| God at Work (Part 2 of 'God's Call') |
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| Written by David Charlton |
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Scripture
Exodus 3:1-12 Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian; and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 And the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush; and he looked, and lo, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. 3 And Moses said, "I will turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt." 4 When the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here am I." 5 Then he said, "Do not come near; put off your shoes from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground." 6 And he said, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. 7 Then the LORD said, "I have seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters; I know their sufferings, 8 and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 9 And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. 10 Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring forth my people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt." 11 But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?" 12 He said, "But I will be with you; and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought forth the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God upon this mountain."
Summary and Purpose
Summary: God is always at work. God is working all around us. God is working to right wrongs, free the oppressed, provide for the poor, deliver people from sin and, ultimately, to redeem the entire creation from the clutches of sin. The more we develop spiritual eyes the more we can ‘see’ God at work. Once we ‘see’ God at work, we can take it as an invitation to join Him. God wants us to join Him in His work because God works through us to accomplish His loving purposes.
This is demonstrated in the story of Moses and the burning bush. God already decided He was going to rescue the Israelites from Egyptian slavery. God also decided to work through Moses. So, God revealed His plans to Moses through a burning bush. Once Moses recognized what God was already going to do, Moses answered God’s invitation and joined God in Hi s work.
As you walk with Jesus, the Holy Spirit will change your heart and open your eyes so you can discern when God is at work. Whenever you discern that God is at work, take that as an invitation to join God in the work. God will use you to accomplish great things for His kingdom. There is no greater honor or purpose. In this way, you can follow in the footsteps of men like Moses.
Purpose: To help the members of the congregation recognize when God is at work and then encourage them to join God in His work.
The Sermon
I. Introduction: My 4 year old son, Joshua, loves to help 1. Whenever my wife, Donna, or I are doing work, Joshua wants to join us and help. · When he sees one of us carrying rakes out back, he wants to get his small, toy rake and help · When he sees one of us running water to do the dishes, he’ll bring his stool to the sink and grab a fork or spoon and begin washing it. · When he sees one of us sweeping the floor, he’ll grab the other broom and begin sweeping 3. Joshua is doing two things · First, he’s discerning that we are working · Second, he joins us in that work 2. I must admit, we sometimes wish he wasn’t so excited to join us in our work. · He’s only four and doesn’t always have the necessary motor skills. · It never occurs to Joshua that he may not know how to do a certain job. He just jumps right in to help. · A 20 minute job may take 45 minutes to an hour. · We, however, try not to say no. We don’t want to extinguish his enthusiasm. 3. Joshua provides us the example we should follow · God is at work all around us. God is working to right wrongs, free the oppressed, provide for the poor, deliver people from sin and, ultimately, to redeem the entire creation from the clutches of sin. · As we walk with Jesus, the Holy Spirit will give us ‘eyes’ to ‘see’ where God is working. · Like Joshua, we need to recognize when God is at work and then join God in that work · This is the same example Jesus gives us, “Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing; for whatever he does, that the Son does likewise. 20 For the Father loves the Son, and shows him all that he himself is doing; and greater works than these will he show him, that you may marvel.” (John 5:19-20) 4. Last Sunday, we learned that ‘God wants you’ and is calling everyone to repentance and faith. · God is not calling people to repentance and faith just so they can sit and rest easy. · God calls people to repentance and faith so they can join Him in his work. 5. The story of Moses and the burning bush demonstrates how God is at work and how God calls people to join Him in His work. II. Moses and the burning bush 1. Before God called Moses, God was already at work (Exodus 2:23-25) · God heard the cry of the Israelites under Egyptian bondage · God decided the time was right to deliver them from bondage · God decided to reveal this to Moses and invite Moses to join Him. · When it comes to work to expand His kingdom, God is the initiator. 2. God got Moses’ attention (Exodus 3:1-6) · Moses sees a bush that was on fire but not burning up · Moses investigates this strange site 3. God revealed to Moses what He was about to do and invited Moses to join Him · Exodus 3:7-9 - God reveals to Moses what He’s about to do · Exodus 3:10-12 - God invites Moses to join Him III. In 2003 I participated in a mission trip to Uganda, Africa. We raised the money to build a home for 8 orphans and 1 house mother. Our team leader was Elaine Culvyhouse. The story of how God called her to organize this trip is similar to God’s call for Moses. 1. Before God called Elaine, God was already at work in Uganda saving thousands of orphans · God was working through Watoto Child Care ministries to provide loving Christian homes for thousands of orphans (For more info on Watoto go to www.watoto.com) · The children are brought to various Watoto villages where they can grow up in a nice, pleasant neighborhood. · Watoto villages are made up of houses for 8 orphans and one housemother. The kids and housemother in each house become a permanent family. 2. God got Elaine’s attention · To raise money, Watoto Children Choirs tour various parts of the world. · One Watoto Children Choir visited Elaine’s church · Elaine and her husband attended the Watoto Children Choir concert and was deeply moved 3. God revealed to Elaine what He was about to do and invited Elaine to join Him · Along with learning how to sponsor a Watoto child, Elaine learned that small mission teams could raise money to build a Watoto house and then travel to Uganda to build the house. · God was continuing to send these mission teams to Uganda to build homes for orphans · After much prayer and reflection, Elaine felt called to raise and organize a team to go to Uganda. · We raised the money, went to Uganda for two weeks and built a house. · We became a small but important part of God’s master plan to save thousands of orphans through Watoto Child Care Ministries IV. So, here’s the bottom line: 1. God is always at work all around us · To right wrongs · Free the oppressed · Provide for the poor · Deliver people from sin · Ultimately, to redeem the entire creation from the clutches of sin. 2. As we walk with Jesus, God reveals to us what He’s doing or about to do · When you come upon road work, there are many indicators that people are at work: Orange cones, barricades, heavy equipment, people wearing hard hats and signs · Likewise, when God is at work there are many indicators: People asking spiritual questions, people seeking answers to their challenges, ‘coincidences’ that place you in a position to help someone or give a testimony, pressing needs that weigh on your heart. 3. This revelation is God’s invitation for us to join Him. · When you realize God is at work or is about to do something, that’s an invitation to join God. V. God is at work at and around Glynlea Grace UMC 1. Upward Soccer · Upward sports: National ministry organization where thousands of kids are introduced to Christ · We joined God in this work last year and introduced over 70 kids to the love of Christ 2. Children and youth · God brought us Laura Pena as Children Ministry Director · God put it on Trish and Jim’s hearts to be youth ministry directors · Eddie giving guitar lessons to 5 children and youth · Are we, as a congregation, going to join God in what He’s doing for or youth and children? 3. Adult Bible studies · Sunday school classes · Wednesday morning prayer shawl/Bible study · Wednesday evening Bible study · Are you going to join God in these studies? VI. What work is God doing in and around your personal life? · In your family? · At your work? · Among your friends? VII. Ask God to open your eyes to reveal what He’s doing around your life. Then join Him! |
