.

Not because they are extraordinary.

But because He is.

The Greatest Ability

In the work of God, there is one ability that matters more than any other.

It is not intelligence.

It is not charisma.

It is not talent.

The greatest ability is availability.

Some people have great ability but very little availability.

Others may have limited ability but a great willingness to be used by God.

Scripture shows us that God can use anyone who is available.

God does His work through people who are willing to say,

“Here I am.”

Conclusion

If I had a safe in my house and inside that safe was a small box containing a piece of paper, this is what I would write on it.

Four simple reminders.

Four spiritual truths.

I am not — but He is.

I cannot — but He can.

I do not want to — but He wants to.

I didn’t — but He did.

When we remember these truths, we can serve God with humility and confidence.

Because it is not about us.

It is about God working through us.

God does not use us because of what we are.

He uses us in spite of what we are.

And when we make ourselves available, God can use us to help bring others out of bondage and into freedom.

Prayer

Lord, thank You that You are the Deliverer. Teach us the same truths that You taught Moses. Help us to remember that it is not our strength, our talent, or our power that accomplishes Your work. It is Your presence. Make us available to You. And use us, just as You used Moses, to help deliver others from the bondage of sin.

Amen.

by: Mark Carman

03/12/2023

0

Psalms 66:18-20

18 If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me: 19 But verily God hath heard me; he hath attended to the voice of my prayer. 20 Blessed be God, which hath not turned away my prayer, nor his mercy from me.  

Sometimes we, God’s children, face struggles and battles that wear us down, cripple our minds, distort our thoughts, bring about fear, despair, and heartbreak. So when we pray, we need to recognize that we, ourselves, are in need of prayer You and Me. We, the Children of God, often get our eyes focused on the storm instead focusing on the one who walks on the waves can speaks to the wind and the seas and causes the storm to wither and die. (see Matthew 14:24-26)

I know, from my own experience, how the storms of life can burry somebody fear and doubt and a sense of hopelessness.  I’ve been there, you’ve been there…. Everybody you know has been there. Job changes, raising children, marriage, broken marriages, sickness, the death of a loved one, our health, are all very REAL good sport where a storm can just break out at any time. Sometimes……. in those times……  it may be a little difficult to clear the mind enough to remember that “greater is He that is in you than he who is in the world.” , I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Particularly if we don’t have regular communication with the one who controls all of it….ALL OF IT…..  That may sound bit harsh, blunt perhaps, maybe even rhetorical. But communication is such an essential part of our relationship with God and his relationship toward us.

We have spoken about “Following Jesus” “Obeying the voice of God” “Finding God’s Will in our life” But, how can you do that if you don’t communicate?   

Ok, well how do we communicate with God? Prayer…. Right?  He Promises over and over in his word that he will hear us when we pray. And let’s face it, God keeps His promises. However, sometimes we may fear the outcome because we know what we deserve as a consequence of our actions or lack thereof……. Nevertheless, we expect things to work out in our favor…… because that is our selfish, sinful nature. There are even so-called preachers teaching, from the pulpit, that people ought to just DEMAND that God do things OUR way…..  Regardless of God’s WILL, I WANT MY WAY! ------ I WANT IT NOW~

We sometimes lie to ourselves instead of being honest like it says in verse 18 of Psalm 66. (18) If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:

Let me illustrate what I mean with this little story…   

One Sunday a little boy was "acting up" during the morning worship service.

  • His Mom was home sick with my little sister….
  • He and his brother were parked on the front row… of the church, on one of those hard wooden pews. His Dad, the Pastor,  was preaching. Now  the little boy knew the rules, and the church protocol, but HIS Daddy was preaching  so HE figured HE was in the clear. 
  • Well, the boy had smuggled some hot-wheels car, in his coat pocket, to church. About 5 minutes into the sermon, BUZZZZZZZ!!! The boy sent one of those cars across the old slick, wooden pew...     
  • The Dad stopped preaching and said, "Two little boys are going to get a whipping in about half a minute.... 
  • Now, the older brother, wanting no part of suck foolishness, put the car in his pocket and tried to play it off.  
  • So, the little boy reached in his pocket, pulled out another one, and BUZZZZZZ! Across the pew it went.  

About that time, my Daddy stopped preaching, picked me up, carried me right down the aisle toward the door of the church house. On the way out, I was screaming, PLEASE….  "Ya’ll Pray for me! Pray for me!"

You see I knew what I deserved and what was coming but I could have avoided it all if he had just obeyed My Father’s instructions the first time, second time, or third time…..  

There will be times when you and I will need the prayers of others to help us face what we know will be tough times ahead.  Like that …….“little boy”……. we need to shout out!  – pray for Me, everybody.

Prayer is so very important to Christian life and a right relationship with the Lord, that Jesus took time to teach His disciples how to pray, what to pray, and when to pray.  I also think it’s great that Jesus followers asked to be taught to pray. They were around Jesus constantly and knew that He often prayed so they realized that they too needed to understand the power and importance of PRAYER .

 

So lets break it DOWN: 

9: Our Father which art in heaven, (Its Addressed to God-Location and all.) Hallowed (worshipped, exalted, honored, and adored) be thy name.

10: Thy kingdom come, - NO THE WORLD, YOUR KINGDOM….  Thy NOT MY WILL be – be done in earth, JUST LIKE IT IS IN HEAVEN  

 ((((((((First Request comes here))))))));

We have Acknowledged is Authority and his Majestic Excellence FIRST… BEFORE ASKING FOR ANYTHING. AND….. we have surrendered – submitted to HIS will in the matter at hand…….    

11 Give us this day our daily bread. (Seek our needs)  

12 And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. ( Ask for forgiveness…. As we Forgive).

13 And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil: (Guide my steps, lord, Guide my keystrokes on my computer keyboard, Keep me away from things that are subject to may me drift away from you God.) ( Make me think about it before I hit the send button on the text or that email…… ) Deliver me from evil.

For thine (YOURS is the kingdom, and YOURS is the power ( NOT MINE) , and the glory, forever. Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer is just one example but sometimes we even get that wrong just like the little girl who prayed. "And forgive us our trash baskets as we forgive those who put trash in our baskets."  Children exhibit spiritual wisdom even when they’re not trying just like this little girl’s mistake.  Our trespasses is what she was trying to say but I think she actually got it right for all of us. Our Trespasses really are the things that belong in our trash baskets and we need to forgive those who put their trash in our baskets too.

Folks Jesus taught us about prayer for some very good reasons.

First, He wanted to let us know that we too have direct access to the Holy Father, the Creator of all that is seen and unseen, The Living God.  

Think about that – that is some kind of privilege.  Your prayers go into the very Sanctuary of Heaven – the Throne of Grace. We can’t even get hold of the Cable company, but we can certainly reach GOD. The Bible tells us that our prayers rise to GOD like incense, “a fragrant offering”.  Imagine that your prayers are like the scent of perfume or a bouquet of flowers.  Psalms 141:2   

It may be hard to imagine how all our prayers turn into something so wonderful. I don’t know about you but sometimes I find my prayers are a list of gripes complaints instead of gratefulness and compliments. BUT, God, being faithful as he is, takes even our complaints and belly-aching and turns them into a fragrant offering when we pray sincerely and humbly. Ole’ Job was a good example of this type of prayer.

Sometimes like Job we need to be reminded that no matter how good or obedient we think we are there is always room for improvement.  Job 13:23   We fool ourselves when we talk like we have it all together, … because we are all sinners in need of God’s salvation and continued grace. Romans 3:23

A little boy was overheard to offer this prayer…. “Lord if you can’t make me a better boy don’t worry about it.  I’m having a real good time like I am”. Sadly, too many of us are like that little boy. We’re happy and content to be just the way we are, even though we know we are not the PERSON that God wants us to be.   

The Bible talks about our need to wake up. It even uses the word sleeper. EPH 5:14, Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.- and that is what we all need to do as it concerns our prayer life. We need to wake up……  Ephesians 5:14  We get so desensitized that we take prayer for granted.  Many of us only pray when we have those obligatory prayers.. or especially we need something. Yes, we need to practice the 9-1-1 prayers.  But prayer should be praise as well as requests. We of all people should be experts at praying. Sadly some of us need to be taught again the basics of prayer.  

Seldom do we use prayer as an offensive weapon…. but PRAYER can be used to bring down strongholds.  2 Corinthians 10:3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;

Jesus told us in Mark 11:24, 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

Church, it is time that we made prayer a priority in our daily living. The Muslim prays 5 times per day…. Without Fail! 

The Jew Prays Three time per day, without fail!

If you do not have a regular prayer time you need to establish one… AND COMMIT TO IT.  We are in a War…. And we need to establish our communications, our command and control, our continuity of operations….. We need to set up our own situation room (like in the Whitehouse)   

The enemy of our God --------- IS OUR enemy….  Make no mistake about it.  AND God has equipped us with the weapons and means to be victorious over THAT enemy through the Body, Blood and sacrifice of Jesus Christ….. If you are saved, then Jesus’ victory is already alive in you and in me | THE HOLY SPIRIT ….   All we HAVE do is give it breath to that victory through OUR prayers.

If you get NOTHING ELSE out of this message… get this…

THE DEVIL is NEVER more afraid, never more on his heals, never more in a defensive posture as he is when you are on your knees before the Living God.  Let us give the Devil something to scared of……    

Lets say the Lord's Prayer together:  

Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.  10 Thy kingdom come, thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.  11 Give us this day our daily bread.  12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.   13 And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever.

Amen.

Now…. I want you to think about PRAYER…. Is there a difference when you pray over your meal….. and when you pray for that grandbaby, or that spouse, or that loved one on the way to the emergency room…. Do you pray a loud and a hard as you fight? Or how about when that mountain of financial burden suddenly begins to shake and rumble like the volcano about to erupt……      Remember----- With faith, and a right relationship with God, you can either MOVE that mountain or Gain the Strength to climb it.

Its time to PRAY...

Pastor Mark

Blog comments will be sent to the moderator

Psalms 66:18-20

18 If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me: 19 But verily God hath heard me; he hath attended to the voice of my prayer. 20 Blessed be God, which hath not turned away my prayer, nor his mercy from me.  

Sometimes we, God’s children, face struggles and battles that wear us down, cripple our minds, distort our thoughts, bring about fear, despair, and heartbreak. So when we pray, we need to recognize that we, ourselves, are in need of prayer You and Me. We, the Children of God, often get our eyes focused on the storm instead focusing on the one who walks on the waves can speaks to the wind and the seas and causes the storm to wither and die. (see Matthew 14:24-26)

I know, from my own experience, how the storms of life can burry somebody fear and doubt and a sense of hopelessness.  I’ve been there, you’ve been there…. Everybody you know has been there. Job changes, raising children, marriage, broken marriages, sickness, the death of a loved one, our health, are all very REAL good sport where a storm can just break out at any time. Sometimes……. in those times……  it may be a little difficult to clear the mind enough to remember that “greater is He that is in you than he who is in the world.” , I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Particularly if we don’t have regular communication with the one who controls all of it….ALL OF IT…..  That may sound bit harsh, blunt perhaps, maybe even rhetorical. But communication is such an essential part of our relationship with God and his relationship toward us.

We have spoken about “Following Jesus” “Obeying the voice of God” “Finding God’s Will in our life” But, how can you do that if you don’t communicate?   

Ok, well how do we communicate with God? Prayer…. Right?  He Promises over and over in his word that he will hear us when we pray. And let’s face it, God keeps His promises. However, sometimes we may fear the outcome because we know what we deserve as a consequence of our actions or lack thereof……. Nevertheless, we expect things to work out in our favor…… because that is our selfish, sinful nature. There are even so-called preachers teaching, from the pulpit, that people ought to just DEMAND that God do things OUR way…..  Regardless of God’s WILL, I WANT MY WAY! ------ I WANT IT NOW~

We sometimes lie to ourselves instead of being honest like it says in verse 18 of Psalm 66. (18) If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:

Let me illustrate what I mean with this little story…   

One Sunday a little boy was "acting up" during the morning worship service.

  • His Mom was home sick with my little sister….
  • He and his brother were parked on the front row… of the church, on one of those hard wooden pews. His Dad, the Pastor,  was preaching. Now  the little boy knew the rules, and the church protocol, but HIS Daddy was preaching  so HE figured HE was in the clear. 
  • Well, the boy had smuggled some hot-wheels car, in his coat pocket, to church. About 5 minutes into the sermon, BUZZZZZZZ!!! The boy sent one of those cars across the old slick, wooden pew...     
  • The Dad stopped preaching and said, "Two little boys are going to get a whipping in about half a minute.... 
  • Now, the older brother, wanting no part of suck foolishness, put the car in his pocket and tried to play it off.  
  • So, the little boy reached in his pocket, pulled out another one, and BUZZZZZZ! Across the pew it went.  

About that time, my Daddy stopped preaching, picked me up, carried me right down the aisle toward the door of the church house. On the way out, I was screaming, PLEASE….  "Ya’ll Pray for me! Pray for me!"

You see I knew what I deserved and what was coming but I could have avoided it all if he had just obeyed My Father’s instructions the first time, second time, or third time…..  

There will be times when you and I will need the prayers of others to help us face what we know will be tough times ahead.  Like that …….“little boy”……. we need to shout out!  – pray for Me, everybody.

Prayer is so very important to Christian life and a right relationship with the Lord, that Jesus took time to teach His disciples how to pray, what to pray, and when to pray.  I also think it’s great that Jesus followers asked to be taught to pray. They were around Jesus constantly and knew that He often prayed so they realized that they too needed to understand the power and importance of PRAYER .

 

So lets break it DOWN: 

9: Our Father which art in heaven, (Its Addressed to God-Location and all.) Hallowed (worshipped, exalted, honored, and adored) be thy name.

10: Thy kingdom come, - NO THE WORLD, YOUR KINGDOM….  Thy NOT MY WILL be – be done in earth, JUST LIKE IT IS IN HEAVEN  

 ((((((((First Request comes here))))))));

We have Acknowledged is Authority and his Majestic Excellence FIRST… BEFORE ASKING FOR ANYTHING. AND….. we have surrendered – submitted to HIS will in the matter at hand…….    

11 Give us this day our daily bread. (Seek our needs)  

12 And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. ( Ask for forgiveness…. As we Forgive).

13 And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil: (Guide my steps, lord, Guide my keystrokes on my computer keyboard, Keep me away from things that are subject to may me drift away from you God.) ( Make me think about it before I hit the send button on the text or that email…… ) Deliver me from evil.

For thine (YOURS is the kingdom, and YOURS is the power ( NOT MINE) , and the glory, forever. Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer is just one example but sometimes we even get that wrong just like the little girl who prayed. "And forgive us our trash baskets as we forgive those who put trash in our baskets."  Children exhibit spiritual wisdom even when they’re not trying just like this little girl’s mistake.  Our trespasses is what she was trying to say but I think she actually got it right for all of us. Our Trespasses really are the things that belong in our trash baskets and we need to forgive those who put their trash in our baskets too.

Folks Jesus taught us about prayer for some very good reasons.

First, He wanted to let us know that we too have direct access to the Holy Father, the Creator of all that is seen and unseen, The Living God.  

Think about that – that is some kind of privilege.  Your prayers go into the very Sanctuary of Heaven – the Throne of Grace. We can’t even get hold of the Cable company, but we can certainly reach GOD. The Bible tells us that our prayers rise to GOD like incense, “a fragrant offering”.  Imagine that your prayers are like the scent of perfume or a bouquet of flowers.  Psalms 141:2   

It may be hard to imagine how all our prayers turn into something so wonderful. I don’t know about you but sometimes I find my prayers are a list of gripes complaints instead of gratefulness and compliments. BUT, God, being faithful as he is, takes even our complaints and belly-aching and turns them into a fragrant offering when we pray sincerely and humbly. Ole’ Job was a good example of this type of prayer.

Sometimes like Job we need to be reminded that no matter how good or obedient we think we are there is always room for improvement.  Job 13:23   We fool ourselves when we talk like we have it all together, … because we are all sinners in need of God’s salvation and continued grace. Romans 3:23

A little boy was overheard to offer this prayer…. “Lord if you can’t make me a better boy don’t worry about it.  I’m having a real good time like I am”. Sadly, too many of us are like that little boy. We’re happy and content to be just the way we are, even though we know we are not the PERSON that God wants us to be.   

The Bible talks about our need to wake up. It even uses the word sleeper. EPH 5:14, Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.- and that is what we all need to do as it concerns our prayer life. We need to wake up……  Ephesians 5:14  We get so desensitized that we take prayer for granted.  Many of us only pray when we have those obligatory prayers.. or especially we need something. Yes, we need to practice the 9-1-1 prayers.  But prayer should be praise as well as requests. We of all people should be experts at praying. Sadly some of us need to be taught again the basics of prayer.  

Seldom do we use prayer as an offensive weapon…. but PRAYER can be used to bring down strongholds.  2 Corinthians 10:3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;

Jesus told us in Mark 11:24, 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

Church, it is time that we made prayer a priority in our daily living. The Muslim prays 5 times per day…. Without Fail! 

The Jew Prays Three time per day, without fail!

If you do not have a regular prayer time you need to establish one… AND COMMIT TO IT.  We are in a War…. And we need to establish our communications, our command and control, our continuity of operations….. We need to set up our own situation room (like in the Whitehouse)   

The enemy of our God --------- IS OUR enemy….  Make no mistake about it.  AND God has equipped us with the weapons and means to be victorious over THAT enemy through the Body, Blood and sacrifice of Jesus Christ….. If you are saved, then Jesus’ victory is already alive in you and in me | THE HOLY SPIRIT ….   All we HAVE do is give it breath to that victory through OUR prayers.

If you get NOTHING ELSE out of this message… get this…

THE DEVIL is NEVER more afraid, never more on his heals, never more in a defensive posture as he is when you are on your knees before the Living God.  Let us give the Devil something to scared of……    

Lets say the Lord's Prayer together:  

Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.  10 Thy kingdom come, thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.  11 Give us this day our daily bread.  12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.   13 And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever.

Amen.

Now…. I want you to think about PRAYER…. Is there a difference when you pray over your meal….. and when you pray for that grandbaby, or that spouse, or that loved one on the way to the emergency room…. Do you pray a loud and a hard as you fight? Or how about when that mountain of financial burden suddenly begins to shake and rumble like the volcano about to erupt……      Remember----- With faith, and a right relationship with God, you can either MOVE that mountain or Gain the Strength to climb it.

Its time to PRAY...

Pastor Mark

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