Addressing Struggles with Other Humans

 Addressing Struggles with Other Humans

Exodus 23: ²⁰ “Behold, I send an Angel before you to keep you in the way and to bring you into the place which I have prepared. ²¹ Beware of Him and obey His voice; do not provoke Him, for He will not pardon your transgressions; for My name is in Him. ²² But if you indeed obey His voice and do all that I speak, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries. ²³ For My Angel will go before you and bring you in to the Amorites and the Hittites and the Perizzites and the Canaanites and the Hivites and the Jebusites; and I will cut them off. ²⁴ You shall not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do according to their works; but you shall utterly overthrow them and completely break down their sacred pillars.

 

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GOD continued speaking to Moses. This time HE mentions the preincarnate JESUS.

 

My Observations:

• GOD mentions that an Angel would or would not pardon transgressions.
• JESUS is the only being given the authority to pardon transgressions.
• JESUS would go before the children of Israel to fight their battles.

 

Humans try to say GOD does not have conditions. HIS love stretches the bounds of sin, so HIS love is unconditional. BUT HIS protection and guidance seem to have conditions. “If you obey HIS voice,” is a condition that would provide the children of Israel protection against those who rebelled against GOD.

 

First it was the people of Canaan who hated GOD and HIS ways. They developed rocks and wood and gold as things to worship. They made sacred pillars that solidified their rebellion against GOD. Everything about the various groups mentioned pointed to a broken relationship with GOD.

 

JESUS would be the Angel who would go before the children of Israel. HE would guide them, but they would still need to be the ones who would drive the rebels out of the promised land. The condition of listening to JESUS was established. Those who rebelled would be cut off. I believe this is the eternal separation from GOD that we could face by not believing in JESUS.

 

The children of Israel would face struggles with other people that JESUS would take care of. All they had to do was obey HIM and not provoke HIM. HE was leading them to a better place. To provoke HIM would be an act of disbelief in HIS guidance.

 

Challenge

• Why does GOD remind Moses about the leading of “An Angel?”
• Have you examined yourself to see if you have any ways that may provoke the LORD?
• Do you realize that JESUS wants you to be successful in HIS plan and path?

 

Deliverance From Pain and Sorrow

 

Deliverance From Pain and Sorrow

Exodus 3: ⁷ And the Lord said: “I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows. ⁸ So I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and large land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites. ⁹ Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel has come to Me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. ¹⁰ Come now, therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.”

 

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Speaking in unison, GOD THE FATHER, GOD THE SON and GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT told Moses that HE has heard the cries of HIS people who are in Egypt. HE then said “I have come down to deliver them.”

 

My Observations:

• All the Hebrews could do is cry out to GOD.
• GOD knew who was doing the oppression, how long they were doing it and when.
• GOD made a promise to Moses that HE would deliver HIS children out of Egypt.

 

Telling Moses that HE heard the cry of the people is one thing, but to tell him, “Okay, here is what I am going to have you do something about it” is another. Moses was not crying out. In fact, he was getting older and was content to spend the rest of his life with his wife Zipporah tending Jethro’s flock.

 

I believe GOD has a time limit on oppression. After the cure HE put on creation and after the flood, GOD allowed free will to take its course. Unfortunately, humans usually do not turn to GOD, rather they seek other humans for wisdom. The Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Hivites and Jebusites, to me, represent various human beliefs that people easily fall into without consulting GOD.

 

Egyptians were oppressing the children of Israel the most. GOD also saw that they would run to other humans that did not have their best interest in mind. Only GOD knew how much HE cared for them and HE decided to send Moses.

 

Challenge

• Why does GOD remind Moses about HIS promise HE told him when speaking from the burning bush?
• Are you seeking contentment away from the troubles that other people are facing?
• Are you available to join up with GOD as HE executes HIS plan of bringing HIS people back to HIM?

Problem Presented

Problem Presented

Genesis 13: ⁵ Lot also, who went with Abram, had flocks and herds and tents. ⁶ Now the land was not able to support them, that they might dwell together, for their possessions were so great that they could not dwell together. ⁷ And there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen of Lot’s livestock. The Canaanites and the Perizzites then dwelt in the land.

 

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After leaving Egypt with more stuff, Abram and Lot returned to the land that GOD showed. But there was a problem. Abram had herds and flocks and so did Lot. After experiencing a famine, the land was probably healing slowly. Abram’s herdsmen and Lot’s herdsmen may have tried to get up earlier and earlier to guide animals to places to graze. They had another problem. The Canaanites and the Perizzites also “dwelt in the land.”

 

My Observations:

• Abram had a habit of assuming GOD’s plan was completed by what “he” could see.
• Abram and Lot had so much stuff that the original location GOD showed could not hold them.
• Having too much stuff became a problem with everyone, so fights broke out.

 

Wars over territory seem common for humans. People seek the best living spaces they can find. The best views, cleanest water and the most comfort are sought by the masses. This “little” stretch of land was not large enough to hold Abram’s stuff, let alone Lot’s, who had vast amounts of stuff too.

 

While it sounded like a good problem to have, attitudes broke out that could cause wars. GOD had blessed Abram and Lot with stuff, but the stuff was getting in the way of peace. To top it off, the Canaanites and the Perizzites, who may have fought against GOD’s ways, also had stuff. Abram assumed the land was the end of GOD’s plan. Something had to be done. GOD would need to intervene.

 

Challenge

• Why does GOD tell Moses about the problem of the tiny living space between Abram and Lot?
• Does it seem to you that GOD works in stages that we mistake for the final part of HIS plan?
• Can you drop your assumption that GOD is finished with HIS plan for you because it may be just beginning?