What encouragement I found in the story of Israel today, a reminder
that in the worst of times, the Lord is
present – but we do not always sense Him there, do we? When we make a long journey
through sorrow, when we do our best with few visible results, when major
disappointment comes our way, we can be tempted to reach the conclusion that God
does not know or does not care. Are you in that place this morning?
Exodus opens with Israel in Egypt, grown from a small clan into
an enslaved people. The favored status that they had known under Joseph was
lost since gone. They had become the labor force of Egypt, building Pharaoh’s
cities, a people without a future. About 4 centuries came and went since their
grandfathers came to Egypt seeking relief from famine. When they prospered, the
Egyptians responded by taking away their freedom, killing their sons, and
making them slaves. Where was God?
The inspired text says "Years
passed, and the king of Egypt died. But the Israelites still groaned beneath
their burden of slavery. They cried out for help, and their pleas for
deliverance rose up to God. God heard
their cries and remembered his
covenant promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He looked down on the Israelites and felt deep concern for their welfare." (Exodus 2:23-25,
NLT) Let’s focus on four verbs – God heard!
God remembered! God saw! God knew!
And, He had already started the process of their
deliverance, though neither the Israelites or Moses were yet aware of that.
When we read their story, we do so knowing the outcomes, years of experience compressed
into a chapter or two. With our perspective, we wonder why they were afraid,
faithless, and failing.
When we are living life, working through the trials,
waiting on the Lord – it is so different. A month of struggle seems endless,
doesn’t it? The Word should remind us
that we are not forgotten, that God has not abandoned us to work it out alone. In the middle of the night, the prayers of the
Israelites were cries, “God help us. Save us.” And, nothing happened …. It seemed.
God was there, unseen for the moment, but active.
Centuries later in the history of the people of God, they
were once again subjected to the power of their enemies. Jerusalem and the temple
were destroyed by Assyria, the best and brightest taken to be slaves in Babylon.
They felt abandoned. Isaiah reminds them of God’s care. "But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me, the Lord has forgotten
me.” “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the
child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have
engraved you on the palms of my hands." (Isaiah 49:14-16, NIV) His love for them was as intense as that of a
nursing mother for her infant. Their names, He says, are written like a
reminder on His hands.
He is near you today, too. The choice we make is one of
faith. Paul wrote to the Corinthians about intense persecution that nearly
drove him to despair. People rejected his message. There were attempts to kill
him. The law was used against him. Was it hard? You judge as you read his
words. “We’ve been surrounded and
battered by troubles, but we’re not demoralized; we’re not sure what to do, but
we know that God knows what to do; we’ve been spiritually terrorized, but God
hasn’t left our side; we’ve been thrown down, but we haven’t broken.” Been there? Here is the truth - God hears! God remembers! God sees! God knows!
Let this word from the Word inspire you. Paul, after telling
of the troubles he knew, says that God’s Spirit resides in him, like a ‘treasure stored in an ordinary clay pot.’ Don’t you love that? God’s Spirit is with us
today. "Therefore we do not lose
heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed
day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an
eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is
seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen
is eternal." (2 Corinthians 4:16-18, NIV)
__________
(A prayer in song.)
Lord I come I confess
Bowing here I find my
rest
And without You I fall
apart
You're the one that
guides my heart
Lord I need You oh I
need You
Ev'ry hour I need You
My one defense my
righteousness
Oh God how I need You
Where sin runs deep
Your grace is more
Where grace is found
is where You are
And where You are Lord
I am free
Holiness is Christ in
me
Where You are Lord I
am free
Holiness is Christ in
me
So teach my song to
rise to You
When temptation comes
my way
And when I cannot
stand I'll fall on You
Jesus You're my hope
and stay
And when I cannot
stand I'll fall on You
Jesus You're my hope
and stay
Lord I need You oh I
need You
Ev'ry hour I need You
My one defense my
righteousness
Oh God how I need You
My one defense my
righteousness
Oh God how I need You
Christy Nockels | Daniel Carson | Jesse Reeves | Kristian
Stanfill | Matt Maher
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