Moses Given Powerful Signs

 

Exodus 4:1-17

 

August 10, 2024

 

Moses Given Powerful Signs

Then Moses answered, “But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you.’”  The Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, “A staff.”  And he said, “Throw it on the ground.” So, he threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent, and Moses ran from it.  But the Lord said to Moses, “Put out your hand and catch it by the tail”—so he put out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand—  “that they may believe that the Lord, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.”  Again, the Lord said to him, “Put your hand inside your cloak.” And he put his hand inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous like snow. ​ Then God said, “Put your hand back inside your cloak.” So, he put his hand back inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, it was restored like the rest of his flesh.  “If they will not believe you,” God said, “or listen to the first sign, they may believe the latter sign.  If they will not believe even these two signs or listen to your voice, you shall take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground, and the water that you shall take from the Nile will become blood on the dry ground.”

But Moses said to the Lord, “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.”  Then the Lord said to him, “Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord?  Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.”  But he said, “Oh, my Lord, please send someone else.”  Then the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses, and he said, “Is there not Aaron, your brother, the Levite? I know that he can speak well. Behold, he is coming out to meet you, and when he sees you, he will be glad in his heart.  You shall speak to him and put the words in his mouth, and I will be with your mouth and with his mouth and will teach you both what to do.  He shall speak for you to the people, and he shall be your mouth, and you shall be as God to him.  And take in your hand this staff, with which you shall do the signs.”

 

Do you identify with Moses, when he asked God a what-if?  Can we be defined as “What If” people?  The Lord may not tell you to throw down your staff, but if he did, you and I would be just like Moses and become distance runners.  Now our calling is probably not to lead a nation out of captivity, but to share with someone we work with, a relative, or a friend, how God has rescued you from the control of sin and set your feet on sound ground.

 

But it is the “What If” that keeps us from trusting God and allowing the Spirit to give us the words we need to share the victory we have in Christ.  What if they tell me I’m a bible thumper, what if they make fun of me, what if they defriend me on social media?  Yes, the enemy of our souls will give us many “What if”, but God will do it all for you if you trust Him.

 

Yes, you and I have a lot in common with Moses at this stage of his life, looking for a reason​ too big for God to overcome our lack of skill to do what He has led us to do.  This was His answer to Moses and to us: “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.”  Then the Lord said to him, “Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord?  Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.”

 

Often, we “What If " people say, as did Moses, send someone else, and like Moses, it is our brother in Christ that God has already told to go and encourage us.  How I wonder if God’s anger is kindled, and you miss the blessing of being His instrument.

 

From the Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice

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Moses Conversation with God

 

Exodus 3:13-22

 

August 9, 2024

 

Moses Conversation with God

 

Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?”  God said to Moses, “I am who I am.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I am has sent me to you.’”  God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.  Go and gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, “I have observed you and what has been done to you in Egypt,  and I promise that I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, a land flowing with milk and honey.”’  And they will listen to your voice, and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; and now, please let us go a three days' journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.’  But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand.  So, I will stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with all the wonders that I will do in it; after that, he will let you go.  And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and when you go, you shall not go empty,  but each woman shall ask of her neighbor, and any woman who lives in her house, for silver and gold jewelry, and for clothing. You shall put them on your sons and on your daughters. So, you shall plunder the Egyptians.”

 

Our God, who is one yet three, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, has said my name, how I will be known by earth people is: “’ The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.”

 

Go, was not a request, this was the order;  Go and gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, “I have observed you and what has been done to you in Egypt,  and I promise that I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, a land flowing with milk and honey.”’  

 

 You may be wondering if God told you to go, and the answer is yes.  Do you recall in Luke 9:59-60 where Jesus told a man to follow him, and he wanted first to bury his dad?  Do not get hung up on his dad. When Jesus says to do anything, and it does not become our priority, then we are not open to Jesus’ authority.  This is what Jesus said to the man: “And Jesus said to him, 'Leave the dead to bury their own dead. But as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”

 

Our marching orders are as you go, make disciples. How are you doing?  Mark 16:15, “And he said to them, 'Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.”

 

Do you recall the man whom Jesus sent the demons into the herd of pigs, and he wanted to go with Jesus, I would have also.  But Jesus did something greater for me: He redeemed me from a life of sin and sent His Holy Spirit to live in me.  These are Jesus' words to that man, “The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, 'Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.” And he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city how much Jesus had done for him.”

 

We, as followers of Christ, have been given orders to go tell what Jesus has done for us.  But, like the man with the excuse first, let me bury my dad, we allow our desire to fit in with our family, friends, and people we work with to keep us from obeying the Lord. How can we then hope to seek His face?

 

God made it clear that their word would not have any effect on the King of Egypt, but His hand of power and might would.  They would leave Egypt with gold and silver, clothing, yes, they would go, but you must recall, they still had a Red Sea encounter, and so will we.  Jesus has made that clear, John 16:33, I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world, you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

 

From our Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice

the affliction of my people

 

Exodus 3:7-12

 

August 8, 2024

 

Then 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 of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.  And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them.  Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.”  But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?”  He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”

 As a Seeker of Truth, one is always looking for an application. How does this apply to my daily walk with the Lord?  First, one must see God’s plan for Moses before he was put in a basket in the Nile River, which was to encounter Him in a bush that was burning but not consumed.  And remember that God also has a good plan for your life.  Secondly, never look for a fix outside of Christ; He is very aware of your suffering.  And God has a plan to get you out of Egypt.

 Now we like things to happen quickly, but stop and give thought. Moses is now forty, he is not doing all that bad, has a wife and at least one son to carry on his name, and is working for a man who is well respected in the community.  And God tells him, I want you to go free my people.  What were Moses's first thoughts, why me, that is where most of us are when God tells us to go.

 

If I had been Moses, these thoughts would have come into my mind for years I have been a shepherd, and the Egyptian has disdain for such people.  And Lord, you know they want to kill me for trying to help my people, so fear of the future would play into the many reasons I should not be the one to go to Pharaoh.  But the past is not important when God says, "Go, and I will be with you."  And not only that, but when the mission is accomplished, you will worship God on this Mountain.

 From a dark moment to a glimmer of Light.  

So, my brother or sister in Christ, when you get to the well seeking water, you are tired, feeling all along, and you see injustice and help your young girls trying to water their dad’s sheep, stand for good, and watch God show up in your circumstance.

 

From the Back Porch,

 Bob Rice

God speaks from a Bush

                                                            Exodus 3:1-6

 

August 7, 2024

 

Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.  And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed.  And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.”  When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.”  Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.”  And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

 

If you were asked if you were a seeker of Truth, how would you answer that question?  I believe most who go by the title of Christian would say yes with all my heart.  But maybe we should examine what the Scripture tells us about the heart; Jeremiah 17:9, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?”  Many who go by the title of Christian will quote 2 Chronicles 7:14,  ^“If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”  How many who do so believe that just the people of the USA would turn to God, but they are not His people, they are not called by His name, nor are a large number who go by the name Christian.

 

But those who are called by His name, the Church, would humble themselves and pray and seek His face and turn from their wicked ways, 

We would seek His presence, not His hand.  We would repent and hunger and thirst for Him.

 

Moses hid his face when God made clear to whom Moses was speaking, in fear, and I believe that is a great need of today’s Church.  A lack of fear for the God of Abraham,  the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.

In Psalm 105:4, “Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually!” That is a strong word for the Church.

From The Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Tomorrow I will deal with that

 

 

Tomorrow I will deal with that

 

Have you been guilty of putting things off till tomorrow as if you were guaranteed tomorrow?  We are all guilty of this. In my years between jobs, many call that retirement, but I never cared for the word retirement, in that it just works, without pay.  I’ve found myself telling my bride of 59 years not to worry about getting the house looking nice, as we always have tomorrow.  Who gave me the authority to say something so foolish?

 

Driving to worship last Sunday, I observed one of my neighbors out walking his dog, and my mind wandered if Sunday is just another day for him.  Does he know that God loves him and that it was God who told the Psalmist to record Psalms 139:16, “Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.”  God has determined the number of hours, days, and months in our lives here on earth. Matthew 25:46 and many other passages teach that everyone will live for eternity.  If you do not believe in God or life after death, I’m not going to change your mind, but Jesus tells us in Matthew 25 about a final judgment, when He will return to earth to judge the nations.  Like a good shepherd, he will separate those who have received Him by faith in His work on the Cross to His right, and those who have not to His left, just as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.  Matthew 25:31-46 gives you a clear account of this.  Let me highlight a few verses you need to ponder on, Mathew 25:31-32, “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne.  Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.” And in Mathew 25:41-46, “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.  For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty, and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger, and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison, and you did not visit me.’  Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’  Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’  And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”  

 

Life on planet Earth is a lot like the choice we make each day in our car.  You're behind a big truck, and he is going around a curve, with a double yellow line, but you are in a hurry, and you choose to try to pass, just hoping no one is coming at you.  You did it before, and it worked, but today it did not, and your life has ended. All the plans you had are not important anymore, but your soul or spirit, the real you, is very much alive.  Will you be on the right or left?  God is very clear; hell was not planned for you!  But, like that yellow double line, you cross on the curve, your choices can bring life or death on earth; they will bring spiritual life or eternal punishment.

 

You might be wondering if Hell is a real place. Well, God’s only Son, Jesus Christ, gave a lot of ink to that fact in the Scripture, and I have come to understand that believing Jesus tells the truth is real faith.  Let me be very clear in the darkness we are living in, Jesus is Truth. Jesus talked more about hell than He did about heaven, and described it more vividly. 

Jesus doesn’t only reference hell, he describes it in great detail. He says it is a place of eternal torment (Luke 16:23), of unquenchable fire (Mark 9:43), where the worm does not die (Mark 9:48), where people will gnash their teeth in anguish and regret (Matthew 13:42), and from which there is no return, even to warn loved ones (Luke 16:19-31. He calls hell a place of “outer darkness” (Taken from the site Christian Living). If you have been putting it off till you get your act right, I have got some great news for you: it is not required, Jesus will take you as you are if you are willing to allow Him to be the Master and you take the role of servant.

 

I lived for 27 years as the master of my life. I believed that Jesus was God, that He was born of a virgin, and that He was the only way to the Father.  But I was not sure I wanted Him in Charge of my life.  I would do it later as if I were in control of later!  One night in Victoria, Texas, returning from a bar, I put the key in the hotel room door and heard this voice in my head, this is the last day I will deal with you.  I opened that door and went for the hotel Bible, it opened to Romans 10, and my eyes went to verses 9-10, "because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  For with the heart, one believes and is justified, and with the mouth, one confesses and is saved.  That night, I acted on those verses with the faith and grace God gave me, and I entered into Christ, and He entered into me. 

 

I’m making better choices, but I have a long way to go. I do know that God’s plan for me is good, and I have an eternal home where Jesus, who is the author of Life, Jesus, will be my Master, and I, His willing servant.

 

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

God Hears Israel's Groaning

                                                             Exodus 2:23-25

 

August 9, 2024

 

God Hears Israel's Groaning

 During those many days, the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God.  And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob.  God saw the people of Israel, and God knew.

 

Have you given thought to the fact that God’s Word was designed for you and me to apply to our time on planet Earth?  While Joseph and Pharaoh were alive, Egypt was a place of growth and blessing, but it was not the land God had promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  

But what happens when things are​ not going great? They begin to groan.  Do you recall COVID-19 and how evil men saw the opportunity to control nations?  They made little children wear masks, which did very little, but put fear into their parents, and gave them drugs that have caused many to die and others to have serious health issues.  Fear was the tool that had worked; it is what many in the world use to sell a product.

 

My family, Jan and I, my daughter and son-in-law, and my grandson ask the Lord what we should do, and got a strong no on taking the vaccine. We obey the law and wear a mask when required, but we were not going to be prisoners of fear.  During that time, I did test positive for Covid, but when I went to the hospital, it was my sodium level was way below a hundred.

So, remember that often God uses issues in our lives to get us to look to Him, and get back into His word and apply it to the issues at hand.

 

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Moses Flees to Midian

 

Exodus 2:11-22

 

August 7, 2024

 

Moses Flees to Midian

One day, when Moses had grown up, he went out to his people and looked on their burdens, and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his people.  He looked this way and that, and seeing no one, he struck down the Egyptian and hid him in the sand.  When he went out the next day, behold, two Hebrews were struggling together. And he said to the man in the wrong, “Why do you strike your companion?” He answered, “Who made you a prince and a judge over us? Do you mean to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?” Then Moses was afraid and thought, “Surely the thing is known.”  When Pharaoh heard of it, he sought to kill Moses. But Moses fled from Pharaoh and stayed in the land of Midian. And he sat down by a well.  

 

Where did Moses get the idea that God had asked him to kill a man? It was an act of Moses' flesh, trying to do good, in doing a bad act of murder.  And we understand he hid the man that he killed, he knew that his action would not go well.

 Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters, and they came and drew water and filled the troughs to water their father's flock.  The shepherds came and drove them away, but Moses stood up and saved them and watered their flock.  When they came home to their father, Reuel, he said, “How is it that you have come home so soon today?” They said, “An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds and even drew water for us and watered the flock.”  He said to his daughters, “Then where is he? Why have you left the man? Call him, that he may eat bread.”  And Moses was content to dwell with the man, and he gave Moses his daughter Zipporah.  She gave birth to a son, and he called his name Gershom, for he said, “I have been a sojourner in a foreign land.”

We see Moses as the man who stands for the one too weak to stand for themselves.  This time, he not only helped the ladies trying to water their flock of sheep, but he also drew the water for them.  And you can read the account, but what can we apply to our lives?

 

First, never do bad. It is one thing to intervene, to stop a fight; it is another thing to do as Moses did.  God did not make Moses kill anyone; that was an act of will driven by emotions.  But God, being all-knowing, uses it to get Moses out of Egypt to teach him how to shepherd his chosen people.

 

Often, our flesh and emotions will tell us it is ok to act in a way that is contrary to turning the other cheek.  Always remember our Lord's words, and follow them: “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world, you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

From our Back Porch,

Bob Rice