So Moses chiseled out two stone tablets like the first ones and went up Mount Sinai early in the morning, as the Lord had commanded him; and he carried the two stone tablets in his hands. Then the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the Lord. And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.”

Moses bowed to the ground at once and worshiped. “Lord,” he said, “if I have found favor in your eyes, then let the Lord go with us. Although this is a stiff-necked people, forgive our wickedness and our sin, and take us as your inheritance.”

Then the Lord said: “I am making a covenant with you. Before all your people I will do wonders never before done in any nation in all the world. The people you live among will see how awesome is the work that I, the Lord, will do for you.

Exodus 34:4–10 NIV

“It may be that He has the eternal appetite of infancy; for we have sinned and grown old, and our Father is younger than we.”

G.K. Chesterton

Your God is Too Small. 

For the ancient readers of Exodus, the “problem” texts weren’t the ones where God promises judgment. The problem texts are the ones where he doesn’t. 

 

Then the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the Lord. And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness,  maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.”

Exodus 34:5–7 NIV

Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.”

Exodus 34:7 NIV

…showing love to a thousand generations…

Exodus 20:6 NIV

Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.

Joel 2:13 NIV

That is what I tried to forestall by fleeing to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity.

Jonah 4:2 NIV

The point: You can never exhaust the surprising nature of God’s grace.

The point at which you can’t accept God’s grace for yourself or for others is the point at which your God is too small. 

TABLE GROUP DISCUSSION GUIDE

1. Read Exodus 34:4–10. The point of the sermon was that you can never exhaust the surprising nature of God’s grace. Can you think of a time where God’s grace surprised you?

2. The sermon mentioned that we often take God’s grace for granted. How do we avoid becoming numb to it in our daily lives?

3. We learned that for ancient readers, the “problem” texts weren’t necessarily the ones where God promises judgment, but rather the ones where he doesn’t. What does this mean?

4. Like Jonah, have you ever struggled with the idea that God could be gracious to someone you didn’t think deserved it? How did you handle that?

5. How does understanding God's long-suffering nature (His "long nose") help us reflect His character in a world that is often quick to anger?

6. Are there areas in your life where you need to be more "long-nosed" like God—toward yourself, your family, or someone difficult in your life?

7. What practical steps can you take this week to become more aware and grateful for the slow, surprising work of God’s grace in your life?