Graham Emmanuel Baptist Church Sermons

At a low point in the Exodus story, all that Moses does in obedience to God seems to result in favor, yet as much as Moses pleads, God continues to demand further obedience. This low point is broken up with a pause to tell the family history of Moses and Aaron. This genealogy, which is one of many genealogies used to tell God’s story of redemption in Scripture, shows how the evidence of God’s faithfulness is revealed through the preservation of families.

In a moment of uncertainty, God gives Moses certainty about the kind of God Israel has as their Lord. After telling Moses that Pharaoh’s hard heart is for God’s greater purpose in revealing His might, God reaffirms to Moses who He is, and what He has promised to do for Israel even before they came to Egypt. Join as we reflect on these reminders of God’s attributes that were given for believers today just as much as it was given to Israel when it was originally written.   

After hearing God’s command to let His people go, Pharaoh cruelly increases Israel’s workload, leaving Moses to wonder why God would have him deliver a message that would not be accepted. Find out God’s response and what it says about what God expects of His people even amidst bad circumstances.  

Once Moses returns to Egypt, he has three interactions with people who all hear the commands of God. Some choose to obey, some choose not to obey. The way each person responds to God’s Word reveals how they feel about God. Join us as we study three examples of faith—both good and bad, and see how faith is connected to action.   

As Moses prepares to return to Egypt, God reiterates His message to Pharaoh, this time with the promise that if Pharaoh disobeys, that God will punish him by taking his firstborn son. Later God approaches to execute Moses for his sin but is appeased when Moses’ firstborn son is circumcised. Both situations illustrate God’s wrath towards sin and foreshadow His provision of a substitute through the “Firstborn.”  

This week, we see that God’s sufficiency, not only answers all of Moses’ objections to his call, but also demands our response.

God’s actions are a result of His attributes. After revealing in crystal clear form exactly who He is, God is now going to reveal to Moses exactly what He will do in Egypt. By perfectly laying out the details of the upcoming Exodus, God shows that He is sovereign over all, and that salvation is always a total work of God alone. Come learn from God’s Word with us how believers should respond to God’s sovereignty over all things.  

A lot of meaning is bound up in a name. As God commands Moses to go to Egypt to deliver His people, Moses responds by first asking, “Who am I?” and then asking, “Who is God?” By asking the name of God, Moses asks for God to intimately reveal the kind of God He is—His nature, characteristics, and attributes. God, instead of smiting Moses, graciously gives His name, I AM WHO I AM—the name “Yahweh.” As a result, God reveals for all the generations that follow both who He is and how people should respond to Him.     

Who do you believe God is? In the burning bush, God reveals Himself in a way never before seen since the Garden of Eden. By appearing to Moses, God reveals His plan of salvation for the Israelites by first revealing Himself. In doing so, God shows that His salvation is a result of His holiness, and what He does, and How people should respond to Him, is always on the basis on the kind of God He is.  

After four hundred years of Israel’s suffering, slavery, and genocide in Egypt, and after Moses’ exile in Midian, the story pauses to reflect on Israel’s suffering as they cry out to God. Despite all circumstances, God hears their cries, and remembering His promises to their forefathers, takes concern for them. Even when God feels distance, He knows. Join us as we dwell on the promises of God’s loving character.