May 22, 2017
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Reading along with us in Exodus? Here’s today’s reading:
Exodus 6 (ESV)
But the Lord said to Moses, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for with a strong hand he will send them out, and with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land.”
2 God spoke to Moses and said to him, “I am the Lord. 3 I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by my name the Lord I did not make myself known to them. 4 I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they lived as sojourners. 5 Moreover, I have heard the groaning of the people of Israel whom the Egyptians hold as slaves, and I have remembered my covenant. 6 Say therefore to the people of Israel, ‘I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment… Continue Reading
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Elise and I read Hebrews chapter 9 this morning and there was mention of Aaron’s staff that budded. It’s amazing how God gave the man-made tabernacle as a picture for us of what Christ would accomplish for us to be able to enter the heavenly tabernacle.
So awesome that we have a God who will do su much for us. In Exodus 6 God fights for the Israelites. He talks about who He is and says “I will” so many times. In just 9 sentences this is what God has done and will do for all His children.
What I will do to Pharaoh
I am the Lord
I appeared to Abraham
I established my covenant
I have heard
I have remembered
I am the Lord
I will bring you
I will free
I will redeem
I will take you
I will be your God
I am the Lord your God
I will bring you
I swore (promised)
I will give to you
I am the Lord
Discouragement blocked the people from receiving message and all the joy and hope in the promises God so clearly laid out that He would provide.
I am the God who appeared to Abraham Isaac Jacob I am the God who has heard the groaning of my people
How great is God’s promised deliverance to show His mighty hand!!! How much peace do we then choose to have because of that deliverance? How much does hardship blind us to it? Faith is the key: to believe without seeing.
Also notice the names we have come across id Numbers mentioned here. The sons of Levi, Gershon, Kohath and Merari, who all were give responsibility to transport items of the tabernacle. And the infamous ones that were their offspring…Korah, Nadab and Abihu
Those names jumped out at me, too, Pastor Peter! “Oh, THERE’S Korah!”
Interesting that the writer of this chapter (Moses?) wanted to make sure we know who “Moses and Aaron” are, so there’s not any confusion.
“Moses spoke thus to the people of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses, because of their broken spirit [NIV = “discouragement”] and harsh slavery.” Exodus 6:9
While Moses and Aaron brought good news, compelling the people to worship God, the timing wasn’t what they hoped for. And as a matter of fact, things got WORSE after the good news was delivered! Now they’ve fallen into what I imagine would be despair and hopelessness, maybe even resignation to their plight.
Do we lose hope when God’s timing and ours are out of sync?
God is going to show Israel, Egypt, and the whole world (even up to now, as we read the recorded history!) just who He is! But here, the people are still in darkness. They don’t know what’s coming.
I wish I could be in this story right now and tell them, “Hold on! God’s coming for you, and it’s gonna be AWESOME! Way better than you could even IMAGINE!! And your deliverance is going to point the whole world to the coming Messiah, who is going to deliver ALL who believe in Him!!”
Remember Exodus 5:2? “Pharaoh said, ‘Who is the Lord, that I should obey him and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord and I will not let Israel go.’” By the time this story plays out, Pharaoh WILL know who God is, as will all of Egypt, and all of Israel. Today, thousands of years later, we’re still talking about what God did. Movies have been made about it!
Romans 9:17 “For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, ‘For this very purpose I raised you up, to demonstrate My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth’.”
Romans 9:22-24 “What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction? And He did so to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory, even us, whom He also called, not from among Jews only, but also from among Gentiles.”
This whole story in Exodus is for us, to show us “the riches of His glory.” What an awesome thought…and one that should help us to persevere in faith whenever we find ourselves in a difficult season.
Father, let me never forget how awesome in power You are, and how blessed I am — by faith in Jesus Christ — to be counted among the vessels of Your mercy rather than the vessels of Your wrath, whose end will be destruction. By mercy and grace You called me out of darkness to know You. By faith I am able to call You “Abba, Father” and come to You with all my burdens, knowing You love and hear me. Help me persevere in faith and trust Your purposes when those around me have hardened hearts, or when I can’t see what You’re doing. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.