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INTRODUCTION

Israel has just been guilty of the sin of idolatry and God has come in judgement upon his people (32:35). His judgement is also mixed with mercy and now the big question that is on everyone's mind is this: What about Israel's future? Would God continue to presence himself among his people? Well God now threatens not to travel with the people to the land of promise.

He will not be in their midst at the centre of his people; He will be with them but only at a distance the people will have to travel alone.

1. THE PEOPLE FACE AN UNCERTAIN FUTURE (vs.1-6)

Although the future is so uncertain for Israel regarding God's presence God does assure Moses that He will fulfil the oath that he gave to the Patriarchs; Abraham Isaac and Jacob. Moses had pleaded with God to remember the covenant promises that He had made (32:13) and now God says "Moses I have not forgotten them, I will fulfil them."

However because of the people's sin and their proneness to sin God says He will not go with them which really means He will not be in the midst of the people as they journey to the Land of Promise. This probably means that He will not allow them to construct the tabernacle the purpose of which was that God might dwell in the midst of the people. In other words the symbol of God's presence will not be constructed and without that how do the people know that God is even with them.

God had given detailed instructions concerning the making of the tabernacle because God desired to be with his people but because the people desired to have a golden calf in their midst God now is going to withdraw and distance himself from his people. The very language that God uses shows what God withdrawing from the people means. He calls the Israelites "the people" (v 1) whereas God always calls them "my people" throughout the book.

God does promise that an angel will go before the people but we need to notice that the angel is not called "my angel" (v 2), which is usually the case throughout the book of Exodus. So God is going to fulfil his covenant promises to these people because He is a faithful covenant keeping God but He will do so as He stands at a distance from the people.

In one sense the people's future is secure because God has promised them the Promised Land but in another sense it is very unsure. How can they leave the foot of the mountain without knowing that God in at the heart of the nation and at the very centre of his people? Now in our day we know that God promises never to leave and forsake us and that is absolutely true but at times we have all experienced periods when God seems so distance to us and at other times we know He is right at the centre of our church. I think of the church at Laodicea (Revelation 3:14-22).

They were lukewarm Christians and a lukewarm church; they thought that they had everything and that God was blessing them but they were so wrong. So because of God's love for his church He distanced himself from them and we have Revelation 3:20 which is often used in an evangelistic way yet it speaks of God outside of the church door waiting to be invited back into the church.

This is what sin does; it distances us from God; He is still our God and Father but that relationship is so strained that we fail to know the blessing of his presence that we ought to know (illustrate father child relationship). Notice the reason why God distances himself from his people here (v 3). The people had become stiff-necked.

They had rebelled against the Lord and gone their own way. If God were to be at the centre of such a people He would have to completely destroy them for his holy wrath would have to react to the sin of the people. So in many ways by distancing himself from the people He is being merciful; He is disciplining the people wanting the people to repent so that He can come right into the midst of the people and bless them again.

We need to be careful as a church that we do provoke the Lord by our stiff-necked rebellion against Him. Otherwise He will withdraw from us and be with us only at a distance. You know it is possible that many churches function week by week without even knowing that the Lord is outside the door longing and waiting for the church to repent so that He can again be at the heart of his church and his people. The church at Laodicea did not realise that God was no longer walking in their midst.

Is one of the reasons why the church is failing to know blessings from God today because of our stiff-necked rebellion and as a result his withdrawal from us? If the Lord stayed right in the midst of the sinning church today then He would have to destroy us. We all need to search our hearts and ask God to reveal to us our true state. If God has distanced himself from us then how can we go forward? We face a very uncertain future without the direct presence of the Lord with us.

So what did the people do (vs. 3-6)? The people responded with mourning and repentance. They were instructed to remove their ornaments this may have been jewellery that they had left over after their contribution to the golden calf. God tells them to remove the very thing that contributed to their sin. The people obey because they are clearly mourning and lamenting over God's threat to withdraw from them. Now that is the only answer to God's distancing himself from his church today.

If we sin and do not repent God withdraws to the edges of our churches and lives. Only true repentance brings him back to the centre again. The very things that contribute to our sins must be removed from our lives. There is nothing worst that to be separated from the presence of the Lord even for a brief period. So Christian; if there is sin in our lives then God will distance himself from us individually and collectively as a church and what are we going to do then?

Is there anything worst? We might as well close the doors of the church and go home. Therefore we all need to take this seriously and repent from our apathy, from our selfishness from our many other sins and remove these things from our lives and then maybe God will come back to us and be in our midst once again.

But if you are not a Christian then you are separated from God; it not that God has distanced himself from you it's much worse than that; He has separated himself completely from you. That is how it will stay both in this world but even worst in eternity because what makes hell so awful is that you are separated from God's grace and mercy forever. All you know in hell is God's just wrath.

But now while you still have breath and while the Lord delays his return there is mercy and grace if you will only come to your senses and repent. Remove from your life all that is contributing to your sin and seek his mercy and grace for the forgiveness of your many sins. What sort of future do any of us have without the presence of the Lord with us?

2. MOSES INTERCEDES FOR THE PEOPLE (vs. 7-23)

Now Moses as the covenant mediator intervenes by setting up a tent outside the confines of the camp (v 7). This is not the tabernacle but a temporary meeting place. He is going to meet with God and petition God on behalf of these people. Moses sets up the tent outside the camp because God is no longer in the midst of the people but He is distanced from the people. The tabernacle was to be placed in the middle of the camp but now because of the people's sins Moses has to set up another tent some distance from where the tabernacle should be. Moses went to this tent to meet with God and as he did so, the people stood and watched (v 8). Moses intercession for the people was their only hope. When Moses went into the tent God came to meet with him in a cloud (vs. 9-10). The cloud was a physical symbol of the presence of God. Thus when the people saw this; they knew that God's presence was still with them although very much removed from the camp.

There the Lord spoke to Moses face to face. Now we know that this expression face to face was an expression that highlights the intimacy that existed between God and Moses. It also highlights that God spoke to Moses with clear words and not in visions and dreams like He did to many of the prophets.

Now in verse 20 there is an apparent inconsistency because God tells Moses that no one can see his face and live. But it is not really an inconsistency when we think that God is using human language to help us understand that God spoke personally to Moses in an intimate way.  To see God's face is a way of saying you cannot possible see God as He is in his being and live? It simply would be too powerful for us. It's all human language to tell us two things about God.

That God is glorious and his being cannot be fully fathomed and yet He speaks personally to mankind.

Moses begins to intercede for the people. He reminds God of the situation. He is asked to lead the people but who will go with them. "You have said you will send an angel but who is this angel Lord (vs. 12-13)?" "God, you say that you know my name, which implies great intimacy and Lord you said, I have found favour or grace with you." If this is really true Moses asks the Lord "show me your ways; Lord reveal yourself to me and show me your paths; show me your direction."

Moses finally reminds God that this nation that He has withdrawn his presence from is really his people (v 13).

The Lord responds to Moses prayer (v 14) by assuring Moses of his presence (Literally reads 'my face will go'). Remember that the Lord's face means intimacy so the Lord is assuring Moses that He will wholeheartedly go up to the Promised Land with Moses. But as yet there is no mention of the people he will go with Moses but will he be present with his people as they travel to the Promised Land.

This is why Moses responds in the way he does (vs. 15-16). How will people know that we are the Lord's people unless you go with us and presence yourself among us? It's God's presence that makes the distinction between one group of people and another. What made Israel different from all the nations in the world at that time? They had the assured presence of God in their midst. As a result they had his law and his word. This is why Moses is interceding for the people remove your presence Lord and how will we be distinctive? Now the Lord responds to Moses by assuring him that He will do what Moses has already asked for (v 17).

The Lord will be present with the entire covenant community of his people. Now the people can go forward and build the tabernacle because God has assured the people; He will reside again in their midst.

Moses makes one more request (v 18). Moses has had all his requests answered except one. In verse 13 Moses asked the Lord to reveal himself. He wants to know the essential being and character of God and how He operates in our world. That is at the heart of Moses request for God to reveal to him his glory. He has a great desire to know God in a much fuller way than He does at present. Moses is asking God to reveal his essential quality of his being.

God responds in the form of a proclamation of his attributes that is his qualities. He says "all my goodness" Moses will go before you. Good seems to be used here as a generic term that includes many of his attributes. Secondly God proclaims his name "Yahweh" before Moses; his name of course stands for who He is; the great 'I am' (3:14). He assures Moses that He is autonomous; free to have compassion and mercy on whomever He chooses (v 20). 

The Lord tells Moses you cannot possible see me as I am; you cannot see me in all my fullness as God. Moses you are a sinner how can you look on my glory or my splendour and expect not to be consumed by my holiness. Not even the angels can look directly at God (Isaiah 6:1-3).

However Moses is going to be allowed just a glimpse of his glory (vs. 21-23). God again accommodates himself to human language by speaking of his hand and back and face. Moses does not see God in all his glory and fullness he is allowed just a small glimpse of his glory. This serves as a physical symbol of a theological reality, which is that mankind, can only partially discern the attributes and being of God; humanity cannot comprehend his essential being.

Now in the New Testament we are told that we behold God's glory in the person of Jesus Christ (John 1:14). As believers today like Moses we do not behold the full glory of God but we are allowed in faith to see the glory of God as it is manifested in the flesh of Jesus Christ. The very being and nature of God is simply beyond human understanding and comprehension. What Jesus does reveal is as much of the divine nature or holiness of God as mankind can see and receive. Jesus is if you like the mirror of God; He is the express image of God's person. Jesus interprets God to our dull hearts in Jesus; God becomes visible and intelligible to us. Jesus is God stooping down to our level and as a result He enables our feeble thoughts to get some real hold on God himself.

There's one brief and final lesson as we conclude. When God has distanced himself from us only repentance and mediation can bring him back into our midst. We must repent of our sin but as we do we have a Great High Priest the Lord Jesus who is our mediator and He intercedes for us so that we receive forgiveness and as a result his presence in our midst. Jesus came to into our world to bring God to us. He shows us what God is like for He is God in human flesh.

All that we need to know about God is seen in Jesus; therefore we need to study his life and his character to find out more about the God we worship. But Jesus not only came to show us God he came to die for us to take God's wrath for our sin upon himself and to bring us to God. Since his death resurrection and ascension he is now sitting at his Father's right hand interceding for us. No doubt reminding the triune God of his covenant promises to us his people and pleading for us when we repent of our sin. God cannot but be with us when we repent because Jesus His Son is our mediator and pleads on our behalf for the removal of our daily sins. The Father cannot but forgive because Jesus His Son has died to pay the price for our sins. Therefore as we move on as a church; is God at the centre of our church's life or has He distanced himself from us because of our sins.

If so then we all have a responsibility to repent and seek his face and we can be assured that we will be forgiven and God will return to us because of his Son the Lord Jesus who is our Saviour and mediator of the new covenant

Remember it is God's presence that makes us distinct from those around us. It is his presence that makes a church a real church. Therefore let us take to heart his word and let us respond to his word and let us look to Jesus as our covenant mediator to keep us close to God and God close to us.

Amen