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February 1st
Our Bible reading today is in Exodus chapters 7,8,9.
The long and the short of our Bible reading today is summed up in chapter 7 verse 5...”The Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring out the people of Israel from among them.”
God was “going to work” in Egypt...He was going to deliver Israel...and He was going to deliver a message to Egypt.
To begin the text...God told Moses,” I have made you like God to Pharoah, and your brother Aaron shall be your prophet.”
“I have made you like God to Pharoah....” “...or...when Pharoah sees you, I want him to see Me.”
Friends, I’m reminded of what the apostle Paul told the church in Corinth....” men, remember that you are the image and glory of God to those around you.” Or...” when your family sees you when your church family sees you when your neighbors see you, I want them to see Me.”
“Thanks, Lord for the reminder...of WHY we want to be like Jesus...WHY we desire to do life with Jesus...Because... He is the perfect picture of Who You are, in all of Your glory, Father.”
“And your brother, Aaron, shall be your prophet.”
Doesn't that sound just like the relationship between Paul and Barnabas spoken of in Acts?
Moses AND Aaron were important to the purposes of God. Paul AND Barnabas were essential to the fulfillment of God’s purposes.
Yes...however...Moses and Paul were the “point of the spear”. Aaron and Barnabas held their partners’ wearied arms heavenward as the battle raged below.
God had a particular work for Moses. And God had a particular function for Aaron to fulfill. They were both servants of God...first and foremost. To get their jobs done, they would need each other. There was no place for envy, resentment, or careless disrespect toward one another.
Now, comparing the two “duos”?...
It would seem that both tandems butted heads in the middle of their ministries. (It’s called LIFE among saved sinners), but both sets of partners seemed to finish well...
...for one, a golden calf had to be destroyed and a perk refused...for the other duo, two new partners were added and ministries were changed.
May the Lord have plenty of “dynamic spiritual duos” at work in His Kingdom endeavors.
Now to the crux of our reading...
God wanted the Egyptians
“to know” something....” to be instructed” about something...the truth...
“The Truth That He was the true God of Egypt!”...not Pharoah!
And how was God going to teach them?...with hard lessons!
They had not learned from the easier lessons...by watching and listening and respecting the life message of God through the Israelite people..for 400 years...
So what were those hard lessons? Well, that’s the rest of the story.
But I will point out one general fact...The Egyptian people would suffer God’s judgment greatly in the days of our reading because Pharoah couldn't come close to being the god he claimed to be and the god the people needed.
This is what makes Jesus Christ so much better than all the other “so-called” gods. He took the judgment of God’s wrath that we deserved to receive....and he satisfied God’s righteous judgment so we could be forgiven and receive eternal life instead. What a Savior. Pharoah? No comparison!
Have a great day!
