The Lord's Distinctions Between Peoples - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 11:7,

"Then you will know that the Lord makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel."

This distinction is huge. All of the first born males of Egypt are going to die. This will include the first born of all cattle as well. However, none of the Israelites will be afflicted by this plague. The Lord is going to discriminate between these two peoples on the basis of race and national origin. How Impolitic! Of course, God always has been - his outlook is different than ours.

Many of those things that are a fascination of mankind these days are not highly thought of by God. Today's society embraces the importance of accepting people with "other lifestyles." God's outlook is different. We today are preoccupied with not offending anyone. God calls homosexuality detestable, Leviticus 18:22, and a shameful lust and error, Romans 1:26-27, and something that can keep one from entering the kingdom of heaven (if not abandoned), 1 Corinthians 6:9. Of course fake "Christians" never read their fake Bibles, so what could you expect?

So, apparently, God is not too concerned about offending some demographic of people when he is afoot accomplishing what he intends to achieve. In this case he is going to achieve Israel's freedom from Egypt in a way that causes a big splash! The story is so remarkable that we still talk about the plagues of Egypt today.

One of the amazing things about God is that he shows up in different colors. He tells us on the one hand he is holy and righteous, dispensing justice, and yet, kind, Jeremiah 9:24. His love is an amazing thing, "When the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy." Titus 3:4. Yet, to those who don't respond to his offer of forgiveness, he will toss into a fiery lake of burning sulfur, Revelation 21:8. This will be the biggest distinction he will ever make regarding people. This distinction will not be based on any demography:

"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world'... Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels'... Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life." Matthew 25:31-46.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here:  http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/

Impassioning Spirits? - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 11:3,

"The Lord made the Egyptians favorably disposed toward the people, and Moses himself was highly regarded in Egypt by Pharaoh's officials and by the people."

We are told the Lord made the Egyptians favorably disposed toward the Israelites and Moses. How did the Lord do that? Did the plagues the Lord brought on Egypt through Moses cause the Egyptians to be favorably disposed? In Psalm 105:23-25 we read, "Then Israel entered Egypt; Jacob resided as a foreigner in the land of Ham. The Lord made his people very fruitful; he made them too numerous for their foes, whose hearts he turned to hate his people, to conspire against his servants." How did the Lord do that?

We also read in Psalm 105:38, "Egypt was glad when they left, because dread of Israel had fallen on them." I think it easy to see why the dread of Israel had fallen on the Egyptians as we read the accounts of these horrific plagues. However, I can't help but think that the Lord, in addition to an expected response by events, caused people's outlooks and dispositions to shift in a more direct way.

How do we account for Pharaoh's hard heart in not allowing the Israelites to leave Egypt following the horrific plagues? Any other sane person would have driven the Israelites out due to the suffering the plagues brought. The Scriptures tell us the Lord himself hardened his heart.

It appears to me that the Lord at times intervenes in people's hearts to cause them to feel one way or another,  depending on what he determines to accomplish. And, in the examples we can look at, the person does not realize they are being manipulated at the time.

I could be way off base here (and I certainly recognize this of myself), but in Hebrews 1:7 the writer of Hebrews paraphrases Psalm 104:4, "He makes his angels spirits, and his servants flames of fire." What exactly is meant by that? The one thought I have is that we, as the human family, do not occupy earth alone. We are not alone here. Jacob had his vision of angels ascending and descending on a stairway that spanned from earth to heaven.

Again, we are not alone here. There are other beings here in our midst that God has made "spirits" and flames of fire. That last phrase "flames of fire" speak to me of passion. I can't help but think angels are on mission as spirits to impassion us at times for God's purposes.

Here is a wild example of this very thing in 1 Kings 22:19-23, "Therefore hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne with all the multitudes of heaven standing around him on his right and on his left. And the Lord said, 'Who will entice Ahab into attacking Ramoth Gilead and going to his death there?' One suggested this, and another that. Finally, a spirit came forward, stood before the Lord and said, 'I will entice him.' 'By what means?' the Lord asked. 'I will go out and be a deceiving spirit in the mouths of all his prophets,' he said. 'You will succeed in enticing him,' said the Lord. 'Go and do it.' So now the Lord has put a deceiving spirit in the mouths of all these prophets of yours. The Lord has decreed disaster for you."

As I say, I could be way off the mark here. But these passages do mean something. What do they mean to you?

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here:  http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/

Pharaoh Not Allowed to Free the Israelites - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 10:20,

"But the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he would not let the Israelites go."

Following the horrific plague of locusts Pharaoh summoned Moses and confessed his obstinance ("I have sinned against the Lord your God and against you." Verse 16.) in not allowing the Israelites leave Egypt. He asked Moses to pray to "your God" to take away the locusts. Moses did so, the locusts left and the above verse is the next thing we read.

Here are a few observations about this series of plagues and Pharaoh's refusal to allow the Israelites to have their leave of Egypt:

The Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart so he was incapable of allowing the Israelites to leave.

The Lord did not want Pharaoh to let the Israelites leave - which was the point of hardening his heart (until the final plague).

Pharaoh did not have the freedom to exercise his will in the matter. He was being manipulated by God.

At the end of the series of plagues God would finally allow Pharaoh the freedom to let the Israelites leave Egypt. (His heart would still be somewhat hard and following their exit he had his military chase after the Israelites - something that did no go well at all for Pharaoh.) However, until that last plague of death, there was no possibility that Pharaoh would or could allow the Israelites to leave.

Pharaoh was being manipulated by God. God had his purposes and here we find a case where everybody does not always have the freedom to make their own choices.

Do you think that kind of thing might happen in our day (not the plagues - but the ability to make our own choice in some matter)?

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here:  http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/

The View of God at Work - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 10:1-2,

"Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Go to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the hearts of his officials so that I may perform these signs of mine among them that you may tell your children and grandchildren how I dealt harshly with the Egyptians and how I performed my signs among them, and that you may know that I am the Lord.'"

How many people do suppose know that God both turned the Egyptians against his own people, and also, at the same time, hardened their hearts to keep them from letting Israel leave?

We read in Psalm 105:23-25, "Then Israel entered Egypt; Jacob resided as a foreigner in the land of Ham. The Lord made his people very fruitful; he made them too numerous for their foes, whose hearts he turned to hate his people, to conspire against his servants." Then, as we see in Exodus 10:1-2, the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart so that the Egyptians wouldn't allow the Israelites to go while having Moses demand their leave of Egypt.

The Lord created a "pressure cooker" of a circumstance that accomplished several things. In this passage we read that an outcome would be that generations of Hebrews would recognize that the Lord both performed signs for them and also to know that he was, in fact, the Lord. In Exodus 9:14 we read that the Lord was creating a situation that would result in Egypt understanding that there is simply on one like the Lord in all the earth. In the following verse we read that this pressure cooker was designed that the Lord might have an opportunity to display his power and in Exodus 9:16, that his name "might be proclaimed in all the earth."

The situation the Lord created between the Israelites and Egyptians helps us to understand just how it is that God can and does accomplish many things at one time and how it can be when he works among mankind to accomplish his purposes.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here:  http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/

Our Amazing Unique God - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 9:13-14,

"Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Get up early in the morning, confront Pharaoh and say to him, "This is what the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, says: Let my people go, so that they may worship me, or this time I will send the full force of my plagues against you and against your officials and your people, so you may know that there is no one like me in all the earth."'"

The Lord told Moses to say this to Pharaoh prior to bringing the horrific plague of hail that killed people and animals in Egypt that were not under cover. In verses 25-26 we read, "Throughout Egypt hail struck everything in the fields—both people and animals; it beat down everything growing in the fields and stripped every tree. The only place it did not hail was the land of Goshen, where the Israelites were."

God wanted to communicate that there was no one like him in all the earth. God is a one of a kind. He exists in three persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, but he is one God, and, there is nothing in all the creation like him. He is unique.

There is no such thing as "you have your God and I have mine." There are no differing definitions of who God is or what he is like. All of that is spelled out in our Bibles. God is unique and there is none other. The psalmist asks the rhetorical question, "The Lord is exalted over all the nations, his glory above the heavens. Who is like the Lord our God, the One who sits enthroned on high, who stoops down to look on the heavens and the earth?" Psalm 113:4-6. None is like him. He exists in his complete and total uniqueness, in all his splendor and glory!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here:  http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/

The Miracle of a Hardened Heart - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 9:6-7,

"And the next day the Lord did it: All the livestock of the Egyptians died, but not one animal belonging to the Israelites died. Pharaoh investigated and found that not even one of the animals of the Israelites had died. Yet his heart was unyielding and he would not let the people go."

The hardening of Pharaoh's heart was an astonishing thing. The Lord had Moses tell Pharaoh again to let the Israelites go to worship him. Moses also told Pharaoh that if he refused again this time that the Lord would visit a terrible plague on all the livestock of the field, "horses, donkeys and camels and on your cattle, sheep and goats." Verse 3. Not only that, Moses told Pharaoh the Lord would do it at a given time. In addition, the Lord would bring this plague only on the Egyptian livestock and not the Israeli's in their midst.

From the verses quoted above, it is simply remarkable the hardening of heart the Lord afflicted Pharaoh with. How could it be possible that any sane person could be confronted like Pharaoh was and still refuse? This truly was a rejection of the reality of what was happening on Pharaoh's part - due to the Lord.

In a fascinating message later in this chapter the Lord had for Pharaoh following another plague (of boils on the people and animals of Egypt), he said, "For by now I could have stretched out my hand and struck you and your people with a plague that would have wiped you off the earth. But I have raised you up for this very purpose, that I might show you my power and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth." Verses 15,16. This is a famous quote Paul used in his letter to the Roman church to demonstrate that God makes his own choices in spite of man's desires or efforts, Romans 9:17.

I think one of the miracles missed when reviewing these plagues God sent upon Egypt was the miracle of Pharaoh's hardened heart. It is an account that still has its impact yet today!

And, by the way, don't you have the impression that Pharaoh thought he was arriving at his determinations all on his own? I think there just may be a message here...

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here:  http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/

Obeying God Wholeheartedly - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 8:25-27,

"Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, 'Go, sacrifice to your God here in the land.' But Moses said, 'That would not be right. The sacrifices we offer the Lord our God would be detestable to the Egyptians. And if we offer sacrifices that are detestable in their eyes, will they not stone us? We must take a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the Lord our God, as he commands us.'"

After the Lord had struck Pharaoh, his officials and all Egypt with a plague of flies, Pharaoh relented to allow the Israelites the freedom to worship the Lord.This plague followed Aaron's staff turning into a snake, a plague of blood over the waters of Egypt, a plague of frogs, and  a plague of gnats.

However, as these increasingly difficult plagues began to have its impact on the hard-hearted Pharaoh, he only relented in allowing the Israelites to worship the Lord his way - by the Israelites worshipping the Lord in the land of Egypt and not in the wilderness as the Lord told Moses and Aaron to demand.

I don't think the reasoning Moses gave Pharaoh as to why they had to go into the wilderness to worship the Lord (because it would make the Israelites detestable to the Egyptians and bring violence from them), was nearly as important as the fact that were Moses to succumb to Pharaoh's requirement they do it his way - by staying in the land to worship - it would be a compromise in yielding to the Lord.

I am reminded that compromising on what the Lord requires just won't do. Just as Moses rejected the notion of only yielding halfway to the Lord, we should do likewise.

When it comes to passages written specifically for us of those things the Lord wants from us, no compromise will do. No halfway, no doing it on our terms.

Consider this passage: "Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity." Colossians 3:12-14. Are we going to tell God, "Well, I'll forgive only those who I think deserve it." Is that good enough?

Should we not take a lesson from this passage in Exodus and understand that the Lord is not interested in our half-hearted obedience to him, but, that we should follow what he asks of us without qualifiers?

What in my life should I be reconsidering in this regard?

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here:  http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/

Free Will or Manipulation By God? - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 8:19,

"Pharaoh's heart was hard and he would not listen, just as the Lord had said."

Three times in this chapter we read that Pharaoh hardened his heart in response to the plagues of frogs, gnats and flies, verses 15, 19 and 32. The Lord had told Moses beforehand that Pharaoh would greet Moses' demand to let the Israelites go to worship God in the wilderness with a hard heart. Indeed, the Lord said he himself would harden Pharaoh's heart insuring he would refuse Moses' demand. In Exodus 4:21, in the account of the Lord's commissioning of Moses to demand Israel's departure from Egypt, the Lord told him, "When you return to Egypt, see that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders I have given you the power to do. But I will harden his heart so that he will not let the people go." The Lord had his reasons for doing so.

God created mankind with his own ability of volition. Along with that ability he has provided us the freedom to exercise it the way we desire. This is seen throughout the Scriptures in places such as John 3:19-21 where Jesus tells Nicodemus that people make their own choices and determine their eternal destiny by exercising their own free wills, "This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God."

Yet, God, as seen in the account of hardening Pharaoh's heart will on occasion and for his purposes infringe upon a person's own free will. Paul describes the Lord's manipulation of Pharaoh's heart this way, "For Scripture says to Pharaoh: 'I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.' Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden." Romans 9:17-18. It is my understanding that Paul is referring to the fact that since Pharaoh was never going to embrace God by his own personal choice, God hardened his heart further that he might make irrational decisions when faced with these plagues.

Here is another example where the Lord manipulated King Ahab's will as told by the prophet Micaiah to kings Jehoshaphat and Ahab, "Therefore hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne with all the multitudes of heaven standing on his right and on his left. And the Lord said, 'Who will entice Ahab king of Israel into attacking Ramoth Gilead and going to his death there?' One suggested this, and another that. Finally, a spirit came forward, stood before the Lord and said, 'I will entice him.' 'By what means?' the Lord asked. 'I will go and be a deceiving spirit in the mouths of all his prophets,' he said. 'You will succeed in enticing him,' said the Lord. 'Go and do it.'"

Sometimes the ways of God do not fit into the tidy boxes we attempt to place him in. He does what he does for his own purposes and if we become a little to strident in how we understand God and not keep an open mind as we read of him in the Scriptures, we just might miss out on the otherwise wonderful things we can learn about him.

I have to keep reminding myself of this!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here: http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/

Pretending We Are God - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 7:20-23,

"Moses and Aaron did just as the Lord had commanded. He raised his staff in the presence of Pharaoh and his officials and struck the water of the Nile, and all the water was changed into blood. The fish in the Nile died, and the river smelled so bad that the Egyptians could not drink its water. Blood was everywhere in Egypt. But the Egyptian magicians did the same things by their secret arts, and Pharaoh's heart became hard; he would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said. Instead, he turned and went into his palace, and did not take even this to heart."

Following the staff-to-snake episode, the Lord had Aaron raise his staff "over the waters of Egypt." In doing so, all the water was turned to blood. Fish died, the river gave off a wretched stench and the Egyptians were unable to drink its water.

This was the second plague the Lord brought on Egypt. In both, Pharaoh had his magicians perform some sort of copycat imitation of what the Lord had done. The next plague to come will be the plague of frogs and the magicians will imitate that as well. However, for the forth plague, the plague of gnats, the magicians were unable to provide their copy of the plague and told Pharaoh, "This is the finger of God."

It looks to me that only the first three plagues were copied by Pharaoh's magicians. What was the purpose of having these magicians copy what the Lord had Moses and Aaron do? They were only able to provide the semblance of what the Lord was doing, but these plagues grew in impact, intensity and damage, the magicians were unable to keep up.

The thought strikes me (and it is only a thought), that if something can be replicated that God does, then maybe there is no real God out there. If Pharaoh's magicians could perform something that might pass as the same thing, then Moses and Aaron would not be recognized as representing anyone Pharaoh might feel obliged to obey.

I think we see the same thing today. People pretend we have control over the creation, whether it be in addressing some notion of climate change, lower the ocean levels, etc. Some pretend we are the ones that are responsible for human life, therefore, it is ours to take in abortion. God creates us as male and female, but we determine our own gender.

If we think we are doing those things that only God can do, then, maybe, there is no God we need to obey or have any sense of responsibility toward.

If Pharaoh's boys could do what God was doing through Moses and Aaron, then forget about obeying the God they represent. I think we see this same attitude all about us today.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here:  http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/

Aaron's Snake Ate Pharaoh's Snakes - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 7:10-12,

"So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and did just as the Lord commanded. Aaron threw his staff down in front of Pharaoh and his officials, and it became a snake. Pharaoh then summoned wise men and sorcerers, and the Egyptian magicians also did the same things by their secret arts: Each one threw down his staff and it became a snake. But Aaron's staff swallowed up their staffs."

The Lord had sent Moses and Aaron to Pharaoh to demand he let the Israelites go into the desert to worship him. The Lord, anticipating Pharaoh would ask for a sign, told Moses to have Aaron throw his staff to the ground in front of Pharaoh and it would turn into a snake! A miraculous event!

When they did so, Pharaoh had his "wise men and sorcerers" do the same thing. How was that possible?

In reading Douglas K. Stuart's commentary on Exodus, "The New American Commentary", he provides four thoughts about this:

The first is that Moses and Aaron were not "magicians". God actually turned a wooden staff into a real bona-fide living snake. Pharaoh's boys were magicians who may have simply imitated what Moses and Aaron had performed through some kind of magical deception.

The second thought is that Pharaoh's magicians performed their work "by their secret arts" rather than any supernatural means (with the help of Satan, demons, etc.)

The third is that Aaron's snake swallowed up what Pharaoh's men produced, something they could not, nor even attempted to duplicate. The power of God through Moses and Aaron was vastly superior to their ability.

And, fourthly, it was God's intent to start small-scale. The miracle performed by Moses and Aaron was intentionally simple to draw Pharaoh into this God-ordained drama. God had hardened Pharaoh's heart intentionally to bring about this very dramatic exodus of Israel from Egypt and used this simple miracle that might appear to be duplicated in some way by Pharaoh's magicians.

The whole of it is quite an interesting tale. What are your thoughts on it?

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here:  http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/

God's Progressive Revelation of Himself - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 6:2-3,

"I am the Lord. I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob as God Almighty, but by my name the Lord I did not make myself fully known to them."

As the Lord sent Moses back to Pharaoh a second time to demand he let the Israelites go for three days to worship him,  he tells Moses he is revealing himself progressively.

In the accounts of the Lord interacting and revealing himself to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, he let himself be known as "God Almighty" or "El-Shaddai" in the Hebrew. Now, centuries later, he tells Moses his name is "I Am" or "I Am Who I Am" (see Exodus 3:14.) Both these names reveal something of God, and not exactly the same things. God didn't lay everything out about himself and what he is busy doing at the beginning of things. To me, this is something that is important to know about God.

There are other examples of the progressive nature of God's revelation of himself and the things he does. Here are a couple from the book of Romans:

"Now to him who is able to establish you in accordance with my gospel, the message I proclaim about Jesus Christ, in keeping with the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past, but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God, so that all the Gentiles might come to the obedience that comes from faith— to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ!" This is Paul's doxology at the end of the book of Romans. Romans 16:25-27.

"But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify." Romans 3:21. In this passage Paul points out that God is revealing himself in his day through what was written previously by prophets. The Scripture was there, but its meaning not clearly revealed yet as it was by God in Paul's day.

Additionally, we can simply realize that more revelation from God came as time rolled on. The Bible was written over a period of more than 1,400 years. As new revelation came, more information about God, his purposes and his activities were provided. All the way from Moses to the Apostle John.

I suspect as this age comes to a close and while we are still in it, there will be many further things revealed to us. I'm not suggesting the Bible will grow in material (who knows?), but that just as God revealed things previously written and the understanding of them made known at a later point in time, a lot of things from God just may be headed our way.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here:  http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/

God Uses the Weak and Lowly - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 6:12,

"If the Israelites will not listen to me, why would Pharaoh listen to me, since I speak with faltering lips?"

This is the response of Moses to God when God asked him again to tell Pharaoh to let the Israelites go (following his first approach to Pharaoh.) Apparently Moses was not the best speaker. We read it again later in verse 30, "Since I speak with faltering lips, why would Pharaoh listen to me?"

In Exodus 4:10 we read of Moses telling the Lord the same thing when the Lord first commissioned Moses to the task of confronting Pharaoh about allowing Israel to leave, "Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue."

Stephen made his own observation of Moses, "Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in speech and action." Acts 7:22. Somewhere between Moses being powerful in speech but yet faltering in speech, Moses was God's man!

God chose Moses, a man who spoke with "faltering lips", non-eloquent, and slow of speech and tongue to be his spokesman to Pharaoh and the nation of Israel. Moses became the man God spoke through when he gave the law to Israel and to be his premier prophet.

Why would God choose someone so naturally ill-equipped to such an important appointment? I am reminded of what Paul told the church in Corinth, "Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him." 1 Corinthians 1:26-29.

God chose Moses to speak for him, a man with "faltering lips". In choosing those least likely to excel in a given area, God demonstrates his empowering of them. God can be sensed and felt behind the scenes of what he does when he is on the move.

All of us need to recognize that in spite of our weaknesses, in spite of a lack of talent or expertise in an area, we just may be tapped by God to be used by him for his purposes. 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here:  http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/

Being Patient With God - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 5:22-23,

"Moses returned to the Lord and said, 'Why, Lord, why have you brought trouble on this people? Is this why you sent me? Ever since I went to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has brought trouble on this people, and you have not rescued your people at all.'"

Moses was a great man of faith and an important man God used in the development of Israel as a great nation. One of the many things God used Moses for was to free his people from Egypt's bondage of them.

God told Moses to go back to Egypt (he had fled to Midian after killing an Egyptian mistreating one of his fellow countrymen) and confront Pharaoh about letting the Hebrews go for a three day period to worship God. When God gave the task to Moses, he told him Pharaoh would initially refuse, but would eventually be agreeable to let them go after God performed "wonders" among the Egyptians, Exodus 3:19-20. These "wonders" would turn out to be quite a horrific show!

We know that God hardened Pharaoh's heart, Exodus 9:16 and Romans 9:17-18, and so events would have to be dire for Pharaoh to let Israel go. For us, it is easy to see why Moses might have been more patient with God in fulfilling what he said he would do. However, were we to be in Moses' shoes, we might have had the same impatience Moses displayed in the above passage.

Which brings to my mind the patience I need to have while God works out his purposes and achieves his desires in anything I might expect of him. While things may seem to be at a standstill, God very well may be doing things I'm not aware of behind the scenes.

Here is an example of that very type of thing that Peter speaks of, "Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, 'Where is this "coming" he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.'... But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance." 2 Peter 3:3-9.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here:  http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/

Endurance and Patience! - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 5:21,

"May the Lord look on you and judge you! You have made us obnoxious to Pharaoh and his officials and have put a sword in their hand to kill us."

I can't begin to express how instructive I believe this chapter is for our day among God's people.

The complaint above is the expression of the Israelite overseers who were responsible for brick production produced by the slave labor of the Jews when Pharaoh increased their burden.

In obedience to God, Moses had approached Pharaoh and demanded Pharaoh let the Israelites go for a three day journey into the wilderness to worship God. Pharaoh flatly refused and in response made the work for the Hebrew slaves much more burdensome by requiring them to produce their own straw (which had been previously provided them) for the brick production and still maintain the previous output.

Pharaoh's response was exactly what God told Moses it would be, that God himself would harden Pharaoh's heart. This resulted in the refusal and Pharaoh's retaliation by increasing the workload. God had his purposes for doing this- in ultimately demoralizing the Canaanites prior to the invasion by Israel when they got to the promised land. God was about to begin a most amazing drama that would have an effect on the peoples of Canaan for years.

In hindsight, we can clearly see what God was going to do for the Israelites in redeeming them from their enslavement in Egypt. However, the Israelites did not have the view we have of it today. From one perspective, we might not want to be too harsh on Moses' accusers as they could not see where this was headed. As a result, God's people who were about to be delivered, turned against the very instrument God chose to free the nation (Moses), and called down a curse on him!

I firmly believe that in our day many of God's people just might find themselves turning against the very people God uses in wonderful ways as he brings this age to a close.

Unfortunately, not all of God's people apply themselves to the things of God. Not all of God's people take the time to learn about God and his ways by aggressively pursuing him in his word. Not all of God's people see what God is busy afoot doing in our day. As the Israelites of Moses' day, the focus often is only on how happy we may be at the present time.

In light of this, it appears to me that it would behove those who do apply themselves to the things of God and who might be used by him to expect the kind of thing Moses received from God's people as he followed his orders from God.

Endurance and patience will be of great importance! "We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light." Colossians 1:9-12.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here:  http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/

Strategy and Tactics of God - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 4:21,

"The Lord said to Moses, 'When you return to Egypt, see that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders I have given you the power to do. But I will harden his heart so that he will not let the people go.'"

Here the Lord tells Moses he is sending him to Pharaoh to demand the release of the Israelites from Egypt. However, the Lord also tells Moses he is going to "harden his heart" so that Pharaoh will refuse to do it. Why?

The Lord did want Israel to be set free from the Egyptians and he wanted Moses to head up that job. The approach the Lord used was to indeed harden Pharaoh's heart, but in a way that would only go so far. Through a series of plagues Pharaoh would reject Moses' demand, but at the final plague, the death of all the first born in Egypt, Pharaoh did let Israel go.

The importance of the series of plagues that came to Egypt that accompanied Pharaoh's refusal makes for an amazing story- not just for today, but back when Israel was to conquer the promised land. God provided a news flash that penetrated that whole part of the world that persisted for years and years. The Lord used the series of plagues through the hardening of Pharaoh's heart to provide an account that had legs!

When Israel crossed the Jordan, some forty years later to take the first city, Jericho, one of the inhabitants, Rahab, told Jewish spies, "I know that the Lord has given you [the Israelites] this land and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you. We have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone's courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below." Joshua 2:9-11.

The Lord used the amazing account of the plagues, as well as following events, to prepare the people living in Canaan to be defeated by creating a "great fear" of Israel [together with Israel's God] such that their "hearts melted in fear and everyone's courage failed". What Israel encountered in Canaan was a demoralized people. As Paul quoted Exodus 9:16 in Romans 9, "But I [the Lord] have raised you [Pharaoh] up for this very purpose, that I might show you my power and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth."

I find it fascinating to watch the strategy and tactics of God when he is on the move!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here:  http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/

God Threatened Moses' Life! - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 4:25-26,

"At a lodging place on the way, the Lord met Moses and was about to kill him. But Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off her son's foreskin and touched Moses' feet with it. 'Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me,' she said. So the Lord let him alone. (At that time she said 'bridegroom of blood,' referring to circumcision.)"

Here is a seemingly bizarre episode! God had appeared to Moses in the well-known account of the burning bush and commissioned him to return to Egypt and be the instrument through which God would bring about Israel's exit from Egypt.

Having secured his father-in-law's release, receiving instructions from God as to what to do when he got to Egypt, Moses loaded up the family station wagon (a donkey) and headed out. Having arrived at a place to rest, the Lord confronted Moses with the intent to kill him.

What happened?

By now Moses had more than one son and at least one of them had not been circumcised. The account makes clear that Zipporah (Moses' wife) found circumcision revolting and resented it, calling Moses a "bridegroom of blood" when she was forced to accept it (at the threat of the loss of her husband).

Circumcision was a sign God had given Abraham as a seal of the righteousness he had by faith, Romans 4:11. All Abraham's male offspring were to be circumcised, including Moses and his boys. Probably Moses relented to Zipporah's demand that his son not be circumcised and that pretty well sets the table for these events.

God was sending Moses as his emissary to free the Jews from Egypt. Moses, himself, recognized the need for the Israelites to accept him for the task if he were to be successful, as he says to the Lord, "What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, 'The Lord did not appear to you'?" Verse 1. Not circumcising his son was not going to facilitate that happening. Additionally, as God's emissary to Israel, Moses was going to be given the law that God intended for the nation. Not being in obedience to God was not going to facilitate that either.

Was God really going to kill Moses at the rest area on the way to Egypt? Absolutely! God called Moses to an extremely important task in his agenda of developing a people for himself. Moses had to make a choice, yield to Zipporah or yield to the Lord.

Moses made the right choice, and Zipporah herself did the circumcision, resentful nonetheless. Moses was a great man of faith and we look to him as one of the heroes of faith to emulate.

What in my life might God be asking of me to yield to him in for those things he may have for me to do?

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here:  http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/

God Influences Decisions! - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 3:19-20,

"I [the Lord] know that the king of Egypt will not let you [Moses and the Israelites] go unless a mighty hand compels him. So I will stretch out my hand and strike the Egyptians with all the wonders that I will perform among them. After that, he will let you go."

The Lord foretold Moses about Pharaoh's resistance to allowing the Israelites to leave Egypt. At first Pharaoh would say no, then, after a series of judgments the Lord would send upon Egypt, Pharaoh would finally capitulate.

The Lord knew this in three ways. First, the Lord knows all things. "...we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything." 1 John 3:20. Secondly, since the Lord lives outside, beyond the dimensions of time and space he can view it anytime he wants (this hurts my head when I think about it! Is there really an "anytime" with God?) - so he sees everything. Thirdly, God knew this was going to happen because he decided he was going to make it happen!

Paul tell us in Romans 9:17-18, "For Scripture says to Pharaoh: 'I [God] raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.' Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden."

And, wow, did he ever harden Pharaoh's heart! Forty some years later, when Israel entered the promised land, the people of Jericho still had a vivid recollection of what God had done for the Israelites when he effected their departure from Egypt, "I [Rahab of Jericho] know that the Lord has given you [the Israelites] this land and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you. We have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone's courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below." Joshua 2:9-11. This is what Paul is referencing in Romans 9:17-18.

Amazing stuff!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here:  http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/

Holding God in Reverence and Fear - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 3:5,

"'Do not come any closer,' God said. 'Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.'"

Paul tells us about the love God has for us, "God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8. And, the writer of Hebrews tells us to approach God with confidence, "Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Hebrews 4:16.

However, as we see in this passage where God tells Moses to take off his sandals because the ground was holy (do to God's presence), there is a reverence and a fear of God that is his due from us and provides for us a healthy relationship with him.

I'm not at all sure about this thinking that God is our lovey-dovey daddy that we feel only warm fuzzies while approaching, even though we might think of him in terms of "Abba, father", Romans 8:15. I'm not so sure about all the trite toothpaste-jingle "worship songs" that passes for "acceptable worship" these days that may fail to recognize his proper place in our lives.

I am reminded of Paul's exhortation, "Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose." Philippians 2:12-13. I am also reminded of the words of the writer of Hebrews, "Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our 'God is a consuming fire.'" Hebrews 12:28-29.

Just a little balance here...

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here:  http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/

An Amazing Account! - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 2:4-9,

"His sister stood at a distance to see what would happen to him [Moses]. Then Pharaoh's daughter went down to the Nile to bathe, and her attendants were walking along the riverbank. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her female slave to get it. She opened it and saw the baby. He was crying, and she felt sorry for him. 'This is one of the Hebrew babies,' she said. Then his sister asked Pharaoh's daughter, 'Shall I go and get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?' 'Yes, go,' she answered. So the girl went and got the baby's mother. Pharaoh's daughter said to her, 'Take this baby and nurse him for me, and I will pay you.' So the woman took the baby and nursed him."

This is such an amazing account! Pharaoh had given an order that all male babies born to Hebrew women were to be thrown into the Nile River. Moses mother defied the order and kept Moses as long as she could. When he was three months old she made a basket, coated it with tar and pitch, put Moses in it and placed it in the river - in a strategic place where Pharaoh's daughter might see it.

See it she did and had her female slave go get Moses out of the river. Then Moses' sister (I assume might have been the female slave that fished Moses out of the river, and would have also provided Moses' mother the information as where to place the basket) asked Pharaoh's daughter if she should get a Hebrew woman to nurse the baby for her.

This is so like God working behind the scenes. Moses' sister, as you would expect, got Moses' own mother and brought her to Pharaoh's daughter, who told her to nurse Moses-- and that she would pay her for it!

We can't miss God's handiwork in all of this! As I say, an amazing account! I wonder what he might be doing in our day that is just as fantastic? We will only know if we keep our eyes open...

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here:  http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/

The Amazing Works of God! - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 2:23-25,

"The Israelites groaned in their slavery and cried out, and their cry for help because of their slavery went up to God. God heard their groaning and he remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob. So God looked on the Israelites and was concerned about them."

Here is a summary comment that reminds us of God's intention for his people Israel. In the passage we are told that God "remembered" his covenant with the patriarchs. The third definition of "remember" in Merriam-Webster is "to keep in mind for attention or consideration". It is in this sense that God "remembered" his covenant.

It was God himself who effected Israel's sojourn in Egypt (through a famine) and it was God who turned the Egyptians against Israel that resulted in their slave labor. See Psalm 105:16-25. Now, at this point in the account, we are made aware of God's intent of "throwing the switch" in effecting their exodus from Egypt to fulfill his covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. His "concern" for the Israelites due to their groaning in slavery isn't a worry, but was the fulfillment he sought in turning the Egyptians against the Israelites that led to their difficult slave labor.

Now that Israel was sufficiently motivated to leave the womb of Egypt, God will now "concern" himself with bringing about their departure from Egypt. This departure will involve a man, Moses, and introduces us to the concepts of delivery, of passover, of redemption.

This fulfillment of God's covenant with the patriarchs in giving them the promised land was done in a way that provides us pictures of Jesus Christ, of his sacrificial death allowing us to escape eternal death (through the passover), of him as our deliverer, of his redemption of us - all provided us through this account of the exodus of Israel.

It is just astonishing to me how God does what it is he does and how he accomplishes so many things when he does it!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here:  http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/