Bible Chapter: Exodus 9

Because the Bible is practical, here are some statements to get you thinking.

1.  Write one or two key thoughts that come from today’s reading.
    The plagues continued.  Horrible experiences for all the people.  Great suffering.  I can’t imagine living through all of this, the suffering and the loss.  I wonder what the thoughts and attitudes of the people were towards the Pharaoh.  In spite of these losses the hard heart of the Pharaoh continued to rise up against God. In the middle of the descriptions of the plagues there is an important phrase.  God said He was doing these things so Pharaoh would know there was “no one like me”.  God wants us to understand that there is NO ONE like Him.  There is no person or power that even comes close.  God is fully worthy of all our submission and worship.  Obedience to God is the best thing we can do.  Pharaoh thought he was above God.  It took him a long time and unbelievable suffering to finally realize who was in control.
    The fact that the plagues were not touching the Israelites is evidence of God’s superiority.  He had made a promise to them as a nation and He was keeping it.

2.  What can I apply in my life from the reading?
    Listen and do what you are told.  This theme was repeated over and over again in my youth.  My parents were not afraid to let me and my brothers know that life would be much better when we obeyed.  This principle applies to listening and obeying God, as well.  We see an illustration of that in this chapter.
Exodus 9:20-21 NKJV
20 He who feared the word of the LORD among the servants of Pharaoh made his servants and his livestock flee to the houses. 21 But he who did not regard the word of the LORD left his servants and his livestock in the field.
Exodus 9:24-25 NKJV
24 So there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail, so very heavy that there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. 25 And the hail struck throughout the whole land of Egypt, all that was in the field, both man and beast; and the hail struck every herb of the field and broke every tree of the field.
    Those who believed and obeyed were spared the terror of the hail.  Again, it works to obey.

3.  How can I help someone?
    I want to help people see and obey Jesus.  I know I say this often, but it is so important.  It is so necessary for life.  It is essential for eternity.  Nothing is more critical.  We see so many illustrations of the importance of obedience and the consequences of a hard heart.

Bible Chapter: Exodus 8

Because the Bible is practical, here are some statements to get you thinking.

1.  Write one or two key thoughts that come from today’s reading.
    A very interesting phrase comes from this story of the plagues.  The phrase is a hard heart.  It means a person who is stubborn and resistant to what God says and does.  The person with a hard heart is so obstinate that they don’t care what kind of problems or consequences come from their actions, they refuse to give in to God.  This is a good description of the Pharaoh in the story.  As I read this I can’t imagine the horrible situations that came upon the whole land.  Yet, this unregenerate leader insisted on doing things his way.  The plague of frogs is amazing.  Once the plague stopped the dead frogs were still there.  They cleaned them up into piles and the whole land reeked with dead frogs.  That didn’t keep the pharaoh from refusing to let the people go.
    We do see the magicians finally acknowledged the fact that God was greater than they were.  They recognized that God has more power.  That still wasn’t enough for the release of the slaves.  Pride is a destructive thing.

2.  What can I apply in my life from the reading?
    A good lesson to learn is the pride of a person going against God.  People get something in their minds and they get so hardheaded that no obvious evidence makes any impact.  They still insist on doing things their way.  I see this more and more in the modern world.  The culture is setting itself up for doom and failure.  It is setting up the world for God’s judgement.  When people point out the fact that many things commonly accepted today are against God’s law, they are mocked and ridiculed.  I want to stick with God’s way, it always works better.

3.  How can I help someone?
    I want to help people see the short and long term impact of obedience to God.  Doing things His way works.  This chapter deals with the destruction of pride.  I want to help people have a proper understanding of pride and how to best apply it in life.

Bible Chapter: Exodus 7

Because the Bible is practical, here are some statements to get you thinking.

1.  Write one or two key thoughts that come from today’s reading.
    There are people who have a heart that is hard and rebellious against God.  They are so stubborn that, no matter what they face, they refuse to submit to Him.  I am amazed when I see that.  Life is so hard for those who live for themselves and reject the love of God.  To me it is obvious that there is real hope and deliverance in Jesus, and yet the majority don’t see it or refuse to let God change them.  Pharaoh was a very hard and proud person.  He thought he was the highest power and no one could touch him.  So, even though there were plagues coming against him, he continued to reject what God was doing to get his attention.
    This chapter shows us that evil forces have power beyond human abilities.  It also shows us that God’s power is greater then the evil forces.  God can do anything He decides to do.  It was no problem to turn the Nile River into blood.  The Creator God can easily do more than all the powers of evil.

2.  What can I apply in my life from the reading?
    I live in a time when amazing things happen.  Technology is advancing faster than any one person can follow.  Things that were impossible when I was a boy are now commonplace.  I can talk to almost any place in the world and see the person I am talking with.  Medical advances are saving thousands of lives.  Transportation is such that in eight hours I can be in Europe.  Nothing seems to hold us back.  And yet, with all these advances, I must be reminded that many things cannot be accomplished by our own wisdom and creativity.  I must continually trust God.  I must rely on His supernatural power for daily life.  We cannot make it without HIM.

3.  How can I help someone?
    People today rely on our technology and think we are so smart.  Many believe that we are smarter than any previous generation, so we can handle things.  We are no smarter than any era, we just have the accumulated knowledge and are building on that foundation.  We are just as dependant on God as any generation.  I want to help people see that we must rely on God.  This live is not all there is.  There is eternity, and only by coming to God His way will we have the hope of a wonderful eternal life.

Bible Chapter: Exodus 6

Because the Bible is practical, here are some statements to get you thinking.

1.  Write one or two key thoughts that come from today’s reading.
    Verse 9 jumped out to me as I read this chapter.  The people wouldn’t listen to Moses because of their discouragement and cruel bondage.  Because things had been going to poorly, they didn’t want to hear the message of deliverance and hope that had come from God.  The didn’t listen to Moses, the one who would deliver them.  We all have lots of trials and problems.  It is easy to let them cause me to become discouraged and then not even want to try.  I don’t like the problems that come, I don’t like the oppression I face, and these can cause discouragement.  I need to be willing to listen to God, to listen to anyone He sends along with the words I need to hear.  Discouragement can be over whelming.  It can cause me to look for some kind of an escape.  But, I must continually learn to listen to and trust God.
    I need to live another lesson in this chapter.  It is the promise of God to bring us out from the yoke of bondage and redeem us with His outstretched arm.  While it seems interminable while I am going through something difficult, there is always the promise that at some time God will bring deliverance.  We also have the promise of eternal deliverance.  Continually trust God, this is a good lesson.

2.  What can I apply in my life from the reading?
    God has revealed Himself through the Bible.  I can study it and learn more and more about Him.  I can enter in to a growing relationship with Him.  I am reminded of an old song written by Edna R. Worrell over one hundred years ago.
It is just like Jesus to roll the clouds away,
It’s just like Jesus to keep me day by day,
It’s just like Jesus all along the way,
It’s just like His great love.
    People who know Jesus can echo these words.  The hope, help and promises of God are here to carry us through.  This is a gift of God we can apply in life when the hard times show up.

3.  How can I help someone?
    I want to help people hear what God is really saying.  Confusion reigns about what the message is that God wants us to know.  Like the people who wouldn’t listen to Moses, people today don’t listen to God.  Life is so much better when we hear from God and apply what He says.

Bible Chapter: Exodus 5

Because the Bible is practical, here are some statements to get you thinking.

1.  Write one or two key thoughts that come from today’s reading.
    I am reminded of a line from an old gospel song: it’s a battlefield brother, not a recreation room, it’s a fight and not a game.  This is a good description of the life we live serving Jesus.  It is a good description of what is developing in the book of Exodus.  When Moses went to the pharaoh and said they needed to leave and go to the desert to make a sacrifice to God, it started an amazing battle.  Pharaoh was not about to let go of a million people he had enslaved.  He thought he was a god and he was in control.  He thought no one could do anything about what he demanded.
    Moses was extremely disappointed.  He thought that, after hearing from God, all he would need to do was go before the king and demand release, and they all would go happily into the desert.  It didn’t work that way.  Again, this is an intense spiritual battle and the enemy was not going to roll over and play dead.  He will only go down fighting.  Evil powers go down hard. Yes, God had promised victory.  He had not told them how hard it would be.

2.  What can I apply in my life from the reading?
    The spiritual battle is just as difficult today as it ever has been.  The enemy is just as mean, deceitful and despicable as ever.  Jesus said that the thief comes to steal, kill and destroy.  We see that happening in many situations in our world today.  The fact that the spiritual battle takes time and intense effort is still true.  We can look at lessons from human history to see how difficult it is to unseat an evil person in power.  The wars are hard and costly.  But, for those who enjoy freedoms, someone had to pay.  For anyone to enjoy spiritual freedom, for anyone to know the joy of having Jesus in their heart and being free from the bondage of sin, someone had to pay.  This is one of the powerful practical lessons of this chapter.  I have the privileges of knowing Jesus and living in His freedom.  Someone paid the price and passed this on to me.  I must do the same so others can know the same peace of being delivered from the power of sin and have the hope of eternity with Jesus.

3.  How can I help someone?
    I want people to know that Jesus really IS the way to hope and peace.  He really is the way to having a reason to live each day.  There is nothing that compares to the joy of being free from sin.

Bible Chapter: Exodus 4

Because the Bible is practical, here are some statements to get you thinking.

1.  Write one or two key thoughts that come from today’s reading.
    It is easy to read the well known Bible stories and think that everything was easy and wonderful.  And, to think that the people in the stories were all strong in their faith and never doubted or hesitated to do great and mighty things for God.  The truth is that God used (and still uses) ordinary people who had to learn to trust Him.  It was often a challenge to get going and keep moving in the direction God planned.  God was speaking to Moses in a supernatural way and yet Moses hesitated to follow.  He kept asking for assurance and a sign from God.  He asked so much that God finally was angry with him and agreed to give Moses some backup.
    God has no problem using supernatural signs to prove His point. He gave Moses some miraculous signs to use to prove he had been sent by God.  God still uses the supernatural to show He is real and accomplish His purpose.  Even unbelievers will be drawn in when they see the power of God manifested in real life.

2.  What can I apply in my life from the reading?
    God expects obedience.  A very unusual situation arose in this chapter due to Moses’ disobedience.  Even when he finally obeyed and started to do what God commanded, because there was still some disobedience in Moses, God judged him for it.  This is another illustration of God’s holiness and His expectation of obedience from those who follow Him.
    I am also reminded that from the beginning of the Bible, we see the supernatural power of God revealed and used to accomplish His purposes.  That is true up to this present age.  I find it too easy to see all the modern conveniences and methods and be tempted to do God’s work through them.  Since God’s work is about eternity and the spiritual battle is beyond human power and abilities, I must work for God using His methods and weapons.  This includes trusting God for the miraculous.

3.  How can I help someone?
    I think of a song I have heard, “I’ve Just Seen Jesus”.  It expresses the change that happens when a person experiences a real relationship with Him.  Life changes and hope springs up.  I want to help people see Jesus and learn to apply His promises in their lives.  I want to encourage people to obey what God commands.

Bible Chapter: Exodus 3

Because the Bible is practical, here are some statements to get you thinking.

1.  Write one or two key thoughts that come from today’s reading.
    What a major change, from the highest life to tending sheep in the desert.  Moses spent the first forty years of his life living in the palace.  Then he spent the next forty years out in the desert.  We don’t know all the details, but we know that God taught Moses many things during that time.  We also see that he needed to learn more.  In particular, he needed to learn to really trust God.  We see his fear as God begins to lay out His plans for Moses.
    God also taught Moses about His holiness.  God is pure, perfect and complete.  God is totally separated from evil.  There is no sin in Him.  This is a lesson those who follow Jesus must learn.  His holiness is our example and we must strive to live a holy life.  Living a holy life sometimes brings attacks and sarcasm (often from those who don’t live a holy life and don’t want to live as God directs).  Being holy is not something to lord over others, but it is critically important to living a life that pleases God.  Holiness makes life better.  Just as it is better and more satisfying to live in cleanliness and not filth, it is more productive and blessed to live a holy life, above the stench and destruction of sin.
    God also revealed Himself as the I Am.  He is self-existent and is accountable to no one.  He is present and active.  This means that He will always be with His people.  One of the names given to Jesus at His birth is Immanuel, which means God with us.

2.  What can I apply in my life from the reading?
    God told Moses that He heard the cries of the people bound in slavery.  He had a plan to release them.  God was going to use Moses to lead that plan.  God hears our cries.  He will come through for us when we don’t think it is possible.  And, He will use us in ways we would never think possible.  God has provided opportunities for me to be used by Him that are more than I thought possible.  This gives me more dreams of ways God wants to use me.  Moses was quick to point out some of the roadblocks to God’s plan.  God was quick to show Moses that He had a plan and things would work out.  This whole story is a good illustration of learning to trust God and stepping out in faith.  I’m sure that in this process Moses had challenges and times when he wondered how things would work out.  But, the more he trusted God, the more the plan advanced.

3.  How can I help someone?
    I want to help people see they can trust God.  We usually don’t see the end results at the beginning of the journey.  We don’t see the bumps and curves in the road.  But, we can know that God will hear us, He will be with us and some day we will see the whole picture. Yes, we really can trust God.