Lesson 2 for July 9, 2011

WORSHIP AND
THE EXODUS:
UNDERSTANDING
WHO GOD IS
 1. THE WAY WE WORSHIP. How should we worship
God? Are there right and wrong ways to do it?
2. OUR MOTIVATION TO WORSHIP. Why we worship
By studying the history God? What has God made that motivates us to
in Exodus we learn these worship Him? Which is our inner motivation to
things in this lesson: worship?
3. WHAT WE GAIN WHEN WE WORSHIP. Can we
benefit from worship? Does worship improve our
spiritual way somehow?
 THE BURNING BUSH

THE WAY WE WORSHIP

Moses showed reverence by taking off his shoes

and covering his face before the presence of God.
We need reverence, fear and respect when we are
before God.
OUR MOTIVATION TO WORSHIP

God showed Moses His plan to free and save Israel by bringing them out of Egypt.
Our motivation to worship Him is that He frees us from sin and gives us salvation.

WHAT WE GAIN WHEN WE WORSHIP

Moses asked God to tell him His Name. God introduced Himself as the Eternal God
with His answer (“I AM WHO I AM”).
God is willing to answer our questions and clarify our doubts. God shows himself to
us and helps us to know Him better through worship.
 PASSOVER
OUR MOTIVATION TO WORSHIP
The Israelites had to kill a lamb and
to strike the lintel and the two
doorposts with its blood.
The heart of Christian worship is the
sacrifice of Jesus who poured his
blood to wash away our sins. We
apply Jesus' blood over us when we
accept Him as our personal Savior.
THE WAY WE WORSHIP
When the people knew God's
plan for saving the firstborn,
they bowed down and
worshipped Him, showing
reverence, fear and gratitude.
WHAT WE GAIN WHEN WE WORSHIP
Paul said that all who accept the blood of
Jesus are God's firstborn: “to the general
assembly and church of the firstborn who
are registered in heaven” (Hebrews, 12: 23)
We are firstborn saved by sin death by the
death of Jesus. When we worship God
thinking about that, we gain the confidence
that our names are written in the Book of
Life (we have eternal life)
SINAI THE WAY WE WORSHIP
“For you have not come to the
mountain that may be touched and that
burned with fire, and to blackness and
darkness and tempest, and the sound
of a trumpet and the voice of words,
so that those who heard it begged that
the word should not be spoken to them
anymore. (For they could not endure
what was commanded: “And if so much
as a beast touches the mountain, it
shall be stoned or shot with an arrow.”
And so terrifying was the sight that
Moses said, “I am exceedingly afraid
and trembling.”)” (Hebrews, 12: 18-21)

When God showed Himself in such a terrible greatness, He wanted His

people to understand that we must come to His presence with
reverence. He is powerful, grateful, magnificent and beyond our reach.

He defined the way to worship in that moment.

God doesn't tolerate that we serve another gods of any kind.
He doesn't accept to be worshipped through images or any kind of
representation made by human hands.
 SINAI OUR MOTIVATION TO WORSHIP

“He who desires to rise to true greatness must walk humbly before God, not with a forced
humility, but with a genuine sense of his own inefficiency and of God’s greatness. He is to
strive earnestly to make the soul temple a place where God delights to dwell” (E.G.W., “A call to
medical evangelism and health education, cp. 9, “Humility and love”, pg. 46)

WHAT WE GAIN WHEN WE WORSHIP

The Israelites knew God's will (the Ten Commandments) when they came close to
Mount Sinai.
Like them, we come to know divine will when we come close to God in worship.
 THE GOLDEN CALF

THE WAY WE WORSHIP

FALSE WORSHIP TRUE WORSHIP

It shows noise, dancing, It shows spiritual songs and
deafening music, shouts, psalms, silence, respect and
disorder and general chaos. order.

OUR MOTIVATION TO WORSHIP

FALSE WORSHIP TRUE WORSHIP

It satisfies our senses and seeks to please The most important thing is to please
oneself. God and follow His principles.

WHAT WE GAIN WHEN WE WORSHIP

FALSE WORSHIP TRUE WORSHIP

The Israelites received a death plague True worshippers will have life in their
after their worship; false worship only relationship with Jesus. Eternal life will
brings eternal death. be their final reward.
SEEING GOD THE WAY WE WORSHIP
Moses requested to see God and he could
see His back. It wasn't a presumptuous
request, but he came to God with
humbleness, faith and submission.

OUR MOTIVATION TO WORSHIP

“Moses did not make this request from idle curiosity. He had an object in view. He saw
that in his own strength he could not do the work of God acceptably. He knew that if he
could obtain a clear view of the glory of God, he would be enabled to go forward in his
important mission, not in his own strength, but in the strength of the Lord God Almighty.
His whole soul was drawn out after God; he longed to know more of Him, that he might
feel the divine presence near in every emergency or perplexity. It was not selfishness that
led Moses to ask for a sight of the glory of God. His only object was a desire better to
honor his Maker” (E.G.W., “In heavenly places”, August 22)
Our motivation to worship must be to know God more and to have a stronger
relationship with Him.

WHAT WE GAIN WHEN WE WORSHIP

Moses came out of God's presence with an illuminated face. We will be illuminated with a
greater knowledge of God's will when we come to worship Him.
 We must come before God with reverence, respect,
humbleness and gratefulness.
We must worship God because:

 He is magnificent.
 He freed us from sin.
 He gives us salvation.
 He died for us.
 We want to know His will.
 We want to thank Him and have
eternal life.
 We want to know God more and
to have a strong relationship
with Him.