The Book of Exodus (Part 1)

0:11 Welcome to another week of the Read Scripture Podcast where we are reading through the entire Bible together this year. And the goal, again, of this podcast is not that you just listen to, oh, that's what Francis got out of the passages. But the point of it, I'm showing you, look how powerful it is when you just read the scriptures. Just a simple reading. Here's some things that I've discovered. I'm just hoping that as you see how I read scripture and I discover things from it, that you would go, oh, yeah, that's the same thing I saw. Or I saw something different. But the goal of all of this is that you are alone with God, reading the scriptures, learning about him. And the result of that is that you fall more in love with him. Like when you're alone, it's just you and him.

1:09 And you're reading his words and you're actually speaking to a person going, gosh, I learned so much about you today. And so that's our hope is that this is really happening. Because too often, people look at Christianity or church as a list of do's and don'ts. And of course, there are commands, but that's not the core of this. That's not at the very root of this. At the root of this is a love relationship where you personally actually desire him. Not the idea that there's a God up there or a power up there, but that there is a person who has sacrificed to make you one of his children. And you just go, oh, I love you.

2:03 And you love him with everything in your heart. Because there are way too many, way, way too many people who think that this is about, okay, if I do these good things, if I'm a moral person, then God is going to bless me. I hear this type of thinking all the time. That's why I hear Christians saying, well, gosh, I've done all of this good stuff, and I've gotten rid of so much of my sin, and I feel like I'm doing so well, so why won't he bless me? How come I'm not married? How come I don't have children? How come I'm not healthy? I mean, I've done all of this stuff, so why is it so hard? And I think this week's reading is so pertinent to that, because think about the life of Joseph.

2:57 Okay? Joseph, the point of his life is that knowing God is so wonderful that even if I'm hated by my brothers for no reason, even though I'm wrongly sold into slavery by my brothers, and then wrongfully imprisoned, it's like, look at his life. Look at what his whole life amounted to. even in his faithfulness even in his forgiveness even in his walking with the lord he's in prison he's enslaved he's treated like garbage but nonetheless everything's okay why because god was with him that's what this is about that that's what uh psalm 23 you know the famous psalm that you'll be reading this week the the lord he's my shepherd so even in the presence of my enemies. So even when my enemies are right there in front of me, he's going, I'm good. My shepherd's with me. And he just like sets a table for me before my enemies. And I'm just sitting here with my cup overflowing. He goes, I don't even care if I'm walking in the valley of the shadow of death. I don't fear evil. Why? Because God's with me. See, this is what it's about.

4:23 it's not about let me do some good things and God will bless me here on the earth but it's like I want to know this God and if I know him I'm reading about all these people in history who knew him that even in the most difficult situations they were fine and they understand the sovereignty of God and that's why Joseph you know at towards the end of the story after you know it all comes around and now Joseph's put in charge and there is a pretty amazing, happy ending. He can say to his brothers, you know, in chapter 50, verse 19, do not fear for am I in the place of God? As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good to bring it about that many people should be kept alive as they are today. He looks at the end of the story, the end of his life, and says, yeah, I know. You guys were jerks. You're going to kill me, and then you throw me in a pit, and you know, then you just send me off as a slave. Like, what? You could care less what these people are going to do to me for the rest of my life, and then, you know, go down with Potiphar. So all of this stuff, you know what? You meant it for evil, but God meant it for good. Somehow, at the end of the story, here I am saving a bunch of people's lives. It's the sovereignty of God. And then we go on and we start reading in Exodus and you read about Moses. Man, Moses' life was not easy. Think about God's calling to Moses. Here's what I'm going to have you do. I mean, his life didn't start off easy. And then now, you know, when he's you know, out sitting by this well and just, he's terrified. He's a, what do you call it? A fugitive.

6:17 And then God calls him to say, I'm actually going to take you back to Egypt and have you go to Pharaoh and rescue my people. And sometimes, you know, we can just get into it. Oh, that's really cool, but have you really thought about what God was calling him to do? First, I don't know if you noticed in, well, first of all, it's a beautiful passage of where God appears to Moses. I mean, here is a man encountering God in chapter 3 of Exodus, where verse 2, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire and out of the midst of a bush. And in verse 5, he says, Do not come near, God says. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground. And he says, I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. Amazing, amazing moment where God goes after Moses and reveals himself to him. But then if you look at verse 7, it says, the Lord said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey to the place. You know, so here God is saying, look, I'm aware. I'm there. I see it. I notice this. And a thing I want to point out, because this jumped out to me this time reading through the Bible more than ever, is the character of God and how, you know, when I was younger, I used to think, okay, there's the Old Testament

8:23 stories and then God changes and then here's the New Testament. Oh, thank God for the New Testament. But as you read, you realize it's really no different. It's the same God. Like Hebrews said, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. And here you have God say, I've seen the affliction of my people. They're in Egypt. I've heard their cry. I know their sufferings and I've come down to rescue them. It reminds me of what Jesus says in Luke 12 verses six and seven how he says look he goes there's not a sparrow okay. These sparrows where you can get two of them for a penny. He goes not one of them will fall to the ground without my notice And then he says, every single hair on your head is numbered. Like, there's not a hair of your head that I am not aware of.

9:19 Okay, do you believe that 100% right now? That God notices everything, everything. And that's what he's saying to these people. He goes, look, I know, I know my people are suffering. I've seen the affliction. I've heard their cry. I know what's going on down there. And yet he lets it play out for a bit for his glory. And then, you know, and then he tells Moses, I'm going to have you lead these people. You're the one that I'm going to use. I could pull them out otherwise, but I'm going to use you. You're going to deliver them. And so Moses, you know, says in verse 11, who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt? And God says, but I'll be with you. I'll be with you. And he goes on and reveals who he is, the I am. He goes, I'll be with you. That's his promise to Moses. Again, it's similar today. What what did Jesus say when he says, look, go. You're going to go. You're going to make disciples of all the nations and you're going to baptize them in the name of the Father, Son, the Holy Spirit.

10:37 And I will be with you always, even to the end of the age. What's his promise? I've given you this task. You're going to go and you're going to teach people to obey everything that I've commanded. And you're going to get to the ends of the world. You're going to go to all the nations and I am going to be with you an impossible task but I am with you even to the end of the age and that's what he says to Moses you're going to go I mean think about his calling God is telling this one person I am going to send you to the most powerful army in the world and you're going to go there you're going to rescue this group of thousands and thousands and thousands of my people and you're going to walk them right out of that land you're going to pull all these people out of the land right out from under the most powerful ruler. I was thinking about that. That's like if God said to you right now, I'm going to send you to Syria, just you, and I'll be with you. So go to Syria and here's what you're going to do. You're actually going to, in the midst of ISIS, in the middle of all of this violence, you're going to grab these people and you are going to lead them to safety and we're actually going to defeat and destroy isis through you so go get on a plane i mean that's how probably even more impossible this was but again he's telling moses you can do that it's the same thing we we see like i said god's the same yesterday today and forever and in in uh ephesians 1 remember how he he talks about how you there's this immeasurable greatness of power towards you who believe and that's why at the end of uh or in uh ephesians chapter 3 he says i can do abundantly more than you can ask or imagine and it's according to the power of that that power that's in you okay don't look at these stories and go whoa he told moses

12:50 you know when when he was you know this fugitive and and and scared for his life and just running i'm gonna take you and i'm gonna lead all these people i don't know understand that's the same god that i pray to i just like he was meeting with moses he meets with me and just like he did these amazing things through Moses. It's that same God who wants to know me and use me and use me for something, some sort of purpose, and fills me with his spirit so that there's this immeasurable greatness of power in you, in me, in those of us who believe. And as I read about this and I look at it, something else jumped out when I was reading through how, you know, you know the story Wow, sorry, I'm in the middle of like a lightning and a thunderstorm in my little prayer room out here. Man, kind of appropriate.

13:50 I don't even know if you heard the thunder anyways, I just kind of jumped. Sorry, distracted. Exodus chapter 9. Okay, here's what I was thinking about. And you've got these plagues, you know, where God is sending these different plagues to these people. And I'm looking at the suffering, and then it ends with the killing of the firstborn, right? And I'm looking, and I'm thinking, God, that's so extreme. Really, God, you didn't have to do that. this is me thinking in my flesh in the way that I think and I go God why did you kill the first born I mean everyone's first born child is there anything more precious and so you got all these families in Egypt wailing screaming and I would be too man those of us who are parents are like man my first born what is going on and i'm just thinking of that agony and going god did it have to be that extreme and and and uh you know and and god even speaks to this in exodus chapter 9 uh verse 14 he says for this time i'll send all my plagues on you yourself and on your servants and your people so that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth.

15:29 For by now I could have put out my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence. And you have been cut off and you would have been cut off from the earth. But for this purpose, I have raised you up to show you my power so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth. Right there, God says, I could have done this a different way. you know i could have just cut you off with one plague i could because that's what i was thinking i go god why why did you do this like you could have just warned pharaoh and said hey pharaoh i'll slay your firstborn which is still huge to me but instead the way he kind of dramatizes thing and draws it out. Why? He says, I could have just cut him out, but I raised you up to show you my power so that my name could be proclaimed on this earth. And again, it's so similar to when you read the book of Revelation. When you read the book of Revelation, you go, God, why don't you just end it? You could have just said, I'm going to end the earth right there. Christ is going to return. Boom. It's done. And there's so many ways you could do it. But the book of Revelation is like, well, the first seal opens and this is going to happen. And the second seal happens and this is going to happen. And then there's seven trumpets and then there's seven bowls. It's just boom, boom, boom. And there's going to be this plague and that plague. And, you know, this is going to happen in the sky and this is going to happen to the water and all of this adding up. And you realize, wow, from beginning to end, there's this God with so much power and authority. And you read and you go, God, that's not the way I would have done it. You know, here I am being raised in America, you know, most of you with parents who never punished you and where we're all about the victim and we're all victims. And so, of course, we're going to be soft. Of course, we're going to think

17:35 that any punishment is a bad punishment. But that's why we read scripture and we go, gosh, what does God want to teach me about him? He's a severe God. He's a serious God. And this is the God that I can know. He's a sovereign God. He's an all-powerful God. He's a God of wrath. he's a God who is about his glory, and yet there are these people that he chose to reveal himself to, and they knew him. And knowing this God of wrath and power and sovereignty, this deliverer, this savior, they realize things on earth they just don't matter that much and so if you want to throw me in a dungeon and you're with me I'm okay with that and if you want to throw me into some impossible situation like putting me to getting me to rescue people out of a violent place a dangerous place okay God as long as you're with me like you were with Moses, and Jesus says, I'm with you always.

19:06 And I just got to say, these last few weeks, I have been enjoying that promise and claiming that promise and saying, Jesus is here right now with me. This is unreal. And just enjoying his presence, and it's given me a new courage, a new excitement, even as I'm reading the Bible every day, thinking, God, you're in this room with me right now, opening my eyes, and I'm reading about things you did in the past and things you're going to do in the future. And I'm just saying, you are the I am, and you are right here with me. And what does that mean for my life today? See, these are the types of things that I want you to experience, but it happens as you pursue him. Not as you listen to other people's relationship with God, but as you read scripture and you get alone with him and you worship him and you love the person of God more and more.