1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:03,440
Good morning to you and welcome to the service.

2
00:00:03,440 --> 00:00:08,400
May I say, now that I have an opportunity to do that, I know that some of you have been

3
00:00:08,400 --> 00:00:15,200
praying for Ron and Joyce Tanel during this week of his surgery for a brain tumor.

4
00:00:15,200 --> 00:00:20,560
On Tuesday it was discovered that the tumor was far more widespread in the brain tissue

5
00:00:20,560 --> 00:00:26,080
than they had originally thought and that it is a very aggressive kind of cancer.

6
00:00:26,080 --> 00:00:34,440
They did remove some of the tumor and they will undergo radiation therapy with him for

7
00:00:34,440 --> 00:00:36,800
the next several weeks.

8
00:00:36,800 --> 00:00:41,920
So we encourage you to keep on praying for Ron Tanel.

9
00:00:41,920 --> 00:00:51,480
In our study of the word we come today to Exodus chapter 2 and I'm going to read, I'd

10
00:00:51,480 --> 00:00:59,600
like you to open your Bible and follow along as we read the account of the birth and the

11
00:00:59,600 --> 00:01:03,160
years of Moses leading up to his 80th year.

12
00:01:03,160 --> 00:01:12,760
In one chapter, believe it or not, we have 80 years of a man's life.

13
00:01:12,760 --> 00:01:18,200
Now a man from the house of Levi went and married a daughter of Levi and the woman conceived

14
00:01:18,200 --> 00:01:20,800
and bore a son.

15
00:01:20,800 --> 00:01:25,520
When she saw that he was beautiful she hid him for three months but when she could hide

16
00:01:25,520 --> 00:01:33,200
him no longer she got him a wicker basket and covered it over with tar and pitch.

17
00:01:33,200 --> 00:01:40,400
Then she put the child into it and set it among the reeds by the bank of the Nile.

18
00:01:40,400 --> 00:01:44,480
And his sister stood at a distance to find out what would happen to him.

19
00:01:44,480 --> 00:01:49,160
Then the daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the Nile with her maidens walking

20
00:01:49,160 --> 00:01:51,640
alongside the Nile.

21
00:01:51,640 --> 00:01:56,880
She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her maid and she brought it to her.

22
00:01:56,880 --> 00:01:58,880
When she opened it she saw the child.

23
00:01:58,880 --> 00:02:01,920
And behold the boy was crying.

24
00:02:01,920 --> 00:02:07,000
She had pity on him and said, this is one of the Hebrews children.

25
00:02:07,000 --> 00:02:12,280
Then his sister said to Pharaoh's daughter, shall I go and call a nurse for you from the

26
00:02:12,280 --> 00:02:13,720
Hebrew women?

27
00:02:13,720 --> 00:02:15,920
She may nurse the child for you.

28
00:02:15,920 --> 00:02:19,800
And Pharaoh's daughter said to her, go ahead.

29
00:02:19,800 --> 00:02:23,120
So the girl went and called the child's mother.

30
00:02:23,120 --> 00:02:27,600
Then Pharaoh's daughter said to her, take this child away and nurse him for me and I

31
00:02:27,600 --> 00:02:30,080
shall give you your wages.

32
00:02:30,080 --> 00:02:32,280
So the woman took the child and nursed him.

33
00:02:32,280 --> 00:02:38,040
And the child grew and she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter and he became her son.

34
00:02:38,040 --> 00:02:44,360
And she named him Moses and said, because I drew him out of the water.

35
00:02:44,360 --> 00:02:48,480
The name Moses means one drawn out.

36
00:02:48,480 --> 00:02:55,400
It is a Hebrew name and this interpretation of his name may in fact come from Moses himself

37
00:02:55,400 --> 00:02:57,520
as he writes these words.

38
00:02:57,520 --> 00:03:07,160
However, the name was very similar to an Egyptian name, Mos in that day, which meant a son.

39
00:03:07,160 --> 00:03:10,400
And so it could be that there is a play on words in the name Moses.

40
00:03:10,400 --> 00:03:16,520
In fact, a number of the Pharaohs had names like Ahmos, meaning the son of Ah, who was

41
00:03:16,520 --> 00:03:21,920
one of their gods, or Tutmos, again the son of that god.

42
00:03:21,920 --> 00:03:26,240
And so it is possible that Moses actually had another name there at the front.

43
00:03:26,240 --> 00:03:30,960
Originally, he might have been named the son of some god, perhaps the son of the Nile,

44
00:03:30,960 --> 00:03:33,720
since he was drawn out of the Nile.

45
00:03:33,720 --> 00:03:38,960
But later he shortened it, not wanting to have any association with the pagan gods and

46
00:03:38,960 --> 00:03:45,960
simply called himself Moses, one who was drawn out in the Hebrew, or a son, as it would be

47
00:03:45,960 --> 00:03:46,960
an Egyptian.

48
00:03:46,960 --> 00:03:52,400
And it came about in those days when Moses had grown up that he went out to his brethren

49
00:03:52,400 --> 00:03:54,640
and looked on their hard labors.

50
00:03:54,640 --> 00:03:58,720
And he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his brethren.

51
00:03:58,720 --> 00:04:00,160
So he looked this way and that.

52
00:04:00,160 --> 00:04:05,520
And when he saw there was no one around, he struck down the Egyptian and hit him in the

53
00:04:05,520 --> 00:04:06,520
sand.

54
00:04:06,520 --> 00:04:09,520
He went out the next day, and behold, two Hebrews were fighting with each other.

55
00:04:09,520 --> 00:04:12,520
And he said to the offender, Why are you striking your companion?

56
00:04:12,520 --> 00:04:16,760
But he said, Who made you a prince or judge over us?

57
00:04:16,760 --> 00:04:20,520
Are you intending to kill me as you kill the Egyptian?

58
00:04:20,520 --> 00:04:24,320
Then Moses was afraid and said, Surely the matter has become known.

59
00:04:24,320 --> 00:04:29,320
When Pharaoh heard of this matter, he tried to kill Moses, but Moses fled from the presence

60
00:04:29,320 --> 00:04:34,760
of Pharaoh and settled in the land of Midian, and he sat down by a well.

61
00:04:34,760 --> 00:04:40,760
Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters, and they came to draw water and fill the troughs

62
00:04:40,760 --> 00:04:42,760
to water their father's flock.

63
00:04:42,760 --> 00:04:49,000
Then the shepherds came and drove them away, but Moses stood up and helped them and watered

64
00:04:49,000 --> 00:04:50,680
their flock.

65
00:04:50,680 --> 00:04:56,040
And when they came to rule their father, he said, Why have you come back so soon today?

66
00:04:56,040 --> 00:05:00,440
So they said, An Egyptian delivered us from the hand of the shepherds.

67
00:05:00,440 --> 00:05:02,200
Moses undoubtedly looked like an Egyptian.

68
00:05:02,200 --> 00:05:06,920
And what is more, he even drew the water for us and watered the flock.

69
00:05:06,920 --> 00:05:10,320
And he said to his daughters, Where is he then?

70
00:05:10,320 --> 00:05:15,480
Why is it that you have left the man behind and invited him to have something to eat?

71
00:05:15,480 --> 00:05:22,760
And Moses was willing to dwell with the man, and he gave his daughter Zipporah to Moses.

72
00:05:22,760 --> 00:05:28,320
Then she gave birth to a son, and he named him Gershom, for he said, I have been a sojourner

73
00:05:28,320 --> 00:05:31,000
in a foreign land.

74
00:05:31,000 --> 00:05:37,080
Now it came about in the course of those many days that the king of Egypt died, and the

75
00:05:37,080 --> 00:05:40,680
sons of Israel sighed because of the bondage.

76
00:05:40,680 --> 00:05:46,800
And they cried out, and they cried for help because the bondage rose up before God.

77
00:05:46,800 --> 00:05:52,480
And so God heard their groaning, and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

78
00:05:52,480 --> 00:05:59,120
And God saw the sons of Israel, and God took notice of them.

79
00:05:59,120 --> 00:06:02,900
Let's bow together.

80
00:06:02,900 --> 00:06:05,920
I think you know this chorus.

81
00:06:05,920 --> 00:06:12,920
Sing hallelujah to the Lord.

82
00:06:12,920 --> 00:06:16,080
Sing hallelujah to the Lord.

83
00:06:16,080 --> 00:06:26,800
Sing hallelujah, sing hallelujah, sing hallelujah, sing hallelujah, sing hallelujah, sing hallelujah,

84
00:06:26,800 --> 00:06:34,920
sing hallelujah to the Lord.

85
00:06:34,920 --> 00:06:43,160
Father God, we recognize today that you are the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

86
00:06:43,160 --> 00:06:45,400
You are the God who is active in this chapter.

87
00:06:45,400 --> 00:06:53,120
As we study today how you do your work, may it be an instruction and encouragement to

88
00:06:53,120 --> 00:06:55,400
our hearts.

89
00:06:55,400 --> 00:06:59,840
Open our eyes and our hearts to the work of your Spirit.

90
00:06:59,840 --> 00:07:05,300
In Jesus' name, amen.

91
00:07:05,300 --> 00:07:11,880
God does His work in His own time and His own way.

92
00:07:11,880 --> 00:07:18,040
Rarely are those the same as ours.

93
00:07:18,040 --> 00:07:27,120
At times, God seems abrupt, too quick, like a flash of unwelcome lightning.

94
00:07:27,120 --> 00:07:34,200
At other times, His actions seem to keep pace with the wearing away of a mountain.

95
00:07:34,200 --> 00:07:40,320
We conclude in our minds how we think God should work, and usually, of course, we pray

96
00:07:40,320 --> 00:07:43,640
in that direction.

97
00:07:43,640 --> 00:07:49,360
And then we find ourselves puzzled as we see another course taken.

98
00:07:49,360 --> 00:07:56,800
Or worse, we see nothing perceptible happen at all.

99
00:07:56,800 --> 00:08:00,640
And then we make ourselves the judges of God.

100
00:08:00,640 --> 00:08:10,000
The creatures imagine that they can evaluate the Almighty, and we have all done that.

101
00:08:10,000 --> 00:08:17,840
We say something like this, God should do His work this way and on this schedule.

102
00:08:17,840 --> 00:08:23,120
When we say that, usually God has a surprise in store for us.

103
00:08:23,120 --> 00:08:25,600
The ways of God are mysterious to us.

104
00:08:25,600 --> 00:08:33,440
He Himself says through Isaiah, His prophet, My thoughts are not your thoughts.

105
00:08:33,440 --> 00:08:37,600
Neither are My ways your ways.

106
00:08:37,600 --> 00:08:43,600
For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and

107
00:08:43,600 --> 00:08:45,800
My thoughts than your thoughts.

108
00:08:45,800 --> 00:08:52,080
My friends, those words bear pondering.

109
00:08:52,080 --> 00:08:59,040
God unceasingly works in the events of the world and in the affairs of our lives.

110
00:08:59,040 --> 00:09:08,680
We may or we may not have spiritual perception that would allow us to observe His actions.

111
00:09:08,680 --> 00:09:15,840
At times, even the most spiritual of God's people will not have a clue as to what God

112
00:09:15,840 --> 00:09:20,120
is doing.

113
00:09:20,120 --> 00:09:27,060
But I warn all of us not to make ourselves a judge of God, to think that we know better

114
00:09:27,060 --> 00:09:29,560
than He knows.

115
00:09:29,560 --> 00:09:34,800
We must understand that we are creatures.

116
00:09:34,800 --> 00:09:42,520
If we have trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ, we are redeemed creatures and we are precious

117
00:09:42,520 --> 00:09:44,920
to God.

118
00:09:44,920 --> 00:09:52,400
And because we belong to Him by that special relationship, we are constantly in His care.

119
00:09:52,400 --> 00:10:01,360
Either we can understand the acts of God or we can't understand the acts of God.

120
00:10:01,360 --> 00:10:07,200
Perhaps it would help all of us live more contentedly and obediently if we look at our

121
00:10:07,200 --> 00:10:12,360
text today with the purpose in mind to understand more of how God works.

122
00:10:12,360 --> 00:10:16,160
Let's do that.

123
00:10:16,160 --> 00:10:23,680
Notice with me in the first place that God works with the ordinary, sanctifying it as

124
00:10:23,680 --> 00:10:26,620
His chosen means.

125
00:10:26,620 --> 00:10:29,200
God works with the ordinary.

126
00:10:29,200 --> 00:10:34,520
We tend to think of God using the spectacular, you know, the earthquake or the mountain that

127
00:10:34,520 --> 00:10:37,600
burns with fire.

128
00:10:37,600 --> 00:10:46,240
We think of God using the unusual, angels or those who are greatly gifted people.

129
00:10:46,240 --> 00:10:48,880
Or we think of God using the miraculous.

130
00:10:48,880 --> 00:10:55,320
In fact, miracles wouldn't be miracles if they were common events.

131
00:10:55,320 --> 00:11:02,360
The fact is that the Almighty God normally chooses to employ the common to accomplish

132
00:11:02,360 --> 00:11:04,720
His will.

133
00:11:04,720 --> 00:11:11,440
For example, here in our text, He uses a nameless man and woman, later identified in chapter

134
00:11:11,440 --> 00:11:17,000
6, who married and then had a baby.

135
00:11:17,000 --> 00:11:23,920
He employs a simple wicker basket made of reeds from the river.

136
00:11:23,920 --> 00:11:30,480
He uses an older sister who does the work of an older sister here, watching over the

137
00:11:30,480 --> 00:11:32,600
little baby brother.

138
00:11:32,600 --> 00:11:39,560
We saw that yesterday at the lake, our church picnic, and how neat it was to watch one particular

139
00:11:39,560 --> 00:11:43,960
family where an older sister was taking the little brother by the hand all around the

140
00:11:43,960 --> 00:11:48,960
beach, showing him the do's and the do nots.

141
00:11:48,960 --> 00:11:56,120
We see a sister simply doing what a sister does in this text, looking out for her little

142
00:11:56,120 --> 00:11:57,120
brother.

143
00:11:57,120 --> 00:12:06,720
And then later in the study of Exodus, we're going to see God using a bush and water, frogs,

144
00:12:06,720 --> 00:12:13,080
lice, flies, boils, hail, locusts.

145
00:12:13,080 --> 00:12:16,000
Those are rather common, ordinary things, aren't they?

146
00:12:16,000 --> 00:12:25,240
And as you go through the Old Testament, you see God using a donkey, a whale, drought,

147
00:12:25,240 --> 00:12:28,920
yes, drought.

148
00:12:28,920 --> 00:12:41,240
You see God using a cloud, and then you think of Jesus, born in a common manger laid there.

149
00:12:41,240 --> 00:12:44,560
You see Jesus using spittle and dust.

150
00:12:44,560 --> 00:12:48,040
How much more common can you get than that?

151
00:12:48,040 --> 00:12:53,960
Or fish, loaves, yes, even a cross.

152
00:12:53,960 --> 00:13:05,240
It is the delight of God to frequently choose what sophisticated, scientific, and arrogant

153
00:13:05,240 --> 00:13:14,800
mankind calls nothing, insignificant, foolish, to do his greatest work.

154
00:13:14,800 --> 00:13:18,240
We see this illustrated by the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 1.

155
00:13:18,240 --> 00:13:23,920
I invite you to turn there with me as he shows us in two respects how God has used the word

156
00:13:23,920 --> 00:13:28,800
the simple to confound the wise.

157
00:13:28,800 --> 00:13:38,480
First Corinthians and the first chapter.

158
00:13:38,480 --> 00:13:49,360
First with respect to the message of the gospel, Paul wants us to see that God has chosen simplicity.

159
00:13:49,360 --> 00:13:58,080
Verse 18, the word of the cross is to those who are perishing foolishness, but to us who

160
00:13:58,080 --> 00:14:01,920
are being saved it is the power of God.

161
00:14:01,920 --> 00:14:07,160
What is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, talking about the pagan, the

162
00:14:07,160 --> 00:14:10,320
lost man, and the cleverness of the clever.

163
00:14:10,320 --> 00:14:13,800
I will set aside, God said that.

164
00:14:13,800 --> 00:14:15,120
Where is the wise man?

165
00:14:15,120 --> 00:14:16,120
Where is the scribe?

166
00:14:16,120 --> 00:14:19,520
Where is the debater of this age?

167
00:14:19,520 --> 00:14:23,640
Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?

168
00:14:23,640 --> 00:14:30,560
For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was

169
00:14:30,560 --> 00:14:36,960
well pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.

170
00:14:36,960 --> 00:14:43,640
For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom.

171
00:14:43,640 --> 00:14:53,880
For we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block, and to the Gentiles foolishness.

172
00:14:53,880 --> 00:14:59,000
Paul says with regard to the message of the gospel, it is God's delight to choose what

173
00:14:59,000 --> 00:15:08,560
mankind calls foolishness to do his powerful work of saving people from sin and hell.

174
00:15:08,560 --> 00:15:18,400
Confession is provided by the sacrificial, shameful cross death of the Messiah who acted

175
00:15:18,400 --> 00:15:21,080
as a substitute for sinners.

176
00:15:21,080 --> 00:15:24,040
That's the message of the gospel.

177
00:15:24,040 --> 00:15:30,400
To the Jews who were looking for a Messiah with signs of his regal splendor and his power

178
00:15:30,400 --> 00:15:39,600
to deliver them from Rome, the crucified Messiah was absolute foolishness.

179
00:15:39,600 --> 00:15:46,040
And to the Greeks who looked for wisdom, for rationale, for logic, when they heard the

180
00:15:46,040 --> 00:15:55,000
message of one man who would bear the sin of the world and do that by a sacrificial,

181
00:15:55,000 --> 00:16:00,680
shameful death of the cross, that message was not even worth contemplating.

182
00:16:00,680 --> 00:16:01,680
It was laughable.

183
00:16:01,680 --> 00:16:04,920
It was a joke.

184
00:16:04,920 --> 00:16:13,680
So what the world calls nothing, what the world says is really insignificant.

185
00:16:13,680 --> 00:16:19,200
God employs to be the only means by which he will save anyone.

186
00:16:19,200 --> 00:16:24,480
It is the message of the cross of Jesus Christ.

187
00:16:24,480 --> 00:16:29,200
Not only is the message of the cross simple, but the messengers of the cross of the gospel

188
00:16:29,200 --> 00:16:30,200
are simple.

189
00:16:30,200 --> 00:16:37,360
He goes on to remind the Corinthians of themselves, consider your calling, verse 26, that there

190
00:16:37,360 --> 00:16:42,160
were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, but God has

191
00:16:42,160 --> 00:16:46,520
chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise.

192
00:16:46,520 --> 00:16:50,360
God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong and the

193
00:16:50,360 --> 00:16:54,440
base things of the world and the despised.

194
00:16:54,440 --> 00:17:01,920
God has chosen the things that are not, that is, are zeros, that he might nullify the things

195
00:17:01,920 --> 00:17:10,640
that are or that think they are, that no man should boast before God.

196
00:17:10,640 --> 00:17:17,160
God purposely chooses what the world counts as nobodies to be his own.

197
00:17:17,160 --> 00:17:20,720
Not that there aren't some noble and some wise of the world who are called, because

198
00:17:20,720 --> 00:17:27,640
there are some, but today I would suppose we reflect something of the Corinthian church.

199
00:17:27,640 --> 00:17:32,360
Most of us are not in that class.

200
00:17:32,360 --> 00:17:40,600
The world looks at many messengers of the gospel and it says you can't be serious.

201
00:17:40,600 --> 00:17:44,200
This individual expects to be used of God.

202
00:17:44,200 --> 00:17:46,160
This is God's chosen vessel.

203
00:17:46,160 --> 00:17:47,160
Come on.

204
00:17:47,160 --> 00:17:56,680
But indeed, that is exactly what God chooses, the ordinary, the common, and he sanctifies

205
00:17:56,680 --> 00:18:02,640
it for his own use.

206
00:18:02,640 --> 00:18:05,280
Why does God do that?

207
00:18:05,280 --> 00:18:12,280
Because such ordinary and common vessels tend to have no confidence in their flesh and therefore

208
00:18:12,280 --> 00:18:14,360
they are more usable to God.

209
00:18:14,360 --> 00:18:20,840
Furthermore, in what they do, God will get the glory, not they themselves.

210
00:18:20,840 --> 00:18:29,160
God makes it clear that that's why he has chosen the messengers that he has.

211
00:18:29,160 --> 00:18:36,000
My friend, never think of yourself as too ordinary.

212
00:18:36,000 --> 00:18:41,220
Don't count yourself as incapable.

213
00:18:41,220 --> 00:18:47,480
Don't look at your gifts and say, how can God use these?

214
00:18:47,480 --> 00:18:53,960
For frankly, the more ordinary you are and the lesser you may be gifted, the greater

215
00:18:53,960 --> 00:19:00,600
God is pleased to use you to glorify himself.

216
00:19:00,600 --> 00:19:06,040
In my own brief experience in this world, I have seen people who have been greatly gifted

217
00:19:06,040 --> 00:19:12,000
from a human standpoint and who were believers, who had promise as the servants of God, as

218
00:19:12,000 --> 00:19:19,280
messengers of the gospel, but who never made it because they had great confidence in the

219
00:19:19,280 --> 00:19:20,280
flesh.

220
00:19:20,280 --> 00:19:26,840
Their pride kept God from using them.

221
00:19:26,840 --> 00:19:33,640
Some of them I've even lost track of, totally washed out.

222
00:19:33,640 --> 00:19:35,360
Why?

223
00:19:35,360 --> 00:19:40,160
Because they failed to realize this basic principle that God chooses the ordinary and

224
00:19:40,160 --> 00:19:47,600
the common because they tend to be more humble than those who are the spectacular and the

225
00:19:47,600 --> 00:19:48,600
great.

226
00:19:48,600 --> 00:19:55,000
God, in doing his work, chooses the ordinary and the common, doing with it what pleases

227
00:19:55,000 --> 00:19:56,520
him.

228
00:19:56,520 --> 00:19:58,880
That is his chosen means.

229
00:19:58,880 --> 00:20:00,800
I am talking to some couples here today.

230
00:20:00,800 --> 00:20:05,160
I am talking to some men and some women.

231
00:20:05,160 --> 00:20:10,880
It may be that you are wondering whether God could ever use you in Christian work.

232
00:20:10,880 --> 00:20:14,400
By that I mean as a vocation.

233
00:20:14,400 --> 00:20:19,720
I don't like that term, but that is the term that seems to be invoked these days.

234
00:20:19,720 --> 00:20:24,760
You wonder if God has called you to ministry as a pastor.

235
00:20:24,760 --> 00:20:30,480
You wonder if God has called you to ministry in music or to ministry in Christian education

236
00:20:30,480 --> 00:20:36,280
or ministry in the mission field or teaching in a Christian college.

237
00:20:36,280 --> 00:20:41,560
You say, well, I am not sure I have it.

238
00:20:41,560 --> 00:20:46,520
Don't doubt what God can do in your life.

239
00:20:46,520 --> 00:20:56,560
God is pleased to use many who are not spectacular, who are not extraordinary, sanctifying those

240
00:20:56,560 --> 00:20:59,080
as his chosen vessel.

241
00:20:59,080 --> 00:21:05,600
Telling God that there are some who are spectacular, unusually gifted.

242
00:21:05,600 --> 00:21:10,280
When their heart is humble, God uses them magnificently to bless all of us.

243
00:21:10,280 --> 00:21:15,400
But let's face it, not many of us fall into that category.

244
00:21:15,400 --> 00:21:21,920
We can be grateful that God has chosen often, frequently, normally indeed to use the common.

245
00:21:21,920 --> 00:21:22,920
That is how he works.

246
00:21:22,920 --> 00:21:28,960
And then secondly, I want you to notice with me that he works sovereignly doing what we

247
00:21:28,960 --> 00:21:31,720
cannot do.

248
00:21:31,720 --> 00:21:37,960
God will not do for us what we can and should do for ourselves.

249
00:21:37,960 --> 00:21:45,200
There are some things that Jacobette did here, Moses' mother.

250
00:21:45,200 --> 00:21:47,080
She did what she could.

251
00:21:47,080 --> 00:21:52,960
But the point is, when we have done our part, then God will supernaturally do the rest so

252
00:21:52,960 --> 00:21:56,680
that his will is accomplished.

253
00:21:56,680 --> 00:22:02,160
Notice the aspects of our narrative which only God could do.

254
00:22:02,160 --> 00:22:06,960
His divine intervention and involvement was essential.

255
00:22:06,960 --> 00:22:13,680
For example, the timing of Pharaoh's daughter in coming to the river when she did.

256
00:22:13,680 --> 00:22:20,560
Along with her response of compassion for what she recognized was a contraband baby,

257
00:22:20,560 --> 00:22:25,160
a baby that should have died.

258
00:22:25,160 --> 00:22:26,960
How do you explain that?

259
00:22:26,960 --> 00:22:30,240
Well, God is involved here.

260
00:22:30,240 --> 00:22:34,440
There may be a human side to this.

261
00:22:34,440 --> 00:22:39,940
Some have suggested that the Nile was a symbol of fertility to the Egyptians, and indeed

262
00:22:39,940 --> 00:22:46,680
it was because it was essential to their national agrarian economy.

263
00:22:46,680 --> 00:22:52,400
The annual floods of the Nile would replenish the land and cause their crops right along

264
00:22:52,400 --> 00:22:53,400
the Nile to flourish.

265
00:22:53,400 --> 00:22:58,240
Therefore, they and their paganism felt that the Nile was the god of fertility.

266
00:22:58,240 --> 00:23:05,160
And it may be that we have here a woman who was childless and that she came down to the

267
00:23:05,160 --> 00:23:08,440
Nile River to bathe in it ceremonially, ritually.

268
00:23:08,440 --> 00:23:13,400
It's hard to imagine her coming down to get clean in the Nile.

269
00:23:13,400 --> 00:23:20,360
There were better places for a princess of Egypt to bathe to be clean.

270
00:23:20,360 --> 00:23:27,400
She was probably coming down to this river to bathe in order somehow to become fertile

271
00:23:27,400 --> 00:23:30,360
that she might bear a child.

272
00:23:30,360 --> 00:23:36,240
And lo and behold, as she comes down to this river, the god of the river, as she sees it,

273
00:23:36,240 --> 00:23:40,000
has provided a baby for her in the reeds.

274
00:23:40,000 --> 00:23:46,720
Thus, her immediate response to accept this baby and her desire to raise it as her own

275
00:23:46,720 --> 00:23:50,080
son.

276
00:23:50,080 --> 00:23:54,240
That's why I suggested earlier perhaps his original name was something tied with Moses,

277
00:23:54,240 --> 00:23:57,720
meaning he was a son of the river, the son of the god of the Nile.

278
00:23:57,720 --> 00:24:00,960
That is a possibility.

279
00:24:00,960 --> 00:24:06,320
But if that's the human side of it, we must not miss the supernatural side, and that is

280
00:24:06,320 --> 00:24:11,520
that god was involved in all of this, using even the paganism of this woman if that was

281
00:24:11,520 --> 00:24:16,400
the case, so that she preserved this young child alive.

282
00:24:16,400 --> 00:24:22,000
And then there's the acceptance on her part of the suggestion of the sister, Miriam, as

283
00:24:22,000 --> 00:24:24,560
we know her.

284
00:24:24,560 --> 00:24:29,680
And then the acceptance, too, of the arrangement with the actual mother of Moses, though the

285
00:24:29,680 --> 00:24:33,800
princess may not have known that.

286
00:24:33,800 --> 00:24:40,800
Then there's the early preparation of Moses in a royal household, so that in every way

287
00:24:40,800 --> 00:24:45,080
he got the very best that Egypt could offer him.

288
00:24:45,080 --> 00:24:53,040
He was skilled and trained as a leader and an orator.

289
00:24:53,040 --> 00:24:58,520
Here is a man who had the very best that the world could offer at this time, as far as

290
00:24:58,520 --> 00:25:02,920
preparation, humanly speaking, for leadership.

291
00:25:02,920 --> 00:25:06,600
God was involved in all of that.

292
00:25:06,600 --> 00:25:10,760
God worked sovereignly, doing what we cannot do.

293
00:25:10,760 --> 00:25:15,800
Can you imagine the Jewish people trying to bring about their own redeemer, their own

294
00:25:15,800 --> 00:25:16,800
deliverer?

295
00:25:16,800 --> 00:25:19,200
How would they have gone about that?

296
00:25:19,200 --> 00:25:22,360
How would they get him the training that might be necessary?

297
00:25:22,360 --> 00:25:29,920
How would they get him in a position to have access to Pharaoh, and so on?

298
00:25:29,920 --> 00:25:37,280
They did what they could do, and then God sovereignly took care of the rest.

299
00:25:37,280 --> 00:25:44,840
The sovereignty of God, by the way, refers to the supreme rule of God over everything.

300
00:25:44,840 --> 00:25:52,160
God's sovereignty is His divine prerogative as the infinite, eternal, and personal deity

301
00:25:52,160 --> 00:26:00,680
who created and sustains the universe to do whatever pleases Him without any restraint.

302
00:26:00,680 --> 00:26:07,200
And yet God does not violate the moral freedom He has given to people and for which they

303
00:26:07,200 --> 00:26:11,960
are held responsible to Him.

304
00:26:11,960 --> 00:26:14,960
Sovereignty of God.

305
00:26:14,960 --> 00:26:18,640
There are those who see the sovereignty of God as so overwhelming, they just want to

306
00:26:18,640 --> 00:26:20,840
let go and let God do everything.

307
00:26:20,840 --> 00:26:24,680
They say we have no responsibility at all, and that is not true.

308
00:26:24,680 --> 00:26:29,440
That is not the way the Bible declares our relationship to the sovereign God.

309
00:26:29,440 --> 00:26:39,720
We are expected to do what we can do, but we do so in union with one who is sovereign

310
00:26:39,720 --> 00:26:47,120
and who will work beyond our feeble efforts to accomplish ultimately His whole purpose.

311
00:26:47,120 --> 00:26:58,880
So that is how God works, He works sovereignly, holding your hand in mine so that we do what

312
00:26:58,880 --> 00:27:05,080
we should do and can do, and then He picks it up at that point and carries it the rest

313
00:27:05,080 --> 00:27:12,040
of the way so that nothing that He has purposed will ever fall short of occurring.

314
00:27:12,040 --> 00:27:19,240
That is reassuring to me because there are times when I feel that I have come well short

315
00:27:19,240 --> 00:27:24,520
and I just have not been able to carry the ball far enough.

316
00:27:24,520 --> 00:27:27,480
How wonderful it is to know that God is there.

317
00:27:27,480 --> 00:27:36,240
And then if I have done what is my best at that moment in my life, then God is going

318
00:27:36,240 --> 00:27:39,400
to go on and accomplish His full purpose.

319
00:27:39,400 --> 00:27:46,040
It is good to know that God's ultimate purpose does not depend upon the frailty of human

320
00:27:46,040 --> 00:27:50,720
beings, but His own sovereignty.

321
00:27:50,720 --> 00:27:57,040
But the other side of the coin is that He chooses to use human beings to work with us,

322
00:27:57,040 --> 00:28:05,560
and He gives us a responsibility to fulfill in that ultimate purpose.

323
00:28:05,560 --> 00:28:10,800
Now as we think about how God does His work, we need to see something more, and that is

324
00:28:10,800 --> 00:28:18,440
that He works unexpectedly in ways that we cannot anticipate.

325
00:28:18,440 --> 00:28:23,560
You've read this morning in the scripture reading earlier from Acts chapter 7 in which

326
00:28:23,560 --> 00:28:27,120
we see that Moses had an awareness of several facts.

327
00:28:27,120 --> 00:28:36,560
Number one, he knew that he was an Israelite, who told him that?

328
00:28:36,560 --> 00:28:39,560
Undoubtedly his mother did.

329
00:28:39,560 --> 00:28:44,260
We can only marvel at the influence of his mom and dad in those early years that they

330
00:28:44,260 --> 00:28:45,260
had him.

331
00:28:45,260 --> 00:28:51,720
What an important lesson that is for us on a day like this, dads.

332
00:28:51,720 --> 00:28:56,200
Those early years are so important that we pour our lives into our kids.

333
00:28:56,200 --> 00:29:02,400
Did they have Moses three years, four years, some say up to twelve years?

334
00:29:02,400 --> 00:29:04,800
We don't know how long.

335
00:29:04,800 --> 00:29:09,080
But those were impressionable years, and they poured themselves into him so that he knew

336
00:29:09,080 --> 00:29:12,280
he was an Israelite.

337
00:29:12,280 --> 00:29:17,520
Number two, he knew he had an awareness of the fact that the Israelites were God's chosen

338
00:29:17,520 --> 00:29:21,120
people.

339
00:29:21,120 --> 00:29:26,880
Number three, he knew that the Israelites were mistreated by the Egyptians.

340
00:29:26,880 --> 00:29:30,560
He was not ignorant of that fact.

341
00:29:30,560 --> 00:29:36,440
Number four, gets more interesting, he knew that God would deliver the Israelites from

342
00:29:36,440 --> 00:29:40,800
Egyptian bondage.

343
00:29:40,800 --> 00:29:45,040
He knew that before he was forty years of age.

344
00:29:45,040 --> 00:29:52,440
And finally, he knew that he was the one that God would use to deliver them.

345
00:29:52,440 --> 00:29:58,520
Now we're not talking about the burning bush experience.

346
00:29:58,520 --> 00:30:01,440
We're talking about before he ever committed the murder of the Egyptian.

347
00:30:01,440 --> 00:30:06,200
We're saying before he was forty years of age, he knew all of those things.

348
00:30:06,200 --> 00:30:10,320
He had an awareness of them.

349
00:30:10,320 --> 00:30:18,360
And he expected that it was all going to work very naturally and normally.

350
00:30:18,360 --> 00:30:24,720
But then God worked unexpectedly in ways that Moses could not anticipate.

351
00:30:24,720 --> 00:30:30,680
Moses' expectation of what he thought would happen was crushed by unexpected circumstances

352
00:30:30,680 --> 00:30:31,680
that occurred.

353
00:30:31,680 --> 00:30:39,040
I speak of the slaughter of the Egyptian, the murder of this man at Moses' own hand.

354
00:30:39,040 --> 00:30:45,920
Now it may be that Moses thought that this would be a signal to the Israelites that he

355
00:30:45,920 --> 00:30:53,000
was their Redeemer, that he was their Deliverer, that he was on their side and that they should

356
00:30:53,000 --> 00:30:57,880
now begin to be loyal to him because he would lead them out of bondage.

357
00:30:57,880 --> 00:31:00,780
That may have been in his thought.

358
00:31:00,780 --> 00:31:02,840
That was perhaps his expectations.

359
00:31:02,840 --> 00:31:06,320
But oh how twenty-four hours changed his plan.

360
00:31:06,320 --> 00:31:12,240
His life suddenly became very complicated and he realized that this thing was far better

361
00:31:12,240 --> 00:31:17,760
known than he had originally thought and he went from prince to fugitive in a matter of

362
00:31:17,760 --> 00:31:24,240
hours or days at the most.

363
00:31:24,240 --> 00:31:29,920
Now the circumstances may have been especially difficult because of certain spiritual decisions

364
00:31:29,920 --> 00:31:35,520
that Moses had made before this time.

365
00:31:35,520 --> 00:31:44,200
We read in Hebrews 11 that by faith already before this Moses had decided to refuse the

366
00:31:44,200 --> 00:31:50,320
title the son of Pharaoh's daughter.

367
00:31:50,320 --> 00:31:54,080
Now there are some who say that that meant he was going to be the next Pharaoh.

368
00:31:54,080 --> 00:31:56,800
It doesn't necessarily mean that.

369
00:31:56,800 --> 00:32:01,120
But it was a title with tremendous honor and prestige.

370
00:32:01,120 --> 00:32:08,200
He had already decided in his heart I'm going to reject that title.

371
00:32:08,200 --> 00:32:16,560
By faith also he chose to identify with the people of God and their suffering rather than

372
00:32:16,560 --> 00:32:23,600
to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin that he could have as an Egyptian leader.

373
00:32:23,600 --> 00:32:28,280
That was already determined in his heart by faith.

374
00:32:28,280 --> 00:32:35,760
He had already considered the reproach of Christ greater riches than all the treasures

375
00:32:35,760 --> 00:32:38,120
that Egypt could offer.

376
00:32:38,120 --> 00:32:43,880
You have only to go to a museum of Egyptian history and to see some of the treasures that

377
00:32:43,880 --> 00:32:50,840
archaeologists have uncovered to see some of the things that Moses turned his back on.

378
00:32:50,840 --> 00:32:53,080
Already in his heart he said no to all of that.

379
00:32:53,080 --> 00:32:54,080
Why?

380
00:32:54,080 --> 00:32:56,080
Because he was looking to the reward.

381
00:32:56,080 --> 00:33:02,240
He was looking beyond life to the promise of God to Abraham his forefather who said

382
00:33:02,240 --> 00:33:12,060
I have a city and is prepared for those who believe in me.

383
00:33:12,060 --> 00:33:18,560
God promised to Abraham he would be his exceeding great reward.

384
00:33:18,560 --> 00:33:22,360
Moses had believed God.

385
00:33:22,360 --> 00:33:26,760
He had decided to pass up what the world could offer him.

386
00:33:26,760 --> 00:33:35,440
Then through the murder of the Egyptian taskmaster all of his expectations, all of the importance

387
00:33:35,440 --> 00:33:43,080
of these spiritual decisions he had made in his heart seemed to fall flat.

388
00:33:43,080 --> 00:33:47,080
You see he had seen things building up and he was going to present himself now as the

389
00:33:47,080 --> 00:33:53,640
deliverer of the Israelites and suddenly God just takes all of the flooring out from under

390
00:33:53,640 --> 00:33:59,000
him even after he had made the tremendous spiritual commitments he had.

391
00:33:59,000 --> 00:34:06,320
Have you ever experienced that in your life?

392
00:34:06,320 --> 00:34:10,600
Where you have really done some serious business with God and you committed yourself to the

393
00:34:10,600 --> 00:34:16,160
Lord and you were ready then to take on that task that you felt God wanted you to do and

394
00:34:16,160 --> 00:34:24,160
bam all of a sudden the whole situation changes and you wonder where is God?

395
00:34:24,160 --> 00:34:25,160
What has happened?

396
00:34:25,160 --> 00:34:31,280
I mean after all the commitments I have made.

397
00:34:31,280 --> 00:34:33,240
So Moses left Egypt.

398
00:34:33,240 --> 00:34:40,160
It is interesting that in Exodus it says he was afraid but the writer of Hebrews perhaps

399
00:34:40,160 --> 00:34:47,560
gives us a better commentary when he says it was by faith that he left Egypt not fearing

400
00:34:47,560 --> 00:34:49,440
the wrath of Pharaoh.

401
00:34:49,440 --> 00:34:56,640
It seems as though there was an initial response of fear but then there was a more settled

402
00:34:56,640 --> 00:34:59,840
decision on the part of Moses.

403
00:34:59,840 --> 00:35:05,000
Apparently he was able to weigh some of these conflicting emotions and signals in his own

404
00:35:05,000 --> 00:35:09,400
mind and he decided I need to leave Egypt.

405
00:35:09,400 --> 00:35:13,920
Not because he was afraid of Pharaoh but in faith.

406
00:35:13,920 --> 00:35:19,120
It says in Hebrews 11 he left with a view to the invisible God who was greater than

407
00:35:19,120 --> 00:35:21,280
Pharaoh was.

408
00:35:21,280 --> 00:35:26,200
He left with his eye on God not understanding at all what God was doing because God works

409
00:35:26,200 --> 00:35:29,120
unexpectedly you see.

410
00:35:29,120 --> 00:35:34,600
But he trusted God, the invisible one.

411
00:35:34,600 --> 00:35:40,360
It is difficult to imagine the thoughts in his mind as he journeyed eastward toward Midian.

412
00:35:40,360 --> 00:35:46,600
If you have ever experienced something like Moses did here you might be able to identify

413
00:35:46,600 --> 00:35:50,320
with some of his thinking processes.

414
00:35:50,320 --> 00:35:56,240
The fact is though that God was at work in this unexpected turn of events in a way which

415
00:35:56,240 --> 00:36:01,480
Moses could not have anticipated at that moment.

416
00:36:01,480 --> 00:36:05,120
You and I too may make our plans.

417
00:36:05,120 --> 00:36:13,320
We may even like Moses make definite and serious spiritual commitments but we have to leave

418
00:36:13,320 --> 00:36:19,760
the out working of those things in the hands of God because there are sometimes he works

419
00:36:19,760 --> 00:36:26,960
in ways that we cannot expect or anticipate but he is working.

420
00:36:26,960 --> 00:36:30,880
We have to keep our eye on him and believe that.

421
00:36:30,880 --> 00:36:35,800
You can finally notice with me that God works faithfully always in the direction of his

422
00:36:35,800 --> 00:36:36,800
own purpose.

423
00:36:36,800 --> 00:36:40,320
There is no question here as to what God's purpose is.

424
00:36:40,320 --> 00:36:47,460
It is that his people might inherit the land that he had promised to Abraham, Genesis 15.

425
00:36:47,460 --> 00:36:53,280
God said to Abraham that he would bring his descendants, Abraham's descendants back to

426
00:36:53,280 --> 00:36:56,720
that place at the right time.

427
00:36:56,720 --> 00:37:03,600
God said that the cup of iniquity of this people, the Amorites which include probably

428
00:37:03,600 --> 00:37:09,160
all the Canaanite tribes there, says their cup of iniquity is not yet full.

429
00:37:09,160 --> 00:37:12,160
I am not ready to cast them out of the land yet.

430
00:37:12,160 --> 00:37:17,760
He says your people are going to go down to Egypt and serve there in bondage but I will

431
00:37:17,760 --> 00:37:24,280
bring them up said God to Abraham and they will possess this land again.

432
00:37:24,280 --> 00:37:30,720
I want you to know hundreds of years went by, hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of

433
00:37:30,720 --> 00:37:33,240
years.

434
00:37:33,240 --> 00:37:39,680
Now the Egyptians are down there in bondage but God is at work faithfully.

435
00:37:39,680 --> 00:37:42,720
He hasn't forgotten his people.

436
00:37:42,720 --> 00:37:43,980
God heard their groaning.

437
00:37:43,980 --> 00:37:45,560
He remembered his covenant.

438
00:37:45,560 --> 00:37:52,480
Please remember that God is a covenant keeping God.

439
00:37:52,480 --> 00:37:57,040
When God establishes a covenant there is no question that he is going to fulfill that

440
00:37:57,040 --> 00:37:59,360
covenant entirely.

441
00:37:59,360 --> 00:38:05,280
By the way that's why I'm a pre-millennialist because I believe that God has not yet fulfilled

442
00:38:05,280 --> 00:38:13,200
his covenant with Abraham and that he is committed to do so and will do so as he brings the people

443
00:38:13,200 --> 00:38:22,800
of Israel finally and fully into the land these promised Abraham 4,000 years ago that

444
00:38:22,800 --> 00:38:25,760
he would give to them.

445
00:38:25,760 --> 00:38:30,640
He works faithfully always in the direction of his own purpose.

446
00:38:30,640 --> 00:38:37,040
For long years God's promise seemed empty to his suffering people.

447
00:38:37,040 --> 00:38:42,200
There was no apparent movement in any direction except more trouble and more bondage and more

448
00:38:42,200 --> 00:38:46,240
heartache and more slavery.

449
00:38:46,240 --> 00:38:54,320
But appearances and circumstances must not cause us to doubt that God is faithful to

450
00:38:54,320 --> 00:38:56,760
his word.

451
00:38:56,760 --> 00:39:01,660
God was aware of what was going on and he was preparing to act.

452
00:39:01,660 --> 00:39:06,520
God does not lack in faithfulness but he does have his own time.

453
00:39:06,520 --> 00:39:14,080
God has his own way and he has his own purpose.

454
00:39:14,080 --> 00:39:23,680
Our part is to trust the faithfulness of God even when we cannot see the work of God because

455
00:39:23,680 --> 00:39:31,520
God is faithfully working and it's always in the direction of his own purposes and he

456
00:39:31,520 --> 00:39:35,600
is doing that in your life today.

457
00:39:35,600 --> 00:39:42,960
You may feel like you're one of the Israelites down there in Egypt and you're in a tough

458
00:39:42,960 --> 00:39:49,520
spot and you have prayed, you have made spiritual commitments and during the months, perhaps

459
00:39:49,520 --> 00:39:59,440
even years that have transpired you have wondered where is God in all of this?

460
00:39:59,440 --> 00:40:03,560
God is hearing.

461
00:40:03,560 --> 00:40:11,240
God is seeing, God is taking notice and when his time and his way have arrived he will

462
00:40:11,240 --> 00:40:14,440
fully accomplish his purpose.

463
00:40:14,440 --> 00:40:19,960
Your part in mine is to believe and to trust.

464
00:40:19,960 --> 00:40:25,680
You and I can trust the heart of God even when we cannot see the hand of God.

465
00:40:25,680 --> 00:40:32,520
That's how God works.

466
00:40:32,520 --> 00:40:38,600
Because sometimes we forget how God works, we make ourselves the judge of God and we

467
00:40:38,600 --> 00:40:46,400
conclude that God is unfair, that God is uncaring, that God is unfaithful.

468
00:40:46,400 --> 00:40:55,600
There are times we wonder if God is even there at all.

469
00:40:55,600 --> 00:40:59,320
He's there my friend.

470
00:40:59,320 --> 00:41:04,960
He does care and he is faithful.

471
00:41:04,960 --> 00:41:09,080
He is just.

472
00:41:09,080 --> 00:41:11,320
Our need today is to believe that.

473
00:41:11,320 --> 00:41:21,960
Would you bow with me in prayer?

474
00:41:21,960 --> 00:41:27,600
Has the Spirit of God spoken to you about a wrong response in your heart toward your

475
00:41:27,600 --> 00:41:31,760
Heavenly Father?

476
00:41:31,760 --> 00:41:38,680
If so then my friend you need right now to recognize that sinful response of unbelief

477
00:41:38,680 --> 00:41:48,800
or doubt or anger or rebellion, whatever it is, acknowledge it to him as sin because

478
00:41:48,800 --> 00:41:52,520
that's what it is.

479
00:41:52,520 --> 00:41:59,720
Would you now in the quietness of this moment thank him by faith that he is at work in your

480
00:41:59,720 --> 00:42:07,040
life at this very time?

481
00:42:07,040 --> 00:42:13,080
Remember you can trust his heart even if you can't see his hand.

482
00:42:13,080 --> 00:42:18,800
Will you thank him for the insights you may have gained from the passage this morning

483
00:42:18,800 --> 00:42:25,440
as to how he works?

484
00:42:25,440 --> 00:42:30,440
Will you ask him to take control of your mind, your will, your emotions?

485
00:42:30,440 --> 00:42:36,880
Will you submit them to his rule, his Lordship in your life?

486
00:42:36,880 --> 00:42:45,520
Will you make today a fresh beginning for your spiritual walk?

487
00:42:45,520 --> 00:42:50,920
My friend, if you've never trusted the Lord in the first place as your Savior, will you

488
00:42:50,920 --> 00:42:58,800
do that today recognizing that the simplicity of the gospel message is Jesus Christ crucified,

489
00:42:58,800 --> 00:43:03,640
buried, raised again for you?

490
00:43:03,640 --> 00:43:04,640
He lives today.

491
00:43:04,640 --> 00:43:11,400
He wants to come into your heart as the living God, man.

492
00:43:11,400 --> 00:43:18,920
He wants to cleanse it to make you a complete person in himself.

493
00:43:18,920 --> 00:43:26,280
Will you receive him today?

494
00:43:26,280 --> 00:43:30,560
I wonder just before we close in prayer if there is someone who by the uplifted hand

495
00:43:30,560 --> 00:43:38,280
would say either, yes, today I do trust in Jesus Christ as my Savior, or by the uplifted

496
00:43:38,280 --> 00:43:45,040
hand you would say, today I am making a fresh beginning in my Christian walk, and I am going

497
00:43:45,040 --> 00:43:51,280
to seek to apply what we have learned in the word today about how God works in my life,

498
00:43:51,280 --> 00:43:58,640
for I have been discouraged, or I have been unbelieving, or I have been angry, and I have

499
00:43:58,640 --> 00:44:01,760
given myself afresh to Jesus Christ today.

500
00:44:01,760 --> 00:44:07,200
If you have made some spiritual commitment, would you lift your hand as a sign and a seal

501
00:44:07,200 --> 00:44:08,640
to that before God?

502
00:44:08,640 --> 00:44:09,640
God bless you.

503
00:44:09,640 --> 00:44:10,640
A number of hands.

504
00:44:10,640 --> 00:44:11,640
Yes, that is the right thing to do.

505
00:44:11,640 --> 00:44:12,640
God bless you.

506
00:44:12,640 --> 00:44:13,640
Thank you.

507
00:44:13,640 --> 00:44:14,640
Father, I pray for each of these.

508
00:44:14,640 --> 00:44:30,120
As that new beginning takes place, whether it be a new beginning as your child or a new

509
00:44:30,120 --> 00:44:35,480
beginning as a servant of the Lord, we pray that it will bring forth real fruit in the

510
00:44:35,480 --> 00:44:41,800
life that you will prove yourself as the faithful covenant-keeping God that you are.

511
00:44:41,800 --> 00:45:08,800
In Jesus' name, amen.