Lesson 68 - Junior

Memory Verse

Notes

Helpless without God

When the great company of Israelites started their trek to the Promised Land, they did not know the way. They did not know where to find food for themselves and their cattle, nor where there was water to drink. Without God to guide them they would soon have perished in the wilderness.

From the beginning of their journey God had gone before them in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. They knew God was there because He had spoken to Moses from the cloud, and they had all beheld His glory ([EXO:16:10-12]).

The Glory of God in the Mount

The pillar had led them right up to Mount Sinai, where the Israelites camped for a while.-There God appeared in majesty and power, amid thunder and lightning and earthquake; and there the trumpet of God sounded long and loud, calling the people near to the mount to listen to His divine commands. They had heard His voice and understood the words He spoke; yet, within forty days they had made themselves a calf of gold to represent the omnipotent God of Heaven! Surely God was justified in wanting to destroy such an idolatrous and ungrateful people. Think of His great mercy in sparing them, in answer to the prayers of Moses!

God Disowns His People

When God told Moses in the mount that the Israelites were sinning, He said: "Go, get thee down; for thy people, which thou broughtest out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves" (Exodus 32:7). God would not claim those sinful people as His own, and in speaking of them to Moses called them "thy people."

We cannot be the children of God if we have sin in our lives.-When we confess our sins and repent of them, and we receive Jesus' pardon, we are born into the family of God; but if we commit sin again, we are no longer His children. Jesus told the Jews when they sinned that the devil was their father ([JHN:8:44]). God directed John to write: "In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother" (I John 3:10). We see that even what we might consider little sins, like not loving our brother, will sever us from the family of God and make us children of Satan.

The Tabernacle Moved from the Camp

God had mercy upon Israel when they repented, and did not destroy them all; but He said He could not dwell among such a stubborn people. Moses had a tent where he met God and worshiped, which he now moved far outside the camp. He called it the Tabernacle of the Congregation. There Moses went to plead for the people, and there God met with him in the pillar of cloud. Any of the Children of Israel who longed to worship God were free to go with him. When the people who remained in their tents saw the pillar descend upon the tent, as a token of His returning favour, they rose up to worship.

God's Offer of an Angel as Guide

God had had mercy upon Israel, but He knew they were likely to sin again, and perhaps the next time He would not have mercy and they would all be destroyed. For that reason He said He would send an angel to lead the way, since He Himself would not abide with them.

We shall learn later that one time when the Israelites sinned, God sent poisonous serpents among them to bite them; and all who were bitten died. At another time fire from the Lord broke out in the camp and burned up many people for their sins ([NUM:11:1-35]).

Moses' Plea

Moses was broken-hearted at the thought that God would not go with them. Moses simply did not feel that he could lead that great nation to the Promised Land unless God was right there beside him to help.-When Moses had first felt a desire to help his people in Egypt, he tried in his own strength to be of service, but found he had done the wrong thing. When he had tried to make peace between two Hebrews, they cried, "Who made thee a prince and a judge over us?" Moses had learned that he would do nothing without the help of God, so he requested that the presence of God go with him, or he would not try to lead the people any farther.

Our Need of God's Presence

Some people who start out to be Christians lean hard upon the Lord in the beginning, but after a while they think they can get along pretty well by themselves. They do not pray as much as when they were first saved, and they do not spend much time in reading the Bible, God's guide to Christian living. Gradually they drift away from God. Then when trouble comes to them, they suddenly realise they are all alone, and they feel their desperate need of the Lord's help " but He is far away. Moses did not want to find himself in a hard place with his God afar off. He said: "If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence."

That should be the purpose of every Christian. We should never go anyplace that we cannot take the Lord with us; we should never say anything we do not want Him to hear. We should study God's Word and pray to Jesus so much that we always feel His presence right beside us.

Moses reasoned with God: How would the strange nations know that these were God's people if His presence were not with them? How do people today know who are God's children? They can recognise the true Christian by the Spirit of God that abides with him. A congregation may gather in the name of Jesus, but if there is sin in their hearts the Spirit of God will not be with them. Their worship is an empty form. The atheist can look at such people and say that he lives as acceptably as they do.

Where the Spirit Dwells

How different is a congregation where the Spirit of God dwells! There is love and fellowship among the brethren because the Blood of Jesus has made them one; there is power to pray the prayer of faith that will heal the sick; the Holy Spirit speaks conviction upon the honest sinner and makes him want to get saved. God is there! His sacred presence can be felt. The songs of praise are inspired, rising from hearts that know God. The message of God's Word is given in a manner that uncovers sin and teaches men the way to Heaven. And Bible signs follow those who believe ([MAK:16:17-18]).

How important it is to have the presence of God with us! His Spirit abides in His born-again children; when they become sanctified, the Spirit is there in greater fullness; and when they receive the baptism of the Holy Ghost, their beings overflow with that oil of joy, His fire of love. They receive power with the baptism for fruitful service for the Lord. That Spirit remains with us as long as we continue to live for God and commune daily with our Lord.

The Light of the World

The world is growing darker because of the sins of the people. Jesus is its only Light. Thus the Spirit in His children, the light containers, is the light that leads men to the Saviour. That is why it is so important that we have as much of the Spirit of God in our hearts as we can possibly get that we may light the way for sinful men to find the path to Glory.

Moses Prevails

God answered the prayer of Moses and consented to go with him. Then Moses asked for even greater blessings: he wanted to see the glory of God. Now, no man can see the face of God and live in this mortal body. He hid Moses in the cleft of a rock and covered him with His hand. Then He passed by and let just His back be seen by Moses. The heart of the true Christian longs for a vision of Jesus; and we rejoice in the amount of His glory He allows us to behold. When we get to Heaven we shall see Him as He is. "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is" (I John 3:2).

Questions

1. Who led the Children of Israel out of Egypt to Sinai? How?

2. Why did God refuse to call the Israelites His children?

3. When are we the children of God?

4. How were the strange nations to know that Israel was God's chosen people?

5. How do people know that we are the children of God?