Category: Exodus

Take a moment to read the entire chapter of Exodus 1 before reading the devotional below.

Today we begin an exploration of the book of Exodus, one chapter a day for the next forty days. The story of Exodus is a story of freedom. As we go through this series, ask yourself what these stories reveal about the character of God and our understanding of freedom.

To sum up this first chapter of Exodus: seasons change. Sometimes situations that are working out well for you shift, and you find yourself kicked back down to the bottom after you had enjoyed a nice run of victory. In the book of Genesis, Joseph rose to triumph and leadership in Egypt after going through a lot of family struggles. The names of his brothers (important foundational knowledge in order to understand Israel’s history), are listed here in Exodus 1 and it is a story of the good times. Verse 8 reveals that eventually Joseph’s victory was forgotten, and a new era of oppression took over.

Here’s your freedom for today: God does not forget your victories. Although the powerful leaders in Egypt forgot the victory of Joseph, God didn’t. He was paying attention. He heard the cries of his people and was preparing his rescue long before they even asked. Real freedom comes when we let God rescue us instead of trying to cling to what once was. The only way to step into the new places God wants to take us is to get ready to move. Egypt was no longer the place God’s people could prosper. They needed a new land and a new victory that only God could bring. If you need a new victory today, cry out to God and be open to new places he may bring you.

Take a moment to read the entire chapter of Exodus 2 before reading the devotional below.

Moses’ life was in jeopardy from the moment he was born. Recall from chapter 1 that the king of Egypt demanded that all the Jewish boys be killed so that he could continue to oppress the people more easily. Moses’ mother takes two risks: keeping her baby alive secretly for three months and later sending him down the river in a basket. This riverboat ride was no accident — she knew exactly when and where the Pharaoh’s daughter would come to bathe. Moses is then rescued, and he grows up a foreigner in the king’s palace.

Fast forward to his adulthood and Moses starts to grapple with his identity. The slave oppression angers him, and things come to a head when he kills an Egyptian who was beating a Jewish slave. Although he looks around and sees no witnesses, his murderous act is exposed and his life is once again at risk. He flees to a town called Midian and meets his future in-laws. Meanwhile, the Jewish people continue to cry out for a rescue from God.

Here’s your freedom for today: God knows his purposes for you. From the time Moses was born, God knew how he would use Moses and he worked in every detail of his life to bring him to the places he needed to be. Even in his sin, God’s plan is not derailed. God was waiting for the right moment to begin his rescue efforts, and even the label “murderer” does not disqualify Moses. God knows what he is doing with you, and even your sin (which God fully expects) does not eliminate the purposes God has planned for you. He will keep saving you over and over so that in the right moment he can raise you up to do what he has called you to do.

 

Take a moment to read the entire chapter of Exodus 3 before reading the devotional below.

Sometimes God’s plans seem a little unbelievable. Imagine Moses, a murderer-on-the-run turned shepherd, thinking he was doomed to isolation in the wilderness, coming to the base of Mt. Sinai. It’s no wonder supernatural things started to happen — this would be the site of Moses’ most intense encounter with God in the future. Moses had no idea what his life would look like. Years had gone by since Moses had been in Egypt, and he never imagined that the most significant parts of his life were still ahead of him.

Moses heads over to check out an interesting sight: a bush on fire that is not burning up. All he was looking for in that moment was a fascinating spectacle, not a new life calling. And he wasn’t particularly eager to take it, but God’s offer was pretty promising. Moses’ motive for murder in the first place was the oppression of his people. A promise of rescue re-connected Moses with something he had carried in his heart for a long time.

Here’s your freedom for today: God connects your past and your future. Your life has themes and purposes that you will not fully realize until it is over. Things that God plants in your heart may stay dormant for years, only to be awakened at the moment of God’s choosing. He knows who you used to be and who you are becoming. He uses the present to shape you so that in a moment of calling you are ready. Moses was just walking along his path, not realizing he was at the site of one of the most significant places in his life and in the entire history of the world. You might also be walking by significant people and places that God will use in his timing. Trust him, he knows what he is doing.

Take a moment to read the entire chapter of Exodus 4 before reading the devotional below. 

Moses goes down in history as one of the people that least wanted to do what God was asking of him. God’s attempts to prove that his power would be with Moses only freak him out more. Imagine you unsuspectingly go to look at a weird bush on fire. Then you start to hear God’s audible voice. Then that voice tells you to throw down your shepherd’s staff onto the ground and it turns into a snake. Yeah, I’d be even more freaked out at that point too. Moses’s response is a desperate one: “God send anyone else…” Thanks, but no thanks.

God agrees to send Moses’ biological brother Aaron with him, and this reassurance is what finally causes Moses to relent to obedience. When God finally gives him more details of the plan, it turns out that a significant part of the plan is Pharaoh refusing to cooperate. Wait, what?? Moses already did not want to do this job, which meant returning to a place he might be instantly killed for his past murder. Now God’s saying that Moses will fail repeatedly at convincing Pharaoh to let the Jewish people go.

Here’s your freedom for today: God’s plans for victory often seem like earthly failures. Pharaoh refusing to listen. King Saul spending years trying to kill David after God anointed him king. Elijah running for his life for years. Jesus dying as a common prisoner after a mob riot. Paul getting thrown in jail for spreading the Gospel. Earthly measures are simply not a good way to know if God is moving. God’s plans operate in a different realm, with moving parts we only barely can begin to understand. Self-reliance is so dangerous because we do not have all the information. Stop trying to make things work out. Step back and simply follow God’s ways when the moment of obedience comes.

Take a moment to read the entire chapter of Exodus 5 before reading the devotional below. 

Today’s chapter begins with Moses carrying out God’s guaranteed-to-fail plan. Oh, did I mention that the plan not only fails, but also makes the entire situation worse? That’s right. As a result of Moses’ obedience to God, Pharaoh punishes his Jewish slaves even more harshly than he had before. But wait, it gets even worse. The Jewish foremen get so angry for the harsher conditions that they invoke the name of God against Moses and Aaron. They certainly are not thanking them for trying.

Moses pretty much loses it at this point. Have you ever prayed some angry prayers asking God, “What are you doing??” Moses doesn’t pull any punches. He accuses God of being “brutal” and says he’s “done nothing” to help the situation. He’s in a position he never wanted, experiencing failure he never thought was a good idea. Trusting God in a moment like that is a truly supernatural act.

Here’s your freedom for today: God is big enough for your doubts and fears. He’s even big enough for your anger. He knows what he’s doing even when you don’t and his all-knowing, all-powerful nature means he sees the bigger picture when you can’t. Moses’ struggles were not his own. They came to him because he stepped into one of God’s battles. Yahweh versus Pharaoh. God knows he will win, but he has his reasons for letting the battles drag out. The only options Moses had were to trust God or to quit. And quitting would turn out worse. In these moments, we pray helpless prayers and get mad if we need to. God will still be on the throne.