What good is the Promised Land if the God who made the promise is not with you?
Message Outline
The Context: The Gift Became the God
God rescued Israel from Egypt, parted the Red Sea, sent manna from heaven and made covenant with them at Sinai. Then, while Moses was on the mountain, they took the gold the Egyptians had handed them on the way out and melted it into a calf. God said they could still have the land, the angel and the victory, but He would not go up among them. And the people mourned.
They took what God had provided and used it to replace the God who provided it. You can have the provision and lose sight of the Provider.
Moses: I Won't Go Without You
God, if You're not going, I'm not going. I don't care how promising the opportunity looks or how good the destination sounds. Moses wasn't just interested in the promise; he wanted the Presence. A good opportunity isn't necessarily a God opportunity, and an open door isn't necessarily a divine invitation.
The greatest danger isn't that we can't do something without God. It's that we might succeed at something God never called us to do. I'd rather stay in the wilderness with God than enter the Promised Land without Him.
David: Please Don't Leave Me
God, I know I've sinned. Correct me if You must, discipline me if You need to, but whatever You do, don't take Your presence from me. David didn't ask first for his reputation, his kingdom or his public image. He had watched Saul keep a crown and lose the Spirit's empowering presence.
Losing a throne is nothing compared to losing fellowship with God. It's easy to recognize the Holy Spirit when He enters a room and a life, but we seldom realize when He has left.
Mary: Nothing Is More Important Than You
The house can wait. The preparations can wait. Martha wasn't doing something wrong; she was serving Jesus because Jesus was in her home. But Martha was distracted by what needed to be done, and Mary was devoted to the One who had come.
You can be busy doing things for Jesus and still miss being with Jesus. Don't get so busy working for the Lord that you neglect walking with the Lord.
Only His Presence Makes Dead People Alive
The gospel is not about making bad people better; it's about making dead people alive. Sick people need medicine, but dead people need resurrection. We were dead in our sins, and while we were still dead God moved toward us in mercy. Without the blood of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit, no one can be born again.
You can teach a dead man better habits, but you cannot give him life. Only Jesus can do that. Good works are not the root of salvation; they are the fruit of it.
The Response
Three people. Three declarations. One priority: His presence.
- Like Moses: His presence is greater than the destination. Don't move where He isn't leading.
- Like David: His presence is greater than our position. Ask Him never to take His Spirit from you.
- Like Mary: His presence is greater than our performance. Sit at His feet before you serve.
- If you've been trying to fix yourself, stop turning over a new leaf and receive new life in Jesus Christ.
Don't get so caught up in what God can give you that you forget God Himself is the gift. Church, you can trust Him!
"If your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here." — Exodus 33:15, ESV
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