Exodus - Lesson 1.....Israel’s Cry
Read Exodus chapter 1&2. What has changed since the last chapter of Genesis? (Ex 1:8-14) Why was Israel in Egypt? What was their condition?
Ans: In Exodus 1:1-22 we see the dominant ethnic group, the Egyptians, take four increasingly radical steps to eliminate the threat of another ethnic group, Israel.
Notice the threat in verses 8-9: “Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. 9 And he said to his people, ‘Behold, the people of Israel are too many and too mighty for us.’” Israel was different. They were not Egyptians. They didn’t really belong. They were ethnically and culturally and religiously alien to the Egyptians. And they were growing. That’s the threat.
Now follow the four increasingly radical measures the king of Egypt took to eliminate this threat. Evidently they did not feel free to just outright kill the whole people like Hitler. The threat could be nullified more indirectly. How?
1. The Egyptians Enslaved Them (Exodus 1:1-12)
First, the Egyptians enslaved them. Exodus 1:1-12. “Therefore they set taskmasters over them to afflict them with heavy burdens. They built for Pharaoh store cities, Pithom and Raamses. 12 But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and the more they spread abroad. And the Egyptians were in dread of the people of Israel.” Measure one was not working.
2. The Egyptians Intensified the Slavery (Exodus 1:13-14)
Second, they intensified the slavery and became more ruthless and harsh. Exodus 1:13-14. “So they ruthlessly made the people of Israel work as slaves 14 and made their lives bitter with hard service, in mortar and brick, and in all kinds of work in the field. In all their work they ruthlessly made them work as slaves.” Evidently this was not sufficient to weaken the people. So they turned to measure number three.
3. The Egyptian King Instructed the Midwives to Kill the Infant Males at Birth (Exodus 1:15-16)
Third, the king instructed the midwives to kill the baby boys at birth. Exodus 1:15-16. “Then the king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, 16 ‘When you serve as midwife to the Hebrew women and see them on the birthstool, if it is a son, you shall kill him, but if it is a daughter, she shall live.’” The aim here is to emasculate the people. Minimize the male and master the nation. Again it didn’t work, because the midwives refused to kill the boy babies. So the king moved from subtle, clinical infanticide to open, public infanticide.
4. The Egyptian king Commanded the Entire Egyptian Nation to Kill the Infant Male Israelites (Exodus 1:22)
Fourth, the king commanded the entire Egyptian nation (not just the midwives) to kill the baby Israelite boys. Exodus 1:22. “Then Pharaoh commanded all his people, ‘Every son that is born to the Hebrews you shall cast into the Nile, but you shall let every daughter live.’” Evidently this did not work either because 80 years later there were 600,000 men in Israel (Exodus 12:37). God Rewarded the Civil Disobedience That Refused to Participate in the Subtle Infanticide
God rewarded the civil disobedience that refused to participate in the subtle infanticide. Exodus 1:17-21
“But the midwives feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but let the male children live. 18 So the king of Egypt called the midwives and said to them, ‘Why have you done this, and let the male children live?’ 19 The midwives said to Pharaoh, ‘Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women, for they are vigorous and give birth before the midwife comes to them.’ 20 So God dealt well with the midwives. And the people multiplied and grew very strong. 21 And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families.
The king said: kill the baby boys. The midwives refused. And God blessed them for doing what was right and disobeying the king. Whether they should have lied in the process I will leave to the side for now. The least we can say is that it did not stop God from being pleased with their courageous pro-life refusal to kill the babies, and make it look like they didn’t.
In view of all this, I conclude that God has given us in these events and in this text of Scripture a bright light to shine on the evil of subtle infanticide, that is, abortion, in our own day, especially on the millions of abortions that are the outworking of racism and sexism.
2. What is the significance of Ex 2:23-25?
Ans: Exodus 4:18-23 Then Moses went back to Jethro his father-in-law and said to him, 'Let me go back to my own people in Egypt to see if any of them are still alive.' Jethro said, 'Go, and I wish you well.' Now the LORD had said to Moses in Midian, 'Go back to Egypt, for all the men who wanted to kill you are dead.' So Moses took his wife and sons, put them on a donkey and started back to Egypt. And he took the staff of God in his hand. The LORD said to Moses, 'When you return to Egypt, see that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders I have given you the power to do. But I will harden his heart so that he will not let the people go. Then say to Pharaoh, 'This is what the LORD says: Israel is my firstborn son, and I told you, 'Let my son go, so he may worship me.' But you refused to let him go; so I will kill your firstborn son.'' (NIV) God had renewed his call to Moses and Moses was persuaded to accept God's call. Yet, there was something amiss. In spite of a renewed sense of God’s call Moses still wasn't in the will of God. 'At a lodging place on the way, the LORD met him and was about to kill him. But Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off her son's foreskin and touched Moses’ feet with it. 'Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me,' she said. So the LORD let him alone. (At that time she said 'bridegroom of blood,' referring to circumcision.) (Exodus 4:24-26 NIV) Moses was minimizing the necessity of doing God's will. Moses was ignoring a part of God's covenant that demonstrated his disobedience. God can't use you in his service if you refuse to obey his will. Moses was like many of us. We are willing to be in the right place--the place where God calls us to--but we minimize the necessity of doing God's will. Moses had minimized the necessity of circumcising his son. 'At a lodging place on the way, the LORD met him and was about to kill him.' Circumcision was like Christian baptism. It is the place where we acknowledge our personal surrender to God's will. It is the place where we dedicate our all to God. Moses had not dedicated his all to God. He did not circumcise his son according to God's will. He was seeking to go to the place of God's calling without obedience to God's will. God made it undeniably clear that he could not use Moses until Moses surrendered in obedience. Moses couldn't expect to go to Egypt and ask the Pharaoh to obey God without having a willingness to obey himself. Moses had to learn an important lesson. If his wife wouldn't circumcise his son, God was going to kill him. He was already incapacitated to the point where he couldn't do it himself. God would kill him for his disobedience just as sure as God promised to kill the Pharaoh’s firstborn for Pharaoh’s disobedience. When it comes to obedience, God means business. Many desire to serve the Lord while ignoring their need to be baptized. Many who have been baptized are seeking to take refuge in the body of Christ while ignoring God's will for their lives. They are not living up to their calling. The church has placed its emphasizes on where people ought to be. We are excluding the necessity of being what God has called us to be. We are called to this specific place for the purpose of obeying God's will. Without obeying God's will, we will never fulfill God's purpose for our lives. Our sins will surely find us out. I would like to think that we are here this morning because of the providence of God. In fact, I am sure of it. All the blessings of this new place of worship and new members are great. Yet, enjoying the providence of God is no substitute for obedience. Only our obedience will allow God to lead this congregation to fulfill his will. God's province may have put you here, but only your obedience will allow God to fulfill his purpose for your life. God's providence always brings you to the place you need be, but only you can determine to do the will of God. This is why many are called and few are chosen. Too few choose to do God's will. When we are willing to do God's will God chooses to use us to fulfill his purpose for our lives. Doing God's will is something each of us must decide to do. Moses wanted to be a man of God, but God let him know that it was impossible without obedience. We may think that no one would have ever noticed that Moses' son wasn't circumcised. Circumcision seems very personal and private, but everyone would have known. There are a lot of personal and private matters that affect others. God's will is very personal and private, but it affects everyone around you.Our disobedience stinks to the high heavens. Even the Pharaoh would have heard the cries from the circumcised Hebrews. Our success is dependent upon us doing God's will. Personal Obedience Allows God to Work Your personal obedience makes it possible for God's powerful will to be done in your life. The moment you surrender--God goes to work in a very personal way. God begins to move people and events when we decide to obey. Exodus 4:27-31 The LORD said to Aaron, 'Go into the desert to meet Moses.' So he met Moses at the mountain of God and kissed him. Then Moses told Aaron everything the LORD had sent him to say, and also about all the miraculous signs he had commanded him to perform. Moses and Aaron brought together all the elders of the Israelites, and Aaron told them everything the LORD had said to Moses. He also performed the signs before the people, and they believed. And when they heard that the LORD was concerned about them and had seen their misery, they bowed down and worshiped. (NIV) God sends Aaron to greet Moses. It is Aaron who tells the people everything the Lord has said to Moses. Forty years earlier when Moses had gone alone they mocked Moses, but now God is in it. They believe Moses because God causes them to believe in him. They believe Moses because now it is evident that he is living within the will of God. Now Moses is not telling them what he is going to do for them, but God is telling them what He is going to do through Moses.
3. Was the condition of Israel a surprise to God? (Gen 15:13-16) Was this God’s plan? What is this a type of (typology)?
Genesis 15:13-16
3 Then the LORD said to him, 'Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years. 14 But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions. 15 You, however, will go to your fathers in peace and be buried at a good old age. 16 In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure.' NIV
God never assures us that seeking his dream and purposes for our lives will be easy. Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount tells us the result of seeking God’s dreams for our lives. Jesus promised that the poor in spirit would see the kingdom of God, but it wouldn’t be without a great deal to mourn over, for he promised the mournful would be comforted. He promised the meek would inherit the earth, the hungry would be filled, but not before they would be blessed because of their persecution.
Lives are not made easier just because they are pursuing God’s dream. There is no promise life will be made easier. God does promise that he will be our shield—or protector and our exceedingly great reward. Joseph’s life wasn’t made easy because he had a God given dream, but he held on to the dream. He persisted in his trust in God. He worked to make that dream a reality. His dream possessed him and therefore became real.
I truly believe the closer we get to realizing God’s dream individually the more the demons will attack us. The harder it will seem, but we must not fear, for God is our shield and our reward.
God had Abraham to prepare animal sacrifices so that God could make a binding covenant with him. When God passed through the animal sacrifices it meant that if he didn’t follow through with his promise to Abram, may he be treated as Abram treated the animals he sacrificed (Jeremiah 34:17-20).
Today God’s promises are as certain as the sacrifice of Christ, but the gospel of good news doesn’t make living for God any easier.
Acts 14:21-23
21 They preached the good news in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, 22 strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. 'We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,' they said. 23 Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord, in whom they had put their trust. NIV
4. Read 1 Cor 10:1-11 & Rom 15:4 and explain how they relate to the exodus of Israel from Egypt.
Ans:
1 Corinthians 10:1
Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;
Since there were probably some Jews in the church at Corinth, Paul begins a section about the comparison between the Israelites who came out of Egypt under Moses and the church conditions at Corinth. Paul tells them that the whole nation of Israel was under the cloud, which was the pillar of the cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night. It was the cloud and pillar which God used to tell the Israelites when it was time to move on to the next location. (Exo 13:22 KJV) He took not away the pillar of the cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people. Paul then tells these people that all Israel passed through the sea as God parted it. Paul seems to be setting up a corporate example as he mentions the ancient nation and hopes that history will not repeat itself in the church.
1 Corinthians 10:2
And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;
Paul now states that the nation of Israel was baptized into Moses. This baptism that he was speaking of was the uniting of the nation of Israel with Moses. The nation of Israel had been led by Moses and the covenant of law was given through Moses. This means that Israel was following Moses, who was under God’s direction, in not only the physical aspects of those directions, but were also under the spiritual aspects. This direction was in effect even when they came out of Egypt. There was a common responsibility that Israel had and that was obedience to God. At the time of the cloud and Red Sea crossing, it was the beginning of their dealings with God and the covenant of Sinai.
1 Corinthians 10:3
And did all eat the same spiritual meat;
They were not only under the cloud and the pillar of fire, but they, as a nation, were subjected to the spiritual law of God. This is not common or corporate grace, but the law which was given was a spiritual law. (Rom 7:14 KJV) For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. The entire nation was subject to the law of God as they agreed in Exodus 19. (Exo 19:8 KJV) And all the people answered together, and said, All that the LORD hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the LORD. Of course, we know what happened when they tried to keep that law in the flesh. They failed miserably and eventually went into captivity.
1 Corinthians 10:4
And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.
Israel did not realize it but the Great I Am of Sinai was the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. The picture that is given is taken from two separate but related incidents. The first incident, Moses was told to strike the rock and the water would flow out. (Exo 17:6 KJV) Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. The Lord Jesus Christ went to the cross once for all the Elect of God. This is represented by Moses striking the rock and the water flowed. When Christ went to the cross, spiritual water flowed from His children as a result of Him being smitten. (John 7:38 KJV) He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.
The second incident took place at Kadesh when there was no water. God had told Moses to speak to the rock which would result in the giving of water. (Num 20:8 KJV) Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink. Moses was obviously so angry with the people that he disobeyed God and struck the rock instead of speaking to it. (Num 20:11 KJV) And Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod he smote the rock twice: and the water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts also. Now this second striking of the rock represented the Lord Jesus being sacrificed a second time, which of course, would never happen. Jesus was crucified only once and after this He was never to die again, so the spiritual picture of what Moses did was wrong.
Now this event caused God to keep Moses from going into the promised land but there is a greater spiritual meaning as to why Moses was refused entrance. Moses was a representative of the law and no person can ever get to Heaven by trying to keep the law. It was Joshua who brought the nation of Israel into the land. Joshua is the Hebrew name of Jesus. A great spiritual picture. So trying to keep the law will prevent you from going to Heaven because Heaven is attainable only through the shed blood of Christ.
1 Corinthians 10:5
But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness.
When one reads the wilderness trek of Israel, they will see that God sent many judgments among the people because of their impenitence. They continuously murmured against God, they verbally attacked Moses, they were gluttonous, etc. So God judged the sins of these people. They seemed to go from one sin on to another sin, and it never seemed to end. In fact, they were referred to as stiffnecked and rebellious people. (Exo 32:9 KJV) And the LORD said unto Moses, I have seen this people, and, behold, it is a stiffnecked people: (Deu 9:24 KJV) Ye have been rebellious against the LORD from the day that I knew you. Can you see the spiritual paradigm Paul is bringing into the picture?
1 Corinthians 10:6
Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted.
Paul now reveals the reason he mentioned the nation of Israel. He wants this church to look at the results of lusting after the things which God prohibits. He wants this church to study and ponder this issue because if they begin to lust after things, then they will also begin to feel the chastisement of God upon them. Paul wants them to be as obedient as they can and not to desire the things which will cause them to drift away from God. This is also to be an example in our personal Christian walk that we must be careful not to lust after things which will cause us to sin and derail us.
1 Corinthians 10:7
Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.
With the massive amounts of idolatry in the city of Corinth, it would not be impossible for someone to go after the lifestyle of the idolater. Paul is warning them to watch themselves because the people of Israel did the same thing that the pagans in Corinth are doing. (Exo 32:6 KJV) And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play.
As we see in this verse from Exodus, the Israelites, who should have known better had rallied around the golden calf, they started out by having a feast in the manner of the pagan and then after they were all eaten and drunk up, they rose up to play. This was the normal method of an orgy. First, there was a feast, then after everyone was sufficiently fed and drunk, then they began to have an orgy. This is how the worship of false gods took place. Paul is warning them that they are not to engage in any type of banqueting which can lead to some type of worship of a false god or to derail the Christians in that church. Remember, Paul was concerned about the weaker brethren and how easily they could be led astray since they were not yet well grounded in the Word.
1 Corinthians 10:8
Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand.
Not only are we not to engage in physical fornication, but the Christian must also watch that they do not fall into spiritual fornication, which is the trading of the true Gospel for one that is false. Paul brings up a serious matter in this verse. He is reminding this church, that when Israel was committing fornication, God judged and took the lives of twenty three thousand people in one day but we see that this entire situation took the lives of twenty four thousand in total. God does not take fornication lightly. You can read the entire scenario in Numbers 25:1-9
1 Corinthians 10:9
Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents.
Tempt - test or try
The Israelites were testing Christ in the wilderness with all their sinful actions. The result was that the majority was destroyed for their disobedience. God even sent serpents among the people. (Num 21:6 KJV) And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died. Paul is conveying this bit of history to remind the people of Corinth that if they do the same thing, testing Christ by seeing how far they can push Him, then the same situation will happen to them. The Lord won’t send fiery serpents but He will definitely send chastisement into the church. God even reserves the right to take home believers who continue to walk a sinful path. (John 15:2 KJV) Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. We must also realize that in our personal Christian walk, we can experience chastisement if we walk contrary to the word of God. We always put our best foot forward in church on Sunday but the real us comes out when we are alone and separated from the other brethren.
1 Corinthians 10:10
Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer.
Murmur - To grumble or complain in a low voice
Here is probably one of the biggest sins of the Christian. It is grumbling, because we are never satisfied. Some people grumble so much that if they found a $20 bill on the ground, they would complain it wasn’t two tens. The Israelites grumbled or murmured against the Lord because they had just come out of Egypt and there they received some excellent food. Now they were hungry and all they had was Manna but they wanted more. They forgot that the reason they were fed so well was because they were slaves and were expected to put out a long day’s work. They weren’t fed because the Egyptians loved them, they were fed well because they were considered low class work horses. They forgot that God had freed them from slavery and not a tropical island paradise. Many Christians grumble because they don’t like the position they are placed in. They look at others and say, “why should they have more then me.” So they blame God for treating them unfairly. If God was to treat us fairly, then He would have to include our sins when He looks at us, which means we would still be unsaved. God deals with us according to mercy not fairness. It sounds strange but think about it.
1 Corinthians 10:11
Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.
Paul sums up the prior ten verses saying that the reason those things happened to Israel was also to be an example to us. According to the Scriptures, the last days began at the cross and because there will be no great length of time to the return of Christ, such as the length from Adam and Eve to the time of Christ which was thousands of years, we are being admonished that the time is short and we don’t have the luxury of living worldly. We are to concentrate on getting the Gospel out to the nations. If Christians would just accept the position God has placed them in, then they would begin to operate from that vantage point and would know what their strengths are. Then they would stop looking at others and grumbling because they don’t have the same material goods or spiritual gifts they have. (1 Tim 6:8 KJV) And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. (Phil 4:11 KJV) Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. Reading these verses where Israel sinned against the Lord by fornicating with false religions or murmuring should be a wake up call to every dissatisfied Christian.
Rom 15:4 (KJV)For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.Here is a verse which teaches us that the body of Christ must study the Scriptures or how else are they going to know what has been written aforetime by those who faced similar circumstances in the service of the Lord. When we study these passages and the characters in those pages, we will see how God worked with them to bring them through the tough times, especially when Israel was threatened by her enemies which surrounded her. We too are surrounded by enemies. All unbelievers in this world, whether atheist or false religion, are the enemies of the saints of God. When we study the Scriptures, we will see how God protected Israel and His Elect within Israel, and by knowing how He dealt with them, we too will have hope which will manifest itself in patience and comfort through the Scriptures. The word “learning” carries with it the meaning of instruction.
5. Compare the event of Israel’s exodus from Egypt to the cross. How do they relate (typology)? Which is the type and which is the anti-type?
Moses is the key character in the story of the Exodus and the symbolism of the “ark” being the vehicle of his salvation is no accident. God’s plan for Israel required Moses and so supernatural means are brought into play to insure his survival. What would Pharaoh have thought if he knew that Israel’s future liberator was living in his home? The next time we see Moses he is an adult and in an attempt to bond with his people ends up killing an Egyptian. The result is that the Hebrews are afraid of this troublemaker and Moses flees to Midian. It is not his time yet. Moses gets married and has a son. Meanwhile the king dies and God hears the groaning of the children of Israel. God remembers His promises to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. In a burning bush, God appears to Moses and says “Come now, therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” (Ex.3: 10) Moses is understandably shaken with the vision and the responsibility. He stalls for time and asks God His name. Moses wants to know what to say when they ask: “What is his name?” “And God said to Moses: ‘I AM WHO I AM’” (Ex.3: 14) Moses is still scared and so God provides him with a rod with which to perform miracles. When Moses complains of his lack of eloquence, God sends Aaron to speak for Moses. So Moses and Aaron go to Pharaoh and utter the famous words: “Let my people go” (Ex. 5: 1) But things only get worse for the Israelites as Pharaoh demands a higher quota of bricks and will no longer supply the necessary straw to make them. God sends plagues on the Egyptians to convince Pharaoh to let the Israelites go. At the same time God hardens Pharaohs heart. There are plagues of frogs, lice, flies, death of livestock, boils, and hail, locusts and darkness. All the plagues wreak havoc on the Egyptians but don’t affect the Jews. Pharaoh only gets more stubborn. Finally, the Passover occurs. God vows to kill the firstborn of every family in Egypt. If the children of Israel would put the blood of a male lamb without blemish on their doorposts, God would pass over them and not kill their firstborn. All of the households in Egypt suffer the loss of one. Pharaoh finally relents and sends Moses, Aaron and their people away to Canaan. Before they can cross the Red Sea and return, Pharaoh has a change of heart and sends the army out to stop them. The next great miracle is that the Red Sea parts enough for Moses to lead his people across to safety. When the Egyptian army attempts to cross, the sea swallows them up. And so, the children of Israel are finally a people in their own right. They have a mission to carry God’s name to the world. Their journey to the Promised Land takes forty years. They wandered the desert all through that time and often complained about their situation and about Moses’ leadership. God takes care of them and provides food and water. God sends “manna” and “quail” for them to eat. Their bitter complaining would cost them the right to cross the Jordan into Israel. During the forty-year journey, Moses would receive the Ten Commandments and many of the rituals of worship would be adopted. None of the people that crossed the Red Sea would see the Promised Land. That was reserved for a new generation. But the people of God’s choosing would truly become a united people and be a presence in the Middle East for thousands of years.
The Passover symbolises the Cross of Calvary, and therefore Salvation. Just like the original Passover in Egypt, our Salvation unto eternal life is a dramatic event and may, on times, still be spectacular.
The Feast of Unleavened Bread represents somewhat of an endurance test. To eat unleavened bread in a variety of ways for seven days straight is certainly an acquired skill. Yet, it is representative of the daily life of the true believer.
The Scriptures tell us a great deal about leaven. The Children of Israel had to leave the yeast/sourdough/leaven of Egypt behind. God would feed them with a new kind of bread - Manna from heaven.
The Lord Jesus Himself had a great deal to say about leaven. He not only likened Himself to the Manna, but declared that He was the true Bread from heaven. We who have this Bread no longer have any need for the yeast of the world; in fact we testify to this every time we partake of the Communion emblems.
6. Do a word search on the Internet for the word parable. Give a brief definition and a Biblical example.
1.a short allegorical story designed to illustrate or teach some truth, religious principle, or moral lesson.
2.
a statement or comment that conveys a meaning indirectly by the use of comparison, analogy, or the like.
The Gospel of St. Matthew contains the following parables:
Matthew 7: 24-27Matthew 13: 3-23Matthew 13: 24-30Matthew 13: 31-32Matthew 13: 33Matthew 13: 44Matthew 13: 45-46Matthew 13: 47-50Matthew 18: 12-14Matthew 18: 23-35Matthew 20: 1-16Matthew 21: 28-32Matthew 21: 33-44Matthew 22: 1-14Matthew 24: 32Matthew 25: 1-13Matthew 25: 14-30
The Wise and the Foolish Builders The SowerThe TaresThe Mustard SeedThe LeavenThe Hidden TreasurePearl of Great PriceDrawing in the NetThe Lost SheepUnmerciful ServantLaborers in the VineyardThe Two sonsThe Wicked HusbandmanMarriage of the King's SonLeafing Fig TreeThe Ten VirginsTen Talents
7. Meditate upon the definitions of typology and parable and look for similarities. Can you give an example of a typology in Exodus that you might call a living parable? Does God use an event with Israel to draw a spiritual truth?
Ans. Typological interpretation is based on unity of the two Testaments. The Lord’s use of Old Testament invites us to find Him in the pages of the ancient Scriptures.
Parable is a narrative that is constructed for the sake of conveying important truth. It is inherently figurative language that draws an illustration from life to teach spiritual truth. When studying parables we should seek to determine the central truth of the parable. Part of doing this is to look for contextual clues to help in the interpretation, namely, look to see if the Lord states the central principle that He wanted to communicate and then uses a parable to illustrate the principle. We should also look carefully to determine how much of the parable Christ interpreted Himself, separating the essential from what is only attendant to the theme.
We also note the time period for which the Lord designed the parable. Parables should not be made the primary or sole source for a doctrine. There should be a solid backing from elsewhere in Scripture
Paul rehearsed the experiences of the people of Israel in the Exodus and in their forty years in the desert: the destruction of Pharaoh's army in the sea (Exodus 14-15); the eating of manna (Exodus 16:1); their conduct when thirsty—Rephidim—striking the rock (Exodus 17:1)
Exodus 16:23 'Then he said to them, This [is what] the LORD has said: Tomorrow [is] a Sabbath rest, a holy Sabbath to the LORD. Bake what you will bake [today,] and boil what you will boil; and lay up for yourselves all that remains, to be kept until morning.'
Because ancient Israel had been slaves in Egypt for 430 years, they lost all track of the Sabbath Day. They had no way of keeping track, especially since all of God's commands were essentially lost because of that captivity. In order to restore the true Sabbath Day to Israel, God had to perform some miracles...
While Israel was in the wilderness, God made special provisions of food for them, PROVIDING DOUBLE PORTIONS ON FRIDAY, so they would not have to do the work of gathering the manna on the Sabbath. It is quite plain that God made it clear which day was the Sabbath and what He expected Israel to do on that day. You will also notice that the Sabbath day was established PRIOR to the giving of the 10 commandments, which doesn't occur until later, in chapter 20.
Exodus 20:8-11 'Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. :9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, :10 but the seventh day [is] the Sabbath of the LORD your God. [In it] you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who [is] within your gates. :11 For [in] six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that [is] in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.'
Notice God said, 'Remember' the Sabbath day. . . You don't 'remember' something that you don't even know about. Obviously the Sabbath day was known about prior to the giving of the Laws of God here, but God was reminding them of the Holy time because they had been in captivity for 430 years and lost track of it. From this point on, the Sabbath day is a pivotal point in history which affected millions of people throughout the Old Testament times, even to the point where God allowed Israel, (not just Jews) His own chosen people, to go into captivity. WHY?
The word 'remember' is the key. Israel DID NOT remember the Sabbath any more than they 'remembered' the other laws. When we observe something such as a holiday, we are meant to REMEMBER what the day stands for and it keeps us mindful of specific events. The Sabbath is no different. It points to God in many ways. It reminds us of creation, since that is where the Sabbath originated. It reminds us of the millennial time where everyone will be at rest from the spiritual forces that pound on us daily. It also is a day for physical and mental rest from normal work. We, as a nation, have FORGOTTEN the Sabbath day along with most of God's other commands
8. Was God restricted in how He delivered Israel? Could He have delivered Israel by another means other than with Moses? If you believe that He was restricted in His choice, explain how He was restricted and by what? Did God need to use a human such as Moses or could He just have used a supernatural event like a plague or by the using the force of angels?
In Exodus 3:8 God states his purpose to Moses: 'I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey.' According to Exodus 2:24, God's resolve to deliver Israel was based on his covenant: 'God heard their groaning and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob.' And in 3:6 when God identifies himself to Moses at the bush he says, 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.' Moses is supposed to understand that what is at stake in the deliverance of Israel is not just the people's happiness but God's word, his oath to the fathers. This is what lies behind the assertion in verse 8: 'I have come down to deliver them.' 'It will be my battle, my victory, and my glory!''But I have a gift for you, Moses: I am going to give you a part in my deliverance -- the lead role under me. And don't worry: Remember verse 8, 'I have come down to deliver them.'' Moses learned this lesson by the time it was all over. In Exodus 15 on the far side of the Red Sea, he sings with the people: 'I will sing to the Lord for he has triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea. The Lord is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation. This is my God and I will praise him, my father's God and I will exalt him. The Lord is a man of war; the Lord is his name.'But it took a while for Moses to learn the lesson. In 3:11 he said to God, 'Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?' 'God, in comparison to Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, I am nothing. Can a pansy say to an oak tree: 'Lie down, oak, and let some sun in here on this pansy patch!'' God pauses perhaps to give Moses a chance to change his mind. But, if we read between the lines we hear God say, 'You're right, Moses. I didn't choose you because you were an oak. One of my rules of thumb is not to call many wise or powerful or genteel people. I like to use what is foolish in the world to shame the wise and what's weak in the world to shame the strong. So you are absolutely right; you're a pansy and Pharaoh is an oak. But why should that stop you from going down there to lead out my people? Don't you remember, 'I have come down to deliver them'' (v. 8). So God says in verse 12 what he always says to people who are poor in spirit and meek and admit that they are pansies. He says, 'I will be with you.''I will fell that oak and throw it in the Red Sea. And my little pansy patch will walk right through the ocean on dry land.'Moses was red-faced. He had tried something that millions have tried since: in the guise of humility he used his own insignificance to excuse himself from a task that God was urging him to do. God's answer to that maneuver is always the same: 'RIGHT, you are small and weak. But WRONG, that is no excuse to cop out.' Why? 'Because I will be with you, I will help you, I will strengthen you and will uphold you with my victorious right hand. I love to do big things through small people! How else will my name be glorified in all the earth!'In verse 13 Moses shows he is on the right track, at least temporarily: 'Okay, when I go down there to the people what name for you shall I use?' That's right, Moses. Everything hangs on who God is. Who is this God that says he will deliver the people? That's right, Moses: not 'Who am I?' but 'Who is God? Now you are on the right track.' And God said to Moses (verse 14), ''I am who I am.' And he said, 'Say this to the people of Israel, I am has sent me to you.'' The words 'I am who I am' at the very least mean, 'Nobody determines my character; there is nobody shaping me or making me what I am. I am not in the process of becoming, I simply am -- without beginning, without end and never fickle, never manipulated. That's what it means to be God. Tell the Israelites to be confident: when the God who simply is from all eternity resolves to do a thing, he will do it! 'I am' has sent you.'Then with that ringing in his ears, Moses hears again what God resolves to do. Verse 17: 'I promise I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt.' Then in verse 18: 'The people of Israel will harken to your voice.' Then in verse 21: 'I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians and when you go you shall not go empty.' But while God is rehearsing for Moses how it's going to go, Moses begins to shake in his sandals: 'O my stars, he really means it. He's going to send me down there; he's got the whole thing planned. There is no telling what those crazy elders will do. They don't know me from Adam.'So, chapter 4, verse 1: 'Moses answered, 'But look, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, The Lord did not appear to you.''What a lesson there is here! I don't mean Moses' stubbornness. Everyone of us knows about that firsthand if we're honest. I mean God's patience: 'The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.' His ways are not our ways nor his thoughts our thoughts. You know what I would probably have said if I were God? I would have said: 'Weren't you listening? I said in verse 18: 'They will hearken to your voice.' And now you say, 'They will not believe me or listen to my voice.' Are you calling me a liar?' He was, you know, whether he intended to or not. He was acting as if God would not keep his word. All unbelief says God is a liar or a bumbler. And disobedience, which comes from unbelief, is a vote of no confidence in the Almighty. But what does God do? He does not even scold him. Instead, he gives him a firsthand demonstration of how he is going to work miracles through Moses to verify his word (Exodus 4:3-9). 'In other words Moses, again your excuse is oriented on your inability to persuade. And again, my answer is the same: So you don't have much credibility in Egypt. I am the one who is going to decide who believes you and who doesn't. And I have said, 'They will hearken to your voice.''Then Moses gives one last excuse why he should not go speak to Israel and Pharaoh (or in our case, why we should not speak to the visitors at church and the unbeliever at work). Moses says in Exodus 4:10, 'Please, Lord, I am not a man of words, neither formerly nor since thou hast spoken to thy servant, but my mouth and my tongue are heavy.' Sound familiar? Aren't we all described here - at least some of the time? 'God, some people's tongues are light and free. Mine feels like lead in my mouth and if I move it, it gets all tangled. God, do you remember when I proposed to Zipporah? I practiced that proposal for three weeks to the sheep, and got all chokey and wobbly-kneed every time. That's the way it's always been with me. I never scored as high as Miriam did on the verbal skills tests.' So Moses' assumption was, God should only pick people with special natural abilities to deliver his word. But there are several flaws in that assumption and Moses is aware of at least one of them. We can see it in verse 10. Moses knows that God can take a person with no eloquence and then give it to him, changing him into an eloquent, persuasive speaker. So look what he says in verse 10: 'I am not a man of words either heretofore or since thou hast spoken to me. Not only is my whole past a history of timidity and verbal incompetence, but the whole time we have been talking, nothing has changed. I don't feel any more like a man of words now than when you met me at the burning bush. If you want me to be your spokesman, you must make me eloquent. You must prove to me ahead of time that my mouth will not freeze on me. We've rehearsed the rod-into-snake trick and the leprous hand trick. Now let's rehearse my lines. Prove to me that my mouth will really say what you want it to.' And then in his great patience, and to make perfectly clear that he does not demand blind faith, God answers Moses with a reason that ends all Moses' objections (v. 11): 'Then the Lord said to him, 'Who made man's mouth? Who makes him dumb or deaf or seeing or blind? Is it not I the Lord?''The first thing this verse means is this: Moses, the God you have been talking to, who has made you all these promises of success, who wills to grant you a share in his glorious deliverance -- this God is the creator of the world, the inventor of the human body, mind, and emotions. He thought it all up out of nothing and designed it. But that's not all. The most amazing, the most devastating, the most reassuring thing comes next: not only did God create the first man, but he also goes on creating every single person just as he sees fit -- whether dumb, or deaf, or seeing, or blind.Here was God's last argument to Moses' last excuse: 'If it is not enough to hear me say, 'I am the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,' and to see a bush burn and not be consumed; if it is not enough to hear me say 'I will be with you'; if it is not enough to know me as 'I am who I am' and to hear me say, 'I will bring you up out of affliction'; if it is not enough to see me turn a rod into a snake and make a hand leprous and clean; then listen to this, Moses. I made and I control everything. Now, go! and I will be with your mouth and teach you in the moment what you shall speak. No rehearsals, Moses; just the promise. And remember who it is who gives the promise!''But Moses said, 'Please Lord, send I pray some other person'' (4:13). 'God, put it into the heart of Clarence, or Olive, or Deloris to talk to them!' Moses doesn't offer any more excuses now. He simply refuses to accept the call. Why? That's the question we started with, and now I think we can answer it. Remember, every objection Moses raised God answered by revealing his intention to bless Moses tremendously in the deliverance of Israel and by revealing a sovereign power so great that absolutely no obstacle could hinder the accomplishment of what he called Moses to do. So the answer to why Moses refuses to go under God's terms is simple: he didn't trust him. He didn't trust him! So finally (in verse 14) God got angry because there is hardly a greater insult you can pay to someone than to say, 'I don't trust you. You can't be counted on.'And isn't Moses' problem our problem too? - learning to believe that God will work for us in everyday life. How different, how wonderful the use of our mouths would be if we lived by faith in the God who made the mouth and not by sight - by looking at our own clumsy tongue. And where does faith come from? According to the apostle Paul, faith comes from hearing the Word of God. It comes from seeing who he is and what he promises in his Word. And is not the God of Exodus 3 and 4 worthy of our trust? Moses eventually learned to trust him. By the end of his life, God spoke to Moses every day as a man speaks to his friend (Exodus 33:11). Praise God for his patient discipline!
9. God remembered His covenant.(Ex 2:24) What is a covenant? Who establishes the terms of the covenant? How does one receive the blessings of a covenant?
God heard their groaning and he remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob. Exodus 2:24
God's first covenant with Adam and his descendants was NOT a covenant of redemption. Adam had not yet sinned and there was no need of redemption before he sinned. The revised covenant with Adam will follow immediately. The 'first covenant,' as referenced in Heb 8:7,13; 9:1,15,18; 10:9, refers to the Law Covenant as the first covenant with Israel as a nation, NOT the first Bible covenant. The covenant between the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit was and is the first covenant. The covenant with Adam is the first covenant with mankind. The Law Covenant was the first covenant with Israel as a nation. And the New Covenant is the first covenant with the church as the engrafted seed of Abraham, Rom 11:11-32; Gal 3:6-9,14-29; 1Pe 2:5,9; Eph 2:11-22; 3:6; 2Co 6:16. Of course, the New Covenant is an everlasting covenant, Heb 13:20.
It is the covenant between God on the one side and - roughly speaking - his people on the other side; between God and the believers and their children, or Abraham and his seed. We all know that the covenant exists, just as surely as we know that Scripture exists and that our living and thinking comes forth from it. Nevertheless a difference of opinion has appeared in the last while within the church about the question of with whom this covenant is actually made.
1. The New Covenant is the “Old Covenant” completed and fulfilled by Christ. Both are one and the same, except one is unfulfilled and the other fulfilled. God’s purpose did not change. Therefore the New Covenant had the same sanction as the first.
Similarly the first covenant purposed to make us in the Image of God as we were originally intended, just as the New Covenant does. Sanctification is recognized as the method by which God makes us like Christ. This is us being remade in the image of God (since Christ is God).
The Abrahamic covenant was also designed to make us in the image of God though a living obedient faith in the perfect and atoning sacrifice (just as James says Faith without works is dead 2:17). We were not able to fulfill the covenant because we lacked faith in the complete and atoning sacrifice that the Abrahamic covenant and the Mosaic covenant pointed to in Jesus as Christ. Thereforth our faith was dead and our works non-existent.
Nonetheless, it is an error to assume that somehow the ‘new Covenant’ is different than the Abrahamic covenant or the Mosaic covenant (which is in Harmony with the Abrahamic covenant) other than to recognized it is the Abrahamic covenant fulfilled (by Jesus) who was gloriously promised in the Mosaic covenant.
10. What have we learned about God’s covenant relationship? To whom in Genesis did God reveal His covenant? Are all these Covenant revelations still binding today?
God is faithful to his covenant. If we want him judge the world in justice, he must first judge the church. And if we return to him in covenant faithfulness we can be sure that he will bless and and not destroy us.God's promise, then, in verses 10 through 12 is that if his people will return to covenant faithfulness, then they can at last enjoy the covenant blessings: abundant rain, pest-free crops, fruitful vines and the much-longed for respect of the nations.God's covenant blessing for us is eternal life in the new earth, enjoying his presence forever. God is faithful to his covenant, and a return to faithfulness amongst his people in trusting and obeying Christ alone will ensure that the covenant blessings are for us.
Abraham's life after God called him was very different from the one he had before the call of God. At the Lord's command, Abraham left the sophisticated city, with all its security and comfort, to become one of the despised nomads. What is more, God didn't even tell him where He was leading him. No wonder Abraham is held up as an example of faith [see Romans 4]!
As part of the call of Abraham, the Lord made specific promises to which He committed Himself. This contractual agreement has been called by many the 'Abrahamic covenant.' The Bible records six occasions on which God appeared to Abraham to make or reinforce the promises (Genesis 12:1-3, 7; 13:14-18; 15:4, 5, 13-18; 17:1-8; 18:17-19; 22:15-18).
The provisions of these agreements, which ultimately would result in bringing blessing to all the families of the earth (Genesis 12:3), were extended to Abraham's descendants after him. In a cluster of predictions found in Genesis 12-28, God defined clearly the chosen line through which Messianic blessing would come into the world: Abraham, Isaac (son of Abraham and Sarah), and Jacob (Isaac and Rebekah's son). Toward the end of the Patriarchal period Jacob (whose name was changed by God to 'Israel') singled out Judah as the chosen one among his twelve sons to whom the scepter (symbol of rulership) was given (Genesis 49:10).
Let us go back to the beginning of the story to examine Abraham's covenantal relationship with God. 'Now the LORD said to Abram, 'Go forth from your country, And from your relatives And from your father's house, To the land which I will show you; And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your name great; And so you shall be a blessing; And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed'' (Genesis 12:1-3).
AN UNCONDITIONAL COVENANT
The Abrahamic Covenant has been described as 'unconditional.' This means that God's promises will be without qualification; that is, that the covenant promises will be completely fulfilled in spite of man's success or failure to keep whatever conditions or commandments may be contained in the covenant. Fulfillment is dependent upon God and not man. God intends to fulfill the terms of the covenant regardless of whether man fulfills his obligations. Abraham may have had some obligations to fulfill, but even if Abraham failed to fulfill those obligations, God's promises to him would still have been kept.
THE 'CUTTING OF THE COVENANT'
In Genesis 15 animals were slaughtered so as to solemnize a blood covenant. Afterwards the animals were cut up and its pieces were lined up in two parallel rows. [In Hebrew, it is common language usage to 'cut a covenant.' The very phrase brings to mind the picture of animals being sacrificed as seen in Genesis 15. Not every covenant is 'cut' however; a different word is used in Genesis 6:18 when God says 'I will establish my covenant with you.']
In the culture of that day, if the contract being made was a conditional covenant, there were certain things that the parties to the agreement would do. In a situation (like that described in Genesis 15) where a conditional covenant was being made, both parties making the contract would walk together between the pieces of the animals (e.g., Jeremiah 34:18-19). This meant that the terms of the covenant would be mandatory on both parties. If one party became guilty of violating any single term of the covenant, it would free the other party from the necessity of fulfilling his own promises contained in the covenant.
But in Genesis 15, Abraham and God did not walk together between the pieces of the animals. God put Abraham in a deep sleep and only God -- in the form of a smoking oven and a flaming torch (Genesis 15:17) -- walked between the pieces of the animals. This meant that the fulfillment of the covenant was based purely upon God's grace, in spite of how often Abraham or his descendants may fail. Abraham could not be a participant in the covenant, but could only be a recipient of a covenant.
Yes all these covenants are still binded today.
Ans: In Exodus 1:1-22 we see the dominant ethnic group, the Egyptians, take four increasingly radical steps to eliminate the threat of another ethnic group, Israel.
Notice the threat in verses 8-9: “Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. 9 And he said to his people, ‘Behold, the people of Israel are too many and too mighty for us.’” Israel was different. They were not Egyptians. They didn’t really belong. They were ethnically and culturally and religiously alien to the Egyptians. And they were growing. That’s the threat.
Now follow the four increasingly radical measures the king of Egypt took to eliminate this threat. Evidently they did not feel free to just outright kill the whole people like Hitler. The threat could be nullified more indirectly. How?
1. The Egyptians Enslaved Them (Exodus 1:1-12)
First, the Egyptians enslaved them. Exodus 1:1-12. “Therefore they set taskmasters over them to afflict them with heavy burdens. They built for Pharaoh store cities, Pithom and Raamses. 12 But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and the more they spread abroad. And the Egyptians were in dread of the people of Israel.” Measure one was not working.
2. The Egyptians Intensified the Slavery (Exodus 1:13-14)
Second, they intensified the slavery and became more ruthless and harsh. Exodus 1:13-14. “So they ruthlessly made the people of Israel work as slaves 14 and made their lives bitter with hard service, in mortar and brick, and in all kinds of work in the field. In all their work they ruthlessly made them work as slaves.” Evidently this was not sufficient to weaken the people. So they turned to measure number three.
3. The Egyptian King Instructed the Midwives to Kill the Infant Males at Birth (Exodus 1:15-16)
Third, the king instructed the midwives to kill the baby boys at birth. Exodus 1:15-16. “Then the king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, 16 ‘When you serve as midwife to the Hebrew women and see them on the birthstool, if it is a son, you shall kill him, but if it is a daughter, she shall live.’” The aim here is to emasculate the people. Minimize the male and master the nation. Again it didn’t work, because the midwives refused to kill the boy babies. So the king moved from subtle, clinical infanticide to open, public infanticide.
4. The Egyptian king Commanded the Entire Egyptian Nation to Kill the Infant Male Israelites (Exodus 1:22)
Fourth, the king commanded the entire Egyptian nation (not just the midwives) to kill the baby Israelite boys. Exodus 1:22. “Then Pharaoh commanded all his people, ‘Every son that is born to the Hebrews you shall cast into the Nile, but you shall let every daughter live.’” Evidently this did not work either because 80 years later there were 600,000 men in Israel (Exodus 12:37). God Rewarded the Civil Disobedience That Refused to Participate in the Subtle Infanticide
God rewarded the civil disobedience that refused to participate in the subtle infanticide. Exodus 1:17-21
“But the midwives feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but let the male children live. 18 So the king of Egypt called the midwives and said to them, ‘Why have you done this, and let the male children live?’ 19 The midwives said to Pharaoh, ‘Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women, for they are vigorous and give birth before the midwife comes to them.’ 20 So God dealt well with the midwives. And the people multiplied and grew very strong. 21 And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families.
The king said: kill the baby boys. The midwives refused. And God blessed them for doing what was right and disobeying the king. Whether they should have lied in the process I will leave to the side for now. The least we can say is that it did not stop God from being pleased with their courageous pro-life refusal to kill the babies, and make it look like they didn’t.
In view of all this, I conclude that God has given us in these events and in this text of Scripture a bright light to shine on the evil of subtle infanticide, that is, abortion, in our own day, especially on the millions of abortions that are the outworking of racism and sexism.
2. What is the significance of Ex 2:23-25?
Ans: Exodus 4:18-23 Then Moses went back to Jethro his father-in-law and said to him, 'Let me go back to my own people in Egypt to see if any of them are still alive.' Jethro said, 'Go, and I wish you well.' Now the LORD had said to Moses in Midian, 'Go back to Egypt, for all the men who wanted to kill you are dead.' So Moses took his wife and sons, put them on a donkey and started back to Egypt. And he took the staff of God in his hand. The LORD said to Moses, 'When you return to Egypt, see that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders I have given you the power to do. But I will harden his heart so that he will not let the people go. Then say to Pharaoh, 'This is what the LORD says: Israel is my firstborn son, and I told you, 'Let my son go, so he may worship me.' But you refused to let him go; so I will kill your firstborn son.'' (NIV) God had renewed his call to Moses and Moses was persuaded to accept God's call. Yet, there was something amiss. In spite of a renewed sense of God’s call Moses still wasn't in the will of God. 'At a lodging place on the way, the LORD met him and was about to kill him. But Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off her son's foreskin and touched Moses’ feet with it. 'Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me,' she said. So the LORD let him alone. (At that time she said 'bridegroom of blood,' referring to circumcision.) (Exodus 4:24-26 NIV) Moses was minimizing the necessity of doing God's will. Moses was ignoring a part of God's covenant that demonstrated his disobedience. God can't use you in his service if you refuse to obey his will. Moses was like many of us. We are willing to be in the right place--the place where God calls us to--but we minimize the necessity of doing God's will. Moses had minimized the necessity of circumcising his son. 'At a lodging place on the way, the LORD met him and was about to kill him.' Circumcision was like Christian baptism. It is the place where we acknowledge our personal surrender to God's will. It is the place where we dedicate our all to God. Moses had not dedicated his all to God. He did not circumcise his son according to God's will. He was seeking to go to the place of God's calling without obedience to God's will. God made it undeniably clear that he could not use Moses until Moses surrendered in obedience. Moses couldn't expect to go to Egypt and ask the Pharaoh to obey God without having a willingness to obey himself. Moses had to learn an important lesson. If his wife wouldn't circumcise his son, God was going to kill him. He was already incapacitated to the point where he couldn't do it himself. God would kill him for his disobedience just as sure as God promised to kill the Pharaoh’s firstborn for Pharaoh’s disobedience. When it comes to obedience, God means business. Many desire to serve the Lord while ignoring their need to be baptized. Many who have been baptized are seeking to take refuge in the body of Christ while ignoring God's will for their lives. They are not living up to their calling. The church has placed its emphasizes on where people ought to be. We are excluding the necessity of being what God has called us to be. We are called to this specific place for the purpose of obeying God's will. Without obeying God's will, we will never fulfill God's purpose for our lives. Our sins will surely find us out. I would like to think that we are here this morning because of the providence of God. In fact, I am sure of it. All the blessings of this new place of worship and new members are great. Yet, enjoying the providence of God is no substitute for obedience. Only our obedience will allow God to lead this congregation to fulfill his will. God's province may have put you here, but only your obedience will allow God to fulfill his purpose for your life. God's providence always brings you to the place you need be, but only you can determine to do the will of God. This is why many are called and few are chosen. Too few choose to do God's will. When we are willing to do God's will God chooses to use us to fulfill his purpose for our lives. Doing God's will is something each of us must decide to do. Moses wanted to be a man of God, but God let him know that it was impossible without obedience. We may think that no one would have ever noticed that Moses' son wasn't circumcised. Circumcision seems very personal and private, but everyone would have known. There are a lot of personal and private matters that affect others. God's will is very personal and private, but it affects everyone around you.Our disobedience stinks to the high heavens. Even the Pharaoh would have heard the cries from the circumcised Hebrews. Our success is dependent upon us doing God's will. Personal Obedience Allows God to Work Your personal obedience makes it possible for God's powerful will to be done in your life. The moment you surrender--God goes to work in a very personal way. God begins to move people and events when we decide to obey. Exodus 4:27-31 The LORD said to Aaron, 'Go into the desert to meet Moses.' So he met Moses at the mountain of God and kissed him. Then Moses told Aaron everything the LORD had sent him to say, and also about all the miraculous signs he had commanded him to perform. Moses and Aaron brought together all the elders of the Israelites, and Aaron told them everything the LORD had said to Moses. He also performed the signs before the people, and they believed. And when they heard that the LORD was concerned about them and had seen their misery, they bowed down and worshiped. (NIV) God sends Aaron to greet Moses. It is Aaron who tells the people everything the Lord has said to Moses. Forty years earlier when Moses had gone alone they mocked Moses, but now God is in it. They believe Moses because God causes them to believe in him. They believe Moses because now it is evident that he is living within the will of God. Now Moses is not telling them what he is going to do for them, but God is telling them what He is going to do through Moses.
3. Was the condition of Israel a surprise to God? (Gen 15:13-16) Was this God’s plan? What is this a type of (typology)?
Genesis 15:13-16
3 Then the LORD said to him, 'Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years. 14 But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions. 15 You, however, will go to your fathers in peace and be buried at a good old age. 16 In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure.' NIV
God never assures us that seeking his dream and purposes for our lives will be easy. Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount tells us the result of seeking God’s dreams for our lives. Jesus promised that the poor in spirit would see the kingdom of God, but it wouldn’t be without a great deal to mourn over, for he promised the mournful would be comforted. He promised the meek would inherit the earth, the hungry would be filled, but not before they would be blessed because of their persecution.
Lives are not made easier just because they are pursuing God’s dream. There is no promise life will be made easier. God does promise that he will be our shield—or protector and our exceedingly great reward. Joseph’s life wasn’t made easy because he had a God given dream, but he held on to the dream. He persisted in his trust in God. He worked to make that dream a reality. His dream possessed him and therefore became real.
I truly believe the closer we get to realizing God’s dream individually the more the demons will attack us. The harder it will seem, but we must not fear, for God is our shield and our reward.
God had Abraham to prepare animal sacrifices so that God could make a binding covenant with him. When God passed through the animal sacrifices it meant that if he didn’t follow through with his promise to Abram, may he be treated as Abram treated the animals he sacrificed (Jeremiah 34:17-20).
Today God’s promises are as certain as the sacrifice of Christ, but the gospel of good news doesn’t make living for God any easier.
Acts 14:21-23
21 They preached the good news in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, 22 strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. 'We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,' they said. 23 Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord, in whom they had put their trust. NIV
4. Read 1 Cor 10:1-11 & Rom 15:4 and explain how they relate to the exodus of Israel from Egypt.
Ans:
1 Corinthians 10:1
Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;
Since there were probably some Jews in the church at Corinth, Paul begins a section about the comparison between the Israelites who came out of Egypt under Moses and the church conditions at Corinth. Paul tells them that the whole nation of Israel was under the cloud, which was the pillar of the cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night. It was the cloud and pillar which God used to tell the Israelites when it was time to move on to the next location. (Exo 13:22 KJV) He took not away the pillar of the cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people. Paul then tells these people that all Israel passed through the sea as God parted it. Paul seems to be setting up a corporate example as he mentions the ancient nation and hopes that history will not repeat itself in the church.
1 Corinthians 10:2
And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;
Paul now states that the nation of Israel was baptized into Moses. This baptism that he was speaking of was the uniting of the nation of Israel with Moses. The nation of Israel had been led by Moses and the covenant of law was given through Moses. This means that Israel was following Moses, who was under God’s direction, in not only the physical aspects of those directions, but were also under the spiritual aspects. This direction was in effect even when they came out of Egypt. There was a common responsibility that Israel had and that was obedience to God. At the time of the cloud and Red Sea crossing, it was the beginning of their dealings with God and the covenant of Sinai.
1 Corinthians 10:3
And did all eat the same spiritual meat;
They were not only under the cloud and the pillar of fire, but they, as a nation, were subjected to the spiritual law of God. This is not common or corporate grace, but the law which was given was a spiritual law. (Rom 7:14 KJV) For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. The entire nation was subject to the law of God as they agreed in Exodus 19. (Exo 19:8 KJV) And all the people answered together, and said, All that the LORD hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the LORD. Of course, we know what happened when they tried to keep that law in the flesh. They failed miserably and eventually went into captivity.
1 Corinthians 10:4
And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.
Israel did not realize it but the Great I Am of Sinai was the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. The picture that is given is taken from two separate but related incidents. The first incident, Moses was told to strike the rock and the water would flow out. (Exo 17:6 KJV) Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. The Lord Jesus Christ went to the cross once for all the Elect of God. This is represented by Moses striking the rock and the water flowed. When Christ went to the cross, spiritual water flowed from His children as a result of Him being smitten. (John 7:38 KJV) He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.
The second incident took place at Kadesh when there was no water. God had told Moses to speak to the rock which would result in the giving of water. (Num 20:8 KJV) Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink. Moses was obviously so angry with the people that he disobeyed God and struck the rock instead of speaking to it. (Num 20:11 KJV) And Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod he smote the rock twice: and the water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts also. Now this second striking of the rock represented the Lord Jesus being sacrificed a second time, which of course, would never happen. Jesus was crucified only once and after this He was never to die again, so the spiritual picture of what Moses did was wrong.
Now this event caused God to keep Moses from going into the promised land but there is a greater spiritual meaning as to why Moses was refused entrance. Moses was a representative of the law and no person can ever get to Heaven by trying to keep the law. It was Joshua who brought the nation of Israel into the land. Joshua is the Hebrew name of Jesus. A great spiritual picture. So trying to keep the law will prevent you from going to Heaven because Heaven is attainable only through the shed blood of Christ.
1 Corinthians 10:5
But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness.
When one reads the wilderness trek of Israel, they will see that God sent many judgments among the people because of their impenitence. They continuously murmured against God, they verbally attacked Moses, they were gluttonous, etc. So God judged the sins of these people. They seemed to go from one sin on to another sin, and it never seemed to end. In fact, they were referred to as stiffnecked and rebellious people. (Exo 32:9 KJV) And the LORD said unto Moses, I have seen this people, and, behold, it is a stiffnecked people: (Deu 9:24 KJV) Ye have been rebellious against the LORD from the day that I knew you. Can you see the spiritual paradigm Paul is bringing into the picture?
1 Corinthians 10:6
Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted.
Paul now reveals the reason he mentioned the nation of Israel. He wants this church to look at the results of lusting after the things which God prohibits. He wants this church to study and ponder this issue because if they begin to lust after things, then they will also begin to feel the chastisement of God upon them. Paul wants them to be as obedient as they can and not to desire the things which will cause them to drift away from God. This is also to be an example in our personal Christian walk that we must be careful not to lust after things which will cause us to sin and derail us.
1 Corinthians 10:7
Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.
With the massive amounts of idolatry in the city of Corinth, it would not be impossible for someone to go after the lifestyle of the idolater. Paul is warning them to watch themselves because the people of Israel did the same thing that the pagans in Corinth are doing. (Exo 32:6 KJV) And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play.
As we see in this verse from Exodus, the Israelites, who should have known better had rallied around the golden calf, they started out by having a feast in the manner of the pagan and then after they were all eaten and drunk up, they rose up to play. This was the normal method of an orgy. First, there was a feast, then after everyone was sufficiently fed and drunk, then they began to have an orgy. This is how the worship of false gods took place. Paul is warning them that they are not to engage in any type of banqueting which can lead to some type of worship of a false god or to derail the Christians in that church. Remember, Paul was concerned about the weaker brethren and how easily they could be led astray since they were not yet well grounded in the Word.
1 Corinthians 10:8
Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand.
Not only are we not to engage in physical fornication, but the Christian must also watch that they do not fall into spiritual fornication, which is the trading of the true Gospel for one that is false. Paul brings up a serious matter in this verse. He is reminding this church, that when Israel was committing fornication, God judged and took the lives of twenty three thousand people in one day but we see that this entire situation took the lives of twenty four thousand in total. God does not take fornication lightly. You can read the entire scenario in Numbers 25:1-9
1 Corinthians 10:9
Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents.
Tempt - test or try
The Israelites were testing Christ in the wilderness with all their sinful actions. The result was that the majority was destroyed for their disobedience. God even sent serpents among the people. (Num 21:6 KJV) And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died. Paul is conveying this bit of history to remind the people of Corinth that if they do the same thing, testing Christ by seeing how far they can push Him, then the same situation will happen to them. The Lord won’t send fiery serpents but He will definitely send chastisement into the church. God even reserves the right to take home believers who continue to walk a sinful path. (John 15:2 KJV) Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. We must also realize that in our personal Christian walk, we can experience chastisement if we walk contrary to the word of God. We always put our best foot forward in church on Sunday but the real us comes out when we are alone and separated from the other brethren.
1 Corinthians 10:10
Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer.
Murmur - To grumble or complain in a low voice
Here is probably one of the biggest sins of the Christian. It is grumbling, because we are never satisfied. Some people grumble so much that if they found a $20 bill on the ground, they would complain it wasn’t two tens. The Israelites grumbled or murmured against the Lord because they had just come out of Egypt and there they received some excellent food. Now they were hungry and all they had was Manna but they wanted more. They forgot that the reason they were fed so well was because they were slaves and were expected to put out a long day’s work. They weren’t fed because the Egyptians loved them, they were fed well because they were considered low class work horses. They forgot that God had freed them from slavery and not a tropical island paradise. Many Christians grumble because they don’t like the position they are placed in. They look at others and say, “why should they have more then me.” So they blame God for treating them unfairly. If God was to treat us fairly, then He would have to include our sins when He looks at us, which means we would still be unsaved. God deals with us according to mercy not fairness. It sounds strange but think about it.
1 Corinthians 10:11
Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.
Paul sums up the prior ten verses saying that the reason those things happened to Israel was also to be an example to us. According to the Scriptures, the last days began at the cross and because there will be no great length of time to the return of Christ, such as the length from Adam and Eve to the time of Christ which was thousands of years, we are being admonished that the time is short and we don’t have the luxury of living worldly. We are to concentrate on getting the Gospel out to the nations. If Christians would just accept the position God has placed them in, then they would begin to operate from that vantage point and would know what their strengths are. Then they would stop looking at others and grumbling because they don’t have the same material goods or spiritual gifts they have. (1 Tim 6:8 KJV) And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. (Phil 4:11 KJV) Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. Reading these verses where Israel sinned against the Lord by fornicating with false religions or murmuring should be a wake up call to every dissatisfied Christian.
Rom 15:4 (KJV)For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.Here is a verse which teaches us that the body of Christ must study the Scriptures or how else are they going to know what has been written aforetime by those who faced similar circumstances in the service of the Lord. When we study these passages and the characters in those pages, we will see how God worked with them to bring them through the tough times, especially when Israel was threatened by her enemies which surrounded her. We too are surrounded by enemies. All unbelievers in this world, whether atheist or false religion, are the enemies of the saints of God. When we study the Scriptures, we will see how God protected Israel and His Elect within Israel, and by knowing how He dealt with them, we too will have hope which will manifest itself in patience and comfort through the Scriptures. The word “learning” carries with it the meaning of instruction.
5. Compare the event of Israel’s exodus from Egypt to the cross. How do they relate (typology)? Which is the type and which is the anti-type?
Moses is the key character in the story of the Exodus and the symbolism of the “ark” being the vehicle of his salvation is no accident. God’s plan for Israel required Moses and so supernatural means are brought into play to insure his survival. What would Pharaoh have thought if he knew that Israel’s future liberator was living in his home? The next time we see Moses he is an adult and in an attempt to bond with his people ends up killing an Egyptian. The result is that the Hebrews are afraid of this troublemaker and Moses flees to Midian. It is not his time yet. Moses gets married and has a son. Meanwhile the king dies and God hears the groaning of the children of Israel. God remembers His promises to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. In a burning bush, God appears to Moses and says “Come now, therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” (Ex.3: 10) Moses is understandably shaken with the vision and the responsibility. He stalls for time and asks God His name. Moses wants to know what to say when they ask: “What is his name?” “And God said to Moses: ‘I AM WHO I AM’” (Ex.3: 14) Moses is still scared and so God provides him with a rod with which to perform miracles. When Moses complains of his lack of eloquence, God sends Aaron to speak for Moses. So Moses and Aaron go to Pharaoh and utter the famous words: “Let my people go” (Ex. 5: 1) But things only get worse for the Israelites as Pharaoh demands a higher quota of bricks and will no longer supply the necessary straw to make them. God sends plagues on the Egyptians to convince Pharaoh to let the Israelites go. At the same time God hardens Pharaohs heart. There are plagues of frogs, lice, flies, death of livestock, boils, and hail, locusts and darkness. All the plagues wreak havoc on the Egyptians but don’t affect the Jews. Pharaoh only gets more stubborn. Finally, the Passover occurs. God vows to kill the firstborn of every family in Egypt. If the children of Israel would put the blood of a male lamb without blemish on their doorposts, God would pass over them and not kill their firstborn. All of the households in Egypt suffer the loss of one. Pharaoh finally relents and sends Moses, Aaron and their people away to Canaan. Before they can cross the Red Sea and return, Pharaoh has a change of heart and sends the army out to stop them. The next great miracle is that the Red Sea parts enough for Moses to lead his people across to safety. When the Egyptian army attempts to cross, the sea swallows them up. And so, the children of Israel are finally a people in their own right. They have a mission to carry God’s name to the world. Their journey to the Promised Land takes forty years. They wandered the desert all through that time and often complained about their situation and about Moses’ leadership. God takes care of them and provides food and water. God sends “manna” and “quail” for them to eat. Their bitter complaining would cost them the right to cross the Jordan into Israel. During the forty-year journey, Moses would receive the Ten Commandments and many of the rituals of worship would be adopted. None of the people that crossed the Red Sea would see the Promised Land. That was reserved for a new generation. But the people of God’s choosing would truly become a united people and be a presence in the Middle East for thousands of years.
The Passover symbolises the Cross of Calvary, and therefore Salvation. Just like the original Passover in Egypt, our Salvation unto eternal life is a dramatic event and may, on times, still be spectacular.
The Feast of Unleavened Bread represents somewhat of an endurance test. To eat unleavened bread in a variety of ways for seven days straight is certainly an acquired skill. Yet, it is representative of the daily life of the true believer.
The Scriptures tell us a great deal about leaven. The Children of Israel had to leave the yeast/sourdough/leaven of Egypt behind. God would feed them with a new kind of bread - Manna from heaven.
The Lord Jesus Himself had a great deal to say about leaven. He not only likened Himself to the Manna, but declared that He was the true Bread from heaven. We who have this Bread no longer have any need for the yeast of the world; in fact we testify to this every time we partake of the Communion emblems.
6. Do a word search on the Internet for the word parable. Give a brief definition and a Biblical example.
1.a short allegorical story designed to illustrate or teach some truth, religious principle, or moral lesson.
2.
a statement or comment that conveys a meaning indirectly by the use of comparison, analogy, or the like.
The Gospel of St. Matthew contains the following parables:
Matthew 7: 24-27Matthew 13: 3-23Matthew 13: 24-30Matthew 13: 31-32Matthew 13: 33Matthew 13: 44Matthew 13: 45-46Matthew 13: 47-50Matthew 18: 12-14Matthew 18: 23-35Matthew 20: 1-16Matthew 21: 28-32Matthew 21: 33-44Matthew 22: 1-14Matthew 24: 32Matthew 25: 1-13Matthew 25: 14-30
The Wise and the Foolish Builders The SowerThe TaresThe Mustard SeedThe LeavenThe Hidden TreasurePearl of Great PriceDrawing in the NetThe Lost SheepUnmerciful ServantLaborers in the VineyardThe Two sonsThe Wicked HusbandmanMarriage of the King's SonLeafing Fig TreeThe Ten VirginsTen Talents
7. Meditate upon the definitions of typology and parable and look for similarities. Can you give an example of a typology in Exodus that you might call a living parable? Does God use an event with Israel to draw a spiritual truth?
Ans. Typological interpretation is based on unity of the two Testaments. The Lord’s use of Old Testament invites us to find Him in the pages of the ancient Scriptures.
Parable is a narrative that is constructed for the sake of conveying important truth. It is inherently figurative language that draws an illustration from life to teach spiritual truth. When studying parables we should seek to determine the central truth of the parable. Part of doing this is to look for contextual clues to help in the interpretation, namely, look to see if the Lord states the central principle that He wanted to communicate and then uses a parable to illustrate the principle. We should also look carefully to determine how much of the parable Christ interpreted Himself, separating the essential from what is only attendant to the theme.
We also note the time period for which the Lord designed the parable. Parables should not be made the primary or sole source for a doctrine. There should be a solid backing from elsewhere in Scripture
Paul rehearsed the experiences of the people of Israel in the Exodus and in their forty years in the desert: the destruction of Pharaoh's army in the sea (Exodus 14-15); the eating of manna (Exodus 16:1); their conduct when thirsty—Rephidim—striking the rock (Exodus 17:1)
Exodus 16:23 'Then he said to them, This [is what] the LORD has said: Tomorrow [is] a Sabbath rest, a holy Sabbath to the LORD. Bake what you will bake [today,] and boil what you will boil; and lay up for yourselves all that remains, to be kept until morning.'
Because ancient Israel had been slaves in Egypt for 430 years, they lost all track of the Sabbath Day. They had no way of keeping track, especially since all of God's commands were essentially lost because of that captivity. In order to restore the true Sabbath Day to Israel, God had to perform some miracles...
While Israel was in the wilderness, God made special provisions of food for them, PROVIDING DOUBLE PORTIONS ON FRIDAY, so they would not have to do the work of gathering the manna on the Sabbath. It is quite plain that God made it clear which day was the Sabbath and what He expected Israel to do on that day. You will also notice that the Sabbath day was established PRIOR to the giving of the 10 commandments, which doesn't occur until later, in chapter 20.
Exodus 20:8-11 'Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. :9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, :10 but the seventh day [is] the Sabbath of the LORD your God. [In it] you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who [is] within your gates. :11 For [in] six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that [is] in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.'
Notice God said, 'Remember' the Sabbath day. . . You don't 'remember' something that you don't even know about. Obviously the Sabbath day was known about prior to the giving of the Laws of God here, but God was reminding them of the Holy time because they had been in captivity for 430 years and lost track of it. From this point on, the Sabbath day is a pivotal point in history which affected millions of people throughout the Old Testament times, even to the point where God allowed Israel, (not just Jews) His own chosen people, to go into captivity. WHY?
The word 'remember' is the key. Israel DID NOT remember the Sabbath any more than they 'remembered' the other laws. When we observe something such as a holiday, we are meant to REMEMBER what the day stands for and it keeps us mindful of specific events. The Sabbath is no different. It points to God in many ways. It reminds us of creation, since that is where the Sabbath originated. It reminds us of the millennial time where everyone will be at rest from the spiritual forces that pound on us daily. It also is a day for physical and mental rest from normal work. We, as a nation, have FORGOTTEN the Sabbath day along with most of God's other commands
8. Was God restricted in how He delivered Israel? Could He have delivered Israel by another means other than with Moses? If you believe that He was restricted in His choice, explain how He was restricted and by what? Did God need to use a human such as Moses or could He just have used a supernatural event like a plague or by the using the force of angels?
In Exodus 3:8 God states his purpose to Moses: 'I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey.' According to Exodus 2:24, God's resolve to deliver Israel was based on his covenant: 'God heard their groaning and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob.' And in 3:6 when God identifies himself to Moses at the bush he says, 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.' Moses is supposed to understand that what is at stake in the deliverance of Israel is not just the people's happiness but God's word, his oath to the fathers. This is what lies behind the assertion in verse 8: 'I have come down to deliver them.' 'It will be my battle, my victory, and my glory!''But I have a gift for you, Moses: I am going to give you a part in my deliverance -- the lead role under me. And don't worry: Remember verse 8, 'I have come down to deliver them.'' Moses learned this lesson by the time it was all over. In Exodus 15 on the far side of the Red Sea, he sings with the people: 'I will sing to the Lord for he has triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea. The Lord is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation. This is my God and I will praise him, my father's God and I will exalt him. The Lord is a man of war; the Lord is his name.'But it took a while for Moses to learn the lesson. In 3:11 he said to God, 'Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?' 'God, in comparison to Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, I am nothing. Can a pansy say to an oak tree: 'Lie down, oak, and let some sun in here on this pansy patch!'' God pauses perhaps to give Moses a chance to change his mind. But, if we read between the lines we hear God say, 'You're right, Moses. I didn't choose you because you were an oak. One of my rules of thumb is not to call many wise or powerful or genteel people. I like to use what is foolish in the world to shame the wise and what's weak in the world to shame the strong. So you are absolutely right; you're a pansy and Pharaoh is an oak. But why should that stop you from going down there to lead out my people? Don't you remember, 'I have come down to deliver them'' (v. 8). So God says in verse 12 what he always says to people who are poor in spirit and meek and admit that they are pansies. He says, 'I will be with you.''I will fell that oak and throw it in the Red Sea. And my little pansy patch will walk right through the ocean on dry land.'Moses was red-faced. He had tried something that millions have tried since: in the guise of humility he used his own insignificance to excuse himself from a task that God was urging him to do. God's answer to that maneuver is always the same: 'RIGHT, you are small and weak. But WRONG, that is no excuse to cop out.' Why? 'Because I will be with you, I will help you, I will strengthen you and will uphold you with my victorious right hand. I love to do big things through small people! How else will my name be glorified in all the earth!'In verse 13 Moses shows he is on the right track, at least temporarily: 'Okay, when I go down there to the people what name for you shall I use?' That's right, Moses. Everything hangs on who God is. Who is this God that says he will deliver the people? That's right, Moses: not 'Who am I?' but 'Who is God? Now you are on the right track.' And God said to Moses (verse 14), ''I am who I am.' And he said, 'Say this to the people of Israel, I am has sent me to you.'' The words 'I am who I am' at the very least mean, 'Nobody determines my character; there is nobody shaping me or making me what I am. I am not in the process of becoming, I simply am -- without beginning, without end and never fickle, never manipulated. That's what it means to be God. Tell the Israelites to be confident: when the God who simply is from all eternity resolves to do a thing, he will do it! 'I am' has sent you.'Then with that ringing in his ears, Moses hears again what God resolves to do. Verse 17: 'I promise I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt.' Then in verse 18: 'The people of Israel will harken to your voice.' Then in verse 21: 'I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians and when you go you shall not go empty.' But while God is rehearsing for Moses how it's going to go, Moses begins to shake in his sandals: 'O my stars, he really means it. He's going to send me down there; he's got the whole thing planned. There is no telling what those crazy elders will do. They don't know me from Adam.'So, chapter 4, verse 1: 'Moses answered, 'But look, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, The Lord did not appear to you.''What a lesson there is here! I don't mean Moses' stubbornness. Everyone of us knows about that firsthand if we're honest. I mean God's patience: 'The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.' His ways are not our ways nor his thoughts our thoughts. You know what I would probably have said if I were God? I would have said: 'Weren't you listening? I said in verse 18: 'They will hearken to your voice.' And now you say, 'They will not believe me or listen to my voice.' Are you calling me a liar?' He was, you know, whether he intended to or not. He was acting as if God would not keep his word. All unbelief says God is a liar or a bumbler. And disobedience, which comes from unbelief, is a vote of no confidence in the Almighty. But what does God do? He does not even scold him. Instead, he gives him a firsthand demonstration of how he is going to work miracles through Moses to verify his word (Exodus 4:3-9). 'In other words Moses, again your excuse is oriented on your inability to persuade. And again, my answer is the same: So you don't have much credibility in Egypt. I am the one who is going to decide who believes you and who doesn't. And I have said, 'They will hearken to your voice.''Then Moses gives one last excuse why he should not go speak to Israel and Pharaoh (or in our case, why we should not speak to the visitors at church and the unbeliever at work). Moses says in Exodus 4:10, 'Please, Lord, I am not a man of words, neither formerly nor since thou hast spoken to thy servant, but my mouth and my tongue are heavy.' Sound familiar? Aren't we all described here - at least some of the time? 'God, some people's tongues are light and free. Mine feels like lead in my mouth and if I move it, it gets all tangled. God, do you remember when I proposed to Zipporah? I practiced that proposal for three weeks to the sheep, and got all chokey and wobbly-kneed every time. That's the way it's always been with me. I never scored as high as Miriam did on the verbal skills tests.' So Moses' assumption was, God should only pick people with special natural abilities to deliver his word. But there are several flaws in that assumption and Moses is aware of at least one of them. We can see it in verse 10. Moses knows that God can take a person with no eloquence and then give it to him, changing him into an eloquent, persuasive speaker. So look what he says in verse 10: 'I am not a man of words either heretofore or since thou hast spoken to me. Not only is my whole past a history of timidity and verbal incompetence, but the whole time we have been talking, nothing has changed. I don't feel any more like a man of words now than when you met me at the burning bush. If you want me to be your spokesman, you must make me eloquent. You must prove to me ahead of time that my mouth will not freeze on me. We've rehearsed the rod-into-snake trick and the leprous hand trick. Now let's rehearse my lines. Prove to me that my mouth will really say what you want it to.' And then in his great patience, and to make perfectly clear that he does not demand blind faith, God answers Moses with a reason that ends all Moses' objections (v. 11): 'Then the Lord said to him, 'Who made man's mouth? Who makes him dumb or deaf or seeing or blind? Is it not I the Lord?''The first thing this verse means is this: Moses, the God you have been talking to, who has made you all these promises of success, who wills to grant you a share in his glorious deliverance -- this God is the creator of the world, the inventor of the human body, mind, and emotions. He thought it all up out of nothing and designed it. But that's not all. The most amazing, the most devastating, the most reassuring thing comes next: not only did God create the first man, but he also goes on creating every single person just as he sees fit -- whether dumb, or deaf, or seeing, or blind.Here was God's last argument to Moses' last excuse: 'If it is not enough to hear me say, 'I am the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,' and to see a bush burn and not be consumed; if it is not enough to hear me say 'I will be with you'; if it is not enough to know me as 'I am who I am' and to hear me say, 'I will bring you up out of affliction'; if it is not enough to see me turn a rod into a snake and make a hand leprous and clean; then listen to this, Moses. I made and I control everything. Now, go! and I will be with your mouth and teach you in the moment what you shall speak. No rehearsals, Moses; just the promise. And remember who it is who gives the promise!''But Moses said, 'Please Lord, send I pray some other person'' (4:13). 'God, put it into the heart of Clarence, or Olive, or Deloris to talk to them!' Moses doesn't offer any more excuses now. He simply refuses to accept the call. Why? That's the question we started with, and now I think we can answer it. Remember, every objection Moses raised God answered by revealing his intention to bless Moses tremendously in the deliverance of Israel and by revealing a sovereign power so great that absolutely no obstacle could hinder the accomplishment of what he called Moses to do. So the answer to why Moses refuses to go under God's terms is simple: he didn't trust him. He didn't trust him! So finally (in verse 14) God got angry because there is hardly a greater insult you can pay to someone than to say, 'I don't trust you. You can't be counted on.'And isn't Moses' problem our problem too? - learning to believe that God will work for us in everyday life. How different, how wonderful the use of our mouths would be if we lived by faith in the God who made the mouth and not by sight - by looking at our own clumsy tongue. And where does faith come from? According to the apostle Paul, faith comes from hearing the Word of God. It comes from seeing who he is and what he promises in his Word. And is not the God of Exodus 3 and 4 worthy of our trust? Moses eventually learned to trust him. By the end of his life, God spoke to Moses every day as a man speaks to his friend (Exodus 33:11). Praise God for his patient discipline!
9. God remembered His covenant.(Ex 2:24) What is a covenant? Who establishes the terms of the covenant? How does one receive the blessings of a covenant?
God heard their groaning and he remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob. Exodus 2:24
God's first covenant with Adam and his descendants was NOT a covenant of redemption. Adam had not yet sinned and there was no need of redemption before he sinned. The revised covenant with Adam will follow immediately. The 'first covenant,' as referenced in Heb 8:7,13; 9:1,15,18; 10:9, refers to the Law Covenant as the first covenant with Israel as a nation, NOT the first Bible covenant. The covenant between the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit was and is the first covenant. The covenant with Adam is the first covenant with mankind. The Law Covenant was the first covenant with Israel as a nation. And the New Covenant is the first covenant with the church as the engrafted seed of Abraham, Rom 11:11-32; Gal 3:6-9,14-29; 1Pe 2:5,9; Eph 2:11-22; 3:6; 2Co 6:16. Of course, the New Covenant is an everlasting covenant, Heb 13:20.
It is the covenant between God on the one side and - roughly speaking - his people on the other side; between God and the believers and their children, or Abraham and his seed. We all know that the covenant exists, just as surely as we know that Scripture exists and that our living and thinking comes forth from it. Nevertheless a difference of opinion has appeared in the last while within the church about the question of with whom this covenant is actually made.
1. The New Covenant is the “Old Covenant” completed and fulfilled by Christ. Both are one and the same, except one is unfulfilled and the other fulfilled. God’s purpose did not change. Therefore the New Covenant had the same sanction as the first.
Similarly the first covenant purposed to make us in the Image of God as we were originally intended, just as the New Covenant does. Sanctification is recognized as the method by which God makes us like Christ. This is us being remade in the image of God (since Christ is God).
The Abrahamic covenant was also designed to make us in the image of God though a living obedient faith in the perfect and atoning sacrifice (just as James says Faith without works is dead 2:17). We were not able to fulfill the covenant because we lacked faith in the complete and atoning sacrifice that the Abrahamic covenant and the Mosaic covenant pointed to in Jesus as Christ. Thereforth our faith was dead and our works non-existent.
Nonetheless, it is an error to assume that somehow the ‘new Covenant’ is different than the Abrahamic covenant or the Mosaic covenant (which is in Harmony with the Abrahamic covenant) other than to recognized it is the Abrahamic covenant fulfilled (by Jesus) who was gloriously promised in the Mosaic covenant.
10. What have we learned about God’s covenant relationship? To whom in Genesis did God reveal His covenant? Are all these Covenant revelations still binding today?
God is faithful to his covenant. If we want him judge the world in justice, he must first judge the church. And if we return to him in covenant faithfulness we can be sure that he will bless and and not destroy us.God's promise, then, in verses 10 through 12 is that if his people will return to covenant faithfulness, then they can at last enjoy the covenant blessings: abundant rain, pest-free crops, fruitful vines and the much-longed for respect of the nations.God's covenant blessing for us is eternal life in the new earth, enjoying his presence forever. God is faithful to his covenant, and a return to faithfulness amongst his people in trusting and obeying Christ alone will ensure that the covenant blessings are for us.
Abraham's life after God called him was very different from the one he had before the call of God. At the Lord's command, Abraham left the sophisticated city, with all its security and comfort, to become one of the despised nomads. What is more, God didn't even tell him where He was leading him. No wonder Abraham is held up as an example of faith [see Romans 4]!
As part of the call of Abraham, the Lord made specific promises to which He committed Himself. This contractual agreement has been called by many the 'Abrahamic covenant.' The Bible records six occasions on which God appeared to Abraham to make or reinforce the promises (Genesis 12:1-3, 7; 13:14-18; 15:4, 5, 13-18; 17:1-8; 18:17-19; 22:15-18).
The provisions of these agreements, which ultimately would result in bringing blessing to all the families of the earth (Genesis 12:3), were extended to Abraham's descendants after him. In a cluster of predictions found in Genesis 12-28, God defined clearly the chosen line through which Messianic blessing would come into the world: Abraham, Isaac (son of Abraham and Sarah), and Jacob (Isaac and Rebekah's son). Toward the end of the Patriarchal period Jacob (whose name was changed by God to 'Israel') singled out Judah as the chosen one among his twelve sons to whom the scepter (symbol of rulership) was given (Genesis 49:10).
Let us go back to the beginning of the story to examine Abraham's covenantal relationship with God. 'Now the LORD said to Abram, 'Go forth from your country, And from your relatives And from your father's house, To the land which I will show you; And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your name great; And so you shall be a blessing; And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed'' (Genesis 12:1-3).
AN UNCONDITIONAL COVENANT
The Abrahamic Covenant has been described as 'unconditional.' This means that God's promises will be without qualification; that is, that the covenant promises will be completely fulfilled in spite of man's success or failure to keep whatever conditions or commandments may be contained in the covenant. Fulfillment is dependent upon God and not man. God intends to fulfill the terms of the covenant regardless of whether man fulfills his obligations. Abraham may have had some obligations to fulfill, but even if Abraham failed to fulfill those obligations, God's promises to him would still have been kept.
THE 'CUTTING OF THE COVENANT'
In Genesis 15 animals were slaughtered so as to solemnize a blood covenant. Afterwards the animals were cut up and its pieces were lined up in two parallel rows. [In Hebrew, it is common language usage to 'cut a covenant.' The very phrase brings to mind the picture of animals being sacrificed as seen in Genesis 15. Not every covenant is 'cut' however; a different word is used in Genesis 6:18 when God says 'I will establish my covenant with you.']
In the culture of that day, if the contract being made was a conditional covenant, there were certain things that the parties to the agreement would do. In a situation (like that described in Genesis 15) where a conditional covenant was being made, both parties making the contract would walk together between the pieces of the animals (e.g., Jeremiah 34:18-19). This meant that the terms of the covenant would be mandatory on both parties. If one party became guilty of violating any single term of the covenant, it would free the other party from the necessity of fulfilling his own promises contained in the covenant.
But in Genesis 15, Abraham and God did not walk together between the pieces of the animals. God put Abraham in a deep sleep and only God -- in the form of a smoking oven and a flaming torch (Genesis 15:17) -- walked between the pieces of the animals. This meant that the fulfillment of the covenant was based purely upon God's grace, in spite of how often Abraham or his descendants may fail. Abraham could not be a participant in the covenant, but could only be a recipient of a covenant.
Yes all these covenants are still binded today.
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