What comes out may surprise you. A study in Exodus 17

Introduction

 I like the story of the country couple and their son who came to the big city. They had never been in such splendour and seen such majestic buildings. They had lived all their life in the backwoods and were quite content. But they were entering this hotel for the first time and the old farmer was amazed at the glitz and the business. His room was on an upper level and he was instructed to go to the lift and take it to his room.

He had never used a lift before.

The farmer and his son watched as an older woman entered the lift and then watched the numbers ascend and then descend back to the Ground Floor. Out of the lift came a very beautiful young woman dressed to the nines. 

The man was shocked and quickly yelled, “Son, get your mother!” 

The story of course is legend, but it illustrates the idea I want to address today… what goes in is not what always comes out.

We have been studying the book of Exodus the last 16 days, one chapter at a time, and learning what it might say to us as 21^st Century people. And today is no different. What shall we make of this story of the water from a rock or the people in battle with a man named Amalek?

I see a theme of things going in and coming out quite differently. No one expects a beautiful woman to replace an older lady in the magic of a lift. No one expects water to come from a rock. No one expects a slave people with no military training to be able to conquer a marauding band of nomads. 

And what do you expect coming out of your life? Or what do you expect from situations around you? Or from a man named Yeshua in any period of history?

Water from a rock

The story today begins with another serious complaint by our ancestors in the wilderness. We spoke at length a couple weeks ago about complaining and the utter uselessness of it. But it does make a comfortable companion, doesn’t it? The doctors don’t know what they are doing; the traffic is never going to move; the problems in our world only increased when that ethnic group moved in; the referees don’t know how to call a game anymore. Complaining is a bad habit of selfish perpetual re-conditioning.

And that’s where our people are by the rock of Massah (which means ‘testing’) and Merivah (meaning “strife”). When complaining arises in the people of God, there is sure to come testing by God on them. Here though, before that next test, is the supply of the Almighty. He tells Moses to use his rod that had prevented water drink-ability earlier in the Pharaoh plague number one, to make water out of nothing. Rocks don’t produce water; lakes and rivers do. But God is going to do another miracle for his people. Water from rocks- ha!

I’m amazed at this scene. God seems to be on trial here. The people are angry and yell at Moses. God, who is rarely one to deal well with accusations, simply supplies what the people need.  Moses probably is amazed as much as we all are at this rock-to-water thing. Surprise is a good thing in your walk with God.

We will deal more with the justice system of the Jewish people in tomorrow's lesson, but it might be in view here. Especially if you know the Hebrew word “Merivah” has at its root, “Riv” meaning ‘plead a cause’ or ‘to bring a lawsuit.’ 

RC Sproul says “the move to stone Moses (v. 4) is the execution of a legal sentence for treason. The verdict is threatened if Moses does not provide water.”

Driver says ‘nissah’ means to test or prove a person, to see whether the will act in a particular way, or whether the character he bears is well established.”

 So God comes through and provides the water for the complaining millions. He answers the allegations of the trial lawyers among Israel. He tells Moses to bring the accusers (v. 5, the elders), and that God will stand in the dock on the rock.  That’s amazing humility as God stands in the courtroom.

And what does God name the place? Miracle house? House of water? A place of God’s provision? A place of thirst quenched? Nope… it’s the place of their doing wrong. So perpetuity will call it ‘Merivah” and “Massah”, that is, strife and testing. Israel, since you blew it, you will be reminded of this whenever you walk past this place. This is where you argued with me and yet I satisfied you. It’s not called “God satisfied us here”; it’s testing. It’s to our shame.

Imagine a later generation… ‘hey, honey, it’s time to make our holiday plans. Where to this year? How about a boat cruise along the Red Sea and remember God’s victory? How about Massah or Merivah? We can see where our ancestors failed… ok?” Don’t think many chose the 2^nd option. It’s a place of perpetual embarrassment and shame. It’s good to remember our failures so that we can all the more rejoice in God’s forgiveness and love.

Listen to the Jeremiah the prophet who said,

Lam. 2.11 My eyes fail because of tears, My spirit is greatly troubled; My heart is poured out on the earth, Because of the destruction of the daughter of my people, When little ones and infants faint In the streets of the city.

 Peter and Yeshua had a serious conversation during Passover’s seder, what some call the “Last Supper”. 

 Yeshua said, “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat; but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” 

And Peter said to Him,  “Lord, with You I am ready to go both to prison and to death!” 

 And Yeshua said,  “I say to you, Peter, the cock will not crow today until you have denied three times that you know Me.” (Luke 22.31-34)

Peter is not at all aware of his own capacity to fail. How significant then after he does fail, Yeshua restores him. But what do you think will happen next week when Peter hears a rooster crow early in the day… what will Peter remember? His own failures.

And it’s good to remember your failures SO THAT you can rejoice in the God who forgives and marvelously transfers us out of darkness into His marvelous light. We need a good dash of humility more often. We are often rejuvenated with the constant human lie of self-sufficiency.

Amalek defeated

The second story today is a battle scene worthy of Peter Jackson’s cinema magic. Amalek is a near relative, being a descendant of Esau. His people is from the South of Israel, later the Negev. They are wandering looking for good grazing land and are cut off by or cut off the back of the people of Israel, thus separating the strong from the weak who feebly hobbled in the rear. (Deut 25.18) A battle ensues under the leadership of Moses’ eventual successor Joshua. (Originally named Hoshea, but renamed with the name of God in his new name. Numbers 13.8) [Many get new names, but you know who didn’t? Moses. This was an Egyptian name. He has this name throughout all time.]

But what a weird method of military victory… Moses keeps his hands up in the air. Is this a picture of celebration or is it one of hope? Is it a signal to the troops or simply a posture ordained by the Almighty? No one is quite sure, although the naming of the place with the word ‘banner’ may help us here.

So as Moses kept his hands up, Israel won the battle. Eventually Israel conquered the interlopers and continued on its way to Sinai.

Rabbi Hertz says of this situation, “This is another trait which no legend would have created for the first martial exploit of Israel. Moses plays but a secondary part; and even as intercessor his arms have to be held up!”  In other words, if you have a legend about a saint, you make him eternally powerful, a la Clark Kent who becomes Superman, and who would never fail. Here the Bible paints the hero as needing to sit and rest while the rest of the army is fighting. He cannot perform his own duty without assistance from two helpers who should be out fighting on the battlefield as well. But the Bible is an honest book which shows the heroes failing whether it was Abraham lying to the king, Jacob conniving sheep from his uncle Laban, Peter failing to stand by his dying Saviour, or some leaders fighting one another in the early church, the community of faith in Israel.

No one would really expect the newly wandering slaves to have any military experience or expertise. What a surprise this must have been to Amalek. And maybe even to themselves! Wow, we are winning; wow, we won! Fantastic… and then they looked up and saw the reason. They were being prayed for. They were being attended by something greater than energy and by determination. They saw Moses and two other fellows waving their hands and perhaps a banner, reminding them that God was on their side. God was the one who had brought them out of Egypt; God has been giving them daily bread. God gave them water out of nothing when they needed it earlier. Now He will give them victory. The battle belongs to the Lord!

Remember by writing

Back in the US, I was a school teacher. I learned that the more senses a person used to learn, the better they would remember. If you could sing a lesson the better. If you could cook it and they could smell and taste and feel, learning would increase. Maybe that’s why God gave so many lessons to the Jewish people through food. I wanted my students to take notes and write things down, sure that the more they wrote they would do better on the examinations.

Not very often does God say to take notes. But in this text he does. And he tells us to write is as a memorial.

In February/ March we often remember Amalek as his descendant was famous in the Purim/ Esther story. We are to remember God’s fame and Amalek’s infamy, and try to blot his name out from among us. That happens during Purim, of course. As a child you might have written “Haman” on the sole of your shoe and stomped it during the ‘megillah’ reading. You might have simply ‘boo’ed during the reading at the mention of his name. Blot it out!

So God tells us to write this down in a book and to learn by that writing and to revisit that book often. 

And the announcement of the new name of the altar venue again reminds us of how we are to remember things. There are times when we fail and we must not live by them, but it’s right to be honest about them. And when we succeed, it’s right to give honor and testimony to the Lord who is our victor. 

By the way, the name Nissi, banner, will be featured later in the story of the Serpent on the Pole (Numbers 21.8), but that’s just forward roll.

What do you learn from today’s lesson?

1)    What we think is our capacity may be met by God’s overarching resupply and we will not be exhausted any longer

2)    Naming things carries significance far beyond today’s gesture

3)    God will supply all our needs according to His riches

4)    What we have put into something may not be all there is… surprise is God’s nature of making sure we know life is about Him, and not about our efforts.

 

Let me mention one we haven’t stated. The Jewish people later will call God, “The Rock” and look to His nature of provision. The Psalms are replete with reference to God giving us water in the desert. And later Paul the apostle will say of the Exodus people,

“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 Messiah.” (1 Corinthians 10.1-4)

The baptism was the Red Sea experience; the food was the manna as we saw last week. The rock and drink is in today’s lesson. 

If you miss everything else today, and I hope you don’t, don’t miss this. Yeshua is the eternal Rock who provides water for us in our spiritual thirsting. Anyone who is humble will admit to need. And if we are spiritually honest we will admit to needing more from God in our lives. No amount of good works will satisfy us. No amount of complaining will bring to us what we want. Only when we stop and attend to the Messiah will our needs be met. Yeshua is the rock, and the supply of water for our thirsty souls.

There is a lot of misunderstanding about Yeshua in the Jewish world today. To some he is just a rock on the side of the road of Jewish experience; but for us who know Him, he is the Rock of Ages and the Rock of our salvation. What comes out will surprise everyone who trusts in Him.

Manna: What is it? A study in Exodus 16

Introduction

Lil Abner was a comic strip written and illustrated by the cartoonist Al Capp. He died about 35 years ago leaving us memories of Pogo the alligator and a hillbilly, a backwoods set of characters of no honorable mention. One of the characters was a group of animals called the “Kick Me’s” These looked like the size of tenpin bowling pins and had a target on their bellies or their backsides. You could fry them and they would taste like your favorite steak or you could play with them like a doll. They existed for your pleasure. This was quite a fun idea for a young boy as I was when I first read about them.

At the same time I was learning with rabbis in Hebrew school. And one of the things they taught me was that the manna in the wilderness was for Jewish people like the kick-me’s in the comic Li’l Abner. How, we asked? In that, if you wanted the manna to taste like steak, it did. If you wanted it to taste like cholent or cream pies or whatever, it would taste like that for you. So the rabbis taught me. 

But I don’t think this is the way the text teaches us today. In fact, although heartened in their fears and anxiety by the presence of the manna, they were also annoyed that it is all they got to eat. Now, if it turned into our imaginary food choice, who would complain about that? So I’m starting to get the impression that the rabbis could be wrong on this one. At least on this one.

What is the manna? What is God’s idea of somewhat daily provision of the bread from heaven? And what lessons does manna have for us as 21^st Century people in Australia today?

Where are they?

Alfred Edersheim the 19^th Century Jewish Christian commentator writes,
         “Accordingly they called this the wilderness of Shur, or of “the wall.” (Exodus 15:22) This then was the wilderness, fresh, free, and undisputed! But this also was that “great and terrible wilderness,” so full of terror, danger, and difficulty, (Deuteronomy 8:15; 32:10) through which they must now pass.”

Basically the Jewish people have escaped. Phew! And now they turn from the drama of the Red Sea and look forward at… at….emptiness! They think, Ouch! What am I doing out here? What possible oasis can I find? Where is the McDonalds or at least the neighbourhood fish and chips shop? It’s vast and vacant and void of anything,  and it appears that Moses has played the biggest impractical joke of recent history… the mockery of the Hebrews.

Remember yesterday the Jewish people had been found at Marah as the chapter ended. There was no water and what they did find was undrinkable. 

Again from Edersheim,

“Worse than fatigue and depression now oppressed them, for they began to suffer from want of water. For three days they had not come upon any spring, and their own supplies must have been well-nigh exhausted. When arrived they found indeed a pool, but, as the whole soil is impregnated with nitre, the water was bitter (Marah) and unfit for use. Luther aptly remarks that, ‘when our provision ceases, our faith is wont to come to an end.’ It was so here. The circumstances seemed indeed hopeless. The spring is still considered the worst on the whole road to Sinai, and no means have ever been suggested to make its waters drinkable. But God stilled the murmuring of the people, and met their wants by a miraculous interposition. Moses was shown a tree which he was to cast into the water, and it became sweet. The help came directly from heaven, and the lesson was twofold. “There He made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there He proved them.” (Exodus 15:25)”

So what is the ordinance or the statute? I believe it’s God’s command and/or Word. He leads us and He desires us to respond and do what He asks. And there He did prove them. What is this? This is the right and privilege each of us has to live by faith. Faithfulness and faith…they go hand in hand. Ordinance and proving, in the foreground; faith and faithfulness in the background. Are you with me?

Today’s test: The Manna

So in today’s passage, again we see another ‘proving’ or test. Edersheim says “Once more their unbelief broke forth. True, it was only against Moses that their murmurs rose. But in reality their rebellion was against God. To show this, and thereby “to prove them, whether they would walk in the law of God or no,” (Exodus 16:4) that is, follow Him implicitly, depending upon, and taking such provision as He sent, and under the conditions that He dispensed it, God would now miraculously supply their wants.”

That is, being given what we want is actually a test of our faithfulness to the Lord. Strange—when He give us things or when He withholds them—both alike are equally proving. No wonder Solomon said in the Proverbs, 

“Two things I asked of Thee, Do not refuse me before I die:   Keep deception and lies far from me, Give me neither poverty nor riches; Feed me with the food that is my portion, Lest I be full and deny Thee and say,  “Who is the LORD?” Or lest I be in want and steal, And profane the name of my God.” (30.7-9)

Both riches and poverty are testing places. What will I do if I have a lot; what will I do if I have too much?  Solomon wrote at the end of his days a reluctance to have such testing prove him, that is, to show of what he is made of. But that’s exactly what is happening to our reluctant heroes, the Jewish people in our chapter today.

We are called in verse 9 to come near before the Lord. Where would this be? Where would you go if you were a Hebrew freed slave and are being paged to come to God? 

Adam Clarke says, “The great tabernacle was not yet built, but there appears to have been a small tabernacle or tent called the Tabernacle of the Congregation, which, after the sin of the golden calf, was always placed without the camp; see Exodus 33:7: And Moses took the Tabernacle and pitched it without the camp, afar off from the camp, and called it The Tabernacle of the Congregation; and it came to pass that every one that sought the Lord went out unto the Tabernacle of the Congregation, which was without the camp.”

I agree with Clarke. Later the tent of meeting, the tabernacle of Moses will be built a full 10 months after this event, in the 2^nd year of the Jewish people’s new calendar. Also this helps us understand the placement of the jar of manna in the ark (v. 34). Where is this to be? It’s the original traveling tabernacle already in existence, but a mere model, a toy-sized compared to the one to be built by Bezalel and Oholiab.

Manna: The rules

The quail is significant as it gave the Jews good food, apart from their cattle to eat. There is no mention of the utes on which their family goods were carried, so we ought not to mention that at this point. Now let us move to the manna itself which is much more discussed in our text today than the quail. 

The Hebrew is an answer really. The people said in verse 15. Man hu. What is it? And that question became for them the answer. Manna.

Moses says to them, “This is the bread which God is giving you to eat.”

Then verse 16 immediately gives us rules on management and conservation; on collection methods and times. I love that about the Book. It’s not open free-ranged gathering which is the way a mob conducts a looting riot. It’s the energy of an ordered crowd going about its collective responsibility. 

Have you ever seen a school of fish or a flock of pigeons being given a random amount of bread pieces? Is there any order to that motley crew? 

God wants to ensure that His people, numbering 3 million, are well behaved, in decency and in good order.  So he tells them to collect a certain amount only, which is how much?  One omer per household member. And on certain days. Which ones? Sunday through Friday. That’s right. 

So what is happening is that God is training us. He is changing us from a mob of infidel slaves into a community of order and faith. From ‘what is it?’ to “pass the tupperware’ is one of the first lessons. He will do it in building a tent and telling us when and where to worship. He will do it in sending down food daily and telling us how to eat it. He will give us a caste of priests and telling us how to conduct ourselves annually with a whole new calendar. All in design here is the development of a family from frayed individuals. Do you see how He wants to organize our lives in such a way that we prove what is true and what is truly divine? In other words, what God wants is a vessel that is clean and useful in conducting His work in the world which is so desperately in need of His teaching and love.

In verse 19 we read, “Let no man leave any of it until morning”. Why? God is teaching us His principle of ‘give us this day our daily bread.” This is not a new teaching in the time of Yeshua; but God needs to teach it to us at this Exodus time. Don’t store up things for yourselves; trust in the Lord throughout your days. Again Solomon’s riches advise comes into play.

And just in case some miss the teaching, if they did horde it, they would have found worms eating the manna the next morning. 

But there were two locations of storage that were acceptable. What were they? The jar of manna kept into the Tabernacle, yes. And the other? The Friday double portion which had to remain until Sunday morning.  Neither of these stored mannas corrupted which itself is miraculous in the heat of the Arabian desert. No cooking was going to be allowed by the Almighty, but honestly I think the idea of rest is more highlighted. 

Shabbat is for man, not man for the Sabbath

Let me speak plainly about Shabbat. Some argue for a Saturday vs. Sunday worship from some Bible passages. I don’t know where they get that. Honestly, the passages of biblical relevance continue to make rest the number one priority. I’m glad to gather on Saturday or Sunday or any day with the people of God to worship and pray and learn and sing and fellowship. And Saturday makes sense in so many ways. But to argue that worship is in the mind from texts like these is poor argument at best. Gather double amounts on Friday so that each man can remain in his tent on Saturday. It doesn’t say to come to the Tabernacle and have a prayer meeting. It says to rest. And that needs to be in your mind as you mark your Shabbat. What are you doing that is ordinary work? What can you do to ‘stay inside’ and chill? What can you do to gather with others and chill? When the gathering takes a disproportionate amount of work to accomplish, we need to chuck it out. The main thing is to meet up with others regularly and if Shabbat is your time to do so, goodonya. If you can gather and rest, even better. But always let ‘rest’ be the most significant thing. Of course, that precludes something—that you are working on the other 6 days. The reason many believers today don’t need to rest is that they don’t work on the 6 days. I know Canberra and London want to argue for a 4-day work week of 9 hours, but God is clearer and more defining than anyone on either side of the aisles. Work hard and you will rest well.

The true manna from heaven

We read in John 6 today as well as Exodus. I’m glad for that and hope to increase our public reading of Bible.

They said therefore to Him,  “What then do You do for a sign, that we may see, and believe You? What work do You perform? Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written,  ‘He gave them bread out of heaven to eat.’ Jesus therefore said to them,  “Truly, truly, I say to you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread out of heaven, but it is My Father who gives you the true bread out of heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven, and gives life to the world.” They said therefore to Him,  “Lord, evermore give us this bread.” Jesus said to them,  “I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me shall not hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life. I am the bread of Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread which comes down out of heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he shall live forever; and the bread also which I shall give for the life of the world is My flesh.” (John 6.30-35; 47-51)

Messiah here is making one of the boldest claims of his career. He says that what you know about manna is really about him. Who doesn’t know the story of the feeding of the family of God for 40 years? No one! Earlier in this chapter, John records for us the feeding of the multitude. 5 loaves and 2 fish (or as some say some lox and bagels) was hardly enough to feed 5,000 men as well as all the ladies and children. But God did a miracle and provided. Jesus was the instrument of that miracle and Jesus teaches the people in the afterglow of that moment that all they had heard about manna… well, it was really His doing. In fact, he continues, that He was not only the agent of that miracle; He was portended and He is the true bread that comes down to earth to men, from heaven. Unless you eat of Him and are sustained in relationship to Jesus, He says, you will not have eternal life. What chutzpah! What audacity! What if…He’s right?

I totally agree with Yeshua. I believe He is the Son of God. I believe He died for my sins and rose again from the dead. I believe He is the sustainer of the Jewish people. He is the true bread from heaven. He is what God is giving us to live by. 

Listen, as I grew up an Orthodox Jew, I would have said of Yeshua, “What is it?” I didn’t recognize Him as one of us. I didn’t know He was good for us. I didn’t know He was good for my family. But now, He is the One who has shown Himself a miracle worker. He is the One who died under such horrible Roman beating and inhumanity as shown in the movie The Passion. He is the One who rose from the dead to sustain us.

If you are hungry for relationship with God, go nowhere else. If you want eternal life, search no longer. Yeshua wants to give it to you.  

The Song of Moses: Some lessons on freedom .... a study in Exodus 15

Introduction

This week Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce announced their engagement and the world took notice. She’s a singer and he’s a football player, but the world sang their praises.

When the Oscars have their moment in the sun next year in March, probably five songs will candidate for the Best Song of the Year. But today’s chapter, contains the record of the First of 3 Songs of Moses in the Bible. And it might not win a Grammy or Oscar, but it certainly won a place in the Bible, and that’s better than any red carpet praise.

Now here’s an interesting verse in the middle of today’s song. In verse 13 we read

Thou hast guided them to Thy holy habitation.

Actually where was it to which we had been led at this point? Only across the sea and having our enemies drown in the midst of it. So, the forecast by Moses of the conquest of the Land is certainly in view as the next couple verses highlight, but I want to address the venue of our standing at this point.  Frank Sinatra sang the hit song about his lost lover whom he longed to kiss. He said, 

“Somewhere beyond the sea; somewhere waitin' for me.

My lover stands on golden sand and watches the ships that go sailin'.”

“Across the sea” for the Jewish people in our text today is freedom. And nothing else matters when you are across the sea. Let’s talk today about freedom and learn 4 lessons. I believe there is freedom in singing, there is also a danger in freedom and we can grow comfortable in true freedom. Finally, there is a cost for our freedom. 

Lesson 1: Freedom in singing

 Listen to Israel singing as they escape. Do you hear the ladies who led the chorus with their tambourines? Do you hear the birds joining in the chant? It’s a fantastic sense of relief. I was in jail for a few days in Florida as a hippie some 50 years ago. Don’t ask. But what I remember the most about the time was the getting out. The man who gave me the money to pay my penalty had enough for me, not for himself. He lent it to me and straightaway I knew I had to return it to him. But my first thought as I got out of prison was relief. I was overjoyed. I kicked my heels together and laughed and ran and felt like singing. I know how those 3 million slaves in Egypt felt, in measure. 

There is a joy in the freedom of escape. Israel turned and saw the drowned tormentors and there might have even been a feeling of satisfaction. Not only did we win, but you got yours, too, loser! Take that one!

The rabbis always caution however against smug and snooty sayings. Never rejoice, they say, at the sufferings of others.  Love of neighbour truly forbids that. 

And here’s another rub

“No man in this world attains to freedom from any slavery except by entrance into some higher servitude. There is no such thing as an entirely free man conceivable.“ Phillips Brooks (1835- 1893), Perennials.

I agree with Brooks. What was the new servitude we were to enter? I believe it was true relationship with the Lord. Many want freedom without responsibility, but that’s dangerous.

Lesson 2: Danger in Freedom

A man's worst difficulties begin when he is able to do as he likes. Thomas Huxley, "Address on University Education," Collected Essays, 1902, III, p. 236. 

Maybe I should call this the responsibility of freedom rather than the danger of it.  For it is in knowing that we are responsible and to whom we are responsible that we gain a new level of freedom. 

Cicero said this, “We are in bondage to the law in order that we may be free.”

Cicero is not speaking about biblical law here, rather moral law and civil law.

And his point is well taken. We who gain our freedom need to employ it in serving others. 

“For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement,  “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you bite and devour one another, take care lest you be consumed by one another. But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.”  (Galatians 5.13-16)

Lesson 3: The cost of Freedom

Who better than Yeshua understands that one? He had the freedom of being the Son in the heavens. He lived there throughout eternity past and chose to come to earth to bring God’s life and ministry here. If you have seen the movie “The Passion of the Christ” then you know what torment he endured. He had ample opportunity to opt out of the final march. He could have cashed in his chips and left and returned to the Father any time during his earthly stay. Yeshua however, remained. He chose to endure to the end. 

And the big question you must ask yourself as you watch the movie, or as you think through this issue, is why? Why did Yeshua endure to the end? Was it a need to be a martyr? Was he trying to make a point? Was he sort of slow and backward, not knowing the real consequences and then got caught out? Or was it his plan to trick people into thinking he was the messiah and had to play this out in public? Listen, I don’t think any of these questions and their rhetorical replies give a sense of satisfaction. I don’t believe Jesus was making a point or dying as a martyr to prove anything to anyone. He wasn’t a dolt by any means nor was this an act of trickery or slight of hand. 

The Bible says Jesus died to pay the penalty for our sins. 

The reason he came was to die. The reason he endured to the end was to see to the payment and not leave anyone out. Imagine a bank of enormous wealth and a grocery trolley and you. The bank is open and the wealth is yours. And you have to go in and out and take and carry what you want. With each transaction into the vault, you get more excited and more exhausted. There will be a time when you say, “Enough.” When is that?  When you have counted out a million dollars? Will it be enough to take one trolley full? When you have taken the entire wealth of the bank? Or is it when you attained what your goal was?  God loved the world so much that he sent his only son to die for us and to redeem us back from the powers of Satan. (John 3.16) Nothing was going to stop the Son of God from doing this job. And there were plenty of distractions and traps to cause him to fail. But his takings at the earthly bank, of something more valuable than money, were complete. He did not stop until he had in the words of the Apostle, “ruined the principalities and powers.”(1 Peter 3.22) He took the final amount of owings, that which humanity owed to sin and death, and received them on himself. Jesus took the lot of the punishment for our failings and our sins. What love the Father has for us…and Yeshua has for us. That’s the answer to the ‘why did he do it’ question.

Lesson 4: Growing comfortable in your freedom

The Israelites on the east side of the Red Sea are now free. They can rejoice and they can sing. They are unsure where they are going at this point. They know that God is leading them. The siblings, Moses, Aaron and Miriam are leading the troops of weary wanderers. It’s hot and dusty in the desert. It’s uncomfortable living out of a suitcase. They don’t know a lot; they don’t have earthly comforts, but they have something going for them. They have discovered the God who led them out of Egypt has the power to keep fighting for them in the world outside Egypt. Yahweh is not a tribal God or local deity; He is Lord of earth, and as they sing “ki ga’o, ga’ah”. He has triumphed triumphantly. He is not just an exalted local deity; He is the boss. They are beginning to understand the power and immensity of the Almighty.  I love the song we sing ‘Mi chamocha,’ “Who is like unto Thee?”(Ex. 15.11) reflects this orientation.  It’s also in this chapter. There are no gods like our God! You begin to sense that Israel which has been so far removed from the notice of the Lord for generations is now beginning to grow comfortable in saying things about Him, in singing to Him, and in living for Him.

Some of you reading this lesson today are new believers. Good! Make sure you grow comfortable in learning about the Lord, in saying the name of Yeshua to others, in being baptized, in walking out life with Him. Why? Because He has triumphed gloriously. He is the God among all false gods. He has taken us to freedom and will never forsake us. How awesome is he?

Taylor knows how to sing. The world of entertainment knows how to sing at the engagement of celebrities and the winning of Super Bowls. We have won the victory over sin and death in the powerful name of Yeshua. Let's sing together, even now.

 

Conclusion:  What lessons do we learn from today's teaching?

1)   Freedom has a cost and someone has to pay it

2)    Singing to God brings Him pleasure as well as you

3)   Never rejoice at the sufferings of your enemies

4)   Yeshua loved you so much that he would not stop until He died for all your sins and shortcomings.