Exodus 34:9-11 NASB

"Behold, I am going to make a covenant.  Before all your people I will perform miracles which have not been produced in all the earth, nor among any of the nations; and all the people among whom you live will see the working of the LORD... Be sure to observe what I am commanding you this day..."

After their senseless act with "the golden calf", and only because Moses interceded for them, was Israel spared from destruction.  Martin Luther once stated that "If I were God and had been treated the way God was treated by the world, I would have kicked the world to pieces."  Those were not Moses' sentiments with the children of Israel.  He knew their hearts, but he prayed, pleading with God for his people, saying, "If now I have found favor in Your sight, O Lord, I pray, let the Lord go along in our midst, even though the people are so obstinate; and do pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us as Your own possession," (Exodus 34:9).  It's interesting that Moses addresses God as "Lord" (Adonai) instead of LORD (Jehovah), this time.  Lord, in small letters, signifies ownership or mastership, claiming unrestricted, unrestrained and unreserved obedience.  In other words, Moses knows "their obstinance" has to change.  This isn't a free ride into glory land.  In fact, as they later disobeyed at the "door" of Canaan, God refused these obstinate souls entrance.  If they were to know His blessings as LORD, they must surrender to His place as Lord.  This is a God who, more than anything, wants to pour out His blessing.  In response to Moses' prayer, God, moved by the great possibilities of obedient hearts, says, "Behold, I am going to make a covenant.  Before all your people I will perform miracles which have not been produced in all the earth, nor among any of the nations; and all the people among whom you live will see the working of the LORD... Be sure to observe what I am commanding you this day..."  Kantonen, in his book A Theology for Christian Stewardship (pp 73, 51), says, "God is Lord, but he is not a landlord who can be cheated, cajoled, and treated shabbily."   Walk before Him with all your heart and enjoy the fruit of the land He has promised.  He is for you!  Are you all for Him? 

Exodus 33:15-17 NASB

"I will also do this thing of which you have spoken; for you have found favor in My sight, and I have known you by name."

The making of a golden calf and the giving of the law was not a good mix.  The gods of Egypt and the God of Eternity could not be in the same camp.  When the children of Israel tried to mix the two, all heaven broke loose.  The LORD told Moses to basically get out of the way, "that my anger may burn against them, and that I may destroy them; and I will make of you a great nation (I'll start over again),"  (Exodus 32:10).  Just as much as hell and heaven don't mix, because they are in flat contradiction to each other, so the very characteristics that make up hell and heaven don't mix because they too are in flat out contradiction to each other.  Sin and God are mutually exclusive.  He just simply won't have it.  It was only by the intercession of Moses that "the Lord," as the writer notes, "changed His mind about the harm which He said He would do to the people," (32:14).  But it didn't change the consequences.  As Moses pleaded for God to forgive their sin, offering to even take their place, he said,  "please blot me out from Your book..." (32:32).  The LORD responded, "Whoever has sinned against Me, I will blot him out of my book,"  (32:33).  This was serious stuff.  The LORD was so angry that, even though He changed His mind about destroying the people, He said, "I will not go up in your midst, because you are an obstinate people, lest I destroy you on the way... I will send an angel before you..." (33:3, 2).  Moses can't stand the thought.  He pleads with the LORD, saying, "If Your presence does not go with us, do not lead us up from here.  For how then can it be known that I have found favor in Your sight, I and Your people?  Is it not by Your going with us, so that we and Your people, may be distinguished from all the other people who are upon the face of the earth?"  (33:15-16).  This kind of heart was too much for the LORD. He said "I will also do this thing of which you have spoken; for you have found favor in My sight, and I have known you by name," (33:17). Oh, the power of God's children!  They are known by God and, with them, He says, "My Presence will go with you!"  There is nothing that can take the place of God's presence.  Don't give it up for anything!  From the depths of your soul, fight for His Presence!  It's the only thing that distinguishes us from the rest of the world.  Though they may not know it, God's Presence with His children is the world's only hope.  Plead for the people around you.  Your prayers have power before the God of the universe.  What a tremendous thought!  What a sobering thought.

Exodus 29:42-46 NASB

"It shall be a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the doorway of the tent of meeting before the LORD, where I will meet with you, to speak to you there.  And I will meet there with the sons of Israel, and it shall be consecrated by My glory... And I will dwell among the sons of Israel and will be their God.  And they shall know that I am the LORD their God who brought them out of the land of Egypt, that I might dwell among them; I am the LORD their God."

As God gives Moses the instructions for all that relates to the Tabernacle, you can feel His excitement with its profound meaning concerning His presence with His people.  As He speaks of the sacrificial offerings on the altar (Exodus 29:38), you sense that He can hardly contain Himself as He says with deep emotion, "It shall be a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the doorway of the tent of meeting before the LORD, where I will meet with you, to speak to you there.  And I will meet there with the sons of Israel, and it shall be consecrated by My glory... And I will dwell among the sons of Israel and will be their God.  And they shall know that I am the LORD their God who brought them out of the land of Egypt, that I might dwell among them; I am the LORD their God," (29:42-46).  My oldest daughter, Anne, writing in her blog, said,  "I told Micah  (2 year old son) yesterday that he needed to choose between a jacket or a sweatshirt before leaving the house.  He said, “Ummmm.  I pick candy.”  Smart kid!  Oh, that we were as smart when it comes to supreme choices in life.  It ought to be our default every time, that when it comes to choices this world gives us, we should always  say, "I pick God."  Some look for His presents, but let's be those who look for His Presence because, the truth of the matter is, If we have God we have everything. 

Exodus 25:22 NASB

"And there I will meet with you, and from above the mercy seat...I will speak to you..." 

Much of the book of Exodus has to do with the Tabernacle of God and all that is related to it.  The sacredness of this place was huge in the minds of the Israelites.  The symbolism of this place should be as huge to us today.  With all of the details that went into the construction, objects, and worship related to the Tabernacle, there is one particular phrase that captures its whole meaning, filled with the promise of divine purpose.  It comes in the instructions for the making of what is called the "mercy seat".  Though we may not fully understand all of the different ornaments and figures surrounding it, none can escape the meaning of these words: "And there I will meet with you, and from above the mercy seat...I will speak to you..."  Just the very words "mercy seat" are filled with enormous meaning for us.  We know that it's only because of the mercy of God that He would ever meet with us or even speak to us.  The most incredible thing about His salvation is that He planned it all for us.  There rises out of His great heart an incomprehensible, unrestrainable and immeasurable love, and He has moved all of heaven and earth to bring us together again.  Charles Wesley, trying to grasp the enormity of the supreme act of God's love, asks the supreme question:  "Amazing love!  How can it be that Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?"  If you haven't yet, or if it's been some time since you've sat here, find this "mercy seat" and sit there long and often, drinking in His presence and promises for your life.

Exodus 23:20-23 NASB

"Behold, I am going to send an angel before you to guard you along the way, and to bring you into the place which I have prepared...My name is in him... My angel will go before you and bring you in to the land..."

Mixed in with the giving of the law are God's promises for the land.  Concerning the law, He says, "Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach... No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it,"  (Deuteronomy 30:11, 14).  Concerning the land, God says, "Behold, I am going to send an angel before you to guard you along the way, and to bring you into the place which I have prepared...My name is in him... My angel will go before you and bring you in to the land..."  God has never asked us to do anything but that He puts everything into it we need to make it happen.  He doesn't tantalize us with offers He knows are impossible.  He doesn't taunt us with promises He knows are undeliverable.  He doesn't tease us with blessings He knows are improbable.  Nor does He torment us with commands He knows are unreasonable. The way of the LORD, in His heart, can become the work of the LORD in our heart, if we'll give ourselves to the will of the LORD with all our heart.  If it doesn't happen, it won't be because He couldn't, but because we wouldn't.  This is what God was wanting the Children of Israel to learn both about His law for them, and about His land for them, which, as we noted, were always mixed together, for it was to be the law of the land. In God's mind and heart, both were possible because He gave them. In the same way, for our New Testament mind, both His words and our walk are to come together in our lives. He is not so mean as to hold His words out there, like a carrot at the end of the stick, telling us to do something that is impossible. Yet we have treated portions of the New Testament this way, laying some "aside" in our daily life because, as some have come to believe, "God knows we can never live that."  This is sad.  How have we come to this low level of thinking?  Especially, as Peter noted, "seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness... For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, in order that by them you might become partakers of the divine nature..." (II Peter 1:3-4).  Take the land my friend!  Take the land!  All of God is behind it:  "Behold, I am going to send an angel before you to guard you along the way, and to bring you into the place which I have prepared...My name is in him... My angel will go before you and bring you in to the land..."

Exodus 20:12 NASB

"Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged in the land which the LORD your God gives you

As we look at the promises of God, this is an espcially interesting promise that begs our attention in Exodus 20:12, and espcially so because the Apostle Paul makes special note of this in Ephesians 6:1-2, referring to it as "the first commandment with promise".  That, in and of itself, makes it quite important to us, but it's also interesting that Jesus Himself makes a lot of this particular commandment.  In that light, we need to note it with emphasis.  Why is this a stand-out when it comes to commandments?  Because parents are God's picture to us of our relationship with Him, and, like the picture of marriage, it's sacred to Him.  To harm this is to harm the truth behind it.  Here's where the "honor" comes in. What we call "The Lord's Prayer", though using a different word, has a similar thought when Jesus taught us to pray, "Hallowed be your name."  "Hallowed" is an action word and not just something we are to say.  It means "to sanctify His name" or, if you will, "honor Him",  through your very life.  People are to see that we hallow His name through our actions and attitudes. There is a Spanish phrase, often used in Latin America against children who are misbehaving.  They point the finger at them and call them "Mal Criado!"  It means, literally, "Raised badly!" They are actually pointing the finger at some parents because, by this, the child was putting them in bad light.  They were dishonoring and discrediting their parents.  Our behavior, among those of us who call ourselves Christians, points right back to God.  Some of us, in claiming His name, yet living in contradiciton to that name, make Him look bad.  How can this be?  How dare we discredit Him this way?  We will either honor Him or dishonor Him by what we say and do.  Ghandi said, "I like your Jesus, but I don't like your Christians."  What an indicement of much of Christianity.  It ought not to be so!  It's totally unacceptable to God.  As our Father, pictured in earthly parents, He says, "Honor your parents!"  "This is the first commandment with promise!" The implication is very clear.  If we don't, we won't live long in the land.   The security, strength  and blessing of our walk with God is in hallowing His name. Let's do it, in thought, word and deed, everyday.  The promises of this kind of relationship are enormous eternally.

Exodus 19:4-5 NASB

"You yourselves have seen...how I bore you on eagles's wings, and brought you to Myself.  Now then, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own possession among all the peoples... These are the words that you shall speak to the sons of Israel.'" 

As we come to Exodus 19, three months have passed since the Israelites had been delivered from their bondage.  A lot had happened in those three months. There was so much they were beginning to see about this God who had taken them out of Egypt. They often struggled, but the LORD was patient and pursuing.  Oh, how He wanted them to commit themselves to Him in trust and love.  And now, camping at the foot of Mt. Sinai, the Children of Israel were about to learn one of the most important things concerning their relationship with Him, and that was the giving of the law.  Here, most of us picture a court scene, with judge and judgement.  And, sadly, this is what many think of God, and so the tendancy is to push back on "the law".  But that was never God's heart.  "The Ten Commandments", as we have come to know them are actually more like wedding vows.  They're filled with the heart of love rather than law, as we have known law. Understood in this light, these are now not unwanted demands, but sheer delight. God, in His great love toward us, wants to enter into this beautiful and holy relationship with us.  You feel this as God prepares to give "the law".  He first meets with Moses on the mountain and tells him to go back down and tell the people, "You yourselves have seen...how I bore you on eagles's wings, and brought you to Myself.  Now then, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own possession among all the peoples... These are the words that you shall speak to the sons of Israel.'"  Little do we understand how intense God's heart is for us. And He looks for no less from us.  No groom or bride ever held back on the vows they were about to take, looking at them as something negative.  No!  They saw these vows as the very heart of their marriage.  The same is true when we understand "The Ten Commandmands" in this light.  The heart that understands this, responds with joy to the One they love, wanting to, longing to, and delighted to take "The Vows" (The Ten Commandments) in Exodus 20, without reservation, giving themselves fully to their God, gladly giving 100% commitment in love, faithfulness and purity all of their days.  That's just the nature of this kind of relationship and they know it and embrace it.  Why would anyone expect any less?  We shouldn't as husband and wife, nor should we with God. This is what it means to "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength."   People ought to note one thing about our relationship with Him:  "Behold, how they love one another."

Exodus 17:9, 11-13, 15 NASB

"'Choose men for us, and go out, fight against Amalek.  Tomorrow I will station myself on the top of the hill with the staff of  God in my hand...'" (17:9)  It came about when Moses held his hand up, that Israel prevailed and when he let his hand down Amalek prevailed.  But Moses' hands were heavy.  Then they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it; and Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other.  Thus his hands were steady until the sun set.  So Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people..." (17:11-13)  "[Then Moses] built an altar, and named it "The LORD is My Banner'", (17:15).

The wilderness experience, as Israel headed on a direct course to Canaan, was not a banner moment in their history.  About the only thing they excelled at was murmuring and complaining.  That kind of stuff is no fun to deal with anytime, but especially in a close, community environment. Food and water, or lack of it, were some of the main points of contention, and Moses, being the leader, was, in their eyes, responsible.  The writer uses words like "grumbled" and quarreled" when the people expressed their feelings against Moses, which was almost more than he could bear. Then, to top it all off, there came this sudden, sneak attack by a marauding group called the Amelikites (Exodus 17:8).  All of us have had those moments in our lives when things are piling up on us and, then, on top of it all, there comes a crisis.  It's a telling moment, and some don't handle it well at all, almost coming apart with the pressure.  We call it "The straw that broke the camel's back."  These experiences in life can quickly demoralize the spirit of a man, especially if we try to go it alone.  All of us need someone else to support us on our leaning side, especially in these times of great stress. Wise is the man who knows this.  Moses did.  The Joshuas and Hurs in our lives are God's precious gifts to us, to help hold us up when the battle goes long and hard.  With God's people to help sustain us in the battle, our hearts rise in gratitude to God who has again made a way of escape.  Here our hearts move from weariness to worship.  We feel the help of God to keep going.  With his spirit revived, "he built an altar, and named it "The LORD is My Banner'", (17:15).  A banner was a signal to the people to rally to God and His cause. It stood for the One who delivers, or who gives victory. Remember, these were the "grumblers".  Moses was contradicting this spirit with a different spirit.  Oh, there is something about someone who knows the LORD and who knows victory in their life.  They are the people whom "grumblers" desperately need to hear.  May God help us to be that voice that gets people focused on God and His cause instead of their own wants, needs and feelings.  Amen!

Exodus 15:26 NASB

"If you will give earnest heed to the voice of the LORD your God, and do what is right in His sight, and give ear to His commandments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians; for I, the LORD, am your healer."

Have you ever gone three days without water?  This would be to suffer.  That's what happened to the Israelites as they made their way from the Red Sea into the wilderness of Shur.  They went three days and found no water (Exodus 15:22).  It doesn't make for happy campers. And then, when they finally found water, it was so bitter they couldn't drink it, which gave it the name "Marah" (bitterness).  But there was more than water that was bitter.  There was a bitterness of heart, which always finds someone to blame.  The writer says, "the people began to grumble against Moses, saying, 'What shall we drink?'" (15:24).  One would think they had good reason because, after all, three days without water is a desperate situation.  Why does God, so often, let us get to the point of desperation?  The writer gives only one reason here, and I think it's probably the same reason most every time.  Just this:  "There He tested them," (15:25).  Often times, God will allow us to come to the end of the rope to test our hearts, to see what's in it. The easy times don't prove anything.  But hard times have a way of exposing the heart's true makeup.  For some reason, God wants to see what comes out under pressure, but I imagine He also wants us to see it as well.  There's nothing more disturbing than failure to act as we claim we would act.  It should create a different kind of desperation, not of deliverance from the circumstances but of deliverance from the sickness of our heart.  What comes up out of your heart under pressure? The question is, "can God do something about it?"  The promise to Israel is, "I, the LORD, am your healer."  As God "healed" the bitter water, and as God helps us in a bitter world, so God wants to heal the bitter heart.  He is a wonderful God, always doing what is best for His own.  The joy is, He can.  We have every right, not to grumble, but to come to Him in prayer for the deep hurts and needs of our life.  He wants to bring healing that goes as deep as the soul, for He said, "I, the LORD, am your healer."  Take Him at His word. 

Exodus 15:1-21 NASB

"I will sing to the LORD (Hebrew, YAH), for He is highly exalted... The LORD is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation;  This is my God, and I will praise Him...I will extol Him... The LORD is His name... Your right hand, O LORD, is majestic in power, your right hand shatters the enemy.  And in the greatness of your excellence you overthrow those who rise up against you... Who is like you among the gods, O LORD?  Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in praises, working wonders?  ...In your loving-kindness you have led the people whom you have redeemed; In your strength you have guided them to your holy habitation... You will bring them and plant them in the mountain of your inheritance, the place, O LORD, which you have made for your dwelling, the sanctuary, O LORD, which your hands have established.  The LORD shall reign forever and ever."

We've all had those moments when, because of a sudden shift in circumstances, our emotions swung from numbing despair to incredible delight. And the greater the despair, the greater the delight. That was the case with the sons of Israel when, with their backs up against the Red Sea, and staring death in the face as Pharaoh's army stormed down on them, all of a sudden the waters part giving them a way of escape. Safe on the other side, they watched as the sea swallowed up the despair.  Can you imagine what they must have felt?  I would have broken out with The Hallelujah Chorus.  Well, they did break out in song; with something akin to the depth of The Hallelujah Chorus, for it demanded no less.  We desperately need a revival of song.  We need a song filled with the richness of deliverance and delight that comes only from the LORD.  These aren't the little ditties we so often hear these days in our churches. No!  These are songs formed on the knowledge of our helplessness and on the awareness of His holiness. Read it again and listen to its richness, its depth and its sense of Divine Reality. The LORD wants to be our strength and song, which wells up from within our inner being because we are so keenly aware of His grace toward us.  This is where our soul says, "Sing to the LORD, for He has triumphed gloriously," (15:21).  O Lord, let me sing again!

Exodus 14:13-16 NASB

[Moses said] "Do not fear!  Stand by and see the salvation of the LORD which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will never see them again forever.  The Lord will fight for you while you keep silent."  [Then the LORD said] "Tell the sons of Israel to go forward.  And as for you (Moses), lift up your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, and the sons of Israel shall go through the midst of the sea on dry land."

Chapters 5-14 of Exodus give us a very descriptive account of the self-rule, stubbornness and stupidity of the sinful heart.  When God told Moses, Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for under compulsion (literally, by a strong hand) he shall let [the Children of Israel] go, and under compulsion he shall drive them out of the land (Egypt)," (6:1), He wasn't kidding.  As Pharaoh stiffened his resolve, God brought plague after plague on Egypt.  As the blows intensified, Pharaoh would soften for awhile, but then, once the plague passed, self-rule, stubbornness and stupidity took over again.  Even when he finally let the people go, Pharaoh lost it again and went after them.  This time, it looked like evil would win.  The people were caught between the Red Sea (Literally, Reed Sea) and Pharaoh's army, and Pharaoh was bearing down on them.  In their panic, they turn on Moses, blaming him for their plight.  We can feel for them because we know how awful these moments can be, when our backs are up against the wall and we see no way out.  Who hasn't panicked under these circumstances, wanting to blame God for their situation.  It seems to be the default of the heart.  But God wants to change the default.  In these moments we need a good memory and we need a good man.  If we are God's people, memory should download a history of God's faithful help to us.  If we'lll think about it, any of us can recall the help of God down through our lives. Let's not forget it now.  And thank God for a good man, a Moses, in times like this.  Sometimes, under the circumstances, they irritate us, but we need their voice of faith;  men and women who, like Moses, stand up in the face of the impossible and declare defiantly, Do not fear!  Stand by and see the salvation of the LORD which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will never see them again forever.  The Lord will fight for you while you keep silent."  Then the LORD said to Moses, "Tell the sons of Israel to go forward.  And as for you, lift up your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, and the sons of Israel shall go through the midst of the sea on dry land," (14:15-16).  Under the most difficult situations, God's voice moves us forward, and, as we take hold of His words and hold to His ways, courage comes again.  Stay true my friend.  He will make a way. Yes, He will make a way through the waters!

Exodus 3:10-17 NASB

"'...come now, and I will send you to Pharaoh, so that you may bring My people, the sons of Israel out of Egypt.'  But Moses said to God, 'Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?'  And [God] said, 'Certainly I will be with you, and this shall be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you:  when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God at this mountain... Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'  And God, furthermore, said to Moses, 'Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, 'The LORD, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.'  This is My name forever...'  Say to them...'I am indeed concerned about you and what has been done to you in Egypt.  So...I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt...to a land flowing with milk and honey.'" 

The Unfailing God!  This is a profound truth, holding Divine Power and ,what A.W. Tozer calls "Divine Priority", in its very pronouncement. "The Unfailing God" is an unconditional eternal certainty. Tragically, this is a truth that has lost its meaning for many of us.   And truth that has lost meaning for any of us, loses its potency in any of us, causing us to move to lower levels of thinking about our possibilities with God or God's purposes with us.  It seems that most of God's efforts with man are spent raising the level of our theology in relation to what He can do in and through any man who takes hold of what He said.  This was the struggle with Moses as God called him to come to the aid of the children of Israel.  But what God has purposed is promised, for this God, who does not lie nor can He fail, will fulfill His promise with those who take hold of the promise, or make God and His purposes a "Divine Priority".  That's all God was asking of Moses.  That's all He asks of any of us.  But that means ALL!  And it's that "ALL" , that God requires of all of us, where so many of us choke.  "That's a hard pill to swallow," so some of us just hold it for awhile to spit it out later.  No wonder we languish.  And no wonder, as with Moses, the Lord's anger burns against us (4:14).  But thank God, as with Moses, He presses the matter with us, raising up a John Wesley here and there to remind us of what God has said and what He can do.  These are those who stand to their feet and cry again, YES HE CAN!  

Exodus 2:23-25 NASB

"the sons of Israel sighed because of the bondage, and they cried out; and their cry for help because of their bondage rose up to God. So God heard their groaning; and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  And God saw the sons of Israel, and God took notice of them (lit., and God knew them)."  

As the years went by, the conditions in Egypt worsened for the children of Israel.  Their oppression found no relief, not even in the death of the last ruler.  Interestingly, though unseen by immediate participants, God is already putting together the players for His next move.  A deliverer would come right out of the very Nile that Pharaoh was using to drown the newborn Hebrew babies.  Out-foxed by a Hebrew mother and sister, Pharaoh, without knowing it, would raise this child (Moses) in his own palace, giving him the best that education could offer in that day, free of charge. The Hebrew mother would nurture Moses in the ways of God.  Oh the power of spiritual nurture!  It's a force to be reckoned with, and the world can't hold a candle to it. But back to our story.  While Moses is growing into a man of character, conviction, and courage, the writer says "the sons of Israel sighed because of the bondage, and they cried out; and their cry for help because of their bondage rose up to God. So God heard their groaning; and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  And God saw the sons of Israel, and God took notice of them (lit., and God knew them)," (Exodus 2:23-25).  Never think that God has forgotten or that He is out of the picture.  Never! He knows His people, hears their prayers, and sees their plight.  He is always actively working His next move.  You can count on Him.  Wait and watch closely.  He's there, putting the stage together for the next scene, and, like the writer of Exodus, you'll one day write the story of how God moved in your life.  Keep your pen and pad handy.  Ah, yes!  About Moses....

Exodus 1:18, 20-21 NASB

"So God was good to the midwives, and the [children of Israel] multiplied and became very mighty (or numerous).  And it came about because the midwives feared (revered) God that He established households for them." 

Though we don't live by a religion that has to appease God, there are some things that get His attention every time.  And there's nothing like the attention of God!  As "the sons of Israel," as promised by God to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, "increased (lit., swarmed) greatly, and multiplied, and became exceedingly mighty (or numerous), so that the land was filled with them," (Exodus 1:7), the ruler of Egypt began to worry that they could cause Egypt trouble.  In his paranoia, he began to afflict them with hard labor, "but the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and the more they spread out," (1:12).  So the king of Egypt intensified their suffering, making "their lives bitter with hard labor in mortar and bricks and all kinds of labor in the field, all their labors which they rigorously imposed on them," (1:14).  And if that wasn't enough, in a desperate attempt to cut the strength of Israel down, he tried to employ some Hebrew midwives to kill the baby boys as they were born to the Hebrew women.  This, he figured, would demoralize and depopulate the people at the same time.  But in this madness, he didn't figure on the likes of a couple of midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah, and the other was named Purah, whom the writer says "feared (revered) God,and did not do as the king of Egypt had commanded them, but let the boys live..."  All it takes is just a few people who have the courage to do what is right and it can mess Satan's schemes up real quick.  In his madness, he doesn't count on this kind of courage, but this has been the undoing of many of his plans down through the years.  These are a people whose sense of right isn't determined by the surrounding culture and conflicts but by God alone.  They don't make decisions based on the fear of man.  They make decisions based on the reality of God.  This, and this alone, is their guiding compass, and God knows them well.  And thus the writer notes:  "So God was good to the midwives, and the people multiplied and became very mighty (or numerous).  And it came about because the midwives feared (revered) God that He established households for them."  However God chooses to express it, there is nothing greater than His attention and affection.  When you live under this umbrella, you have made a place of strength for your whole "household".  And we need this stronghold because Satan doesn't quit. Through the "Pharaoh's" of this world, he will look for other ways to destroy God's people:  "Then Pharaoh commanded all his people, saying, 'Every son who is born you are to cast into the Nile, and every daughter you are to keep alive,'" (1:22).  And this is where the story of God really gets interesting.  This is the story of Exodus!  So read on and learn His ways.  You'll soon discover this great truth about God:  He knows Satan's schemes, and, like a Master Chess Player, He can take Satan's evil intents and outmaneuver him every time, by using even the evil to work against him, for His glory and our good.  You'll want to stick with a God like this because He never loses!

Genesis 50:22-26 NASB

"Now Joseph stayed in Egypt, he and his father's household, and Joseph lived one hundred and ten years.... And Joseph said to his brothers, 'I am about to die, but God will surely take care of you, and bring you up from this land to the land which He promised on oath to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob.'  Then Joseph made the sons of Israel swear, saying, 'God will surely take care of you, and you shall carry my bones up from here.'  So Joseph died at the age of one hundred and ten years; and he was embalmed and placed in a coffin in Egypt."

As we come to the last chapter in Genesis, this passage is a marvelous account of Joseph's faith in the face of death.  Here's a man who has lived out his faith under extreme suffering on one hand and extreme success on the other, but whose faith was affected by neither.  You see, his faith wasn't determined by circumstances, but was rooted in God alone, no matter the circumstances.  Any other kind of faith will not only be tossed about, it will finally be tossed out.  We would all do well to pray, as William Bathurst expressed, "O for a faith that will not shrink, tho' pressed by every foe, that will not tremble on the brink of any earthly woe!  That will not murmur nor complain beneath the chastening rod, but, in the hour of grief or pain, will lean upon its God...Lord give such a faith as this; And then, whate'er may come, I'll taste, e'en now, the hallowed bliss of an eternal home.  Amen."  This faith looks to the ways of God and declares His goodness. It says, "Yes He cares!" This faith looks at the word of God and declares His greatness. It says "Yes He can!" And so, on his death bed, Joseph's faith looks above and smiles because it can see ahead and, in essence, he says to his brothers, "There's another chapter to this story God is writing and I aim to be a part of it!  God will surely take care of you, and you shall carry my bones up from here."   Some four hundred years later, the children of Israel carried Joseph's bones with them out of Egypt and into Canaan.  He, being dead, still spoke faith to those who came behind him.  When we're dead and gone, what will we still speak to those who come behind us?

Genesis 48:15-16 NASB

"The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has been my shepherd all my life to this day, the angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads..."

He knew of his grandfather Abraham's walk with God, and he had seen this same set of the heart in his father Isaac.  He was not without the blessing of testimony.  But Jacob was also a man who had come to understand the involvement of God in the affairs of his life through personal experience. He had faced some rough waters along the way.  No one could deny that his years had been filled with the toll of emotional strains, whether of extreme distress on the one hand, or extreme relief on the other.  This was especially true in the "loss" and then restoration of his favorite son Joseph.  Still reeling under the tremendous emotion of this heart wrenching reunion with his son, after so many years of mourning,  Jacob, in response to Pharaoh's question about his age, says, "The years of my sojourning are one hundred and thirty; few and unpleasant (lit., evil) have been the years of my life," (Genesis 47:9).  But as Jacob approaches the end of his life, he doesn't view this "evil" that had engulfed his life for a time, as a waste in his life but actually as the great wonder of his life.  It was here where he witnessed the presence and plan of God and he embraced it as from the hand of God, all of which have made him a deeply thoughtful and grateful man.  Alexander Solzhenitsyn, writing of the "evil" of his own prison experience, but knowing its awakening power of truth and God in his life, says with deep understanding, "Bless you prison".  So it is with Jacob.  As he approaches the end of his life, taking opportunity to bless Joseph and his two sons, Jacob speaks these profound words:  "The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has been my shepherd all my life to this day, the angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads..." (Genesis 48:15-16).  What a testimony of insight and clear understanding of a God who knows the way that we take, and concluding with conviction that, no matter the hardships along the way, His ways are always redeeming, making sure that all things work together for good. May we be able to bless "the lads" with this same testimony.  It's what our children need to hear, see, and know, more than anything else, as they make their way through their own lives.  We dare not leave them full of bitterness which poisons the heart.  We should bless them with the wonders of God's ways. What testimony are you leaving with your children?

Genesis 39:2, 21 and 9; 45:5-8; 50:19-20 NASB

"And the LORD was with Joseph" (39:2). "But the LORD was with Joseph" (39:21).  "How then could I do this great evil, and sin against God," (39:9). "God sent me before you to preserve life...to keep you alive by a great deliverance...it was not you who sent me here, but God... Do not be afraid, for am I in God's place?  And as for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive," (45:5-8; 50:19-20).

Next to the story of Jesus, I think the most beautiful story in scripture is the story of Joseph. The writer of Genesis gives him a lot of coverage (Genesis 37-50), and rightfully so.  He's a key figure of transition in the history of Israel.  There's so much that can be said about this man.  He was, without a doubt, godly qualities and godly character personified. We could bring him down a notch or two, I suppose, for his lack of wisdom in sharing about some self-serving dreams, but, frankly, all concerned would not have been able to later put two and two together if they hadn't been told these dreams.  There's no doubt they came from God and God was working a plan.  There's the catch.  Except for some dreams, God hadn't let anyone in on His plan, much less Joseph, the key player in this plan.  Never outmaneuvered by the enemy, the jealousy of his brothers, their dreadful scheme to rid themselves of this "special" son of Jacob, and their selling him into slavery, become the very props God uses to fulfill His great plan. We can only imagine... No, we really can't imagine what Joseph must have felt in those awful moments in his life.  Where is God in all of this?  Have you ever had something of that kind of feeling?  But the writer says, under the worst conditions possible in Joseph's life, "And the LORD was with Joseph" (39:2).  And again, when things had gone from bad to worse, the writer records, But the LORD was with Joseph" (39:21).  That's easy for the writer to say, but did Joseph feel this?  What do we do in times like this?  Well, one thing we know about Joseph is that, whether he could feel God or not, under the worst conditions, his heart was for God!  The force of his character, no matter how sweet the temptation to cave in to sin, was found in these powerful, staying and gripping words that came from his heart:  "How then could I do this great evil, and sin against God," (39:9).  Where would your heart take you in the trials and temptations and the twists and turns of Egypt? Even when he had a chance to boast of his dream telling ability, he lets it be know that "Interpretations belong to God".  He answered Pharaoh saying, "It is not in me; God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer".  And finally, even when he could have turned against his brothers, Joseph humbly declares, "God sent me before you to preserve life...to keep you alive by a great deliverance...it was not you who sent me here, but God... Do not be afraid, for am I in God's place?  And as for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive," (45:5-8; 50:19-20).  The direction of Joseph's heart, with full face toward God, kept him from the sin of immorality, the sin of pride, and the sin of bitterness.  In our world, where so many excuses are made for our failures, what an amazing testimony of holiness under pressure.  Yes He can!  Therefore, yes you can!  Amen!

Genesis 35:1-7 NASB

"Then God said to Jacob, 'Arise, go up to Bethel and live there; and make an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.  So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him...let us arise and go up to Bethel; and I will make an altar there to God, who answered me in the day of my distress, and has been with me wherever I have gone.'  ...So Jacob came to Bethel...and he built an altar there, and called the place El-bethel, because there God had revealed Himself to him, when he fled from his brother."

One of those beautiful stories in scripture is when Jacob made his way back to Canaan after years away from this his homeland.  It has not been a good start.  His sons have had a horrific run-in with the inhabitants of the land, that didn't bode well for the family.  Jacob is worried, fearing reprisal.  Sometimes, in the heaviness of your heart, it's good to go back to that place of first encounter with God. With his heart full of old memories and present worries, Jacob humbly acknowledges the LORD's care and renames this place of first encounter, from "Bethel" to  "El-bethel"; From  "The house of God" to "the God of the house of God."  Before, it was a place, but now it was a Person, a Presence. Many remember a place (maybe a church or an experience), but so few go on to really know this God.  Certainly, there is something special about a place of encounter with God, and Jacob himself later calls another place "Bethel" (35:15).  But there's more.  Much more! Yes, these places hold significance in our lives and we need to remember them, but something had happened in Jacob in his last encounter with God, as he was about to face his brother Esau, that affected this particular moment.  He had changed from "Me" to "Him".  Now it was all about Him.  This is a huge shift.  So few make it, but there is nothing more important to our Christian life than to make this shift.  This is where the adventure of our walk with God really begins.  A.W. Tozer called it The Knowledge of the Holy.  Do you really know Him?  Or is He still just something about a place in your life, as somewhere we know but not Someone we know?  Get to know Him!  You'll enjoy the walk!

Genesis 32:29 NASB

"And He blessed him there."

After prospering under his time with his uncle, Laban, Jacob begins a new venture.  God has blessed him with family and means, and now, with the leading and promise of the LORD who said (Genesis 31:3),  "Return to the land of your fathers...and I will be with you," Jacob gathers his family, packs up and heads back to Canaan.  But there's a huge problem.  Jacob knows he's heading back toward his brother Esau and, the last he remembered, Esau wanted to kill him for what Jacob had done to him.  There's nothing more volatile than the bitterness of a brother offended.  The possibility of this encounter scared Jacob to death. And sure enough, as soon as Esau learned that Jacob was coming back, he came his way with 400 men.  "Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed..." (Genesis 32:7).  Seeking to somehow appease Esau, Jacob sends droves of livestock on ahead as gifts, hoping that when they finally met, Esau would accept him.  Sending his family on ahead of him as well, the writer says, "Then Jacob was left alone..." (32:24).  This is usually where God has to get us when He wants to do a great work in us.  And that night, God worked Jacob over, but only to bless him:  "And He blessed him there," (32:29).  So significant was this moment that God changed Jacob's name to Israel and Jacob called the place Peniel (The face of God), "for he said, 'I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been preserved," (32:30).  God doesn't "work us over" to harm us, but rather, if we'll let Him, to bless us--to get us to that place where we surrender all to Him, with deep, deep submission that knows we have been spared from the follies of self-rule.  We no longer run the show, but now God holds the reigns of our heart. Jacob had come face to face with himself, face to face with His God, and now he must come face to face with his brother.  This is sometimes the most difficult of all God wants to do in us, but we cannot escape our responsibility to our brother no matter how difficult.  No one can promise peace in these encounters, but it is important to pursue peace, whether we win it or not.  Jacob was fortunate, and how we wish these moments would always turn out like it did between Jacob and Esau (33:4), where "Esau ran to meet him and embraced him, and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept," but we can know that we did the right thing and keep peace with God.  Is there an Esau in your life that you need to go to?  First, make sure you have come face to face with yourself and with your God.  Begin with what is in you, and then you'll be better prepared to deal with what is in them.  Remember, in all that is required of us, God said, "I will be with you."  And that's a promise!  Step out on it with confidence.

Genesis 28:12-22 NASB

"And [Jacob] had a dream, and behold, a ladder was set on the earth with its top reaching to heaven, and behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.  And behold, the LORD stood above it and said, 'I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie, I will give it to you and to your descendants.  Your descendants whall also be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread out to the west and the east and to the north and to the south; and in you and in your descendants shall all the families of the earth be blessed. And, behold, I am with you, and will bring you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you."

It goes without saying, that no one has any greater effect over another person than a parent with their child.  Only eternity will tell the full story of the blessing or harm parents have brought to the world by their influence, whether positively or negatively, on their children's lives.  With all that Abraham was, the most impressive thing about him was the testimony he left with his children about God and his relationship with God.  This carried over into Isaac's life.  Their testimony was so clear and so strong that, when God wanted someone to understand who He was, He staked the very knowledge of His name and nature on these men, referring to Himself as "the God of Abraham" and "the God of Isaac".  May God help us to so live that our names can be used to lift up the greatness and goodness of God.  That's how God reached Jacob's self-absorbed heart, as he was fleeing from the mess self-absorbed hearts can create.  Out in the darkness of his own making, Jacob seeks sleep.  And while he slept, God appeared to him in a dream. Jacob was so impacted by this moment that he called the place "Bethel" (The house of God).  It would take him some time, and another traumatic encounter with God, to learn that the promises of God, as given to Abraham and Isaac, are not for self consumption but were meant to impact the world.  For now, he could only see within his little circle called "ME", and he vowed, saying "If God will be with me and will keep me on this journey that I take, and will give me food to eat and garments to wear, and I return to my father's house in safety, then the LORD will be my God...and of all You give me I will surely give a tenth to You," (28:20-22).  Eugene Peterson, in his book Eat This Book, says we have replaced the Sovereign God with sovereign self:  "My holy wants, my holy needs and my holy feelings."  This has been the vampire of the church, sucking the lifeblood out of the very heart of mission outreach, which is always OTHERS!  God help us! He can! So that now it's not about me but it's about God's purpose through me: "In you and in your descendants shall all the families of the earth be blessed."  Amen!

Genesis 26:24-25 NASB

"'I am the God of your father Abraham; Do not fear, for I am with you...'  So he built an altar there, and called upon the name of the LORD, and pitched his tent there; and there Isaac's servants dug a well."

The work place can often be the most difficult place for a believer.  In the pecking order of this social structure, the believer, because of their quiet and reserved spirit, can sometimes become the brunt of an unbeliever's insecurity, which is usually masked in cowardly "bravado" against those who won't retaliate. What is the believer to do in these circumstances?  With the help of God, keep working!  Your hard work won't always make everyone happy, but, in the end, it will serve you well, before God and man. This is the story of Isaac with Abimelech, king of the Philistines.  The need was water, which meant digging wells, but "all the wells which his father's servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines stopped up by filling them with earth... Was this reason to quit?  No!  "Then Isaac dug again the wells of water which they had dug in the days of his father Abraham... But when Isaac's servants dug in the valley and found there a well of flowing water, the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with the herdsmen of Isaac, saying, 'The water is ours! ...Then they dug another well, and they quarreled over it too..."   (Genesis 26: 15-21).  Have you ever felt like you're faith has been used and abused?  In a working world of dog-eat-dog, the Christian faces his greatest challenges.  This is where the rubber meets the road.  Will the faith I hold really hold under this kind of pressure?  Here is where the word of God is especially precious.  Under these circumstances, the LORD appeared to Isaac and said, "'I am the God of your father Abraham; Do not fear, for I am with you...'  So he built an altar there, and called upon the name of the LORD, and pitched his tent there; and there Isaac's servants dug a well," (Genesis 26:24-25).  Listen weary soul.  Don't fear. Take courage. Your faithfulness to your responsibility will not go unnoticed.  The LORD knows exactly where you are and He won't leave you alone.   Look at the end of this story:  Abimelech came to Isaac and said, in Genesis 26:28, "We see plainly that the LORD has been with you," and he made a covenant of peace with Isaac. Then the writer makes this interesting comment:  "Now it came about on the same day, that Isaac's servants came in and told him about the well which they had dug, and said to him, 'We have found water,'" (26:32).  So, my friend, keep digging!  Faithfulness will finally produce cool, sweet water.  God will see to that!

Genesis 26:1-6 NASB

"Now there was a famine in the land... [but] the LORD...said [to Isaac], 'Do not go down to Egypt; stay (dwell) in the land of which I shall tell you.  Sojourn in the land, and I will be with you and bless you, for to you and your descendants I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath which I swore to your father Abraham.  And I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven, and will give your descendants all these lands; and by your descendants all the nations of the earth shall be blessed; because Abraham obeyed Me and kept my charge, My commandments, My satutes and My laws."

Abraham had died.  Would Isaac stay true to the God of his father?  The risks that God takes as He works out His purposes through human vessels, but the tremendous trust He puts in us, speak to God's deep belief in the human spirit. He thinks we can!   And, as is so often the case,  God's promises don't come to us in life's ease, but they come in the ruggedness of life's reversals, testing the very fibre of our faith. It was in the worst of times that God appeared to Isaac.  The writer, in Genesis 26:1, simply records, "Now there was a famine in the land..." In this land, this was about as bleak as things could get.  But when everything in Isaac screamed "run!", God said "stay".  "Dwell in the land."  Basically, what God was saying was, "Trust Me; not Egypt."  The lesson we all must learn is that, as appealing as Egypt can look to a hungry stomach, we dare not let Egypt become our goal.  Many souls have died in Egypt.  God's voice comes as clear as ever, "Stay in the land of which I shall tell you."  I like verse 6.  It just simply states,  "So Isaac stayed in Gerar."  God had found another man!  They're still around.  God bless them!

Genesis 25:11 NASB

 "And it came about after the death of Abraham, that God blessed Issac."

Dr. Dennis Kinlaw likes to point out that all of us are the result of someone else, and that what is true physically is also true spiritually.  None of us is here as a result of our own doing.  Like a parent with their child, someone else had to put a lot of attention into our coming to know the Lord.  One of the most impressive things in the story of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and on, even with its imperfections along the way, was the sure transmission of the knowledge of God from one generation to another.  The beauty in this transmission of truth, from one generation to the next is, as we are faithful to do our part, God is all over it.  As we give ourselves to the salvation of our children, family and friends, we can have the assurance that He will pour Himself into this process, connecting what we have done with who He is.  This is what you see with Abraham and Isaac.  There's an interesting verse in Genesis 25:5 that simply states, "Now Abraham gave all that he had to Isaac".  There's the key spiritually.  Abraham had given his all to someone else.  He had so lived that when he died God didn't die with him, but God had been planted in someone else, and Genesis 25:11 simply records the natural result of this beautiful process:  "And it came about after the death of Abraham, that God blessed Issac."  Salvation comes to others when we become more interested in others than ourselves.  The Apostle Paul nailed down the  tremendous significance of this truth when he wrote to the church at Philippi, "Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind let each of you regard one another as more important than himself; do not merely ("merely" is not in the original) look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others" (2:3-4). Wow!  This lies at the very heart of missions:  OTHERS!  Can you say this?  Someone else's life depends on it.

Genesis 25:8 NASB

"Abraham died in a ripe (good) old age and satisfied with life"

That holds tremendous promise for those of us who are headed down that same road.  And let's never forget it, we are headed down that same road. We just need to be fully aware of the road we travel, never forgetting that death finally takes us all, but it doesn't have to take us all the same. The Psalmist noted the difference when he said, "Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of His godly ones." They don't die unnoticed because God didn't go unnoticed in their lives, down through their lives.  They blessed the name of the Lord their God and God blessed them with His presence, provision and promises.  Life took on significance because the giver of life gave them significance.  No wonder John Wesley said "God's people die well."  Does that mean God's people don't suffer?  Absolutely not!  We have never been promised ease throughout our life, but we have been promised peace throughout our life, in Him.  There is a difference, a huge difference, and it makes a difference.  The promise of God to Abraham, that He would multiply his descendants, proved true many times over, but the constant admonition to these descendants was, "Know the God of your father Abraham".  Jesus angered Abraham's descendants by stressing that this had nothing to do with religion but had everything to do with relationship, and that this had nothing to do with the blood of Abraham but had everything to do with the blood of Jesus.  Know your blood line!  

Genesis 24:7 and 27 NASB

"The LORD, the God of heaven, who took me from my father's house and from the land of my birth, and who spoke to me, and who swore to me, saying, 'To your descendants I will give this land', He will send His angel before you, and you will take a wife for my son from there," (24:7).  "[Upon finding that wife, Abraham's servant] bowed low and worshiped the LORD.  And he said, 'Blessed be the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken His lovingkindness and His truth toward my master; as for me, the LORD has guided me in the way..." (24:27).


Genesis 24:1 says, "Now Abraham was old, advanced in age; and the LORD had blessed Abraham in every way," but there was still one thing on his mind before he died:  the need for a wife for Isaac.  In his culture, it was the father's place to find his son a wife, and Abraham was intent on the right choice.  With his eye still on the eternal, knowing God's hand was on Isaac for things far beyond the temporal, he aimed to hit the mark of God's plan.  He asked his long time and deeply trusted servant, Eliezer (I'm assuming this servant is the Eliezer of Genesis 15:2), to go back to the land they had come from, and to his Abraham's relatives, to find a wife for Isaac.  Can you imagine?  This would be the extreme blind date.  As Eliezer wondered about the odds of a woman's willingness to leave her land and family and go to someone she had never met, Abraham responds with a seasoned faith, saying, "The LORD, the God of heaven, who took me from my father's house and from the land of my birth, and who spoke to me, and who swore to me, saying, 'To your descendants I will give this land', He will send His angel before you, and you will take a wife for my son from there," (24:7).  God was the author of his life and God knows how to write a story. Filled with the things that make life a true adventure, with wonderful suspense and surprises, God's ways have often caused some to look for easier reading. But, like his master, Abraham, Eliezer stayed with the story. And, like Abraham said, "The LORD, the God of heaven...He will..."  And He always does!  Eliezer, seeing God's hand in this story, and upon his incredible encounter with Rebekah, Isaac's future wife, "bowed low and worshiped the LORD.  And he said, 'Blessed be the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken His lovingkindness and His truth toward my master; as for me, the LORD has guided me in the way..." (24:27).  The NKJV says, "As for me, being on the way, the LORD led me..."  What a wonderful promise and truth for anyone intent on knowing and doing the will of God.  Just "be on the way", or, if you will, stay with the story. Let God be the author of your life.  This, of course, means we have to first settle the issue of His authority in our life.  Settle it!  Settle it!  Some sad stories come out of unsurrendered lives.

Genesis 22:16-17 NASB

 "By Myself I have sworn, declares the LORD, because you have done this thing and have not withheld your son, your only son, indeed I will greatly bless you, and I will greatly multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your seed shall possess the gate of their enemies.  In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice." 

As we view the scene of Abraham's ultimate surrender, a supreme obedience to the voice of God to sacrifice his only son, whom he loved, and as we witness the staying hand of God right at the last moment, intervening with a sacrifice of His own, we see a great God and a grateful man coming together in an awe-inspiring moment.  Heaven has come down to earth. Concerning this moment,  A.W. Tozer writes:  "The old man of God lifted his head to respond to the Voice, and stood there on the mount strong and pure and grand, a man marked out by the Lord for special treatment, a friend and favorite of the Most High.  Now he was a man wholly surrendered, a man utterly obedient, a man who possessed nothing... I have said that Abraham possessed nothing.  Yet was not this poor man rich?  Everything he had owned before was his still to enjoy:  sheep, camels, herds, and goods of every sort.  He had also his wife and his friends, and best of all he had his son Isaac safe by his side.  There is the sweet theology of the heart which can be learned only in the school of renunciation.  The books on systematic theology overlook this, but the wise will understand," (The Pursuit of God).  Because of one man's full surrender, in total obedience to the voice of God, the nations of the earth are blessed.  The same principle holds true in each of our lives.  As Tozer so aptly put it:   "...our whole future will be conditioned by the choice we make," (Ibid).  Richard Foster is right in saying, "This is Tozer at his best calling us to the obedience of the cross life, which he reminds us is 'the blessedness of possessing nothing,'" (Spiritual Classics, 117). Bless you, Abraham! 

Genesis 22:13-14 NASB

"Then Abraham raised his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him was a ram caught in the thicket by his horns; and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the place of his son.  And Abraham called the name of that place, The Lord Will Provide; as it is said to this day, 'In the Mount of the LORD it will be provided." 

One of the most gripping stories in all of scripture is the story of Abraham's response to God's call to sacrifice his "promised" son, Isaac.  Though this act could only be fully understood in that time and culture, its emotion can be appreciated in any time and culture.  Galvanized by hard lessons, so great was Abraham's faith, commitment and confidence in his LORD now that, even in the turmoil of unanswered questions, he knew his God would make a way of escape.  Even if it had to be a resurrection!  The writer to the Hebrews says, "By faith, Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Issac; and he who had received the promises was offering up his only begotten son...He considered that God is able to raise men even from the dead..." (11:17-19  NASB).  And, from this gripping act of raw faith, we are blessed with the best of the story, giving us a lesson in the provision of God like we will never forget.  And hundreds of years later, when our Father gave His only begotten Son, we can see and feel the incredible depths of this provision on our own behalf.  Aren't you glad to belong to this God and to a God like this?  Does your faith allow for the best of the story?

Genesis 18:14 NASB

"Is anything too difficult for the Lord?" 

A son had been promised.  God had said it and He kept repeating it, but, if this were to happen through Sarah, both Abraham and Sarah were now way too old.  It seemed that, no matter how often God said it, humanly speaking, this was impossible.  The writer of Genesis puts it matter of fact:  "Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in age;  Sarah was past childbearing" (18:11).   And when Sarah, listening at the tent door, heard some "heavenly" visitors say she would have son by that time next year, she laughed  (the laughter of "justified" cynicism) to herself, saying, "After I have become old, shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?" (18:12).  Ah!  But this is God's territory and He counters with a dramatic question:  "Is anything too difficult for the Lord?"  Or, "Is anything too wonderful for the Lord?"  What a GRAND question!  One of the grandest in scripture, and the kind of question that inspires comfort courage and commitment in a God with whom all things are possible and nothing is impossible.  A year later, with Isaac in her arms, Sarah would proclaim, "God has made me laugh (the laughter of joyful surprise), and all who hear will laugh with me... Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children?  For I have born him a son in his old age," (21:6-7).  The night can be long, but joy comes in the morning.  God surprises His people with the things that gladden the heart and cause Him, in your laughter, to laugh with joy. 

Genesis 17:1-2 NASB

"I am God Almighty; Walk before Me, and be blameless.  And I will establish My covenant between Me and you, and I will multiply you exceedingly." 

After struggling with the promise of God, that he and Sarai could ever have a child of their own, much less in their old age, and sometimes trying to manipulate and manhandle the work of God, Abram's faith is stripped of everything but God.  He would learn that the promises of God must carry the clear ring of "It's the Lord!" alone, and that anything else will always prove dangerous to the ways and wonders of God.  And so the LORD appears again to Abram, who is now ninety-nine years old, and says, "I am God Almighty; Walk before me, and be blameless (complete). And I will establish My covenant between Me and you, and I will multiply you exceedingly."  The promises of God cannot be claimed freely, randomly and carelessly.  Promises are not of our own making according to our own whims.  They are not made lightly, but are made by the Almighty God to His people according to His plans and purposes.  Yes! His promises carry the fullness of His power in them, but, like a box car linked to a train engine, they necessitate a clean and complete linkage to Him.  With this kind of linkage, all things are possible.  Take hold of this God!