The God we have been talking about throughout this entire series knows you better than anyone or anything. Just like He knew Moses, and He knew the Israelites, He knows you too. But the question of the day is this, “Do you know God?” Now the question is not, “Do you know about God?” The question is not even, “Do you believe in God?” The question I am asking is, “Do you know God personally?” Then I would follow up that question with this one, “How well do you know God?” I can answer that question for all of us. You know God as well as you want to. As we wrap up this series with today’s message, we are going to take a look at how we can come to know God deeply and personally.
Idol Hands, Devil's Workshop
July 14, 2024 • Dr. James Merritt • Exodus 32
The people of Israel had been treating God like a heavenly bellhop expecting Him to be at their every beck and call and give them everything they wanted when they wanted it. When Moses had lingered on that mountaintop meeting with God, they decide they would just take matters into their own hands. They would make a god more to their liking. The truth is, we all have “idol hands” that tend to either make the God we worship the God we want or make the god that we want the god that we worship. We’re going to learn today that if you are for God, you won’t put anything before God. You may not think that you have an idolatry problem. You may not even understand why we even have to discuss this issue, but when we see how we do choose false idols and what happens when we do, my prayer is it will cause all of us to give our total loyalty, complete love, and full life to the only true God there is.
Mountain Top Meetings
July 7, 2024 • Dr. James Merritt • Exodus 19
In this message, we are going to study the story of when God had a word for His people and wanted to meet with them. But before the people met with God, God wanted to meet with Moses. Every meeting was a mountaintop meeting and though you might get the idea from the movies that Moses only went up the mountain one time, he actually went up seven times. God wanted to show both Moses and the people that there is no bigger deal in life than meeting with God. What’s also great about this story is that we learn that the same God who met with Moses wants to meet with you. The same God that spoke to Moses wants to speak to you. We can learn from this mountaintop meeting how we can meet with the God of this universe every day, and not only do we not have to make an appointment or wait in line, but when we meet with Him, He will give us His undivided attention.
When Push Comes to Shove
June 30, 2024 • Dr. James Merritt • Exodus 18:13–27
We have been studying a man by the name of Moses in a series we are calling, “Red Sea Moments.” This great man of God was facing a Red Sea moment when he came to his own level of stress. He is leading two million of his people through wilderness and desert and they are burning up at times at the way he is doing it, and he is burning out trying. In the 18th chapter of Exodus, Moses had a moment and a meeting that didn’t just change his life, but it literally saved his life and helped him complete his tasks. It is not only very practical, but it is very spiritual. If you feel overworked and overwhelmed, now’s the time to admit it, because you will never be the father, the mother, the husband, the wife, the employee, or even the Christian that you should be as long as you stay there. Moses took three simple steps that kept him from burning out that you can take as well.
Living Hand to Mouth
June 23, 2024 • Dr. James Merritt • Exodus 16
One of the things that you will see throughout the books of Exodus and Numbers is how much complaining and griping the Israelites did. At different times in Exodus and Numbers, Moses and the Lord had to listen to their complaints. Every one of them had to do with food, drink, and living conditions. You have to wonder why God let his people get thirsty and then in this chapter he lets them get hungry. Why does God let us go through times of need, hardship, and difficulty? Because God is trying to teach us what He is trying to teach them and that is every single day of your life you live from His hand to your mouth. In this message, we are going to learn five things about God and about our daily life that I pray will lead us to be people not of griping, but gratitude, not of complaining, but celebrating.
When Your Back is Against the Wall
June 16, 2024 • Dr. James Merritt • Exodus 14
As we look today in the book of Exodus in chapter 14, we are going to read about the most celebrated event in Jewish history. Two movies have been made concerning this event and two words are all you need to know – The Exodus. If you had been standing where Moses was standing, you would have said, “This is the end of the line. We need to get our affairs in order. It’s over.” Normally, I wouldn’t spoil the ending by telling you what happens, but most of you already know it. God parts the Red Sea. The children of Israel pass through. He then closes the waters back on the Egyptian army, drowns them, and saves the day. The same God that came through for Moses and the nation of Israel is alive and well and wants to come through for you. In this message, we are going to learn what we need to do when our back is against the wall, just like Moses’ was.
Don't Beat Around the Bush
June 9, 2024 • Dr. James Merritt • Exodus 2:23—3:22
You may be asking, “What does a burning bush or a Red Sea or a man named Moses have to do with me?” You will learn the answer to this question throughout this series as we discover that we all have Red Sea moments. We all come face-to-face at times with burning bushes. Moses is a lot like all of us and the God of Moses is still alive today and wants to move in your life the same way He moved in his. You are going to learn three lessons today that will teach you don’t ever beat around a bush that calls your name. If you feel like you are living on the backside of the desert and nobody knows about your life or cares about it, and you even feel like God has forgotten you, take these three lessons to heart.
Miracle in the Mirror
June 2, 2024 • Dr. James Merritt • Exodus 1:8—2:10
When Moses was born, Israel had become slaves in the land of Egypt, but that wasn’t always the case. Because of a great man named Joseph, the Egyptian pharaoh had basically adopted them into the nation, giving them favored status and the full rights of citizenship. Four hundred years had passed and now Israel had two big problems. There was a pharaoh that had forgotten who Joseph was, but even more importantly, the nation of Israel had forgotten who God was. It was in that situation that a baby was born that changed everything. Israel needed a miracle, and that
miracle came in the form of a baby, a baby named Moses. And as we read his story, we will see that three things were true of Moses that are true of you.
