Opening Prayer
Beloved Creator, you have given us your name for all time and all places. In a world where we feel unseen, you see us. In a world where we feel purposeless, you call us. In a world where we feel powerless, you empower us. And in the midst of it all, you are the God who is real. In your realness, be real to us today. Because we trust you, we lift up the prayers of our heart this morning to you.
(Prayer Requests prayed for)
Lord’s Prayer
Call to Worship from Psalm 91:2/Romans 10:9-13
Let us worship God.
“He is our refuge and our fortress,
our God, in whom we trust.”
Let us confess with our mouths, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in our hearts that God raised him from the dead.
“Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
Let us call upon our true God,
believing him in our hearts, confessing him with our mouths, worshiping him in spirit and in truth.
* God of Our Fathers (God of the Ages) 532/331
Confession
We come before you today knowing that we often fail you.
Forgive us when you call us and we do not listen.
Forgive us when you send us and we do not go.
Forgive us when we shut our hearts and ears to you.
Turn us to be your people, following you. Amen
Declaration of Forgiveness
Hear the Good News! When Moses was hiding in the Wilderness, God still called him. Wherever we are, whatever we do, God finds us and calls us back to him. Know that God has found you this morning, you are forgiven, be at peace.
Gloria Patri
Children’s Time
Prayer for Illumination
Reading of the Word: Exodus 3:1-15
Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed.
Then Moses said, "I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why the bush is not burned up."
When the LORD saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am."
Then he said, "Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground." He said further, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.
Then the LORD said, "I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the country of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. The cry of the Israelites has now come to me; I have also seen how the Egyptians oppress them. So come, I will send you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt."
But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?"
He said, "I will be with you; and this shall be the sign for you that it is I who sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God on this mountain."
But Moses said to God, "If I come to the Israelites and say to them, 'The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' what shall I say to them?"
God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM." He said further, "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, 'I AM has sent me to you.'" God also said to Moses, "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, 'The LORD, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you': This is my name forever, and this my title for all generations.
This is the word of the Lord
Thanks be to God
Spirit of God Descend Upon My Heart 171/688
Sermon: At the Burning Bush
Last week we came to the climax of Jesus’ time with his disciples. After all the training, after all of the miracles, after letting them see who he is, Jesus asked, “Who do you say that I am?” We asked ourselves, “Who do we say that he is?” And we were reminded that all of us have to make a decision in our lives about Jesus Christ.
Today we begin a new journey as we go back to the Old Testament and Moses. Here we find the opposite happening. God does not ask Moses who he is, Moses asks God that question. Let’s put it in context.
Moses has left the Israelites after murdering a guard who was beating a fellow Israelite. He is now married to a Midianite – a descendent of Abraham’s other wife, Keturah. So in Moses, we have the coming together of the family again.
I mention this because Jethro, the father-in-law of Moses was a Midianite Priest. It is unclear whether Jethro was a believer in the Most High God, but when Moses asked his permission to bring his family back to Egypt to see if his people were alive, Jethro gave him his blessing. When God confronted Moses on the way, it was his wife Zipporah who circumcised their son. So there is support for the concept that Moses never abandoned his faith, rather he rediscovered it outside of his own people.
And when the time was ready, God called Moses to him, out of a burning bush that was not consumed.
This is one of the pivotal points in the Old Testament. It shows much about who God is, so let’s unpack it a bit. Who is this God at the burning bush?
The first thing (beyond the burning bush) that we hear is the words “God saw.” It begins with God seeing that Moses has turned aside, and he calls out to him. God goes on to say that He has SEEN the misery of his people in Egypt.
I think it is important to stop here and remember back to the slave girl Hagar. When she was running away, she encountered the Angel of the Lord just as Moses did in this passage. In Genesis 15:12 we read: “She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.”
Here at the burning bush we hear those words again. God is the God who sees us.
Whether we are a slave girl running from her master, a shepherd keeping a flock in the desert, or God’s people in trouble, God sees. Perhaps that truth is best reflected in Psalm 139 when the Psalmist writes:
Where can I go from your spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, you are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.
If I take the wings of the morning and settle at the farthest limits of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me fast.
If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me and the light around me become night,” even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is as bright as the day, for darkness is as light to you.
Perhaps that truth is relevant when we look to our own lives. No matter where we are, no matter who we are, light or dark, home or away, God sees us and knows the truth about us.
The second thing we see in this passage is that God is the one who calls.
He called Moses to the burning bush and gave him his plan. It is actually quite fun to read the entire passage where Moses comes back and tells God all of the reasons why he can’t do it.
He begins with:
Who am I (remember, he murdered a guard and ran from the land) to fill this call?
And God answers, it isn’t about you, it is about me. I will be with you.
Then he comes back with: But I don’t know who You ARE!
And God tells him. I am the God who is. Imagine God answering you, those quiet powerful words! I Am. That is enough. We will get back to that name in a minute, but for now, let’s stick with Moses.
The next thing Moses asks is, “What if they don’t believe me.”
It probably doesn’t surprise you that God gave him a sign or three so that they would be convinced. The staff becoming a snake, his leperous hand, and even the Nile turning to blood. All signs, there could be no confusion.
Next Moses objects because he is slow of speech and that he wouldn’t be very convincing.
God’s response? It isn’t that hard. I will tell you what to say, and you will say it.
And after all of that, Moses turns to God and says, “O my Lord, please send someone else.”
God gives up a bit. Scripture says he grew impatient with Moses. And at this point he agrees to send Aaron with him. But Aaron isn’t sent instead of him, he is sent with him. Moses is still called to go.
I wanted to talk about this because we forget that God calls us to do certain things. And just like God sees us wherever we are, God calls us wherever we are. Whether we are ministers of word and sacrament, elders, deacons, or members, God has called us where we are. Just as God called Moses, he continues to be the God who calls.
Along with calling Moses, God also reminded Moses of something important. The God who calls is the God who provides. Just briefly, some of what he did for Moses, He provided His presence, his name, his miracles, his words.
As God provided for Moses, God provides for us. When God calls, God provides.
And finally, we get to the very heart of God. God Is the One Who Is.
In the world of Egypt, they had many so called gods they prayed to. They were made of clay, of wood, and even gold. The problem with these so called gods is that they weren’t a god. They were worthless idols. You could pray to them, but since they weren’t real, praying was a useless endeavor.
On the other hand, the entity challenging Moses was real. When God spoke His name, he let Moses know that.
Today’s world is filled with people who do not believe. Or if they believe, they think that God can be whatever they define God to be. The problem with creating your own God is that it has no more power than those clay or wooden or gold idols that the people had. The problem with us deciding who God is is that God is only an extension of our own imagination.
In today’s world of uncertainty, God continues to be. When God tells us that God IS, God is saying, I am who I am. God isn’t defined by us, God Is who God Is. And God is whether we believe in God or not.
There is actually an area of study in Philosophy that involves being, it is called ontology. Every philosopher begins at this point, which overlaps science and math. You have to begin with something true in order to end up with something that has meaning.
So an ontological truth is one that is always true regardless of circumstances. Here, God gives an ontological truth. And this truth is the basis of our faith.
God is the one who is. All other so called gods are the Gods who aren’t.
So this morning we saw several things about God.
God is the God who sees.
God is the God who calls.
God is the God who provides.
God is the God who is.
God sees us, God calls us, God provides for us, and God is the foundation on which we are able to trust because God is real.
Out of our understanding of God, let us speak the words of the Apostle’s Creed, confirming our belief.
Apostles Creed
I BELIEVE in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; he descended into hell; the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy catholic Church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen.
Dedication of Offerings/Doxology
* O Jesus I Have Promised 392/724
* Benediction/Passing the Peace
And now may the God who was and is and always will be, walk with you and lead you. May the Holy Spirit rest upon you as you go, And may the peace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
And also with you
Pastor: Rev. Bobbie Karchner
Ministers: The Congregation
Web Site: http://tricountyministries.weebly.com
Weekly Worship Services uploaded on Sunday
Beloved Creator, you have given us your name for all time and all places. In a world where we feel unseen, you see us. In a world where we feel purposeless, you call us. In a world where we feel powerless, you empower us. And in the midst of it all, you are the God who is real. In your realness, be real to us today. Because we trust you, we lift up the prayers of our heart this morning to you.
(Prayer Requests prayed for)
Lord’s Prayer
Call to Worship from Psalm 91:2/Romans 10:9-13
Let us worship God.
“He is our refuge and our fortress,
our God, in whom we trust.”
Let us confess with our mouths, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in our hearts that God raised him from the dead.
“Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
Let us call upon our true God,
believing him in our hearts, confessing him with our mouths, worshiping him in spirit and in truth.
* God of Our Fathers (God of the Ages) 532/331
Confession
We come before you today knowing that we often fail you.
Forgive us when you call us and we do not listen.
Forgive us when you send us and we do not go.
Forgive us when we shut our hearts and ears to you.
Turn us to be your people, following you. Amen
Declaration of Forgiveness
Hear the Good News! When Moses was hiding in the Wilderness, God still called him. Wherever we are, whatever we do, God finds us and calls us back to him. Know that God has found you this morning, you are forgiven, be at peace.
Gloria Patri
Children’s Time
Prayer for Illumination
Reading of the Word: Exodus 3:1-15
Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed.
Then Moses said, "I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why the bush is not burned up."
When the LORD saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am."
Then he said, "Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground." He said further, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.
Then the LORD said, "I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the country of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. The cry of the Israelites has now come to me; I have also seen how the Egyptians oppress them. So come, I will send you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt."
But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?"
He said, "I will be with you; and this shall be the sign for you that it is I who sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God on this mountain."
But Moses said to God, "If I come to the Israelites and say to them, 'The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' what shall I say to them?"
God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM." He said further, "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, 'I AM has sent me to you.'" God also said to Moses, "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, 'The LORD, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you': This is my name forever, and this my title for all generations.
This is the word of the Lord
Thanks be to God
Spirit of God Descend Upon My Heart 171/688
Sermon: At the Burning Bush
Last week we came to the climax of Jesus’ time with his disciples. After all the training, after all of the miracles, after letting them see who he is, Jesus asked, “Who do you say that I am?” We asked ourselves, “Who do we say that he is?” And we were reminded that all of us have to make a decision in our lives about Jesus Christ.
Today we begin a new journey as we go back to the Old Testament and Moses. Here we find the opposite happening. God does not ask Moses who he is, Moses asks God that question. Let’s put it in context.
Moses has left the Israelites after murdering a guard who was beating a fellow Israelite. He is now married to a Midianite – a descendent of Abraham’s other wife, Keturah. So in Moses, we have the coming together of the family again.
I mention this because Jethro, the father-in-law of Moses was a Midianite Priest. It is unclear whether Jethro was a believer in the Most High God, but when Moses asked his permission to bring his family back to Egypt to see if his people were alive, Jethro gave him his blessing. When God confronted Moses on the way, it was his wife Zipporah who circumcised their son. So there is support for the concept that Moses never abandoned his faith, rather he rediscovered it outside of his own people.
And when the time was ready, God called Moses to him, out of a burning bush that was not consumed.
This is one of the pivotal points in the Old Testament. It shows much about who God is, so let’s unpack it a bit. Who is this God at the burning bush?
The first thing (beyond the burning bush) that we hear is the words “God saw.” It begins with God seeing that Moses has turned aside, and he calls out to him. God goes on to say that He has SEEN the misery of his people in Egypt.
I think it is important to stop here and remember back to the slave girl Hagar. When she was running away, she encountered the Angel of the Lord just as Moses did in this passage. In Genesis 15:12 we read: “She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.”
Here at the burning bush we hear those words again. God is the God who sees us.
Whether we are a slave girl running from her master, a shepherd keeping a flock in the desert, or God’s people in trouble, God sees. Perhaps that truth is best reflected in Psalm 139 when the Psalmist writes:
Where can I go from your spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, you are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.
If I take the wings of the morning and settle at the farthest limits of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me fast.
If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me and the light around me become night,” even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is as bright as the day, for darkness is as light to you.
Perhaps that truth is relevant when we look to our own lives. No matter where we are, no matter who we are, light or dark, home or away, God sees us and knows the truth about us.
The second thing we see in this passage is that God is the one who calls.
He called Moses to the burning bush and gave him his plan. It is actually quite fun to read the entire passage where Moses comes back and tells God all of the reasons why he can’t do it.
He begins with:
Who am I (remember, he murdered a guard and ran from the land) to fill this call?
And God answers, it isn’t about you, it is about me. I will be with you.
Then he comes back with: But I don’t know who You ARE!
And God tells him. I am the God who is. Imagine God answering you, those quiet powerful words! I Am. That is enough. We will get back to that name in a minute, but for now, let’s stick with Moses.
The next thing Moses asks is, “What if they don’t believe me.”
It probably doesn’t surprise you that God gave him a sign or three so that they would be convinced. The staff becoming a snake, his leperous hand, and even the Nile turning to blood. All signs, there could be no confusion.
Next Moses objects because he is slow of speech and that he wouldn’t be very convincing.
God’s response? It isn’t that hard. I will tell you what to say, and you will say it.
And after all of that, Moses turns to God and says, “O my Lord, please send someone else.”
God gives up a bit. Scripture says he grew impatient with Moses. And at this point he agrees to send Aaron with him. But Aaron isn’t sent instead of him, he is sent with him. Moses is still called to go.
I wanted to talk about this because we forget that God calls us to do certain things. And just like God sees us wherever we are, God calls us wherever we are. Whether we are ministers of word and sacrament, elders, deacons, or members, God has called us where we are. Just as God called Moses, he continues to be the God who calls.
Along with calling Moses, God also reminded Moses of something important. The God who calls is the God who provides. Just briefly, some of what he did for Moses, He provided His presence, his name, his miracles, his words.
As God provided for Moses, God provides for us. When God calls, God provides.
And finally, we get to the very heart of God. God Is the One Who Is.
In the world of Egypt, they had many so called gods they prayed to. They were made of clay, of wood, and even gold. The problem with these so called gods is that they weren’t a god. They were worthless idols. You could pray to them, but since they weren’t real, praying was a useless endeavor.
On the other hand, the entity challenging Moses was real. When God spoke His name, he let Moses know that.
Today’s world is filled with people who do not believe. Or if they believe, they think that God can be whatever they define God to be. The problem with creating your own God is that it has no more power than those clay or wooden or gold idols that the people had. The problem with us deciding who God is is that God is only an extension of our own imagination.
In today’s world of uncertainty, God continues to be. When God tells us that God IS, God is saying, I am who I am. God isn’t defined by us, God Is who God Is. And God is whether we believe in God or not.
There is actually an area of study in Philosophy that involves being, it is called ontology. Every philosopher begins at this point, which overlaps science and math. You have to begin with something true in order to end up with something that has meaning.
So an ontological truth is one that is always true regardless of circumstances. Here, God gives an ontological truth. And this truth is the basis of our faith.
God is the one who is. All other so called gods are the Gods who aren’t.
So this morning we saw several things about God.
God is the God who sees.
God is the God who calls.
God is the God who provides.
God is the God who is.
God sees us, God calls us, God provides for us, and God is the foundation on which we are able to trust because God is real.
Out of our understanding of God, let us speak the words of the Apostle’s Creed, confirming our belief.
Apostles Creed
I BELIEVE in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; he descended into hell; the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy catholic Church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen.
Dedication of Offerings/Doxology
* O Jesus I Have Promised 392/724
* Benediction/Passing the Peace
And now may the God who was and is and always will be, walk with you and lead you. May the Holy Spirit rest upon you as you go, And may the peace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
And also with you
Pastor: Rev. Bobbie Karchner
Ministers: The Congregation
Web Site: http://tricountyministries.weebly.com
Weekly Worship Services uploaded on Sunday