Exodus

Where is God?

There have been hard times in all of our lives when we have wondered, "Where is God?" And even though God's presence is a central theme in the Book of Exodus, where do we see Him here in this first chapter? His apparent absence drives us to go looking for Him, and we do see Him here in several ways. God was busy fulfilling His coverant promises that He gave in the Book of Genesis to His covenant people. He caused His people to multiply, despite the Egyptians' satanic attempt to stop His plan of redemption. He was also fulfilling His original plans for His Creation, which He has not given up on, despite our rebellion against Him. In addition, He was blessing His people with many children, even though that was a motivator of the Egyptians' hatred for them. He was working with ordinary midwives in the ordinary circumstances of bearing children to bring about His purposes. The Lord may seem absent sometimes, but He was there for the Hebrews and He is still there for us now. He has never abandoned us, He has redeemed us through Jesus' perfect sacrifice on the cross, and He still blesses us. Nothing at all can ever separate us from the love of God in Jesus Christ!

Linger in the Tent

Do Not Covet - Contentment and Gratitude

By nature, we all possess a heart of ingratitude and covetousness for things we don't have. And it doesn't help that we are constantly bombarded by advertisements and other ungodly influences that try to promote the world's mindset of discontentment and "more is better." In the Tenth Commandment, the Lord forbids the sin of covetousness. This is a sin that makes us distrust God's goodness, become bitter against our neighbors, lose our own joy, and grow anxious and stressed. It may not seem like this sin is "really that bad." After all, it's not as bad as murder, stealing, or adultery, is it? The truth is, however, that all of these terrible crimes had their beginning in a covetous heart that was not satisfied with the blessings that the Lord had already provided. How can the sin of covetousness be conquered? It helps to cultivate a mindset of subtraction, instead of always yielding to the world's push for "more and bigger and better." Contentment is not found in the stuff that we own. It is also helpful to have our heart and mind focused on our eternal treasures in heaven. And a spirit of thankfulness and gratitude for the everyday things in life will go a long way in battling the sin of covetousness. Above all, though, we need to properly value the preciousness of our Lord Jesus! When we do this, everything else will fall into its proper perspective; and we will find ourselves not only growing in thanksgiving, but also in "thanks-living!"

Promote Truth

Even though people often have more respect for those who speak the truth, being consistently truthful can be a very difficult thing. But God is a God of truth, and He has made it clear to us in His Word that people who tell lies encounter serious consequences (e.g., Ananias and Sapphira). There are all kinds of ways in which we are often untruthful – whether it is exaggerating, leaving out details, believing untruths about other people without evidence, or telling outright falsehoods. One small lie starts great fires, and the Lord assures us that liers don't have a place in heaven. The Psalms describe those who dwell on God's holy hill as being those who tell the truth. As believers, we strive to be truthful because we have put on Christ. He is the only human being Who has never lied; and if we love Him, we will endeavor to imitate Him and keep His Commandments. Is His Spirit within us, helping us to tell the truth no matter what the cost?

Don't Steal - Promote Wealth

Ten Commandments

Promote Purity

Marriage is a beautiful picture, for it represents the relationship that will be enjoyed between the Lord Jesus and His Church when He returns to bring her to His heavenly home in glory! But in our culture, there is so much wordly influence upon the way we view the marriage relationship; and it is the complete opposite of the purity that the Seventh Commandment requires of us. Immorality in this sphere is not just a physical issue; it is a heart issue as well. Usually a person who involves themselves in these kinds of sins has already walked away from a relationship with Christ. Jesus is extremely zelaous for the preservation of the marriage-relationship, and He tells us that even looking at someone in a wrong way is adultery in the heart. He requires His followers to do anything and everything to avoid this sin, and even every situation that may lead to a temptation thereto -- as Joseph did in Potiphar's house (Genesis 39). We are not to merely strive or fight against this sin; we must flee from it! Why is this so serious? Because our bodies are for the Lord, not for immorality. God has made us for His own glory; our bodies are not our own. We have been redeemed and bought with a price; our bodies are now temples for the Lord, and ought not to be defiled with impurity and immorality!

The 5th Commandment

Sadly, the philosophy of the modern age in which we live does not respect authority, especially within the family unit. In fact, our culture accepts rebellion against parental authority, and even promotes it. But God is very serious about this matter, as we can see in this Commandment. He intends for fathers and mothers to govern and disciple their families, and there is no other way around it. Children must obey and respect that authority. Jesus was a perfect Example in this matter. The Gospels present many instances of Him respecting His mother, Mary; and He also continually showed honor to His heavenly Father (John 5:30). He even called out the Pharisees for permitting and condoning dishonor to one's parents. Ephesians 6:1 and Colossians 3:20 remind us of the importance of this Commandment. Parents are to be respected and honored. And this Commandment comes with the promise that it will go well with us as we honor our father and mother.

The Fourth Commandment

Sadly, in today's culture, the observance of the Fourth Commandment has mostly gone by the wayside. But we really have to stop and think, "Is our society truly any better than back in the times when the Lord's Day was observed?" The Lord completed His work of Creation in six days and set an example for us of resting on the seventh day. Unfortunately, many come up with all kinds of objections as to why we cannot or do not need to keep the Lord's Day. It is hard to not fall into the temptation of trying to divide our time between God and the world. But the Lord assures us that if we call His Day a delight, we will be blessed! He will remind us of His promises and recenter our hearts upon Himself.

Honor God's Name

The Lord -- the great and self-existent "I AM" -- used His holy name over 6,000 times in the Old Testament, so it is clear that He does not want His name to be hidden from us. However, as this Commandment makes clear, He does not want us to use that holy name lightly or reverently. What does it mean to take God's name in vain? It certainly includes using that name as a curse word or a swear word; but it would also include the prophesying of falsehood in the Lord's name, as well as mocking His name. God tells us that He will not hold the person guiltless who uses His name in vain. But how do we use His name rightly? He wants us to praise and bless His name, and to use it to cry out to Him for help and mercy. We have salvation through Jesus' name; therefore, let us pray for grace to glorify and honor that holy name every single day, by our words and by our actions!

The Second Commandment

We tend to think that the Second Commandment is not really relevant today. After all, we don't worship idols, right? But even though we may not bow down to a graven image or burn incense in pagan shrines, we still worship other things besides the Lord. The people of the Old Testament were often tempted to bow down to idols like Baal, even though they were expressly forbidden to do so, since Jehovah was their God. He Himself is to be the object of our worship and the consumer of our worship! He will not permit us to take the worship that rightly belongs to Him and give it to any other person or thing. He cannot be represented by an image or anything that can be made by human hands. But we do have one Person that we can look to and see the glory of God visually -- and His name is Jesus! He is "the icon" of the Father. If you want to see the Father, see the Son! Why is there this prohibition against worshiping anything or anyone else but the Lord? Because He doesn't want to share His people with any other competing power or influence. He has a burning passion to love them! He is zealous for their love and for His glory! If we make any other image, we are essentially saying that we hate God. And our children will naturally pick up on this. But thankfully it doesn't end there! The Lord shows mercy and lovingkindness to thousands of those who love Him and keep His Commandments! Do you love and serve the Lord alone? If you're honest, you'll admit that your heart is divided. So what hope is there? It is Jesus Christ! We serve the Lord only because Jesus perfectly kept this Law and loved His Father with a perfect love! And now it is our blessing to worship God in Christ!

The First Commandment

Ten Commandments

A Gracious Redeemer

Thes first two verses form the foundation of everything else that comes after them. The Lord our God is the foundation of the Ten Commandments. He is the Great "I AM" – the self-eternal One Who is without beginning and without end. He is "the First and the Last"; He does not need anyone or anything. He is unchangeable, mighty, awesome, sovereign, and gracious. Does the knowledge of God make you love Him more? Do you stand in awe of His holy presence? The nature of Who God is forms the bedrock of our faith. If we don't believe Who He is, then we are worshipping an idol of our own making. God tells His people to remember the love shown to them. He has brought us out of spiritual darkness and into the light of freedom. He gave the Commandments to Israel after they were liberated from bondage in Egypt; and in the same way, He has saved us by grace alone, and now we ought to keep the Commandments from a sense of love to Him. Following the Commandments in themselves doesn't free us from sin; we are already made free in Christ. Do you struggle with loving God? Then fix your eyes upon Jesus! His work of salvation and redemption in your soul will cause you to love and obey the Lord like you never have before!