Welcome to Delight in Grace, the teaching ministry of Rich Powell. Pastor of Grace Bible Church in Winston-Salem. We've reached the final message in our Deuteronomy series titled, It is Because the Lord Loves You. At the beginning of the new year, Delight and Grace will move from the radio to a podcast. We invite you to continue listening with us at our podcast.
www.delightingrace dot com In today's message titled Moses, whom the Lord Knew Face to Face, Pastor Rich looks at the narrative of Moses' death in Deuteronomy chapter 34. It's a chapter full of insight for us. On leadership. and running a faithful race for the Lord. Let's listen in.
This is the final part of a message first preached on February 2nd, 2025, and the last message in this series on Deuteronomy. Delight and Grace is moving from the radio to our podcast. for the year 2026, and we hope you will continue to listen with us there. at www.delight in grace dot com. Our upcoming series starting in January is titled Our Freedom in Christ.
from the book of Galatians. Join us January 1st at www.delightingrace.com And we meet on a regular basis, and we talk about the teaching of this church. We talk about the shepherding of the church. primarily through the care groups and all those who are also not in care groups.
Okay, it's important to us to know that this congregation is being well shepherded. And remember, we're shepherds, not cowboys.
Okay? You know the difference? A shepherd walks in front of the sheep and the sheep follow. A cowboy does what? He drives the cattle.
We're not cowboys. We're shepherds. God has called us to that because we are following the chief shepherd. And as long as we follow the chief shepherd, you can follow us.
Okay, so we are under shepherds too. We are following the one who is the head. We are under shepherds too, remembering that, as I said before, we are sheep just like the rest of you. We're also growing spiritually. We're also becoming more and more like Jesus Christ.
But there has to be a point man. Joshua is now that man. And let me say this then, also. Verse 9, Joshua the son of Dun was full of the spirit of wisdom, for Moses had laid his hands on him, so the people of Israel obeyed him and did as the Lord had commanded Moses.
Now, go back up a little bit. Look at verse 7 with me. Moses was 120 years old when he died. His eye was undimmed, and his vigor unabated. And the people of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab for thirty days.
120 years. He is exactly twice as old as I am right now. I cannot say that my eyes are undimmed and my vigor is unabated. I ain't what I used to be. But Moses was.
Now think about this for a minute. Moses was a strong man. Yeah, 120, but he was a strong man. He had a lot of life left. as we would put it.
But he was done. He was done. He had run his course. He had finished his race. Why did God take him?
Because he was done. He had accomplished God's purpose. for his life. Loved ones, listen to me. Think about that.
A meaningful life is about faith. finishing the course. A meaningful life is about finishing the course. We live purposeful lives. Success is defined as realized purpose.
Get this point, please. Longevity. under the sun is not the issue. Is Longevity. Under the sun.
is not the issue. Remember the line, Don't fixate on the dot.
Okay. For those of you who are guests who have not heard that before, let me explain that, okay? Let's say there's a line from that wall to that wall, and that line represents all of eternity. where God exists.
Okay. God is there. Your life here in this temporal physical life under the sun. is one tiny little speck on that line. And what this teaches us is, God has purpose for us in that tiny little speck, but that's not the end.
We need to live for the line and not the dot. And that's what Moses lived for.
So it says Moses died, but what does that mean? It means his spirit left his body and now he is where? is with the Lord. Uh He's more alive now than he ever was.
Okay. Please listen to me. That's not spiritual platitude. That is an authoritative statement based on God's self-disclosure.
Okay. We need to grasp stuff like that. Right.
So Longevity under the sun is not the issue. Moses was still strong. He could have lived. Another 60, 80 years. As strong as he was, but God.
Said Moses, you're done. You've completed your purpose.
Okay. That being said, if you are here today, If you are alive today, What does that mean? God has purpose for you. Yeah.
So, Moses is a unique prophet, and this is brought out in the text before us. I'll get verse 10 now as we bring this whole series to a conclusion. There has not risen a prophet since in all Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face. Wow. None like him for all the signs and wonders that the Lord sent him to do in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh and to all his servants and to all his land.
And for all the mighty power and all the great deeds of terror that Moses did in the sight of all Israel. All his signs and wonders, all the mighty power, all the deeds of terror. Remember the ten plagues? He was answering Pharaoh's question. Who is the Lord that I should obey him?
He was also showing the people of Israel I am that I am. I am the self-existent one. And then he takes them through the Red Sea. All Israel sees that. Pharaoh saw it too.
Very close up. He takes them to Mount Sinai. And God Comes down in his presence, in a physical presence, in a way that shakes and rattles the mountain. And the people are so afraid, they say, Moses, you go talk to God, we can't handle it.
So Moses goes up and talks to God. They're out in the wilderness. The people are thirsty. God says to Moses, Moses. Go talk to that rock.
Give it a command to bring forth water. And there was Two and a half million people. That's a lot of water needed. Yes. Let's remember who we're talking about here.
This is the infinite. transcendent creator who is not bound by the laws of nature. He created them.
So all those mighty deeds and acts of terror, Israel defeated armies that were much greater than them by nations that were much larger than theirs. Why? Because God was with them. And they were fulfilling God's purpose. And God said, Follow me.
I'm going to take you through hard things. And it's going to be hard, but follow me. You'll get there. I will take you through them. But also the judgments of the people of Israel, the earth opening up and swallowing up the idolaters, the rebellious ones.
The wandering in the wilderness because they did not trust God. After all of that, let's remember that: how prone it is for us to forget and to. To drift. When you drift, you wander. Mm.
The mighty power and the great deeds of terror. Why? Because Moses was getting his directions from the sovereign one, and there is only one. God working through human agency. I mean, he was talking about Moses did these things.
But we know it wasn't really Moses doing it, right? Moses was simply a human agent. of God's power. You and I can do and be the same.
Now we're probably not going to lead that many people across the Red Sea. Right.
But Did not Jesus say, these works that I do, those who believe in me, will do greater works than I do? Are you trusting God now to him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think according to what? The power that is at work in us. A direct reference to the presence of the Holy Spirit. What has God called you to do?
What do you have? Moses had a rod. What do you have? What's God given you? Are you trusting him to use it for his glory?
Moses, however, was a unique prophet. in this sense that he was able to do all these mighty wonders. To face But he was also a unique prophet, as it says in verse 10. He knew the Lord face to face. The Lord knew him face to face.
We should consider what it says in Exodus 33.11. The Lord used to speak to Moses face to face as a man speaks to his friend. Isn't that beautiful? Listen to me. This is God's heart right here.
This is God's heart. This is why he created you. because he longs to commune with you. face to face. This is why we need Jesus.
Because without him, We cannot be face to face with God. We can only be under his holy necessary wrath. but he longs for us to be face to face with him. Moses gives us an example of that. He communed with God.
He loved God and followed him. Thanks for joining us here at Delight in Grace. You've been listening to Rich Powell, the lead pastor at Grace Bible Church in Winston-Salem. The Delight in Grace mission. Is to help you know that God designed you to realize your highest good and your deepest satisfaction in Him.
the one who is infinitely good. We hope you'll join us again on weekdays at 10 a.m.
