THE DAY GOD TALKED ABOUT HIMSELF...

      THE DAY GOD TALKED ABOUT HIMSELF, Exodus 34:1-9.

In this passage God says ten things about Himself. Can you list them? Hint: They are in verses 6&7.

1._________________2.________________3._______________4._______________5.________________6.________________7._______________8._______________9._______________10.________________

NOTE THESE FOUR THINGS IN THE TEXT:

1.    GOD’S INVITATION TO MOSES TO COME UP ON MOUNT SINAI (vv 1-4)

^“And the Lord said unto Moses, Hew thee two tables of stone like unto the first: and I will write upon these tables the words that were in the first tables, which thou brakest. ² And be ready in the morning, and come up in the morning unto mount Sinai, and present thyself there to me in the top of the mount. ³ And no man shall come up with thee, neither let any man be seen throughout all the mount; neither let the flocks nor herds feed before that mount.
⁴ And he hewed two tables of stone like unto the first; and Moses rose up early in the morning, and went up unto mount Sinai, as the Lord had commanded him, and took in his hand the two tables of stone.” (Exodus 34:1-4)

GOD’S PEOPLE MUST SUBMIT TO ABSOLUTE TRUTH. Here, God addresses post-modernity, which isn’t all that modern????)! Truth is; truth must be found in God and in His Word….not made up by us in our self-determined and pragmatic ways. To find truth we must:

     Agonize – “…hew thee two tables of stone…”

     Realize – “…and I will write upon these tables…”

     Prioritize – “And be ready in the morning…”

     Individualize – “And no man shall come up with thee…”

     Specialize – “…neither let the flocks nor herds feed be-

     Fore that mount.”

2.    GOD’S VISITATION TO MOSES, COMING DOWN TO MOUNT SINAI (5, 6a)

^“And the Lord descended in the cloud, and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Lord. ⁶ And the Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed…” (Exodus 34:5-6)

GOD’S SINNING PEOPLE MUST RETURN TO HIS ABSOLUTE BEING! He is LORD (Jehovah)! Jehovah occurs 6,823 times in the O.T. and refers to God’s being, what He is in and of Himself. “El” or “Elohim” is more His generic name telling us He is the strong One, the mighty Leader, the supreme Deity.

3.    GOD’S PROCLAMATION OF HIS NAME ON MOUNT SINAI (6b, 7)

“…The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, ⁷ Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.” (Exodus 34:6-7)

IN RETURNING TO THE LORD, GOD’S PEOPLE MUST UNDERSTAND HIS ABSOLUTE CHARACTER! (Hence, the ten things God says about Himself!)

4.    MOSES’ SUPPLICATION TO GOD IN BEHALF OF GOD’S OWN PEOPLE (8, 9)

“And Moses made haste, and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshipped. ⁹ And he said, If now I have found grace in thy sight, O Lord, let my Lord, I pray thee, go among us; for it is a stiffnecked people; and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for thine inheritance.” (Exodus 34:8-9)

IN RETURNING TO GOD IN REPENTANCE AND HUMILITY, WE FIND HIM TO BE A GOD OF ABSOLUTE GRACE! And so, we worship Him (8) and expect His pardon and faithfulness to His people (9).                                                       – dick christen