In this sermon, the preacher emphasizes the importance of preaching Jesus Christ as Lord, rather than focusing on oneself. He refers to the context of the Israelites being delivered from Egypt and their journey through the wilderness. The preacher highlights the leadership qualities of Moses, who had to go through a process of humbling and preparation before being used by God. He contrasts Moses with Aaron, who took the easy way out. The sermon emphasizes the need for brokenness, humility, and dependence on the Holy Spirit in Christian leadership.

Thank you very much. I hope to be able to introduce my wife to you tomorrow. She's still in Vegas City. It's very good to be here. It's a great privilege. I've often said to people that are present that there are only three stages in life. One when you're young, two in the middle age, and three when everybody says you're looking very well. I'm very grateful, grateful to many of you who've reminded me already of what bracket I'm in right now. Thank you so much. I'd like to sing, not to sing, but you to sing a worship chorus with me. Some of the students from last term enjoyed it, I think. Thank you, God, for sending Jesus. Thank you, Jesus, that you care. Holy Spirit, won't you teach me more about his lovely name. I love this chorus because it reminds us that we are shut up to a miracle for anything worthwhile. Holy Spirit, won't you teach me, he alone can, more about your lovely name. How many of you have heard this chorus before? That's right. I know you all came from, well, with the choir we'll sing. That is those who've indicated that they know it. And maybe you should sing anything you like, but try and sing this one. Right, everybody now. Thank you, God, for sending Jesus. Thank you, Jesus, that you care. Holy Spirit, won't you teach me. Thank you, God, for sending Jesus. Just a word of prayer together. A moment of stillness, quietness before God. Asking him to speak to our hearts, to take from us anything that would hinder. That his Spirit may be able to teach us more about that lovely name. When we come to the end of our hoarded resources, our Father's great giving has only begun. Thank you, Lord. And speak, Lord, for thy servant here. Speak just now, some message to meet my need, which thou only dost know. Speak now through thy holy word and make me see some wonderful truth thou hast to show to me. In Jesus' name, amen. Perhaps you would open your Bible this morning, would you? To begin with, Exodus chapter 33. Let me say, it was a great comfort to me last evening when Stuart said that though he was not normally nervous when he preached, he felt a bit fearful about this week. I'm always nervous when I preach, and more than ever on an occasion like this. Because could you imagine anywhere, any conference which has, well, comparatively few people, who represent such a worldwide ministry. I'm sure the Lord Jesus smiles upon that, as we're all together to meet him. But I'm also sure that the devil is very interested as well. My prayer is that this week will cause rejoicing in heaven and panic in hell. And like Stuart, I only want to speak to your heart from God's word. Because as I know, when you get older in life, your interest, of course, widens naturally, but your burden seems to concentrate. And all I wish to do today is to discharge before the Lord the burden he's laid on my heart for the rest of my life. I trust for yours also. And the prayer which I have on my heart very much for this week. It's in Exodus chapter 33, but I find it the theme of the whole word. Where Moses said to the Lord in verse 18, I pray you, show me your glory. I pray you, show me your glory. Maybe I ought to take just a moment to remind you of the context of these words. A few weeks previously, the Israelis had been delivered from Pharaoh's concentration camp in Egypt, and begun their journey, which was going to take them 40 years, through the wilderness to the land which God had promised them. Under the leadership of a man who 40 years prior to this had thought he was just the man for the job. Everybody would understand and know that he was the appointed leader, but he was too big for God to use then. And he spent 40 years in this desert, being cut down to size, until God had really dealt with him, and he was ready and prepared for God to use him. And they'd already had difficulties and problems during that few week journey, grumbling of the people, and a strange desire for the good old days of Egypt. I'll be back again, forgetting all about the past masters and the whips and all the rest. And Moses was now up in the mountain with the Lord, 40 days and 40 nights. Receiving from God the law which was to govern these people as they reached the land, and receiving from the Lord the design for the tabernacle. He'd been away such a long time that things were happening which were tragic, down where the action was. He'd left in charge of the situation his older brother Aaron, who was 83 at this particular time. You'd think that by that time a man would have learnt the sense. But at 83, he apparently hadn't. He was weak. And he found himself with a revolt on his hands. And the people were saying in chapter 32, and the opening verse, "'Up make us God, who shall go before us, as shall this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt. We do not know what has become of him.'" So unwilling to face unpopularity, Aaron got the rings, the golden earrings from them, and made a golden calf, and said, "'These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.'" Almost unbelievable. "'And soon they arose up early in the morning, and offered burnt offerings and brought peace offerings. And the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.'" All consciousness of God had gone. How quickly that can happen. And the Lord was angry. And reading at verse 7 a moment, in chapter 32, "'The Lord said to Moses, Go down, for your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves. They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them. They have made for themselves a molten calf, and have worshipped it and sacrificed to it, and said, These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt. And the Lord said to Moses, I have seen this people, and behold, it is stiff-necked people. And now, therefore, let me alone, that my wrath may burn hot against them, that I may consume them, but of you I will make a great nation.'" What a tremendous test of the caliber of leadership that was. What a tremendous opportunity for Moses to get rid of all his problems without dealing with any of them. The Lord apparently was prepared to start all over again. Scrap the lot, begin again, and make a great man of Moses. A great opportunity. How did Moses react to that? Well, he besought the Lord, his God, and said, O Lord, why does thy wrath burn hot against thy people, whom thou hast brought forth out of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? Lord, they are not my people, they are yours. I didn't bring them out of the land of Egypt, you did. Why should the Egyptians, say, with evil intent, did you bring them forth to slay them in the mountains and consume them from the face of the earth? Your honor is at stake, your name is at stake. It doesn't matter what they think of me. If your honor and your name, Lord, turn from thy fierce wrath and repent of this evil against thy people, remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, thy servants, to whom thou didst swear by thine own self, and didst say to them, I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised, I will give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever. Lord, you've never broken a promise. Your name's at stake, your honor's at stake, you've never broken a promise. This man, I love to think of it, can you picture him? He's arguing with God in prayer. Not contentiously, but arguing, taking himself on prayer ground and arguing with the Lord. It's your name, your honor that matters to me most. And how did the Lord react to that? Verse 14, the Lord, next word, repented. Does God repent? The Lord repented of the evil which he thought to do to his people. Oh yes, he does. He changes his attitude towards us as we change our attitude towards him. He was dealing with a man who'd lost all self-confidence, who once had thought he was absolutely the right man for God to use, but now he knew perfectly well. Lord, he had said, who am I to lead this people? Once he thought, here I am, I'm just a man for you, but Lord, who am I? He knew he was facing a task which was far too great for him. He couldn't cope apart from the grace and goodness of God. He knew it was absolutely helpless and he needed the Lord desperately. And the Lord's honor was all that mattered to him and the Lord's promises at stake. And to this man, arguing in prayer, the Lord repented of the evil which he thought to do. And Moses went down from the mountain and called the people together. Those who loved the Lord, who was on the Lord's side, all the tribe of Levi responded. And there were 3,000 people killed. The Lord sent a plague. He was angry at their rebellion. And Moses returned to the mountain and said, and I love this, verse 31, Alas, Lord, the people have sinned a great sin and have made for themselves gods of gold. But now, if thou wilt forgive their sin, and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written. Lord, I love this people so much, I'm prepared to die for them. This man's prayer life, this man's caliber of leadership was something which God could not resist. He saw a man of God. Just for a moment, put in your mind Moses and Aaron side by side. And let me just remind you and remind myself, there is no shortcut to character. There's no shortcut to leadership. What you are, it signs up. Our mutual friend, Stephen Offord, said at Columbia Bible College, in my hearing to some students, who had asked him and asked me together, what's the key to Christian leadership? And he said, I'll tell you, bent knees, wet eyes, broken heart. And that was enough. In fact, that was everything. There's no book ever been written on ten simple steps to power over people. Doesn't work that way. You don't need training course on that line. Moses built his life on luxuries he had denied himself. On necessities even that he refused, for the Lord's sake. And he built his life on heartbreaks and hardships that he'd suffered on behalf of others. Aaron slipped into the easy way out. And I pause to remind my heart how desperately easy it is to do that. How desperately easy it is to slip into the easy way out. Well, the Lord said to Moses, 33, verse 1 to 5, Go up, hence, you and the people whom you have brought up of the land of Egypt, to the land of which I swore, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying to your descendants, I will give it. Go up to a land flowing with milk and honey, but I will not go up among you, lest I consume you in the way, for you are a stiff-necked people. Verse 12, verse 12, Moses said to the Lord, Thou sayest to me, Bring up this people, but thou wilt not let me know whom thou wilt send with me. Yet I said, I know you by name, and you found also favour in my sight. Now therefore, I pray thee, if I have found favour in your sight, show me now thy way, that I may know thee, and find favour. Consider, too, that this nation is thy people. And the Lord answered, My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest. And he said to him, If thy presence will not go with me, do not carry us up here, for how shall it be known that I have found favour in thy sight? I and thy people, is it not in thy going with us, so that we are distinct, I and thy people, from all other people that are upon the face of the earth? Forgive me, paraphrase, liberal paraphrase, but I'm sure the content of the truth, the basic thing, Moses was saying to God, Lord, thank you, thank you for repentance. Thank you for promising your presence with us. And after all, Lord, we're your people, and the only thing that will be distinguished from other people is that your presence will be with us. That's how people will know that we belong to you. But that's not enough. I beseech you, show me your glory. I want more. You have been, I'm sure, my friend, at many conferences and many conventions. Perhaps some of you have spoken at, and some of you have sat down and listened, and you've heard. And you've left the stretch or the tent, or what have you, and somebody has said, Wasn't it a wonderful sense of God's presence? So what? What's been the outcome? I mean, I've seen it at Keswick and Filey and all these other places. And here? And this could happen this week. Oh my, that staff conference, a wonderful sense of the presence of God. So what? I'd expect that, because the two or three are met together in the name of the Lord Jesus. He is in the midst of us. Brothers and sisters, for a world like the one in which we live right now, a world in which time-persuaded history is rapidly coming to an end, a world in which Jesus assumes coming back. I know, we've said that millions of times from platform, but how can it go on much longer as it is in a world like that? I tell you, the church is helpless without the glory. I pray you, show me your glory, said Moses. Sure of God's presence, but what we need to be men and women of God this week. What is God's answer to that? It creates a problem. And he said to a man, Well, I'll make all my goodness pass before you, and will proclaim before you my name, the Lord, and I'll be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy unto whom I will show mercy. But, but, you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live. And the Lord said, Well, behold, look, there's a place by me where you shall stand upon the rock. And while my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft of the rock. I will cover you with my hand until I pass by. Then I'll take away my hand, and you shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen. In other words, Moses, you're asking too much. I beseech you, show me your glory. I can't do that, sorry, but I can't do that. No man has seen my face and lived. I beseech you, show me my glory, thy glory. Lord, I need more than your presence. I need something that's going to shatter my lifestyle. Something that's going dramatically to change my whole character. Something that's going to revolutionize my life. I need that. Not just the presence of the Lord, wonderful as that may be. Am I suggesting that we're asking too much right now? To ask, Lord? At the staff conference in 1983, I beseech you, show me, show me, show me your glory. My dear friend, I don't preach at people. I recognize the need in my own heart. There's been too many failures in my own life as a disciple of Christ to be other than compassionate and concerned for all of us together in a bond of love. Praying that we may be open with each other, honest with each other, real with each other. And when we've been bringing reports of our work, not everything just fine and wonderful, but being honest, that where things are grim, being bold enough to say so. I beseech you, show me your glory. Is it possible? Remember what the Gospel of John says? The Word, and again flesh. And I beheld His glory. The glory as the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. The character of Jesus, full of grace and truth. That's the glory. The character of the Lord Jesus. Full of truth, that standard can never be lowered. And full of grace, that compassion and love can never end. That's why Calvary is essential in the heart of God. You've got that, haven't you? That's why the cross is a necessity. Truth, the standard, always the same. Grace, love, compassion, concern, care, never changes. And therefore at the heart of it all is a Calvary. And later on in the same Gospel, John 17, would you look at that just a moment? When Jesus had spoken these words, He lifted up His eyes to heaven and said, Father, the hour has come. Glorify Thy Son, that the Son may glorify Thee, since Thou hast given Him power over all flesh to give eternal life to all whom Thou hast given Him. And this is eternal life, that they know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent. I glorify Thee on earth, having accomplished the work which Thou gavest me to do. And now, Father, glorify Thou me in Thy own presence with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was. Father, the hour has come. The one hour which mattered to us from all eternity, the hour has come. Glorify me. And then, right on, for the sake of time, verse 14. I have given them Thy word, and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I do not pray that Thou should take them out of the world, but Thou should keep them from the evil one. Verse 18. As Thou didst send me into the world, so have I sent them into the world. Verse 20. I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who believe in me through their word, that they may be all one, even as Thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that Thou hast sent me. The glory, the glory which Thou hast given me, I have given to them, that they may be one, even as we are one. I in them, Thou in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that Thou hast sent me and has loved them, even as Thou hast loved me. Isn't that tremendous? Jesus thanks the glory, Father, that You gave me before the world was. I have given to them. And after this prayer, he walks the Calvary road. And the character of Jesus, full of grace and truth, is the character that God raised from the dead and ascended into heaven and received on our behalf, for us, the Holy Spirit. In order that that character may be reproduced by each one of us, where we are, full of grace, that's the gospel, nothing less than that. The prayer of the Lord Jesus is echoed by the Apostle Paul, 2 Corinthians chapter 4, verse 17, Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all with unveiled faith, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being changed in His likeness from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. All with unveiled faith, beholding or reflecting the glory of the Lord, are being changed into His likeness from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. The mission of the Christians, there are no shortcuts to that. It's amazing, isn't it? Everybody's after shortcuts these days. At everything. Of course, America's a great country for shortcuts. The last shortcut I noticed there was an electric toothbrush. Just to suggest that it's too much for people to move their hands up and down. And it's suggested to me that the day will soon come when you can lie on your back, having wakened, and open your mouth wide, and in a lot of specified times your brilliant dentures will just arise and slot themselves in. Anything for a shortcut. Anything to save trouble. Anything. But there are no shortcuts to Christian character. We're in a spiritual battle. And those of us who are near the end of the battle find it's very tough. It doesn't get easier. In fact, isn't that true of all wars, Walter? That the severest battles are fought not at the beginning of the war, but at the end. The decisive battles come at the finish. And that's where the toughest battles are. Never in my life have I known the assault from the enemy that I've known in these last few years. And back to the grace of God. It's at the end of it. But Jesus is always faithful. And he's always wanting to reproduce his character in those who love him and those who follow him. A reflector of his glory. Can you imagine a greater, greater calling than that? Unfortunately, in order to get things done quickly, we substitute all sorts of things for the Holy Spirit. Programs. All kinds of things. Business, activity. A whorl of activity. Non-stop, seven days a week. How thankful I was to Jill for what she said last evening. And how necessary it is for us that we should learn to listen, to wait. And that's the hardest thing in life. Especially for activists like us. To stop, the church to which I'm very close, down in Birmingham, an Anglican church. And these days, certainly it wasn't true 30 years ago, but nowadays the major thrust of evangelical life within denominations is in the Anglican church. And in January of this year, this particular church of which I'm thinking, closed down all its activities. Stopped everything except the Sunday services. Closed everything. And called for the month of prayer. And waited upon God. Six nights a week. From 7 o'clock, and it never finished until 9. And the third and fourth week, it went on until 10. The first two weeks were an average of 159. The last two weeks were over 400. Waiting upon God, pleading with Him, calling upon Him. Do you know the whole life of that church has been listed on New Dimension? New Dimension altogether. There's praise and worship and thanks, and above all, I can never forget the day I went there. Just able to go once. The time given for reconciliation. And there were people who hadn't talked to each other for years. Who had broken hearts. And wept. And were reconciled. Brothers and sisters, don't let's be too proud to think that is impossible, or not easy. Maybe, maybe, who knows, the Lord, the Holy Ghost, could split open our program and come right down in Holy Spirit power. And just shatter us as we wait upon Him. I'm sure it means a Christian revolution in the church to face society as we find it in the world today. What we preach is not ourselves, said Paul. Not ourselves. But Jesus Christ as Lord. For Thyself, you are servant for Jesus' sake. For it is the God who said, let light shine into darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. And I can't think of anything more wonderful than just to be still and quiet and wait for God to tell me what He wants me to do. To give me a chance to move into my life. And there's one final picture that I leave you with this morning. The book of Revelation. Revelation chapter 1. You remember the vision of John? Here banished, banished to a desert island, ninety years of age. The last surviving apostle who'd met Jesus. And here he is in his desert island. Hi John. Verse 10. Within the spirit of the Lord's day and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet. Verse 12. Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me. And on turning I saw seven golden lampstands. And in the midst of the lampstands was one like a son of man clothed with a long robe and the golden girdle round his breast. His head and his hair was white as white wool, white as snow. His eyes like a flame of fire. His feet like burnished bronze refined in a furnace. And his voice like the sound of many waters. In his right hand he held seven stars. From his mouth issued a sharp toward George and his face. Was like the sun shining in full strength. When I saw him I fell at his feet as though dead. He laid his hand upon me and said, Fear not. And the living one I died. Now I live forevermore. Now write what you see. Would you get it? I hope the Holy Spirit has enabled me just to get this through to you. But I certainly have my own heart. I beseech you, Lord. Show me a glory this week. Show me a glory. Are you prepared for what's involved? Christ is heavy. No man has seen my face and lived. I fell at his feet as dead. And spiritually that's still true. Because I only go and see and behold the glory of God if I really know a crucifixion in my life. If I'm really ready to be ruthless with sin and evil. Ruthless. A hundred percent declaration of war against it. Then he's prepared to show me the glory. I was speaking a few weeks ago at what we call in this country Spring Harvest. That's one of many conferences that have recently emerged surfaced. Which has a great deal of beat rock music. And I asked them that before I spoke they would take it cool and play it down because I find it utterly impossible after, as I wrote and told them, after that kind of music when people are left after an hour of it on cloud nine on a emotional high on Jesus and physically exhausted. I find it impossible to preach the word the reality to them. Well, they took it easy but there was half an hour of it and I sat and saw them four thousand people there each week of three weeks twelve thousand altogether. I couldn't contain it. Oh no I couldn't do that. After all the offering on one evening for home missions was five thousand pounds. The offering for foreign missions the following night was the same. Ten thousand pounds in two nights for missions given by teenagers and by young married couples many of whom were unemployed. I couldn't condemn it. I loved them but I didn't understand it. Maybe it's because I'm old. I don't know. But as I saw them jumping up and down and dancing and doing everything except stand on their heads and hugging each other I said, Lord, Lord if you really came into Spring Harvest here tonight every one of us would be flat on our face. There wouldn't be anybody who clapped. Nobody who cheered. Nobody who sang except the glory song. Nobody who swayed and danced if Jesus came. I beseech you, Lord at capricious, stamp confident show me your glory. Do I mean it? Do you? It might have devastating effects on the program. It might have devastating effects on our lives. But it would have thrilling effects wherever we testified and witnessed because somehow the Lord would get in and we'd find ourselves with a tide coming in with a following wind behind us and witnessing not a program but a way of life and a whole lifestyle changed radically by the infilling, infilling of God's Holy Spirit. I beseech you, Lord show me your glory. That means what happens to me doesn't matter. So I never see my name in the press again. It won't matter. I never see myself advertised as a good speaker somewhere. It won't matter. All I want is your glory. Do we mean it? Do you? Let's pray together. Just a moment of quiet prayer. Lord, with all our hearts we cry to you. We beseech you. Show us your glory. Let things happen this week which are based on miracle and can only explain because you have just taken right over to reveal yourself in new power. The one who is full of grace and truth who bled and died and rose from the tomb and ascended to heaven and gave us your life that we might reproduce that life in power. Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom. Lord, we want to reflect your glory. Therefore, deal drastically with each one of us as you alone know we need. Humble us. Break us. And then send us out with the joy of the Lord. With the shout of the King in the camp. The joy of the Lord is our strength. Praising and rejoicing in a mighty God, a wonderful Saviour, an omnipotent Lord, the God of miracles.