Purkey’s

B i b l e S t u d y

Outlines

H O M E P A G E

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Rev. Ronald C. Purkey claims no originality for this Bible study outline.

However, every outline posted on this website has been taught by Rev. Purkey.

To see more Bible study outlines go to page two: More Bible Study Outlines.

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GOD’S REVELATION TO MOSES

SCRIPTURE: Exodus 3:1-6, 13-15

KEY VERSE: ⁶Moreover he said, I am the God of thy 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 upon God. (Exodus 3:6)

INTRODUCTION: In the life of every Christian, there should be a place of meeting with God. There should be a “burning bush” experience that gives direction to one’s life. Moses is an example of a person who can be used regardless of his or her past experiences or present circumstances. The mountain of God was a blessed place for Moses.

Moses’ forty years in Midian have come to an end. All of his schooling in Egypt was not enough to prepare him for his great work of delivering Israel from bondage. God equipped him for this task by forty years of preparation in the desert area of Midian.

I. GOD SPEAKS FROM A BURNING BUSH. (Exodus 3:1-3)

A. The contact was made when Moses was tending sheep. (Exodus 3:1)

¹Now Moses kept the flock of his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.

1. Israel.

Moses turned aside to see why the bush was burning but was not consumed. One of the greatest proofs of the accuracy of Scripture is the existence of the nation Israel. Years ago an emperor of Germany asked his chaplain the question, “What is the greatest proof that the Bible is the Word of God? That proof is somewhere in my kingdom.” Without hesitation the chaplain said, “The Jew, sir. He is the proof.”

Israel is the burning bush that ought to cause the unbeliever to turn aside and take a look today. It is amazing that Israel has existed down through the centuries. From the days of Moses to the present hour Israel has been in existence. Other nations have come and gone, and Israel has attended the funeral of all of them. Israel is still around. Israel has been in the fire of persecution from the bondage in Egypt through the centuries to the present hour. But like the burning bush Israel has not been consumed.

2. Midian.

When is the last time you saw a Midianite? Have you seen the flag of Midian? Do you know anything about the government of Midian? You do not and I do not because Midian is gone. It has disappeared.

B. The contact was through the angel of the Lord. (Exodus 3:2)

²And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.

The angel of the Lord who appeared to Moses is none other than the pre-incarnate Christ. Some people would debate this conclusion, but this is my conviction after over fifty years of studying the Word of God.

C. The contact aroused Moses’ curiosity and caused him to investigate. (Exodus 3:3)

³And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.

In tending the flock of Jethro, Moses learned valuable lessons about leading God’s people. When he went to Horeb (Mount Sinai), the Lord appeared to him in a bush that burned with fire but ... was not consumed.

Leadership

Myron Rush identifies tough issues facing every Christian leader in The New Leader. We are wise to ponder them slowly.

· You must be willing to stand alone.

· You must be willing to go against public opinion in order to promote what you believe.

· You must be willing to risk failure.

· You must become master of your emotions.

· You must strive to remain above reproach.

· You must be willing to make decisions others don't want to make.

· You must be willing to say no at times, even when you'd like to say yes.

· You must sometimes be willing to sacrifice personal interests for the good of the group.

· You must never be content with the average; you must always strive for the best.

· People must be more important to you than possessions.

· You will have to work harder to keep your life in balance than people do who are not leaders. -- Paul Borthwick, Leading the Way, Navpress, 1989, pp. 177-178.

II. GOD CALLS OUT TO MOSES. (Exodus 3:4-6)

A. The place of revealing was where Moses answered God, “Here am I.” (Exodus 3:4)

⁴And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.

As Moses’ attention was drawn by the unconsumed but burning bush, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush. The angel of verse 2 is here identified as God (the Hebrew word, Elohim). God actually appeared in human form to people in the Old Testament numerous times (Genesis 12:7;17:1; 18:1; 32:24–30). This was simply one of the ways in which God chose to reveal Himself.

B. The place of revealing was hallowed ground. (Exodus 3:5)

⁵And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.

1. The burning bush.

The bush suggests the glory of God, before which Moses was told to stand with unshod feet. It might also foreshadow Jehovah’s dwelling in the midst of His people without their being consumed. And some have even seen in it the destiny of Israel, tried in the fires of affliction but not consumed. We should all be like the burning ... bush -- burning for God, yet not consumed.

2. The spiritual lesson.

God had to correct Moses’ manners. Although Moses had been brought up in the court of Pharaoh, he didn’t know enough to take off his shoes in the presence of a holy God. And I’m afraid many people today get familiar with God. God is teaching him a great lesson about the holiness of God. We need to learn this lesson too.

C. The place of revealing is for all who are saved. (Exodus 3:6)

⁶Moreover he said, I am the God of thy 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 upon God.

Moses did not look upon God. If he had, he would have looked upon the revelation of God, the Lord Jesus Christ veiled in human form. It can still be said, “No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him” (John 1:18). The only way you can know God is through the Lord Jesus Christ.

Worship

What is worship? Worship is to feel in your heart and express in some appropriate manner a humbling but delightful sense of admiring awe and astonished wonder and overpowering love in the presence of that most ancient Mystery, that Majesty which philosophers call the First Cause, but which we call Our Father Which Are in Heaven. -- A.W. Tozer, quoted in D.J. Fant, A.W. Tozer, Christian Publications, 1964, p. 90.

III. GOD REVEALS HIMSELF TO MOSES. (Exodus 3:13-15)

A. Moses asked God a question. (Exodus 3:13)

¹³And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them?

This question Moses asked is a natural one. I am sure all of us would have asked the same question. Moses was afraid that the children of Israel would not accept him. He did not know how to explain God to them. He did not know how he was ever going to get the Israelites to this mountain of God. These were the problems Moses faced. Notice how God answered him.

B. God answered Moses’ question. (Exodus 3:14)

¹⁴And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.

1. His name.

There is undoubtedly more included in the name “I AM” than has ever been brought out, but there are several things of primary importance that should be considered. The name “I AM” is a tetragram, or a word of four letters. We translate it JEHOVAH. It has also been translated as YAHWEH. How do you pronounce it? It became a sacred name, a holy name, to the children of Israel to such an extent they actually forgot how to pronounce it. To avoid profaning His name, they did not use it. Which name, then, is correct? Is it Jehovah or Yahweh? No one knows. But “I AM” is God’s name.

2. His power.

In Genesis God is Creator. He is Elohim, the mighty God, the self-existing One; I AM WHO I AM. This is the God who is sending Moses to deliver the children of Israel.

3. His existence.

Psalm 135:13 says, “Thy name, O Lord, endureth for ever; and thy memorial, O Lord, throughout all generations.” The name “Lord” in this verse can be translated “I AM WHO I AM.” It is important to see that this name speaks of the fact that GOD IS.

C. God Commissioned Moses. (Exodus 3:15)

¹⁵And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, the LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.

The time had come for the fulfillment of Joseph’s promise as stated in Genesis 50:25: “… God will surely visit you …” God had appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. This same God was sending Moses to the children of Israel, and the procedure he was to employ is given in the next few verses.

Go, and gather the elders of Israel together, and say unto them, The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, appeared unto me, saying, I have surely visited you, and seen that which is done to you in Egypt: And I have said, I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt unto the land of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, unto a land flowing with milk and honey. And they shall hearken to thy voice: and thou shalt come, thou and the elders of Israel, unto the king of Egypt, and ye shall say unto him, The Lord God of the Hebrews hath met with us: and now let us go, we beseech thee, three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God. And I am sure that the king of Egypt will not let you go, no, not by a mighty hand. And I will stretch out my hand, and smite Egypt with all my wonders which I will do in the midst thereof: and after that he will let you go. (Exodus 3:16–20)

God gave Moses the agenda and course to follow. He was to tell the elders of Israel about God’s plan of deliverance. Then he and the elders were to go to Pharaoh and ask to be allowed to journey three days into the wilderness to sacrifice to their God as a nation. The intention was to break gently Israel’s plan to Pharaoh rather than bluntly stating, “We are leaving and going back to the land of Canaan for good.”

God told Moses that Pharaoh would refuse to let Israel go. Pharaoh’s refusal in this matter would open up God’s campaign against the gods of Egypt. After that campaign, even though God would show His mighty wonders, Pharaoh would still flatly refuse to let Israel go. God would then bring plagues that would cause Pharaoh to change his mind and send Israel on its way from Egypt. God had a plan to deliver Israel, and deliver them He did!

Who Is God?

Thirty-five hundred years ago, Moses asked God who He was and got a peculiar answer. God said, “Say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ . . . This is My name forever” (Exodus 3:14-15).

I have long wondered why God would call Himself by such a name, but slowly I am learning its significance. A sentence needs only two things to be complete: a subject and a verb. So when God says His name is “I AM,” it conveys the concept that He is complete in Himself. He is subject and verb. He is everything we could possibly need.

Jesus put flesh on God’s bare-boned answer to Moses’ question, “Who are You?” Jesus left heaven to show us what it means to bear His Father’s name. He told His disciples, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). He also said, “I am the bread of life” (6:48), “the light of the world” (8:12), “the good shepherd” (10:11), and “the resurrection and the life” (11:25). In Revelation, Jesus declared, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last” (22:13). And He said, “Before Abraham was, I AM” (John 8:58).

If you’re questioning who God is, take some time to get to know Jesus in the pages of His Word. – Julie Ackerman, Our Daily Bread, October 24, 2005

CONCLUSION: God had a task to be done, and He chose a man who was busy to do it. Have you come to the mountain of God in your life?

THOUGHT TO REMEMBER: “Jesus is the image of the invisible God.” – Colossians 1:15

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REFERENCES: References used in this Bible study are the Scofield Reference Bible, the Believer’s Bible Commentary, Cliff Robinson’s Bible Outlines, David C. Cook Publishers Bible-in-Life, Dr. Lee Roberson’s Sermons, KJV Bible Commentary, Our Daily Bread, The Bible Reader’s Companion Ed. 3, The Nelson Study Bible: New King James Version, Thru the Bible with J. Vernon McGee, Don Robinson’s Bible Outlines, Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines of the New Testament Ed. 4, Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines of the Old Testament, With the Word Bible Commentary, Warren Wiersbe’s “Be” Series: Old & New Testaments, selected illustrations, and other references.

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