1 00:00:00,550 --> 00:00:03,150 Welcome to From the Pulpit in Classic Sermons. 2 00:00:03,330 --> 00:00:04,950 Each week we bring you a different message 3 00:00:04,950 --> 00:00:07,010 from some of history's greatest speakers in the 4 00:00:07,010 --> 00:00:07,630 Christian faith. 5 00:00:07,850 --> 00:00:09,790 And powerful sermons from modern preachers too. 6 00:00:10,090 --> 00:00:12,310 This week we have David Ravenhill with his 7 00:00:12,310 --> 00:00:13,970 message, The Presence of God. 8 00:00:14,410 --> 00:00:16,110 I would say, joy to be with you 9 00:00:16,110 --> 00:00:16,550 this morning. 10 00:00:17,430 --> 00:00:19,330 As I tell people as I travel around 11 00:00:19,330 --> 00:00:20,830 the world that it's always good to meet 12 00:00:20,830 --> 00:00:21,590 the rest of the family. 13 00:00:22,570 --> 00:00:24,350 And I'm your brother, whether you like it 14 00:00:24,350 --> 00:00:24,670 or not. 15 00:00:24,670 --> 00:00:27,710 And your brothers and sisters are mine, and 16 00:00:27,710 --> 00:00:29,250 I can't do anything about that either. 17 00:00:29,710 --> 00:00:32,130 But we're all redeemed by the same blood, 18 00:00:32,250 --> 00:00:33,390 all part of the same family. 19 00:00:33,870 --> 00:00:37,230 All going to that one great eternal abode 20 00:00:37,230 --> 00:00:38,230 in the presence of God. 21 00:00:39,570 --> 00:00:41,110 Let's just look to the Lord in prayer, 22 00:00:41,190 --> 00:00:41,430 shall we? 23 00:00:42,390 --> 00:00:44,150 Father, we just confess again our need of 24 00:00:44,150 --> 00:00:44,330 you. 25 00:00:45,810 --> 00:00:47,750 Lord, unless you build a house, we labor 26 00:00:47,750 --> 00:00:48,210 in vain. 27 00:00:49,330 --> 00:00:50,630 And so Lord, come and do what you 28 00:00:50,630 --> 00:00:51,370 promised to do. 29 00:00:51,430 --> 00:00:53,490 You said, I will build my church. 30 00:00:54,030 --> 00:00:56,270 Lord, we recognize this is your church. 31 00:00:56,890 --> 00:01:00,650 We recognize your leadership, your headship, your lordship. 32 00:01:01,070 --> 00:01:03,349 Father, we bow again in submission to you 33 00:01:03,349 --> 00:01:03,810 today, Lord. 34 00:01:03,930 --> 00:01:06,570 Have your way, we pray, in Jesus' name. 35 00:01:07,370 --> 00:01:07,610 Amen. 36 00:01:09,770 --> 00:01:12,090 I want to speak to you this morning 37 00:01:12,090 --> 00:01:13,150 on the presence of God. 38 00:01:15,350 --> 00:01:17,730 My wife and I had the privilege of 39 00:01:17,730 --> 00:01:20,610 raising our family in the city of Christchurch, 40 00:01:20,730 --> 00:01:21,150 New Zealand. 41 00:01:22,430 --> 00:01:24,350 And if you are familiar with that city, 42 00:01:24,410 --> 00:01:25,990 you know that it is built around a 43 00:01:25,990 --> 00:01:28,150 wonderful old Anglican cathedral. 44 00:01:28,730 --> 00:01:31,250 And not too many blocks away, there is 45 00:01:31,250 --> 00:01:33,190 a museum called the Canterbury Museum. 46 00:01:33,850 --> 00:01:35,970 And as you go into the entrance of 47 00:01:35,970 --> 00:01:38,750 that museum, there is a verse of Scripture 48 00:01:38,750 --> 00:01:41,010 taken from the book of Job, Job chapter 49 00:01:41,010 --> 00:01:42,470 26, verse 14. 50 00:01:42,850 --> 00:01:44,530 And it says this, Lo, these are a 51 00:01:44,530 --> 00:01:46,730 part of his ways, but how little a 52 00:01:46,730 --> 00:01:47,750 portion do we hear of him. 53 00:01:48,990 --> 00:01:50,650 Lo, these are a part of his ways, 54 00:01:51,330 --> 00:01:53,290 but how little a portion do we hear 55 00:01:53,290 --> 00:01:53,590 of him. 56 00:01:54,030 --> 00:01:56,170 I've spent many hours in that museum when 57 00:01:56,170 --> 00:01:56,970 our children were younger. 58 00:01:57,430 --> 00:01:58,350 We now have grandchildren. 59 00:01:59,390 --> 00:02:02,070 But going down the various corridors, looking at 60 00:02:02,070 --> 00:02:04,650 all the display cabinets, admiring all of God's 61 00:02:04,650 --> 00:02:05,110 creation. 62 00:02:05,970 --> 00:02:07,789 I've seen children grab the hand of a 63 00:02:07,789 --> 00:02:10,090 parent and point to some animal, a bird, 64 00:02:10,210 --> 00:02:12,630 a reptile, and say, what's that, or where 65 00:02:12,630 --> 00:02:14,430 does this come from, and so on. 66 00:02:14,790 --> 00:02:16,230 And yet in all the hours that I've 67 00:02:16,230 --> 00:02:18,570 spent in that museum, I don't ever remember 68 00:02:18,570 --> 00:02:20,730 anybody attributing all of that handiwork to God 69 00:02:20,730 --> 00:02:21,030 himself. 70 00:02:21,850 --> 00:02:23,410 And so that verse is a fitting verse. 71 00:02:23,530 --> 00:02:25,410 These are a part of his ways, but 72 00:02:25,410 --> 00:02:26,810 how little a portion is heard of him. 73 00:02:27,330 --> 00:02:28,690 And while that may be a good verse 74 00:02:28,690 --> 00:02:30,750 for a museum, it is a tragic verse 75 00:02:30,750 --> 00:02:32,490 to put over the house of God. 76 00:02:33,190 --> 00:02:34,550 And yet I think we could write it 77 00:02:34,550 --> 00:02:35,870 over many congregations. 78 00:02:35,990 --> 00:02:37,710 I'm not sure about Singapore, but I know 79 00:02:37,710 --> 00:02:39,990 in America, we could write it over dozens 80 00:02:39,990 --> 00:02:41,430 and dozens of congregations. 81 00:02:41,530 --> 00:02:43,230 These are simply a part of his ways, 82 00:02:43,490 --> 00:02:45,390 but how little a portion we hear of 83 00:02:45,390 --> 00:02:45,550 him. 84 00:02:47,010 --> 00:02:49,750 I was given a book a number of 85 00:02:49,750 --> 00:02:52,490 years ago by my father, a book by 86 00:02:52,490 --> 00:02:54,950 one of my favorite authors, Dr. Martin Lloyd 87 00:02:54,950 --> 00:02:55,350 -Jones. 88 00:02:55,470 --> 00:02:57,510 In the preface of that book on the 89 00:02:57,510 --> 00:03:00,070 Sermon on the Mount, he makes a statement 90 00:03:00,070 --> 00:03:01,970 that I have told Bible school students is 91 00:03:01,970 --> 00:03:03,390 worth at least one semester. 92 00:03:03,970 --> 00:03:06,670 In most Bible schools and seminaries, that normally 93 00:03:06,670 --> 00:03:07,430 gets their attention. 94 00:03:08,150 --> 00:03:09,910 And the statement is simply this, there is 95 00:03:09,910 --> 00:03:12,090 nothing so likely to lead to error or 96 00:03:12,090 --> 00:03:14,750 heresy as to begin with the parts rather 97 00:03:14,750 --> 00:03:15,190 than the whole. 98 00:03:16,230 --> 00:03:17,270 Let me say that again. 99 00:03:17,410 --> 00:03:19,410 There is nothing so likely to lead to 100 00:03:19,410 --> 00:03:22,370 error or to heresy as to begin with 101 00:03:22,370 --> 00:03:24,090 the parts rather than the whole. 102 00:03:24,610 --> 00:03:27,990 There is incredible insight and wisdom behind that 103 00:03:27,990 --> 00:03:28,390 statement. 104 00:03:28,390 --> 00:03:30,590 And years and years of experience as that 105 00:03:30,590 --> 00:03:33,150 man was one of the great writers, great 106 00:03:33,150 --> 00:03:35,390 teachers, expositors of our day. 107 00:03:37,420 --> 00:03:40,940 I was in India back in 1986, I 108 00:03:40,940 --> 00:03:41,140 think. 109 00:03:41,200 --> 00:03:42,420 We were living in New Zealand at the 110 00:03:42,420 --> 00:03:42,740 time. 111 00:03:42,880 --> 00:03:45,020 And I was ministering there just for a 112 00:03:45,020 --> 00:03:45,160 week. 113 00:03:45,240 --> 00:03:46,420 A friend of mine was in charge of 114 00:03:46,420 --> 00:03:48,520 a Bible school and invited me to come 115 00:03:48,520 --> 00:03:49,260 over and speak. 116 00:03:49,500 --> 00:03:51,840 And there in the compound of the school, 117 00:03:52,020 --> 00:03:53,880 there was a brand new Jeep, belonged to 118 00:03:53,880 --> 00:03:54,560 the director. 119 00:03:54,560 --> 00:03:56,600 And I was trying to get across the 120 00:03:56,600 --> 00:03:59,340 importance of that statement to those students. 121 00:04:00,180 --> 00:04:03,020 That again, there is nothing likely to lead 122 00:04:03,020 --> 00:04:04,800 to error or heresy as to begin with 123 00:04:04,800 --> 00:04:06,060 the parts rather than the whole. 124 00:04:07,240 --> 00:04:08,580 And I said, if I came to the 125 00:04:08,580 --> 00:04:11,580 school and using the Jeep as an illustration, 126 00:04:12,020 --> 00:04:15,140 I said, suppose as a visiting lecturer, I 127 00:04:15,140 --> 00:04:18,820 spent the entire year speaking about the carburetor 128 00:04:18,820 --> 00:04:20,220 on that Jeep. 129 00:04:20,880 --> 00:04:23,020 And I talk about all the different types 130 00:04:23,020 --> 00:04:25,740 of carburetors, you know, single barrel, two barrel, 131 00:04:25,880 --> 00:04:27,340 four barrel, six barrel. 132 00:04:27,380 --> 00:04:29,060 If you're into drag racing, I talk about 133 00:04:29,060 --> 00:04:31,340 the evolution of the carburetor into fuel injection. 134 00:04:31,760 --> 00:04:34,000 An hour after hour after hour, day after 135 00:04:34,000 --> 00:04:36,060 day after day, week after week after week, 136 00:04:36,180 --> 00:04:36,820 month after month. 137 00:04:37,000 --> 00:04:39,040 All I do is stress the importance of 138 00:04:39,040 --> 00:04:39,580 the carburetor. 139 00:04:40,080 --> 00:04:41,360 At the end of that year, you have 140 00:04:41,360 --> 00:04:43,360 a graduating class and they spread out all 141 00:04:43,360 --> 00:04:46,100 over India and they establish the carburetor movement. 142 00:04:46,560 --> 00:04:49,640 A group of churches that emphasize carburetor theology. 143 00:04:50,080 --> 00:04:51,880 The following year, there's another guest speaker. 144 00:04:51,960 --> 00:04:53,700 He comes, he's got a revelation on another 145 00:04:53,700 --> 00:04:55,460 part of the engine, let's say the distributor. 146 00:04:56,060 --> 00:04:58,140 And like the carburetor man, he talks about 147 00:04:58,140 --> 00:05:00,680 the importance of the distributor, what it does, 148 00:05:00,740 --> 00:05:02,420 the components that make up the distributor. 149 00:05:03,020 --> 00:05:04,880 He gives you the Greek word for distributor 150 00:05:04,880 --> 00:05:06,260 and the Hebrew word for distributor. 151 00:05:06,520 --> 00:05:08,380 He gives you books to read about the 152 00:05:08,380 --> 00:05:10,240 great distributor developers and so on. 153 00:05:10,280 --> 00:05:13,220 There's exams and tests about distributors and so 154 00:05:13,220 --> 00:05:13,400 on. 155 00:05:13,400 --> 00:05:14,900 At the end of the year, once again, 156 00:05:15,000 --> 00:05:17,540 these students have been steeped in distributor theology 157 00:05:17,540 --> 00:05:19,720 and now all over India, there's a brand 158 00:05:19,720 --> 00:05:21,620 new movement called the Distributor Churches. 159 00:05:22,700 --> 00:05:24,300 The following year, there's a guest speaker. 160 00:05:25,020 --> 00:05:26,280 He takes out of his pocket a little 161 00:05:26,280 --> 00:05:28,400 gadget about three and a half inches long, 162 00:05:28,480 --> 00:05:28,960 four inches. 163 00:05:29,560 --> 00:05:31,160 And it's white at the top, black at 164 00:05:31,160 --> 00:05:31,500 the bottom. 165 00:05:32,020 --> 00:05:34,360 And he begins his class by saying, I 166 00:05:34,360 --> 00:05:36,360 want to tell you the most important part 167 00:05:36,360 --> 00:05:38,360 of a car engine is this little thing 168 00:05:38,360 --> 00:05:38,600 here. 169 00:05:38,660 --> 00:05:40,640 Without this, it's impossible to please God, I 170 00:05:40,640 --> 00:05:41,260 mean, start the car. 171 00:05:41,260 --> 00:05:44,400 And he talks about the importance of the 172 00:05:44,400 --> 00:05:44,860 carburetor. 173 00:05:45,240 --> 00:05:46,580 Sorry, about the spark plug. 174 00:05:47,280 --> 00:05:49,800 And hour after hour after hour, all they 175 00:05:49,800 --> 00:05:51,600 hear about is this little spark plug. 176 00:05:51,660 --> 00:05:53,000 He says you can have a brand new 177 00:05:53,000 --> 00:05:53,400 Ferrari. 178 00:05:53,980 --> 00:05:55,840 That thing may cost you a million Singapore 179 00:05:55,840 --> 00:05:56,760 dollars or more. 180 00:05:57,200 --> 00:05:59,420 It's capable of doing 200 plus miles an 181 00:05:59,420 --> 00:05:59,580 hour. 182 00:05:59,720 --> 00:06:02,280 It's got Connelly leather seats and so on 183 00:06:02,280 --> 00:06:06,440 and so forth, Pirelli tires and Bose stereo 184 00:06:06,440 --> 00:06:08,500 system that will blow you from here to 185 00:06:08,500 --> 00:06:09,600 Indonesia. 186 00:06:10,460 --> 00:06:12,380 But he says if you take out that 187 00:06:12,380 --> 00:06:14,920 little plug, that car will not even move. 188 00:06:15,060 --> 00:06:16,780 So I'm here to tell you the most 189 00:06:16,780 --> 00:06:19,160 important part of a car engine is this. 190 00:06:19,260 --> 00:06:20,860 And of course, they are absolutely convinced. 191 00:06:20,940 --> 00:06:22,460 They've never heard of a carburetor, never heard 192 00:06:22,460 --> 00:06:24,320 of a distributor, never heard of the block 193 00:06:24,320 --> 00:06:25,700 or the pistons or anything else. 194 00:06:26,000 --> 00:06:28,080 And this man convinces them because of his 195 00:06:28,080 --> 00:06:30,760 eloquence that this is the most important thing. 196 00:06:31,180 --> 00:06:32,900 Again, at the end of the year, you 197 00:06:32,900 --> 00:06:34,640 have a graduating class now and you have 198 00:06:34,640 --> 00:06:36,280 the spark plug movement all over India. 199 00:06:37,000 --> 00:06:39,620 And of course, spark plug churches gather together 200 00:06:39,620 --> 00:06:41,940 and they have spark plug conferences and they 201 00:06:41,940 --> 00:06:44,020 call in their spark plug speakers and they 202 00:06:44,020 --> 00:06:45,980 perpetuate the spark plug theology. 203 00:06:46,180 --> 00:06:48,920 Meantime, across town, there is a carburetor conference 204 00:06:48,920 --> 00:06:50,400 going on and next month, there's going to 205 00:06:50,400 --> 00:06:52,580 be a distributor conference going on and never 206 00:06:52,580 --> 00:06:53,320 the twain shall meet. 207 00:06:56,060 --> 00:06:58,260 I know that's rather humorous, but tragically, it's 208 00:06:58,260 --> 00:06:58,540 true. 209 00:06:59,320 --> 00:07:00,860 You see, in America, at least, we have 210 00:07:00,860 --> 00:07:01,300 movements. 211 00:07:01,480 --> 00:07:03,780 We have an entire movement devoted to faith, 212 00:07:03,900 --> 00:07:07,240 another movement devoted to prosperity, another movement, signs 213 00:07:07,240 --> 00:07:10,160 and wonders, another movement, holiness, another movement, evangelism, 214 00:07:10,280 --> 00:07:12,580 another movement into inner healing or whatever it 215 00:07:12,580 --> 00:07:13,000 may be. 216 00:07:13,100 --> 00:07:14,800 And there is nothing so likely to lead 217 00:07:14,800 --> 00:07:16,920 to error or heresy as to begin with 218 00:07:16,920 --> 00:07:18,020 the parts rather than the whole. 219 00:07:18,880 --> 00:07:20,940 If you put all those parts together, you 220 00:07:20,940 --> 00:07:21,560 have a person. 221 00:07:21,680 --> 00:07:23,140 His name is Lord Jesus Christ. 222 00:07:23,280 --> 00:07:25,260 He said, I am the way, not a 223 00:07:25,260 --> 00:07:25,880 part of the truth. 224 00:07:25,960 --> 00:07:26,680 I am the truth. 225 00:07:27,240 --> 00:07:28,940 And as I've studied the lives of great 226 00:07:28,940 --> 00:07:30,620 men and women of God over the years, 227 00:07:30,680 --> 00:07:31,840 I've come to this conclusion. 228 00:07:31,840 --> 00:07:34,820 They all had one common denominator, and that 229 00:07:34,820 --> 00:07:36,960 was an insatiable longing for the presence of 230 00:07:36,960 --> 00:07:37,120 God. 231 00:07:37,700 --> 00:07:38,600 That was the one thing. 232 00:07:38,680 --> 00:07:39,880 You see it in the life of Paul 233 00:07:39,880 --> 00:07:41,420 that I may know him, not just about 234 00:07:41,420 --> 00:07:41,560 it. 235 00:07:41,980 --> 00:07:43,620 Paul had his theology down pat. 236 00:07:43,740 --> 00:07:45,940 He's still confusing people as to what he 237 00:07:45,940 --> 00:07:47,820 really meant on certain things and so on. 238 00:07:48,060 --> 00:07:49,480 But he didn't say, I know what I 239 00:07:49,480 --> 00:07:49,980 believe. 240 00:07:50,700 --> 00:07:51,560 Obviously, he did. 241 00:07:51,680 --> 00:07:53,160 He said, I know in whom I have 242 00:07:53,160 --> 00:07:53,420 believed. 243 00:07:53,880 --> 00:07:54,920 It was a relationship. 244 00:07:55,620 --> 00:07:58,000 It was Paul's passion to know him, not 245 00:07:58,000 --> 00:07:59,680 just know about him, not have all his 246 00:07:59,680 --> 00:08:02,580 theology or eschatology and so on figured out. 247 00:08:02,640 --> 00:08:04,940 But he wanted to know, again, that intimacy 248 00:08:04,940 --> 00:08:06,920 with God, that longing, that desire. 249 00:08:07,600 --> 00:08:09,100 Writing to the Colossians, he says that he 250 00:08:09,100 --> 00:08:11,740 might have preeminence in all things. 251 00:08:11,860 --> 00:08:12,480 It's not faith. 252 00:08:12,600 --> 00:08:13,380 It's not prosperity. 253 00:08:13,720 --> 00:08:15,400 It's not some facet of truth. 254 00:08:15,660 --> 00:08:16,680 It is the truth. 255 00:08:16,760 --> 00:08:18,420 It is to have the place of supremacy, 256 00:08:18,940 --> 00:08:21,640 the place of centrality in our Christian life. 257 00:08:22,320 --> 00:08:25,120 And you go to all of these great 258 00:08:25,120 --> 00:08:26,880 men in the Word of God, and again, 259 00:08:26,960 --> 00:08:27,800 that is their longing. 260 00:08:27,800 --> 00:08:29,960 Jeremiah says, if you're going to boast about 261 00:08:29,960 --> 00:08:34,039 anything, don't boast about your prosperity, your riches. 262 00:08:34,760 --> 00:08:36,760 Don't boast about your wisdom or your intellect 263 00:08:36,760 --> 00:08:37,320 and so on. 264 00:08:37,400 --> 00:08:39,419 Don't boast about your strength, your ability to 265 00:08:39,419 --> 00:08:40,600 shred phone books. 266 00:08:41,020 --> 00:08:42,900 But he says, boast in this, that you 267 00:08:42,900 --> 00:08:44,340 know and you understand me, saith the Lord. 268 00:08:45,080 --> 00:08:46,300 That's what it's all about, isn't it? 269 00:08:46,380 --> 00:08:47,860 It's not about human strength. 270 00:08:47,960 --> 00:08:51,160 It's not about our mind and our education 271 00:08:51,160 --> 00:08:51,820 and so on. 272 00:08:51,860 --> 00:08:53,860 Those may be good things, but ultimately, it's 273 00:08:53,860 --> 00:08:55,420 about how do I know him? 274 00:08:55,460 --> 00:08:56,440 How much do I know him? 275 00:08:56,440 --> 00:08:59,880 We see men like David who time after 276 00:08:59,880 --> 00:09:02,860 time throughout the Word of God expresses his 277 00:09:02,860 --> 00:09:04,420 longing for the presence of God. 278 00:09:04,560 --> 00:09:05,580 Who have I in heaven but thee? 279 00:09:06,080 --> 00:09:08,220 And there is nothing on earth I desire 280 00:09:08,220 --> 00:09:08,780 beside thee. 281 00:09:09,240 --> 00:09:10,660 I still think that's one of the most 282 00:09:10,660 --> 00:09:11,580 challenging verses. 283 00:09:11,820 --> 00:09:13,140 I've been stuck on it for many, many 284 00:09:13,140 --> 00:09:13,540 years. 285 00:09:13,920 --> 00:09:15,540 It's very easy to agree with the first 286 00:09:15,540 --> 00:09:16,660 part of the verse, who have I in 287 00:09:16,660 --> 00:09:17,140 heaven but thee? 288 00:09:17,740 --> 00:09:19,300 I have a father there, mother, a few 289 00:09:19,300 --> 00:09:21,020 relatives and friends and so on. 290 00:09:21,040 --> 00:09:22,620 But basically, it's easy just to say, who 291 00:09:22,620 --> 00:09:23,380 have I in heaven but thee? 292 00:09:23,680 --> 00:09:24,960 The second part of the verse is the 293 00:09:24,960 --> 00:09:25,620 challenging part. 294 00:09:25,620 --> 00:09:28,540 And there is nothing on earth I desire 295 00:09:28,540 --> 00:09:29,040 beside thee. 296 00:09:29,580 --> 00:09:30,580 David is a king. 297 00:09:31,040 --> 00:09:32,720 Looked over that vast kingdom. 298 00:09:32,940 --> 00:09:35,440 He had the power, the position to have 299 00:09:35,440 --> 00:09:36,240 whatever he wanted. 300 00:09:37,960 --> 00:09:41,100 And you and I, again, face that every 301 00:09:41,100 --> 00:09:41,680 single day. 302 00:09:41,840 --> 00:09:43,540 There are billboards screaming at us. 303 00:09:43,540 --> 00:09:44,960 If you don't drive this sort of car, 304 00:09:45,060 --> 00:09:46,260 live in this sort of a house where 305 00:09:46,260 --> 00:09:48,120 these sort of clothes have this sort of 306 00:09:48,120 --> 00:09:49,600 a watch or whatever it is and so 307 00:09:49,600 --> 00:09:51,040 on and so forth, you know, you're not 308 00:09:51,040 --> 00:09:51,800 going to be satisfied. 309 00:09:52,520 --> 00:09:54,340 And David was able to bypass all of 310 00:09:54,340 --> 00:09:54,520 that. 311 00:09:54,520 --> 00:09:56,340 And he says, I can look past every 312 00:09:56,340 --> 00:09:59,000 single billboard in the country because, he says, 313 00:09:59,060 --> 00:10:01,240 there's nothing on earth that I desire beside 314 00:10:01,240 --> 00:10:01,380 thee. 315 00:10:01,740 --> 00:10:02,260 What a statement. 316 00:10:03,300 --> 00:10:04,360 Who have I in heaven but thee? 317 00:10:04,620 --> 00:10:05,020 He says. 318 00:10:05,840 --> 00:10:08,360 And there in the Psalms over and over 319 00:10:08,360 --> 00:10:10,820 and over again, David expresses that long as 320 00:10:10,820 --> 00:10:12,520 a deer pants for the water brook. 321 00:10:13,320 --> 00:10:15,560 So longs my soul for thee, O Lord. 322 00:10:16,040 --> 00:10:17,420 I was with a wonderful man of God 323 00:10:17,420 --> 00:10:18,180 some years ago. 324 00:10:18,620 --> 00:10:21,420 And we were ministering together up in the 325 00:10:21,420 --> 00:10:22,560 Northwest in America. 326 00:10:22,560 --> 00:10:24,960 And he touched on that psalm. 327 00:10:25,080 --> 00:10:28,500 And I have still not forgotten what he 328 00:10:28,500 --> 00:10:28,780 said. 329 00:10:28,860 --> 00:10:30,700 He said the only reason the deer is 330 00:10:30,700 --> 00:10:33,340 panting is because the deer is being pursued. 331 00:10:33,900 --> 00:10:35,620 He said David as a shepherd boy would 332 00:10:35,620 --> 00:10:36,340 sit on a rock. 333 00:10:36,520 --> 00:10:38,240 And in the early hours of the morning, 334 00:10:38,320 --> 00:10:40,140 the deer would saunter by down into the 335 00:10:40,140 --> 00:10:43,240 valley, drink their fill, disappear into the forest 336 00:10:43,240 --> 00:10:44,040 or thicket somewhere. 337 00:10:44,820 --> 00:10:46,760 And this would be a sort of routine. 338 00:10:46,760 --> 00:10:49,020 But he says on this occasion, David is 339 00:10:49,020 --> 00:10:51,180 sitting there and suddenly the deer comes flying 340 00:10:51,180 --> 00:10:51,540 by. 341 00:10:51,960 --> 00:10:53,300 And he can hear the heaving and the 342 00:10:53,300 --> 00:10:55,280 panting of that deer as it's being pursued 343 00:10:55,280 --> 00:10:57,680 and chased by maybe a mountain lion or 344 00:10:57,680 --> 00:10:57,920 something. 345 00:10:58,740 --> 00:11:01,300 And he says that deer knows instinctively there's 346 00:11:01,300 --> 00:11:02,560 only one place of protection. 347 00:11:03,100 --> 00:11:04,600 And that's to find its way into the 348 00:11:04,600 --> 00:11:06,140 water brook because there in the water brook 349 00:11:06,140 --> 00:11:08,400 it can shake off the scent or its 350 00:11:08,400 --> 00:11:08,680 scent. 351 00:11:08,760 --> 00:11:10,420 And the predator cannot pick up the trail. 352 00:11:10,880 --> 00:11:12,440 And so he says the water brook becomes 353 00:11:12,440 --> 00:11:13,780 a place of protection. 354 00:11:14,300 --> 00:11:15,900 But he says not only that, he says 355 00:11:15,900 --> 00:11:17,920 the water brook becomes a place of satisfaction. 356 00:11:18,440 --> 00:11:19,920 Because there in the water brook he can 357 00:11:19,920 --> 00:11:23,720 replenish that thirsty, tired, exhausted, weary body and 358 00:11:23,720 --> 00:11:25,640 drink in that cool life-giving water. 359 00:11:26,220 --> 00:11:27,820 And he says I believe David wrote this 360 00:11:27,820 --> 00:11:29,600 when he was being pursued by Saul. 361 00:11:30,320 --> 00:11:32,200 And Saul has made threats on his life 362 00:11:32,200 --> 00:11:33,720 and David is running, fleeing. 363 00:11:34,220 --> 00:11:36,040 And David knows there's only one place of 364 00:11:36,040 --> 00:11:37,640 protection to come under the shadow of the 365 00:11:37,640 --> 00:11:37,960 Almighty. 366 00:11:38,440 --> 00:11:39,620 That's the only place. 367 00:11:40,340 --> 00:11:42,020 But he says it's a place of protection 368 00:11:42,020 --> 00:11:43,120 in the presence of God. 369 00:11:43,120 --> 00:11:44,900 But not only that, a place of satisfaction 370 00:11:44,900 --> 00:11:46,860 because the river of God is full of 371 00:11:46,860 --> 00:11:47,080 water. 372 00:11:47,620 --> 00:11:49,540 And there we can drink in again the 373 00:11:49,540 --> 00:11:51,560 Spirit of God and find refreshment. 374 00:11:52,920 --> 00:11:55,140 And David again goes on and on and 375 00:11:55,140 --> 00:11:57,180 on about this longing that he has. 376 00:11:57,340 --> 00:11:58,840 Just a day in your courts is better 377 00:11:58,840 --> 00:11:59,780 than a thousand elsewhere. 378 00:12:00,380 --> 00:12:02,000 I'd rather be a doorkeeper in the house 379 00:12:02,000 --> 00:12:03,140 of the Lord than to dwell in the 380 00:12:03,140 --> 00:12:04,900 tents of wickedness and so on. 381 00:12:05,160 --> 00:12:06,660 If you have your Bible this morning, turn 382 00:12:06,660 --> 00:12:08,440 with me to the book of Exodus. 383 00:12:09,340 --> 00:12:11,300 Exodus chapter 32. 384 00:12:13,600 --> 00:12:16,780 And here we find another man who has 385 00:12:16,780 --> 00:12:18,400 this longing for the presence of God. 386 00:12:18,480 --> 00:12:19,320 His name is Moses. 387 00:12:20,340 --> 00:12:22,040 And we find him in this chapter in 388 00:12:22,040 --> 00:12:22,940 the presence of God. 389 00:12:23,080 --> 00:12:24,800 God has summons him to come up the 390 00:12:24,800 --> 00:12:25,100 mountain. 391 00:12:26,120 --> 00:12:27,640 And there he is in the presence of 392 00:12:27,640 --> 00:12:27,820 God. 393 00:12:27,900 --> 00:12:29,200 God has been speaking to him. 394 00:12:29,880 --> 00:12:31,680 In the meantime, the children of Israel have 395 00:12:31,680 --> 00:12:32,720 become restless. 396 00:12:33,560 --> 00:12:35,720 Moses has been gone for many, many weeks. 397 00:12:37,000 --> 00:12:39,340 And they go to Aaron, Moses' brother. 398 00:12:39,500 --> 00:12:40,680 And they said, listen, we don't know what's 399 00:12:40,680 --> 00:12:41,540 happened to Moses. 400 00:12:41,720 --> 00:12:42,580 He's obviously died. 401 00:12:43,040 --> 00:12:44,480 We need a God that will go before 402 00:12:44,480 --> 00:12:44,720 us. 403 00:12:44,800 --> 00:12:46,340 We need new leadership and so on. 404 00:12:46,620 --> 00:12:48,960 You know the story how Aaron bows to 405 00:12:48,960 --> 00:12:51,440 the pressure, gathers together all the jewelry from 406 00:12:51,440 --> 00:12:53,140 the ladies, throws it into the fire and 407 00:12:53,140 --> 00:12:54,100 out popped the golden calf. 408 00:12:54,600 --> 00:12:55,940 At least that was his explanation. 409 00:12:56,060 --> 00:12:57,560 It wasn't quite that simple, but it's amazing 410 00:12:57,560 --> 00:12:58,960 what we say when we're backed into a 411 00:12:58,960 --> 00:12:59,560 corner, isn't it? 412 00:12:59,820 --> 00:13:00,980 He said, you know, it wasn't my fault. 413 00:13:01,060 --> 00:13:02,340 I just, you know, it just sort of 414 00:13:02,340 --> 00:13:02,560 happened. 415 00:13:03,020 --> 00:13:05,280 And around that golden calf, there really is 416 00:13:05,280 --> 00:13:07,260 nothing less than a sexual orgy that is 417 00:13:07,260 --> 00:13:07,780 going on. 418 00:13:07,860 --> 00:13:09,060 The people are out of control. 419 00:13:09,600 --> 00:13:11,620 The worshipping as the nations round about them 420 00:13:11,620 --> 00:13:13,600 worshipped, and most of their gods were fertility 421 00:13:13,600 --> 00:13:15,940 gods in those days, still are in many 422 00:13:15,940 --> 00:13:16,560 of our nations. 423 00:13:17,520 --> 00:13:20,060 And so much of their worship again was 424 00:13:20,060 --> 00:13:20,640 unclean. 425 00:13:20,740 --> 00:13:23,640 It was based, it was essential in its 426 00:13:23,640 --> 00:13:24,000 nature. 427 00:13:24,620 --> 00:13:26,680 And God is angry with what he sees. 428 00:13:27,200 --> 00:13:29,020 Not only is it because of the immorality 429 00:13:29,020 --> 00:13:31,720 and not only the idolatry that is going 430 00:13:31,720 --> 00:13:33,760 on, but they've done something that is possibly 431 00:13:33,760 --> 00:13:35,100 the most serious thing of all. 432 00:13:35,680 --> 00:13:37,300 And that is they touch the glory of 433 00:13:37,300 --> 00:13:40,040 God, because it says there they've attributed all 434 00:13:40,040 --> 00:13:42,860 of the great acts of God to this 435 00:13:42,860 --> 00:13:44,520 creation of their own hands. 436 00:13:44,640 --> 00:13:46,840 Notice it says in verse 8, they quickly 437 00:13:46,840 --> 00:13:48,580 turned aside from the way which I commanded 438 00:13:48,580 --> 00:13:48,780 them. 439 00:13:49,220 --> 00:13:50,980 They made for themselves a molten calf. 440 00:13:51,080 --> 00:13:53,120 They've worshipped it, sacrificed to it and says, 441 00:13:53,200 --> 00:13:55,680 this is your God, O Israel, who brought 442 00:13:55,680 --> 00:13:56,580 you out of the land of Egypt. 443 00:13:56,680 --> 00:13:59,640 In other words, this creation is what delivered 444 00:13:59,640 --> 00:13:59,840 you. 445 00:13:59,960 --> 00:14:01,260 This is the one that turned the Nile 446 00:14:01,260 --> 00:14:01,720 to blood. 447 00:14:01,720 --> 00:14:03,980 This is the one that brought lice and, 448 00:14:04,300 --> 00:14:06,120 you know, plagues of frogs and so on 449 00:14:06,120 --> 00:14:06,600 and so forth. 450 00:14:06,700 --> 00:14:09,120 This is one that ultimately slew the firstborn. 451 00:14:09,220 --> 00:14:10,680 This is one that parted the Red Sea. 452 00:14:10,800 --> 00:14:12,220 This is one that is responsible. 453 00:14:12,720 --> 00:14:14,360 And one of the most dangerous things that 454 00:14:14,360 --> 00:14:16,200 you and I can do is touch the 455 00:14:16,200 --> 00:14:16,700 glory of God. 456 00:14:17,560 --> 00:14:20,180 God will share everything with us apart from 457 00:14:20,180 --> 00:14:20,600 his glory. 458 00:14:20,720 --> 00:14:22,160 He'll give us his love, his patience, his 459 00:14:22,160 --> 00:14:23,660 kindness, his righteousness and so on. 460 00:14:23,800 --> 00:14:25,640 But my glory, I will not share with 461 00:14:25,640 --> 00:14:26,000 any man. 462 00:14:26,600 --> 00:14:28,600 They were taking again the glory of God, 463 00:14:28,720 --> 00:14:30,000 robbing God of his glory. 464 00:14:30,000 --> 00:14:33,700 That along with the immorality and idolatry, we 465 00:14:33,700 --> 00:14:35,780 find God as angry, I think, as you 466 00:14:35,780 --> 00:14:36,880 ever see him in the wood of God. 467 00:14:37,720 --> 00:14:40,260 And he says there in verse 10, Leave 468 00:14:40,260 --> 00:14:43,200 me alone, Moses, that my anger may burn 469 00:14:43,200 --> 00:14:44,880 against them, that I may destroy them. 470 00:14:45,300 --> 00:14:46,700 And I will make of you a great 471 00:14:46,700 --> 00:14:47,040 nation. 472 00:14:47,880 --> 00:14:50,900 Moses here has the opportunity of replacing Abraham, 473 00:14:51,860 --> 00:14:52,740 Isaac and Jacob. 474 00:14:53,120 --> 00:14:54,980 If you've ever studied this portion, this is 475 00:14:54,980 --> 00:15:00,800 the most amazing situation that here Moses literally 476 00:15:00,800 --> 00:15:03,740 can take the place of Abraham. 477 00:15:04,740 --> 00:15:06,300 Abraham would have been forgotten. 478 00:15:06,520 --> 00:15:08,480 God would have established a new nation. 479 00:15:08,620 --> 00:15:10,160 The father of that nation would have been 480 00:15:10,160 --> 00:15:10,540 Moses. 481 00:15:10,900 --> 00:15:12,720 And he would have gone down through the 482 00:15:12,720 --> 00:15:17,820 years as the leader of the nation of 483 00:15:17,820 --> 00:15:20,540 Israel, the most important man, if you like. 484 00:15:21,140 --> 00:15:24,400 And yet in the pressure of that situation, 485 00:15:24,560 --> 00:15:25,560 Moses does not bow. 486 00:15:26,000 --> 00:15:26,860 He is a shepherd. 487 00:15:26,860 --> 00:15:30,160 He is interested in seeing his people again 488 00:15:30,160 --> 00:15:30,620 forgiven. 489 00:15:31,080 --> 00:15:32,120 And he begins to pray. 490 00:15:32,720 --> 00:15:34,700 We pick up his prayer in verse 13. 491 00:15:34,860 --> 00:15:36,780 He says to God, remember Abraham and Isaac 492 00:15:36,780 --> 00:15:38,860 and Israel, your servants to whom you did 493 00:15:38,860 --> 00:15:39,820 swear by yourself. 494 00:15:40,260 --> 00:15:41,920 You said to them, I will multiply your 495 00:15:41,920 --> 00:15:43,120 seed as the stars of heaven. 496 00:15:43,200 --> 00:15:45,280 All this land that I've spoken, I will 497 00:15:45,280 --> 00:15:47,280 give to your seed, and they shall inherit 498 00:15:47,280 --> 00:15:47,660 it forever. 499 00:15:48,240 --> 00:15:50,760 And so on the basis of covenant, we 500 00:15:50,760 --> 00:15:53,920 find that Moses begins to intercede. 501 00:15:54,020 --> 00:15:55,980 And basically what he says is this, God, 502 00:15:56,240 --> 00:15:57,460 listen, we have contracts. 503 00:15:57,660 --> 00:16:01,280 If we were to use today's terminology, we 504 00:16:01,280 --> 00:16:03,220 could say, God, we have a contract here, 505 00:16:03,620 --> 00:16:05,840 a contract that you made with Abraham, Isaac, 506 00:16:06,160 --> 00:16:12,440 and Jacob, and it's got your signature on 507 00:16:12,440 --> 00:16:12,540 it. 508 00:16:12,600 --> 00:16:13,180 See right here. 509 00:16:13,640 --> 00:16:15,060 You can't back out of this. 510 00:16:15,120 --> 00:16:16,460 You can't renege on your promise. 511 00:16:17,300 --> 00:16:18,840 We can take you to court, if you 512 00:16:18,840 --> 00:16:19,100 like. 513 00:16:19,840 --> 00:16:22,040 We've got your name on these contracts. 514 00:16:22,860 --> 00:16:24,400 After all, God, you're supposed to be the 515 00:16:24,400 --> 00:16:25,300 great promise keeper. 516 00:16:25,800 --> 00:16:27,260 You're supposed to be the one that says 517 00:16:27,260 --> 00:16:29,140 that I never change. 518 00:16:29,640 --> 00:16:30,680 With me, there's no variable. 519 00:16:30,860 --> 00:16:32,160 There's no shadow of turning. 520 00:16:32,260 --> 00:16:33,460 You're the one that says I am the 521 00:16:33,460 --> 00:16:34,460 Lord and I change not. 522 00:16:35,100 --> 00:16:36,700 You're the one that says all the promises 523 00:16:36,700 --> 00:16:38,040 are yea and amen in Christ. 524 00:16:38,220 --> 00:16:39,680 You're the one that says my word is 525 00:16:39,680 --> 00:16:41,380 more important than my very name. 526 00:16:41,920 --> 00:16:43,760 God, you cannot do what you said you 527 00:16:43,760 --> 00:16:45,120 would do, and if you do, we'll never 528 00:16:45,120 --> 00:16:45,880 trust you again. 529 00:16:46,000 --> 00:16:47,940 If you break your promise, if you renege 530 00:16:47,940 --> 00:16:50,160 on these promises, how will we ever know 531 00:16:50,160 --> 00:16:51,680 if you mean it from now on? 532 00:16:52,640 --> 00:16:54,140 If you're going to be fickle like that 533 00:16:54,140 --> 00:16:55,880 and change your mind, these are covenants. 534 00:16:56,000 --> 00:16:58,240 These are promises we've held on to for 535 00:16:58,240 --> 00:17:01,660 400 years in bondage, that God was going 536 00:17:01,660 --> 00:17:03,560 to keep His word, and now if you 537 00:17:03,560 --> 00:17:06,180 change it, we will never know again if 538 00:17:06,180 --> 00:17:08,599 your word is reliable from this day on. 539 00:17:08,859 --> 00:17:10,359 And so basically, that's his argument. 540 00:17:11,420 --> 00:17:12,380 And God says, you got me. 541 00:17:14,380 --> 00:17:16,500 Verse 14, the Lord changed His mind about 542 00:17:16,500 --> 00:17:18,240 the evil that He said He would do 543 00:17:18,240 --> 00:17:18,839 to His people. 544 00:17:19,420 --> 00:17:21,380 We now go to the next chapter, and 545 00:17:21,380 --> 00:17:24,160 it is now God's turn to remind Moses 546 00:17:24,160 --> 00:17:25,800 that He is a covenant-keeping God. 547 00:17:27,800 --> 00:17:29,620 Moses reminds God of His covenant. 548 00:17:29,800 --> 00:17:31,680 Now God reminds Moses of His covenant. 549 00:17:31,960 --> 00:17:33,500 Verse 1, And the Lord spoke to Moses, 550 00:17:33,640 --> 00:17:35,720 saying, Depart from here, you and the people 551 00:17:35,720 --> 00:17:37,000 who you brought out from the land of 552 00:17:37,000 --> 00:17:39,240 Egypt to the land which I swore to 553 00:17:39,240 --> 00:17:41,820 Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying, To your descendants 554 00:17:41,820 --> 00:17:42,520 I will give it. 555 00:17:43,380 --> 00:17:44,900 I'll send an angel before you. 556 00:17:44,960 --> 00:17:46,780 Drive out the Canaanite, the Amorite, the Hittite, 557 00:17:46,840 --> 00:17:47,280 and so on. 558 00:17:48,140 --> 00:17:50,740 So it's now time for the children of 559 00:17:50,740 --> 00:17:54,720 Israel to advance towards their goal of going 560 00:17:54,720 --> 00:17:55,980 into the promised land. 561 00:17:56,080 --> 00:17:57,820 This was a dream, again, that they had 562 00:17:57,820 --> 00:17:59,060 nurtured over the years. 563 00:17:59,160 --> 00:18:00,620 This was the thing that kept them going. 564 00:18:00,920 --> 00:18:02,360 If you like, this was the carrot at 565 00:18:02,360 --> 00:18:03,760 the end of the stick that sort of 566 00:18:03,760 --> 00:18:05,880 kept the donkey moving ahead, so to speak, 567 00:18:05,920 --> 00:18:08,020 through all the years of bondage and servitude 568 00:18:08,020 --> 00:18:08,920 and so on. 569 00:18:08,920 --> 00:18:10,480 And it was this promise that one day 570 00:18:10,480 --> 00:18:11,200 we're going to be free. 571 00:18:11,320 --> 00:18:13,160 One day we'll have our own land, a 572 00:18:13,160 --> 00:18:14,740 land that flows with milk and honey. 573 00:18:15,740 --> 00:18:17,160 And God says to Moses, This is the 574 00:18:17,160 --> 00:18:17,300 day. 575 00:18:17,420 --> 00:18:19,400 I want you to begin to advance towards 576 00:18:19,400 --> 00:18:19,980 that goal. 577 00:18:20,080 --> 00:18:22,200 And I can imagine a ripple going through 578 00:18:22,200 --> 00:18:24,000 the camp as they heard, as they began 579 00:18:24,000 --> 00:18:26,460 to pack up their possessions and got ready 580 00:18:26,460 --> 00:18:29,440 to begin to advance towards the promised land, 581 00:18:29,520 --> 00:18:31,020 the excitement of that. 582 00:18:31,860 --> 00:18:33,880 Again, we have a description of what the 583 00:18:33,880 --> 00:18:34,600 land was like. 584 00:18:34,620 --> 00:18:35,760 It says in verse 3, It was a 585 00:18:35,760 --> 00:18:37,100 land flowing with milk and honey. 586 00:18:37,100 --> 00:18:40,000 It wasn't literally, of course, flowing with milk 587 00:18:40,000 --> 00:18:40,280 and honey. 588 00:18:40,380 --> 00:18:42,320 They were not wading across rivers of milk 589 00:18:42,320 --> 00:18:44,420 and trying to walk through knee-deep honey 590 00:18:44,420 --> 00:18:44,960 and so on. 591 00:18:44,980 --> 00:18:47,860 But that was descriptive of God's abundance, God's 592 00:18:47,860 --> 00:18:48,200 blessing. 593 00:18:48,960 --> 00:18:50,900 Deuteronomy 6, I think it is, you have 594 00:18:50,900 --> 00:18:53,880 God describing what the land is like there. 595 00:18:53,940 --> 00:18:55,240 Let me read a little bit of that 596 00:18:55,240 --> 00:18:56,540 to you. 597 00:18:57,960 --> 00:18:59,400 Verse 10, It shall come about when the 598 00:18:59,400 --> 00:19:00,820 Lord your God brings you into the land 599 00:19:00,820 --> 00:19:02,440 which He swore to your fathers, to Abraham 600 00:19:02,440 --> 00:19:04,760 and Isaac and Jacob, to give you great 601 00:19:04,760 --> 00:19:07,640 and splendid cities which you did not build. 602 00:19:08,160 --> 00:19:09,600 That was a very important PS. 603 00:19:10,540 --> 00:19:13,500 By the way, you don't have to build 604 00:19:13,500 --> 00:19:13,920 these ones. 605 00:19:14,380 --> 00:19:16,180 I can imagine when they heard, Listen, I'm 606 00:19:16,180 --> 00:19:18,600 going to give you great and splendid cities, 607 00:19:18,680 --> 00:19:20,080 there was a sigh that went up. 608 00:19:20,400 --> 00:19:22,300 Listen, I couldn't build another city if you 609 00:19:22,300 --> 00:19:22,740 paid me. 610 00:19:23,260 --> 00:19:25,820 Because their entire life had been one of 611 00:19:25,820 --> 00:19:27,860 servitude, of building cities for Pharaoh. 612 00:19:28,340 --> 00:19:30,380 In fact, the psalmist says, I've relieved your 613 00:19:30,380 --> 00:19:31,220 shoulder of the burden. 614 00:19:31,220 --> 00:19:33,800 The margin says, literally, I've taken the brick 615 00:19:33,800 --> 00:19:34,640 load off your shoulder. 616 00:19:35,360 --> 00:19:37,080 This was a nation bowed down. 617 00:19:37,180 --> 00:19:39,360 From the moment you could work as a 618 00:19:39,360 --> 00:19:41,960 little child, again as a slave, you had 619 00:19:41,960 --> 00:19:42,860 to carry bricks. 620 00:19:43,480 --> 00:19:45,040 And they were just bowed down. 621 00:19:45,160 --> 00:19:46,840 Again, He's my glory and the lifter of 622 00:19:46,840 --> 00:19:47,240 my head. 623 00:19:47,340 --> 00:19:49,400 They were a nation stooped down, weighed down 624 00:19:49,400 --> 00:19:51,760 with anxiety and fears and so on and 625 00:19:51,760 --> 00:19:52,080 so forth. 626 00:19:52,760 --> 00:19:54,040 And God says, I'm going to give you 627 00:19:54,040 --> 00:19:55,180 great and splendid cities. 628 00:19:55,320 --> 00:19:56,320 God is no man's debtor. 629 00:19:56,740 --> 00:19:57,700 God keeps the books. 630 00:19:57,760 --> 00:19:58,840 And He says, I'm going to give back 631 00:19:58,840 --> 00:20:00,400 to you all those cities that you built. 632 00:20:00,400 --> 00:20:02,300 I'm going to give you great and splendid 633 00:20:02,300 --> 00:20:02,680 cities. 634 00:20:02,800 --> 00:20:04,080 And you don't have to build them. 635 00:20:04,960 --> 00:20:06,720 Then He says, houses full of good things 636 00:20:06,720 --> 00:20:07,580 which you did not fill. 637 00:20:07,960 --> 00:20:10,140 In other words, not old derelict houses that 638 00:20:10,140 --> 00:20:13,320 need a lot of refurbishing and all the 639 00:20:13,320 --> 00:20:16,220 material inside needs to be thrown away and 640 00:20:16,220 --> 00:20:17,460 you've got to start all over again. 641 00:20:17,520 --> 00:20:20,160 No, these are houses loaded with good things. 642 00:20:21,280 --> 00:20:23,200 He says, hewn cisterns which you did not 643 00:20:23,200 --> 00:20:24,920 dig, vineyards and olive trees which you did 644 00:20:24,920 --> 00:20:25,500 not plant. 645 00:20:26,280 --> 00:20:27,580 What an incredible promise. 646 00:20:28,080 --> 00:20:30,520 This again was the dream, what we would 647 00:20:30,520 --> 00:20:32,240 say in America, the American dream. 648 00:20:32,420 --> 00:20:34,560 I'm sure you have that same dream, the 649 00:20:34,560 --> 00:20:37,100 Singaporean dream of having your own little house 650 00:20:37,100 --> 00:20:39,600 somewhere or apartment or whatever, all paid for. 651 00:20:40,340 --> 00:20:41,900 In this case, it was a little better. 652 00:20:42,020 --> 00:20:43,720 They weren't all sort of next door to 653 00:20:43,720 --> 00:20:44,060 each other. 654 00:20:44,180 --> 00:20:45,740 You had a little bit of land, houses 655 00:20:45,740 --> 00:20:47,640 and vineyards and olive trees. 656 00:20:48,160 --> 00:20:50,320 You weren't all squished up against each other. 657 00:20:50,720 --> 00:20:53,140 You had your own water supply in the 658 00:20:53,140 --> 00:20:53,480 backyard. 659 00:20:53,840 --> 00:20:56,840 You didn't need to have desalinization processes and 660 00:20:56,840 --> 00:20:57,200 so on. 661 00:20:57,200 --> 00:20:58,920 You had a well there and abundance of 662 00:20:58,920 --> 00:21:01,740 clean water and so on, all of that. 663 00:21:01,860 --> 00:21:04,620 I mean, this was an incredible promise that 664 00:21:04,620 --> 00:21:05,940 God had given to the children of Israel. 665 00:21:09,670 --> 00:21:11,310 Then God drops a bombshell. 666 00:21:12,870 --> 00:21:15,390 He says, by the way, Moses, as you 667 00:21:15,390 --> 00:21:18,290 go in, you're going in without My presence. 668 00:21:19,150 --> 00:21:20,530 I will not go with you. 669 00:21:21,650 --> 00:21:24,010 Notice there in verse 3, Go up to 670 00:21:24,010 --> 00:21:25,670 a land that flows with milk and honey 671 00:21:25,670 --> 00:21:26,770 for I will not go up in your 672 00:21:26,770 --> 00:21:29,870 midst because you are a stubborn people or 673 00:21:29,870 --> 00:21:32,530 an obstinate people lest I destroy you on 674 00:21:32,530 --> 00:21:32,770 the way. 675 00:21:33,550 --> 00:21:35,470 Moses now is faced with a dilemma. 676 00:21:36,090 --> 00:21:36,770 What do I do? 677 00:21:37,410 --> 00:21:39,770 Do I go in to the presence of 678 00:21:39,770 --> 00:21:42,010 God or do I stay? 679 00:21:42,250 --> 00:21:43,190 He had two choices. 680 00:21:43,390 --> 00:21:45,250 We've described one of those choices already. 681 00:21:45,610 --> 00:21:47,790 Again, houses and lands and vineyards and olive 682 00:21:47,790 --> 00:21:51,150 trees, great splendid cities, everything that in the 683 00:21:51,150 --> 00:21:56,280 natural man would love to have, but no 684 00:21:56,280 --> 00:21:56,980 presence of God. 685 00:21:59,300 --> 00:22:01,060 Now, if you had to make a decision 686 00:22:01,060 --> 00:22:02,740 this morning, what would your choice be? 687 00:22:03,380 --> 00:22:05,380 If you were faced with a situation that 688 00:22:05,380 --> 00:22:07,120 Moses is faced with, do I go in 689 00:22:07,120 --> 00:22:08,640 and take the children of Israel in? 690 00:22:08,720 --> 00:22:09,980 This is the thing that has kept them 691 00:22:09,980 --> 00:22:12,100 going over those 400 years of bondage. 692 00:22:12,760 --> 00:22:15,380 You say, well, that's very carnal, that's very 693 00:22:15,380 --> 00:22:17,820 materialistic, houses, lands and vineyards. 694 00:22:17,920 --> 00:22:19,180 Well, let me sweeten the deal a little 695 00:22:19,180 --> 00:22:19,400 bit. 696 00:22:19,620 --> 00:22:21,000 I'll send an angel before you. 697 00:22:22,180 --> 00:22:25,140 Not a demon, an angel, an angel that 698 00:22:25,140 --> 00:22:27,720 will do signs, wonders and miracles, things that 699 00:22:27,720 --> 00:22:28,940 you're incapable of doing. 700 00:22:29,320 --> 00:22:31,640 When you run into a rough patch, all 701 00:22:31,640 --> 00:22:33,100 you've got to do is call on the 702 00:22:33,100 --> 00:22:33,360 angel. 703 00:22:33,560 --> 00:22:35,980 He'll drive out the Hittite, the Perizzite, the 704 00:22:35,980 --> 00:22:37,340 Jebusite and so on. 705 00:22:37,400 --> 00:22:39,460 He'll do all these signs, wonders and miracles, 706 00:22:39,760 --> 00:22:41,520 but still not have the presence of God. 707 00:22:43,920 --> 00:22:45,040 That's choice number one. 708 00:22:45,140 --> 00:22:46,880 Choice number two is to stay where you 709 00:22:46,880 --> 00:22:47,160 are. 710 00:22:47,600 --> 00:22:49,040 Let me describe where you are. 711 00:22:49,120 --> 00:22:51,280 The Bible calls it a waste howling wilderness, 712 00:22:51,900 --> 00:22:56,100 a place of intense heat by day, freezing 713 00:22:56,100 --> 00:22:57,220 temperatures at night. 714 00:22:57,520 --> 00:22:59,140 The sun will not smite thee by day, 715 00:22:59,180 --> 00:23:00,120 nor the moon by night. 716 00:23:00,240 --> 00:23:02,180 Again, the temperatures would plummet. 717 00:23:03,340 --> 00:23:05,120 It was a place of scorpions, the Bible 718 00:23:05,120 --> 00:23:05,540 says. 719 00:23:06,420 --> 00:23:08,600 It was just the most desolate place. 720 00:23:08,760 --> 00:23:09,900 There were no cities. 721 00:23:10,500 --> 00:23:11,380 There was no vegetation. 722 00:23:11,780 --> 00:23:15,300 There was no possibility of looking after yourself 723 00:23:15,300 --> 00:23:17,960 apart from the supernatural supply of manna. 724 00:23:18,660 --> 00:23:21,580 It was not exactly the American dream or 725 00:23:21,580 --> 00:23:22,600 the Singaporean dream. 726 00:23:22,760 --> 00:23:25,060 Again, just a waste howling wilderness. 727 00:23:30,390 --> 00:23:33,890 Moses, of course, had an advantage that the 728 00:23:33,890 --> 00:23:36,150 children of Israel didn't have as he is 729 00:23:36,150 --> 00:23:37,250 faced with this decision. 730 00:23:38,810 --> 00:23:40,610 You see, Moses was raised a son of 731 00:23:40,610 --> 00:23:41,150 Pharaoh's daughter. 732 00:23:42,510 --> 00:23:44,430 Moses grew up in the finest home in 733 00:23:44,430 --> 00:23:47,350 all of Egypt, the equivalent in America of 734 00:23:47,350 --> 00:23:47,990 the White House. 735 00:23:48,830 --> 00:23:50,450 He had the finest education. 736 00:23:50,610 --> 00:23:51,430 He didn't go to school. 737 00:23:51,430 --> 00:23:52,470 The teachers came to him. 738 00:23:52,770 --> 00:23:55,050 He rode around in the latest model chariot. 739 00:23:55,130 --> 00:23:58,090 He had all the finest clothes of Egypt. 740 00:23:58,370 --> 00:24:00,050 After all, he was a king's kid. 741 00:24:00,530 --> 00:24:02,770 He was a kid that had incredible privilege. 742 00:24:03,430 --> 00:24:06,010 He had everything going for him, everything that 743 00:24:06,010 --> 00:24:06,790 money could buy. 744 00:24:06,910 --> 00:24:07,830 Money was no option. 745 00:24:08,410 --> 00:24:11,090 After all, he was royalty, possibly being groomed 746 00:24:11,090 --> 00:24:12,810 to be one of the pharaohs. 747 00:24:13,650 --> 00:24:15,410 And yet the day came when the Bible 748 00:24:15,410 --> 00:24:19,310 says that it didn't satisfy as we've heard 749 00:24:19,310 --> 00:24:21,230 so often there was a God-shaped blank, 750 00:24:21,250 --> 00:24:22,650 if you like, in the heart of Moses. 751 00:24:23,410 --> 00:24:26,950 The Bible says that Moses chose to suffer 752 00:24:26,950 --> 00:24:28,870 affliction with the people of God rather than 753 00:24:28,870 --> 00:24:31,230 all the treasures and pleasures of Egypt, and 754 00:24:31,230 --> 00:24:32,490 he turned his back on that. 755 00:24:32,590 --> 00:24:33,990 And as we have the saying in America, 756 00:24:34,090 --> 00:24:34,990 I've been there and done that. 757 00:24:36,530 --> 00:24:39,250 He knew that no house, no vineyard, no 758 00:24:39,250 --> 00:24:43,010 olive tree, none of those things could satisfy. 759 00:24:43,470 --> 00:24:45,750 There's only one form of satisfaction. 760 00:24:46,030 --> 00:24:47,030 It's the presence of God. 761 00:24:49,150 --> 00:24:52,230 And so he does what Moses does so 762 00:24:52,230 --> 00:24:52,530 well. 763 00:24:52,670 --> 00:24:53,550 He begins to pray. 764 00:24:54,790 --> 00:24:56,770 And he says now in verse 13, Now, 765 00:24:56,790 --> 00:24:58,410 therefore, I pray thee, if I found favor 766 00:24:58,410 --> 00:25:00,390 in your sight, let me know your ways 767 00:25:00,390 --> 00:25:02,610 that I may know thee, so that I 768 00:25:02,610 --> 00:25:03,870 may find favor in your sight. 769 00:25:03,990 --> 00:25:06,490 Consider, too, that this nation is thy people. 770 00:25:07,050 --> 00:25:09,550 Now, notice his prayer is not one of 771 00:25:09,550 --> 00:25:12,610 compromise, but he says, Let me know you 772 00:25:12,610 --> 00:25:14,050 that I may know your ways, or let 773 00:25:14,050 --> 00:25:15,210 me know your ways that I may know 774 00:25:15,210 --> 00:25:15,330 you. 775 00:25:16,690 --> 00:25:18,350 What a strange prayer, don't you think? 776 00:25:19,210 --> 00:25:21,590 I say a strange prayer given the circumstances 777 00:25:21,590 --> 00:25:24,010 because my prayer would have been totally different. 778 00:25:24,110 --> 00:25:24,850 I have to be honest. 779 00:25:24,970 --> 00:25:26,350 If I was Moses, I'd have said to 780 00:25:26,350 --> 00:25:28,730 God something like this, God, let's reason together. 781 00:25:28,990 --> 00:25:30,570 After all, you're the one that suggested it. 782 00:25:30,590 --> 00:25:31,510 Come, let's reason together. 783 00:25:31,590 --> 00:25:32,570 So I'm going to take you up on 784 00:25:32,570 --> 00:25:32,930 your offer. 785 00:25:33,470 --> 00:25:35,070 You know, let's talk man-to-man, face 786 00:25:35,070 --> 00:25:35,430 -to-face. 787 00:25:35,510 --> 00:25:36,210 Let's be real. 788 00:25:37,090 --> 00:25:38,610 God, there's a part of me that loves 789 00:25:38,610 --> 00:25:40,590 houses and lands and vineyards and all the 790 00:25:40,590 --> 00:25:44,070 normal, natural things, but there's a part of 791 00:25:44,070 --> 00:25:45,690 me that wants your presence as well, so 792 00:25:45,690 --> 00:25:47,110 why don't we have some sort of compromise 793 00:25:47,110 --> 00:25:47,450 here? 794 00:25:47,850 --> 00:25:49,250 Oh, I know we get on your nerves. 795 00:25:49,470 --> 00:25:50,730 You know, you're still upset. 796 00:25:50,850 --> 00:25:52,670 Boy, you said you were so mad the 797 00:25:52,670 --> 00:25:54,350 other day, and I know we sometimes say 798 00:25:54,350 --> 00:25:56,550 things, we get emotional, and afterwards we regret 799 00:25:56,550 --> 00:25:59,390 because we just said too much in the 800 00:25:59,390 --> 00:26:00,630 heat of the moment, but now that you've 801 00:26:00,630 --> 00:26:02,050 had time to settle down and so on, 802 00:26:02,850 --> 00:26:04,930 I mean, you accused us of being stubborn, 803 00:26:05,130 --> 00:26:07,330 and God, I say this reverently, I think 804 00:26:07,330 --> 00:26:08,710 you've been a little stubborn yourself here. 805 00:26:10,190 --> 00:26:11,390 I mean, that would have been my argument. 806 00:26:11,830 --> 00:26:13,290 Lord, some sort of compromise. 807 00:26:13,530 --> 00:26:16,050 It would be nice if you came every 808 00:26:16,050 --> 00:26:16,730 once in a while. 809 00:26:16,990 --> 00:26:18,310 I know we get on your nerves. 810 00:26:18,490 --> 00:26:20,310 You don't need to hang around us all 811 00:26:20,310 --> 00:26:20,430 night. 812 00:26:20,450 --> 00:26:22,310 In fact, the fact is, God, I'll tell 813 00:26:22,310 --> 00:26:23,370 you a secret, and I know you know 814 00:26:23,370 --> 00:26:25,850 secrets anyway, but we get along pretty well 815 00:26:25,850 --> 00:26:26,790 without you most of the week. 816 00:26:27,770 --> 00:26:30,890 Oh, we've got our degrees, and we're educated 817 00:26:30,890 --> 00:26:32,550 and so on, but we need you in 818 00:26:32,550 --> 00:26:33,310 times of crisis. 819 00:26:33,510 --> 00:26:35,030 You're a present help in time of trouble, 820 00:26:35,170 --> 00:26:36,950 but the rest of the time I get 821 00:26:36,950 --> 00:26:37,750 by with my degree. 822 00:26:39,410 --> 00:26:40,730 I mean, that would have been my argument. 823 00:26:40,730 --> 00:26:41,950 God, let's compromise. 824 00:26:42,130 --> 00:26:43,970 I mean, why don't you come up, you 825 00:26:43,970 --> 00:26:45,150 know, and see us every once in a 826 00:26:45,150 --> 00:26:46,530 while, the great feast days. 827 00:26:46,610 --> 00:26:47,990 It would be nice if you came there. 828 00:26:49,990 --> 00:26:52,390 Moses doesn't mention houses, lands, and vineyards. 829 00:26:52,490 --> 00:26:53,730 All he says is, God, I want to 830 00:26:53,730 --> 00:26:54,050 know you. 831 00:26:55,610 --> 00:26:57,370 Teach me your ways, Lord, that I may 832 00:26:57,370 --> 00:26:57,930 know you. 833 00:26:58,990 --> 00:27:00,910 And as the Bible says, deep calls unto 834 00:27:00,910 --> 00:27:03,110 deep, and God responds, and he says to 835 00:27:03,110 --> 00:27:05,990 Moses, my presence will go with you, and 836 00:27:05,990 --> 00:27:06,830 I will give you rest. 837 00:27:09,010 --> 00:27:10,850 And Moses said, how can it be known, 838 00:27:10,930 --> 00:27:11,930 and I think this is one of my 839 00:27:11,930 --> 00:27:14,110 favorite verses in the Bible, how can it 840 00:27:14,110 --> 00:27:15,730 be known that I've found favor in your 841 00:27:15,730 --> 00:27:16,690 side, I and thy people? 842 00:27:17,250 --> 00:27:19,010 Is it not by thy going with us, 843 00:27:19,210 --> 00:27:21,150 so that we, I and thy people, may 844 00:27:21,150 --> 00:27:24,890 be distinguished from all the other people who 845 00:27:24,890 --> 00:27:25,730 are on the face of the earth? 846 00:27:26,550 --> 00:27:28,870 Moses said there's only one thing that distinguishes 847 00:27:28,870 --> 00:27:29,390 us. 848 00:27:29,870 --> 00:27:30,850 It's not our long sideburns. 849 00:27:31,510 --> 00:27:32,590 It's not our kosher diet. 850 00:27:32,610 --> 00:27:33,950 It's not even our Ten Commandments. 851 00:27:34,110 --> 00:27:35,350 It's not even our feast days. 852 00:27:35,350 --> 00:27:36,890 It's not even our tabernacle. 853 00:27:37,990 --> 00:27:40,030 The only thing that makes us unique is 854 00:27:40,030 --> 00:27:41,830 the fact that your presence dwells in our 855 00:27:41,830 --> 00:27:42,090 midst. 856 00:27:42,950 --> 00:27:44,850 And if your presence doesn't go, we just 857 00:27:44,850 --> 00:27:47,170 end up with a form of godliness, but 858 00:27:47,170 --> 00:27:47,870 there's no power. 859 00:27:49,170 --> 00:27:50,890 And I'm sure in Moses' mind, he was 860 00:27:50,890 --> 00:27:52,330 thinking the nations ran about. 861 00:27:52,470 --> 00:27:53,290 They had their temples. 862 00:27:53,470 --> 00:27:54,210 They had their priests. 863 00:27:54,290 --> 00:27:55,330 They had their sacrifices. 864 00:27:55,750 --> 00:27:57,090 They had their holy days. 865 00:27:57,390 --> 00:28:00,090 They had their songs and rituals and so 866 00:28:00,090 --> 00:28:01,410 on that they went through, but he says, 867 00:28:01,530 --> 00:28:03,050 listen, we have the presence of God, and 868 00:28:03,050 --> 00:28:03,590 they don't. 869 00:28:03,590 --> 00:28:06,110 And if you take away your presence from 870 00:28:06,110 --> 00:28:07,350 us, Lord, we're no different. 871 00:28:07,930 --> 00:28:09,130 We may dress differently. 872 00:28:09,290 --> 00:28:10,490 We may eat a different diet. 873 00:28:10,610 --> 00:28:12,170 We may do this and that, but we're 874 00:28:12,170 --> 00:28:13,030 really no different. 875 00:28:13,150 --> 00:28:15,910 The only thing that distinguishes us, the only 876 00:28:15,910 --> 00:28:18,570 thing that sets us apart is your presence. 877 00:28:19,330 --> 00:28:21,050 Lord, we can't live without your presence. 878 00:28:21,670 --> 00:28:23,790 You've been listening to From the Pulpit and 879 00:28:23,790 --> 00:28:24,930 Classic Sermon Series. 880 00:28:25,310 --> 00:28:27,490 This week you heard David Ravenhill with his 881 00:28:27,490 --> 00:28:29,010 message, The Presence of God. 882 00:28:29,310 --> 00:28:30,950 Tune in next week to hear Billy Graham 883 00:28:30,950 --> 00:28:33,030 talk about the second coming of Christ. 884 00:28:33,030 --> 00:28:35,330 On From the Pulpit and Classic Sermons.