Rev. David Holwick A
First Baptist Church
Ledgewood, New Jersey
January 7, 2001
Exodus 33:18-23
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I. Shyness is a common human trait.
A. You probably consider yourself to be shy.
B. Some are more shy than others:
George Lyon of Scotland was 68 when he finally proposed
to Catherine MacDonald, age 60.
They had been dating 44 years.
When asked why George waited so long, Catherine replied,
"He is a bit shy, you know."
#2248
II. God is shy.
A. Not bashful, but shy to intervene.
1) He exercises incredible self-restraint.
a) God of the Bible is more reticent than other religions.
b) Few scenes of linkage between seen and unseen worlds.
2) Miracles & visions are tucked into long periods of silence.
a) Intervention may come after many prayers, many
centuries.
b) God is not impetuous, but shy to act.
B. He overcomes his shyness when evil or suffering overflows.
1) Sometimes he intervenes with a personal appearance.
2) Sometimes he intervenes through natural phenomena.
3) Most often he taps a person to convey words on his behalf.
C. A unique appearance of God. Exodus 33
1) Moses had just brought down the Ten Commandments only to
find the people carousing before a golden calf.
a) He had to plead with God not to destroy them.
2) He wanted to know where he himself stood with God.
a) Teach me your ways. 33:13
b) I want your presence to go with us. 33:15
c) I want to see your glory. 33:18
3) The theophany.
a) The goodness of God passes before Moses.
1> His essential character traits are proclaimed.
b) There is a limitation - he cannot see God's face.
1> Apparently this is always fatal.
2> Instead, Moses is hidden (in cave?) by God's
"hand" and is only allowed to see his "back."
c) Anthropomorphisms of hand and back.
1> Some think this is indication of primitive religion,
where God is just another guy.
2> Instead, it is the description of reality of God
in terms people can understand.
3> Since God is Spirit and has no form, the word "back"
could just as well be translated "the
after-effects" of his radiant glory, which had
just passed by.
4) Even Moses, who spoke to God "face to face," could only
catch a glimpse of the glory.
III. Why is God shy?
A. The problem of an invisible God appearing visibly.
1) We lack sensors to see supernatural.
2) We are limited. God can see everything, of all time.
B. When God manifests himself he must accept limitations.
1) Limits of time and space.
2) Burning bush had to be in a particular place.
3) The cleft in the rock was also (same place, even?)
IV. God hides.
A. God hides; the earth can seem empty of him. Isaiah 45:15
"Truly you are a God who hides himself..."
1) "Hide and seek" between parent and child, as a metaphor.
2) Perhaps God plays hard to get for the sake of discovery.
a) He places a premium on faith, which can only be
exercised in circumstances that allow for doubt.
b) The direct presence of God would overwhelm our freedom.
B. God is camouflaged, but he is in the world.
1) He is hidden in grace, goodness, love, nature, music.
2) God is here, but we are not aware of it. Gen 28:16
"When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, 'Surely
the LORD is in this place, and I was not aware of it.'"
V. God is gentle.
A. We can hurt God.
1) Contrast with demon possession, where human is hurt.
2) God puts himself at our mercy.
3) We can grieve his Spirit, quench it.
B. Jesus showed this gentleness.
1) In dealing with people he states consequences of a choice,
then hands decision back to other party.
a) Examples of woman at well, adulterous woman.
2) The heavenly Father "errs" on the side of human freedom.
C. Why?
1) Coercion doesn't work well in remaking people.
2) You have to work from the inside out.
VI. God's presence varies.
A. Job.
1) God goes from being a "faint whisper" to a roaring lion.
2) Same person experiences God's presence and absence.
B. Varieties of Old Testament experience.
1) Solomon saw God descend spectacularly on Temple.
2) He withdrew in Hezekiah's day.
3) Jonah was pursued like a bloodhound.
VII. We cannot control God, but we can meet him.
A. What we can do:
1) Confess our sins.
2) Purify our life.
3) Wait, seek solitude and silence.
4) Meditate on the life and character of Jesus.
a) When we look at him, we see the Father.
B. What we shouldn't do.
1) Avoid anything that leads us off the beaten track.
2) Concentrate on worldly things.
C. God desires to reveal himself to us.
1) We must have receptive hearts.
2) Our imperfect image of him will one day be crystal clear.
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Adapted from "God is Shy," by Philip Yancey, in Discipleship Journal
#119, Sept-Oct 2000.
SOURCE FOR ILLUSTRATION USED IN THIS SERMON:
#2248 "Visioning Or Vanishing?" by Rev. Eric S. Ritz, Dynamic
Preaching, Seven Worlds Publishing; February 1992.
This and 16,500 others are part of a database that can be downloaded,
absolutely free, at http://www.holwick.com/database.html
=======================================================================
Philip Yancey, "Through a Glass, Darkly," Discipleship Journal #119,
Sept-Oct 2000, page 45.
I. God is shy.
A. Not bashful, but shy to intervene.
1) He exercises incredible self-restraint.
B. He overcomes his shyness when evil or suffering escalates
to point of crisis.
1) Sometimes he intervenes with a personal appearance.
2) Sometimes he intervenes through natural phenomena.
3) Most often he taps a person to convey words on his behalf.
C. The God of the Bible is more reticent than other religions.
1) Few scenes of linkage between seen and unseen worlds.
2) Miracles & visions are tucked into long periods of silence.
a) Intervention may come after many prayers, many
centuries.
b) God is not impetuous, but shy to act.
D. Why is God shy?
1) The problem of an invisible God appearing visibly.
a) We lack sensors to see supernatural.
b) God sees everything, for all time.
2) When God manifests himself he must accept limitations.
a) Limits of time and space.
b) Burning bush had to be in a particular place.
II. God hides.
A. God hides; the earth can seem empty of him. Isaiah 45:15
1) "Hide and seek" metaphor.
2) Perhaps God plays hard to get for the sake of discovery.
a) He places a premium on faith, which can only be
exercised in circumstances that allow for doubt.
b) The direct presence of God would overwhelm our freedom.
B. God is camouflaged, but in the world.
1) He is hidden in grace, goodness, nature, music.
2) God is here, but we are not aware of it. Gen 28:16
III. God is gentle.
A. Best shown by contrast of destructiveness of demon possession.
1) God puts himself at our mercy.
2) We can grieve his Spirit, quench it.
3) "Don't hurt me."
B. Jesus showed this gentleness.
1) In dealing with people he states consequences of a choice,
then hands decision back to other party.
2) The heavenly Father "errs" on the side of human freedom.
C. Why?
1) God recognizes WE are the ones on the journey.
2) The journey is the goal, and it shapes us more like Christ.
3) Coercion doesn't work well in remaking people.
a) You have to work from the inside out.
IV. God's presence varies.
A. Job.
1) God goes from being a "faint whisper" to a roaring lion.
2) Same person experiences God's presence and absence.
B. Varieties of Old Testament experience.
1) Solomon saw God descend spectacularly on Temple.
2) He withdrew in Hezekiah's day.
3) Jonah was pursued like a bloodhound.
C. Julian of Norwich.
1) Her spiritual moods seesawed.
2) There are no absolutes about God's presence and absence.
a) He does what pleases him. Psalm 135:6
b) He is free to reveal or conceal himself.
c) Our freedom derives from his.
D. We cannot control God, but we can meet him.
1) What we can do:
a) Confess sins.
b) Purify life.
c) Wait, seek solitude and silence.
2) What we shouldn't do.
a) Avoid anything that leads us off the beaten track.
b) Concentrate on worldly things.
__________________________________________________________________________
Expositor's Commentary, Exodus 33
I. God's presence is what made Israel unique among nations.
A. Moses also requests to see God's glory (his entire character).
1) His goodness seems to be equivalent to his glory.
B. The name of God is also proclaimed.
1) Includes his nature, character, person, doctrine and
standards of living.
2) In this context his name includes his mercy (or grace) and
compassion (womb or bowels, = deep-seated feelings).
3) Romans 9:15 applies verse to sovereignty of God.
II. Hid in cleft of rock.
A. Perhaps Elijah hid in same cave. 1 Kg 19:11
III. Seeing God.
A. Not allowed to see God's face.
1) Causes death. Ex 33:22; John 1:18; 6:46; 1Ti 1:17; 1Jn 4:12
__________________________________________________________________________
Brevard Childs
"The name of God, which like his glory and his face are vehicles of his
essential nature, is defined in terms of his compassionate acts of
mercy."
__________________________________________________________________________
Maxie Dunham
At the burning bush Moses had asked essentially the same question, but
now he was asking for far more. He wants not just the name but the
glory.
Face cannot be seen - there are limitations to revelation. God is not
limited, but we are. No one, not even Moses, could know all about God.
Even though He has revealed Himself fully in Jesus Christ, there is the
sense in which He remains "hidden."
What Moses sees is not nearly as important as what he hears. The Lord
God is merciful and gracious.
__________________________________________________________________________
HOLWICK'S ILLUSTRATION COLLECTION Number: 178
TOPICS: Marriage, Shyness, Sex
TEXT: 1 Cor 7:5
SOURCE: Weekly World News
DATE: 880607
ILLUSTRATION:
Shy Japanese couple, Sachi and Tomio Hidaka, waited 14 years to
consummate marriage, had heart attacks in doing it. They could barely
make eye contact when fully clothed. Much in love, but more in regard to
spirituality and mutual respect. She wrote in diary, "Tomio and I are
very much afraid but it's now or never. Tonight is the night."
(Chiba, Japan)
Paul admonishes, "Do not abstain except for spiritual reasons and for a
short time." (1 Cor 7:5).
#178
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HOLWICK'S ILLUSTRATION COLLECTION Number: 2248
TOPICS: Shy, Hesitate, Proposal, Dating, Romance, Indecision, Commitment,
Delay, Procrastinate
TEXT: Isa 62:5, Jer 2:2, John 3:29, 2 Cor 1:17-20, Rev 19:7
SOURCE: Dynamic Preaching Disk, Winter 1992 "A"
TITLE: Visioning Or Vanishing?
AUTHOR: Reverend Eric S. Ritz
DATE: 1192
ILLUSTRATION:
George Lyon of Scotland was 68 when he finally proposed to Catherine
MacDonald, age 60. They had been dating 44 years. When asked why George
waited so long, Catherine replied, "He is a bit shy, you know."
#2248
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