Circumcised

DEVOTION

EXODUS

CIRCUMCISED

Ex 12:43-51

43 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "These are the regulations for the Passover: "No foreigner is to eat of it. 44 Any slave you have bought may eat of it after you have circumcised him, 45 but a temporary resident and a hired worker may not eat of it. 46 "It must be eaten inside one house; take none of the meat outside the house. Do not break any of the bones. 47 The whole community of Israel must celebrate it. 48 "An alien living among you who wants to celebrate the LORD's Passover must have all the males in his household circumcised; then he may take part like one born in the land. No uncircumcised male may eat of it. 49 The same law applies to the native-born and to the alien living among you." 50 All the Israelites did just what the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron. 51 And on that very day the LORD brought the Israelites out of Egypt by their divisions.

NIV

Although we modern day Christians do not observe the Passover as the Jewish people do, we celebrate sort of a new type of Passover that we call communion. Why this is we are not exactly sure, except Jesus used the Passover time to establish the eating of bread and the drinking of wine as a sign of remembering what he did for us. The Passover is a sign or an act to remember what God did for the children of Israel. The communion is a sign or an act to remember what Jesus did for those who believe in him. The regulation God established about being circumcised in order to participate in the Passover still applies today in order to participate in communion. The difference is in the member of the body that must be circumcised. There is no question whether a male was circumcised in those days, or for that matter even today. It was and easy to prove that condition of the body. But today we are to circumcise our hearts in order to take of the communion meal. Although Jesus did not serve the communion meal in the sense we do. He used items from a much larger meal, which was prepare to celebrate the Passover. Nevertheless here we are with this somewhat representation of the two items Jesus used when he made that statement to his disciples. He used unleavened bread and wine, we use something that represents the bread and the wine, but in most cases they are nothing like what Jesus used, so are we really in keeping with his sayings? The other issue is of the greatest importance, the condition of our heart. Is our heart circumcised? Paul made that abundantly clear about who is true Israel.

Rom 2:28-29

28 A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. 29 No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart , by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man's praise is not from men, but from God.

NIV

One of the questions which arises from this, is that if we are a Jew because we have had our heart circumcised by the Spirit, then why do we not celebrate the Passover rather than what we call communion? Jesus celebrated the Passover as a Jew and if we want to be like Jesus then shouldn’t we do as he did? But we Christians use the exercise of communion, so that is that. But the fact still remains that in order to partake we say a person must be saved, or born again, or accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, at least in the Evangelical churches and some of the more fundamentalist denominations. Some say that salvation plus the outward evidence through the baptism of water is needed to engage in the taking of communion. Some of the mainline denominations may not require either, but simply being a member of that denomination is sufficient. At one time the Catholic Church required a visit to the confessional before being eligible to take communion, but that has been forgone in recent years. But what church asks, who has had their heart circumcised in order to join in the act of taking communion? How could we prove whether our heart is circumcised? Man looks at the outside, but God sees our heart. Man looked at the physical evidence of circumcision, but God looks at the inward evidence. Let us look at the whole of the new covenant in regards to this communion.

1 Cor 11:23-32

23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, "This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me."  25 In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me."  26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. 27 Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. 28 A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. 29 For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself. 30 That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep. 31 But if we judged ourselves, we would not come under judgment. 32 When we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned with the world.

NIV

This is where we have to examine ourselves, our heart, is it circumcised by the Spirit. Have we stripped away the most sensitive portion of our heart exposing the whole of it to the Lord? Is there anything hidden within it that is unpleasing? Have we kept a portion of it for our own desires? Are we harboring any ill feelings toward another? Are we harboring any jealousy, envy, pride, self-righteousness, greed, lust, anger, bitterness, unforgiveness, resentment or some other sin hidden deep within out heart? Do we truly spent that time prior to accepting communion in that self-examination mode, seeking as king David did.

Ps 139:23-24

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. 24 See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

NIV

Let us make sure our heart is circumcised. No one may be able to prove that, except God. 

Vigil

DEVOTION

EXODUS

VIGIL

Ex 12:37-42

37 The Israelites journeyed from Rameses to Succoth. There were about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides women and children. 38 Many other people went up with them, as well as large droves of livestock, both flocks and herds. 39 With the dough they had brought from Egypt, they baked cakes of unleavened bread. The dough was without yeast because they had been driven out of Egypt and did not have time to prepare food for themselves. 40 Now the length of time the Israelite people lived in Egypt was 430 years. 41 At the end of the 430 years, to the very day, all the LORD's divisions left Egypt. 42 Because the LORD kept vigil that night to bring them out of Egypt, on this night all the Israelites are to keep vigil to honor the LORD for the generations to come.

NIV

A tremendous amount of time and effort has been put into the discussion about the 430 years, to the very day, when all the LORD’s divisions left Egypt. There has also been a great deal of time spent in an effort to determine the exact number of complete souls that were in that Exodus. From all the records in scripture that reference this event, it has been thought that they did not actually spent that full 430 years in Egypt, but the it was that length of time since God gave Abraham the promise to the giving of the Law, which he did right after their leaving Egypt. It has been estimated the complete number was somewhere near 2 million people, with all the wives and children and those who came with them. Others put the number closer to 3 to 3.5 million. As interesting as all this is, most of it is either speculation, or assumptions. The 430 years might well be based on fact, however, seeing that Paul used that exact number informing his readers of the years from the Promise to the Law. Still neither of these serve to be our lesson today. We are told there were many other people went up with them out of Egypt. It is supposed that many others left their countries of origin due to the immense famine throughout all the lands. Their descendants would have been born in Egypt as well, as perhaps either enslaved also or simply lived among the Egyptians in such some numbers they were no threat to them. Either way they took the opportunity to get out of Egypt following after the God of the Israelites rather than remaining behind. We would have to believe these foreigners, not being Israelites, experienced the death of their firstborn, as well as all the other plagues, along with all the Egyptians. Yet they chose to leave with the Israelites and their God who did all this in Egypt. This could be our lesson, that because of our faith in God, people will follow or join us, following our God, when we exodus this planet. Surely these others show how God protected the Israelites form certain plagues especially the death of the firstborn. Surely they know the God of the Hebrews was a powerful and mighty God who is concerned about his people. Who did all he did to bring them out of their misery. Why would they stay behind in a country ravished by his plagues, left with barren fields and death all over, when they could follow after a people who served such a powerful God? Certainly we should be like that. Surely we should be a people who serve such a powerful God and have his power working on behalf of us in such a way that others will choose to join us rather than stay behind in a ravished world which will be after all the seven angels, the seven trumpets, vials, and plagues. Although that would be a great lesson and it is, it might be best to find our lesson in the vigil. But of the LORD and of the people. God kept a vigil over them as they left. It had to have taken a lot of time to gather all their goods, their flocks, and ask and receive all the gold and silver from the Egyptians. All night long this gathering took place. An amassing of over several million people finding each other, watching over the children and the helping the elderly. Although we are not told exactly, perhaps they were assembled by tribe, by clan or as by division, as that term is used. A massive gathering of people and God stood vigil over them during the whole of it. This term vigil is not found in the original text, it simply says the LORD brought them out that night and they are to keep that night special, to celebrate that night for generations upon generations. But the fact is God watched over them, protected them during this gathering and as this massive exodus took place under the direction of Moses. How he managed to govern such an enormous event can only be attributed to God. The LORD watched over them, he kept his eye upon them, he maintain his vigil over them during the whole night. This is how he always is with his creation. The LORD does not every leave us nor forsake us. He is always watching over us, keeping a vigil over us. He knows our very thoughts, our inner most being. We think we know some people, but we only know them on the outside, God knows our heart, he sees into our very being and keeps a vigil over us. He is always with us, even when we do not feel his presences, he is there. Daryl Scott, put it best. The constant presence of God and the conscience presence of God. Even though we may not be conscience of his presence, he is constantly present. This is the kind of presences he exhibited the night of their gathering and leaving. He was there with them and he is here with us.

Ps 34:15

15 The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry;

NIV

Plunder

DEVOTION

EXODUS

PLUNDER

Ex 12:31-36

31 During the night Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, "Up! Leave my people, you and the Israelites! Go, worship the LORD as you have requested. 32 Take your flocks and herds, as you have said, and go. And also bless me." 33 The Egyptians urged the people to hurry and leave the country. "For otherwise," they said, "we will all die!" 34 So the people took their dough before the yeast was added, and carried it on their shoulders in kneading troughs wrapped in clothing. 35 The Israelites did as Moses instructed and asked the Egyptians for articles of silver and gold and for clothing. 36 The LORD had made the Egyptians favorably disposed toward the people, and they gave them what they asked for; so they plundered the Egyptians.

NIV

After this terrifying experience of having all the firstborn of Egypt die, the Pharaoh was more the willing to let the people go, along with all their livestock, everything that belonged to them. He did not want anything of the Israelites left in his country. God had brought this mighty man to his knees. In addition as this narrative tells us, the Israelites asked and received gold and silver, willingly, from all the Egyptians. We are told they plundered them. God brought this mighty country to its knees, taking all its power and wealth and giving it to his people. Will this ever be repeated? Are there people who are in bondage to a supposed powerful ruler? We know the answer to the question. All who do not serve the Lord Jesus Christ are in fact in bondage to the rule of Satan. But he will be brought to his knees and all those in his country will as well. The scripture tells us the wealth of the wicked is stored up for the righteous.

Prov 13:22

22 A good man leaves an inheritance for his children's children, but a sinner's wealth is stored up for the righteous.

NIV

First we need to know this inheritance is not wealth, but rather the kingdom of God. A good man makes sure his children’s children know about this kingdom of God. The inheritance of eternal life is the only good thing a man can leave for his family. What good is all the wealth of the world if a man loses his soul?

Matt 16:24-26

24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. 26 What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul?

NIV

Yet here we have all of Israel taking all the wealth of Egypt with them and still having the salvation of the Lord. But they are not to put their trust in this wealth, yet knowing want is to come, they do just that, making for themselves a golden calf to worship. But we get way ahead of ourselves. There is much more to happen in their lives before they get to that point of misplaced trust. For now they simply are full of rejoicing for their misery is over, they are leaving this place of hardship, and evil rule. This is the type of rejoicing we experienced the day we accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior. We were taken out from under the evil domain of Satan, who ruled over us. As we left his domain we too plundered it. We came with all our God given talents, our God given abilities that once served the purpose of Satan, and now serve the purpose of God. In addition he has given us even more abilities through the power of the Spirit. We were the wealth of the wicked, and we have been stored up for God. But there is also truth in the simple wealth such as gold and silver. Here the Israelites received the wealth of the wicked as they left that land. The question is what will we plunder when we leave this world? Gold and silver have no value to God. The only thing he considers of value is his people, his creation. Will we be able to plunder the land of Satan? Will we be able to take more people from his land? Will we be able to plunder more souls for Jesus? Sure the Spirit convicts men, but who will go and tell them the truth? Who will tell them the message? Throughout the ages God has sent men to tell others the truth. Are we willing to plunder this domain of Satan? We have been set free so let us take all we can with us. 

The blood

DEVOTION

EXODUS

THE BLOOD

Ex 12:21-30

21 Then Moses summoned all the elders of Israel and said to them, "Go at once and select the animals for your families and slaughter the Passover lamb. 22 Take a bunch of hyssop, dip it into the blood in the basin and put some of the blood on the top and on both sides of the doorframe. Not one of you shall go out the door of his house until morning. 23 When the LORD goes through the land to strike down the Egyptians, he will see the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe and will pass over that doorway, and he will not permit the destroyer to enter your houses and strike you down. 24 "Obey these instructions as a lasting ordinance for you and your descendants. 25 When you enter the land that the LORD will give you as he promised, observe this ceremony. 26 And when your children ask you, 'What does this ceremony mean to you?' 27 then tell them, 'It is the Passover sacrifice to the LORD, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt and spared our homes when he struck down the Egyptians.'" Then the people bowed down and worshiped. 28 The Israelites did just what the LORD commanded Moses and Aaron. 29 At midnight the LORD struck down all the firstborn in Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sat on the throne, to the firstborn of the prisoner, who was in the dungeon, and the firstborn of all the livestock as well. 30 Pharaoh and all his officials and all the Egyptians got up during the night, and there was loud wailing in Egypt, for there was not a house without someone dead.

NIV

The Passover is at hand. Having received their instructions from Moses and Aaron regarding what they are to do with the knowledge of why, they obeyed completely. Who would not obey completely knowing the death angel of God would be roaming through the land looking for and killing every firstborn there was, both of animals and of men. The significance of the firstborn is enormous. From just the past men we have spent time with in Genesis we know it is the firstborn male who inherits all the wealth of the father. This plague struck right at the heart of every Egyptian father, none was left untouched. This term firstborn is what is used for Jesus.

Col 1:15-16

15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.

NIV

Jesus is also the firstborn of the dead.

Rev 1:5

Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, 5 and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.

NIV

As we have seen, it is when we sprinkle the blood of the Lamb on the doorposts of our heart, the death angel will Passover us. Jesus is the firstborn, he has inherited all the wealth of the Father. He is the ruler of all the kings of the earth. Without the shredding of the blood of the firstborn of God, we all would be dead forever, we all would be struck down. But praise God he sent his Holy Spirit to convict us of our sin so that we could repent as well as show us the truth of Jesus Christ, the firstborn of God. This truth that is shown to us about the death angel passing throughout the land of Egypt gives us the picture of the future of this earth. Someday the death angel will once again be sent. We see all sorts of death angels coming in the revelation given to John. Seven seals, seven plagues, seven bowls, seven judgments, seven trumpets, seven angels that bring death upon the earth in various forms. But for those of us with the blood sprinkled over the doorposts of our hearts will not be effected at all. Either we will have been already taken up or if we are still here, it matters not, for when those angels seen the blood of the Lamb they will pass by us, we will experience the Passover in the truest sense. This also carries the meaning that we must do this just as we have been commanded to do. We are to stay safe in our homes applying the blood. This means our hearts are our home. We need to keep our heart safe under the blood. It is our heart that defines who we are. This heart also implies our mind, or being. The Israelites were told to stay in their homes, to not leave them, to eat all of the Lamb with their sandals on and their staff in their hand, ready to leave when called to do so. We cannot stray from being under the blood. We cannot leave our safe place or allow our home, our heart and mind to be enticed into the world, the outside, the place where the death angel will destroy. Satan would tempt us to leave. He would present all sorts of reasons for us to reach out for whatever is our greatest temptation whether that be lust, greed, ambition, pride, impatience, self-reliance, or a host of others which would lead us from under the blood into the arena of the death angel. Let us stay within the doorpost, under the blood. 

Leaven

DEVOTION

EXODUS

LEAVEN

Ex 12:12-20

12 "On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn — both men and animals — and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the LORD. 13 The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt. 14 "This is a day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the LORD — a lasting ordinance. 15 For seven days you are to eat bread made without yeast. On the first day remove the yeast from your houses, for whoever eats anything with yeast in it from the first day through the seventh must be cut off from Israel. 16 On the first day hold a sacred assembly, and another one on the seventh day. Do no work at all on these days, except to prepare food for everyone to eat — that is all you may do. 17 "Celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread, because it was on this very day that I brought your divisions out of Egypt. Celebrate this day as a lasting ordinance for the generations to come. 18 In the first month you are to eat bread made without yeast, from the evening of the fourteenth day until the evening of the twenty-first day. 19 For seven days no yeast is to be found in your houses. And whoever eats anything with yeast in it must be cut off from the community of Israel, whether he is an alien or native-born. 20 Eat nothing made with yeast. Wherever you live, you must eat unleavened bread."

NIV

Although we already dealt in sorts with the Passover, here is the exact instructions regarding their continued celebration of this event. It is certain God is showing them and us that salvation only comes through the blood of the Lamb. We can also be certain at some point in time he will once again strike at the heart of all the gods man has created for himself since the time of the Egyptians. He did not leave a god of theirs unjudged nor will he leave any god of today unjudged. Ever knee shall bow and confess that Jesus Christ is LORD. The rest of this narrative deals with the feast of unleavened bread. What is the deal with yeast? It is a foreshadowing of the communion we celebrate whenever the Pastor feels it is the right time, or fits into a sermon he is preaching? We certainly do not have a regular schedule as it certainly appears the LORD has laid out for Israel. So it cannot be a foreshadowing or we are not keeping with his command. Yet the question still remains about the yeast, or the lack of it in their houses for the duration of the seven days. It is interesting the day they are to begin this week long remembrance of their rescue. It was the fifteen day of the month, which the scholars have determined was the same day the LORD was crucified. We are not sure how that was determined, however we do know the LORD celebrated the Passover with his disciples just before his arrest and crucifixion, so had he celebrated on the first day of Passover, which was the fifteenth day of the month he could not have actually been crucified on that same day. It was certainly in that Passover period, or during the feast of unleavened bread. This is also why we Christians use the communion as our remembrance instead of the Passover, due to Jesus doing what he did while they were celebrating the Passover. Yet our lesson is in the yeast, or the lack of it. Yeast corrupts everything it contacts. A little yeast will spread throughout the whole of what it is added to.

Luke 12:1-3

 "Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. 2 There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. 3 What you have said in the dark will be heard in the daylight, and what you have whispered in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed from the roofs.

NIV

Jesus makes the parallel between the hypocrisy of the Pharisees and yeast. This is the idea that we need to remove the yeast of our old thinking. We are not to let the concepts, the ideologies of this world corrupt our lives. In this sense we are to live an unleavened life.

1 Cor 5:6-8

6 Your boasting is not good. Don't you know that a little yeast works through the whole batch of dough? 7 Get rid of the old yeast that you may be a new batch without yeast — as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. 8 Therefore let us keep the Festival, not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness, but with bread without yeast, the bread of sincerity and truth.

NIV

This brings it right home to where we live today. We are in fact to live an unleavened life, ridding ourselves of all the yeast of the world. How do we do that? We are so intertwined with the world we live in. We have to work among the leavened. We live next door to them, we are involved in social or work related events among them. We are continually bombarded by commercials, on radio, television and social media with their leavened ideas. If we adopt any of their ideologies, if we allow any of their ways of life to infiltrate into our thinking, that yeast will permeate throughout our whole life. We are admonished all throughout the Holy Scriptures to turn from our wicked ways. Many consider their list of don’ts as being in obedience to this command. Many believe when we accept Jesus we have done just that, turned from our wicked ways. But the fact remains if we have any yeast of the world at all within, we are being corrupted throughout. The warning Jesus gave concerning this yeast of the Pharisees is loud and clear. We cannot hide any yeast of the world within us without it being known and shouted from the rooftops. This is not easy, this requires a whole lot of attention, a great deal of contemplation and determination to continually yield to the Spirit, who leads us into all truth, as well as convicts us of our leaven. Let us hear the Spirit and understand what yeast we are infected with, and rid ourselves of this leaven, so we can worship our Lord in spirit and truth. 

Details

DEVOTION

EXODUS

DETAILS

Ex 12:1-11

12:1 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt, 2 "This month is to be for you the first month, the first month of your year. 3 Tell the whole community of Israel that on the tenth day of this month each man is to take a lamb for his family, one for each household. 4 If any household is too small for a whole lamb, they must share one with their nearest neighbor, having taken into account the number of people there are. You are to determine the amount of lamb needed in accordance with what each person will eat. 5 The animals you choose must be year-old males without defect, and you may take them from the sheep or the goats. 6 Take care of them until the fourteenth day of the month, when all the people of the community of Israel must slaughter them at twilight. 7 Then they are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs. 8 That same night they are to eat the meat roasted over the fire, along with bitter herbs, and bread made without yeast. 9 Do not eat the meat raw or cooked in water, but roast it over the fire — head, legs and inner parts. 10 Do not leave any of it till morning; if some is left till morning, you must burn it. 11 This is how you are to eat it: with your cloak tucked into your belt, your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand. Eat it in haste; it is the LORD's Passover.

NIV

We have arrived at the start or the preparation of the last and final plague God is going to bring upon the Egyptians. It is rather interesting all the other plagues God just did them right out, but here he has very specific instructions for the Israelites to prepare themselves for this plague so that the angel God sends will know who is who. We will get into that as it unfolds for us in the next passages, but for now we should see just how exact God is. Why did he get such exacting instruction? Everything had to be done in a very detailed manner. They could not just kill any animal and sprinkle its blood on their doorposts. How would the death angel know the difference? God even ordained the changing of their known calendar to mark this event. This event became a continual celebration for generations upon generations. This was something really big in the lives of Israel and today in the lives of Jewish people all over the world. They celebrate the Passover in very specific fashion, following a prescribed pattern. This marks their rescue from slavery in Egypt. The sacrificial lamb such significance and the children of Israel have missed it completely. Certainly God was showing them what he was going to do, not just to rescue them from bondage in Egypt, but to rescue them and us from the bondage in sin, from the bondage Satan has imposed upon us, or rather we submitted to of our own freewill. God has in fact given the perfect, the most perfect lamb as a sacrifice to rescue us from the chains the bind us in sin. We know all this, yet have we allowed that moment of our salvation to escape us? Although it is very ritualistic in nature for the Jews to celebrate the Passover, they celebrate it. How many of us recall on a yearly basis the hour we first believed. How many of us spend time, at least once a year, remembering the events that led to our redemption? Surely we celebrate as a nation, as the nation of God, our redemption, making Good Friday and Easter morning a special moment in our churches. We celebrate what God did so we could be saved, but do we celebrate that as our personal Passover? Should not we recall that exact moment when we took the Lamb and devoured all of him, consumed every bit of him, and took his blood and sprinkled it over the doorpost of our heart. Shouldn’t we be ready, with our shoes on and our staff in hand, ready to leave at a moment’s notice? Why do we develop such deep roots in this life, in this world, when we should be ready to leave it in an instant? Sure we should occupy, but not Wall Street. We should not place any value on anything other than our redemption. Let us remember to celebrate the hour we believed, the time when God spared us, when we sprinkled the blood of Christ on the doorpost of our heart. What a day that was in our lives. What an hour!God changed our personal calendar. He gave us the day of the beginning of our eternal life. How could we ever forget how he came to us, gave us the specific instructions as to how we could be born again. How we needed to admit we were sinners, how we needed to repent of that sin and ask him for forgiveness, and how he did, and how he told us we needed to accept the sacrifice of his Lamb, his only son Jesus Christ as our Lord and our Savoir. How glorious that day was in our lives. He rescued us. Let us not ever forget those details. 

Burning anger

DEVOTION

EXODUS

BURNING ANGER

Ex 11

11:1 Now the LORD had said to Moses, "I will bring one more plague on Pharaoh and on Egypt. After that, he will let you go from here, and when he does, he will drive you out completely. 2 Tell the people that men and women alike are to ask their neighbors for articles of silver and gold." 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.) 4 So Moses said, "This is what the LORD says: 'About midnight I will go throughout Egypt. 5 Every firstborn son in Egypt will die, from the firstborn son of Pharaoh, who sits on the throne, to the firstborn son of the slave girl, who is at her hand mill, and all the firstborn of the cattle as well. 6 There will be loud wailing throughout Egypt — worse than there has ever been or ever will be again. 7 But among the Israelites not a dog will bark at any man or animal.' Then you will know that the LORD makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel. 8 All these officials of yours will come to me, bowing down before me and saying, 'Go, you and all the people who follow you!' After that I will leave." Then Moses, hot with anger, left Pharaoh. 9 The LORD had said to Moses, "Pharaoh will refuse to listen to you — so that my wonders may be multiplied in Egypt." 10 Moses and Aaron performed all these wonders before Pharaoh, but the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he would not let the Israelites go out of his country.

NIV

A god will never accept God. But a god with the death of his first born might want to get rid of God forever. Pharaoh thinking himself a god would never believe in the Almighty God of the Hebrews. However God is the Almighty of all mankind which would include the Egyptians, even Pharaoh. Yet with this man, with his hard heart, and then having God continually use that hardness and even increase it so that he might be able to show just how powerful and mighty he is, will eventually yield because of the death of his firstborn. How ironic in a sense, that our salvation should come from the death of God’s firstborn. The children of Israel will be rescued by the death of Pharaoh’s firstborn and we have been rescued by God through the death of his firstborn. But in reality this is not ironic at all, because this has been God’s plan all along to show how his salvation of his people, all mankind, will take place. Once again, as we peer into the truth only with linear eyes all we can see is a linear past, present and glance into a possible future. But when we see as God sees, when we stare into the truth through our spirit, as we are to worship him, we see in the timeless, the always present, condition God lives in. Although we can see truths to live by, lessons to instruct us, correct us and even rebuke us, the ultimate truth is always about learning the truth about God and his greatness and his desire to have a true everlasting relationship with his people, his creation. Yet as in our past, we have seen or read about individuals who have rejected the truth about God and did not want him as their God, but rather created gods of their own. This is the choice God gave to all his creation. They have chosen their own destiny. Pharaoh was one of those who did just that, and having rejected God, chose his own path. However God used his chosen path as a means to demonstrate his power and his plan. We can also see he influenced the hearts and minds of all the rest of the Egyptians to look favorably upon the Israelites. But we have not yet come to the place of death of the firstborn and the Passover in our linear view of things. Here we see that Moses is telling Pharaoh that God is certainly making a distinction between Egypt and Israel in this plague of the death of the firstborn. Again seeing outside the constraints of the linear, it will be due to the blood on the doorposts. The Passover of the death angel, seeing the blood, again shows us his eternal plan. However let us learn something here in the anger of Moses. We are told that Moses, hot with anger, left Pharaoh. Who was Moses hot with anger toward? Some would say he had a righteous indignation, which he was angry because Pharaoh did not see God as the Almighty God he is. But God already told Moses, he would harden the heart of Pharaoh against Moses and his request to let the people go. How could Moses have a righteous anger toward Pharaoh? It would seem Moses might well be angry with God at this point because he was going to put to death all the firstborn of the Egyptians. Although Moses did all that God commanded him to do, in bringing all these plagues upon the Egyptians, he might have thought it was just too much to kill all the firstborn. Of course this is all supposition, as we are not told why he left Pharaoh burning with anger. He could have been burning with anger because people were going to die, without coming to know God, without the promise. Should we not burn with anger when people die outside the grace of God, without the promise of eternal life? Do we just write them off, quoting that verse about not casting pearls to pigs? Or perhaps about shaking the dust off our feet. 

Matt 7:7

6 "Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces.

NIV

Matt 10:13-15
 14 If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that home or town. 
NIV

Although there is great truth in this, that some people are liken to dogs or pigs, those who would tear us apart, such as those terrorists known as ISIS, or perhaps some haters of God in this country, are we to simply enjoy their destiny of death, of perishing? Should we not still burn with anger about their hostility toward God? Why would God allow them to remain that hostile toward him, knowing that will bring them to their eternal damnation? Again, we cannot see completely into the timelessness of God’s existence. Although we are certainly privy to his plan of salvation, having experienced it, we may not have the insight to other truths. The one truth we know, and can see throughout the course of our history is man has had the chose to either serve the LORD or reject him. Although Pharaoh’s heart was hardened by the LORD, he had already rejected the LORD a long time before Moses arrived in Egypt. All throughout time and to this day and most likely until the LORD returns, men will reject him of their own freewill. But this should not give us joy, but instead we should burn with anger, with passion for their souls. We should take not enjoyment in seeing anyone be an object of God’s wrath. Let us live with this burning anger, let us make every effort to share the message with as many as we can, perhaps some will be saved. 

Shine

DEVOTION

EXODUS

SHINE

Ex 10:21-29

21 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand toward the sky so that darkness will spread over Egypt — darkness that can be felt." 22 So Moses stretched out his hand toward the sky, and total darkness covered all Egypt for three days. 23 No one could see anyone else or leave his place for three days. Yet all the Israelites had light in the places where they lived. 24 Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and said, "Go, worship the LORD. Even your women and children may go with you; only leave your flocks and herds behind." 25 But Moses said, "You must allow us to have sacrifices and burnt offerings to present to the LORD our God. 26 Our livestock too must go with us; not a hoof is to be left behind. We have to use some of them in worshiping the LORD our God, and until we get there we will not know what we are to use to worship the LORD." 27 But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he was not willing to let them go. 28 Pharaoh said to Moses, "Get out of my sight! Make sure you do not appear before me again! The day you see my face you will die." 29 "Just as you say," Moses replied, "I will never appear before you again."

NIV

Certainly this was a demonstration of the power of God against one of the prominent gods of the Egyptians, Ra, god of the sun. When you consider how dark the darkness was that no one could see anyone else, that is real true darkness, they type of darkness in which no light exists at all. Not a sliver of light to be seen anywhere. It was a darkness that could be felt. Although we are not told in the exact words, when Moses was summoned by the Pharaoh it was still in this darkness in which no one could see anyone else yet Pharaoh tells Moses, “Get out of my sight!”, it would appear Moses brought light with him. We are told there was light wherever the Israelites lived and Moses was an Israelite. We can just imagine in this complete darkness with the absence of any light at all, not the darkness of night, with the light of the stars and moon, but with no light at all, here comes Moses shining brightly as he walks into the palace to stand before the presence of Pharaoh. What a sight that most have been. He must have appeared as a god, a beacon of light in the darkness. Surely there is a lesson here. But before we get to that lesson we should also note the lasts exchange in this narrative. When Pharaoh tells Moses to get of his sight, to make sure that he does not appear before him again, because if he does he will die, Moses tells him, “Just as you say, I will never appear before you again”. Isn’t that a warning for mankind? If a person tells God never appear before them again, or they will consider him dead, what does that mean? There are some who yell, “God is dead” Others have written, “God is not dead”. If a person refuses to acknowledge God, he might just say, “Just as you say, I will never appear before you again”. They will surely not ever see God, never experience his presence, ever again, for their fate is to perish, to cease to exist, not just in the physical sense, but in the spiritual as well. But let us go back to the lesson for today. As Moses must have been a beacon of light in the darkness, we too can be that same beacon. Sure, we do not, nor may never experience that type of darkness, but there is a darkness that shrouds over the world. There is a spiritual darkness that penetrates the hearts and minds of people. It is so dark they cannot see themselves or anyone else. Although the sun rises each day, the veil of darkness in their hearts is not affected. It is only Jesus, the light of the world who can pierce that kind of darkness.

John 8:12

12 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." 

NIV

 Yet we are told we should be the light of the world as well.

Matt 5:14-16

14 "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

NIV

Even in the midst of all the darkness, we carry the light of God within us. Like Moses must have appeared as a shining light, we too should appear as a shining light in this dark filled world. With the Spirit dwelling in us, we can shine brightly showing the world the light of Jesus Christ, so they never have to walk in the darkness again. What a scary sight Moses must have been to Pharaoh. He must have been a threat to everything Pharaoh believed, to the gods Pharaoh believed in, even in himself, as he sat in total darkness for three days until Moses appears bringing light with him. It is possible some who sit in the darkness, who live in refusal to God, are also threatened by the light we bring with us when we encounter them. They may well tell us to “Get out of my sight”. But nevertheless we have an obligation to walk in the light, to be the light, to shine that light into the darkest of places. We cannot do this if we only visit with others who live in the light. We cannot do this if we only show our light in church. We must go where we are summoned, into the darkness to appear before those who are in the darkness, so we can shine. 

Let them all go

DEVOTION

EXODUS

LET THEM ALL GO

Ex 10:1-20

10:1 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 miraculous signs of mine among them 2 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." 3 So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said to him, "This is what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, says: 'How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me? Let my people go, so that they may worship me. 4 If you refuse to let them go, I will bring locusts into your country tomorrow. 5 They will cover the face of the ground so that it cannot be seen. They will devour what little you have left after the hail, including every tree that is growing in your fields. 6 They will fill your houses and those of all your officials and all the Egyptians — something neither your fathers nor your forefathers have ever seen from the day they settled in this land till now.'" Then Moses turned and left Pharaoh. 7 Pharaoh's officials said to him, "How long will this man be a snare to us? Let the people go, so that they may worship the LORD their God. Do you not yet realize that Egypt is ruined?" 8 Then Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh. "Go, worship the LORD your God," he said. "But just who will be going?" 9 Moses answered, "We will go with our young and old, with our sons and daughters, and with our flocks and herds, because we are to celebrate a festival to the LORD." 10 Pharaoh said, "The LORD be with you — if I let you go, along with your women and children! Clearly you are bent on evil.   11 No! Have only the men go; and worship the LORD, since that's what you have been asking for." Then Moses and Aaron were driven out of Pharaoh's presence. 12 And the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand over Egypt so that locusts will swarm over the land and devour everything growing in the fields, everything left by the hail." 13 So Moses stretched out his staff over Egypt, and the LORD made an east wind blow across the land all that day and all that night. By morning the wind had brought the locusts; 14 they invaded all Egypt and settled down in every area of the country in great numbers. Never before had there been such a plague of locusts, nor will there ever be again. 15 They covered all the ground until it was black. They devoured all that was left after the hail — everything growing in the fields and the fruit on the trees. Nothing green remained on tree or plant in all the land of Egypt. 16 Pharaoh quickly summoned Moses and Aaron and said, "I have sinned against the LORD your God and against you. 17 Now forgive my sin once more and pray to the LORD your God to take this deadly plague away from me." 18 Moses then left Pharaoh and prayed to the LORD. 19 And the LORD changed the wind to a very strong west wind, which caught up the locusts and carried them into the Red Sea. Not a locust was left anywhere in Egypt. 20 But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he would not let the Israelites go.

NIV

We are back to this point about the LORD hardening the heart of Pharaoh. Traditional thought is the LORD caused the heart of Pharaoh to be set against the requests of Moses and Aaron to let the people go for the exact purpose of showing his power. Yet we should also remember that it was the cries of the Israelites to the LORD about their misery and his promise, his covenant he made to Abraham about his descendants occupying the Land flowing with milk and honey. The verse actually says God remembered his covenant. Is this all about his punishing the Egyptians or showing his power, or fulfilling his promise?  Would it not have been much easier for God to soften the heart of Pharaoh the first time Moses stood before him asking to let the people go? Then all this destruction would not be needed, and the people would have been rescued. Why would God want to destroy an entire country just to prove he is God? Then the rescue of the Israelites is secondary to his real purpose. Would we then have to go back to him having Joseph sold into slavery in Egypt so he could later simple destroy it? Then we have to leap to this idea we have absolutely no say in our own lives, it is all predestined. But that is simply not the case, as we are told over and over again that we must accept his salvation. We must change our heart. We must turn from our wicked ways. It is about the heart of man, he refuses to accept and obey God. Pharaoh was a wicked man, a harsh ruler, a self-proclaimed deity. God did not have to make his heart hard as it already was. But we do accept the fact God strengthened that hardest, that resolve. But enough about this hardening or strengthening of his heart. Here in this plague of the locust, God finished off anything that was left green in all the land. He laid bare the entire land of Egypt because Pharaoh did not want to let them go. Once again we see his hypocrisy, saying he sinned, only to get God to make the locust go away. He does at least relent to let only the men go, but that is not the request. All the people, all their livestock, all their possessions must leave. This is where our lesson is. God made a request, or required a response by Pharaoh to let his people go, all his people, all their livestock, all their possessions and after enough of these plagues Pharaoh agrees to let just the men go. How much does God require of us? What kind of response does he require from us? We are reminded of the young rich man who went to Jesus and asked what he must do to be saved.

Luke 18:18-25

18 A certain ruler asked him, "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?"

19 "Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good — except God alone. 20 You know the commandments: 'Do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.'"  21 "All these I have kept since I was a boy," he said. 22 When Jesus heard this, he said to him, "You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."  23 When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was a man of great wealth. 24 Jesus looked at him and said, "How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! 25 Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." 

NIV

In this case, the rich young man felt he had done all God required of him, except Jesus told him there was one more thing. He could not do it, so he left sad. What do we hold back from doing which the LORD requires of us? We make our lists of the do’s and don’ts and think we are doing alright if we keep ourselves from the don’ts. But what about the list of the do’s? Are we doing everything on the list? Maybe on our list, but what about the list God made? Are we willing to let some things go, but not all the things? Pharaoh did not want to let them all go, just the men. Are we much different? If asked, are we willing to give it all, to let all of it go, whatever it is? That could be a different thing for each of us. Are we willing to let that impatience go? Are we willing to let that unforgiveness go? Are we willing to let that pride go? Are we willing to let the 401K go? Are we willing to let that selfishness go?  Are you willing to let your time go? The list is enormous. Perhaps each one of us only needs to let one more thing go, maybe some of us have to let more than one thing go. Surely God will not bring pestilence upon us in order to prove he is God. Surely he will not harden our heart just to prove a point. But nevertheless Pharaoh was willing, at least to keep himself from the locust, to let some of them go.  In fact he accused them of being bent on doing evil if all of them went. If we refuse to respond to God, giving it all, letting all of our ways go, what will happen to us? Surely we will live a crippled lifestyle. God does not intend, nor does he rejoice in our crippled way of living in his kingdom. Yet if we refuse to let everything go, truly worship him as he requires, we may well live less then abundantly, not just in the physical but in the spiritual. We need to let them all go. 

Hypocrisy

DEVOTION

EXODUS

HYPOCRISY

Ex 9:13-35

13 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, 14 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. 15 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. 16 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. 17 You still set yourself against my people and will not let them go. 18 Therefore, at this time tomorrow I will send the worst hailstorm that has ever fallen on Egypt, from the day it was founded till now. 19 Give an order now to bring your livestock and everything you have in the field to a place of shelter, because the hail will fall on every man and animal that has not been brought in and is still out in the field, and they will die.'" 20 Those officials of Pharaoh who feared the word of the LORD hurried to bring their slaves and their livestock inside. 21 But those who ignored the word of the LORD left their slaves and livestock in the field. 22 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand toward the sky so that hail will fall all over Egypt — on men and animals and on everything growing in the fields of Egypt." 23 When Moses stretched out his staff toward the sky, the LORD sent thunder and hail, and lightning flashed down to the ground. So the LORD rained hail on the land of Egypt; 24 hail fell and lightning flashed back and forth. It was the worst storm in all the land of Egypt since it had become a nation. 25 Throughout Egypt hail struck everything in the fields — both men and animals; it beat down everything growing in the fields and stripped every tree. 26 The only place it did not hail was the land of Goshen, where the Israelites were. 27 Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron. "This time I have sinned," he said to them. "The LORD is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong. 28 Pray to the LORD, for we have had enough thunder and hail. I will let you go; you don't have to stay any longer." 29 Moses replied, "When I have gone out of the city, I will spread out my hands in prayer to the LORD. The thunder will stop and there will be no more hail, so you may know that the earth is the LORD's. 30 But I know that you and your officials still do not fear the LORD God." 31(The flax and barley were destroyed, since the barley had headed and the flax was in bloom. 32 The wheat and spelt, however, were not destroyed, because they ripen later.) 33 Then Moses left Pharaoh and went out of the city. He spread out his hands toward the LORD; the thunder and hail stopped, and the rain no longer poured down on the land. 34 When Pharaoh saw that the rain and hail and thunder had stopped, he sinned again: He and his officials hardened their hearts. 35 So Pharaoh's heart was hard and he would not let the Israelites go, just as the LORD had said through Moses.

NIV

The hail cometh, but not hail to the LORD of lords, the KING of kings, Almighty God. This is not all hail the power of Jesus name. This is a storm of storms, the worse storm ever since Egypt had become a nation. This was the warning Moses was to give Pharaoh. Some took this to heart and protected their material possessions, their slaves and livestock. Some ignored the warning and thus lost everything. Anything or anyone that was left outside was toast. The Hail was so great it simply stoned them to death. It stripped all the trees of not only any fruit, but leaves as well. Barren trees were all that was left. All the grain in the field except the wheat were destroyed. This can only be due to the mercy of God. He did not leave them without the possibility of making bread. This plague was so devastating Pharaoh called Moses and said the LORD was right and he was wrong. What hypocrisy! He was willing to admit to being a sinner just to get Moses to call off the hail. Just as before, as soon as Moses prayed to God to bring the storm to an end, Pharaoh continued with the hard heart theme. He and his officials hardened their hearts. Notice, it was he and his that did the hardening. This man is the epitome of hypocrisy. He never once actually believed in the LORD being right and himself being wrong. God knew his heart, he knew it was hard, just as he had told Moses. Nevertheless the LORD stopped this storm. God knew what it was going to take to actually prompt Pharaoh into letting the people go. But he was still showing them his power to control every aspect of their lives. He controlled their environment in every way. This should tell us something about those humanistic environmentalist who believe they can control our environment by restrictions and regulations upon mankind. But they are as hypocritical as Pharaoh. They desire is not actually to save the planet, but to control others through their policies. Their own “Carbon footprint” is the largest of all. But we digress. The point of this lesson is on hypocrisy. We cannot afford to engage in this attitude which becomes a behavior. How can we say from one side of our mouth, “We love the Lord our God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength” and speak about how much we love the things of this world? How can we say we trust God, but trust in our saving accounts? How can we say we trust God and always seek a doctor first when we have some infirmity? How can we say God answers prayer when we have doubts about his answering? Are we content to live with just a small level of hypocrisy within? If we tell people we are Christians, but do the same as they do, what do they say about us? Sure, many of us are convinced as long as we do not drink or smoke or dance, or go to movies or roller rinks, or some other item on our “Don’t list” we are just fine, no hypocrisy. But do we love our neighbor as our self? Do we put others first above ourselves? Do we set aside our own goals, our own dreams for those of others? Do we work tirelessly for the benefit of others? Do we deplete our resources for the needs of others? There is so much we are not doing that the Lord has told us to do.

Ps 139:23-24

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.

24 See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

NIV

 Search my heart, oh LORD and see if there be any hypocrisy.

Not Listening

DEVOTION

EXODUS

NOT LISTENING

Ex 9:8-12

8 Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "Take handfuls of soot from a furnace and have Moses toss it into the air in the presence of Pharaoh. 9 It will become fine dust over the whole land of Egypt, and festering boils will break out on men and animals throughout the land." 10 So they took soot from a furnace and stood before Pharaoh. Moses tossed it into the air, and festering boils broke out on men and animals. 11 The magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils that were on them and on all the Egyptians. 12 But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart and he would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the LORD had said to Moses.

NIV

So far the plagues have been exterior in nature, which is the Nile turning to blood, frogs everywhere, and then gnats everywhere followed by flies. The last plague struck their livestock and hence their economy.  Although some of these things were of great annoyance to the Egyptians their health had not yet been effected. This sort of resembles the story of Job. Although Satan was allowed to take all he had away, his family, his home, his wealth, he was not allowed to affect his health, until the second conversation between God and Satan regarding Jobs unwavering heart devoted to God. Here we have Pharaoh with an unwavering heart against God. So now the plague gets personal and their health is on the line. Soot turns into fine dust which causes boils to break out all over their skin. This had to be more then annoying, it had to be painful. Even the magicians had to yield to Moses because of this plague as they were full of the boils as well. Their black arts had no power against the hand of God, as we already have seen. Under any normal situation we would think it would be time to yield to the power of God, but this is no normal of situations. We are told again the Lord strengthened the resolve of Pharaoh to refuse to let them go. Why would he do that? Why would the Lord influence the heart of an unbeliever to be set against his demand to let his people go? As we have said before, God did not make a soft heart hard, but rather he strengthened the resolve of this hard heart so that he could demonstrate the fullness of his power. There is no question about the sovereignty of God. He can do whatever he wants to do with whomever he wants to do it with, for or to. Sometimes it appears many believers take on an attitude of faith based on a self-centered agenda. God is there for the purpose of answering our prayers, giving us our hearts desires. But our lives are about God, his agenda, his plans, his purpose for our lives. Everything is about God, not about us. Now does he choose some people to go to hell, no, absolutely not, as some denominations are of the opinion. Does he choose some not to be saved, no, no and emphatically no! However those whose heart is harden toward him, those who have refused to accept his power, his grace, his love, he still can use them for his purpose. He still can have influence over their thinking, even to the point of strengthening their resolve against him so that he can show his power. Would he rather they turn their heart around and accept him. Yes without question. The whole of this narrative would have changed if Pharaoh would have said to Moses that he believes God is the greatest God and please go and worship him wherever you need to. The result would have been the same, the people would have left Egypt, and there still would have been an exodus. But here evil remained evil and the Lord allowed him to remain dead set against his demand. God does not change the heart of man, man needs to change his own heart and turn from evil, repent of evil and turn toward God. Will this story repeat throughout the ages so men will turn to God? Will he demonstrate his power through a hardened heart? Perhaps some, today in the leadership of our country have that hard heart, bent against God. There are certainly countries around the world led by evil men trying their best to enslave the people of God, to persecute them into submission to their god, whoever that is. We will not resist, we determined to turn our heart toward God, and because we did, we are now his people and this world will have to let us go. This world cannot hold us no matter how much it tries. God tells the world, "Let my people go". But their hearts have been hard toward him, so he strengthens their resolve against him, and his power will be seen again and again until the Day of the Lord, then his power will be on display for the whole world to see. We will be released for good. But the world will not listen. We can share the gospel message with everyone, but there are some who will be among those like Pharaoh, not listening. 

A yielding heart

DEVOTION

EXODUS

A YIELDING HEART

Ex 9:1-7

9:1 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Go to 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." 2 If you refuse to let them go and continue to hold them back, 3 the hand of the LORD will bring a terrible plague on your livestock in the field — on your horses and donkeys and camels and on your cattle and sheep and goats. 4 But the LORD will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and that of Egypt, so that no animal belonging to the Israelites will die.'" 5 The LORD set a time and said, "Tomorrow the LORD will do this in the land." 6 And the next day the LORD did it: All the livestock of the Egyptians died, but not one animal belonging to the Israelites died. 7 Pharaoh sent men to investigate 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.

NIV

Here again we see a distinction made between the livestock of the Egyptians and that of the Israelites. Although they both breathe the same air, drink the same water, God shows his mighty hand only against the Egyptian livestock. However, he is not simply a God of wrath, for once again he gives Pharaoh the opportunity to let his people go. If Pharaoh were to relent, and let them go, no wrath would be poured out upon their livestock. God is really a God of mercy as he gives Pharaoh this warning and he gives him an entire day to ponder upon the consequence of hardening his heart even more. Pharaoh was told this would happen if he refused to let the people go. God gave him a chance and he did not take it. What is wrong with a man who thinks himself in the position to refuse God and not have to pay the price? Why would he allow all the livestock of Egypt to have this death sent upon them? Considering livestock included cattle, oxen, donkeys, sheep and camels this would represent a great deal of the wealth of this country. Although some of them may have been used as beasts of burden, it would appear many of them were either used for food and clothing or as stock to trade for other goods from those who traveled from Persia or other countries. Abundance of livestock was certainly a means of showing wealth in those days. Here God strikes directly at their economy, at their source of wealth. They had made the Israelites poor enslaving them and now God was going to make them poor. But he gave Pharaoh the chance to keep this from happening, yet Pharaohs heart was unyielding. Certainly God does not strike us with anything without first warning us. Of course we live in the age of grace and should not be subject to his wrath. Yet he does rebuke us, he corrects us, he does teach us and trains us in righteousness. Is our heart unyielding toward his working in our lives? God has spoken volumes regarding our earthly estate, our ideas of wealth. Just one example of this is:

1 Tim 6:17-19

17 Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. 18 Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. 19 In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.

NIV

Other examples teach us not to store up this wealth as it appears the Egyptians did. He struck at the heart of their possessions, their wealth. He could do the same to us if we have an unyielding heart and refuse to learn his teachings, or rebuking or correction, even if we confess we live in the age of grace. Yes he forgives us, but does not that forgiveness come with repentance? Do we not have to yield to his authority? Once we truly submit every aspect of our lives to him, we then can say we have a yielding heart. But if we hold back any portion of our lives, to control for ourselves, then what might happen? Yes, we must maintain a yielding heart.