Ex.3:7-8, Jn.4:23-24, Mt.6:33, God's divine management of salvation

Ex.3:7-8, Jn.4:23-24, Mt.6:33, God's divine management of salvation

3:7-8, 7The Lord said, "I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. 8So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey-the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites.
Jn.4:23-24, 23.Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24.God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth."
Mt.6:33, But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

The Bible is the Word of God. We know well that within this Word lies the way to God and life. However, in the lives of those who hear the Gospel and believe in Jesus, suffering that is difficult to understand and accept continues. Why is this? Why do we think we are saved, yet still fail to escape from sin and struggle to live without enjoying the things God has promised? The answer lies within the Book of Exodus.

1. God ‘sees, hears, and knows’ us and our lives: God saw, heard, and knew the pain and groans of the Israelites in the land of Egypt(Ex.1-2). Let us trust in God, who sees, hears, and knows everything about us, and let us begin our march of faith.

2. God ‘comes down’ for our salvation. He sends human representatives(Chs.3-11). While God Himself must come down, if the holy God were to personally visit sinners, that event could become a disaster and judgment for humanity. He sends human shepherds to act as His agents in accomplishing salvation through people. We must trust the shepherd He has assigned to us and follow Him faithfully. The Bible is the Word of God.

3. God ‘delivers’ them from judgment&wrath through the Passover Lamb(blood)(Ch.12). Through the lamb dying in their place for sinful Israel (the principle of atonement), Israel is born anew as God’s firstborn, as His heir, and as His people whom He guarantees and takes responsibility for.

4. God ‘leads’ them to the Red Sea, the wilderness,&Mount Sinai(Chs.13-24): He takes responsibility for the saved people&leads them to the Red Sea(baptism), the wilderness (training in self-denial),&Mount Sinai(training in God’s Word) as He desires. There is training that must be received before being established as a people who inherit the land of Canaan.
First, they make a resolution to serve God as their new master(Ch.13: Orientation of Faith), deny themselves, and receive baptism at the Red Sea(Ch.14). Second, training in the transfer of sovereignty to serve God as master—the life of the saints in the wilderness (Chs.15-18: Training in self-denial). Third, the method of serving God as Lord in our daily lives—receiving God’s self-revelation (Chs.19-24: the revelation of the Word at Mount Sinai).

5. God ‘takes them’ to the Tabernacle worship where they can meet daily and live in His presence (Chs.25-40, Jn.4:23-24). Looking at the Book of Exodus, He leads them to a life of worship where they walk with God every day. Worship is a place of spiritual encounter where God and man meet. God comes in the Spirit, and man comes seeking Him according to the standard of truth.

6. After the Exodus: They come to live in Canaan, the promised land of God, as the Kingdom of God, His face, and His agents. He desires to appoint us as priests and use us in the work of turning the world to the Lord. We must live as the face of God and His agents. Mt.6:33 states that God takes responsibility for our food, clothing, and shelter.

7. The model of God’s management of salvation and the story of the eagle and the chick.

Now, we must not live like the old self we were before meeting Jesus. You must live not like a chick, but like an eagle soaring through the blue sky. I pray that you live in a manner befitting your status as a new person. Amen.