Fourty Days That Changed A Life 1

40 Days that changed a life. (01)

Show me thy ways.

Exodus 33: 12.

I don’t know that you have never noticed that the number 40 is used several times in the Bible. I want us to look into the Bible and look at some Bible characters and at some lives transformed in 40 days. We will call this sermon the first of a series called 40 days that changed a life. Today we want to start by looking at the man Moses. We are all familiar with the man called Moses.

You remember when Moses was beginning to lead the people of God from the bondage of Egypt; he spent 40 days in the mountain. He wasn’t there alone; it was for 40 days with Moses and God.

Can you imagine the responsibility that faced Moses as he began to try leading around 2 million people across the desert to the Promised Land? Before he felt comfortable with this task he would have to spend some time with God. There would be many difficulties in leading a people across the wilderness to a land promised to them by God. Moses wasn’t able to feed, minister to all these people without some divine help. So, God met with Moses in the mountain for 40 days. Moses goes on the mountain to spend 40 days with God. While in the mountains, Moses had an encounter with God that transformed his life. This encounter enabled Moses to be one of the greatest men in all of history. Moses was the man considered to be the greatest prophet.

Look at our text this morning found an exodus 33:12 – 15.

Moses said before I take on this responsibility of leading your people show me thy ways. There is a verse in the book of Psalms 103:7 that says the people knew God’s actions, or works, but Moses knew his ways. You see there is a difference in knowing God’s ways and knowing God’s works. Israel had seen the works of God but Moses knew his ways.

You can know God on two levels. You can know God’s works and also know God’s way. To know God’s works, most of us can contribute something that is the works of God. There is another way we can know God and that is the ways of God. To know the ways of God is to understand why he does what he does. You know God wants us to not only know his works but also His ways. There are two kinds of Christians. They are Christians are know God only by observation. Then there are others who know God by revelation. The ways of God. The only way you can know someone is to spend time with that person. The reason Moses was on that mountain was to know the ways of God.

To know the ways of God is to know God’s continuous presence.

Back up in verse 3 God said the people will go into the Promised Land but I will not be in their midst. There is only one reason I am not going to destroy the stiff-necked people Moses and it is because of you. God said I will just send an angel with you to guide the way but I’m not going.

And verse 15, Moses said, “If your presence is not with us then carry us not up hence.” In other words, Moses said if you aren’t going, if we don’t have your continuous presence, I don’t want to go. What good is the land without the Lord? Lord if you aren’t with us, we don’t want to go. That is what it’s all about the continuous presence of God.

God’s ways is not only to know the continuous presence of God but also God’s comforting peace. Look at verse 14.

The kind of rest God is talking about here is not physical rest. He is talking about peace with God in your life. You can never have peace with God unless you have made peace with God. Have you made peace with God to know him as your Savior? If you haven’t, then friend you don’t have peace with God? Have you responded to God’s invitation to you to receive his son’s death for your sin?

Finally, to know God’s ways is to know God’s conquering power. Look at verses 15- 17.

Does God know you by name? There is something better than you knowing God and that is God knowing you. Even if you come to a point in your life and your mind will not let you know God, God knows you if you have received his son. Do you know Jesus?