Exodus 3
Call of Mosesverses 1-6
Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father-in-law
the priest of Midian
and he led the flock to the backside of the desert
and came to the mountain of God – even to Horeb
And the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire
out of the midst of the bush – and he looked – and behold
the bush burned with fire
and the bush was not consumed
And Moses said
I will now turn aside – and see this great sight
why the bush is not burnt
And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see
God called unto him out of the midst of the bush
and said
Moses – Moses
And he said
Here am I
And HE said
Draw not nigh hither – put off your shoes from off your feet
for the place whereon you stand is holy ground
Moreover HE said
I am the God of your father – the God of Abraham
the God of Isaac – the God of Jacob
And Moses hid his face
FOR he was AFRAID to look upon God
Reason for LORD’S meeting with Mosesverses 7-10
And the LORD
said
I have surely seen the affliction of MY people
which are in Egypt and have heard
their CRY by reason of their taskmasters
FOR I know their SORROWS
and I am come down to deliver them
out of the hand of the Egyptians – to bring them up
out of that land unto a good land and a large
to a land flowing with milk and honey
to the place of the Canaanites – Hittites
Amorites – Perizzites
Hivites – Jebusites
Now therefore – BEHOLD
the CRY of the children of Israel is come unto ME
and I have also seen the oppression wherewith
the Egyptians oppress them
Come now therefore – and I will send you unto Pharaoh
that you may bring forth MY people the children of Israel
out of Egypt
God answers Moses’ questionsverses 11-14
And Moses said unto God
Who am I that I should go unto Pharaoh
and that I should bring forth the children of Israel
out of Egypt?
And HE said
Certainly I will be with you
and this shall be a TOKEN unto you
that I have sent you
When you have brought forth the people
out of Egypt – you shall serve God
on this mountain
And Moses said to God
BEHOLD – when I come to the children of Israel
and shall say to them
The God of your fathers has sent me to you
and they shall say to me
What is HIS name?
What shall I say to them?
And God said to Moses
I AM THAT I AM – and HE said
This shall you say unto the children of Israel
I AM has sent me to you
Message Moses is to give to Israelverses 15-18
And God said moreover to Moses
Thus shall you say to the children of Israel
The LORD God of your fathers
the God of Abraham – the God of Isaac
the God of Jacob – has sent me to you
This is MY name for ever
This is MY memorial to all generations
Go – and gather the elders of Israel together
and say to them
The LORD God of your fathers
the God of Abraham – the God of Isaac
the God of Jacob – appeared to me – saying
I will surely visited you
and seen that which is done to you
in Egypt
And I have said
I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt unto the land of
Canaanites – Hittites – Amorites – Perizzites – Hivites
Jebusites – unto a land flowing
with milk and honey
And they shall hearken to your voice – and you shall come
you – and the elders of Israel – to the king of Egypt
and you shall say to him
The LORD God of the Hebrews has met with us
and now let us go we beseech you
THREE days journey into the wilderness
that we may SACRIFICE to the LORD our God
God informs Moses results of his missionverses 19-22
And I am SURE that the king of Egypt will not let you go
no – NOT by a mighty hand
And I will stretch out my hand
and SMITE Egypt with all MY WONDERS which I will do in the
midst thereof – and after that he will let you go
And I will give this people FAVOR in the sight of the Egyptians
and it shall come to pass- that – when you go
you shall not go EMPTY
BUT every women shall BORROW of her neighbor
and of her that sojourn in her house
jewels of silver – jewels of gold – raiment
and you shall put them on your sons – daughters
and you shall spoil the Egyptians
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 2 And the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of the bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. (398 “consumed” [’akal] means to eat, burn up, devour, or destroy)
DEVOTION: The first forty years of his life was spent in Egypt as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He was trained with great privilege. He was a prince. He thought he could lead or be a judge in Israel without the LORD. He learned the hard way that he needed a call from the LORD.
Moses had been forty years in the wilderness. He was taking care of the sheep of his father-in-law. He was walking in the wilderness when he saw the fire.
Out of the burning bush the LORD spoke. The Bible says that it was the Angel of the LORD. We have seen that the Angel of the LORD can be a theophany in the book of Genesis. The Hebrew word for angel means MESSANGER. This is the pre-incarnate Christ delivering a message from the Godhead to Moses. This is a visible appearing of deity in the Old Testament. The only person of the Godhead who appears in human form is Jesus Christ. Here we have Jesus Christ talking with Moses regarding the future of the children of Israel.
Remember to connect the six first verses of this passage with each description of who is speaking in this passage to Moses: “angel of the LORD appeared” and “God called unto him” and “I am the God ….”There can be no doubt of who is speaking and what HE is saying to Moses. The call of Moses was recorded for our benefit.
Moses gives many excuses why he shouldn’t be the one. He says “Why me.” He wants to know what name he should use for God to the elders of the children of Israel in Egypt.
Here we have a fire created by God that doesn’t burn up what is burning. It is a miracle. Moses walks over to the bush. A voice comes out of the bush telling him to take off his shoes for the ground is holy. Moses has a conversation with God regarding going back to Egypt. Moses listens because of the bush that is not destroyed.
There is a fire that God has created for all those who reject HIM that will burn for eternity and not devour anyone. It is a literal place called Hell. The final place is called the Lake of Fire. The warning is real.
We need to tell everyone we love that there is a way out of this place of fire and that is through Christ alone. The message is called the Good News. Let’s spread it!!!
CHALLENGE: When God confronts us, what is our reaction? HE confronts us through HIS word, the Bible. Are we listening to what HE has to say or making excuses?
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 8 And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good land and a large, to a land flowing with milk and honey; to the place of the Canaanites, and the Hitttites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites. (5337 “deliver” [natsal] means recover, rescue, pull out, save, plunder, snatch away, take away, or extricate)
DEVOTION: The LORD is going to come down to rescue HIS people Israel from the Egyptians. HE is going to show them HIS power through the miracles of the plagues that visit Egypt to convince them to let the people go.
HE is speaking to Moses to be HIS representative to the Pharaoh regarding the terms of their departure from Egypt. HE tells Moses about the land that he is going to lead them to. HE describes it as a land of milk and honey. HE describes it as a land that is large and good for growing crops and raising families.
HE also tells of the people who are presently in the land. Remember that HE promised the land to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. HE sent the children of Israel to Egypt to become a great nation.
Also during this time period the iniquity of the Amorites was not full but after the children of Israel had been gone from the land for over four hundred years the iniquity was now full.
God was going to cleanse the Promised Land with the children of Israel because that is what HE had promised but also because it they were HIS tool to make the land holy. They were to worship HIM alone in the land. HIS people were to be pure and obedient. HE was setting them up to start a nation that was true to HIM.
CHALLENGE: God knew that the human heart was wicked. HE knows that we struggle with sin. YET HE still wants to use us for HIS glory. Remember HE is able to rescue us from all sin.
: 14 And God said to Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and HE said, Thus shall you say to the children of Israel, I AM has sent me to you. (7971 “has sent” [shalach] means to let free, to stretch out, dispatch, to dismiss, to cause to go somewhere, or to let loose)
DEVOTION: Moses was given a direct message from the LORD from the mouth of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the second person of the Godhead. HE is the only one who appears in human form in the Old Testament and the New Testament.
HE is speaking to Moses about his call to ministry regarding the children of Israel. He is going to lead the people out of Egypt with the power of the LORD at his disposal. He is giving excuses why he is not able to serve the LORD in this capacity.
The LORD doesn’t accept excuses when HE gives one of HIS servants a command. Moses was to obey HIM. HE continued to give instructions regarding what he was to do once he arrived in Egypt.
The LORD gave him a name that the children of Israel would understand. The name I AM was used to prove who God was. HE was omnipresent which means HE is present everywhere. HE is the creator of the universe. HE is omniscient or all knowing.
Who is sending us into the world as a witness for HIM? It is Jesus Christ sending us out to tell others about HIM and HIS sacrifice for the sins of the world. HE wants us to tell others the Good News. Moses had good news of deliverance. We have good news of deliverance from an eternity in the lake of fire.
We are a sent group. Many want to sit in their pews and do nothing outside of church. This is not the desire of a genuine believer. If HE sends us we should go to our friends in school!! We should go to family members who don’t know the LORD.
CHALLENGE: We should go to those in our neighborhood who don’t know the LORD. Our witness is important. We are all sent!!!
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 20 And I will stretch out MY hand, and smite Egypt with all MY wonders which I will do in the midst thereof: and after that he will let you go. (6381 “wonders” [pala’] means to do something wonderful, to be unusual, something that causes feelings of wonder, be extraordinary, marvelous, or to distinguish.)
DEVOTION: We know the wonders that the LORD was going to do in Egypt. HE was going to send ten plagues to get the attention of everyone in Egypt. The first few plagues were copied by the magicians of Egypt under the power of Satan.
Yet we see that Satan through his human servants couldn’t match all of the wonders of the LORD. He is limited.
We know the rest of the story. The Egyptians did let the Israelites go because of the plagues. They took with them much of the wealth of Egypt. They were given gifts by all the Egyptians because of the plagues or miracles of the LORD.
God is still active today. HE can still do miracles in our world. HE wants us to trust HIM to give us the power to influence our world. It seems that the whole world is going against those who believe in Jesus Christ. It seems like they are winning the battle.
What did the Israelites do when the burden got so great that they didn’t want it to last? They cried to the LORD. The LORD heard them and sent deliverance. We know that the Rapture of the church will be a type of deliverance but we can still pray for revival until that happens. There are many to be reached with the message of salvation through Christ alone. There are many even in our churches that need to hear this message.
Too many are resting on their lees in our church pews who think if they are there, they are saved.
CHALLENGE: Being in church doesn’t make you a believer – serving the LORD does through the power of the Holy Spirit. Anyone can sit in a pew.
:21 And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians: and it shall come to pass, that, when ye go, ye shall not go empty. (2580 “favor” [chen] means 1 favor, grace, charm. 1a favor, grace, elegance. 1b favor, acceptance. [Strong, J. (1995). Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon. Woodside Bible Fellowship])
DEVOTION: In anticipation of leaving Egypt, God tells Moses that the people will have the favor of the Egyptians and will plunder them. Don’t you wonder what that might have sounded like to Moses? The children of Israel had been beaten as slaves and treated as second-class citizens. All the while they had been denied the right to go and worship by Pharaoh. Meanwhile, ten plagues would ravage Egypt, and the last one was to be the worst. Would they end up being personally blamed for the deaths which were about to come?
Yet they had conscientiously continued to work and build despite their repression. The LORD would show Himself to be superior to all the gods of the Egyptians. Goshen, the home of the Israelites, will be spared the last six plagues. Would the Egyptians pity their Israelite neighbors for all they had been through?
God’s answer to Moses was “yes.” Not only would the Egyptians give the Israelites what they asked, but they would also do so in abundance. Because God’s favor rested on the Israelite people, the Egyptian people would show favor to them. This is a question we have at work from time to time, when someone else gets that promotion based on our hard work, or gets a pay raise and we do not. We have to realize that God’s method of keeping score is not the same as our method of keeping score. We need to realize that earning God’s favor is not something we can put a dollar value on.
In the ending to the story, the children of Israel do what Moses tells them to do, and go to their neighbors asking for donations. God sees to it that they get what they ask for and more. These earthly riches end up being the supplies used to build the tabernacle.
CHALLENGE: The point of God giving us His favor is to show the world that there is a difference between those who are His children and those who are not. We need to act like we are His children!
: 22 But every woman shall borrow of her neighbor, and of her that sojourns in her house, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: and you shall put them on you sons, and on your daughters; and you shall spoil the Egyptians. (7592 “borrow” [sha’al] means ask, demand, beg for, inquire, request, demand, or ask intently)
DEVOTION: The LORD was asking Moses to do a new thing for the children of Israel. He had been working for his father-in-law for a number of years and now it was time for him to lead Israel out of Egypt.
HE met Moses while he was tending his flock and he saw a burning bush. He wanted to see what was happening and the LORD spoke to him regarding his rescue of the children of Israel from their bondage to the Egyptians.
Part of the instructions was for the people to ask their neighbors, the Egyptians, for precious items to take with them to the Promised Land. The instructions seemed to be something that could never happen. How many people would just give all their precious items to slaves?
God had a plan before the foundation of the world for the children of Israel and HE has a plan even today for HIS people. We have to be listening to HIM through our prayer life and the ministry of the Holy Spirit.
Too often we are not listening to HIM regarding what we are supposed to do today. HE does lead and guide us as HE promised. HE has been leading HIS people from the creation of the world until today.
HE is going to lead us in the future. HE is still on the throne. HE is still the one who provides for all the needs of HIS people. The Christians today who are members of HIS church are still supposed to be listening to HIM as HE gives us instructions. HE has promised to NEVER leave or forsake HIS people.
Sometimes we think because we see all the things that are going wrong in our country that HE is not in control. We are wrong in this type of thinking.
CHALLENGE: Remember that God is still on the throne and HE is going to provide for HIS people today just like HE did for the children of Israel in the days of Moses.
DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Sacrifice to the LORDverse 18
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Moses command to take off shoesverse 5
LORD going to send Mosesverse 10
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
LORD heard cry of Israelitesverse 7
Cry of the children of Israelverse 9
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
Sacrifice to the LORD our Godverse 18
DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
Abrahamverses 6, 15, 16
Isaacverses 6, 15, 16
Jacobverses 6, 15, 16
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
God (Elohim)verses 1, 4, 6, 11, 13, 14-16, 18
Mountain of God: Horebverse 1
LORD (Jehovah)verses 2, 4, 7, 15, 18
LORD called out of midst of bushverse 4
God of Abrahamverses 6, 15, 16
God of Isaacverses 6, 15, 16
God of Jacobverses 6, 15, 16
Seen affliction of Israelverse 7
Wants to bring out people from Egyptverse 8
God of your fathersverse 13
I AM THAT I AMverse 14
I AMverse 14
LORD God of your fathersverses 15, 16
Memorialverse 15
LORD God of the Hebrewsverse 18
LORD our Godverse 18
I will stretch out MY handverse 20
Smite Egyptverse 20
God’s wondersverse 20
Give Israel favor in sight of Egyptiansverse 21
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead – God/man, Messiah)
Angel of the LORDverses 2-22
in a flame of fire
spoke out of the midst of bush
Told Moses to take off shoes
I am God of your father
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Jethro (Reuel) – priest of Midianverse 1
Egyptverses 7, 10-22
Egyptians verses 8, 9, 22
Canaanitesverses 8, 17
Hittitesverses 8, 17
Amoritesverses 8, 17
Perizzitesverses 8, 17
Hivitesverses 8, 17
Jebusitesverses 8, 17
Pharaoh: King of Egyptverses 10, 11, 18, 19
Not let Israel go
Affliction of Egyptverse 17
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Afraidverse 6
Affliction by Egyptiansverses 7, 17
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Deliveranceverse 8
God sees oppressionverse 9
Presence of Godverse 12
Serveverse 12
Visit of the LORDverse 16
Favorverse 21
Wealthverses 21-22
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Mosesverses 1-22
Kept flock of father-in-law
Mountain of God: Horeb
Here am I
Told to take off shoes for he was on
Holy ground
Hid his face from God
People of Godverses 7, 10
Good landverse 8
Children of Israelverses 9, 10
Elders of Israelverses 16-18
Promised Landverse 17
Land flowing with milk and honey
People borrow jewels of silver, jewels of gold
Raimentverse 22
Israel will spoil the Egyptiansverse 22
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
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QUOTES regarding passage
5–6 The presence of God demanded a holistic preparation of the one who would aspire to enter his presence. Therefore, to teach Moses this lesson, God set up admittedly arbitrary boundaries—“Do not come any closer”—and commanded that he should also remove his sandals (v.5). This was to prevent him from rashly intruding into the presence of God and to teach him that God was separate and distinct from mortal men (cf. 19:10–13; 2 Peter 1:18). Because God was present, what had been ordinary became “holy ground” and consequently “set apart” for a distinct use. The place where sheep and goats had traveled just a short time ago was transformed into “holy ground” by God’s presence. As Bush observed (Exodus 1:44), it is not an intrinsic holiness due to the nature of the ground itself but relative only to and based on the divine appointment that remains true as long as God ordains it so. This also is the first occurrence of the noun “holy” in Scripture (cf. Gen 2:3 for the verb form).
When the condition for meeting God had been satisfied, he revealed himself. He identified himself as the “God of your father” (v.6; collective singular—see Gen 26:24; 31:5, 42, 53; 43:23; 46:1, 3; 49:25; 50:17; Exod 15:2; 18:4 for a similar formula). Of course, the plural form “God of your fathers” appears more frequently (cf. also Stephen’s use of our passage in Acts 7:32 in the plural), but the collective singular also had a special point in that it was through the one man of promise that the many were to receive the blessing of God. Thus God assured Moses that the God of his father had not forsaken his repeated word of promise (Gen 15:1–21; 26:2–5; 35:1–12) or his people, and he would certainly be with Moses in the commission he was about to receive. (On Moses’ fear of “looking” at God, see the comment on 24:9–10.) (Kaiser, W. C., Jr. (1990). Exodus. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers (Vol. 2, pp. 315–316). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.)
The “Angel of the Lord” was none other than the Lord Jesus in theophanic manifestation, for in verse 4 He is denominated “Lord” and “God.” This sets forth a truth of vital moment to the servant of God. Before Moses can be sent forth on his important mission he must first behold the ineffable glory of the Lord. To serve acceptably we must work with an eye single to God’s glory, but to do this we must first gaze upon that glory. It was so here with Moses. It was thus with Isaiah (Isa. 6). It was the same in the case of the great apostle to the Gentiles (Acts 9:3, etc.). Make no mistake fellow-laborer, a vision of the glory of God is an essential prerequisite if we are to serve Him acceptably. (Pink, A. W. (1962). Gleanings in Exodus (p. 23). Chicago: Moody Press.)
3:5 Do not come near … remove your sandals. A sign of reverence in a holy place, one set apart from the norm because God was present there. These commands prevented Moses from rashly intruding, unprepared, into God’s presence. (MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2006). The MacArthur study Bible: New American Standard Bible. (Ex 3:5). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers.)
Draw not nigh hither; keep thy distance; whereby he checks his curiosity and forwardness, and works him to the greater reverence and humility. Compare Exod. 19:12, 21; Josh. 5:15. Put off thy shoes: this he requires as an act and token, 1. Of his reverence to the Divine Majesty, then and there eminently present. 2. Of his humiliation for his sins, whereby he was unfit and unworthy to appear before God; for this was a posture of humiliation, 2 Sam. 15:30; Isa. 20:2, 4; Ezek. 24:17, 23. 3. Of purification from the filth of his feet, or ways, or conversation, that he might be more fit to approach to God. See John 13:10; Heb. 10:22. 4. Of his submission and readiness to obey God’s will, for which reason slaves used to be barefooted. Holy ground; with a relative holiness at this time, because of my special presence in it. (Poole, M. (1853). Annotations upon the Holy Bible (Vol. 1, p. 120). New York: Robert Carter and Brothers.)
Ver. 5. And he said, draw not nigh hither, &c.] Keep a proper distance: put off thy shoes from off thy feet; dust and dirt cleaving to shoes, and these being ordered to be put off from the feet, the instrument of walking, shew that those that draw nigh to God, and are worshippers of him, ought to be of pure and holy lives and conversations: for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground; not that there was any inherent holiness in this spot of ground more than in any other, which ground is not capable of; but a relative holiness on account of the presence of God here at this time, and was not permanent, only whilst a pure and holy God was there: hence, in after-times, the temple being the place of the divine residence, the priests there performed their services barefooted, nor might a common person enter into the temple with his shoes on; and to this day the Jews go to their synagogues barefooted on the day of atonementl, to which Juvenal seems to have respect; and from hence came the Nudipedalia among the Heathens, and that known symbol of Pythagorasn, “sacrifice and worship with naked feet:” in this manner the priests of Diana sacrificed to her among the Cretians and other people; and so the priests of Hercules did the samep; the Brahmans among the Indians never go into their temples without plucking off their shoes; so the Ethiopian Christians, imitating Jews and Gentiles, never go into their places of public worship but with naked feetr, and the same superstition the Turks and Mahometans observe. (Gill, J. (1810). An Exposition of the Old Testament (Vol. 1, p. 327). London: Mathews and Leigh.)
FROM MY READING:
(Remember the only author that I totally agree with is the HOLY SPIRIT in the inerrant WORD OF GOD called THE BIBLE! All other I try to gleam what I can to help me grow in the LORD!!)
Psalms 90
God is eternal in time past and future–while man is temporal and weak.
INSIGHT
In this psalm, Moses declares the eternality of God in verses 1-2. Then he contrasts the frailty of man in verse 3. God’s displeasure with sin next occupies his attention: “We have been consumed by Your anger . . . You have set our iniquities before You” (vv. 7-8). Based on these three realities, Moses calls upon God in a series of petitions: “Teach us to number our days . . . Oh, satisfy us early with Your mercy . . . Make us glad . . . and establish the work of our hands” (Psalm 90:12, 14-15, 17). You can make these petitions your own. (Quiet Walk)
Grace Outside the Box
Mephibosheth ate at David’s table like one of the king’s sons.
2 Samuel 9:11
Tom worked for a law firm that advised Bob’s company. They became friends—until Tom embezzled thousands of dollars from the company. Bob was hurt and angry when he found out, but he received wise counsel from his vice president, a believer in Christ. The VP noticed Tom was deeply ashamed and repentant, and he advised Bob to drop the charges and hire Tom. “Pay him a modest salary so he can make restitution. You’ll never have a more grateful, loyal employee.” Bob did, and Tom was.
Mephibosheth, grandson of King Saul, hadn’t done anything wrong, but he was in a tough spot when David became king. Most kings killed the royal bloodline. But David loved King Saul’s son Jonathan, and treated his surviving son as his own (see 2 Samuel 9:1-13). His grace won a friend for life. Mephibosheth marveled that he “deserved nothing but death from my lord the king, but you gave your servant a place” (19:28). He remained loyal to David, even when David’s son Absalom chased David from Jerusalem (2 Samuel 16:1-4; 19:24-30).
Do you want a loyal friend for life? Someone so extraordinary may require you to do something extraordinary. When common sense says punish, choose grace. Hold them accountable, but give the undeserving a chance to make things right. You may never find a more grateful, devoted friend. Think outside the box, with grace.
By Mike Wittmer (Our Daily Bread)
THE REALM OF EXPERIENCE, PART 1
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28
But God be thanked, we can also answer the question with regard to the mechanism of this glorious promise in an experimental manner, from the realm of experience. That our text is true is the universal testimony of all the saints whose histories are recorded both in the Bible and in the subsequent history of the Christian church. The ways in which this promise works out are almost endless; but the principle that is common to them all is that there is but one ultimate good–the knowledge of God and the salvation of our souls. Holding that in mind, we see that trials and tribulations work out in the following ways:
They awaken us to the fact of our over-dependence on earthly and human things. Quite unconsciously, oftentimes we become affected by our surroundings, and our lives become less and less dependent upon God, and our interests become more and more worldly. The denial of earthly and human comforts and joys often awakens us to the realization of this in a way that nothing else can do.
Our trials also remind us of the fleeting nature of our life here on earth. How easy it is to “settle down” in life in this world and to live on the assumption that we are here forever. We all tend to do so to such an extent that we forget “the glory which shall be revealed” (verse 18), and that, as we have shown, should be the frequent theme of our meditation. Anything that disturbs this sloth and reminds us that we are but pilgrims here therefore stimulates us to “set your affection on things above” (Colossians 3:2).
A Thought to Ponder: There is but one ultimate good–the knowledge of God and the salvation of our souls.
(From Why Does God Allow War? pp. 123-124, by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
The Everlasting Covenant
“Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant.” (Hebrews 13:20)
This is the only verse in the book of Hebrews that refers specifically to Christ’s resurrection from the dead. It occurs at the climactic conclusion of the book (which had previously referred at least 17 times to the atoning death of Christ) and is associated with God’s everlasting covenant with His people.
The covenant theme is strong in Hebrews. The Greek word diatheke, which is also frequently translated “testament,” occurs more in Hebrews than in all the rest of the New Testament (or “New Covenant”) put together. The word basically means a contract, especially one for disposition of an inheritance.
A number of God’s divine covenants are mentioned in Scripture, but the writer of Hebrews is especially concerned with God’s new covenant (or “new testament”). It is surely the most significant of all covenants.
This new covenant is also called “a better covenant” (Hebrews 7:22; 8:6). It is best defined in Hebrews 8:10-12, quoting Jeremiah 31:33-34: “I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts:…and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.” Christ is “the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance” (Hebrews 9:15).
The inheritance is eternal because the covenant is everlasting. The blood of the covenant is the infinitely precious blood of Christ, whom God has raised from the dead, and now “he ever liveth to make intercession” for all those who “come unto God by him” (Hebrews 7:25). (HMM, The Institute for Creation Research)
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