February 7 - Exodus 20:1-22:15

Good morning everyone,

So as we continue in Scripture today, the Lord, in the form of fire, has called Moses to meet him up on the top of Mount Sinai, which at this point is totally engulfed with smoke. God told Moses to help the Israelites ready themselves, both physically and spiritually to meet with God. They were to set themselves apart from not only sin but also everyday routine, to get ready. All the distractions, preoccupations, which in today’s world would include cell phones, toys, TV, internet, anything that the enemy would use to distract you or take your focus off God, are to be put aside. It was when God felt they were ready that He spoke to them from this cloud the Ten Commandments. The commands were so the people could see the nature of God and also were used as guidelines to meet the needs of each individual in a loving and responsible manner. They were designed to lead Israel to a life of practical holiness.

Some would argue that these commandments are Old Testament, and we live in a New Testament time. And I get that, but allow me to use the Words of Jesus to draw parallels to the Ten Commandments and how they apply to us today.

Commandment:

1. “You must have no other God before me.” ~ Jesus said, Matthew 4:10, “ You must worship the Lord your God and serve Him only”
2. “You must not make for yourself an idol.” ~ Jesus said, Luke 16:13, “No one can serve two masters.”
3. “You must not misuse the name of the Lord your God.” ~ Jesus said, Matthew 5:34, “D not make any vows! Do not say, ‘By Heaven!’ because heaven is God’s throne.”
4. “ Remember to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.” ~ Jesus said, Mark 2:27-28, “ The Sabbath was meant to meet the needs of people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is Lord, even over the Sabbath.”
5. “Honor your father and mother.” ~ Jesus said, Matthew 10:37, “If you love your father or mother more than you love me, you are not worthy of being mine.”
6. “You must not murder.” ~ Jesus said, Matthew 5:22, “If you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgement!”
7. “You must not commit adultery.” ~ Jesus said, Matthew 5:28, “Anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”
8. “You must not steal.” ~ Jesus said, Matthew 5:40, “If you are sued in court and your shirt is taken from you, give your coat, too.”
9. “You must not testify falsely against your neighbor.” ~ Jesus said, Matthew 12:36 “ You must give an account on judgement day of every idle word you speak.”
10. “You must not covet.” ~ Jesus said, Luke 12:15, “Guard against every kind of greed.”

Many people look at “law” as threatening, often with immediate recoil or the digging in of heals. May I suggest to you that God’s laws are nothing to be feared, rather they bring with them a great deal of relief, because you see they are a means to God’s ultimate law of love and the peace that naturally follows when applied to our lives. Make sense? 

Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples.” True discipleship is more than intellectual assent, so to speak, those who are “really” followers of Christ will “hold to” His Word which includes the Ten Commandments. And if you do, when you do, then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. Amen?

Have a great day and to God be the glory.

God bless you all …..

February 6 - Exodus 16:1-19:25

Good morning everyone,

Chapter 16 begins with, “The whole Israelite community set out from Elim and came to the Desert of Sin” where, btw, it did not take long for them to begin grumbling against Moses and Aaron. They complained about how hungry they were, remembering their days in Egypt when they sat around pots of meat and ate all the food they wanted.” Wait! What? That’s not exactly a correct account of their previous lives. More accurately they, slaves you’ll remember, spent the whole of every day gathering straw to make bricks under the blistering Egyptian sun and whip of the task master. There was no glamorous dining going on.

Nonetheless, the Lord said He would rain down bread from heaven for them. They were to go out each day and gather an omer or about two quarts for each person each day. This was a test for them, to see if they could follow God’s  instructions. When some of the people tried to save extra, it became wormy and spoiled. On the sixth day they were suppose to gather twice as much to carry them through Sunday, allowing the a day of rest.

So, what is this bread from heaven? The Hebrew word translated “manna” literally means “what is it?” They didn’t know and apparently they didn’t give it a name, the bread is simply called “mamma” or “what is it.” Funny, right?

Though we do not know the texture of manna, we are told is that “it was like coriander seed, white, and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey” In Numbers it says that manna’s appearance was like “bdellium” or “resin.” Psalms refers to manna as “grain from heaven,” and the next verse calls it “bread of angels.” So, it seems manna was actually a bread that God caused to miraculously appear each morning during the Israelites’ wilderness wanderings. Manna sustained Israel; it gave them life—even the strength to fight battles when necessary. How great is our God?! But eventually this would not be enough for them and they would again complain.

Sadly, just like the Israelites wandering the desert, many people, Christians included are murmurers and complainers. In the home, on the job and in the local church they grumble, murmur and complain. They feel empty and hungry for something. God said, “I will feed them.”John 6:35, “Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” Jesus is our living bread, take and eat.

By equating Himself with bread, Jesus is saying that He is essential for life, He is our daily manna. I get that. But the life Jesus is referring to is not physical life, rather eternal life. Now, I know for the most part I am preaching to the choir, however, I would encourage you all, and remind myself, to each day open our Bibles and read, receive our daily bread while remembering, “All Scripture is god breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” 

Don’t starve yourself of the Word. You will become weak and an easy mark for the enemy who prowls around like a lion waiting to pounce on and devour those who become fragile or vulnerable from lack of proper nourishment.”Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.” Amen?

Have a great day and to God be the glory.

God bless you all …..

February 5 - Exodus 13:1-15:27

Good morning everyone,

So, Pharaoh has told Moses to get all of the Hebrews out of Egypt and while the most direct route to the  Promised Land would be but a mere ten day journey, the Lord had it in mind for them to take a year to get there. Why? They were use to being slaves, not thinking for themselves, not thinking in a Godly manner. Kind of like, “You can take the boy our of the country but it is harder to take the country out of the boy.” They had a few things to learn about living like a Herew. Plus, to go the shortest route would lead them through the land of the Philistines and they were not ready to do battle. God will never lead you where you are not ready to be. Right?

The first place they stopped was Succoth, There everyone would dedicate their first born to the Lord. God’s intent was that every firstborn would be in ministry. Sadly, that plan  would fail when later they fall prey to idolatry. 

In Succoth, they too, began the the tradition of the Festival of Unleavened Bread where on the seventh day of the celebration they were to explain to their children they are  celebrating what the Lord did for them when they left Egypt. Make sense?

I love that as they traveled the Lord was right there with them. In the day time God covered them in a pillar of cloud, creating kind of an inversion layer of sorts, I imagine, protecting them from the intense rays of the desert sun. Then at night, likewise protecting them with a pillar of fire because once the sun goes down the deserts could get super cold. Our God is so good. 

It says in chapter fourteen that God told Moses to have the Israelites change their direction to appear confused in their travels and to have them camp by the sea near Pi Hahiroth. By this time, Pharaoh has had a change of heart and he is headed after them. Imagine the thunder six hundred plus chariots would make racing across the desert floor. It would be terrifying, especially if you are stuck between a rock and a sea. In their horror the Israelites lashed out at Moses, saying, “It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!” Oh . . . ye of such little faith. If only they would have calmed themselves just long enough to remember God’s Word. He had promised them He would deliver them to a new land, flowing with milk and honey. They needed only to believe in that promise and then wait to see how God solved the problem. They would have saved themselves a whole lot of anxiety. 

We’re told the angel of God went behind the people and protected them through the night while Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. All that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. Did you get that friends, all night. That had to be a mass amount of water. While the sea was divided, the estimated three million Israelites made the half mile trek through the walls of water to the other side. Okay, please see that in your mind. Awesome!! We’re told that at daybreak the sea went back to its place. The Egyptians were making chase toward it, and the Lord swept the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them survived. 

It begs the question, what chases you? What has you terrified? No matter what it is, may I suggest to you that when you, that when we, find ourselves caught in a desperate situation, a problem that seems to have no solution, no way out that we not panic. God can open up a way. You absolutely and i absolutely have to believe that. Don’t put God in a box. If our God can hold the entire universe in the span of his hand, and He can, then He most certainly can see you through any situation no matter how seemingly hopeless. It may not be the answer you are looking for, but it will be a way out and the perfect plan of God. Psalm 46:1 tells us, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Believe it!

Then Moses and the people sang a song to the Lord. Singing was an expression of love and thanks. We too should be singing songs of joy and thanks to our Abba, even in our hardest of times because it is those days that He is the closest, seeing us through. God loves us. Holy, holy, holy is his name. Amen?

Have a great day and to God be the glory.

God bless you all.

February 4 - Exodus 10:1-12:51

Good morning everyone,

What a great day of reading! Oh my word. It began with the plague of the locusts. Once again Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said to him, “This is what the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, says: ‘How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me? Let my people go, so that they may worship me. If you refuse, I will bring locusts into your country.” Of course you all know, Pharaoh did refuse and the locust did come. A massive wall of them which “experts” say would look like 100 ft. tall, basically a ten story building,  and 4 to 5 miles in length. It would block out all light and leave everything stripped bare. The famine that would follow would be devastating. Pharaoh would summon Moses and Aaron, and again tell them he has sinned against the Lord their God, our God, and ask to be forgiven. Yet still, Pharaoh would stubbornly hold his position.

The plague of darkness followed. For three days, in Egypt only, it was so dark, we’re told, that it could be felt. No one could see anyone else. I have been in caves before where when they turned off the flashlights, it was so dark, I could not see my hand in front of my face. It is disorientating and frightening. God reserves this darkness for those who greatly sin against Him. He used it when Jesus died on the cross, for three hours it was dark. He will use it again for those who refuse to accept Jesus as their personal Savior.

Finally the plague of the firstborn. There is so very much to glean from chapters 11 and 12. I could write pages and pages on these two chapters alone. Up until this point, Moses didn’t know how long the plagues would go on, but now God tells him there is one more only and to have the people go throughout the town and ask their neighbors, the Egyptians, for their silver and gold. It is believed, and I agree, that God was having them collect past wages due them for four hundred years of slavery. All of this plunder would eventually be used to build a temple for God. Then God tells Moses exactly what is going to happen. I wonder what look Moses had on his face when God shared His plan. 

In chapter 12 the Lord said to Moses and Aaron while still in Egypt, “This month is to be for you the first month, the first month of your year.” It would be akin to the birth of a child. It was the birth of a tradition, one to go on for all of time, one that is honored to this day by the Jewish community. The passover celebration, an eight-day festival, is celebrated in the early spring, from the 15th through the 22nd of the Hebrew month of Nissan. It commemorates the freedom of the Israelites from slavery in ancient Egypt. By following the rituals of Passover, the story is retold, the experience relived from generation to generation.

I can only imagine how much faith the Israelites had to exercise in obeying the order given to them. Pack this, dress like that, now cook this, and …. what did you say? Put blood of a lamb on my door frame? Then … wait. What were they thinking when they heard the wailing across Egypt as the destroyer, one by one, took the lives of the first born? Gosh that would be horrifying. Right? But, finally Pharaoh, summoned Moses one last time and told him to take everyone and everything and go, and so they did.

What speaks to me most about today’s Scripture is God told Moses, “I may perform these signs of mine among them that you may tell your children and grandchildren.” It was very important, it is still very important to God that we tell our children and grandchildren how wonderful, how marvelous, how big our God is. The truth of His Word. They need to know how significant it is, the importance of, even when it doesn’t make sense, to trust in the Lord. They have to be told, Christians,of the blessings they will receive, if they would but place all their faith in Christ Jesus. 

I am passionate about this. In Deuteronomy 11 it says speaking to the Words of God, “Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.” Friends, if you don’t tell them how awesome God is, how much He absolutely loves them, how perfect His right and wrong is, they will hear and believe the lies of the world. We teach our children how to walk, how to talk, we prepare them for school, the changes they will experience in their bodies and ready them for their future. We absolutely need to be making Jesus known to them. Praying with them, praising God with them.  I would encourage you, and totally remind myself to, as often as we possibly can, talk to our kids and grandkids about Jesus. Prepare them for their eternity. If not now … when? If not you …. well, then who? Their life literally depends on it. Amen?

Have a great day and to god be the glory.

God bless you all …..

February 3 - Exodus 7:14-9:35

Good morning everyone,

Today’s Scripture covered seven of the ten plagues the Lord unleashed upon the land of Egypt. Exodus 5 told us that Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Let my people go, so that they may hold a festival to me in the wilderness.’ 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.” 

I can see Pharaoh sitting there on his throne as he hears the words “God of Israel.” He immediately starts searching the recesses of his mind for who they are talking about. There were an incredible number of gods and goddesses in Ancient Egypt, hundreds upon hundreds of them, some say thousands, certainly one for almost every situation and pharaoh, well, he is very familiar with most of them but he literally did not know who Moses and Aaron are talking about. He knew gods, but not The God. So he says, “yeah …. no deal guys.” Big mistake . . . HUGE!

The first plague was blood. Moses and Aaron again in 7:16 go before Pharaoh to give him a chance to change his mind and say to him “The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to tell you “Let my people go, so they can worship me in the wilderness.” Pharaoh, I am sure gives a bit of a chuckle when he does not comply; Aaron will then lift the staff turning all the waters of Egypt, rivers, canals, ponds all reservoirs to blood. Pharaoh’s magicians, however could match that, and would likewise turn what ever remaining water they can find into blood as well. 

In 7:23 it says that “Pharaoh returned to the palace and put the whole thing out of his mind.” Oh my! How many times have you tried to, have I tried to, tell someone about the Gospel, about Jesus, and they will be courteous to listen but will just walk away, putting the whole thing out of their mind. Heartbreaking! Can you just see Pharaoh doing that?

The next plague is the frogs. This one grosses me out, not that any of the plagues would be pleasant, mind you, but seriously they were everywhere. We’re told that when Aaron raised the staff that frogs would be all over the land; again, everywhere! In the beds, on the kneading tables, in the ovens, hopping, croaking, they would be wading through them, being squished under foot … how else do you say everywhere? But what did the magicians do? They duplicated the miracle with sorcery. Why!? If you are that great of a magician, wouldn’t your first choice be to get rid of the frogs? I know mine would. Just sayn’. This time, though, Pharaoh summoned Aaron and Moses to pray to “their” God to get rid of them. 

As we move on to the next plague, the gnats, we’ll read that the magicians will no longer be able to duplicate the miracle and still Pharaoh’s heart remains hard. 

Next is the plague of the flies and now it is only the Egyptians who are going to suffer, God sparing the land of Goshen where His people lived. With this Pharaoh tells Moses they can offer sacrifices to God but they must stay in the land of Egypt. Moses say “No, that wouldn’t be right, the Egyptian’s detest the sacrifices they offer.” Pharaoh, and please try to get a visual on this, easily has thousands of flies swarming his body and those of everyone around him. He has got to be very bothered by this, I would be! How about you? He’s swatting away at them and in his frustration, probably raising his voice, he finally says “I will let you go to offer sacrifices to the Lord your God in the wilderness, but you must not go very far. Now pray for me”, and of course Moses does and of course pharaoh hardens his heart yet again.

As we read over the coming plagues we’ll see that Pharaoh will try to make a compromise, he’ll tell Moses that they can do their sacrifice but only on Pharaoh’s terms which wouldn’t be a true sacrifice at all. Psalm 119:1-4 says, “Blessed are those whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the Lord. Blessed are those who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart—they do no wrong but follow his ways.You have laid down precepts that are to be fully obeyed.” 

Friends, God has laid down precepts, rules for our behavior that are to be fully, obeyed. Did you get that? Fully obeyed. There is no compromise with God. There is no bending His Word to make it suit your lifestyle, there is no picking and choosing what you want to obey. God’s Word is God’s Word! You are either for Him or against Him. As Christians, as true believers in our Lord Jesus Christ, we must accept God’s Word as absolute and proceed in faith accordingly. Blessed are those who do! Amen?

Have a great day and to God be the glory.

God bless you all …

February 2 - Exodus 4:18-7:13

Good morning everyone,

As we continue in Exodus today, God summoned Moses and had a good conversation with him from a burning bush. He told him that He has seen the oppression of His people in Egypt and has heard their cries and that He wants Moses lead them out of there. God told him to just walk right on up to Pharaoh and tell him I said, “Let my people go!” Oh my word, I can just see the look on Moses’ face as he quickly snaps his head up, all startled and confused, then turns to see if perhaps God may be talking to someone else, because he knows he does not want to be doing that job. When realizing he was the only one there Moses says, “Ummm, I think you’ve got the wrong guy,” (perhaps  paraphrased) and flat out tells God, he tried to help them once before, it didn’t work out, he’s not really capable or suitable, he is kind of afraid and he just plain does not want to do it. God says, “I get that, but I’ll help you out with this, here’s some tools you can use, now go pack up.” (more paraphrasing) So Moses does exactly that.

One of the many things I love about God is that when He asks you to do something, He will always give you, give us, the ability to do it. Many, many years ago I was asked to teach a 4th grade Sunday school class. I was like Moses and had every excuse in the book why I could not do it; I’m no good with kids, they won’t listen to me, I don’t know how to teach. The list went on and on. Finally I was cornered, I absolutely knew God wanted me to do this and I could not figure out one more way to say, “no” and so I dove right in. Now I would like to say I was awesome at it, but I wasn’t. But I did it, and further more I enjoyed it and what I learned from it was, when God asks you to do something He will give you the ability. He uses the gift He has already blessed you with and builds on them.

Think about it, Paul was well educated, he could articulate. God used him to write a great deal of the Bible. Peter, he had a net. He was a fisherman. God said, “I can work with that, I’ll make you a fisher of men.” The Bible is full of God using ordinary people and their gifts to make a difference. What’s really cool too is that with each time you obey God, saying “yes, Lord” you are strengthened in the Lord and you then realize the authority you have in and through Him. Make sense? 

Moses was eighty years old when he first stepped before pharaoh. Before all is said and done, the Hebrews would suffer considerably more and question why Moses was there but Moses would stay on task for God. 

Is God asking you to do something that you are just too busy for, or don’t feel qualified to, or are fearful of? Or, perhaps, you just plain don’t want to do it. Well, I would encourage you to put all those excuses aside and just do what God asks of you. By saying “yes” to God, we are essentially saying that He is the most important thing in our lives, and you know what?, all good things spring from that wonderful fact. I challenge you and myself to each and every day live with obedience and love in our Lord, Christ Jesus. Then get ready to be amazed at how awesome it makes you feel. Amen?

Have a great day and to God be the glory.

God bless you all …..

February 1 - Exodus 1:1-2:25,  1 Chronicles 6:1-3, Exodus 3:1-4:17

Good morning everyone,

Exciting reading this morning. Exodus is an amazing book, penned  by Moses to record all the events of Israel while being delivered from Egypt. It begins about four hundred years after the end of the book of Genesis. Joseph had brought his family, of about seventy people, into Egypt and protected them there. After his death, though, as they multiplied into a nation of about three million, Seti I, the new king of Egypt, was looking at the growing number of Israelites and knew he had a problem. The Hittites to the north were already breathing down his neck and although the Israelites, in and of themselves, were really a non-issue, if they joined forces with the Hittites the king would have something to fear and so he forced them into slavery in an effort to eliminate any threat. Yet even under the harsh conditions of slavery the people of Israel continued to grow in number and strength. The king, pharaoh, got desperate to stop their increase in population and ordered all baby boys born to Israelite women to be killed by the Egyptian midwives. That is just wrong.

Today was one of those days of reading, for me, when the Lord took something that I have read many, many times. Scripture I figured I already knew well and opened my eyes to something new in the account of the story. What a blessing! I am just going to share them with you, perhaps you already know them but because God is so great,  I can not keep it to myself. You know what I mean? Thank you for indulging me :-)

So one of the things I learned was, the midwives that tended to the Israelite women were typically barren. Did not know that! But what, with families of their own. Seriously, I just got that today. Love it. They were women who feared the Lord, and honored His orders, over the pharaoh’s. Imagine, if you will, the joy that overflowed in these midwives’ hearts when after, who knows how long, their wombs were opened and they conceived and gave birth to their own child. Way cool! Right?

Also Jochabed, Moses’ mom, saw something special in her son. Now, who doesn’t, right, but she was passionate for him and she acted on it. She put her son’s life in the hands of the Lord. We are told in the King James Version that she, Jochabed, constructed an “ark.” That, “when she could not longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child therein; and she laid it in the flags by the river's brink.”

 Get this, this word “ark”, the only other time it is used in Scripture in this manner is when describing what Noah built. I did not know that until yesterday. Love it! Jochabed was a godly woman who knew the the story of a godly man. Coincidence? I think not.

I am confident (well as much as I can be, anyway) she thought “if it worked for Noah, surely it can work for my baby boy.” I feel totally blessed, God pointed out the parallel to me today. It was awesome. I so love my God!

Well, as we all know, pharaoh’s one and only daughter, Thermutus, “happens” to see this baby boy crying and her heart goes out to him, and she picks him up to be her own. She names him Moses, which means “drawn out” and ends up paying Jochabed to nurse her very own child. Is that great or what?

Moses grows up in royalty, with all the benefits of the rich and famous. He commits a crime, murder, and because Pharaoh would be bound to punish him with death if caught, Moses flees for his life. He becomes a shepherd, tending the flock of Jethro, his soon to be father-in-law. One day while he was tending the sheep when, we’re told, the Angel of the Lord appeared to him from a burning bush. “Moses! Moses!” God says, “I’ve got a plan for you. You are going to lead My people out of Egypt” 

Imagine the look on the face of Moses, all that’s going through his mind. I’ll be honest, it makes me chuckle. Moses will make every excuse in the book as to why he can not do what God has called him to do, but in the end he will honor God’s request. That’s the example I always want to follow. He will cling tightly to his shepherd’s staff as he leaves for Egypt to face the greatest challenge of his life, for you see the staff was his assurance of God’s presence. God’s Word is our assurance. I would encourage you, as you face the greatest challenges of your life to cling tightly to God’s Holy Word. It is there to guide you and encourage you and show you amazing truths not only about God but about how great you are in and through Him. Amen?

Have a great day and to God be the glory.

God bless you all …..