Hey folks. It's a new day and we're blogging before 7pm on a Saturday. The times, they are indeed a changing. Onto business then
Today’s readings
Exodus 1:1-3:22
Matthew 26:1-30
Psalm 19:1-6
And first things first, good job I checked my hard copy of the Bible in One Year because the Soul Survivor website got the reference wrong for today. Tsk!
Right, well we're into Exodus and it's new book time so what I'm going to do from now on is give a bit of a intro to the book as a whole before ploughing into it, that way it might cut down on the day to day exposition. (Big word :D) These will be short and taken from a nifty little book called The Challenge which I can lend to anyone that wants a look.
Exodus is a bit like Job in that it is a story about struggle. But it's also a story of rescue and God's massive power in making change. God is at work loads throughout Exodus saving his people from their oppressors but also from themselves. Exodus (which means to leave) is about how God puts up with us when we ignore Him but also will step in to guide us when we need it, sometimes even if we don't ask. It has one very important lesson running through it. That the only way the Jewish people would ever be safe is if they trusted in God. And that should be our goal for the world. God's chosen all of us now and it's up to us to make the world a better place!
Right, let's start with our reading then. What strikes me first when I read today's passage is how God is working through the evil of man. Pharoah is justifiably, from a political stand point, worried for the security of his country but rather than confront the problem of this huge foreign population by getting them to leave, he realises that he can keep them as a slave population and get some use out of them. Then he starts killing off all of their newborns. Where's God in this situation? Things seem bleak and against God's will. Yet here's Moses being born, being hidden, being protected whilst he's in his little boat and then being raised into safety because God will work despite the evil of man. Not everyone will be rescued by Superman flying down but God will make sure that people have a chance to hear His truth and are given a chance to choose His way.
Moses quickly grows up and kills a man. Not the best of starts for the leader of God's people but Moses in Exodus always seems to be learning how he should act. Possibly because he had such a strange upbringing! He has to hide away and eventually gains a wife through an act of kindness. One quick thought, wells seem to be like night clubs in this time! Everyone pulls at the well! Chapter 2 ends with an interesting bit on God hearing the Israelites prayer. Now it doesn't say God acted or God fixed but God understood. Our prayers are never guarantees and God doesn't always intervene. But He always understands our needs and the potential for our relief is always there, even if He calls someone else to help us. If you thnk about Moses, he wasn't born when the Israelites were being slaved and he was old by the time he led them out so there's not always a quick solution despite what we want.
God's commission to Moses is interesting too. He says in verse 20 of chapter 3 that He will do what He has to but His plan also requires Moses' action. It's not just God on His own. We need to remember our part in serving God. And what does God mean by I am what I am? Well there's a few theories and if you Wiki I Am That I Am then you can read more into it. For me, this is God saying that people will always ask for proof of Him or try and understand His mystery but the key thing to remember is that He is, regardless of what that is might be.
Into the New Testament we parachute and we're getting to the end of Jesus' time on Earth. We start with a story of the woman who pours perfume on Jesus' feet. This to me is Jesus showing that we need to check our priorities. First in our actions should be a love of God and a respect for God before we go into the world, otherwise we'll be crushed without His strength and blessings behind us. Jesus then has the first communion with his disciples and I love that He includes Judas in this despite His betrayal and subsequent lie to Jesus. Judas' betrayal must rank up there with the worst mistakes people have made and yet Jesus wants him to remember that he is part of God's family and loved. It's really poignant the way that the Message sets the scene for what is coming and I think that at communion we need to remember that it is Jesus accepting us for who we are, regardless of what we've done to Him or to other people than has then hurt Him.
Finally we start a new Psalm today and David's back. David is talking about the Sun but I like that he's using imagery of an athlete. Very topical with the Commonwealth Games on! But verse 6 is the key one here. It is God's word that shines across the land, melting ice and warming hearts. If we know places that are dark or frozen with hurt or fear then it is the power of God's word and the truth of the gospel that will light them up and thaw them out!
Is there a link today? Maybe not. But to recap; God knows our situation and understands it. He will do what we can't but wants us to do what we can to help others. Jesus wants us to put Him first in what we do for others and to come back to Him even when we don't do it. And God's word and truth are the best things for making things turn out better. I guess they do link together after all!
And that's your lot. Yesterday's song is here and I hope you super fans enjoyed it. Today's has nothing to do with someone's potential 70th birthday, it just fit! Questions, criticisms and comments welcome as always
Jon
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