Stepping Through The Bible

Exodus 21

2009-04-02T13:37:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 21

1. The Concept of Slavery
The concept of slavery in ancient Israel and many ancient near eastern cultures is quite different than the type of slavery practiced in the Southern United States during the early 1800's.1 The term slavery was much broader then, since a king's subjects may be referred to as his slaves.2 Slaves were understood to be human beings instead of mere chattel. Slaves could own land and property - something that was illegal in the modern western version.

2. The Drivers of Slavery
Also, we need to remember that slavery in those ages was an aspect of the economic conditions of the day. In fact, most slave situations were not primarily due to a person being taken against his will, but because poor people either sold themselves or their children into slavery. Slavery was designed to pay a debt to a debtor, and once the debt was paid, the person was free. A slave could buy his own freedom from the profits of his selling his property.3

It is noteworthy that many people became bond-slaves (pledged to remain in his master's household for life) because their situation was better as a slave than as a free person. We sometimes assume a modern frame of reference when we talk about these things, but one must remember that life was extremely hard during these times, and to be free meant you had no guarantees that you would have enough food to eat or even a decent house to shelter your family. Add to that taxes from the ruling governments, no protection from raiding parties or foreign invaders and the expense of buying tools to accomplish tasks and you can see how being part of a larger organization could be inviting. You would share in the collective efforts of many people and have access to the resources of a rich master - much the same way the feudal serf system was constructed in the Middle Ages.

3. The Bible's Approach to Slavery
Now, to the Biblical pronouncements on slavery. One of the great things about the God of the Bible is that He provides a realistic approach to the issues of the times. Slavery is definitely not the optimal form of relationship for individuals, but for most of the world's history it is a reality. Therefore, the Bible addresses slavery and provides certain safeguards to make sure that slave are not mistreated and that their humanity will be respected. Let's look at the passage in question then make some quick points:

"If one of your countrymen becomes poor and is unable to support himself among you, help him as you would an alien or a temporary resident, so he can continue to live among you. Do not take interest of any kind from him, but fear your God, so that your countryman may continue to live among you. You must not lend him money at interest or sell him food at a profit. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt to give you the land of Canaan and to be your God.

"If one of your countrymen becomes poor among you and sells himself to you, do not make him work as a slave. He is to be treated as a hired worker or a temporary resident among you; he is to work for you until the Year of Jubilee. Then he and his children are to be released, and he will go back to his own clan and to the property of his forefathers. Because the Israelites are my servants, whom I brought out of Egypt, they must not be sold as slaves. Do not rule over them ruthlessly, but fear your God. (Lev 25.35-43)

Slavery was designed so that the poor could seek protection - this is noted in the passage of Leviticus that your friend quoted. It's driven by the need of the individual who is poor.
Slaves were to be recognized as human beings first and foremost, not property or chattel. Verse 40 states "He is to be treated as a hired worker or a temporary resident among you".4

Slavery had a specific time of service and afterward were allowed to go free. Note that the passage above even includes the family of the slave so as not to break up the family unit.

As an owner, you couldn't "cook the books". A big problem in those days was the charging of exorbitant interest so that slaves would stay indebted to their masters forever (remember Jacob and Laban?). Here, God specifically declares that this practice is forbidden.
According to anthropologist Dexter Callender:

"The Hebrew Bible refers regularly to the people generally as "servants"(>bdym) of God, on the one hand, yet attempts to restrict the possibility of chattel slavery, on the other. With regard both to the understanding of people generally as "slaves/servants" of the god(s) and to the limited role of chattel slavery, ancient Israel appears to have been similar to other ancient Near Eastern societies, and very different from classical Greek and imperial Roman societies. Yet the Hebrew Bible also articulates an opposition unusual in antiquity, to various forms of servitude, one that appears rooted in Israel's formative deliverance from bondage in Egypt, the basis of its own distinctive social identity."5

Overall, all the admonitions are targeted toward the slave owners. In other words, slavery in this day was inevitable, so let's make sure that there are specific protections in place to keep any abuse to a minimum.

I hope this will help clear up some misconceptions about the Biblical view on slavery. As I said, although the Bible gives certain guidelines for treating slaves, that doesn't necessarily mean the Bible condones slavery - especially the more modern type that was practiced in the pre-civil war South.

We are reminded that slaves were to be viewed as human beings and Hebrew slaves were to be released after seven years. Because God's word always portrayed slaves as human beings, once the Christian concept of inherent human value had spread across the world did the practice of slavery begin to fade from society. Christians such as William Wilberforce and others even fought to abolish slavery in more recent times. These points should not be ignored in any serious study of the Biblical position on slavery.

Scott Hescht

Exodus 20

2009-04-02T13:34:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 20

Do the sons bear the sins of the fathers or not?

Yes they do
(Exodus 20:5) - "You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me,"

(Deuteronomy 5:9) - "You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, and on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me,"

(Exodus 34:6-7) - "Then the Lord passed by in front of him and proclaimed, "The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; 7who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations."

(1 Cor. 15:22) - "For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all shall be made alive."

No they don't
A. (Deuteronomy 24:16) - "Fathers shall not be put to death for their sons, nor shall sons be put to death for their fathers; everyone shall be put to death for his own sin."

B. (Ezekiel 18:20) - "The person who sins will die. The son will not bear the punishment for the father’s iniquity, nor will the father bear the punishment for the son’s iniquity; the righteousness of the righteous will be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked will be upon himself."

Examine the world around you. Sins are passed down. That is why I whole heartedly believe that we should teach our children “Do as I say. Do as I do.” And NOT “Do as I say. Not as I do.”

A man lusts after many women. His children learn the same. A man beats his wife and his children are watching. A woman has no regard for God and her children learn to follow in her footsteps. It is passed down.

Yet each has an internal sense of wrong and right that is only given by God. Each has the choice to step away from their sin by receiving Christ. We can’t get by with saying that we are a wife beater or alcoholic because our father was. We are responsible for our own actions.

We will not be judged for our parent’s sins, but we will be punished if we allow those sins to be passed down to us without repentance.

(side note: As Oprah has sadly mistaken, God is not jealous of you. He is jealous FOR you. No other Gods should be before Him. That is ANYTHING that we put before him.... hobbies, TV, work, etc.)

By Scott Hescht

Exodus 19

2009-04-02T13:33:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 19

My Aunt had a saying; never climb a tree to high trying to get closer to God……….he might shake the tree!

I don’t know if I will get this out right but I am going to try.

We do not go to God’s level, he comes to ours. We are not worthy to climb to the same height as God. Yet HE comes to us daily. The foot of the Mountain is where the Israelites belonged, just like it is where we belong, at the feet of the Lord. We sing praises, and offer Glory up to God, not down to him. This is one of the wonderful yet harder things to grasp sometimes. God does not need us, there is nothing that we can do for God that He cannot do for himself. We need him, yet there is nothing he will not do for us, if we will glorify his name. For those that will follow the Lord, there is nothing that He will not do, he will part the seas, send plagues, he will deliver his people through any hardship, not because he has to, but because he loves us, he wants us to have every reason to shout his name in praise. We are here to experience the joy of loving God, and he will give anything in his power…..and that means more that we can comprehend…..as proof of his love. Even if that means giving his only Son

The Lord is going to make an appearance, by doing so this will again visually prove his existence, and residence among the Israelites. This will also remove any doubt that Moses is in fact a direct conduit for the Lord. There is more than just the boundary being set between God, they must clean their clothes, they must be consecrated, they must stay away form women. SO they have three days to prepare. I do not think that washing their clothes was because God wanted them to “look nice” I am of firm opinion that God does not care about your clothes. I think it is more about being an outward sign of inner cleanliness….. a new start. For the people to be consecrated they must get their thoughts on God, they must lay everything else in their life aside for a while, and concentrate on the glory of the Lord. AS for the no women part, I think this is much like the people who play sports who stay away from the opposite sex before a big game. It is not so much about the physical acts that take place between man and woman. It is more the mental aspect of it. The athletes want to “keep them out of their kitchen”. The people should be prepared to come before God with clean spirit, clean heart, and a clean mind. These are not sacrifices to be made for God; they are outward signs of our love for him that should bring us joy. Nothing that we do, or obtain in this would, not clothes, money, or physical companionship, can compete with the overwhelming joy that would be experienced by the opportunity, not just to give glory to God, but to offer that praise directly to Him when He comes directly to you.

Peace,
Brian

Exodus 18

2009-04-02T13:32:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 18

Jethro had already learned the important lesson in life. We cannot do everything, for everybody by ourselves. Moses was a great man, and God was with him, there is no doubt of that. However even great men have limits. Even great men can only give so much of themselves before there is nothing left to give. When we do not take time for ourselves, we as individuals suffer. Our relationships suffer; our personal relationship with the Lord suffers. I sum it up to say we cannot clearly hear the Lord whispering in our ear, if we are so busy telling everyone else what to do, that we do not take time to listen.

We have to learn to say no. Yes that even means sometimes we have to say no when we do not want to. That means the Church might have to find someone else to head up that next project, or your friend might need to find someone else to help them out this time. I am by no means saying that we should push away from our duties, but we do have to realize our own time constraints. When we try to do too much we become ineffective at most of what we are doing, and everyone suffers. We get so busy trying to do everything, that worst case nothing gets done correctly……or best case we skim over everything, and do not devote enough time to the important work that needs to be done.

This is the situation that Moses is in. He feels that he should be the one to handle everything. Since he is the one person everyone goes to for a ruling, the Israelites as a whole have to put all of their disagreements on hold until they can bring them before Moses. Not only is this quite a burden to place on one person, it is quite a burden to place on the people. They deserve better as does Moses. The wonderful idea that Jethro gives to Moses is an idea we can all use. Find people you can trust, and give them the smaller part of the responsibility.

We all know at least one person that cannot say no. If you do not know anyone like that…..well maybe you are that person! What we have to realize is that while the Lord has a plan for all of us, I can promise you, that the Lord does not expect you to accomplish his entire plan by yourself! We each have a part, and that is all we can do, when we see the need for more to be done, that is when we should be turning to our friends, and asking for help. When we find ourselves stretched too thin, that is when we should turn to the Lord, and ask for help…..and the strength to say no!

Peace,
Brian

Exodus 17

2009-04-02T13:27:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 17

Here again God, the Old Testament God that everyone holds as being so spiteful, gives us another showing of compassion, and uses Moses to magnify his strength. The people rise up against Moses once again, and demand water. They actually demand it! After all the Lord has done, still they demand more. They do not ask, they do not give thanks and glorify the Lord……just as many people still do today, they take everything that is given and demand MORE!

SO the Lord tells Moses to take his staff, and some elders, go to a specific place, and strike a rock with his staff, when Moses Struck the rock water came forth…..not just a little bit, not a small dribble, but life giving water, here again, just as with the bread, enough for everyone! At a time when the people doubt God, even after everything he has done He has done for them, when they want to question if God is even with them any longer..(Let’s not forget they are asking this while they are following the fiery column of smoke….can anyone say HELLOOOO)…..God, instead of striking them down, he gives them life giving water.

A people so undeserving of anything more, and showing quite undeserving of what they already have been given, are given even more, they are given life giving water….does that sound familiar? Just another example of the Wonderful God we serve!

Peace,
Brian

Exodus 16

2009-03-31T13:51:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 16

The true bread from heaven….Well let’s take a look at the bread that God gave the Israelites.

When the bread first appeared, no one knew what it was; yet it was in fact life-giving bread right before their eyes.

When they gathered it, no matter if they gathered much, or just a little it was always enough for their family.

Each day they gathered bread for that day, any extra that they tried to save for themselves until the next day was not edible.

On the sixth day they gathered twice as much, and it kept until through the seventh, so that the people would not have to work on the seventh.

They people set aside a tenth of the bread in remembrance, and thanks.

Just like the Manna from heaven:

Christ came among the people, and they did not know whom he was, yet before their eyes he was the gateway to eternal life.

No matter how much of Christ you put in your life it will always be filling. From the time you accept him as your savior to the time you cross into eternity, as long as you are searching for the filling love of Christ you will always have enough.

Just like the Manna, you have to search for Christ daily; you can’t save up a large portion, and hope that it will “hold you over”. When you try to “stuff” yourself with Christ, or you try to horde Christ for yourself, you actually dim the life giving flame of Christ. You have to feed on the bread of Christ daily, and you have to share whatever you have left. Christ is not meant to be hoarded. We should be striving to share Christ with everyone, so that we all might give Glory to God.

While we all want to work hard to spread the good news of Christ, we must remember to rest. We should all take the seventh day and use it to magnify God in our lives. We work every day, and through out that day we might periodically stop to give God thanks, but some part of our mind will be pre-occupied with work. There is always the “task at hand” On the seventh day, we should set aside our daily tasks, and not only give God thanks, but take the time to receive all of the love and attention that he wants to give us. We often use Sunday as a day set aside to give to the Lord, but we should also remember to use that day to receive as well. Church is a great place to loudly voice your thanks, but most of all it is a gathering place for us to receive his message, his love, his grace, and his compassion. We should be leaving Church with more than we came with. Not less.

Lastly we should remember to give back in remembrance and thanks. Why should we not? Just like the bread for heaven, the Lord will always give us enough……it might not be as much as we think we need….but it will be enough. As a result there will always be enough to give back, we might not get that new golf club, or that new purse….but I digress.

Peace,
Brian

Exodus 15

2009-03-31T13:49:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 15

God made the bitter water sweet. That is what God does after all. He takes things that are bitter, and takes people who are bitter, and he heals them, he restores them........to some degree he makes them sweet, at the very least he removes the bitterness. Does Christ not continue this for us all? People cry out for a drink in this world, there is water available, but it is bitter, it is hard to swallow, and it just leaves us thirsty for more. By following the instructions set forth, we all can have sweet water drink. John 4: 13Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."

Peace,
Brian

Exodus 14

2009-03-31T13:44:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 14

Verse 14 reads, "the LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent."

I think we all have a story that can show a time where the Lord will fight for you! I spent ten years banging my head trying to climb the corporate ladder. I took the classes, made the luncheons, and played the game well. For all of my trying there always seemed to be a stumbling block. I never did make it to the top of the ladder, I was well on the way, and was fairly sure I was playing the game well enough to win. For no good reason, I ditched it all and moved to Austin. Even now I could not tell you exactly what I had on my mind, other than it "seemed like a good idea" My wife will tell you that I went crazy for a short period of time! Looking at where I am now, there is little doubt that the Lord gave me one of those gentle shoves that change the direction of your life forever. He had the answer, and it was not even a question I was asking at the time. Had that unexplained change of heart not happened I would not be writing this to you today. There is little doubt that I would still be stuck in the same rut banging my head against the same wall, so sure that I was on the right track. The Lord is always fighting for us, we need to talk less, and be silent more!

Exodus 13

2009-03-31T13:42:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 13

This was not two different pillars, but one and the same. smoke by day, and fiery at night. Anyone that had seen fire during the day knows that the smoke can be so dense as to obscure the flames, while at night the flame comes through the smoke very clearly. The reason that I point out it is one and the same is because God never left them in the wilderness. He was with them at all times. God has always been with his people, just as he is with us today....everyday.

Yes I think we can all say that we might feel like we are wandering lost sometimes, and we all would love to have something as visible as a column of smoke out in front of us to show us the path! There are days that it might seem as we are in utter darkness, but take heart we are not. The Lord has replace the column of fiery smoke with the Holy spirit, it dwells in each of us, and guides us daily. As it reads in John 14: 26But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. 27Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

Peace,
Brian

Exodus 12

2009-03-31T13:39:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 12

There are many things that symbolize Christ. Here are the two that stand out for me. Let's just start with the Lamb itself. Christ is often referred to as the Lamb of God in the New Testament. Then of course the condition of the lamb. Not a blemish, spotless. I do not know if you have ever searched for a lamb that is spotless, but since reading the Bible, it is something I look for every time I am around a herd. (yes, I am a little bit of a redneck, so I see cattle, goats, sheep, and horses more often than others). It is hard to come by an animal without a blemish.....but every now and then one comes along.....Christ is our lamb without a blemish, he was spotless of sin, something that none of us will ever attain, and when reflecting on Christ as a spotless lamb it paints a clear picture of just how precious, unique, and perfect Christ is. Then we have the command that the lamb be a year old, and male. Well the male is obvious, but the lamb being a year shows that God did not want a young lamb, he wanted a lamb at it's best. Here again like Christ. Christ was sacrificed in the prime of his life, not as a child, not as a man in his twilight years, but as a man at his prime, just like a year old lamb.

Of course the blood of the lamb will deliver the Israelites form the angel of death, just as the blood of the lamb which is Jesus Christ will deliver us from our sins. The blood was to be sprinkled on to the sides and the top of the door. This would be the outward sign for the angel of death to pass over the house. This also to me indicates how we should live our lives in Christ. Our actions and our habits should be our outwards sign of our faith in the blood of Christ. I think this is one of the biggest challenges we face in our daily lives. It is easy to love the Lord on the inside, but letting it shine is the challenge! I like the way Henry puts it in his commentary "there is a back way to hell, but no back way into heaven." We have to go through the front gates, and it is my prayer that we will be identified a mile away by our actions!

Just as the Lord said in verse 13 "And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you" may we all find a way in our life to model our outward sign of Christ.

Peace,
Brian

Exodus 11

2009-03-31T13:35:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 11

The Lord is going to kill the first born of the land of Egypt. This plague will not go away, or will it be taken back. This one is for "keeps". AS I have said before hard hearts take require hard signs. God has given Pharaoh nine opportunities to bend, but Pharaoh's heart has remained hard. Each plague has been a little worse than the last. At this point there is nothing left to impact. Crops, animals, water, light, comfort. It has all been taken away, but this last show of God's might will be the striking blow. The Lord knows this of course and informs Moses that not only will Pharaoh let you go, but when I am done, Pharaoh is going to drive you away for good.

The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away. The first born will be killed. THE FIRST BORN. think about that, every house has at least one first born, but what happened if the Father and Mother of the house were first born from there house? No matter, once the Lord was done, there would be a lot of death in the land of Egypt. Here again though I think this shows the Lord even at the height of his impatience (if I can use that term) He still shows compassion. yes there is relevance to the first born being killed, and I will get it to that over the next couple of days (well Monday, I am out for a few days), my point right now still is that the Lord did not kill everyone. HE could have, but he did not.

Pharaoh's heart might have remained hard, but his people's hearts were changing. the Israelites were finding favor among the Egyptians. I have to say, it just goes to show you, the everyday people usually get it well before the people in power do........HUMmmmm I guess some things never change.

Peace,
Brian

Exodus 10

2009-03-31T13:33:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 10

Goshen had light....without God = nothing with God = everything.

This chapter can be summed up by saying, glory to God in the highest and peace to his people on earth.

The Lord finally just lays it on the table for Pharaoh in verse three "how long will you refuse to humble yourself before me?" more to the point when will you realize that even the highest earthly kings will have to humble themselves to the Lord? God does not care about our position in life, we are all the same....equal in the eyes of God. To borrow a line from Bob Dylan "you're gonna have to serve somebody" No matter your station in life you choose daily just who you will serve. That answer is often decide by how willing you are to humble yourself before God.

In Pharaoh we see the typical man drunk with power. He is not just letting his world crash around him. Pharaoh is letting his city fall to ruin over his foolish pride. Even with his advisors begging, his pride will not allow him to submit.....poor Pharaoh, he still thinks he might be in control! It is no surprise that while Egypt is in darkness, Goshen is in light. Egypt lost its fields, and it's livestock, yet Goshen still has theirs. It is quite easy to see that with God in your life everything is available. The Israelites, even though they are slaves to the Pharaoh, have a better life than Egypt. No matter your station in life, with God your life is complete, without him, you have nothing.

As you read through these plagues it is important to recognize the magnitude of them. It is not just a hail storm, it is hail larger than had ever been seen, it was not a swarm of flies, or locusts; it turned the sky dark, it covered the face of the land. The one that drives it home for me is the darkness, darkness that can be felt, pitch darkness. Have you ever found yourself in that type of darkness? I was in a cavern once, the lights were turned off while we were deep in the earth. It was pitch dark. You could not see your hand if it was an inch in front of your face. I could not imagine living in that for three days. I was in it for less than 3 min. and that was well long enough. Despair, loneliness, fear, a general feeling of being totally lost, with no hope. Those are the feelings of the Godless. That is the feeling of being in pitch darkness. Those emotions sum up the spiritual state of Pharaoh. Pride can hold many feelings at bay, it can also destroy you a little bit each day, until one day you wake up and see Pharaoh in the mirror. We all bend a knee to God for one reason or another, it is my hope that we all do it for His glory, in our humbleness is where we find His strength.

Peace,
Brian

Exodus 9

2009-03-31T13:27:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 9

For what reason did God say he allowed the Pharaoh and the Egyptians to remain?

God allowed the Egyptians to remain so that they might witness his power, and recognize God as the supreme all powerful God. God allowed them to live so that he might be glorified. If you remember, this is really how the whole showdown with Pharaoh started. God, through Moses and Aaron, instructed Pharaoh to let the Israelites go out and worship Him. In short he was saying let my people come glorify me, and all will be right with the world. However Pharaoh's heart was hardened, so God sent the plagues.

Now the plagues are often used by people to show an example of the wrath of God. People use it to show how God was a spiteful, and vengeful God. I think that mind set falls well short of the mark. Pharaoh's heart was hardened, the text reads that God hardened his heart in some verses, in others it simply says his heart hardened, and in verse 34 of this chapter it reads that he sinned and again hardened his heart. There lies the root of the problem. Did God harden Pharaoh's heart, or did he simply allow it allow it? I believe the question here is moot, for in the end verse 34 sums it up, Pharaoh sinned again and hardened his heart. One thing gets overlooked often in this story......freewill. Does God not allow our hearts to become hardened? If you think about it, we can all come up with a time that our hearts have hardened against something or someone. It is our choice how we deal with that. Just as it was Pharaoh's choice how to handle his hardship. Since the beginning of time, God has never removed a persons free will from them. The text does not read that God made Pharaoh go against him, nor does it read that God commanded Pharaoh to refuse to listen. Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and time and time again Pharaoh chose to turn his back on the will of God.

I believe if anything this actually shows a compassionate God. As God himself said, he could have struck the Egyptians down. That would have been the easy thing to do. However God used the opportunity to to give everyone a choice. HE used it as a way to show his power as the one God. God wants to be glorified, he wants us to acknowledge him as our God.....THE God, really that is all he asks for. Do not mistake this for vanity. God does not need us, he is not dependant on us, there is nothing that we can do for God that He cannot do for Himself, but there is nothing that we can do without him. Yet He serves us, He protects us, and this shows him to be a loving God, for all he asks in return is for us to acknowledge him, for us to glorify him in our thoughts, in our actions, in our words, and in our hearts..

Now it always seems to be asked why the plagues, they were so sever, they brought so much misery, if God is a loving God then why all of the wrath? First, hardened hearts require hard signs. If the Lord had produced a sky full of rainbows this too would have shown God's greatness, but it would not do much to soften hearts, would some believe yes, but most, no. If he had sent flocks of doves with olive branches in their beaks, and had he commanded all pain in the world to cease, here again some would turn but most would not. People love their sin, they love their lives, Sadly it often takes threatening that life to make them look at things differently. Second, had God not used the opportunities like this to show his power, to show the love of his people through his wrath, then I believe that we would not have been as receptive to the Prince of Peace when he came in to the world (many to this day do not accept him). God does not make mistakes, he has had his plan in place well before he created us. We however tend to have hard hearts, and hard heads. We accept God through Love today, because we know fully of his strength and power. While it is my hope that we all can see the full measure of God's love for us, it is by overcoming the tests that harden our hearts that we can fully appreciate it, and glorify Him.

Peace,
Brian

Exodus 8

2009-03-31T13:24:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 8

Each time the Lord showed mercy, and the Pharaoh was relieved of the burden of the plague; the pharaoh's heart was hardened and he did not let the Israelites leave. Many people read this and think you know what? "After the frogs, I would have thrown in the towel." If we are honest about it at some point in our lives we really would have acted just like the Pharaoh. Some might still act the same way today. While it is easy to ask for the Lord's help when we are burdened, as soon as the cloud is lifted many will return to what they know, the same broken lost life they were leading before the hardship arose. When another hardship comes up, they fall back in line, and submit to the Lord, yet as soon as the pressure subsides so does the submission. The easiest thing to do is the thing you know best, for many people that means turning away from God, and to a material life of comfort and acceptance by the world. Pharaoh acted just as the Lord knew he would, and just as the world expected him to, loving yourself, and the world you have created will always blind you to the love the Lord has to offer.

Pharaoh, just like many people today loves their lives more than the Lord (if they recognize the Lord at all). Christ spoke directly about this John Chapter 12:25 25The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. I pray that we all can see through the smoke and mirrors of today's world. They expect certain attitudes, and actions from us to solidify our place among society. May we all strive to fulfill God's will for the Glory of his name, and not bend to the will of society. I think it will go a long way in keeping the frogs and flies out of our lives..

Peace,
Brian

Exodus 7

2009-03-31T13:17:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 7

The staffs of Pharaoh's men turned it to serpents as well. Then the Serpent from the Lord's (Aaron's) staff swallowed them. Since his men could do the same Pharaoh paid no attention. This repeats itself with the Nile water turning to blood. Pharaoh's men can create an illusion that mimics part of the Lord's work, so Pharaoh believes in them. not the word of the Lord.

I say they produced part because, then men might have turned the staff in to a serpent, but it did not swallow another, it does not specifically say it, but Pharaoh's men could not have reproduced the turning of water to blood in the Nile because it was done, and that was the largest body of water in the area. It says that his men could do the same. This would have to pertain to changing the water on a smaller scale. I believe this is important to point out, because we fight against this in everyday life. There are people who claim to be acting on God's behalf, yet their actions do not meet their words. They give the illusion, but the illusion is not complete, a part is missing. Nothing man can do will ever come close to reaching the fullness that the Lord produces. Many will try, the might get part of it, but it will always be lacking somewhere.

We have to be on guard for these people, not only for our own sake, but for the sake of those around us. There will be many, just like the Pharaoh. They only need to see a similarity to believe, as a result they get on the path of man, not God. Proverbs 14:12 There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.

Peace,
Brian

Exodus 6

2009-03-31T13:15:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 6

Yahweh....Jehovah.....the Lord...no matter how you translate (different bible versions use all three translations mentioned) it it comes back to GOD, not a god, not one of many gods...the GOD. A name so powerful, so reverent that even today some Jewish sects will not fully write it on paper, and when they do write the variation, that paper will not be thrown away!

God tells Moses, "now you will see what I will do", Like a patience parent God has listened to Moses, God has taken in all of Moses' doubts, and fears, and now God tells him, "now you will see."

If you have ever asked yourself, "why would God take any time for me", if you have doubted your worth to God, or if you have ever thought that you are not a strong enough person for the Lord to use as a major part of his plan; this chapter is for you! Moses loves God, yet does not believe in himself. He cannot bring himself to believe that God is going to bring about life changing events using him as the leader. God will not be moved, through him we all can accomplish any task he puts before us. Each one of us has worth, each one of us is valuable and important to God's work. You might not believe in yourself, but God does, and I will tell you the truth, if God believes in you, then how could you ever think about doubting yourself?

Peace,
Brian

Exodus 5

2009-03-31T13:06:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 5

The Israelites were upset because Moses had made their lives more difficult. Moses showed up, made the Pharaoh angry, and as a result Pharaoh took it out on the servants.

What a triangle we have here!

First we have Moses; he is standing before Pharaoh because the Lord has told him to, Moses sees the pain inflicted upon his people, and feels terrible, he asks the Lord why have you done this, why did you send me?

Then we have the Israelites; this fellow Moses comes into their life, he is going to free them, get them out of their chains, but their lives are made more difficult. Now they could not care less what Moses wants to do, they just want their straw brought to them, they want life back to "normal".

Lastly we have the Pharaoh; Moses shows up, asks to let the Israelites go out and worship, and the Pharaoh jumps to the conclusion that the slaves must be complaining, so he thinks making them work harder will take their minds off of their God.......

Have you heard the saying you cannot see the forest for the trees? Shortsightedness takes it's toll on all of us. God has a plan, and it works in many people's lives at the same time. As a result, life gets harder before it gets easier (the Israelites) Causes us to wonder what we are doing, and why (Moses) and makes us try to force things to happen because we will not slow down long enough to look for God's plan. (Pharaoh).

Pharaoh reminds me of the guy that kicks his cat. If you do not know the story here it is briefly. A guy goes to work, spills coffee on himself in the car, get to work, and gets yelled at by the boss all day. Gets home, and has an argument with his wife. As he is walking into the kitchen the cat is walking by......so he kicks the cat! I often wonder why Pharaoh did not just get rid of Moses, and Aaron (God has a great way of blinding people to the obvious sometimes). They were the catalyst, not the Israelites. Life was good for the Pharaoh before Moses showed up. Yet the Pharaoh is going to kick the cat. That is the easy thing to do. If you think about it, they are all taking the easy road, it is always easier to blame others, question God, or just kick the cat. Times like these are when we need our faith the most. God did not promise an easy life, he promised to sustain us. We have to have faith in his plan, even when we do not understand it. God is at work in so many peoples life at the same time, why would we think for one second that our lives will be a bed of roses? His own son suffered to carry out God's plan! I take that as a pretty good indication that our lives will have to get a little complicated, and a little painful from time to time for God's plan to be carried out. That is life. As I like to say, nothing ever came from a life that was an easy one!

Peace,
Brian

Exodus 4

2009-03-31T13:04:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 4

The devil's two greatest tools doubt and discouragement. He has brought some of the strongest men in the world to a standstill with doubt, and discouragement can cripple even a strong will. Moses had a little bit of a speech problem, he was obviously painfully aware of it. As a result he doubted his ability. Even though God himself was telling him he could do it, Moses still doubted.

Oh How the devil does like to cast doubt into our hearts. I know, because he cast much of it into mine for a long time. The Lord will gently nudge us in the direction we should go, yet we just can't believe that is what we are supposed to do. We listen to that little voice that tells us we are not good enough, or that we will never be able to do that. I know that there are people right now, who are not wanting to acknowledge that little nudge because they have no faith in themselves even though God is telling them they are. I can promise you that little nudge will turn into a shove soon enough, The Lord has a plan, and you are part of it, what you think in the matter is not as important.

I find comfort in the fact that God recognizes that all of the reassuring is not helping Moses' confidence, so He tells Moses to meet up with Aaron. Often people will paint God as an angry vengeful God in the Old Testament, but I think this is a good example of God showing his love. Verse 14 tells us that God's anger was kindled, anyone with children has an inkling of what that anger feels like. You know the story, you try to get your child to do something, and they do not want to budge, you know that great things (at least in our minds) will happen if they will just get on board, but to no avail the child will not budge, so you get angry, but you don't shut the whole thing down, you love them, you find a way to give the child the comfort they need in a physical form. This is what God does for Moses. HE gives him the comfort he needs to move. God loves us, always has, and always will.

Peace,
Brian

Exodus 3

2009-03-26T11:55:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 3

God gives Moses 2 names: "I AM WHO I AM." And he said, "Say this to the people of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'" 15God also said to Moses, "Say this to the people of Israel, 'The LORD, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.' This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.

I AM......this I think is the most telling of who God is. The Alpha-and Omega, the beginning, and the end. The one, and only. He exists unto himself, not dependant on anything. I asked a priest when I was in Catholic school why a bush? The answer he gave has always stayed with me. He told me that it was not so much the bush, but the fact that the bush did not burn. God was the flame, only the Lord can ignite a flame and it not consume what the flame rests on. HE told me it was a symbol of the church, because although the church is always under attack form outside forces, God always keeps it whole.
For me I can't help but think that God saying I AM WHO I AM is his way of saying I am all you need, and that is all you need to know. I am, always have been, and always will be everything that you need for eternity. I don't think that there could have been a better way for the Lord to show himself. Fire is used through out the bible as a way to show how God purifies us, it is used as a sign of the Holy Spirit, I thin kit is only fitting that the Lord presented himself as a burning bush that does not burn away. He is God, he is "I AM WHO I AM."

Peace,
Brian

Exodus 2

2009-03-26T11:53:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 2

At face value I would say that Moses' mothers life did not improve one bit. She had lost a son, worse she set that son into the unknown, in nothing more that a basket floating in the water. Then while she did get to see her son saved, she would only stand by as the nurse, not the mother. However a quick glance ahead in the bible to Hebrews 11:23 might shed some much needed light on the issue it reads: "By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid three months of his parents, because they saw he was a proper child; and they were not afraid of the king's commandment." By faith...not by desperation, not out of selfish defiance, but by faith Moses was hidden. As we have already see to this point, faith is an amazing thing, and when we put our faith in God, there is nothing to fear. With faith framing our view, it is easy to see that after she placed him on the riverbank her life improved greatly, for now not only did she not have to hide the child anymore, but God brought Moses to the Pharaoh's daughter, and Moses' sister brought her mother to be the nurse, in the house of the Pharaoh. She had faith in God that there was something more for Moses than death in the river, and now according to the will of the Lord, she would get to see Moses grow to become a man. It was her faith that compelled her to hide him, it was her faith that put Moses in a basket on the river, and it was the frustration of that faith that allowed her to see her son, not hidden in a corner, but in the broad daylight for all to see. It was her faith that gave Moses a life at all, and improved hers at the same time. Faith, can pull us through the darkest times. It will lead us when there is no light.

Peace,
Brian

Exodus 1

2009-03-26T11:46:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 1

Why did the midwives lie to Pharaoh? They lied because they feared Pharaoh. Don't get me wrong here; they did not kill the male children because they feared God. They knew that killing the children was against God's will, so they disobeyed Pharaoh. They lied to Pharaoh about it because they knew that he would punish them....most likely kill them, so they lied. SO this brings up the age old question is it OK to lie, if the lie allows good to flourish? I wish I had the answer for that, I think it is a question that can be debated many ways, however I will share my opinion. We are commanded to not bear false witness, not to lie. It was important enough to etch into stone. So we can start off saying that to lie is wrong. We know that throughout the bible many people lied to the Pharaohs (and others). However when the lies were discovered God still worked within the Pharaoh to not only be merciful, but often treated the person who lied to him well (think Abraham) it leaves me with the feeling of why lie in the first place, if the Lord wills it there is not need to lie. Jacob lied to secure what God had already promised, while he ended up with a great life, he did suffer hardships; others dealt with him, in the same manner he had dealt with his brother. SO there is a price that comes with lying.

TO delve even deeper, these women were lying to cover their belief in God. Afraid if they stood up and tried to spread the will of God they would be killed for it. Now I understand that this was well before Christ, but to keep the thought process current to today, I have to point out that Christ himself instructed us to not be ashamed of him. We were told that we should not fear death or persecution especially if it is in the name of Christ. Remember if the world hates us, it hated Christ first. SO to lie in an effort to make good happen, without giving the glory to God, would mean that on some level we must be ashamed. Here again his plan will unfold lie or not, so why do it?

So to sum it up, in my humble opinion, we are human, and I think that the temptation to tell a lie, especially a "white one" to make our lives easier, while wrong, is one of the hardest, most common types of temptation. I believe that the devil does not typically try to get a person to fall all at once, he chips away a little each day, and the white lie is a great chipping tool. We know that while the Lord might not send a lightning bolt down to destroy you after you speak it, there will be repercussions that will ripple out well beyond the moment. As a result, you can almost be certain that there will be some form of atonement down the road. I do feel that when it comes to talking about our relationship with the Lord, and speaking his words to help spread his good news there is no room for error. What I mean is that when we stretch the truth, or fail to give the Lord due credit out of fear of how we will be viewed in today's world, we fail the Lord. We fail the test. SO to lie is pointless, God's will always prevails, there is no need to lie and try to force it to happen. I wish I had the concrete answer.

Peace,
Brian

Genesis 50

2009-03-26T11:42:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 50

I was reading a friends testimony yesterday, A piece of it really stuck with me. In one part he talked about creating God in our image instead of acknowledging the fact the we are created in his image. It really got me to thinking about how we so often tend to rationalize our relationship with God and how we so often rationalize our actions. I ended up writing in another forum on that subject. So this morning I find myself reading Chapter 50 in Genesis, which only extended the thoughts from yesterday. Lo and behold we find Joseph's brothers lying to him. I know when you first read it, many think well it was just a "white" lie. A way to give an apology, and ask for forgiveness while increasing the chance for that forgiveness that we are looking for. The conflict there is that when we base an apology around a lie, it is not an apology given out of remorse, or a realization that there is need for forgiveness. It is an apology given out of fear. When we offer an apology out of fear, we are not sorry we hurt someone, we typically are not sorry that the event happened.....no, we are only sorry that we got caught, or now find that we might be exposed and suffer the consequence of our actions.

We rationalize the lie. We feel better about ourselves and the situation, but it is an empty feeling we are left with. The reason for that is because we have not only wronged someone but now we have lied to the same person in an effort to protect ourselves. Seeking forgiveness is about bearing our soul, it is about openly admitting our mistake and shortcoming and accepting the fact that we will have to atone on some level for our transgressions.

We do the same thing in our daily lives. If we need a deal to go through, if we want to make ourselves look better, we can think of all kinds of reasons that would make it seem OK.....it's just a white lie..... A lie is a lie, the intent does not matter. Any success that comes from the lie will surly have repercussions down the road, or we will find ourselves having to explain ourselves at a later time. Christ is the way, the TRUTH, and the light, not the good idea, the half truth, and the darkness. We can only honor him if we are truthful, not just with those around us, but with ourselves as well. I will tell you that the being honest with yourself part is the harder of the two.

Peace,
Brian

Genesis 49

2009-03-26T11:41:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 49

There are many reasons why reading the bible brings me comfort, it offers hope, gives me insight, it brings me reassurance, but a very big reason is that it is comforting to know that these men, whom God talked directly to, men that he raised up to heights all thought would be unattainable, these great men......make many of the same mistakes that we all make daily. Joseph is displeased, even tries to correct what he thinks is a mistake due to old age and poor vision. All to often even great men do not understand that everything has a reason, there is no "chance event" the past is done, and the future is in the distance there is only right now, and how it is played out, is part of God's plan.

We spend a lot of our life displeased about something in our lives. We can be as upset as we want to about anything that happens in our life, or we can realize that God is not here for our pleasure, we are here to serve his. I have heard since I was a child that you are where you are in life, not because of what has happened to you, but because of how you reacted. displeasure is a wasted emotion, and there is something to learn from every moment that we live. There are no ordinary moments, every breath we draw is extraordinary, why would we want to waste them with displeasure?

Peace,
Brian

Genesis 48

2009-03-26T11:40:00.001-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 48

There are many reasons why reading the bible brings me comfort, it offers hope, gives me insight, it brings me reassurance, but a very big reason is that it is comforting to know that these men, whom God talked directly to, men that he raised up to heights all thought would be unattainable, these great men......make many of the same mistakes that we all make daily. Joseph is displeased, even tries to correct what he thinks is a mistake due to old age and poor vision. All to often even great men do not understand that everything has a reason, there is no "chance event" the past is done, and the future is in the distance there is only right now, and how it is played out, is part of God's plan.

We spend a lot of our life displeased about something in our lives. We can be as upset as we want to about anything that happens in our life, or we can realize that God is not here for our pleasure, we are here to serve his. I have heard since I was a child that you are where you are in life, not because of what has happened to you, but because of how you reacted. displeasure is a wasted emotion, and there is something to learn from every moment that we live. There are no ordinary moments, every breath we draw is extraordinary, why would we want to waste them with displeasure?

Peace,
Brian

Genesis 47

2009-03-26T11:37:00.000-07:00

Bible Gateway link Chapter 47

Jacob wants to be buried at home, his promise land, the land that he buried his wife in. We all will die, no matter how hard we might fight, the end comes for all of us. Joseph might have provided food for all as shown in verse 12, yet even Joseph cannot sustain life forever. I like the way the Jacob and the Pharaoh talk of Jacob's life. Jacob says his days have been few and wicked. He might count his time here on earth in years, yet he counts his life by days. We might wonder why Jacob would say they have been wicked, but would we not all say the same? We are human, we are all wicked, and we all make mistakes, we might reach spiritual maturity, but it will not be perfection. As for how a man could say after 130 years here on earth his days have been short; well that is but a blink of the eye in eternity. As the years tick off the clock the only thing that is for sure is that the clock will expire. What we do with the time is up to us. As Christ has said in John 12 "are there not twelve hours of daylight?" Enough time to get done what we need to, but a very finite time none the less. How will we decide to spend our twelve?

Peace,
Brian