Wednesday, April 8, 2015

April 9, 2015

“He made known His ways to Moses, His deeds to the people of Israel:” Psalm 103:7

Moses came to know God as few others did. He got real good looks at God because he allowed God to be real to him. It is interesting and instructive, as well as inspiring, to trace how God made Himself known to Moses.

It began with the bush that burned but was not consumed. Burning bushes were not that unusual in the arid desert heat, but a bush that burned but was never burned up WAS unusual. And a bush that burned and was not consumed AND that spoke to him – well that got Moses curious. From that bush God called Moses to lead His people out of Egypt.

Next, we see Moses before the Pharaoh demanding that he let God’s people go. Of course the Pharaoh refused so God brought the series of plagues that eventually broke the Pharaoh’s resolve. But it took a series of ten supernatural plagues from the hand of God to do so. However, in those plagues Moses saw how powerful His God was.

From there, we see Moses and the people of God trapped between the Red Sea and the invading Egyptian army. God instructed Moses to raise his rod over the waters and when he did, God opened the sea so they could walk across on dry land.

Then God revealed Himself in the pillar of fire and the cloud that lead Israel through the wilderness. That was followed by the miraculous provision of the manna and the quail.

All those experiences with God had prepared Moses to climb the holy Mount Sinai to meet with God and receive the Commandments. That was the first of several encounters with God on Sinai for Moses. On one occasion Moses asked God to reveal Himself to Moses, but God only consented to allow Moses to see His backside as he passed by. So, Moses looked at God but only from behind.

Few, if any attain to the level Moses did in his relationship with God. Therefore, God was more real to Moses with each successive God-encounter they had. As a result, God was more real than any of the challenges or problems that confronted him.

How real is God to you?

Are you in tune with the power of His presence?

Are you living to please Him as Moses did?

Are you living in the reality of a God Who is bigger than life and bigger than death and able to deliver His people?

That was REAL important to God and to Moses!

April 8, 2015

"Jesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings. “Do you see all these things?” he asked. “Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.” As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains. “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come."   Matthew 24:1-14

Have you noticed that dire predictions about the future are being issued by politicians, environmentalists, talk-show hosts, sociologists, theologians, economists, movie producers, educators, and bloggers world-wide?

Rarely do these folks agree on anything but all agree that the future does not appear especially bright. There is a prevailing sense of doom permeating our planet. You really only need a casual knowledge of history to know how unregenerate human beings are bent toward self-destruction.

So, whose predictions should we pay attention to? Whose advice should we heed?

You make the call for yourself, but when I plan my future I will get my information from the One Who is the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. Who better to depend for end-time advice than the One Who stands apart from time and sees the whole continuum of history? After all, history is HIS STORY!

Also, His track record is perfect! Everything that He has predicted has happened or is in the process of unfolding. What He forecasted to His disciples in this portion of Scripture did, in fact, happen. And the suffering He said would come, happened to Him! While His prophecies are dire like all of the other predictions, His have a happy ending!

So, as you look for someone to believe about the future, trust Him for your predictions! And, oh, by the way. Also trust Him for your protection!

"God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging." Psalm 46:1-3