February 1- Sing, Sing A Song

February 1, 2011

Exodus 13:17-15:18; Matthew 21:26-46:
Psalm 26; Proverbs 6:16-19

Sing, sing a song

Sing out loud

Sing out strong

         Sing of good things, not bad

Sing of happy, not sad

     ~The Carpenters

Exodus 13:17-15:18

In ancient times the conquests of great heroes were extolled in epic poems.  The Epic of Gilgamesh is an example of the Sumerian culture idolizing Gilgamesh, a Mesopotamian hero, who was elevated to demigod status.  The oral tradition of memorizing the story of these great heroes and their philosophical journeys helped the ancient people define themselves just as our modern story-telling through television and song define our personality as a people group. Our stories define our culture.

Today in our reading the Israelites have left Egypt one million strong.  They started with only 70 people who came to Egypt during a famine, fell into bondage under Pharaoh, were miraculously rescued by God, plundered Egypt as they left, and watched their God kill the Egyptians' first born males. Finally, God defeated the Pharaoh and his army by drowning them in the Red Sea.  This is an epic tale of military conquest by Israel's hero, God.  It is only appropriate that Moses would be inspired by the Holy Spirit to compose an epic poem/song about their cultural hero, the One True God of Israel- Yahweh (Exodus 15: 1-18). This oral tradition would be sung by the community, danced to by the women and children, and would commemorate the victory given to them by the Lord.

Exodus 15:1-18 is the victory song of Israel.  It starts "I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously; he has thrown both horse and rider into the sea."  It ends, "The Lord will reign forever and ever!"  Imagine the joy of these people as they celebrate their freedom and the defeat of their enemies.  Their long awaited answer to the prayers about their suffering has come.  Prior to the Lord destroying Pharaoh and his charioteers Moses says to the people, "Don't be afraid. Just stand where you are and watch the Lord rescue you.  The Egyptians that you see today will never be seen again. The Lord himself will fight for you. You won't have to lift a finger in your defense!"  Exodus 14: 13-14 (NLT)

Lesson:  The Lord will fight for you and me, too.  He will answer the prayers about our captivity in sin. He frees us from the slavery of this fallen world. Our strategy in trials should be to be still and wait, trusting that God will deliver us.

How has God fought for you and won?  How have you acknowledged the battles He has won for you?

Matthew 21:26-46

Jesus gets down to the nuts and bolts of Israel's rejection of his message in today's passage.  The Pharisees and other religious leaders continue to question by what authority he is acting. This time they are angry that he cleared out the merchants who were conducting business in the Temple.

Jesus predicts that they will kill him in the Landowner and His Son parable (vs. 33-41).  The parable also emphasizes that the kingdom will be offered to a nation that will produce the proper fruit.  This is a reference to Gentiles being brought into the Kingdom.  Jesus warns that he is the cornerstone of the building, but the builders of the building reject the cornerstone and instead, he becomes a stumbling block to them.  This is the story of what happens to the Jewish nation with their Jesus their Messiah.

It should be noted that Romans 11 deals with the "why" of this situation.  God explains and reveals through numerous pictures and symbols in the Bible that the Jewish nation will be the first to introduce the world to the True God, be the vehicle through whom the Christ is born, and then fall away for a period of time so that the Gentiles can be grafted in. At the end of the story the Jewish nation, once again, plays a major role as evangelists in the end times. They are restored to fellowship with God and do receive their earthly king and inherit the Promised Land in its entirety. God's promises are true and His will cannot be thwarted.

Lesson:  Don't let Christ be a stumbling block to you.  He is the foundation of all truth.

Have you made Christ the cornerstone of your life? 

Psalm 26

In this psalm you can see why God loves David's heart.

Proverbs 6:16-19

Here is a list of what God hates.  Do you hate them, too?  Haughty eyes (proud look), a lying tongue, hands that kill the innocent, a heart that plots evil, feet that race to do wrong, a false witness, a person who stirs up discord among brothers.

What did you see today that you want to discuss?

Blessings,

Jubilee Gal

Kathy Fullerton