Category Archives: Devotional Studies Through the Bible

Idol Worship

 

You shall not make for yourself an idol,

or any likeness of what is in heaven above

or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth.

Exodus 20:4

 

As we take a look through history and even as we look around us today we see the evidence of why God delivered this commandment. The false gods of Egypt then, the false gods of the other nations of the world then, and even now, require an idol.

Those who worship them build altars in their homes, in their yards, in their cities, they set up shrines and they design even hand held objects to take with them where ever they go and then they bow down and worship before this image that they themselves had to make.

I homeschool our children and this past school year we studied ancient Egypt. One of the things we learned as we studied their culture, religion, and government was how they treated their idols. The priests had to bath the idol, they had to bring food to the idol, and they had to move the idol. They had to do everything for this so called “god”.

Why would they think that a god who could not even feed or bath himself, a god that they have to carry, would be worthy of their worship and could deliver them in a day of distress?  

Isaiah 44:20 tells us that “… a deceived heart has turned him aside. And he cannot deliver himself, nor say, ‘Is there not a lie in my right hand?'”

Oh how our hearts can deceive us!

Notice also in this verse, that this one could not deliver himself. This one who bowed down before the works of his hand could not make himself see the foolishness in it all. To his deceived heart it all made perfect sense. It is indeed true that all of mankind has exchanged the truth of God for a lie and we have bowed down and worshiped created things instead of our Creator (Romans 1:25).

However, our Creator God’s love for us remains. He tells us in Isaiah 42:16, “I will lead the blind by a way they do not know; in paths they do not know I will guide them. I will make darkness into light before them and rugged places into plains. These are the things I will do, and I will not leave them undone.” God has no desire to leave us undone, no desire to leave us holding a lie in our right hand. He wants us to be sanctified in His truth.

He distinguished Himself from all other gods by the giving of His law. Isaiah 42:21 says that “The LORD was pleased for His righteousness’ sake to make the law great and glorious.” He would show us His omnipresence by making us aware that He did not need an idol to remind us of His presence and power.

He lets us know in this commandment that He is a jealous God. As a matter of fact He goes so far as to say that His name is Jealous (Exodus 34:14). Let us remember that He has said He will not give His glory to another and He will not have His praise given to any graven image (Isaiah 42:8). 

When our God chose to show Himself to us, when He chose to allow us to behold His glory, He did not use a temple, an altar, or a graven image. No precious one, our God displayed His image in the person of Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 4:4, Hebrews 1:1-3).

The Word, the great and glorious Law of God became flesh and dwelt among us and we saw the glory of the Lord, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth (John 1:14). The image of our God would not be made of wood or stone and He would not be fashioned by the hands of man. He would have inherit power. He would indeed be able to bath Himself, feed Himself, and carry Himself around. He would not be dependant on any man, for Hw is the One through who man was created (John 1:3).

Oh Father,

Thank You for being a jealous God. Thank You for making me aware of Your omnipresence. How awesome it is to know that there is no where I can go to flee from Your presence (Psalm 139:7-12). Thank You for Your great and glorious law, Your Word of truth, which separates You from all other gods that are seeking my heart. The world is full of idols, full of things of empty promise, that are wanting me to trust in them, to bow down to them, to fear them, but I bow before You alone. Oh Father, and because You are indeed a jealous God, You will let me know when my heart has turned from You. You will keep me from being deceived unto death (Job 36:7-11). Keep me, my God, in Your lovingkindness. 

My Jesus it is in Your name I pray,

Amen

No Other

 

You shall have no other gods before Me. 

Exodus 20:3

 

Commandment number one: You shall have no other gods before me.

In truth if we were to be judged by the Law of God who among us could get past this very first commandment? How thankful I am that Christ stood in my place. What I see in this commandment is that our God never denies that there are other gods. The word gods in the Hebrew is elohiym and it means rulers, judges, divine ones, angels, godlike one. This is also the same word used for the One True God. However these “little g” gods are not omnipotent or omnipresent or omniscient, they are created beings, not creators.

As a matter of fact in John 10:34 Jesus says that we are gods, “Jesus answered them, ‘Has is not been written in your Law, I said, you are gods’?'” Jesus is quoting Psalm 82:6 “I said, ‘You are gods, and all of you are sons of the Most High.'” We are gods because we rule over others, we sit as judges over others, and because we are sons of the Most High.

However, we are not GOD.

Nor will we ever become Gods or attain to God-ship through some mystical process of perfecting ourselves.

We are created beings. We have a Creator.

He alone is GOD. 

This is why God declares in Isaiah 2:22, “Stop regarding man, whose breathe of life is in his nostrils; for why should he be so esteemed?”

This is why the Creator God declares, “For the LORD your God is the God of gods and the Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God…” (Deuteronomy 10:17).

We are to place neither man nor any other being before our God. We are not to worship man and we are not to worship any power or supernatural force, no matter how intriguing it may appear. We are not to put our trust in ourselves. We are not to set ourselves up as God. The very desire to do so is what brought upon the fall of all mankind.

 

The serpent said to the woman, ‘You surely will not die!

For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened,

and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.’

Genesis 3:4-5

 

Oh precious ones, we may be created in the image of God but we are not “like” God.

 

To whom will you liken God?

Or what likeness will you compare with Him?

Isaiah 40:18

 

We cannot even fathom the likeness of the glory of our Creator God. He is holy. He is unique like none other. There is none to liken Him or compare Him to. He is God. He is incomprehensible and He will not share His glory with another. He says “I am the LORD, that is My name; I will not give My glory to another…” (Isaiah 42:8).

 

So my friend, when we read…

  And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us,

and we saw His glory,

glory as of the only begotten from the Father,

 full of grace and truth.

John 1:14

 and when we read…

Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life;

no one comes to the Father but through Me.

John 14:6

and when we read…

Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself,

with the glory which I had with You before the world was.

John 17:5 

….what must we know if God has already told us that He will not give His glory to another and we are to have no other gods before Him? There is only one conclusion, for our God does not lie, and He does not contradict Himself in anyway. The one and only conclusion is that Jesus is indeed God.

 

Oh Father,

I worship You. Thank You for taking on flesh and standing in my place for judgment. You knew I had been deceived and You were mindful that I am but flesh. Your love for me is breath taking. I cannot comprehend it no more than I can comprehend all of who You are. You are my God. The God of gods and I desire to honor You and walk faithfully in Your commands. I place no other god before me as I surrender to You in and through Your Son Jesus Christ.

 

My Jesus, it is in Your name I pray,

Amen

 

  

Laying Down the Law

 

Then God spoke all these words, saying,

I am the LORD your God,

who brought you out of the land of Egypt,

out of the house of slavery.

Exodus 20:1-2

 

The people are assembled at the base of the mountain with Moses and Aaron. Can you imagine the anxious expectation that must be in the air at this moment? They have followed this pillar of fire by day and this pillar of cloud by night. They have listened to Moses recall to them what he has told them the LORD has said, but now all the people will hear from their God. Today they will all hear His voice.

In Exodus 19:4-6 we read how God desires to make this stubborn, rebellious, stiff-necked, grumbling people a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. This is the purpose of God for the children of Israel. The only stipulation placed on them, “obey My voice and keep My covenant.”

Now this is our God. He is not going to allow this covenant to be delivered second hand. He wants all the people to be aware they are without excuse. He will allow all of them to hear His voice as He delivers the main conditions of this covenant.

We call these conditions the Ten Commandments. These ten commands are the base of the entire Law of God. How fitting that they were given to the people at the base of a mountain. God is showing them this is your solid foundation. This remains a solid foundation for us today as well.    

Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets;

I did not come to abolish but to fulfill.

For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away,

 not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished.

Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments,

and teaches others to do the same,

 shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven;

but whoever keeps and teaches them,

he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 

Matthew 5:17-19

This is what Jesus has to say about the Law of God, therefore, we must not disregard these commands. Jesus came to show us how the whole point of God’s Law was to teach us how to love. The Law condemns us because apart from God we know nothing about real love.

Precious one have you ever considered that every commandment given by our God is for our benefit. Obeying the commands of God and practicing love go hand in hand. The Law actually defines love and how we are to walk it out as children of God.

I came across a wonderful booklet on the Ten Commandments online (www.ucg.org/booklets). This booklet shares how, “For love to be meaningful it must be accurately defined and understood… Love is the centerpiece of all the Scriptures, both the Old and the New Testaments… In Jesus Christ’s own words, ‘abiding in’- or maintaining the practice of- godly love is accomplished by keeping the commandments of God. His example teaches us that obeying and godly love are inseparable. Sin is simply violating love by transgressing the commandments of God. Sin is lawlessness- neglecting or refusing to be bound by God’s rules that define true, godly love.”

In 1 John 5:3 the Word of God declares, “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.” So for the next couple of weeks we are going to dig into these ten commands of God given at the base of the mountain to the children of Israel one at a time. May we see how they apply to us today as believers and partakers of the new covenant, the better covenant (Hebrews 8:6), in Christ.

Oh Father,

Open my eyes to Your truth. Let me be one who is called great in the kingdom of heaven. Show me Father, how to teach Your Law and obey Your Law in light of the grace and truth that is realized in Christ. Your word says that the Law is holy and righteous and good (Romans 7:12). However Your word also says I am released from the Law (Romans 7:6) in Christ. So show me, teach me what this means, and I will obey and walk in the truth that You reveal to me. 

My Jesus it is in Your name I pray,

Amen

 

When God Comes Down

 

So it came about on the third day, when it was morning,

that there were thunder and lightning flashes

and a thick cloud upon the mountain

and a very loud trumpet sound,

so that all the people who were in the camp trembled.  

Exodus 19:16

 

As you study through the Scriptures we learn that the third day is very significant to God.

In Genesis it was on the third day that the waters were gathered into one place and the dry land appeared and began to sprout forth life with seed in it bearing fruit.

It was on the third day that Jonah cried out to God from the belly of a fish and God then commanded the fish to vomit him out onto the dry land.

It was on the third day that our Lord arose from the grave victorious.

Here in Exodus it will be on the third day that all the people will hear the voice of their God.

I cannot even begin to imagine the awesomeness of this day. In this account we read that the Lord descended on this mountain in fire. We read that smoke rose like that of a smoke furnace and that the entire mountain quaked violently. All of this on top of a trumpet sound that grew louder and louder.

Then Moses speaks and God Himself answers him with thunder, God’s words to Moses, “Go down, warn the people, so that they do not break through to the LORD to gaze and many of them perish.” (Exodus 19:21).

My husband works in a steel mill. His company melts down metals in huge furnaces to produce steel. When the smoke is rising up out of the furnace you can see it from miles away. When water is found in the furnace it will explode with a force that shakes homes for miles around. He has taken me to his worksite to see these furnaces and to watch their power. I watched in awe at these furnaces and could feel their strength, even from the safety of the inside of my husband’s truck. I cannot even begin to imagine the awestruck fear that was upon this people as they stood at the foot of this violently quaking mountain that was so simply because it had been descended upon by the One True Living God.  

The earth quakes when God comes down. What in the world makes us think we could ever stand in His presence? Only the blindness of sin and the pride and arrogance of a deceived heart can make us this ignorant…

God’s warning to the people is not from being power hungry or to show them He’s boss. It is a true warning out of concern for their very lives. This One True Living God was not one of the gods of Egypt that they had grown accustomed to. This God, the I AM, was and is holy.

They could not approach Him and live because they had yet to learn how to approach this holy God. We in our sinful flesh can have no part with this God. He is not the works of man’s hand nor is He a fallen one. He is Elohim, the Creator God.

Our sin separate us from God. Our sin brings His righteous wrath. Sin and holiness do not mix just as water and hot melted steel do not mix. Just as that water in the furnace at my husband’s work naturally brings the wrath of the steel and is consumed in its fury, so our sin naturally incurs the wrath of the holiness of our God and is consumed in His righteous fury.   

Oh, how thankful I am that this holy God, our Creator, made a way… when there was no way.    

Oh Father,

How thankful I am for Your mercy. My sin is ever before You, but in Your mercy You have made a way for those who seek You to find You. Those who submit to You will not be consumed in Your fury, but You have always made a way for Your people to commune with You. Now in Christ we have not come to that mountain that can’t be touched, but we have come to Mount Zion. Let us not refuse Him who is speaking (Hebrews 12:18-29). 

My Jesus it is in Your name I pray,

Amen

 

Coming to the Mountain

 

In the third month

after the sons of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt,

on that very day they came into the wilderness of Sinai. 

Exodus 19:1

 

The children of Israel have finally made it to the mountain. In Exodus 3:12 God spoke to Moses through a burning bush and told him, “Certainly I will be with you, and this shall be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God at this mountain.” Now here they are camped at the foot of this very mountain. 

When Moses went to Pharaoh he asked permission for the children of Israel to be allowed a three day journey into the wilderness in order to go and worship their God. Three months later and many signs and wonders later, the people gather to hear from their God. It just hit me as I write this, that all that Moses did before this moment was by faith. The sign that it was indeed God who sent him to Pharaoh has just now occurred over three months later.

I wonder how many nights Moses lay in bed tossing and turning wondering if he had lost his mind, wondering if he was indeed a fool who had just brought millions of people out into the wilderness to die. I would like to think that he was this mighty man of faith, but the truth is, he was human like you and I. He was flesh, sinful, weak flesh. He was just a man. I love how our God does not hide the weaknesses and failures of His servants. It gives me hope that maybe, just maybe, God could use me too.     

In Exodus 19:3 we read that Moses has gone up to God and the LORD has called to him from the mountain with the message He has for the house of Jacob, the children of Israel. The message is:

You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians,

and how I bore you on eagles’ wings, and brought you to Myself.

Now then, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant,

then you shall be My own possession among all the peoples,

for all the earth is Mine;

and you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.

Exodus 19:4-6

This was God’s plan. This entire nation was to be a kingdom of priests to the entire earth. Every nation was to learn how to worship the One True Living Creator God, the I AM, through the house of Jacob, through the children of Israel. This was God’s offer to this people He had redeemed from under the hand of Pharaoh and the false gods of Egypt.

Moses came to the people and he delivered God’s message to them and the people responded, “All that the LORD has spoken we will do!” (Exodus 19:8).

Yes Lord, we agree to your offer. We accept it willingly. Their journey was just now about to begin. They had accepted an awesome honor, but with this honor come grave responsibility. To whom much is given much is required (Luke 12:48).      

Oh Father,

Our journey of faith does not really begin until we answer that call from You and say “Yes, Lord all that You have spoken I will do.” It is Your grace that comes to us and approaches us and it is Your grace that gives us the mustard seed amount of faith to say yes. It is then by Your grace through that given faith that we walk this journey. Just as You called Israel to be Your priest so You have called me to be in Christ. “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” (1 Peter 2:9)

My Jesus it is in Your name I pray,

Amen

 

Faith, Family, and Ministry

 

Moses’ father-in-law said to him,

‘The thing that you are doing is not good.’ 

                                                     Exodus 18:17                                                                 

 

Moses’ father-in-law, Jethro, comes to visit and return Moses’ wife and children to him. During the visit Jethro witnesses Moses sitting as judge over the children of Israel. Moses is the one that every problem is brought to, no matter how big or small. He sits from morning until evening listening to every complaint and question among the people.

I can just see Jethro’s face as he watches all this taking place. I can see him shaking his head in disbelief at the length of the line of people outside of Moses tent. In my mind’s interpretation I can see him going to his daughter, and complaining about what he is seeing. I can see him telling her, “Zipporah, there is no way he can keep that up. He is going to kill himself or all those people lined up outside that tent are going to kill each other as they wait to see him. When is he going to have time to be a husband and father? He will see an early grave if he keeps this up.”

Then I can see Zipporah saying, “Father, he won’t listen to me. You go and talk some sense into him and God be with you.” I am not sure if it played out that way, it’s just the way I see it.

Now Jethro goes to Moses and makes known his concerns. This is what I like about Jethro. He brings up his concerns, but he also brings up a possible solution to the concern.

“Now listen to me: I will give you counsel and God be with you.

You be the people’s representative before God,

and you bring the disputes to God,

then teach them the statutes and the laws,

and make known to them the way in which they are to walk

and the work they are to do.”

Exodus 18:19-20.

I also like that Jethro closes his concern and suggestion with telling Moses to check with God

If you do this thing and God so commands you, then…

Exodus 18:23

So it’s like Jethro says, Now Moses here’s my suggestion, but you check with God and if this is good with God, then this is what you need to do, because your family needs you too and you are not going to be any good to your family or these people if you keep this up.

There is so much to be learned from this chapter in Exodus:

1)   Our family is important and the walk we have with God will have a huge impact on them so our priority ministry is in our own homes (Exodus 18:1-12).

 

2)   We cannot do the work that God has called us to do all alone (Exodus 18:13-18).

 

3)   God is always faithful to send us wise counsel and we must be willing to listen (Exodus 18:19-22).

 

4)   When we see a problem or have a concern let us be willing to bring it up before the one that it concerns and let us be prepared to help with fixing it (Exodus 18:19-22).

 

5)   When we offer or receive counsel let us be sure to make sure it is good with God before it is followed (Exodus 18:23)

 

Oh Father,

Once again You are mindful that we are but flesh. You are aware that there is only so much we can do on our own. So many times we hesitate to ask for help. So many times we are guilty of taking on too much responsibility. So many times it’s because we don’t want to be a burden to another and sometimes it’s simply because we just don’t trust another to do it right, at least the way we see right. Thank You Father for the way You interrupt us with Your will. Thank You for sending Your counsel through others. Help me Father to listen and to always confirm with You and then obey Your command.

My Jesus, it is in Your name I pray,

Amen.

 

Make War

 

Moses built an altar and named it

The LORD is my Banner;

and he said, ‘The LORD has sworn;

the LORD will have war against Amalek

from generation to generation.’ 

Exodus 17:15-16 

 

Oh precious one, pour over Exodus 17:8-16 and soak up its truth. Read this account very carefully. Ask the Holy Spirit to give you eyes to see and a heart to understand all that God shows us in these last verses of Exodus 17.

The children of Israel are in the wilderness and Amalek has risen up against them and they must fight. Moses commands Joshua to choose men and to go out and fight. Moses will go to the top of the hill and station himself and hold up the staff of God. He will hold up this staff that God has used to deliver them from Egypt and to bring water from a rock and now he will hold it up for deliverance against Amalek.

As we read through these verses we see that Moses does not go up on the hill alone He takes Aaron and Hur with him. As we read we see that as long as he is able to hold up that staff Joshua is victorious over Amalek. However, when Moses grows tired and his hand grows heavy and is let down Amalek begins to prevail.

Aaron and Hur came to him immediately. They bring a stone for him to sit on and then they hold up his hand and Israel is victorious over Amalek.

The LORD tells Moses to “write this in a book as a memorial and recite it to Joshua that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.” (Exodus 17:14) Moses then builds an altar to the Lord and named it Jehovah-nissi, The Lord my Banner.   

So my friend why would God tell Moses to write this day down and recite it, if it were not of the utmost importance for us to know it. Why is it so important? What is so significant about this battle? Oh precious one the beautiful picture, the awesome message, given to us through this battle is crucial to us as a child of God.

Is the suspense killing you?

Go back and read this passage again and instead of reading Amalek replace this nation with the word flesh.

Do you see it?

Do you see that even as a born again believer we still remain in this flesh. We still battle this flesh. How are we to prevail against it?

We can prevail only by lifting up the Lord our Banner. It is only by the Spirit of God that the deeds of the flesh can be put to death (Romans 8:13). We are powerless on our own.

Yet, even as a Spirit filled child of God this battle gets long and weary and we grow tired and our hands grow heavy. We will lose this battle if not for the help of our fellow believers in Christ.

When Moses grew weary Aaron and Hur immediately came to him. Hebrews 12:12 tells us “Therefore, strengthen the hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble.” We are also told in Hebrews 10:24-25 that we are not to forsake the assembly but we are to gather together and encourage each other. My friend we need each other.

Moses tells us that the Lord will wage war with Amalek from generation to generation. We will battle this flesh and our children will battle this flesh and our children’s children will battle this flesh, until death or the day we are all changed (Romans 8:23, 1 Corinthians 15:52).

Oh but precious one, don’t miss that beautiful promise that God tells Moses to write down, the promise that He will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.

Does this not make you want to shout?

The very memory of our flesh will be utterly blotted out. I don’t know about you but that is a day that I long for and a promise that I hold to with hopeful expectation. 

Oh Father,

Thank You for Your words of promise. Thank You for letting me know that You are aware of my struggles. You have not hidden your eyes from the daily realities that I face. You know how this flesh of mine comes against me. Thank You for Your Spirit that fights for me and with me. Thank You for my brothers and sisters in Christ who are there to hold me up when my hands grow heavy. You my God have supplied my every need and I give You praise.

My Jesus it is in Your name I pray, 

Amen

 

Need A Drink?

 

Therefore the people quarreled with Moses

and said, ‘Give us water that we may drink.’

And Moses said to them,

‘Why do you quarrel with me?

Why do you test the LORD?’

Exodus 17:2

 

Here we are again.

Let us recall that it has been only about three months since the children of Israel left Egypt. They have seen many wonders by the hand of their God. They have seen Him turn bitter water sweet and rain manna and quail from the sky, yet still they doubt Him.

Here they come to their camp and they have no water. They could have looked up to their God and praised Him for being a God who could deliver them from Egypt,

                                                                     could split the Red Sea,

                                                                                      could rain manna and quail

                                                                                                           and could turn bitter water sweet.

They could have remembered all this and praised Him and sought Him in hopeful expectation that He would provide for them once again, but no, they didn’t. Instead they turn to Moses and grumble and complain.

They viciously turn on Moses and accuse him of setting them up to die. They always refer back to Egypt. I have to wonder how frustrated God must get with us sometimes. Why is it that when difficult times come in our walk with God we somehow think that our life before Christ was better? What a work God has before Him when He chooses to redeem us.

It is easy to bring us out of Egypt; the hard part is getting Egypt out of us. This is something that only God can do. We have not the strength or wisdom.

Now Moses has no where to go, but to his God. He seeks God’s help and God provides. God does not ask Moses to come alone. He tells him to bring the elders of Israel with him. I believe God is trying to train up these men, He is trying to teach them who He is. God wants the people to see that He is reliable, He is all-powerful, and He is their very present help in time of trouble (Psalm 46:1).

Before we get to critical of the children of Israel let us remember that these people had been in bondage for 400 years. They had been surrounded with idol worship and false deities. God knew this and He was patient with them. I am so thankful for His patience.

God tells Moses to go to the rock and strike it and out of this rock would flow water for the children of Israel. In 1 Corinthians 10:4 we are told that this rock was Christ. Oh precious one have you drank from the rock of Christ?

For I do not want you to be unaware, brethren,

that our fathers were all under the cloud

and all passed through the sea; 

and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea;

 and all ate the same spiritual food;

and all drank the same spiritual drink,

for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them;

and the rock was Christ.

1 Corinthians 10:1-4

Oh Father,

Thank You for Your patience. I know that when You brought me out of Egypt, out of the world, I was a mess. I know that I grumbled and complained and even doubted You, but You have been patient with me. You keep showing me Your might. You keep showing me Your power. You keep reminding me that You are indeed reliable. You have brought me water from the rock many times. You have never failed me. Please God, keep working Egypt out of me. 

My Jesus, it is in Your name I pray,

Amen

 

Bread of Life

 

Moses said to Aaron,

Take a jar and put an omerful of manna in it,

and place it before the LORD

to be kept throughout your generations.’ 

Exodus 16:33

 

The children of Israel dined on this manna the entire time they were in the wilderness. The manna came until the day they came to the land of Canaan. The land of Canaan was to be the promised land. This manna was to sustain them until they made it to the promised land. The manna came every day for five days and on the sixth day double came to sustain through the seventh day in which no manna would fall, because it was the day of rest.

God commanded Moses to preserve an omerful of the manna in a jar. In 2 Corinthians 4:7 the Word of God declares, “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels…” What treasure do we have in our earthen vessel, but the treasure of the Holy Spirit. My friend, I believe this manna just might be a picture of the Holy Spirit of the Trinity.

I am going to attempt to layout a timeline for you. Our God created the heavens and the earth in six days and on the seventh he rested. In 2 Peter 3:8 the Word tells us that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years is like one day. If we look through the Biblical years of the earth we see that we are in our six thousandth of years.

The Holy Spirit has been an active presence on the earth in the lives of men since the beginning. We read how he came upon those anointed of God. He led Saul, yet He left him when Saul refused to obey Him. He led David, and David cried out for Him not to leave him when he had sinned against God. He worked in and through the lives of the prophets and those willing to stand up and be faithful to the Living God. The Holy Spirit, though evident and active did not take up permanent residence in man. However, in this six thousandth year things are different for the people of God.

In Hebrews 7:9 we read that there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God. Could that rest possibly be the millennial reign spoken of in Revelation 20:4-6? Could the millennial reign be the seven thousandth of years? 

If it is, could it be that God has given us this double portion of the Holy Spirit in order to survive this sixth day so that we may get to that rest on the Sabbath, the seventh day? In Revelation 12:12 we read that the devil has great wrath in these last days because he knows he only has a short time. Yet our God has not left us without sufficient power (manna) to overcome him.

Oh my friend, in this six thousandth of years God has given a double portion of His Spirit to those who trust in His commandments and His instruction to listen to His Son in whom He is well-pleased (Matthew 17:5). His Spirit is not only active and evident to all men but to those who are trusting Him for the seventh day, He has taken up permanent residence within them.  

In John 6:48-49 Jesus said, “I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died.” There were many who ate this manna. The manna fell for all, the righteous and the unrighteous, “for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” (Matthew 5:45)

In Hebrews 6:4-6 we are told about those who have tasted the heavenly gift, they tasted the manna, they have tasted the Word of God. They have seen and experienced His power, yet they fall away from Him. They refused to trust Him for that sabbath day. When it came time to step into the promised land, they refused. They came to the border, but they would not step across.    

Oh precious one, the Holy Spirit has come and He brings us to the border of Christ. He opens our eyes, He gives us a taste, and He gives us the slightest nudge, and whispers step into the Promised Land.

My friend, have you crossed that border?

Have you been transferred from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of Light?

If not… what are you waiting for? 

Today is the day of salvation… all are welcome to partake of the Bread of Life

Oh Father,

Thank You for Your Bread of Life. Thank You for the rest that is ours in You alone. You have told us in Isaiah 30:15 that it is in repentance and rest that we are saved. Turning away from that wilderness and walking in faith into the promised land of the Kingdom of Christ and resting in Him. Knowing that He is my strength and He is my trust and He alone will supply my daily bread, my every need. 

My Jesus, it is in Your name I pray,

Amen  

Simply Obey

Then the LORD said to Moses,

‘How long do you refuse to keep

My commandments and My instructions?’

Exodus 16:28

 

Now as we look at Exodus 16, we see that God is going to send the meat that the children of Israel grumbled for straight into the camp and He is going to rain down bread from heaven. The provisions that God will send will come with specific instructions that require perfect obedience in order for it to be consumed. When God institutes a way, it is the only way, and compromise and concession will not cut it.

The frustrating thing is that this group of people, these whom passed through the Red Sea, still do not get it. The Lord, once again, does exactly as He said He would, yet the people still choose to doubt Him. God commanded them to take only what they needed for the day and save none, for there would be more tomorrow. Yet the children of Israel gathered extra and tried to store it for later, but it turned foul and bred worms.

God then commanded them on the sixth day to gather twice as much, for on the seventh day there would be none. However, once again, the children of Israel doubt God and His word and they go out on the seventh day to gather manna.

How God withheld His wrath upon these people is beyond me. Then again, how God withholds His wrath upon myself is also beyond me. This is why He is God and we are not. Oh, how patient our Creator is with us. This is why He can be trusted and should never be doubted.

In John 14:9 Jesus is speaking with His disciples and He turns to them and says “Have I been so long with you and yet you have not come to know Me?” How long must we walk with the awesome awareness of a Holy God before we get it?

Oh precious one, let us get it!

Let us lay aside all doubt.

Let us lay aside all human reasoning.

Let us lay side the confines of the temporal and let us pick up the vastness of our infinite God. Stop looking at life through the eyes of your head and begin seeing it with the eyes of your heart.

In 1 John 5:3 we read “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.”

In 2 John 1:6 we read, “And this is love, that we walk according to His commandments.”

How long can we refuse to keep the commandments and instructions of God and still claim that we love Him? God has clearly demonstrated His great love for us. Let us in return demonstrate our love to Him by walking in obedience to Him.

Obeying Him shows that we trust Him. We can’t say that we trust God when we disobey His Word, because our actions will prove us a liar. If you love Him, trust Him, and if you trust Him, obey Him.

Oh Father,

How thankful I am that You are patient with me. Forgive me for the many times that I have tested that patience. Oh Father, You opened my eyes so that I would be able to turn from the darkness of the kingdom of Satan to You, my God, and the kingdom of my Christ (Acts 26:18). You opened my eyes that I might recieve forgiveness for my sins and the indwelling of Your Holy Spirit and now I pray that You would open the eyes of my heart that I might know the breadth, length, height, and depth of Your love for me (Ephesians 3:18). The more I understand of Your love the more compelled I am to obey Your every Word in the hope that somehow in someway I might show You how grateful I am to be so loved by You. 

My Jesus, it is in Your name that I pray

Amen