Re: Verse reading–Exodus 15:22-27; 16:1-18 (day seven)
“For three days they traveled in the desert without finding any water.”—15:22. Ever wonder why God makes us wait? Wait in prayer? Persevere in an unfair situation? If it is possible for God to provide in an immediate, timely way (and it IS possible), why would He do otherwise? Part of the answer is that waiting (endurance) is part of the process by which the human heart learns trust (unlearns sin). “We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation”—Romans 5:3-4 (Living Translation). Hate to wait? Want your answers now? You are headed for difficulty. A wise and loving God has chosen to ask you, in certain times and seasons, to walk in faith, to wait (without sight) for His promised help. Hmmm. . . where have I heard “three days” before?
Blood, Sweat, and Grace
Re: Verse reading–Exodus 15:22-27; 16:1-18 (day six)
Exodus 15:25
The Exodus is an expose’ on the human condition. From the beginning it casts the Hebrews as a desperate and sinful people; it makes no effort to paint a romantic or rosy picture. Save the brief moment of worship after crossing the Red Sea, they grumble and complain at every turn, and when given the opportunity they disobey God. Their condition looks bleak.
If you are like me, there is the slightest temptation to pass judgement, but the truth is the Exodus exposes our own frail condition. Try as we might, we are simply unable to faithfully follow God. We are desperate and sinful, and broken and self-absorbed. We don’t need a savior because we struggle getting our act together some of the time, we need a savior because we are unable to do anything at all. Given the test we will fail it time and time again.
“But God being rich in mercy (Ephesians 2:4-8),” and full of grace, not only makes provision for them in their most desperate moments but also reveals his glory to them(Exodus 16:10). When we would have long washed our hands of them, God graciously reveals his glory to them. What grace! Ultimately the greatest display of the glory of God is in the resurrection of His Son, which both afforded His grace to His people in the dessert thousands of years ago, and to us today!
What a grand story of blood, sweat, and grace!
Sunday is coming!
Oh and don’t forget about the Unbroken Marriage event on April 10th!
Check the website for more details.
God’s Economy
Re: Verse reading–Exodus 15:22-27; 16:1-18 (day five)
Exodus 16: 4 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether or not they will walk in My instruction”.
God continues to be faithful in providing provision and protection to the Israelites. God demonstrates His generosity and kindness to His People. Yet, He “measures” it out on a daily basis. Needs are met and obedience is required. What lessons and insights could be gained by collecting manna each and every morning? Perhaps God is teaching them (and us), faith and trust marked with daily discipline and determination is His recommended pattern for growth and grace.
The focus shifts from victory (centered more on man) to obedience (centered directly on God). Sounds like Jesus’ prayer, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”
What Is It?
Re: Verse reading–Exodus 15:22-27; 16:1-18 (day four)
Verse 15 – When the sons of Israel saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, “It is the bread which the Lord has given you to eat.” The Israelites knew that God was sending food…they would have meat in the evening and bread in the morning. When they saw it in the morning though, they did not know what it was. They didn’t recognize God’s provision. God later promised them a Messiah…one who would come and save them. For years they waited and anticipated the arrival of their messiah that would deliver Israel from their oppressors. A baby was born…maybe He was the one…but He had no army and then He was crucified. Israel saw the Messiah and said, “What is it?” They didn’t recognize God’s provision. How often do we miss God’s provision in our lives simply because it doesn’t look like we expect?
Deal
Re: Verse reading–Exodus 15:22-27; 16:1-18 (day three)
“You are not grumbling against us, but against the Lord.” Perhaps there were times that the Israelites had legitimate complaints against Moses. He was not perfect, after all. But this was not one of those times. The Israelites weren’t chafing against some plan that Moses had drawn up; they were calling into question the total resettlement initiative—and that was God’s project. The Lord was breaking them free from not only forced servitude, but from the entire Egyptian worldview. He was forming them into a people who could think straight. Their grumbling gave evidence that they had not grasped that radical reality. But the words Moses spoke to them called their attention to God’s activity in the midst of these circumstances. The time will come when we all have to deal with God—and Moses tells them that time is now.
Short-term Memory
Re: Verse reading–Exodus 15:22-27; 16:1-18 (day two)
So the people grumbled…vs 24. This word of complaint is just three verses removed from Miriam’s song “Sing to the Lord, for is highly exalted.” What were they expecting? Why so quick to turn to grumbling? Later in the chapter God provides bread from heaven. BREAD FROM HEAVEN! That’s pretty incredible provision. That too, however, will become tiresome to the Israelites. Just days removed from Egyptian captivity, with empty bellies all they could think about was how well they ate while they were slaves. Do you become myopic when it comes to the Lord’s call? The call to obedience may indeed require you to make uncomfortable sacrifices, but a bit of perspective is also required. Fixating on the Egyptian buffet made the Israelites forget 400 years of oppression. Are we short-sighted when it comes to the call of the Lord? Do we forget just how much he has already done for us? His provision is more than enough, it always has been.
Jehovah Rapha
Re: Verse reading–Exodus 15:22-27; 16:1-18 (day one)
“If you listen carefully to the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in His eyes, if you pay attention to His commands and keep all His decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I the Lord am your healer.”–15:26.
Jehovah Rapha. “Lord, healer.” I am not sure that the waters of Marah would have made them sick. I am certain that they feared that drinking brackish, bitter water would do so. Years of free, unlimited, clean water in Egypt (from the Nile) had made them tender and timid soldiers. So God toughened and taught His people to trust Him for their health and welfare. So long as we are in the center of God’s will, walking with Him in cooperative, surrendered life; so long as He orders more days for our story, we are invincible. He is our healer!
Where are your eyes?
Re: Verse reading–Exodus 14:1-4, 10-31; 15:1-2, 20-21 (day seven)
“As Pharaoh drew near, the sons of Israel looked up, and behold the Egyptians were marching after them, and became very frightened.”–14:10.
Where are the eyes of your heart focused at this present moment? On your disappointments or the Lord? Faith is more than a spiritual technique, but God’s wisdom calls for His people to place our eyes on Him, only Him, always Him. We call it worship. Walking on water taught Peter this lesson. (Matthew 14:22-23) Exodus 14 illustrates the same principle. So long as their eyes were on the Egyptians, they were paralyzed by fear. When God is large, then our problems are small by comparison. The problem is that our eyes are often focused on the wrong thing or person. “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling. . .what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe.”—Ephesians 1:18-19.
Remember
Re: Verse reading–Exodus 14:1-4, 10-31; 15:1-2, 20-21 (day five)
Exodus 14:12 Is this not the word that we spoke to you in Egypt, saying, ‘Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.”
The people of God were already showing signs of “memory loss”. They had quickly forgotten about God’s power and faithfulness to act and protect them as they were being freed from Pharaoh’s captivity.
The Israelites had trusted God for their salvation (Passover) but were having difficulty in trusting God in their circumstances (wilderness). The cloud and pillar were close and present, but these people became less aware because of the tension, stress, and uncertainty of their circumstances.
The promise of Psalm 46:10-11 becomes our prescription for understanding and security 10 “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” 11 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. We do well to remember God’s promises and power in the midst of our circumstances.
Let God Do His Part
Re: Verse reading–Exodus 14:1-4, 10-31; 15:1-2, 20-21 (day four) There are some things that we are responsible to do and some things that God takes responsibility to do. Verse 15-17 says, “Then the Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to Me? Tell the sons of Israel to go forward. 16 As for you, lift up your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, and the sons of Israel shall go through the midst of the sea on dry land. As for Me, behold, I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them; and I will be honored through Pharaoh and all his army, through his chariots and his horsemen.” Dr. Bill Bright, founder of Campus Crusade had a definition for witnessing. “Successful witnessing is simply taking the initiative to share Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit and leaving the results to God.” Key for us is to know and do what we should be doing and letting God do what He is responsible for. He is glorified through our obedience and trust!