January 26- You Got a Problem?

January 26, 2011

Scripture Readings:
Exodus 2:11-3:22; Matthew 17:10-27;
Psalm 22:1-18; Proverbs 5:7-14

And remember, no matter where you go, there you are. 
~Confusius

Exodus 2:11-3:22

Have you ever had a bad day?  A day where it was just one problem after another?  No matter where you went, you were still there? This is what Moses is experiencing.

Moses is not happy.  He has grown up as an outsider in Pharaoh's palace.  His mother nursed him as a baby and Moses has always known that he is a Hebrew.  In his world, Hebrews are slaves.  As he gets older, Moses is no longer happy acting as if he is an Egyptian. His desire is to identify with the nation of Israel.

One day Moses sees a fellow Hebrew get mistreated by a harsh Egyptian master.  In righteous anger, he kills the Egyptian.  We are beginning to see that Moses is compelled to help those who are downcast and mistreated. He is identifying with his people and becomes distressed when he sees two Hebrews arguing.  He corrects them. They retort that he is not their leader,  and as a matter of fact, he is a murderer.  Shocked that this is known and afraid that he will get killed by the Pharaoh for murdering an Egyptian, Moses flees to Midian. Pharaoh did want to kill Moses because he had killed an Egyptian. It was wise of Moses to flee.

Now Moses has another problem.  He is a fugitive stranger in a strange land.  A kind man named Jethro, who has seven daughters, invites Moses to live and work for him after an incident where Moses once again helps those who are in need of rescuing. Moses helped Jethro's seven daughters when they were chased off by shepherds as they attempted to water their flocks. Moses not only stopped the evil shepherds and rescued the girls, he also personally watered their sheep.

Moses is a type/shadow of Jesus Christ. Here are some ways that Moses' life reflects what Christ would accomplish on earth.

• Moses identified with and loved the nation of Israel.
• Moses had a heart for the downcast and the poor of spirit.
• Moses sought justice and rescued those in need.
• Moses was a shepherd.
• Moses will lead his people to the Promised Land.

Jethro, also called Reuel, gives Moses his daughter, Zipporah, in marriage.  Moses begins a new life in a foreign place. He is once again an outsider.

Moses becomes a shepherd. One day the Angel of the Lord (preincarnate Christ), after getting Moses' attention with a burning bush, introduces Himself to Moses as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. This scares Moses.  God tells Moses that He is distressed at the treatment of the Hebrews. (So was Moses) God intends to use Moses to go to Pharaoh and lead the Hebrews out of Egypt and into the land promised to the Hebrews.

Moses protests that he is not a leader. God says that He will be with Moses.  Moses asks what is your name?  Who shall I say sent me? 

God says, "I AM the ONE WHO ALWAYS IS.  Just tell them, I AM sent you." Vs.14  (NLT)

It is significant that God defines Himself by this name. The Hebrews will now refer to God as YHWH or YAHWEH or THE LORD.  This is important because God is telling us that He is eternal, meaning He is the only thing that has always existed and will always exist. This is a hard concept to wrap your mind around when you live in the material world. Before the universe was created, God was.

In Genesis 1 and in John 1, we read that Jesus Christ shares this eternal quality with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. Jesus has always existed. The Bible is the story of how this eternal God came to mankind to restore fellowship and provide eternal life for His creation. This is how we can be in God's presence as His beloved family forever. This is the story of how that happens. Moses is a significant character in that story.

God tells Moses that he is to go tell the Israelite leaders that the God of the Hebrews is going to rescue them.  He is also to tell Pharaoh that the Hebrews need to go into the wilderness to worship for three days.

God prophesies that the Pharaoh will not let them go until he is under heavy pressure.  God is going to use the opportunity to strike Egypt and use miracles. Then God tells Moses that as the Jews leave Egypt they will plunder Egypt and receive freedom and new wealth.

Lesson:  God allows us to have bad days, even bad years and bad decades.  The Jews had some bad centuries in Egypt, but God's plan all along was to rescue His people from evil and take them into the Promised Land. He has the same intention for you and me. God uses the hard times to bring about His good purposes (Romans 8:28).  God knows the past, the present, and the future because He is the great I AM. We can rest in the knowledge that He loves us and is a God of justice. Our great rescuer will save us.

Do you have the patience to work through the problem days knowing that God works all things for good? How can you practice this?

Matthew 17:10-27


The disciples ask why the teachers of the Law insist that Elijah comes before the Messiah. Jesus confirms that Elijah does come before the Messiah and has already come and he suffered. This is a bit confusing, but Jesus is clarifying that Elijah does come before Jesus' second coming to earth before the end of time. For now, Jesus teaches that John the Baptist was a type/shadow of Elijah, who came to prepare the way for Jesus' first coming to earth. Jesus indicates that Elijah will be coming again to set everything in order before the end of time.

Most of the Jews at this time, including Jesus' disciples, are unaware that Jesus will be coming to earth at two different times for two different purposes. Although their scriptures indicated that the Messiah would suffer and die (see Isaiah 53, Psalm 22, and Daniel 9: 24-27), most Jews only focused on the many prophecies of the Messiah restoring an earthly kingdom in the Promised Land (See Daniel 7 as one example of this).

After this, Jesus rebukes the disciples for their lack of faith and he rebukes a demon out of a boy.  Their lack of faith prevented their ability to help the boy. Please note that in the book of Acts, after the disciples have received the Holy Spirit through faith in Jesus, they are able to cast out all manor of demons and indeed, they have the faith of a mustard seed to accomplish great things for God.

Jesus speaks openly to them again about his inevitable death and resurrection.  Peter asks if they must pay taxes. Surely he is thinking that with their great Savior in hand, he will begin to rule over Jerusalem as prophesied in the Old Testament and now they will not have to pay the authorities the Temple tax. Jesus says that in order to not offend others, they will pay.  Jesus is teaching that he does have authority, but the time is not right for Jesus to set up his earthly kingdom. That will come later. For now, his disciples are to not offend the order of things.

He has Peter go fish to find the money.  Peter catches a fish that has enough money in its mouth to pay both his and the Lord's share.  Jesus wanted Peter to have some skin in the game.  Jesus let some of Peter's effort be part of this miracle. He lets Peter act on his faith and see results. This is an important lesson to Peter and the disciples. It is an important lesson to you and me.

Lesson:  We are part of the gospel process.  Jesus is encouraging his followers to let their faith make a difference.

How has your faith made a difference in someone's life?

Psalm 22:1-18

Jesus quotes this Psalm on the cross.  If you have ever wondered what went through his mind and how he felt at his death read these words.  I am sure that King David had no idea that he was writing the words of his descendant, who would die for mankind.

Proverbs 5:7-14

Stay away from prostitutes.  Sexual immorality will cause all manner of problems including disease, loss of wealth, and loss of reputation.

What did you notice today?

Blessings,

Jubilee Gal
Kathy Fullerton