Highlights of Exodus 20-40. Do you fear God?

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Psalm 119:1-40.

Heb 4:12-16

Heb 12:18-29

Do you fear God? Do you fear Him? The Lord, the Lord, the gracious and compassionate God, who does not let the guilty go unpunished.

Exodus has shown us God, God in all his terrifying glory and holiness. He is the reality, real reality of the world we live in.

It is not our world. It is His.

God is not a figment of our imagination. He is real. All we see around us shows us his power, his glory, his majesty.
And if philosophy pretending to be science has put doubt in your mind that maybe all this just randomly happened, that design without a designer, that order came out of chaos, if you’ve been made uncertain by loudmouths with degrees talking about things they know nothing about and aren't qualified in – well, let history put your mind at rest. Because God has made himself known at various times and in various ways. Like in Exodus, in a BIG way!
When scientists run tests, they record the unusual events – the outliers, because if there are many of them, unexpected results, then it can mean their initial hypothesis is wrong. This book, the Bible is in a sense, a record of outliers, unexpected results, which prove wrong our hypothesis that there is no God.

There is a God, and this is His world. And each of us were made by him and for him. That is our purpose. That is who we are. We are made to glorify God and to enjoy him forever.

We are much more that “bags of meat, breathing, eating, and defecating”, as a leading psychologist described us. Who will you listen to? Him? Or God? What’s his track record? What is God’s?

Today as we look back over what we have seen of our awesome God through the pages of Exodus, I want to focus our attention on four big questions. These are the Highlights in Exodus

1. Who is God? The power of our God

2. How do we know Him? The wonder of his living word

3. Who are we? The sinfulness of humans

4. Can we know God? The grace of God who makes a way of salvation – but that way of salvation is his

Now, I’m not going to start at chapter 20 and go through to 40. I’m going to pick up some of the big themes throughout.

First question, then:

1. Who is God? The power of our God.

Ex 20:18–19 When the people heard the thunder and the loud blast of the ram’s horn, and when they saw the flashes of lightning and the smoke billowing from the mountain, they stood at a distance, trembling with fear. 19 And they said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen. But don’t let God speak directly to us, or we will die!”

Have you ever been so afraid of God you thought you would die? Ever been terrified to open your Bible because He will speak to you! You know, we’re so used to the happy smiley Jesus. Our brother, our friend. And he is that. But He is more than that! He is the Living God, the consuming fire.
Remember the building of the Tabernacle? How it was built in layers. Do you remember why?
Not to protect God from us but to protect us from God.
What does that tell us about God?

Exodus opens with the people of God in slavery. They are oppressed by state power. The government in Egypt was misusing its power. Everywhere they looked they saw the power of Egypt. They saw their fellow believers enslaved, beaten, mocked, by those who believed themselves superior. They saw them bowing down to their idols, their idols which had brought so much success. Oil. Trygd. Democracy. Moral superiority. Sexual freedom. Waving the rainbow flag as they rejoiced at their victory over God. Oh, sorry, I mean the gods Ra and Osiris and Hapi, the god of the Nile.

You see, Egypt, like secular Norway, set themselves up against the God of the Universe. No god would tell them what to do.

Turn to Ex 7:4 Even then Pharaoh will refuse to listen to you. So I will bring down my fist on Egypt. Then I will rescue my forces—my people, the Israelites—from the land of Egypt with great acts of judgment. 5 When I raise my powerful hand and bring out the Israelites, the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD.”

The Egyptians lived in peace and security, patting themselves on the back for their own cleverness. The God of the Israelites, Yahweh – what a joke. They gave him no thought. These weak and puny slaves. These backward, sexually frustrated, women-hating, fools. Who needs their God, their Jesus? Secure in their own wisdom. Until the hammer falls.
If you’ve given no thought to God, this true story is given for your warning.
If you know God, this true story is recorded for your encouragement.

Ex 13:14–16 “And in the future, your children will ask you, ‘What does all this mean?’ Then you will tell them, ‘With the power of his mighty hand, the LORD brought us out of Egypt, the place of our slavery. 15 Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, so the LORD killed all the firstborn males throughout the land of Egypt, both people and animals. That is why I now sacrifice all the firstborn males to the LORD—except that the firstborn sons are always bought back.’ 16 This ceremony will be like a mark branded on your hand or your forehead. It is a reminder that the power of the LORD’s mighty hand brought us out of Egypt.”

Do we teach our children to fear the Lord?

Because he is mighty to save, yes, and in saving he will judge everything else. All the false gods of this world will fall before his awesome and terrifying power. He judged the gods of Egypt, they fell before Him. As we read on we see he judges the gods of Canaan and the surrounding lands. They fell before him. He will judge the gods of Norway too. And they will fall before him.

And he will judge his people. Because when He rescued them, He brought them to himself, to a fearful sight. To thunder and smoke and fire and terror.

Do you fear God? You should! He has terrifying power. Awesome power.

Who is God? Quite simply, he is One to be feared. He is immensely powerful. We forget that. The holy God. But if we fear him, then our fear is in the right place. Because he holds all things, rules over all things, controls all things. Why be afraid of anything else?

Because people are afraid of many things. Particularly death. People fear death. Psychiatrists call dealing with death “terror management theory”. Death is terrifying. And it is right to fear death. But the one who holds life and death in his hand, the one who can breathe through his nostrils and cause a hurricane. The one who, at a word can take the life of every firstborn in Egypt. He should be feared.

What are you afraid of? Think about it now.

Now think about the terror of the Holy Awesome God. What is that thing compared to him?

The second verse of “Amazing Grace” begins like this: “Twas Grace that taught my heart to fear”.

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” says Proverbs.

Who is God? The one who is to be feared. And therefore we need fear nothing else!

And that brings us to our next question

2. How do we know him? Power of his word

Ex 20:1–2 Then God gave the people all these instructions: 2 “I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery.

Ex 34:5–7 Then the LORD came down in a cloud and stood there with him; and he called out his own name, Yahweh. 6 The LORD passed in front of Moses, calling out, “Yahweh! The LORD! The God of compassion and mercy! I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness. 7 I lavish unfailing love to a thousand generations. I forgive iniquity, rebellion, and sin. But I do not excuse the guilty. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children and grandchildren; the entire family is affected— even children in the third and fourth generations.”

Why are you at church? For a good social event? To have your worldview confirmed? To be looked after? To have your preconceptions affirmed? To not be lonely?
Now some of those are good, but none of those are why you are here. You are here for the same reason that you sit down at the dinner table every day. For without church, you die.

God’s word is our lifeline. How do we know God? We know god only through his word. He tells us who He is. “Yahweh! The LORD! The God of compassion and mercy! I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.” That’s who he is. We know God because he tells us who He is.

Imagine if He never spoke. Things just happened. No explanation. That’s the way of pagan religions. That’s the way of evolutionary psychology. Things happen and then you manufacture an explanation afterwards. “Yes, people developed compassion because the people who didn’t work together all died out.” It’s guessing in the dark, on the level of “Thunder is Thor’s hammer striking the anvil!”. If God never spoke we would still be in darkness.

Have you ever thanked God for speaking to you? That He relates to you, person to person. Remember how we read in 33:11 the people were in awe that Moses could speak to God face to face, as one would a friend. We have that same privilege!

Do we treasure that? We can know God because he speaks. And his word is powerful. His word is authoritative.

I want to show you something that I have found particularly helpful through the years. It is the four sources of authority. What is the highest authority in our lives, that everything else must defer to. Is it tradition, reason, emotion, or the Bible. We can probably identify certain church groups on this scale. But what about us. I think if we’re honest, most of us aren’t here. When God challenges us through His word the Bible how do we respond? We are lead by our feelings (that feels wrong, I won’t believe it), our mind (that’s illogical, I don’t believe it), or our traditions (that’s not what my mom said, or my pastor said, or that guy on TV). Now that’s partly good: we must think and feel and remember what others have said about the Bible – but at the end of the day who are we going to believe? God. Or our tradition? God. Or our own thoughts? God. Or our feelings.

A lot of this can be traced back to how we were saved. If you were saved through reason you are more likely to be in this box. Or through an experience – in the emotion box. But however we were saved we are all lead back to God’s word. Like the Israelites were saved dramatically through miracles and then came to Sinai where God spoke to them.
We need to train ourselves to move into the Bible box. His word is truth. True truth.

So that’s why we’re here. We go to church first, primarily, to hear God’s word. Everything else: friendships, service, compassion, affirmation, having a good time whatever – that’s all secondary, a by-product. This is central: we are here to hear from God. Because we want to know him. We’re gathered here to know GOD.
We learn that from Exodus. Because this gathering around the mountain is the first church. The word church simply means a gathering. “Let my people go, that they may worship me” was the command given to Pharaoh. And what is the worship we see? Not singing, dancing, sacrificing, doing things for God - but listening.

Church is the gathering of God’s people – but not just for anything. Church is the gathering of God’s people to hear God’s word.

Who is God? The powerful one who should be feared.
How do we know God? We know him through his powerful word.

3. Who are we? The sinfulness of humans

Ex 20:1–3 Then God gave the people all these instructions: 2 “I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. 3 “You must not have any other god but me.

Ex 33:4–6 When the people heard these stern words, they went into mourning and stopped wearing their jewellery and fine clothes. 5 For the LORD had told Moses to tell them, “You are a stubborn and rebellious people. If I were to travel with you for even a moment, I would destroy you. Remove your jewellery and fine clothes while I decide what to do with you.” 6 So from the time they left Mount Sinai, the Israelites wore no more jewellery or fine clothes.

Who are we? Well, we learn very quickly from Exodus, we are not God. Our words do not have the power to bring life. Our actions are limited. In fact, we find we are just like the Israelites. And they were slaves. Slaves physically, yes, but also in their minds. They thought like Egyptians. Moses was gone a bit long, so they made a Golden Calf. Seemed like a good idea. Logical. Something they’d seen their “betters’ doing in Egypt. Oops. And we too are slaves. Slaves to sin. And sin affects every part of us, also our mind.

There is a helpful doctrine called “total depravity”. And you need to know this about yourself: You are totally depraved! I am totally depraved.
Now that does not mean you are as evil as evil can be. But it does mean that sin has corrupted every single part of you. There is no area of you that is not corrupted by sin. Even our minds. Our thoughts are darkened. The Israelites thought the Calf was a great idea!

An example of this is when Petter went through some of the laws God gives Israel. Some of them seem barbaric, wrong. But as Petter explained and we could see how they would work out in practice, how they are given to protect the weak and uplift the poor – and then we see the kind of laws we make with our wisdom which seem to be so good but all too often end up oppressing the weak and poor. We are not as wise as we think. And it’s because we forget about sin. We are not good people altruistic going through life spreading joy, and we do not live in a world full of those people!

For example. There is an “epidemic” of loneliness now in the UK. 9 million people are lonely. They are raising funds! They have a minister of loneliness! This is the result of selfishness - sin. Your own selfishness and the selfishness of those around you. As we move further away from the gospel we see the effects. People can’t live together any more. Can’t be bothered to look after each other, bear with one another. Sin is always the problem. The root cause of all family breakups, of divorce is sin. There is no great mystery here why things go wrong. People are sinners.

There is a way that seems right to a man. It builds a Golden Calf. We laugh. We read chapter after chapter about the Tabernacle, its layers, its altar for sacrifices, the barriers, the washing, the blood, oh goodness, the blood! And it all seems a bit much! It’s illogical – wrong - to our minds. It feels like overkill. Why? Because we don’t really believe we’re all that bad. We don’t actually believe we’re sinners.

Four areas of authority. Which one do you trust? ACTUALLY.

Do you realise your heart and mind is corrupt, broken, in darkness?

For if we had no sin, why would blood sacrifice be necessary. If we had no sin, why would the Son Himself come out of Heaven, subject himself to becoming man, be scorned, mocked, beaten and crucified, and then to die. Look to the Cross, and believe.

Who is God? The one to be feared, yes.
How do we know Him? Through his powerful living word.
Who are we? Sinners. Corrupt and foolish
But, can we know God? Yes. Remember his words.
Ex 20:2 “I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery.

He is mighty, powerful, the God to be feared. “Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, and grace that fear relieved”. Because He is also the God who saves sinners. He is the God who comes to live with his people! Not just in a tent! But he became one of us. Fully human. Fully God. In Jesus Christ our Lord. And Jesus is our mediator. Moses was playing his role when he ran to the Lord to plead for the Israelites after their sin. And Jesus is now pleading for us to the Father, our high priest who has offered the perfect sacrifice on the Cross. His death means that we can be free.

God is terrifying. But to fear him drives us to him, and we find that fear relieved. There is a way to be made right with God, and his name is Jesus.

So let us draw near to our great God. Let us not fear any frightening thing, because what is that next to God? Let us throw aside any other voice and trust his word because there is power. And let us love one another with his love. No loneliness epidemic here. God does not just bring individuals to him, but forms communities. The gathering at Sinai was the first church. The way we love and care for each other is a witness that will shine all the stronger. Because our relationships are based on God’s love. Not our selfishness.

Who is God? Awesome. Powerful. Terrifying. Wonderful. Love.

Don’t be afraid of anything. Don’t listen to anything above him. He is the Ultimate Reality.

Mark 9:1-29 The path to greatness is dependence.

Mark 9:1-29

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How do you become a great Christian?

How do you live a godly life full of power and victory?

Well, it is by being humble and dependent. Why? Because I am not the Messiah. You are not the son of God. And however hard we try we can never be even the tiniest bit as glorious, powerful or wonderful as the Lord Jesus!

Mark’s gospel opens with these words: 1:1 This is the Good News about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God. Jesus is the Messiah (Hebrew) or Christ (Greek) which means the Promised Rescuer. He is the one promised in the Old Testament, the first part of the Bible, the one who will rescue us all from sin and death. Christ is not his surname but his job description. Jesus, saviour of the world!

And chapters 1-8 have been proving this remarkable truth. He has power to teach, power to heal, power over sickness, demons, even death! He even has power over creation – wind obeys him, the sea obeys him, he can even make food from nothing, feeding a crowd of 5000 and then 4000. And in 8:29 Jesus asks his disciples: “But who do you say I am?” Peter replied, “You are the Messiah.”

He is Messiah, God’s the Promised Rescuer. And immediately Jesus starts teaching them how is he going to save us, and what it means to follow him. He must die. And we must die.

That’s what we saw last week. To save us Jesus needs to die. He will die in our place on the cross, a sacrificial lamb, taking our sins upon himself so that he can give us his righteousness. It’s new life for old. Our sinful rebellious life can be swapped for a new one! But that means giving up our old one, dying to self, and accepting the new one, living for Christ.

Is it worth it?
And how do we live it?

Those are the two questions tonight’s passage answers.

1. Following Jesus means listening to Jesus, the glorious, transcendent, eternal son of God!

2. Following Jesus means stop pretending to be independent, and instead trust Him in all things. I believe. Help me in my unbelief.

1. Following Jesus means listening to Jesus

We’re called to bank everything on Jesus. Being crucified does not involve holding something back for yourself! Losing your life is pretty final. These are the words Jesus uses. You cannot be a Sunday Christian. Jesus is Lord of all, or not Lord at all. There is nothing in all Creation over which Jesus does not say “this is mine!” – there is nothing in your life over which Jesus does not say “this is mine. This belongs to me”.

So, it’s a big risk. Are the promised rewards of eternal life, real life now, the best life now, the only way to live – are these backed up by anything?

If you pull out a kr100 note it’s backed by bank of Norway. If I’d pulled out a Zimbabwean dollar bill, you’d feel a little less secure. Or the bank of Greece or Spain! Can Jesus back up his promises? Is he right about his view of the Messiah?

Jesus went on to say, “I tell you the truth, some standing here right now will not die before they see the Kingdom of God arrive in great power!” 2 Six days later Jesus took Peter, James, and John, and led them up a high mountain to be alone. As the men watched, Jesus’ appearance was transformed, 3 and his clothes became dazzling white, far whiter than any earthly bleach could ever make them… 7 Then a cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my dearly loved Son. Listen to him.”

Follow me and be killed and I will give you life. It’s quite a challenge. This was really difficult for the disciples. They thought the Messiah would be some all-conquering hero, Rambo on a horse riding in to Jerusalem to free the Jews and throw the Romans out, power blasting from his hands. But instead Jesus is talking all about dying and suffering and being a sacrifice. Huh? Surely you’re wrong Jesus. Peter even says so! Mk 8:31–32 Then Jesus began to tell them that the Son of Man must suffer many terrible things and be rejected by the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He would be killed, but three days later he would rise from the dead. 32 As he talked about this openly with his disciples, Peter took him aside and began to reprimand him for saying such things.

So this was a real brain twister for the disciples. And Jesus knew this. So he says some of you will SEE the Kingdom of God. And six days later, there is Peter, James and John, Jesus’ “inner circle” and they see the Glorified King. Jesus as he is.

Jesus is revealed in all his glory on the mountaintop. With him stands Moses, the Law-giver, and Elijah, the greatest of the prophets: “the Law and the Prophets” being a way to describe the Old Testament. Them appearing with Jesus is saying “We testify to Jesus”. The Old Testament, the Holy Scriptures, say that “Jesus is right”. And to make it very clear, the Father says v7 This is my dearly loved son: listen to Him.

Jesus is God, LISTEN TO HIM. What he says about the Messiah is right. What he says about his death and resurrection is true. His words bring life, since he is the One who speaks life into existence. Listen to him.

Those words were for Peter, James and John, and those words are for us. We must listen to Jesus. His words are truth. True truth. No matter what we think we know about Jesus, we must put aside and really listen. Peter couldn’t hear what Jesus was saying because his own views about the Messiah were in the way. He couldn’t understand. He was blind. He had to keep listening.

And we must too. Keep reading. Keep reading what God actually says in his word, not what we think it says!
Because how often do we just “read” something without reading it. Our brain is extremely efficient – it likes to create heuristics: shortcuts for familiar tasks. The first time you drive to a new job, you notice everything along the way. You focus on the road. You notice the view. You see the flowers and trees and shops and people and everything. 3 weeks later you register none of that. You arrive home and you don’t remember the drive. Your brain has shifted into “repeat mode” (heuristics). The danger is when we do that to the Bible. It takes effort to read the Bible because our brain is lazy and just sees what it thinks is already there – it takes the short-cut! That’s why God repeatedly urges us to work hard, stay awake, beat our body into submission, make every effort. To hear his voice takes active effort on our part! The Holy Spirit doesn’t swan down and deposit wisdom in our minds! That’s why the apostles in the early church devoted themselves to teaching and preaching (and prayer!).

This is my dearly loved son – listen to him!

Strong words.

But why should we listen to him? Because he is what the whole Bible is pointing to, what the whole Old Testament, the Law and the prophets, Moses and Elijah, is building up to.

Because in him is revealed God himself. Elijah and Moses are the only two people to whom God revealed himself. On the mountain of God, they asked to see him, and God passes before them. He showed Moses his glory, and then gave him his word – and he said to Elijah… well, nothing. He didn’t speak in a still small voice. That’s a poor translation. It’s a deafening silence. He’d already spoken through Moses, and Elijah needed to listen. But now! Here are Peter, James and John on the mountainside seeing the glory of Jesus revealed, and they are to LISTEN TO HIM. This is something new, fulfilling Moses. Jesus is Almighty God, revealed in his glory before them. Here then is the Name of God, his very nature, standing before them in human form.

Following Jesus means listening to Jesus, the glorious, transcendent, eternal son of God!

2. Following Jesus means stop pretending to be independent, and instead trust Him in all things.

Mk 9:24 “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!”

We’ve got quite a cast of characters here in this story:
The disciples, the demon-possessed boy, the father, Jesus, the crowd, and the teachers of the religious Law. When Jesus comes down the mountain there is a massive argument going on. The religious leaders are arguing with the disciples, and the reason is soon apparent – they were not able to cast out the demon (v18). We don’t know what the religious people were saying, but they were probably calling out the disciples as fakes, fraudsters. And, in this case, they were right.

Listen to Jesus in v19 Jesus said to them, “You faithless people! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring the boy to me.”

What was the disciples’ problem? They were trying to do this miracle by themselves. They thought that by virtue of their position as Jesus’ disciples that they had power. It was idolatry: they replaced Jesus with themselves as their authority and power. Just as in Exodus when Moses comes down the mountain and sees the people of Israel engaged in idolatry – worshipping a golden calf, now Jesus comes down the mountain and sees his disciples, his people, worshipping their own power and position.

If that seems to you a bit of a stretch, or a bit harsh on the disciples, have a look at the context of this story. 8:14 Don’t be like the Pharisees. 9:34 the disciples argue about who is greatest. V38 John silenced someone because they weren’t following them! 10:35 James and John want to have the top positions. 10:13-17 the contrast of the rich young ruler depending on his own efforts for salvation, and the children dependant on others.

They could not cast out the demon because they did not pray. They did not declare their dependence on Jesus. They did not ask him to do what they could not. They did not wait for Jesus. They probably did not even use Jesus’ name. They probably hadn’t really understood who Jesus was. Maybe they thought that he was just a man like them, blessed by God, and as they were in the inner group, soon they would have the same power. They were like the rich young ruler, like the Pharisees, great in their own eyes – instead of like children, asking Dad for help.

So while the disciples are engaged in an idolatrous power-play, being rightly rebuked by the religious leaders, and generally making a mess of things because of their big heads, their arrogance. The father of the boy, however, prays. Where? Have a look at v24. Jesus has just called him out on his lack of belief “What do you mean, ‘If I can’?” Jesus asked. “Anything is possible if a person believes.” 24 The father instantly cried out, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!” That is prayer! “I believe; help my unbelief!” I can’t do it. I need help.

Prayer is a declaration of dependence. God I can’t do this. God I need you.

And that is why prayer is so vitally important. Not to give God information, like God’s sitting up in Heaven waiting for the daily news bulletin from Daniel, with no idea what’s going on! This is the Creator and sustainer of the Universe we’re talking about, the one who rules by absolute decree, where a hair on your head does not fall without him knowing, where he knows the words that you are going to speak even before you speak them. Prayer is not for God’s sake, to impress him or whatever. No, prayer is for our sake.

Every time we pray we declare to ourselves, to the spirit world, to the watching universe, to those around us, that we are dependent on God. We cry “I believe; help my unbelief!” Jesus, we need you.

In the Batman movie “The Dark Knight” we find a couple of people dressing up like Batman to take on criminals. Of course, these guys aren’t Batman. They don’t have the training, they don’t have the gadgets, they don’t have the skills. And so, when they go up against the baddies, they lose. They’re not Batman. They might have a similar costume, they might be pretending they’re Batman – but they are not. They need the real Batman to come and rescue them!
The disciples here are dressing up like Jesus, pretending they’re Jesus. But they’re not. They need the real Jesus to come and rescue them.

If the disciples had prayed, declared their dependence on Jesus, they would have been able to cast the demon out. They would have been great! But they were arrogant, tried to do it in their own strength, and so were caught out.

Application: If we want to be great in the Kingdom of God, do great things for God, we need to start by humbling ourselves in prayer before the only one who truly is great: Almighty God.

Impossible application: We don’t need God to be great in his kingdom. I can live a good Christian life without God.

Possible application: Find times for regular prayer. Set aside time each day to read the bible and pray. Pray after dinner with your children. Pray with you wife. Have times of extended prayer (I’ve found walking in the forest helps me to concentrate. Notodden is great for this – so much beautiful nature!).
Plan to pray – make it part of your schedule, otherwise you won’t.

1. Following Jesus means listening to Jesus, the glorious, transcendent, eternal son of God!

2. Following Jesus means stop pretending to be independent, and instead trust Him in all things. I believe. Help me in my unbelief.

Following Jesus means in humility dying to myself, to my own greatness. It means living every day dependant on him. What next Lord. My Dad starts each day with “The answer is “Yes” Lord. Now what’s the question”. There’s a man dependent on God. And I know first-hand goring up in their home that he is a man who is great in the Kingdom, a man who really does follow Jesus.

So let’s do the same. Let’s read our Bibles, making sure we carefully listen to Jesus. And let us say “Yes! Lord” to whatever he calls us to obey.

Who is the Holy Spirit?

Isaiah 55:&-56:8, Genesis 1:1-3, John 14:15-18, John 16:8-11, Acts 2:1-4

Isaiah 55:6 God says “my word…always…accomplishes all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it”

But why? Why is God’s word so powerful? Why, when we speak the gospel of Jesus Christ to people – words which seem so weak and a story which seems so weird and powerless (a guy rose from the dead, yeah right) – why does that change people’s lives? How can the gospel transform somebody? Change them completely?
Why have so many of us here experienced exactly that – these words which transformed our life?
Why is it true that if you go you grow? That the more consistent you are at church and at Bible group and reading the Bible yourself – you really do grow? Why?

Because when we hear the word, read the word of God, the Bible, we’re not just reading a book or hearing ordinary words – we are hearing the Spirit speak. The Spirit of God is speaking when the Bible is read. When you open your Bible, His voice is what you hear. When you share the gospel, He is there in power.

We meet the Spirit right at the beginning of the Bible in Genesis 1:1-3. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the deep waters. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. 3 Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.

The Hebrew word for Spirit is ruach, also meaning wind or breath. Just as when you speak your words are carried on your breath, He, the Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Trinity, is literally the breath of God. He is the way God’s words are carried out in to the world.

Note that if there is no breath, there is no words. There is no division between the Spirit and the Word. Without the Spirit the Word is dead. That’s why we pray before we preach, before we read the Bible – we need the Spirit to make the Word alive.

This morning we are celebrating the Holy Spirit. Because today is Pentecost (pinse) – the day the Spirit was poured out on the church and the church was born. He is the reason why the word always accomplishes all God wants it to (Is 55:6)

So we’re going to look at what happened in Acts 2 when the Spirit was poured out on the church.
Then we’re going to listen to Jesus tell us what the Spirit’s role is – what does He do?
And then we’ll bring it back to Isaiah and see how the Spirit’s work at Pentecost and his work today fulfil His words given to Isaiah so many years ago.

1. What happened today?

Acts 2:1 On the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place. 2 Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. 3 Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. 4 And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.

Jesus had left them. 40 days he had been with them after his resurrection – but then he rose up into heaven and was gone. They were a small group of about 120 men and women (Acts 1:15). They were hardly the stuff of legends. A small, powerless group, waiting obediently in Jerusalem just as Jesus had commanded.

And then the Spirit moved. The room shook, the wind roared, heavenly fire came down upon their heads and a new power filled them – the very power of God.

So what did they do? Healing? Miracles? Foretelling the future? Have a music show with fog machines and a preacher-man up front slaying people in the Spirit. All that nonsense we associate with the “Spirit” now.

No. They began speaking in other languages – the reversal of Babel where humanity was judged for rebelling against God. Here is hope that one day humanity can be united again – but now under God, instead of against him.
And what were they speaking? About the wonderful things God has done (v11). About the gospel. About Jesus. About the God who keeps his promises to rescue his people. Different tongues, but one message. The mark of the Spirit is not miracles – but people witnessing about Jesus.

And so Peter stands up and proclaims in a loud voice that God is fulfilling his promises in scripture, the promise in Joel that God’s Spirit would be poured out on his people in the last days, the days we now live in, the days of the church. And His Spirit is with us, each one of us, young and old, women and men, without exception.
And he ends with these words – Peter, Peter who was always saying the wrong things at the wrong time, now empowered by the Spirit:
Ac 2:32–36 “God raised Jesus from the dead, and we are all witnesses of this. 33 Now he is exalted to the place of highest honour in heaven, at God’s right hand. And the Father, as he had promised, gave him the Holy Spirit to pour out upon us, just as you see and hear today. … 36 “So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah!”

Before Pentecost there were about 120 believers. The Spirit came down, empowered his people, and THREE THOUSAND responded to Peter’s message. (Acts 2:41). Three thousand saved in one day.

That is the power of the Spirit. And He is here today, this morning at work in this church. As we share the gospel at work, at home, wherever, whoever - He is with us. So let us not be afraid, but be bold to speak about Jesus. For we are not alone.

2. We are not alone. The Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Jesus, is with us

John 14:15–18 “If you love me, obey my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate (representative), who will never leave you. 17 He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you. 18 No, I will not abandon you as orphans—I will come to you.

This is Jesus’ last night with his disciples before his betrayal, trial, and death by crucifixion. He is speaking plainly to them, preparing them for what will happen to them, and to the church after them. So what does Jesus say will happen?

Firstly, v16, Jesus, having become human, must return to heaven in order to be with his people. He cannot be everywhere at once, but his Spirit can. So Jesus returns to heaven and the Father sends the Spirit. And the Spirit will never leave us. Hurray for Ascension Day!

Secondly, the Spirit lives in us. V17 But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you. That “later” was at Pentecost, when the Spirit entered in to the disciples in a visible way. And that is the experience of every Christian – the Spirit moves in, makes His home in our hearts. That’s why we start to change from the inside out. We can’t sin properly anymore! Because we’re under new management. The Spirit is at work.

Thirdly, to have the Spirit is to have Jesus. Note v18 “I will not abandon you… I will come to you” Jesus and the Spirit are one. One God in three Persons. The Father is fully God, Jesus is fully God, the Spirit is fully God. To have one is to have all. And we have the Spirit. We have the very power of God in us.

Jesus was leaving – but we are not left alone. His Spirit is with us. Not just alongside us, but in us. He gives us a new heart, new motivations – we are made new from the inside out.

So brothers, let us remember that next time we feel tempted to sin, or say “I can’t do it”. The Spirit of God is in you and in me.
The same Spirit who empowered the words “let there be light”. The same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead. You can obey God because He is with you and in you.

His word empowers us because the Spirit is with us.
We are not alone.

3. But what will the Spirit do?

When we start talking about the Holy Spirit and his work we often jump to things like healing or prophecy or singing. And we believe in those things in this church. We prophesy in Bible study, we sing here & in Bible study, and we pray regularly for healing. But that’s not what the Holy Spirit’s job is.

No-one can understand the Spirit’s work without carefully considering what JESUS said about the Spirit. His words are in John 16:8-11

8 And when he (the Spirit) comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment. 9 The world’s sin is that it refuses to believe in me. 10 Righteousness is available because I go to the Father, and you will see me no more. 11 Judgment will come because the ruler of this world has already been judged.

What is the Spirit’s job? His primary job? To convict the world! He is the power which convicts which means to convince of error or sinfulness – to find a defendant guilty.

And how does he convict? Well notice that His work is focussed on Jesus.
He convicts us of sin. How? In our attitude to Jesus. V9 We refuse to believe in Jesus.
He convicts of God’s righteousness. How? Through Jesus, v10 – because he dies – he goes to the Father.
He convicts of judgement – because v11 the ruler of this world, Satan, is judged, and defeated on the Cross.

The Spirit’s primary role, the main event, is the gospel of Jesus. The Spirit’s role is to glorify Jesus, the Son. Jesus glorifies his Father. And the Father glorifies the Son.

If you want to be filled with the Spirit – tell people about Jesus. When we’re talking about Jesus, the Spirit is there.

So back to Isaiah.

4. Seek the Lord!

What better way to celebrate this Pentecost Day, this pinsedag than to Is:55:8 Seek the LORD while you can find him. Call on him now while he is near. 7 Let the wicked change their ways and banish the very thought of doing wrong. Let them turn to the LORD that he may have mercy on them. Yes, turn to our God, for he will forgive generously

Do you hear the Spirit’s words this morning? Do you hear him calling to you? Seek the Lord while he can be found. He will forgive generously. We know. We’ve seen the end. We’ve seen the promises fulfilled. Jesus, on the cross, his death paying for my sin – and yours. His resurrection life defeating death and bringing me eternal life. And offering you eternal life too.

Listen to the words of the Spirit.

Isn’t it an incredible message! Yes it is. This is what God has been saying to his people – I’m, going to do something amazing, something unbelievable. That God himself will come down to earth, become one of us, walk among us, eat with us, laugh with us, cry with us, be one of us – and then suffer for us, die in our place, that we might have life. But that’s not all – for when we accept Christ – when he swaps places with us and takes the punishment of death that our sins deserved – we swap places with him. In perfect relationship with God. So perfect, we are so righteous in God’s sight because of the work of Jesus, that His Spirit can come to live in us. New life flows through us because of what he has done.

8 “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the LORD. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. 9 For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.

Who could have imagined such mercy? Thank God his thoughts are not like ours! Higher thoughts.

And so His powerful word goes out, changing lives. My life. Your life. Your neighbour’s life. The people you work with. Your children. Your parents. There is no-one beyond the power of God.

10 “The rain and snow come down from the heavens and stay on the ground to water the earth. They cause the grain to grow, producing seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry. 11 It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it.

And so, if we are in Christ, our hope is secure. The Spirit is the deposit guaranteeing our inheritance. He is the first taste of the joy to come. 12 You will live in joy and peace. The mountains and hills will burst into song, and the trees of the field will clap their hands!

The way is open. Foreigners (v3) and eunuchs (v4) (castrated servants) now have hope. They were excluded from worshipping at the Temple. On the outside looking in. But now the way is open. 7 I will bring them to my holy mountain of Jerusalem and will fill them with joy in my house of prayer. I will accept their burnt offerings and sacrifices, because my Temple will be called a house of prayer for all nations. 8 For the Sovereign LORD, who brings back the outcasts of Israel, says: I will bring others, too, besides my people Israel.”

That promise happened today, 1977 or so years ago. When the floodgates of heaven were opened at the Spirit poured out on His church, and Jews from every nation heard the gospel in their own language. From Jerusalem to Jews, to Judea, to the Samaritans, and then to us Gentiles, foreigners, the Spirit spread His church, and is still doing so today – in China, in Iran, even in North Korea – and yes, even here in Notodden, Norway. He is at work, brothers and sisters. At work in us helping us obey Christ. At work in those around us, drawing them to Christ.

So what does this mean for us today? A few points of application to end.

Firstly: Seek the Lord while he may be found. If you don’t yet know him, seek him. Look for him. Listen to the Spirit calling to you. Investigate the evidence for Jesus’ death and resurrection. Keep coming to church and to Bible study. Search for the truth. And then ask the Spirit to show you Jesus.

Secondly: Christian brothers and sisters, let us obey Christ, knowing we have the Spirit of Jesus within us. The same power that raised Christ from the dead. As Jesus said “If you love me, you will obey my commands”.
What commands? Well, let’s consider the three big areas we struggle with because of the society we live in: time, money, and sex (or wallet, willy and watch as my friend Doug calls it).

Money: When we give, it is a sign that we trust the Lord, instead of ourselves, to provide. I am happy that about half the church gives. But concerned that half the church gives. This means that half of us are trusting in ourselves, rather than God, to provide for our needs. How much you give – that is a wisdom issue. But that you give, that we all give, I am very concerned about. We live in a greedy society, and we are greedy people. Giving breaks that hold over us. Ask the Spirit to break that hold in your lives, and make a decision to give regularly and give first – the first thing that goes out when you salary comes in – and you may be very surprised at what happens. The Lord looks after his people.

Sex: I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that every one of us in this room is a sexual sinner, whether in thought or in what we’ve done. God’s view on sex is easy: are you married to the person? Have sex with them. Lots of sex. Are you not married to the person? Do not have sex with them.
So if you’re married but not having sex often, repent. If there’s a medical reason – sort it out as quickly as possible. If there’s relationship issues, sort it out. You have the Spirit. Decide to obey.
And if you’re having sex with someone you’re not married to, repent. That includes looking at pornography. You’re not married to her, so you shouldn’t be watching her having sex. And if you’re living together, get married – it’s a statement that you trust God. And if you’re sleeping around (having sex with lots of people), just stop.
Why? Because if we love Jesus, we will obey his commands. Because we are new people and the Spirit lives within us, and the power of heaven is at our disposal, if we ask.
You do know how you fight sexual temptation? With your hat. Grab your hat and RUN! But seriously we mustn’t get ourselves into situations where we could be tempted. Don’t even go there.

Time. If you go you grow. Simple but true. And I’d simply like to challenge us all to put “church” and “bible study” in the same category we put work. If a friend phones and says “can I come over on Monday morning” you say “no, dude, I’m at work”. But if he says Sunday morning we’re often like sure, I can miss church once. Remember that we are in a battle. We need all the help we can get. We need each other. We need Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings. So many of us struggle – even just with money and sex, but also lying, gossip, anger, worry, disobedience, harsh words, bitterness, and so on – and part of the reason we struggle is because we’re not using the weapons God has already given us. This church! Satan shudders every time you walk into church. Because here you hear the Word of God. That powerful word, carried by the Spirit.

So let us obey the Lord, knowing we have his power within us. And let us share the joy that we have, the joy of Jesus, knowing that when we talk about Him, the Spirit is with us and is at work convicting about sin, about judgement, and about salvation.