January 29, 2018
GOD’S PURPOSE FOR THE TEN PLAGUES
The Lord warned Pharaoh that He could have easily wiped them off the face of the earth for holding his chosen people in slavery. But instead he spared them, using the ten plagues to reveal His power and spread His fame in the earth. There were many ways the Lord could have chosen to free the Israelites, but the ten plagues were given to reveal His power over every aspect of life.
January 28, 2018
MOSES AT 80
The life of Moses can be divided into three 40-year phases. The first 40 he lived as a prince of Egypt, the second, as a shepherd in Midian, and the third, as the deliverer of Israel. It took 80 years to get Moses prepared to deliver God’s people. That’s a long education. Yet finally, he was both humble and obedient enough for God to use. The last 40 years of his life were devoted to being God’s man, leading Israel out of Egypt and into the land of Canaan.
What do plan to do with you life after 80?
January 26, 2018
MOSES’ TIME OF PREPARATION
Moses had spent the first 40 years of his life as an Egyptian prince. Now, he would spend the next 40 years as a shepherd in the land of Midian. Midian was located near the Northeastern shore of the Red Sea in modern day Saudi Arabia. It was populated by the Midianites, a nomadic people group that descended from Midian, a later son of Abraham by his wife, Keturah (Gen. 25:1-2). It was in this land, that God prepared Moses to rescue Israel. He had tried rescuing his people in his own strength, even killing an Egyptian slaver, but ended up running away to escape the wrath of Pharaoh. Yet, it was in the wilderness of Midian that God prepared Moses for his true calling.
God often uses wilderness experiences to prepare His people for leadership.
February 11, 2017
After Israel’s idolatry over the golden calf, Moses set his tent outside the camp and called it the “tabernacle of meeting.” There, Moses would meet with God. The pillar of cloud would descend and stand at the tabernacle door, and the Lord would speak to Moses. Moses would come and go between the Israelite camp and the tabernacle, but Joshua “did not depart from the tabernacle.” Notice the detail given concerning Joshua:
1) His name – “Joshua,” in Hebrew is יְהוֹשׁ֫וּעַ, or “Yehoshua,” which means, “the LORD is salvation.” This is the same name given to Christ (From the Greek Ιησούς, iesous or “Jesus”).
2) Moses’ servant – While the rest of Israel, including Moses’ own brother, Aaron, committed idolatry, Joshua remained a humble and faithful servant to Moses. In like manner, Jesus was a humble and faithful servant to His Father.
3) Son of Nun – Joshua, son of Nun, was from the tribe of Ephraim (Num. 13:8), which was the son of Joseph. Joshua descended from the half tribe of Joseph. And Jesus was known as the legal descendent of one named Joseph.
4) Young man – Joshua was much younger than Moses. Moses was at the time in his 80s, while Joshua was probably in his 50s. This makes me feel better about my age. The Bible says that the 50s is young! I like that! Jesus was a young man in his 30s when He fulfilled His ministry.
5) Did not depart – Joshua stayed at the tabernacle continually. The Scripture doesn’t comment on his activity there, but it must have involved serving Moses and perhaps guarding access. Jesus was also known for not departing from the Temple. Even as a 12 year old boy, his parents found him there talking with the teachers (Luke 2:41-51).
Moses was the lawgiver of Israel who was unable to give them rest (salvation); that honor was given to Joshua, who brought Israel into the Promised Land after Moses died. Similarly, Jesus, the Son of God, has accomplished that which the law could not do, namely, salvation for all those who believe (Rom. 8:3-4). And now, He never departs from the presence of the Father, always interceding for us (Heb. 7:24-25).
February 6, 2017
Who is this “Angel?”
The word in the Hebrew means “messenger.” So, some say it refers to Moses. Others suggest it was the archangel Michael. Some Jewish scholars say it refers to the Hebrew Scriptures. But let us consider the clues given in the Lord’s description of this unidentified “Angel.”
Clues to the identity of the “Angel:”
1) Masculine singular pronouns “He” and “Him” are used.
2) He goes before the Israelites to “keep” them.
3) He goes before them to lead (“bring”) them to a …
4) A place He has prepared for them.
5) They were to beware and obey His voice.
6) The Lord’s “name is in Him.”
I believe this “Angel” is the second person of the Trinity, the preincarnate Christ, the Son of God. It was Christ who kept and brought the Israelites through the wilderness, giving them manna to eat and water to drink. It was Christ who prepared the Promised Land for them. It was Christ who had the “NAME” and nature of the Lord “in” Him. No angel or man would have all these attributes. Yet, they did not obey His voice, but provoked Him, so that most of that adult generation died in the wilderness without seeing the Promised Land.
February 5, 2017
After giving the Ten Commandments to Moses, the Lord gave instructions on the implications of following them. This verse illustrates the following of the 9th commandment, namely, “You shall not bear false witness” (Ex. 20:16). One cannot resist noting how following these words would eliminate most of the nonsense shared as news on social media today. “You shall not circulate,” might be restated for modern ears, “You shall not hit the share button to spread false reports.” This would help both teens and adults alike to resist lying to themselves and others, blaming their own behavior on following the “crowd.” These illustrations of the ten commandments show the far-reaching and perfect nature of God’s law. They also show how impossible they are for fallen humanity to keep. What if they were given to show the depth of our sinfulness and the desperate need we have of a Divine rescue? Indeed. As the apostle Paul wrote, “Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith” (Gal. 3:24). The law is perfect, but it cannot save. Only Christ saves and sets us free from slavery to sin, so that we no longer walk in the darkness of falsehood, but in the light of truth.
February 3, 2017
God told Moses that the Israelites would be a “special treasure” to Him above other nations. The Hebrew word translated “special treasure,” comes from a root word that includes the idea that the treasure was special because it was purchased or redeemed at great cost to the owner. Israel was the Lord’s “special treasure,” not because of their own intrinsic value, but because He had chosen and redeemed them out of Egypt as on “eagle’s wings” (Ex. 19:4). It was the Lord’s own redemption that made Israel special. That the Lord had chosen them as His own peculiar possession did not mean that He didn’t care for the other nations of the earth. Not at all. For all the earth belongs to the Lord and all its people. He chose Israel for a special purpose, that they would be a “kingdom of priests and a holy nation.” Israel was set apart to testify of the Lord to all the other nations. Yet ultimately, Israel was chosen to be the people to whom the Lord Jesus would be born. Jesus is the One who fulfilled Israel’s purpose, obeying the Lord’s voice, keeping His covenant, and becoming the Great High Priest who offers salvation to all the world through His sacrifice.
February 2, 2017
The people of Israel complained of thirst, threatening to stone Moses for leading them into the desert. Moses brought their complaint to the Lord and the Lord answered. God told Moses to take his rod and some of the elders with him as witnesses, and to strike the rock at Horeb, and water sufficient for the people would come forth. Moses obeyed the Lord. Some have tried to estimate the amount of water it would have taken to quench the thirst of so vast a people with all of their flocks. Suffice it to say, the water would have had to gush forth like a great fountain to have met everyone’s need. The apostle Paul wrote that this “Rock was Christ” (1 Cor. 10:4). In other words, the rock was a Spiritual Rock, a Christological Type, pointing to its fulfillment in Jesus. For He was “struck” for us that living water unto eternal life might pour forth to those who believed. The Israelites had their thirst quenched by the waters from the rock at Horeb that day. Yet, their thirst returned the next day. But those who have drunk from the Spiritual Rock, which is Christ, will thirst no more. For Christ has said, “Whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life” (John 4:14).
January 27, 2017
Just as Jacob had wrestled God on the eve of his return to the promised land, so Moses had an encounter with God on the eve of his return to Egypt. While Jacob’s encounter left him walking with a limp for the rest of his life, Moses was at risk of death in his meeting with God. Apparently, Moses had failed to circumcise his son. This was the mark of the covenant that God had given to Abraham. And Moses had been negligent to keep it. So, in this terrifying encounter with God, Zipporah, Moses’ wife, ascertained the offense and performed the circumcision herself. When she had cut away her son’s foreskin with a sharp stone, God released Moses and let him go. Before Moses could lead the household of God, he needed to get his own house in order.
February 13, 2016
The modern separation between the sacred and the secular is not the wholistic view of faith and vocation that is seen in the Bible. Consider these two men whom Moses named in the Exodus story because of their God-given talent as craftsmen. He described Bezalel as being “called by name” (Ex.35:30) by the Lord to work as the lead craftsman in building the tabernacle. Both he and Oholiab were similarly gifted by and called by God to do this highly skilled work. Moses even described Bezalel as being “filled with the Spirit” (Ex.35:31), not only to do all kinds of specialized work as a craftsman, but also as one whom God “inspired to teach” (Ex.35:34) others his craft.
All work is sacred when it is done as “unto the Lord” (Col.3:23).