Exodus 13:21-22
The Lord showed them the way; during the day he went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud, and during the night he was in a pillar of fire to give them light. In this way they could travel during the day or night. The pillar of cloud was always with them during the day, and the pillar of fire was always with them at night.
In 1446 BC, the 435 miles long trip from Goshen (Tell el-Dab’a) to Mt. Sinai took the Hebrews a total of 47 days to trek. The Hebrews made the 12-mile-long crossing of the Red Sea at the Straits of Tiran, and they all eventually arrived at the Red Sea on day 25 then took 22 days to travel 124 miles from the Red Sea Crossing to Mt. Sinai. During that entire trip about 2 million Jews DID NOT die. The Lord was with them in a very prescient manner. And his protection was upon them. They hadn't done anything to earn it. They had no merit born out of faithfulness. In fact, many if not most were people who had been fully engaged in the pagan worship of the Egyptians.
Pharaoh's army easily traveled the 249 miles from Goshen to the Red Sea crossing in 7 days. The Egyptians were stopped on the eastern shore of the Gulf of Suez by an angel, about 22 miles short of the Hebrew encampment. And as we know, they all eventually died, drowned in the sea.
Why did God take the Israelites this way?
The scripture makes a comment about that.
Exodus 13:17-18
"When the king sent the people out of Egypt, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country (modern day Palestine), though that was the shortest way."
God said, “If they have to fight, they might change their minds and go back to Egypt.”
"So, God led them through the desert toward the Red Sea. The Israelites were dressed for fighting when they left the land of Egypt."
So, think about that. They were geared up for a fight. But God didn't want them to fight because of their lack of faith in Him.
The only difficult part of the journey for the Jews was their time spent in the wilderness of Sin. The Wilderness of Sin is a dry, desert, wasteland in the southwestern part of the Sinai Peninsula.
Exodus 16:1
"They set out from Elim, and all the congregation of the people of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had departed from the land of Egypt."
Scripture notes that only during this portion of the journey, they had “travelled in stages” (Exodus 17:1) in small groups and in stages according to the instructions from God, because the terrain was difficult, dangerous, and there was no water there. Israelites began to complain about the lack of food, and water, as they had already consumed all the grain they had brought with them from Egypt. God provided quail and manna from heaven. They were satiated for a minute, then they complained about the lack of water.
Again...The people grumbled and tested God here due to lack of food and water, these are not "faithful" people.
This stage of their trip was very meaningful. God revealed elements of His law to the Israelites here, including the Sabbath remembrance ceremonies (Exodus 16:23-30).
In some myths it's said that this land called The Wilderness of Sin is ruled by the moon god Sin. Possibly this has something to do with the prohibition against fighting the enemy's forces at night. The war against the Amalek armies commences after the Israelites leave the Wilderness of Sin. When the Israelites left the moon gods domain - when day broke - they fought with the help of the light of the day.
God uses difficult times to humble and teach His people. And as for Christian people we should learn from this as well. We should understand that the Christian life involves spiritual battles and hardships, and that it's not unusual for God’s law and principles to be revealed to His people over time, especially in the troubled times. And in time we learn total dependence and obedience in those difficulties. God molds us into Christ’s image, into faithful people, by testing and building up our faith.
Earlier I noted that no one died during that trek from Egypt through the Wilderness of Sin. As I see it, they were not "saved" people. They were "being saved". And I believe there is a difference.
The people left Egypt on the faith of Moses and because of the signs and wonders they had seen. They were still poisoned by hundreds of years of pagan influence, and that crops up later on.
Q: So, what was really happening on that 435-mile-long trip to Sinai?
A: God was faithfully keeping his promise to rescue his people.
Q: Were they faithful?
A: Not at all, they were opportunistic people following a supernatural cloud of fire and smoke, and a man of God prophet who led them.
Q: Did they have faith?
A: That's a hard one to figure out. If they had faith, it's difficult to see it. Their faith was so weak that, after all the signs God gave them, they still doubted He was with them and griped against Moses accordingly. And it's apparent that they had very little if any faith even after leaving the Wilderness of Sin and after defeating the Amalekites. So little was their faith that while Moses was on Mt. Sinai their faithlessness made them feel insecure. The Israelites created a calf of molded gold to substitute for the invisible Creator God. In their own minds, they reduced God to something they could control and call upon when convenient.
The people ask for help and then reject it. Is that faithfulness?
What were they going on? Why did these people of such weak faith agree to this trek?
I think this part of their journey is a lesson for us today. First it teaches us that we cannot produce our own salvation. In fact we've got absolutely nothing to do with it. We just shut up, buck up, stand up and obey God's plan in silence.
Exodus 14:13-14
And Moses said to the people, "Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent."
We don't produce this salvation with our own efforts.
We do life with God by following God's plan for salvation.
We follow Jesus, we don't try and force him to follow us by praying to others or with a flurry of prayers and other recitations. Our God saves us and we fear him and obey him. We trust him in faith and serve him in obedience to his law of love.
Exodus 14:30-31
"Thus, the Lord saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. Israel saw the great power that the Lord used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses."
They had faith, weak though it was, but what they had was easy believeism. They saw signs and wonders, but signs and wonders cannot change a heart. They saw fearful things, so they feared. They saw a man of God and they put their faith in him. And when he was gone from them for forty days, they built a golden idol and worshiped it. They were playing God.
Even their faith didn't save them. But God saved them regardless.
Final thoughts:
How should we unpack this mess?
Let's balance it against this New Testament lesson.
James 4:4-6
"You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us? But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: 'God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.'"
Friends, the book of Exodus does say that some repented of the things they did. And God provides for a remnant to come through these failures of faith. And as James points out, God is full of grace that he loves to pour out over his people. If only they would humble themselves and follow his command of love. That's the spirit he longs for.
For those who plan without God and fabricate their own means for salvation, their life is like visible smoke or water vapor, which can disappear suddenly by a change in wind or temperature. It's a mist. And these people were arrogant, they forced Aaron to make that golden calf. They, like so many today, wanted to arrogate to themselves the right to establish a doctrine criterion for sanctified conduct. They want to be like God. And that's an ancient tradition that goes all the way back to the garden of Eden. So today they dress up their human originated doctrines as being godly, but their god is themselves. Presuming to act in place of God, they establish priests and saints who replace God Almighty, usurping his throne. And they destroy themselves and all who they want to save.
Beware of this spirit that went through the wilderness of Sin and still sinned against God's sovereign grace. In faithfulness to the man of God they followed God. Without him they failed their faith and sinned against God.
Faith, not faithfulness to people, saves you.
Matthew 24:6-8 "You are going to hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, because these things must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise up against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these events are the beginning of labor pains."
There has been thirteen years of war for every one year of peace since the time of Christ. Mankind loves war.
"Many will fall away, betray one another, and hate one another." (v.10)
Love grows cold. Lawlessness spreads faster than the gospel. But through endurance the kingdom of God will be preached. And the angels will fulfill this mission:
Revelation 14:6 "Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth—to every nation, tribe, language and people. He said in a loud voice, 'Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water.'"
And just as a side note, for all ...
Matthew 10:16
"Look, I am sending you out as sheep among wolves. So be as shrewd as snakes and harmless as doves."
"Beware the moon, Stay on the road. Keep clear of the moors." (From: An American Werewolf in London 1981)
I was 19 when that movie came out and it was then that I was at my lowest point ever. I was dying and couldn't see it happening to me.
It's nearly Halloween, and I've arrived here in my daily studies at Jesus sending his children, as lambs, out to preach the gospel among wolves. And I have to admit this morning my head went to the movie I rewatched (for the hundredth time) again last night. I confess I'm somewhat of a connoisseur of werewolf movies. It's really an odd and unexpected fascination since throughout my entire childhood I was plagued nightly by nightmares of invisible werewolves that stalked me trying to bite me. I couldn't see them but could hear them. And when they were just about to bite, they'd suddenly be visible (this is how I knew they were werewolves). And this was a ...
Matthew 10:32-33
“Everyone who acknowledges me publicly here on earth, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. But everyone who denies me here on earth, I will also deny before my Father in heaven."
Jesus calls and sends his disciples to the lost sheep of Israel because he has a great compassion for the needy. He sees them as sheep without a shepherd, lost and living in miserable conditions. They're harassed, and cast down. And in the face of many evils they're unable to help themselves. They are outside of Christ, living in darkness.
And what's interesting is the disciples are sent to be forerunners to His coming. Like heralds they are to go into the towns and villages healing the sick, casting out demons, raising spirits and preaching the good news. It's a mission trip, he's sending them outside the congregation to free these people from the bondage of evil. This is aggressive evangelism. It's like rustic camping. Bring it in and take it out. They must depend entirely on God for all their needs. It's a mission trip focused upon aggressively reaching ...
Mark 10:15
"Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it."
The root problem of faith in all of the gospel of Mark is hardness of heart, and in this lesson today we learn that wealth, and the self are expressions of that hardness.
And it's that hardness of heart that we continue to rub up against here again. As we saw in the previous devotion, what we learned was our focus should never be on what we can get away with and still be legally within our rights. Our focus should instead be on preserving what God created for us before we inevitably damage the situation, or the danger becomes too great. And maybe this is why we all must become childlike if we're going to inherit God's kingdom. Maybe a childlike heart is what we need, not one hardened by greed and envy, or biased by our history going into adulthood. God earlier said divorce was wrong because it severs the connection that God unites. Now we've got a different connection being broken. Children were to be seen and not heard in that society. And the disciples try to keep the kids ...
God Hates Divorce
Mark 10:6-9
"But from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female.’ ‘Therefore, a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate."
We all live somewhere in-between hardness of heart and the new creation. Jesus knows this because he lived it. And that's why he calls us to live according to the ideals of his kingdom. But he goes beyond a simple call to a life of piety. He enables us by his prescient words of truth and by the works of The Holy Spirit. But none of this ends the battle for our minds and souls by evil spiritual influences and wicked people. These are the facts of life, and the spiritual life.
Jesus is now knowingly on his way to Jerusalem to be tried by wicked men, betrayed, denied, crucified, and to rise from the grave. And his disciples have still not fully grasped what was going on.
So, the Pharisees are at it again, trolling Jesus as he ...
James 2:1
"My brothers and sisters, show no partiality [favoritism] as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory."
It may be smart, this sign of showing favoritism, but it is sin, in the same way that murder and adultery are sin. It's the sin of discrimination. And it's contrary to God’s design. It's difficult to say you love your neighbor as yourself when you are motivated to be discriminatory towards others who are not to your liking. Living a life in faith is living selflessly always, not just when it's convenient. There are never moments when it's not sin to discriminate against others. To operate in this discriminatory manner is to make yourself a law unto yourself. A law contrary to God's law. And this attitude toward the law of God draws attention away from the needs of others and makes the merits of the self into law. This is how one arrives at self-righteousness and a philosophy of self justification.
With God there is no respecter of persons (Romans 2:11). We know Jesus was no respecter of persons because his disciples taught that he ...
