Sister Teri Sunday School 4/19/15

Sister Teri Sunday School 4/19/15

Coram Deo - Before; in the presence of God.
1. In the presence of God.
2. Under the authority of God.
3. To the Glory of God.

When Esther went before Ahasuerus, she had not been called to come before the king for 30 days.  She was concerned because she could be put to death.  Mordecai told her that if she chose to not go then she should not think that her life would be spared any more than any of the Jews.  He told her, “It might not be because of your great beauty or anything special about you.  But who knows, it may be for this purpose that you have come to this position.”

She said, “Fast, I will as well and my maidens.”  We see that she didn’t have to do this on her own; the whole body carried the burden with her.  God honors us working together as a whole body.

Act 7:17  But when the time of the promise drew nigh, which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt,

Act 7:18  Till another king arose, which knew not Joseph.

Act 7:19  The same dealt subtilly with our kindred, and evil entreated our fathers, so that they cast out their young children, to the end they might not live.

Act 7:20  In which time Moses was born, and was exceeding fair, and nourished up in his father's house three months:

Act 7:21  And when he was cast out, Pharaoh's daughter took him up, and nourished him for her own son.

Act 7:22  And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and in deeds.

Act 7:23  And when he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren the children of Israel.

Act 7:24  And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him that was oppressed, and smote the Egyptian:

Act 7:25  For he supposed his brethren would have understood how that God by his hand would deliver them: but they understood not.

Act 7:26  And the next day he shewed himself unto them as they strove, and would have set them at one again, saying, Sirs, ye are brethren; why do ye wrong one to another?

Act 7:27  But he that did his neighbour wrong thrust him away, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge over us?

Act 7:28  Wilt thou kill me, as thou diddest the Egyptian yesterday?

Act 7:29  Then fled Moses at this saying, and was a stranger in the land of Madian, where he begat two sons.

Act 7:30  And when forty years were expired, there appeared to him in the wilderness of mount Sina an angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in a bush.

Act 7:31  When Moses saw it, he wondered at the sight: and as he drew near to behold it, the voice of the Lord came unto him,

Act 7:32  Saying, I am the God of thy fathers, the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Then Moses trembled, and durst not behold.

Act 7:33  Then said the Lord to him, Put off thy shoes from thy feet: for the place where thou standest is holy ground.

Act 7:34  I have seen, I have seen the affliction of my people which is in Egypt, and I have heard their groaning, and am come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send thee into Egypt.

Act 7:35  This Moses whom they refused, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge? the same did God send to be a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of the angel which appeared to him in the bush.

Act 7:36  He brought them out, after that he had shewed wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, and in the Red sea, and in the wilderness forty years.

Act 7:37  This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear.

Knowing how Moses ended, consider how God orchestrated the circumstances.  He made it so he could be raised by Pharaoh’s daughter and could learn what he would not have otherwise about how to lead and about authority in the kingdom. 

Moses’ primary language became the Egyptian tongue and he was fluent in that.  He had also the Hebrew language to a degree.  He was not as fluent in that.  Where he may have felt his lack was in speaking to the Hebrews.  He knew the Egyptian tongue and had audience with Pharaoh like would not have been if God had not ordained it. 

God moved on Moses heart to deliver God’s people even at the time when he slew the Egyptian.  He had the calling already working on him but did not understand how it would work.  He tried to start God’s work before it was God’s timing. 

God had not made him a ruler and a judge over them yet.  God was working on him but it was not His time.  Forty years after that when he was 80 years old it was God’s timing.  He may have been doubting that God had ordained him to deliver His people.  He had to a degree, because it was not God’s time yet.

We see here also a prophecy of Jesus.  Moses was a type of Jesus, raised among his people to be a deliverer.  It is amazing to see how God works things, and the patterns.

Exo 3:7  And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;

Exo 3:8  And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.

Exo 3:9  Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them.

Exo 3:10  Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt.

Exo 3:11  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?

Exo 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.

I don’t know that anyone else could have had the entrance into the presence of Pharaoh except that Moses had the family tie, being raised by Pharaoh’s daughter, and able to go into the presence of his grandfather. 

I thought of the promises God gives us for the situation we face.  “I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.”

God told Moses, “I will go with you and enable you to do this.”  God will enable us to go through anything that God sets up for us.  If He allowed it He will enable us to go through it and give us the strength.

Exo 4:10  And Moses said unto the LORD, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.

Exo 4:11  And the LORD said unto him, Who hath made man's mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the LORD?

Exo 4:12  Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say.

I believe he was talking about talking to the children of Israel about being able to deliver them.  He did not feel able to.

“The Holy Ghost will teach you all things.”  This is our promise for whatever we are going through, whatever He would have us do or say, The holy Spirit will direct you if you seek His help.

Phyllis Griffin – anything we go through, any experience we have, education we have, or job we have, God will use it somewhere down the line. 

This is how it has worked with me:  I started down a path thinking I was moving in a certain direction and God prospered me and helped me beyond my abilities and I think, “I am headed in the direction that God wants me to be.”  Then I get to the place where something totally changes.  I think, “Why, why did it not go the way I thought it would?”  Then later I see where God has used it. 

There have been jobs that I have done that were outside my job description totally beyond what I had been trained to do.  God got the glory because I was working beyond my own strength.  If all that happens is that God gets the glory because it was beyond our strength to do, then God gets the glory and that is sufficient.

If God has put something before you and you feel that He is in it, then go forward and trust it to Him.

God worked with Paul, he was a Pharisee and the son of a Pharisee, taught by Gamaliel.  Gamaliel was the one that when Peter was taken in and they were going to try to do Peter in; Gamaliel said, “Wait a minute, if they are not of God then they will move off the scene as others have.  We don’t want to fight against God.” 

Paul was a Roman citizen.  This proved to be an advantage to him when he was taken captive.  It gave him certain protections that others may not have had.  He was fluent in other languages.  This was for the purpose of carrying the gospel out.  God gave him that skill and preparation for that purpose.

He was converted in AD 37 and killed in AD 67 so he had 30 years of ministry.  He traveled extensively throughout his missionary journeys.  During a two year trip, AD 46 to AD 48, he traveled about 400 miles.  Later, AD 50 to AD 52, he covered 500 miles.

God’s plan was that he be a witness at Rome and that is where he spent his later years.

Act 23:11  And the night following the Lord stood by him, and said, Be of good cheer, Paul: for as thou hast testified of me in Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness also at Rome.

He may have been a captive at this time.  God told him, “Don’t be afraid, I have a plan.”

The circumstances that seemed to be for his doom brought him before the governor, the king, and to Caesar’s household.  Many of Caesar’s household were converted.  This may have been Nero through whom many of the Christians were destroyed.  Even though he was captive God gave him liberty to be a witness.

He gave his personal testimony as many times as he could.  When he was shipwrecked God showed his power on the ship and then when he was bitten by the viper in front of all the witnesses; he survived and the glory was given to God. 

He was in prison.  He wrote the epistles while he was there. 

Php 1:12  But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel;

Php 1:13  So that my bonds in Christ are manifest in all the palace, and in all other places;

Php 1:14  And many of the brethren in the Lord, waxing confident by my bonds, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.

It was profitable for the gospel to go forth.

His last words.

2Ti 4:6  For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.

2Ti 4:7  I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:

2Ti 4:8  Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.

He told them how he realized that God had a purpose for his life and he had fulfilled it and was looking forward to the eternal goal.