When God Changed His mind
Introduction
Greetings in Jesus name,
Last Sunday we saw that God awaits on Christians to intervene in situations that have called for His wrath or even when we are under attack from the enemy. We saw that we are called to repent of our own sins, our families and that of the communities we belong to including the church. We committed ourselves to seven days of prayer and fasting which ends today; to plead with God to spare the nations of the world the current pandemic that has hit us all in a big way.
We are relying on the word of God as recorded in 2 Chr. 7:13-14 and Eze 22:30. Because these are God’s promises and no word leaves His mouth in vain, we believe that God is going to save us.
Today we shall look at how we can cause God to change His mind. Of course, from our lesson last Sunday we know that God has given us the weapon of prayer to call out to Him. But how do we pray and how do we ensure that God relents?
The man who stood between his people and the wrath of God-MOSES
In the book of Exodus 32, Moses and Joshua were with God at Mount Sinai receiving instruction on how God wanted the Tabernacle of God to be built. He had been away for only 40 days and nights. The Bibles says when the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come make us gods, who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we do not know what has happened to him.”
Two things to note here:
- God had appeared to the people at the foot of the mountain and spoken to them from there and had given them the Ten Commandments by which they must live.
- God had not just made it clear to His people in the Ten Commandments; Ex 20:3-4 that they shall have no other god neither shall they make for themselves idols in the form of anything in Heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below; He had told Moses to tell them again (Ex 20:22-23) that they were not to make any gods to be alongside God; nor make for themselves gods of silver or of gold.
Within 40 days and nights, they were breaking this law!
While Moses was with God on the mountain, he had no idea what was taking place in the camp.
The Lord brought it to Moses’s attention in Vs 7 and He said, “Go down, because your people, whom you brought up out of Egypt, have become corrupt.” (Notice that God has denied these people and now He calls them Moses’s people).
The Lord said to Moses, “I have seen these people, and they are stiff-necked people. Now leave me alone so that my anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation.” (Good idea, less headache for Moses)
This scripture seems to suggest something was going on here. God tell Moses “Leave me alone”
This is a clear indication that Moses was standing between God and the people. Moses was an intercessor, He was praying and intervening on behalf of the people. Earlier God had said they were not to come near the foot of the mountain rest He strikes them. Moses was the go-between with God.
When people of God sin against Him, He always looks for a righteous man who can avert His anger on behalf of the people.
- He did this in the time of Sodom and Gomorrah and saved Lot and his family. (Gen 19:29)
- Amos was given two visions of God’s coming judgement (Amos 7:1-6) Locusts and heat. He began to intercede on behalf of the people and as a result the Lord delayed His judgement (vv 3,6)
God does not desire the death of sinners (1 Tim 2:4; 2 Pe 3:9), He promises to respond to the prayers of His faithful people (James 5:16)_The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effectiful.
God’s judgements are always conditional, and He is always willing to relent and cancel His plans of judgement if people truly repent or if someone faithful intercedes for them.
Our prayers give God the grounds or opportunity on which to change His stated intentions and send the judgement we deserve. (Ex 32:14; Jud 2:18; 1Chr 21:15; Jer 18:8, 26:3,13,19; Jonah 3:10)
- For as long as a judge was in-charge of Israel, God relented and had mercy on His people. (Read Judges 2:18)
- When David and the elders in sack clothes fell face down, God saved Israel from the plague (Read 1 Chr. 21:14-18)
What kind of a man causes God to change His mind?
- A man who desires that only the name of God should be exalted.
When Moses heard what God wanted to do, he fell on his knees to plead the case of these evil people. He did not take it that God was going to finish Israel and give Moses a new people, NO! He was concerned about God’s name among the Egyptians. Vs 11 “But Moses sought the favor of the Lord his God. “O Lord he said “Why should your anger burn against your people, whom you brought out of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians say, it was with evil intent that He brought them out, to kill them in the mountains and wipe them off the face of the earth? Turn from your fierce anger; relent and do not bring disaster on your people…. Then the Lord relented and did not bring on His people the disaster He had threatened. Moses sought God’s glory not his own.
- A man who desires to see God’s plan decreed.
Vv13… Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, to whom you swore by your own self: I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky, and I will give your descendants all this land I promised them, and it will be their inheritance forever.
Moses was keen to see God fulfill His promise
What is the promise of God over you? We can claim these promises
- Isa 41:10 “So do not fear, for I am with you, do not be dismayed for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous hand.”
- Isa 41:13 “For I am the Lord, your God, who takes your right hand and says to you, do not fear; I will help you.
- Isa 43:2 “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.
- Isa 54:10 “Though the mountains be shaken, and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant for peace be removed says the Lord, who has compassion on you
Check out further promises of God over you and your family and lay claim over them and God will honor them.
- A man who desires to see God’s people established.
When Moses heard from God about what Israel had done, He probably had not processed how deep Israel had gone with idol worship. When he descended with Joshua, they were astonished to say the least and Moses burned with anger. He summoned Aaron for an explanation, burned the golden calf, ground the ashes and sprinkled them over the waters then ordered the people to drink it. WOW!!
As if that was not enough, he summoned all who still revered God and ordered them to go out and kill all who did not turn up. 3000 men were killed that night.
I believe with the repentance and intercession we have made to God as a church, there is going to be a Revival. But for the revival to happen, we must call out sin in the church for the Holy Spirit to take His place. Even after this, Moses still went back to God and pleaded the sins of the leaders and offered himself to be blotted out of the book of God for the sake of the people. Though God still went ahead and released a plague among the people, Moses was willing to stand in the gap. God is looking for remnants who will cause the breakout of revival. Men and women who will not allow Him to rest until He saves His people.
Conclusion
Psalms 85:6
“Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you?”
May we ask God to bring us back to a spirit filled life. May God revive us as individuals and our families. May God revive His church; may God revive our nation.
Remember your revival starts by accepting the Lord Jesus Christ as your savior. Jesus told Nicodemus in John 3:3 “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born again.
Make the wise decision, receive the Lord Jesus Christ today as your savior.
God bless you.