Moses Walked With God In Impossibility

Temple Baptist Church - 7-23-2017

Numbers 12:3

Introduction:

A.  Over the past few weeks, I have been preaching about “Walking with God.”  We need people who are willing to pay the price required to walk with God.  The price begins with going to Him “without the camp.”  My introduction to this message will be short because most of us are familiar with the life of Moses.

B.  Moses was one of the greatest men, spiritually, who ever lived.  Moses would not have been a man of our choosing if we were to pick out a deliverer from the children of Israel.  What makes Moses such a notable example of “walking with God” was the impossibility of his circumstances. 

C.  I want to look at 4 instances of such impossibility found in this man’s life that made his faithfulness in walking with God such a great measure of faith and resolve.  What will stand out in this message is that the impossible places in the life of Moses set an example for us to follow in the impossible places of our lives.

1.  The impossibility of God’s Choice.  Numbers 12:3  (Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.)  (Humble, lowly, poor in spirit.  I have known some extremely shy, what we would call backward people, but not the meekest man in the earth!)

a.  God chose Moses.  Hebrews 11:23  By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid three months of his parents, because they saw he was a proper child; and they were not afraid of the king's commandment.  (If God choses you to serve Him, it is He that will equip you.)

b.  God sent Moses.  Exodus 3:10-12  Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt.  (11)  And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?  (12)  And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain.  (If God sends you, He will go with you.)

c.  God used Moses.  Deuteronomy 34:10  And there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face,  (IF God uses you, He will be glorified through you.)

d.  Who am I?  Moses felt inadequate to deliver the people of God but he was the man of God’s choosing.  God would give him the ability that he lacked.  The meekest man in all the earth would lead the millions of Jews out of bondage and to the Promised Land.  When it is impossible with us, it is possible with God.

e.  What you are not, God is!

2.  The Impossibility of Moses Choice.  Hebrews 11:24-27  By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter;  (25)  Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;  (26)  Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.  (27)  By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.  (It is unimaginable to us!  He left the riches, comfort, and power of Egypt—the most powerful nation on earth to suffer the reproach of Christ with a nation of slaves.  We give up so little to gain so much and this man gave up to, in the eyes of the world, to gain so little.)

a.  The meekest man in the earth had the spiritual fortitude to turn his back on all that the world had to offer while suffering the wrath of the most powerful man in the world to bear the reproach of Christ.

b.  If there was ever a good example of going without the camp, it was a man named Moses. 

c.  Saved from death by his parents when he was born, he became the son of Pharaoh’s daughter and heir to the throne of Egypt. 

d.  Nursed and raised by his mother, he put his faith in the coming of the Messiah.  He gave up all that a man could ever dream of for the love of Christ and the privilege to bear His shame and reproach.  It is impossible to walk with God while holding hands with the world! 

e.  On the backside of Sinai, he met Jehovah God in the Person of a Burning Bush that was not consumed.  There, God showed Moses the purpose for which he was born.

3.  The impossibility of Moses’ Foe.  Exodus 3:10-11  Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt.  (11)  And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?  (God sent a man who could and would get the job done!  The task was already done in God’s eyes before He ever sent Moses.) 

a.  God raised Pharaoh up.  Romans 9:17  For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh (Exodus 9:16), Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.  (God placed him upon the throne of Egypt because he was a God hater and a cruel taskmaster.)

b.  God hardened his heart.  Exodus 10:27-28  But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he would not let them go.  (28)  And Pharaoh said unto him, Get thee from me, take heed to thyself, see my face no more; for in that day thou seest my face thou shalt die.  (Pharaoh had already hardened his own heart and God finished the job!)

c.  What you can’t do, God can!

4.  The impossibility of Moses’ Journey.  Exodus 3:12  And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain. (God had already promised complete deliverance before He ever sent Moses!)

a.  The impossibility of the Red Sea!  The Gulf of Aqaba.  With mountains on either side, Pharaoh’s army bearing down upon them, and the Red Sea before the—God said, “Go forward?”  The impossibility of impossibilities!  (The mountains on either side of the Gulf of Aqaba are up to 2,000 feet high.  The Gulf of Aqaba varies from 12-17 miles wide with depths up to 1,850 meters or app. 6,000 feet.  A man standing on the shore can only see app. 3 miles because of the curvature of the earth so all that Israel saw was water.  They may as well have been standing on the shore of the Atlantic Ocean as far as their view was concerned.)

b.  The impossibility of the Command!  “Go forward.” Exodus 14:14-16  The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.  (15)  And the LORD said unto Moses, Wherefore criest thou unto me? speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward:  (16)  But lift thou up thy rod, and stretch out thine hand over the sea, and divide it: and the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea. (Can you imagine?  Nothing but water ahead with no visible path to cross and God commanded Moses to tell Israel to “go forward.”  There will be times in your life that you will see only the impossible lying before you but God gives you no option but to move ahead.)

c.  The impossibility of the Crossing!  “Dry ground!”  Exodus 15:8  And with the blast of thy nostrils the waters were gathered together, the floods stood upright as an heap, and the depths were congealed in the heart of the sea.  (If you have ever stood on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, you understand what 6,000 feet looks like!  It is 6,000 feet straight down to the bottom of the canyon.  God divided that great body of water with the blast of His nostrils.  They went through a path of dry ground with over a mile of water standing on either side.)

Matthew 19:26  But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.

5.  Moses was a chosen man for a chosen purpose and, where God guides, God always provides.  God chose an impossible man for an impossible task to glorify a God of Impossibility!