For a full description of the (Y3) reading plan, see the “About” page.
- What attributes of God’s character does this passage reveal?
- How does the passage point to Jesus?
- How should the truth of this passage change me?
- How do the events of today’s reading help you better understand the grand narrative of Scripture?
Ex. 1
Here is a story I want to cling to every day of my life. A God-less king gave a God-less directive to Israel’s midwives. “The midwives, however, feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt had told them…So God was good to the midwives” (Ex. 1:17a, 20a). With their refusal to comply, these two midwives essentially offered their own lives in place of the lives of the Hebrew children. They decided they would rather be punished or even put to death than to take the lives of God’s children by their own hands. For their steadfast faith, God not only blessed these women with their own families, but He also used them in His great plan to bring forth a savior for both their nation and the whole world. May I always have the courage to live boldly for God as these two humble women did.
Ex. 2
Here is yet another instance where one of the Fathers of Faith did something that seems wrong to me, yet God’s blessing came through that wrong action. While I can appreciate Moses’ concern for his fellow Hebrew and his angst against the Egyptian, I can’t quite bring myself to think that murdering that Egyptian was the right thing to do. Still, God used this action to remove Moses from Egypt for a time until He was ready to send him back. Why do such things seem to happen so frequently in the Bible story?
In thinking about this, I have to consider what I know. One thing I know is that none of us are perfect people. We all sin; we all do wrong. The Bible isn’t a story about God’s using perfect people to carry out a plan. Not at all. Another thing I know is that God doesn’t dictate our lives. If He did, I highly doubt we would see deceivers, murderers, and adulterers in His promised line. Instead, God redeems our lives. He takes all the imperfections and ugliness and uses them for His glory and our good. Thus, He is strong in our weakness that no one can boast. The Bible story isn’t about great men doing great things. Rather, it is about a great God going to great lengths to redeem an undeserving people because of His great love.
Ex. 3
When Moses asked God, “Who am I” to carry out the task God gave him, God reassured him. He promised to be with Moses, then offered him a sign. God told Moses, “this will be the sign to you that I am the one who sent you: when you bring the people out of Egypt, you will all worship God at this mountain.” (Ex. 3:12b). Wait…what?!? How is a sign that comes after the fact any kind of reassurance for the task ahead?? Talk about stepping out in faith!!
Thinking about it, though, I’m not so sure that sign was simply meant for Moses in his current situation. After all, God did not say it was a sign that He would be with Moses. He said it was a sign that it was He who sent Moses. God was calling the outcome ahead of time so that no one could say that it didn’t happen by His hand alone. So what God gave was a sign that He is who He says He is; He is sovereign God and He is in control. And I am sure that, when God later appeared to the Israelites right there at that spot, there was no doubt in Moses’ mind.