The dark side of christmas

{Matthew 2:13-23}

(Rev. Charles Han)

This is a fitting passage for the day after christmas. I'll explain later why I think so as we move back to our normal lives...

Consider all the popular pictures we have of christmas. Magi, manger, donkey... But we don't bring up this portion of christmas, the slaughter of the innocents. Herod killing children to preserve his power.

For some of us, holidays are a break. But for others, it brings our problems into the forefront... Relationships, family, illness. This passage speaks to the messiness of our lives. This is the passage speaking to you.

There are three prophecies being spoken of during this passage. This should remind the reader of the story of Israel.

Jesus is the true israel.

What does that mean? Hosea 11 is noted. Reading hosea... we get a picture of Israel turning away from God. God does all this...and all He gets is rebellion. Israel is the rebellious, faithless, teenage son of God. Jesus came to be the faithful son that we could not be. He was the one who walked as we should have...so we could be with God. That is the christmas story. As we consider our regrets and things we did and didn't do, we can stand before God because our Jesus has walked for us...it was credited to us.

He came to be the Savior for the sufferer.

Joseph was afraid for their lives. Running from Herod. Jeremiah 31 is referenced by Matthew. This speaks of the death of Rachel and the exile of Israel. Rachel is considered the mother of israel... When israel went into exile, the nation was no more...that is why rachel weeps...because israel is no more. In the midst of tragedy and loss, christ came into our lives. Emmanuel, what does that mean? It means God came into our grief and loss. He felt our pains and walked with us. This is our God. One who bears suffering with us. The incarnation tells us that God knows everything we go through. He is not distant. He will wipe away every tear.... This is not some sort of nice sentiment. God will wipe away each and every tear from our lives as one who knows our pains and sufferings intimately... And draws close to console us. For those who suffer, he will console those who are now inconsolable.

The Savior for the insignificant

Jesus and his family wanted to go back to bethlehem. But instead they settle in Galilee. This is the boonies, the sticks... Nazareth. Can anything good come out of Nazareth?, jonathan asks. Jesus did not grow up in a privileged class. He grew up in a lowly place. Kensington. That "Nazarean sect" was how early christians were ridiculed. Jesus came from an insignificant background to show us who He came for. Isiah 53....

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The Joy of the Newborn King

[Matthew 2:1-12]

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, "Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him." When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. They told him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet:
"'And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
who will shepherd my people Israel.'"

Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, "Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him." After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.

[Rev. Dwight Yoo]

Jesus brings joy to all who recognize Him as King

The wise men, also known as the magi, probably came from the arabian peninsula. There is alot of mystery about them. They were learned men. They practiced astrology, not astronomy. This was widely practiced during these times. Jews generally looked down on this practice. But God used this pagan practice to bring the wise men to Jesus. Of course, the wise men went looking for him in Jerusalem. Where else would you look for someone important and influential? But they don't find him there... Herod has no idea. So Herod asks his advisors, they tell him about prophesies of the messiah. So the wise men go to Bethlehem. And they bring expensive gifts to Jesus and worship Him.

Matthew wrote this in such a way as to bring to light all the ironies. Out of everyone, the wise men should not be the first to seek out Jesus. The priests who know these prophesies... they don't seek him. Instead, these pagans who have such limited knowledge of this messiah... they go out in search of him. And they are seeking him out because of something they discovered through astrology. Stranger and stranger. Herod and the rest of Jerusalem were troubled. This messiah that has been prophesied for years... brings them trouble. Instead, these pagans come and worship Jesus. They "rejoiced with exceeding joy." They experienced joy just solely because they know that Jesus was this history-changing person, this king of the Jews. They acknowledged Jesus as the hope of the world.

Not only this, but Jesus also seeked out the outsiders. His attraction to those who were outside extended to his ministry. He spent his time with uneducated fishermen, tax collectors (thugs), and prostitutes. All these outsiders can find joy in Jesus because of who He is. King of Kings... hope of the world. It doesn't require knowledge of prophesies or extensive bible knowledge.

For those of us who feel like we are on the inside... What does this story tell us? Those priests who know all this biblical knowledge and all these prophesies. They have this set of expectations. What about this son of a carpenter? And why does he hang out with sinners? Openly sinful people. Prostitutes... Isn't he supposed to overthrow the Roman government? Isn't he here to free his people? What kind of messiah is this? Aren't we apt to find that Jesus doesn't fit into the expectations we have of Him? "I pray and pray... and my life is still a mess." Jesus disturbs and troubles us. So what then? Stop trying to be KING! Our lives are not supposed to be the way we want them. Our lives are supposed to be the way God wants them. This is how it works to serve a King. We may not understand why He does things, but we can say that He is King, even in strange circumstances.

Jesus reverses the world's values

These wise men are learned, cultured, and well off. And they come... and find the king of kings in a manger. Mangers are not a barn. They are this lower section of the house, where the animals were kept and fed. This is where Jesus came into the world. This is a humble place. Herod, the king, was so troubled because this "king of the Jews" was a threat to his throne... to his power. Jesus doesn't chase after power. He humbled himself. He wins by dying. Who does that?! Jesus does not come to us in the likes of Brad Pitt (handsome, famous character) but he was completely forgettable. We would not notice him in a crowd. But Jesus valued other things. Consider the sermon on the mount. Jesus told us that the greatest in heaven would be the servant of all. The world's values will kill you. Being famous. Being rich. Being good-looking. Our careers taking off... The values of the world are wrong. Don't judge yourself by the world's standards. If we want to find life, we need to follow Christ. Loving others. Serving others. Quietly serving in the background. In the eyes of God, that is greatness. This is what living hope and joy looks like.

Jesus is the joy of the world

The fact that foreigners are the first to bow down and worship him. This is evidence that this is not a message for a small people group, a small sect. This is a global world-wide plan for joy. He uses the weak, the foolish. He just needs people who have a heart of a servant. Not someone who is powerful. Not someone who is rich. Not even someone who is capable. He needs those who are willing to serve. May we be that people.

Like Father Like Son

[Matthew 1:18-25]

Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins." All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:

"Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall call his name Immanuel"

{Rev. Dwight Yoo}

When the angel of God told Joseph to take Mary as his wife. God was asking for Joseph's reputation and status. for life. People then could not just move away. They grew up and died in the same village/city. There were only two possible reputations that Mary and Joseph would have. First would be that they were fornicators. Joseph and Mary had sex before marriage, which was unheard of in those days among those people. Secondly, Mary had sex with another man while she was betrothed to Joseph and Joseph was a fool to marry her. When God called Joseph to throw away his life, it was no small thing. Even into the adult years of Jesus' life, this reputation would still hang over the whole family. People would come up to Jesus and accuse him of being a bastard.

This is the same call that God makes to every Christian. We are called to follow God at the cost of our lives. Our reputations. our goals/dreams/desires. To pick up our cross and follow God. This is not a call only for missionaries. Or only for pastors. When Joseph was told to marry Mary, verse 25 tells us how he reacted: "When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded..." He quietly and faithfully obeyed. No complaints are voiced. Just quiet obedience. Joseph is foreshadowing for Jesus. Jesus also went to the cross at the cost of his life. Like a lamb before her shearers.

Joseph is called a "just man." What does being just mean? Before the visit of the angel, Joseph was resolved to quietly divorce Mary. Why? He had just found out that Mary obviously had been unfaithful. But consider that he could have had Mary stoned to death for adultery. He could have divorced her publicly to shame her. Consider that justice is different here. It is not the form of justice we see often. It is not retribution. It is not an eye for an eye. It is not a stiff application of law. The same punishment for all. But rather it is compassion for the weak and broken.

"He will not quarrel or cry aloud,
nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets;
a bruised reed he will not break,
and a smoldering wick he will not quench,
until he brings justice to victory;
and in his name the Gentiles will hope." - Matthew 12:19-21

This is the heart of Joseph. Not justice in terms of only punishing those who have done wrong. But avoiding shaming and causing additional suffering for those who have sinned against us. It is justice that is compassionate as well. It covers over our shame. We are called to be gracious even when we have been sinned against.

Application

We are called to sacrifice anything and everything, if God calls us to it.
If we are honest, this is impossible without God.

We are called to pay the cost of sin... there will be costs to our family, our finances, and our time and energy. Honestly, this is also impossible w/o God.

What then?

This only points us again to our constant need for the Gospel in our lives. We are continually seek the presence of God, the God who is with us. We are called to die to ourselves. To remember our immediate and immense need for Christ. The one who has already come and who dwells with us.

Jesus, Our Immanuel - He Become One of Us

[Matthew 1:20-23; John 1:14]

But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins." All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:
"Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel" (which means, God with us).

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

{Rev. Dan Whang}

On the show Glee, there was an episode called "The Great Cheese-sus." On that episode, the characters were all confronted with who God was and how they should live. Like a normal secular show, they decided on who God was for each of them and life went on. There is also a song by Joan Osbourne - What if God was one of us? ... But God did become one of us. He become "God with us".

When we look over the Matthew passage, it is pretty familiar. Joseph is told that Mary is pregnant and it is from God. He is also told this is the fulfillment of a prophecy.

What does the incarnation teach us?

God understands and knows us completely and perfectly.

The Christmas story tells us that God came and lived the human life. The God of the universe came as a helpless baby. Why didn't God just come as a 30 year old? The bible doesn't say much, but we can assume that Jesus was a baby... a toddler... a pre-teen, teen, young adult. God knows what it means to live as a human. He knew about betrayal, being outcast, being tempted, carrying burdens that no one knows about.

" God became a man. While the creatures of earth walked unaware, Divinity arrived. Heaven opened herself and placed her most precious one in a human womb.
The Omnipotent, in one instant, made himself breakable. He who had been spirit became pierceable. He who was larger than the universe became an embryo. And he who sustains the world with a word chose to be dependent upon the nourishment of a young girl.
God as a fetus. Holiness sleeping in a womb. The creator of life being created.
God was given eyebrows, elbows, two kidneys, and a spleen. He stretched against the walls and floated in the amniotic fluids of his mother.
God had come near.
He came, not as a flash of light or as an unapproachable conqueror, but as one whose first cries were heard by a peasant girl and a sleepy carpenter. The hands that first held him were unmanicured, calloused, and dirty.
No silk. No ivory. No hype. No party. No hoopla.
Were it not for the shepherds, there would have been no reception. And were it not for a group of stargazers, there would have been no gifts.
Angels watched as Mary changed God’s diaper. The universe watched with wonder as The Almighty learned to walk. Children played in the street with him. And had the synagogue leader in Nazareth known who was listening to his sermons…
Jesus may have had pimples. He may have been tone-deaf. Perhaps a girl down the street had a crush on him or vice versa. It could be that his knees were bony. One thing’s for sure: He was, while completely divine, completely human.
For thirty-three years he would feel everything you and I have ever felt. He felt weak. He grew weary. He was afraid of failure. He was susceptible to wooing women. He got colds, burped, and had body odor. His feelings got hurt. His feet got tired. And his head ached.
To think of Jesus in such a light is—well, it seems almost irreverent, doesn’t it? It’s not something we like to do; it’s uncomfortable. It is much easier to keep the humanity out of the incarnation. Clean the manure from around the manger. Wipe the sweat out of his eyes. Pretend he never snored or blew his nose or hit his thumb with a hammer.
He’s easier to stomach that way. There is something about keeping him divine that keeps him distant, packaged, predictable.
But don’t do it. For heaven’s sake, don’t. Let him be as human as he intended to be. Let him into the mire and muck of our world. For only if we let him in can he pull us out.
Listen to him.
“Love your neighbor” was spoken by a man whose neighbors tried to kill him.
The challenge to leave family for the gospel was issued by one who kissed his mother goodbye in the doorway.
“Pray for those who persecute you” came from the lips that would soon be begging God to forgive his murderers.
“I am with you always” are the words of a God who in one instant did the impossible to make it all possible for you and me.
It all happened in a moment. In one moment…a most remarkable moment. The Word became flesh." -- Max Lucado

God has made Himself knowable, understandable, and accessible to us.

Before Jesus, God always came in strange forms. God came as a smoking firepot. A burning bush. A pillar of cloud and a pillar of fire. A thunderous earthquake. This was probably awesome and wondrous for people to behold. For years and centuries, this is what people thought about God. People probably found it difficult to relate to God. People were told to meet God at this one physical place, the tabernacle.

This is why Christmas is so amazing. The son of a carpenter, a blue collar worker. He is intimately more relate-able. Jesus was not just a good teacher, not just the best man, but He was God-man. He was the fullness of God. If you want to know God, all you have to do is open the bible and read about Jesus.

When tough times come, we are tempted to think God as hard and unfeeling. But we should look at Jesus. Jesus wept over Lazarus. God is not hard and unfeeling, He is sensitive. Jesus who stooped down and washed the feet of his friends who would soon desert Him. This not an uncaring God. Jesus is God in HD (High Definition). The clearest picture of God we can get.

How should respond to the incarnation?

Aggressively seek Jesus and behold Him everyday.

God has made Himself available to us. The people of the Old Testament wished to know God. But God has revealed Himself fully through Jesus.

The hardest part of the Christian life is not ministry, it's not the things we need to do. But the hardest part, is staying intimate with God. Cultivating and investing in our relationship with God.

Take away your community group. Take away ministry. Take away church friends. Would you still have a personal life with God? A life with God that people don't know about unless you tell them? Or is there just a spiritual silence? Because this is the substance of our faith. This is not meant as condemnation, I don't speak these words as one who has his life perfectly in line with this. I struggle with my TV and computer on at the same time. Are our hearts empty? Is our time with God strange and awkward?

What if we set our alarm clock earlier by 30 mins? Spend that time meeting with God.

Be the incarnation of Jesus to this lost and dying world

What opportunities does God give us to be incarnations of Jesus in our life? To be kind and loving to those around us?

How about being Christ-like during these holidays? Being the most courteous and kind driver and shopper during the craziness of this season? To do something selfless at a cost. To give someone else your parking spot. To smile at people in church. To love that one estranged family member at the family gathering. To serve during finals week.

A Savior For All

[Matthew 1:1-17]

The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram, and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David the king.

And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah, and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asaph, and Asaph the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah, and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos, and Amos the father of Josiah, and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.

And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel, and Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, and Abiud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor, and Azor the father of Zadok, and Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud, and Eliud the father of Eleazar, and Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.

So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ fourteen generations.

{Rev. Dwight Yoo}

This is the first of a four part series.

This passage, of course, is a genealogy. Not particularly interesting. Not something we tend to spend time on. But here's the thing, 2 Timothy 3:16 reads: "All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness," Here's the thing, genealogy is trying to convey something. If you took the time to go through the genealogy, it shows some things.

Jesus came to bring outsiders in.

Matthew was tax collector. Consider that for the Jews, ancestry is important. It was very important to know how Jewish Jesus was. The genealogy is framed around David and Abraham. Why is it framed this way? Because Matthew is trying to show that Jesus comes from the house of David and the house of Abraham. Matthew is trying to show that Jesus is Christ, the Messiah. In the midst of all these Jewish references, a King was coming. Not only a king of the Jews, but a King over all nations. All people would be blessed by this king. Gentiles, non-Jews, would be drawn near to God. This was hard for the Jews to see this. Throughout the Old Testament, God called them a special chosen people, His treasure, called to be separate for other people. He told the Jews not to intermarry. Why? So they would not follow foreign gods. God always wanted to drawn outsiders in. How do we see this in the genealogy? Women are listed... usually they were left out of genealogy. Not only this, there were Gentile women. Foreign women were usually frowned upon by Jews. But Matthew listed them to draw attention to God's desire to draw those outside the kingdom of God in.

Unless you are ethnically Jewish, you are a Gentile. An outsider. But through Christ, we are brought into the family of God. So as Christians, we should be sensitive to those who our society rejects and marginalizes. Because that is our story. We should not be centered about Christian culture and other Christians. We should be reaching out to bring people into the family of God.

Jesus came through the worst of sinners to save the worst of sinners.

Matthew includes not only the best of the ancestors, but he also includes people we would want to hide. He does not exclude those who are embarrassing. Judah & Tamar. Tamar pretends to be a prostitute so her father-in-law can sleep with her so she can get pregnant. Rahab was a career prostitute. Not pretending, but a real hooker. David & Bathsheba, wife of Uriah. David took another man's wife and arranges for this same man to die in battle. This lineage is filled with people with dark history, jacked up lives, and messed up people. This is humanity, the sinners who are the "best" of us.

Jesus is not surprised by any sin. Murder, Adultery, prostitution. This is a display of God's powers of redemption and grace. Through this genealogy, God brought salvation to the world. We often get paralyzed by our guilt. We look at our sins and we question if God can really forgive our sins. But I hope for those of us who are there, I hope you will find comfort in Jesus' family line. Christ's blood covers even our most heinous of sins. Jesus does not condemn, but redeems.

Jesus came to save in unseen and unknown ways

Jesus comes while the Jewish people are under the oppression of the Romans. He is born to a poor couple. His mother, Mary, is not married and is pregnant. A scandalous situation. He lives the life of an outsider. He was condemned by the religious leaders and eventually dies naked and shamed on a cross. Who would have expected a Savior like this? No one. Look at the genealogy again and we find all these obscure people listed. How obscure? Some of the people listed only show up in the bible once... in the genealogy. In the years before Jesus, nothing happened. It seemed like God was silent and doing nothing. But God was at work in the background.

We love explanations. We want to know how things work. Wouldn't it be great if God gave us the whole plan? But life doesn't work that way. That's not how God works. There will be many times where God will be working and we have no clue what is going on. God will seem to be quiet and nothing seems to be happening. We don't know why. So what then? Instead of always trying to find the why, we should take refuge in the who. A God who keeps His promises. A God who sent His son to die for us in ways unknown and unseen.

God Moves In A Mysterious Way

God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea,
And rides upon the storm.

Deep in unfathomable mines
Of never-failing skill
He treasures up His bright designs,
And works His sovereign will.

Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take,
The clouds ye so much dread
Are big with mercy, and shall break
In blessings on your head.

Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
But trust Him for His grace;
Behind a frowning providence
He hides a smiling face.

His purposes will ripen fast,
Unfolding every hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste,
But sweet will be the flower.

Blind unbelief is sure to err,
And scan his work in vain;
God is His own interpreter,
And He will make it plain.

-- William Cowper

Life's Mission

[Matthew 6:9-13]

Pray then like this:

"Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil..."

{Dr. Michael Oh}

I grew up praying the Lord's Prayer. I would pray and then wait for blessing... This prayer is beautiful. But often we ramble on through it without thinking about it.

So what are we missing? Tremendous insight into the essential foundational Christian life. What is your life for? Prayers are about what is within our hearts. So when we look into the Lord's Prayer, we see what is in the heart of God.

"Our Father"

This is a shockingly personal & direct reference to God. Jesus includes us in this reference. We are directly and personally connected to God.

"in heaven"

God is otherworldly. He is mighty and powerful. He is so much more than us.

"hallowed be your name" - worship

Worship is what we are called to do. May God's name be treated as holy. God is to be treated as nothing else in our lives. The worship of God is to be in stark contrast to all the other affections and things in our lives.

"your kingdom come" - kingdom

God's purpose is global. It is not enough that God is to be worshiped in our lives. But we should have a holy dissatisfaction with the lack of worship of God in other people's lives. This is not a statement, but a request. We should be asking God to expand His kingdom.

"your will be done" - obedience

The end of this prayer should be our obedience to God's will.

What is the purpose of life? It is the praying for and pursuing of the global and eternal worship of God.

The second half of the Lord's prayer is for provision for the purposes of the first half.

"give us today this daily bread"

This is for our daily provision. This request is not needed for American Christians. So why does God have us pray this? Perhaps to consider how many days of bread we have...

"forgive us our debts"

It is to remind us that we are sinners. We need the grace of God through Jesus.

"lead us not into temptation"

What is this? It is the desire to hallow the provisions of God. Like Israel's keeping of manna beyond the day... sitting and rotting. Or the idolizing of God's love and comfort. How we are glad to NOT be THEM.... But it is by the grace of God that we were born into our own situations. It could have been that we would've been born a child in the slums, or the child of a Shinto priest. To become our own God... to let our own will be done. The provisions of God are not for our own. The provisions are for the first section. They are provisions of war. They are provided for the spiritual war described in the first section.

So what then?

Repent of our sinful desires, lifestyles, and missing the purposes of God.
Pray the prayer of God. Pray the Lord's prayer. Pray for God's kingdom.
Everything that you enjoy should be enjoyed for God.

The Gospel According to Moses: He Made His Dwelling Among Us

[Exodus 40]

The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, "On the first day of the first month you shall erect the tabernacle of the tent of meeting. And you shall put in it the ark of the testimony, and you shall screen the ark with the veil. And you shall bring in the table and arrange it, and you shall bring in the lampstand and set up its lamps. And you shall put the golden altar for incense before the ark of the testimony, and set up the screen for the door of the tabernacle. You shall set the altar of burnt offering before the door of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting, and place the basin between the tent of meeting and the altar, and put water in it. And you shall set up the court all around, and hang up the screen for the gate of the court.

"Then you shall take the anointing oil and anoint the tabernacle and all that is in it, and consecrate it and all its furniture, so that it may become holy. You shall also anoint the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and consecrate the altar, so that the altar may become most holy. You shall also anoint the basin and its stand, and consecrate it. Then you shall bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance of the tent of meeting and shall wash them with water and put on Aaron the holy garments. And you shall anoint him and consecrate him, that he may serve me as priest. You shall bring his sons also and put coats on them, and anoint them, as you anointed their father, that they may serve me as priests. And their anointing shall admit them to a perpetual priesthood throughout their generations."

This Moses did; according to all that the LORD commanded him, so he did. In the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month, the tabernacle was erected. Moses erected the tabernacle. He laid its bases, and set up its frames, and put in its poles, and raised up its pillars. And he spread the tent over the tabernacle and put the covering of the tent over it, as the LORD had commanded Moses. He took the testimony and put it into the ark, and put the poles on the ark and set the mercy seat above on the ark. And he brought the ark into the tabernacle and set up the veil of the screen, and screened the ark of the testimony, as the LORD had commanded Moses. He put the table in the tent of meeting, on the north side of the tabernacle, outside the veil, and arranged the bread on it before the LORD, as the LORD had commanded Moses. He put the lampstand in the tent of meeting, opposite the table on the south side of the tabernacle, and set up the lamps before the LORD, as the LORD had commanded Moses. He put the golden altar in the tent of meeting before the veil, and burned fragrant incense on it, as the LORD had commanded Moses. He put in place the screen for the door of the tabernacle. And he set the altar of burnt offering at the entrance of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting, and offered on it the burnt offering and the grain offering, as the LORD had commanded Moses. He set the basin between the tent of meeting and the altar, and put water in it for washing, with which Moses and Aaron and his sons washed their hands and their feet. When they went into the tent of meeting, and when they approached the altar, they washed, as the LORD commanded Moses. And he erected the court around the tabernacle and the altar, and set up the screen of the gate of the court. So Moses finished the work.

Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. Throughout all their journeys, whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the people of Israel would set out. But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out till the day that it was taken up. For the cloud of the LORD was on the tabernacle by day, and fire was in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel throughout all their journeys.

{Rev. Dwight Yoo}

This will be the wrap-up for this series.

After reading the passage, some things could come to mind. It's strange, it's archaic. Maybe we are uninterested and we skip over these sections. How do these passages apply to our lives? Another thought, how about how the end is so anti-climatic. Exodus is so action packed and so many dramatic things are happening. And then it ends with the building of the tabernacle. Actually, one third of the book of Exodus is dedicated to the specification of the tabernacle. My hope is that we will see how this is a good ending to the book.

What is the tabernacle?



It was basically a portable rectangular tent thing.

What does the tabernacle shows us?

It shows us the heart of God. The God of the universe tells them that He will put His presence in this tent-like thing. It's shocking. The closest thing would be for the President to leave the White House and move into a freshmen dorm room at the University of Pennsylvania. It's absurd. To trade a in-house chef for a box of Ramen noodles. It's all that and more.

This is the heart of God. He says that He wants to be with us and among us. He could have just commanded the people of Israel through Moses. But no, God wants to move in right next to us. He wants to be in our midst. He wants an intimate relationship with His people.

The tension of the tabernacle.

But notice that even though God wanted to be close to His people, God's presence was so gigantic that even Moses could not enter the tabernacle. Notice that the people had to use the most expensive of materials. And there were so many rules & regulations. And God could not be among His people. He was in the holy of holies... and only the high priest could go there and only once a year at that.

So there's a tension between a loving God who wants an intimate relationship with His people AND God's perfect holiness. God is not only loving, but He is also a just judge. He cannot simply overlook the people's sins.

The resolution of the tabernacle.

Luckily, there is a sacrificial system. Animals would be sacrificed for the sins of the people. But isn't this strange? Can an animal really take our spiritual guilt away?

"For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins." - Hebrews 10:4

God did not command animal sacrifices to take away the guilt. He did this to foreshadow the sacrifice of Jesus. Jesus was the perfect sacrifice to resolve this tension. He is the one who brings back Eden. The place where God & man can walk together again.

Our Response.

Since God has so pursued us,
so we could be in an intimate relationship...

Make the most of the intimate relationship with God.
Don't believe the lies of the garden of Eden: "God is holding back."
Find our joy and fulfillment in God.

The Gospel According to Moses: Mercy Triumphs Over Judgement

[Exodus 32:1-14;Exodus 34:24-32]

When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered themselves together to Aaron and said to him, "Up, make us gods who shall go before us. As for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him." So Aaron said to them, "Take off the rings of gold that are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me." So all the people took off the rings of gold that were in their ears and brought them to Aaron. And he received the gold from their hand and fashioned it with a graving tool and made a golden calf. And they said, "These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!" When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it. And Aaron made proclamation and said, "Tomorrow shall be a feast to the LORD." And they rose up early the next day and offered burnt offerings and brought peace offerings. And the people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.

And the LORD said to Moses, "Go down, for your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves. They have turned aside quickly out of the way that I commanded them. They have made for themselves a golden calf and have worshiped it and sacrificed to it and said, 'These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!'" And the LORD said to Moses, "I have seen this people, and behold, it is a stiff-necked people. Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them, in order that I may make a great nation of you."

But Moses implored the LORD his God and said, "O LORD, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians say, 'With evil intent did he bring them out, to kill them in the mountains and to consume them from the face of the earth'? Turn from your burning anger and relent from this disaster against your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, to whom you swore by your own self, and said to them, 'I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your offspring, and they shall inherit it forever.'" And the LORD relented from the disaster that he had spoken of bringing on his people.

...

Moses said to the LORD, "See, you say to me, 'Bring up this people,' but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. Yet you have said, 'I know you by name, and you have also found favor in my sight.' Now therefore, if I have found favor in your sight, please show me now your ways, that I may know you in order to find favor in your sight. Consider too that this nation is your people." And he said, "My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest." And he said to him, "If your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here. For how shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people? Is it not in your going with us, so that we are distinct, I and your people, from every other people on the face of the earth?"

And the LORD said to Moses, "This very thing that you have spoken I will do, for you have found favor in my sight, and I know you by name." Moses said, "Please show me your glory." And he said, "I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name 'The LORD.' And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. But," he said, "you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live." And the LORD said, "Behold, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock, and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen."

{Rev. Charles Han}

This is one of the most infamous periods in the nation of Israel. They make a golden calf and worship it.

We will examine three things: Rebellion & God's wrath, Mediator & God's mercy, and
The pursuit of God's presence.

If you recall previously, the people promised to do as God commanded. Moses is on the mountain for 40 days and nights. The people get nervous. They don't know what is happening. So they pressure Aaron. And what happens? They make this statue, this idol. They worship it and make up festivals.

Rebellion & God's wrath

This is rebellion of the highest order. They had seen God's power, experienced God's miraculous salvation, felt the holiness of God. This is like a spouse cheating in the first month of marriage. The people of Israel had promised to follow God and now, they are building this image and worshiping it. The people probably felt lost. They knew God was with them through Moses. But Moses was gone, they didn't know if God was with them anymore. But we cannot judge Israel too harshly. We must note that we are also like this. We stray from God. We stray from the One who loves us. Not only that, but we worship idols. We sacrifice and celebrate other things. We sacrifice our health for work.

How does God react? God is livid. His anger burns. He tells Moses that He wishes to wipe out the nation of Israel. God says He wants to start over. God wants to start anew. God is saying that they will start with a new people from Moses.

Mediator & God's mercy

Moses intercedes on behalf of Israel. He pleads with God. He asks to see God's glory and God lets him see His backside. Moses was IN with God. Moses could ask anything of God. A lot of sermons tell us to pursue God the way Moses did. But who of us can be like Moses? Who of us is that close to God? None of us. Instead, we should see our need for a mediator. Moses is the only one who can stand on behalf of Israel.

We have a greater mediator. Jesus stands before God on our behalf. He pleads our case for us. "My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world." - 1 John 2:1-2 (ESV) When we sin, Jesus pleads our case. Jesus tells the Father that He has already paid the price. We have access to God through Jesus Christ.

The pursuit of God's presence

When you have seen Jesus' purchase of us at such a costly price for access to God, what does that do to us? It should drive us toward God. We should exchange our idols for the greater glory of God.

The Gospel According to Moses: Laws of Love and Life

[Exodus 19:1-6]

On the third new moon after the people of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that day they came into the wilderness of Sinai. They set out from Rephidim and came into the wilderness of Sinai, and they encamped in the wilderness. There Israel encamped before the mountain, while Moses went up to God. The LORD called to him out of the mountain, saying, "Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel: You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.

[Exodus 20:1-17]

And God spoke all these words, saying,

"I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

"You shall have no other gods before me.

"You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

"You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.

"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

"Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.

"You shall not murder.

"You shall not commit adultery.

"You shall not steal.

"You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

"You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s."

{Rev. Dwight Yoo}

We are going to a broad gospel perspective on the ten commandments. While we could go in depth, we don't have the time today to do that. So instead we are going to take an aerial survey of God's law.

So for background, on the third new moon since Israel left Egypt, they were near Mount Sinai. God told his people to recall what God did to the Egyptians and brought Israel to Himself. God is reminding them how He saved them. Note that this in the past tense. Why is this important? God saved them first. Then He gave them the law. They are not saved by the law, but they were saved by God's gracious promise. "And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob." - Exodus 2:24 (ESV)

Why Obedience to God's Law Matters

Obedience to the law enables us to enjoy Christ's love and life

"Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine;" - Exodus 19:5

But wait a second, didn't you just say that we are saved by what God did? Yes, I did say that. However, our enjoyment & experience of our standing in God can change. The standing does not change. But whether we enjoy it or not and how we experience it can and does change. How does this look? Consider my son. He carries half my DNA, my wife bore him. He is my son. But if he continues to rebel and not listen to me and devalue me... it will change the relationship. He's still my son, but it would turn into a strained relationship.

Here's another perspective. The laws of God shows the heart of God. Obeying his law brings us closer to God. By following His law, we get closer to God. It draws us closer to Him. And we are drawn into the joy that God has.

"Blessed is the man
who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
but his delight is in the law of the LORD,
and on his law he meditates day and night." - Psalm 1:1

Obedience to the law shapes us to be a community that shares God love and life

Back in those days, communities had idols that they prayed to. God was calling them to be different from them. To follow God alone and not to take on these other idols. I know that these commandments seem pretty normal. Don't murder. Well, yeah, everyone is like that. Murder isn't normal. But if we study a little deeper, we'll see how God calls us to be different. Consider Jesus' words on murder, "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.' But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, 'You fool!' will be liable to the hell of fire." Being angry with your brother is considered the same as murder. That is counter-cultural.

I know that we generally have a individualistic view on faith. But God calls us as a corporate group (nation, kingdom, race..). We are not all called to become evangelists. Not 300 people all doing their own thing. But rather we are called to work together to witness together.

Obedience Leads us to Treasure Christ

All the people answered together and said, "All that the LORD has spoken we will do." - Exodus 19:8 (ESV) This is the right & proper response to God's salvation. God laid down everything for us, anyone who knows & accepts this should have the desire to lay down their lives for Him.

Building a Discipleship Community

[Mark 3:13-14]

And he went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him. And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach

{Rev. David Skinner}

If you are interested in the Men's trip to Haiti, please send me an email.

My dad had pastored alot of churches. And he said his most successful church was the last one. He told me he didn't do much different, but he made a commitment to invest in eight men. He invested his life into these men.

Jesus invested in 12 men. That was how he started a world-changing movement. Jesus, God incarnate, Emannuel, lived with these 12 men. God could have changed the world any way he wanted, but the way He chose was incarnational discipleship. They followed Him and watched Him and became like Him. The end goal of discipleship is trying to change the world. But it is not the flood-the-market, event-driven, attempt to change the world. It is the slow, steady, & regular investment of people into other lives.

1) Building a discipleship community begins with a calling.

Jesus comes to Levi and he says, "Follow me." After Jesus dies and comes back, He comes to Peter and restores him with these words, "Follow me." Jesus is saying follow me and I will show you how to live in my Father's kingdom. Jesus comes to save and show His disciples how to live.

If you call yourself a Christian, then you have accepted this call. Being a Christian doesn't mean just a relationship with Jesus, but also a relationship with the church. We aren't supposed to imitate everything of our fellow christian, but when we see Christ, we should imitate those things. Not everything, but the Christ-likeness we see in others.

Discipleship is like interference. It means letting people nose around in our lives. To speak into our lives.

2) Building a discipleship is a journey.

Verse 14 says, "so that they might be with him." What does this mean? It means Jesus was going to teach them. He was going to invite them to live with Him. They would see how He ministers, see how He lives, see His life. Jesus would also ask them to do things. To get a donkey, to get a room for Passover, to make disciples, to cast our demons...

you know, that trip to Haiti... I don't know any Haitians. I want to reach out to them and minister to them. But one of the reasons I want to go on this trip with men, is that 12 men from Devon campus have signed up to go. I get several days to spend time with these guys. We need discipleship. When you come to church on Sunday, we are getting re-calibrated. It's a great thing. But there is no back and forth, no interaction.

a) Word-centered

But where are we supposed to find Jesus' commands? It is in the bible. The bible records all the things Jesus has done and commanded. The Word is powerful. We need to pray the Spirit will reveal the meaning of the Word. We need to pray for God to change our lives to be more like Christ. All discipleship needs to be word-centered.

a) Gospel-centered

Discipleship shows us how to apply the gospel to our lives. It shows us places where we are not applying or are misapplying the gospel in our lives. How we are not living out the gospel in our lives.

c) Mission-centered

"I will make you fishers of men." The catalyst is not that Jesus would do this. But that God has come incarnate and walked with them. He fished for their heart. By doing this, He was showing them how to fish. He showed them how He cared for them. After He had done this, He told them, ok... you go do some fishing yourself. So this fishing for souls can manifest itself in many ways. But this fishing is one of the goals of discipling. He taught people to fish; to prepare them to fish. We are to do this until there is fullness...

Summary

To those who are called to discipleship, they are called to die. It is not self-centered. We are not saved just for ourselves. We are called to die. We are not called to suffer without purpose. We are to deny ourselves and follow Christ. This self-denial kills our plans, drives a stake through our ego, our desires to control everything & everybody. But isn't it our plans, our goals, our desires that drive us crazy? Jesus tells us to hand all these over to Him... Die, and He will give us life.

"Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." - Matthew 11:28-30

The Gospel According to Moses: Wilderness Lessons

[Exodus 16]

They set out from Elim, and all the congregation of the people of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had departed from the land of Egypt. And the whole congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness, and the people of Israel said to them, "Would that we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger."

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in my law or not. On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather daily." So Moses and Aaron said to all the people of Israel, "At evening you shall know that it was the LORD who brought you out of the land of Egypt, and in the morning you shall see the glory of the LORD, because he has heard your grumbling against the LORD. For what are we, that you grumble against us?" And Moses said, "When the LORD gives you in the evening meat to eat and in the morning bread to the full, because the LORD has heard your grumbling that you grumble against him— what are we? Your grumbling is not against us but against the LORD."

Then Moses said to Aaron, "Say to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, 'Come near before the LORD, for he has heard your grumbling.'" And as soon as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, they looked toward the wilderness, and behold, the glory of the LORD appeared in the cloud. And the LORD said to Moses, "I have heard the grumbling of the people of Israel. Say to them, 'At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread. Then you shall know that I am the LORD your God.'"

In the evening quail came up and covered the camp, and in the morning dew lay around the camp. And when the dew had gone up, there was on the face of the wilderness a fine, flake-like thing, fine as frost on the ground. When the people of Israel saw it, they said to one another, "What is it?" For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, "It is the bread that the LORD has given you to eat. This is what the LORD has commanded: 'Gather of it, each one of you, as much as he can eat. You shall each take an omer, according to the number of the persons that each of you has in his tent.'" And the people of Israel did so. They gathered, some more, some less. But when they measured it with an omer, whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack. Each of them gathered as much as he could eat. And Moses said to them, "Let no one leave any of it over till the morning." But they did not listen to Moses. Some left part of it till the morning, and it bred worms and stank. And Moses was angry with them. Morning by morning they gathered it, each as much as he could eat; but when the sun grew hot, it melted.

On the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers each. And when all the leaders of the congregation came and told Moses, he said to them, "This is what the LORD has commanded: 'Tomorrow is a day of solemn rest, a holy Sabbath to the LORD; bake what you will bake and boil what you will boil, and all that is left over lay aside to be kept till the morning.'" So they laid it aside till the morning, as Moses commanded them, and it did not stink, and there were no worms in it. Moses said, "Eat it today, for today is a Sabbath to the LORD; today you will not find it in the field. Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, which is a Sabbath, there will be none."

On the seventh day some of the people went out to gather, but they found none. And the LORD said to Moses, "How long will you refuse to keep my commandments and my laws? See! The LORD has given you the Sabbath; therefore on the sixth day he gives you bread for two days. Remain each of you in his place; let no one go out of his place on the seventh day." So the people rested on the seventh day.

Now the house of Israel called its name manna. It was like coriander seed, white, and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey. Moses said, "This is what the LORD has commanded: 'Let an omer of it be kept throughout your generations, so that they may see the bread with which I fed you in the wilderness, when I brought you out of the land of Egypt.'" And Moses said to Aaron, "Take a jar, and put an omer of manna in it, and place it before the LORD to be kept throughout your generations." As the LORD commanded Moses, so Aaron placed it before the testimony to be kept. The people of Israel ate the manna forty years, till they came to a habitable land. They ate the manna till they came to the border of the land of Canaan. (An omer is the tenth part of an ephah.)

{Rev. Dwight Yoo}

I will be focusing on chapter 16, but chapters 15, 16, & 17 have the same feel.

After four hundred years of slavery, God brings them to a wilderness. Doesn't this seem overly much? Can't God just give them a break? But God has a reason for doing this. In chapter 15, they are in a place with no water. They are in the middle of nowhere. The reason for this is outlined in Deuteronomy 8:2 - "And you shall remember the whole way that the LORD your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not." God is testing us.

But this is not testing like a pop quiz or an IRS audit. God is not testing like a professor, out to grade you. Israel is His people. They are NOT being tested for worthiness. They are not proving that they are worthy of His attention. It is the same for Christianity. We are not doing things to prove that we are worthy of Him. So if testing is not about our worthiness, what is it about? "Moses said to the people, 'Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin.'" - Exodus 20:20 Testing is to keep us from sin. It is to show us how to live in the family of God. It is a time of teaching & training. This is what God means by testing.

Three Lessons from the Wilderness

1) Trust His promise rather than our own Perception

God had promised His people the promised land. But God took them to the wilderness. He promised them a land overflowing with milk & honey. All they see around them is dry, hot sands. A place of barrenness. God provides manna. He preserves them.

2) To live in Perpetual Dependence

God provides quail & manna. But the manna had to be gathered each day. Manna went bad after one day, except for the sabbath. God wanted to make sure they kept the sabbath. God wanted His people to depend on Him day by day. Israel was agrian. They were used to working for their food. But instead, God provided just enough for each day.

"Man, despite his artistic pretensions, his sophistication and many accomplishments, owes the fact of his existence to a six-inch layer of topsoil and the fact that it rains." - Anonymous

We are dependent upon God whether we recognize it or not. Regardless of how accomplished we are. Regardless of our own choice making. God has given that to us. This is what it means to be dependent upon God. But the difference is this, God wants the children of God to know it. To live like our life is dependent upon God moment by moment.

3) He is our most Basic Need

Even through all the complaining & groaning, God still sustained them for forty years. It is not that Israel should have said manna was awesome. It was that they should have looked to their Provider as what they needed the most. We are not living in a culture where food & water is scarce. But we are living with different things we deem a NEED. We NEED that job. We NEED to get married. We NEED ____. But God is telling us no. We NEED Him.

"Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'" Jesus then said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." They said to him, "Sir, give us this bread always."

Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst." - John 6:31-35

This is why God sometimes withholds things we desire. Even good things. God wants us to learn that we NEED Him above that.

The Gospel According to Moses: Saved to the Praise of His Glory

[Exodus 14]

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Tell the people of Israel to turn back and encamp in front of Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, in front of Baal-zephon; you shall encamp facing it, by the sea. For Pharaoh will say of the people of Israel, 'They are wandering in the land; the wilderness has shut them in.' And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will pursue them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, and the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD." And they did so.

When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, the mind of Pharaoh and his servants was changed toward the people, and they said, "What is this we have done, that we have let Israel go from serving us?" So he made ready his chariot and took his army with him, and took six hundred chosen chariots and all the other chariots of Egypt with officers over all of them. And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he pursued the people of Israel while the people of Israel were going out defiantly. The Egyptians pursued them, all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and his horsemen and his army, and overtook them encamped at the sea, by Pi-hahiroth, in front of Baal-zephon.

When Pharaoh drew near, the people of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them, and they feared greatly. And the people of Israel cried out to the LORD. They said to Moses, "Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? Is not this what we said to you in Egypt: 'Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians'? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness." And Moses said to the people, "Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent."

The LORD said to Moses, "Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward. Lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the people of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground. And I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they shall go in after them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, his chariots, and his horsemen. And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I have gotten glory over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen."

Then the angel of God who was going before the host of Israel moved and went behind them, and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them, coming between the host of Egypt and the host of Israel. And there was the cloud and the darkness. And it lit up the night without one coming near the other all night.

Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the LORD drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. And the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. The Egyptians pursued and went in after them into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. And in the morning watch the LORD in the pillar of fire and of cloud looked down on the Egyptian forces and threw the Egyptian forces into a panic, clogging their chariot wheels so that they drove heavily. And the Egyptians said, "Let us flee from before Israel, for the LORD fights for them against the Egyptians."

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand over the sea, that the water may come back upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen." So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to its normal course when the morning appeared. And as the Egyptians fled into it, the LORD threw the Egyptians into the midst of the sea. The waters returned and covered the chariots and the horsemen; of all the host of Pharaoh that had followed them into the sea, not one of them remained. But the people of Israel walked on dry ground through the sea, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left.

Thus the LORD saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. Israel saw the great power that the LORD used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the LORD, and they believed in the LORD and in his servant Moses.

{Rev. Dwight Yoo}

This story is one of the most familiar stories from the bible. For those who grew up in the church and even those who grew up outside the church, this is well-known story. However, because we are so familiar with it, we might not be so impressed by it.

Knowing God saved us in our greatest crises, empowers us to deal with every other crises.

This is one of the greatest stories of how God saves His people. It shows how God steps in and saves them. It is natural for us to be drawn to these kind of stories when we are going through tough times. When we get into a bind, we ask God to save us. But there are times where we are praying and asking God to intervene, but God does not. We get laid off. We are struggling with depression, and it continues. We pray for our loved ones, but God does not intervene. Is God inconsistent?

Look at it this way. Since sin entered the world, we were broken; our relationships were broken; all creation was broken. So God came and brought salvation through Jesus. One day all will be restored. We will be saved from sin & death. Our relationships will be restored. All of creation will be restored to it's former glory. This our greatest need/problem. And God has met us.

So when tough times come and God does not take it away from us, don't get depressed or disappointed. Consider the greater story of what God is doing. A verse that helps us to deal with the circumstance with faith & hope comes to mind.

"For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal." - 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 (ESV)

So when God has brought us into a tough situation and leaves us there, He is working for our good. He is preparing us for something better. It doesn't feel good, but it is good for us.

God saved us for His own glory.

Did God save Israel because He loved them? Yes. Did God save us because He loves us? Yes. But that is not the end of it, God saved us so that He would get all glory.

Israel was hemmed in by the Red Sea in the front. Egypt came after them. This was considered the greatest army of that time. So God put Israel in the worse situation ever, so He would get the most glory. Israel could not claim any credit for their salvation. God wiped out the entire army on His own.

The people of Israel saw Egypt coming after them. They started complaining and cowering in fear. Even though they saw all the plagues, they only saw the Egyptians. They forgot God's power in this situation. They didn't believe God would or could deliver them. But the key thing: Even though they were faithless, God still saved them.

If we think about a person who wants people to praise & glorify them, this seems like a very negative idea. People who always talk about how great they are... not exactly someone we want to be around. We would think of how insecure they are. But God is not a person, we cannot judge Him that way. He is not insecure. He does not need our praise & worship. So how does it work? God is the most valuable being. We should not place something of less valuable in higher priority than one of higher value. Since God is the most valuable, it would be unrighteous for God to NOT tell people to praise Him. We should praise things in priority of their excellence. God being the most glorious is MOST deserving of our worship. He deserves nothing less than highest glory & praise & honor.

God's command to glorify him is an expression of love.

Not only is it right for God to say we should devote our lives to Him; it is the most loving thing. If we worship anything other than Him, it is not only sinful, but foolish & unfulfilling. We were created to find our deepest joy & satisfaction in Him. That is how we've been designed. When we do this, our joy will be made complete. When we praise something, it completes our joy. Like when we find an awesome restaurant, it isn't quite whole until we go to our friend and we say... YO, have you TRIED this RESTAURANT? NICE!

When we praise Him for all He is & all He has done, we find fullness of joy. To go otherwise is delusional.

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The Gospel According to Moses: The Story of Us

[Exodus 12-13:6]

The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, "This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you. Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers’ houses, a lamb for a household. And if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his nearest neighbor shall take according to the number of persons; according to what each can eat you shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats, and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs at twilight.

"Then they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it. Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted, its head with its legs and its inner parts. And you shall let none of it remain until the morning; anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. In this manner you shall eat it: with your belt fastened, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. And you shall eat it in haste. It is the LORD’s Passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the LORD. The blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt.

"This day shall be for you a memorial day, and you shall keep it as a feast to the LORD; throughout your generations, as a statute forever, you shall keep it as a feast. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall remove leaven out of your houses, for if anyone eats what is leavened, from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel. On the first day you shall hold a holy assembly, and on the seventh day a holy assembly. No work shall be done on those days. But what everyone needs to eat, that alone may be prepared by you. And you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this very day I brought your hosts out of the land of Egypt. Therefore you shall observe this day, throughout your generations, as a statute forever. In the first month, from the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread until the twenty-first day of the month at evening. For seven days no leaven is to be found in your houses. If anyone eats what is leavened, that person will be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is a sojourner or a native of the land. You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your dwelling places you shall eat unleavened bread."

Then Moses called all the elders of Israel and said to them, "Go and select lambs for yourselves according to your clans, and kill the Passover lamb. Take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. None of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning. For the LORD will pass through to strike the Egyptians, and when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the LORD will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you. You shall observe this rite as a statute for you and for your sons forever. And when you come to the land that the LORD will give you, as he has promised, you shall keep this service. And when your children say to you, 'What do you mean by this service?' you shall say, 'It is the sacrifice of the LORD’s Passover, for he passed over the houses of the people of Israel in Egypt, when he struck the Egyptians but spared our houses.'" And the people bowed their heads and worshiped.

Then the people of Israel went and did so; as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did.

At midnight the LORD struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of the livestock. And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he and all his servants and all the Egyptians. And there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where someone was not dead. Then he summoned Moses and Aaron by night and said, "Up, go out from among my people, both you and the people of Israel; and go, serve the LORD, as you have said. Take your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and be gone, and bless me also!"

The Egyptians were urgent with the people to send them out of the land in haste. For they said, "We shall all be dead." So the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneading bowls being bound up in their cloaks on their shoulders. The people of Israel had also done as Moses told them, for they had asked the Egyptians for silver and gold jewelry and for clothing. And the LORD had given the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they let them have what they asked. Thus they plundered the Egyptians.

And the people of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides women and children. A mixed multitude also went up with them, and very much livestock, both flocks and herds. And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough that they had brought out of Egypt, for it was not leavened, because they were thrust out of Egypt and could not wait, nor had they prepared any provisions for themselves.

The time that the people of Israel lived in Egypt was years. At the end of years, on that very day, all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt. It was a night of watching by the LORD, to bring them out of the land of Egypt; so this same night is a night of watching kept to the LORD by all the people of Israel throughout their generations.

And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "This is the statute of the Passover: no foreigner shall eat of it, but every slave that is bought for money may eat of it after you have circumcised him. No foreigner or hired servant may eat of it. It shall be eaten in one house; you shall not take any of the flesh outside the house, and you shall not break any of its bones. All the congregation of Israel shall keep it. If a stranger shall sojourn with you and would keep the Passover to the LORD, let all his males be circumcised. Then he may come near and keep it; he shall be as a native of the land. But no uncircumcised person shall eat of it. There shall be one law for the native and for the stranger who sojourns among you."

All the people of Israel did just as the LORD commanded Moses and Aaron. And on that very day the LORD brought the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their hosts.

The LORD said to Moses, "Consecrate to me all the firstborn. Whatever is the first to open the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast, is mine."
The Feast of Unleavened Bread

Then Moses said to the people, "Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the LORD brought you out from this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten. Today, in the month of Abib, you are going out. And when the LORD brings you into the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, you shall keep this service in this month. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the LORD.

[Rev. Dwight Yoo]

The Story of Passover

The first 9 plagues shows God manipulating nature to inflict judgment on the people of Egypt. The last plague is different. This is God himself coming to visit Egypt. God is coming as both the destroyer as well as deliverer.

If you recall, the Pharaoh had made a decree that all the sons of Israel should die upon birth. He tried to convince the midwives to kill the sons of Israel. So God turns this around in His judgment of Egypt. But God isn't just destroying Egyptians, Moses warns the Israelites: "None of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning." The implication is this. God will kill any firstborn outside of the house. So God isn't saying Israel are the good guys and Egypt is the bad guys. An Israelite who failed to obey was also liable to God's judgment.

The particulars of the observance of Passover are to show faith in God. They were instructed to eat in haste and to wear all their clothing. Why? It indicated God's deliverance was imminent. They were to have faith that God was going to deliver them soon. Hence why they had to eat in haste and why they had to eat as if they were readying to run out the door that very second. Each and every household that night had either dead firstborn... or a dead perfect year old lamb. Those who believed God would have followed His instructions and had judgment pass them by. Those who failed to believe... at least one person would die in that house.

For people to live and be set free, someone or something has to die. This is the idea of substitution. But the principle here is not just that Israel needed to be saved from slavery. The idea is that there are sinful people and they all need deliverance.

"The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, 'Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!'" - John 1:29
"Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed." - 1 Cor 5:7

God instructs Israel to celebrate the Passover meal every year. But we, as Christians, no longer have this meal. When Jesus came, he changed it all. They had a Passover meal, but there was no lamb. There was only bread & wine. Jesus is our lamb. So for us, we celebrate communion.

How about God's claim to all the firstborn of Israel, both man & beast? If people wished to keep their firstborn, there was a redemption price to be paid. The substitution principle remains.

What does this mean for you?

For the Israelites, God told them that they need to re-order their calendar. This month of their deliverance is to be their first month. They should re-order their entire lives around this event. Everything is different. Everything is new. It is same thing for us. God is saying our lives are all new. We should completely redefine our lives. Everything has changed. Everything has been made new. God instituted these festivals so the people would remember. It is the same for us. We should remember God's deliverance & His salvation.

By centering our lives around the gospel, our priorities & personalities will take on the attributes of a citizen of heaven. What Jesus has done for us will reshape us to be less insecure, less proud, & less fearful. More joyful, more thankful, more kind, & more loving.

The Gospel According to Moses: Who is the Lord that I should Obey Him?

[Exodus 7-11]

And the LORD said to Moses, "See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron shall be your prophet. You shall speak all that I command you, and your brother Aaron shall tell Pharaoh to let the people of Israel go out of his land. But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and though I multiply my signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, Pharaoh will not listen to you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and bring my hosts, my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great acts of judgment. The Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring out the people of Israel from among them." Moses and Aaron did so; they did just as the LORD commanded them. Now Moses was eighty years old, and Aaron eighty-three years old, when they spoke to Pharaoh.

Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "When Pharaoh says to you, 'Prove yourselves by working a miracle,' then you shall say to Aaron, 'Take your staff and cast it down before Pharaoh, that it may become a serpent.'" So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and did just as the LORD commanded. Aaron cast down his staff before Pharaoh and his servants, and it became a serpent. Then Pharaoh summoned the wise men and the sorcerers, and they, the magicians of Egypt, also did the same by their secret arts. For each man cast down his staff, and they became serpents. But Aaron’s staff swallowed up their staffs. Still Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, as the LORD had said.

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Pharaoh’s heart is hardened; he refuses to let the people go. Go to Pharaoh in the morning, as he is going out to the water. Stand on the bank of the Nile to meet him, and take in your hand the staff that turned into a serpent. And you shall say to him, 'The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, sent me to you, saying, "Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness. But so far, you have not obeyed." Thus says the LORD, "By this you shall know that I am the LORD: behold, with the staff that is in my hand I will strike the water that is in the Nile, and it shall turn into blood. The fish in the Nile shall die, and the Nile will stink, and the Egyptians will grow weary of drinking water from the Nile."'" And the LORD said to Moses, "Say to Aaron, 'Take your staff and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt, over their rivers, their canals, and their ponds, and all their pools of water, so that they may become blood, and there shall be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, even in vessels of wood and in vessels of stone.'"

Moses and Aaron did as the LORD commanded. In the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants he lifted up the staff and struck the water in the Nile, and all the water in the Nile turned into blood. And the fish in the Nile died, and the Nile stank, so that the Egyptians could not drink water from the Nile. There was blood throughout all the land of Egypt. But the magicians of Egypt did the same by their secret arts. So Pharaoh’s heart remained hardened, and he would not listen to them, as the LORD had said. Pharaoh turned and went into his house, and he did not take even this to heart. And all the Egyptians dug along the Nile for water to drink, for they could not drink the water of the Nile.
Seven full days passed after the LORD had struck the Nile.

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Go in to Pharaoh and say to him, 'Thus says the LORD, "Let my people go, that they may serve me. But if you refuse to let them go, behold, I will plague all your country with frogs. The Nile shall swarm with frogs that shall come up into your house and into your bedroom and on your bed and into the houses of your servants and your people, and into your ovens and your kneading bowls. The frogs shall come up on you and on your people and on all your servants."'" And the LORD said to Moses, "Say to Aaron, 'Stretch out your hand with your staff over the rivers, over the canals and over the pools, and make frogs come up on the land of Egypt!'" So Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs came up and covered the land of Egypt. But the magicians did the same by their secret arts and made frogs come up on the land of Egypt.

Then Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and said, "Plead with the LORD to take away the frogs from me and from my people, and I will let the people go to sacrifice to the LORD." Moses said to Pharaoh, "Be pleased to command me when I am to plead for you and for your servants and for your people, that the frogs be cut off from you and your houses and be left only in the Nile." And he said, "Tomorrow." Moses said, "Be it as you say, so that you may know that there is no one like the LORD our God. The frogs shall go away from you and your houses and your servants and your people. They shall be left only in the Nile." So Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh, and Moses cried to the LORD about the frogs, as he had agreed with Pharaoh. And the LORD did according to the word of Moses. The frogs died out in the houses, the courtyards, and the fields. And they gathered them together in heaps, and the land stank. But when Pharaoh saw that there was a respite, he hardened his heart and would not listen to them, as the LORD had said.

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Say to Aaron, 'Stretch out your staff and strike the dust of the earth, so that it may become gnats in all the land of Egypt.'" And they did so. Aaron stretched out his hand with his staff and struck the dust of the earth, and there were gnats on man and beast. All the dust of the earth became gnats in all the land of Egypt. The magicians tried by their secret arts to produce gnats, but they could not. So there were gnats on man and beast. Then the magicians said to Pharaoh, "This is the finger of God." But Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, as the LORD had said.

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Rise up early in the morning and present yourself to Pharaoh, as he goes out to the water, and say to him, 'Thus says the LORD, "Let my people go, that they may serve me. Or else, if you will not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies on you and your servants and your people, and into your houses. And the houses of the Egyptians shall be filled with swarms of flies, and also the ground on which they stand. But on that day I will set apart the land of Goshen, where my people dwell, so that no swarms of flies shall be there, that you may know that I am the LORD in the midst of the earth. Thus I will put a division between my people and your people. Tomorrow this sign shall happen."'" And the LORD did so. There came great swarms of flies into the house of Pharaoh and into his servants’ houses. Throughout all the land of Egypt the land was ruined by the swarms of flies.

Then Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and said, "Go, sacrifice to your God within the land." But Moses said, "It would not be right to do so, for the offerings we shall sacrifice to the LORD our God are an abomination to the Egyptians. If we sacrifice offerings abominable to the Egyptians before their eyes, will they not stone us? We must go three days’ journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to the LORD our God as he tells us." So Pharaoh said, "I will let you go to sacrifice to the LORD your God in the wilderness; only you must not go very far away. Plead for me." Then Moses said, "Behold, I am going out from you and I will plead with the LORD that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people, tomorrow. Only let not Pharaoh cheat again by not letting the people go to sacrifice to the LORD." So Moses went out from Pharaoh and prayed to the LORD. And the LORD did as Moses asked, and removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people; not one remained. But Pharaoh hardened his heart this time also, and did not let the people go.

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Go in to Pharaoh and say to him, 'Thus says the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, "Let my people go, that they may serve me. For if you refuse to let them go and still hold them, behold, the hand of the LORD will fall with a very severe plague upon your livestock that are in the field, the horses, the donkeys, the camels, the herds, and the flocks. But the LORD will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, so that nothing of all that belongs to the people of Israel shall die."'" And the LORD set a time, saying, "Tomorrow the LORD will do this thing in the land." And the next day the LORD did this thing. All the livestock of the Egyptians died, but not one of the livestock of the people of Israel died. And Pharaoh sent, and behold, not one of the livestock of Israel was dead. But the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go.

And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "Take handfuls of soot from the kiln, and let Moses throw them in the air in the sight of Pharaoh. It shall become fine dust over all the land of Egypt, and become boils breaking out in sores on man and beast throughout all the land of Egypt." So they took soot from the kiln and stood before Pharaoh. And Moses threw it in the air, and it became boils breaking out in sores on man and beast. And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for the boils came upon the magicians and upon all the Egyptians. But the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he did not listen to them, as the LORD had spoken to Moses.

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Rise up early in the morning and present yourself before Pharaoh and say to him, 'Thus says the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, "Let my people go, that they may serve me. For this time I will send all my plagues on you yourself, and on your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth. For by now I could have put out my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth. But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth. You are still exalting yourself against my people and will not let them go. Behold, about this time tomorrow I will cause very heavy hail to fall, such as never has been in Egypt from the day it was founded until now. Now therefore send, get your livestock and all that you have in the field into safe shelter, for every man and beast that is in the field and is not brought home will die when the hail falls on them."'" Then whoever feared the word of the LORD among the servants of Pharaoh hurried his slaves and his livestock into the houses, but whoever did not pay attention to the word of the LORD left his slaves and his livestock in the field.

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand toward heaven, so that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, on man and beast and every plant of the field, in the land of Egypt." Then Moses stretched out his staff toward heaven, and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and fire ran down to the earth. And the LORD rained hail upon the land of Egypt. There was hail and fire flashing continually in the midst of the hail, very heavy hail, such as had never been in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. The hail struck down everything that was in the field in all the land of Egypt, both man and beast. And the hail struck down every plant of the field and broke every tree of the field. Only in the land of Goshen, where the people of Israel were, was there no hail.

Then Pharaoh sent and called Moses and Aaron and said to them, "This time I have sinned; the LORD is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong. Plead with the LORD, for there has been enough of God’s thunder and hail. I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer." Moses said to him, "As soon as I have gone out of the city, I will stretch out my hands to the LORD. The thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, so that you may know that the earth is the LORD’s. But as for you and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear the LORD God." (The flax and the barley were struck down, for the barley was in the ear and the flax was in bud. But the wheat and the emmer were not struck down, for they are late in coming up.) So Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh and stretched out his hands to the LORD, and the thunder and the hail ceased, and the rain no longer poured upon the earth. But when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunder had ceased, he sinned yet again and hardened his heart, he and his servants. So the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people of Israel go, just as the LORD had spoken through Moses.

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Go in to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the heart of his servants, that I may show these signs of mine among them, and that you may tell in the hearing of your son and of your grandson how I have dealt harshly with the Egyptians and what signs I have done among them, that you may know that I am the LORD."

So Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh and said to him, "Thus says the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, 'How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me? Let my people go, that they may serve me. For if you refuse to let my people go, behold, tomorrow I will bring locusts into your country, and they shall cover the face of the land, so that no one can see the land. And they shall eat what is left to you after the hail, and they shall eat every tree of yours that grows in the field, and they shall fill your houses and the houses of all your servants and of all the Egyptians, as neither your fathers nor your grandfathers have seen, from the day they came on earth to this day.'" Then he turned and went out from Pharaoh.

Then Pharaoh’s servants said to him, "How long shall this man be a snare to us? Let the men go, that they may serve the LORD their God. Do you not yet understand that Egypt is ruined?" So Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh. And he said to them, "Go, serve the LORD your God. But which ones are to go?" Moses said, "We will go with our young and our old. We will go with our sons and daughters and with our flocks and herds, for we must hold a feast to the LORD." But he said to them, "The LORD be with you, if ever I let you and your little ones go! Look, you have some evil purpose in mind. No! Go, the men among you, and serve the LORD, for that is what you are asking." And they were driven out from Pharaoh’s presence.

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, so that they may come upon the land of Egypt and eat every plant in the land, all that the hail has left." So Moses stretched out his staff over the land of Egypt, and the LORD brought an east wind upon the land all that day and all that night. When it was morning, the east wind had brought the locusts. The locusts came up over all the land of Egypt and settled on the whole country of Egypt, such a dense swarm of locusts as had never been before, nor ever will be again. They covered the face of the whole land, so that the land was darkened, and they ate all the plants in the land and all the fruit of the trees that the hail had left. Not a green thing remained, neither tree nor plant of the field, through all the land of Egypt. Then Pharaoh hastily called Moses and Aaron and said, "I have sinned against the LORD your God, and against you. Now therefore, forgive my sin, please, only this once, and plead with the LORD your God only to remove this death from me." So he went out from Pharaoh and pleaded with the LORD. And the LORD turned the wind into a very strong west wind, which lifted the locusts and drove them into the Red Sea. Not a single locust was left in all the country of Egypt. But the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not let the people of Israel go.

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, a darkness to be felt." So Moses stretched out his hand toward heaven, and there was pitch darkness in all the land of Egypt three days. They did not see one another, nor did anyone rise from his place for three days, but all the people of Israel had light where they lived. Then Pharaoh called Moses and said, "Go, serve the LORD; your little ones also may go with you; only let your flocks and your herds remain behind." But Moses said, "You must also let us have sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God. Our livestock also must go with us; not a hoof shall be left behind, for we must take of them to serve the LORD our God, and we do not know with what we must serve the LORD until we arrive there." But the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he would not let them go. Then Pharaoh said to him, "Get away from me; take care never to see my face again, for on the day you see my face you shall die." Moses said, "As you say! I will not see your face again."

The LORD said to Moses, "Yet one plague more I will bring upon Pharaoh and upon Egypt. Afterward he will let you go from here. When he lets you go, he will drive you away completely. Speak now in the hearing of the people, that they ask, every man of his neighbor and every woman of her neighbor, for silver and gold jewelry." And the LORD gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover, the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh’s servants and in the sight of the people.

So Moses said, "Thus says the LORD: About midnight I will go out in the midst of Egypt, and every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the slave girl who is behind the handmill, and all the firstborn of the cattle. There shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there has never been, nor ever will be again. But not a dog shall growl against any of the people of Israel, either man or beast, that you may know that the LORD makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel. And all these your servants shall come down to me and bow down to me, saying, 'Get out, you and all the people who follow you.' And after that I will go out." And he went out from Pharaoh in hot anger. Then the LORD said to Moses, "Pharaoh will not listen to you, that my wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt."

Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh, and the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not let the people of Israel go out of his land.

{Rev. Charles Han}

What do the plagues reveal?

1) They reveal that the God of the Israelites is the one true living God.

This is God showing his dominance over the gods of Egypt. For instance, look at the first plague. He struck the Nile. The God of Nile is called Hopi. The river is what gave this region life. It is the source of their power. They depend upon it for their crops.

Look at the frogs. The goddess of fertility had the head of a frog. God sent so many frogs that they could not step anywhere without stepping on a frog. What does it say when you cannot walk without stepping on a frog, something deemed sacred.

The darkness... to counter the belief in Ra, god of the sun.

The magicians of Egypt were able to replicate the first two miracles. But they could not create gnats from dust. They said to Pharaoh, "This is the finger of God."

Our God is not just loving. He is also holy & powerful. We have domesticated God in our minds. We think of him as a grandfather. A nice guy who spoils us. He is our father in heaven. One who can rightly tell us what to do with our lives.

2) They show the de-creating nature of sin.

God created the world to have perfect wholeness, shalom. When sin enters into the picture, it unravels this wholeness. This is what the plagues show us. They show what God has made, being undone. When the Nile turns to blood, there is an ecological disaster. The plague of darkness is the undoing of Day 1 of creation, creating light. Finally, culminating in the final plague, death.

Take workaholics. They make an idol of work. What happens over time? Their health degrades because they don't take sabbath. They don't rest. Their psychological health degrades. They constantly worry about work. Placing undue burdens on themselves. They don't have time for their relationships. Relationships with family, friends, significant others disappear. Divorce, breakups, emotionally distant. Everything unravels.

3) They were meant to show salvation through judgment.

When God wanted to save people, he showed them his holiness. By showing how terrible the price of sin was, people realize their need for salvation. In some way, God terrorizes people to comfort them. God could have simply struck down Pharaoh. Why so many plagues? God was trying to reason with Pharaoh. You can see it here, "This time I have sinned; the LORD is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong. Plead with the LORD..."

Consider that our salvation comes because Jesus went through all the terrors of God. God's judgment & wrath were poured out on Christ. Jesus went through what Pharaoh went through, so that we would be saved.

This is our God. They is the story of our salvation.