Exodus 33:7-11 My Presence
Will Go with You: Meeting with the LORD
Introduction:
We will continue with our focus for the month which is preparing us for
a new year.
à “My Presence Will Go with You”
We enter the Scripture where we left off from last week and we find a
physical confirmation that God’s presence had been withdrawn from among the
people. Drastic sin had caused drastic measures from the LORD. We want to learn
from the Scripture the importance of God’s presence among us as we move ahead
together.
READ SCRIPTURE- This is the Word of God
Section 1: Outside the Camp
A. Moses moved his own tent outside the camp to symbolize God’s
withdrawal.
a. The tent wasn’t
simply off to the side, b/c the Scripture says it was FAR from them.
b. God’s presence was
once with the people, leading them out of Egypt, but now He was not in their midst.
c. Remember from last
week’s text that God had told the people to take off their ornaments so that He may know what to do with them.
d. Although the people
had repented of what they had done (we know this because they took
off their ornaments) there was still a period of time that elapsed before God
would come back into their midst.
B. “Sought the LORD”
a. This means those who
inquired of the LORD.
b. Anyone who wanted
to find spiritual guidance was forced outside the camp.
c. Guidance from the
LORD was not convenient in any way.
d. Sin is always an
alienating force from the presence of God. Isaiah told the people during his day “But your iniquities
have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you.”
e. They could only
worship from a distance.
C. Rebellion to Reverence
a. The removal of
God’s presence was a drastic reminder to the people.
b. They had been led
into the wilderness by the miraculous hand of an Almighty God, but
now, because of their transgressions, they were obviously aware of the
potential risk of losing the
presence of their God. This caused the people to quickly move from rebellion to reverence because, as God
Himself said through Hosea, “Woe to them when I depart from them!”
c. One day they are
fashioning their own god to worship and another day they are wanting to worship Yahweh and can
only do so from a distance.
d. They would all
stand at their doors and watch Moses make the trek out of the camp and into the tent of meeting. They would
watch until he was inside.
D. Purpose of the Separation
a. Surely the people
were saying what the psalmist said, “O Lord, do not be far from me” but this was real separation that
was evidenced in a physical manner.
b. God ordained a
separation from the people and a time that would need to pass.
c. He also provided an
opportunity for Moses to make intercession in behalf of the people. Ofcourse, God’s grace is
superior to anything that Moses did.
d. God raised up Moses
to do and say these very things. God, in His sovereignty, prepared Moses to be the intercessor for the
people.
E. Just and Justifier
a. God wanted to give
the people grace, but He also was required to be just in the situation. They had sinned and there had to be
something done as a result for God to
be just in forgiving them.
b. Romans 3:26 teaches
us that He is both just and justifier.
c. God raised up Moses
to intercede for the people- that made Him Just
d. God forgave the
people because of the intercession- that made Him Justifier
Connective: Although
God’s presence had been withdrawn from the people, His miraculous presence was
still manifest in their sight. The LORD would descend in a pillar of cloud and
speak with Moses.
Section 2: Pillar of Cloud
A. Meeting with the LORD
a. When Moses would go
into the tent, the pillar of cloud would descend.
b. Israel and God had,
at the very least, a strained relationship, yet Moses was very intimate with God. The Scripture says
that Moses and God talked face to face like friends.
In relation to that, verse nine seems to demonstrate that although Moses was in
close proximity to God, he also had
a sense of separation because it reads “the cloud stood at the door.” It never says that the cloud went in the
tent.
B. It should be said first that this is a singular pillar that had two
expressions- cloud/fire
a. Exodus 14:24- fire
and cloud equated
b. The Bible makes a
clear distinction between seeing God’s unveiled glory and seeing a representation of His choosing. In this area
of Scripture we read about two representations of God’s presence- Angel of the LORD and
pillar of fire/cloud (one calls a glory cloud).
c. We remember that
when God brought the people out of Egypt He led them by this glory cloud. (Exodus 13:21 The LORD went
before them in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar
of fire by night).
C. Significance of the Cloud
a. Exodus 24:15-16
Cloud covered the mountain, the glory of the LORD rested
b. Exodus 16:10 The
glory of the LORD was in the cloud
c. Psalm 105:39 tells
us that the cloud was for covering and the fire for light
d. It has also been
noted that it was an ancient custom to carry a burning light at the head of a marching army or caravan to
indicate the line of march.
*God’s glory was in this cloud and the people quickly equated the cloud
with the LORD’s presence. The point is that this miraculous manifestation of
God’s glory was “outside the camp” and “far off.” The people were separated
from the only one they could rely on, especially in the wilderness.
Conclusion:
It took sin and God withdrawing His presence for the people to truly
worship. Let this be a lesson for us that we should continually worship the
LORD and seek His presence at all times. It was God’s intention that these
people would be miraculously taken out of the land of slavery and go to a land
to worship Yahweh.
Exodus 3:18 “Let us go to sacrifice to the LORD our God” à Exodus 5:1 “And afterward
Moses and Aaron went in, and told Pharaoh, Thus says the LORD God of Israel,
Let my people go, that they may hold a feast unto Me in the wilderness.” à Exodus 7:16 “And you shall say to him, The LORD God of the Hebrews has
sent me to you, saying, Let My people go, that they may serve Me in the
wilderness.” à Exodus 8:1 “Thus says the LORD, Let My people go,
that they may serve Me.” à The same in Exodus 8:20 à The same in Exodus 9:1 à Exodus 10:9 “for we must
hold a feast unto the LORD.”
Let us worship God at all times not only after forgiveness for we have
all been forgiven in Christ Jesus. A fitting Scripture is Galatians 6:1 “Brothers,
if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore
him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.”
I want to make a final point on this tent that Moses had set up.
1. Outside the camp
and far off
2. Temporary- the
people didn’t know if God would go with them
3. Not continuously
occupied by God