“The
Sealy [TX] News” September 27,
2002
...the Bible tells me so:
Powerful Tales: The Exodus
Rocky
Whitely
The United States of
America is founded on the principle of
freedom, political and especially religious. In our American history classes we
learn a great many stories about events and people that made our country great.
The pilgrims abandoned the Old World of Europe for the New
World in order to worship God in peace. There was the story of the
Mayflower landing at Plymouth Rock and the founding of Jamestown.
When King George raised taxes, the Boston Tea Party ensued. “One, if by
land, and two, if by sea” launched Paul Revere’s famous ride. Washington
crossed the Delaware River. Those tales are
stories of freedom for our nation.
In Texas, we “Remember the Alamo” and celebrate the Battle of San Jacinto. They are
stories of freedom for our state.
Ancient Israel
and modern Jews, too, celebrated their freedom. They were enslaved in Egypt. God
freed them through Moses and brought them to the Promised Land.
Teaching opportunities abounded for the children of the children of Israel (see
Exodus 12:26; 13:14; Joshua 4:6, 21). The book of Deuteronomy is appropriately
called “The Second [Giving of the] Law.” At the end of the wilderness
wanderings, Moses reminded Israel of God’s law, saying,
“In the future, when your son asks you, ‘What is
the meaning of the stipulations, decrees and laws the Lord our God has
commanded you?’ tell him: ‘We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt, but the
Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand. Before our eyes
the Lord sent miraculous signs and wonders—great and terrible—upon Egypt and Pharaoh
and his whole household. But He brought us out from there to bring us
in and give us the land that He promised on oath to our
forefathers. The Lord commanded us to obey all these decrees and to fear
the Lord our God, so that we might always prosper and be kept
alive, as is the case today. And if we are careful to obey all this law
before the Lord our God, as He has commanded us, that will be our
righteousness.’” (Deuteronomy 6:20-25 NIV)
The exodus from Egypt
would be a continual cause of celebration and worship for Israel.
Whenever the Israelites would give a firstfruits offering, they would recite
the following words before the priest and to God:
“My father was a wandering Aramean, and he
went down into Egypt
with a few people and lived there and became a great nation, powerful and
numerous. But the Egyptians mistreated us and made us suffer,
putting us to hard labor. Then we cried out to the Lord, the God
of our fathers, and the Lord heard our voice and saw our
misery, toil and oppression. So the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a
mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with great terror and with miraculous
signs and wonders. He brought us to this place and gave us this land,
a land flowing with milk and honey; and now I bring the firstfruits of the soil
that You, O Lord, have given me.” (26:5-11)
What were those “miraculous signs and wonders”? Moses delivered God’s
message to Pharaoh, king of Egypt:
“Let My people go.” He displayed the miracles of the leprous hand and the stick
turned to snake. God brought the ten plagues against Egypt,
from turning the waters of Egypt
into blood to the death of all the firstborn of Egypt, both of people and animals.
God opened the waters of the Red Sea for the children of Israel to
cross, then caused the waters to collapse on top of the pursuing Egyptian army.
God fed Israel
quail, bread and water in the wilderness. He led them through the wilderness
with the great pillar of cloud by day and the great pillar of fire by night. He
stopped the Jordan River at flood stage in order for Israel to cross into the Promised
Land. He caused the walls of Jericho to fall and
led the Israelites to victory throughout Canaan.
At each stage of the history of Israel, new material was added.
Joshua included details of the conquest (Joshua 24:1-15). Samuel added the
disobedience of Israel
during the days of the judges up to the time that God gave them a king (1
Samuel 12:6-25). Ezra and others described Israel’s rebellion under kings, the
captivity and the restoration back to the land (Nehemiah 9:5-37; Psalms 78;
105-106). During the time of the captivity, the promises made to David became
very important (Psalm 89).
At the heart of all that storytelling was worship. David wrote, “I will praise
You, O Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonders. I will
be glad and rejoice in You; I will sing praise to Your name, O Most
High.” (Psalm 9:1-2)
Even though Israel was
brought back to the Promised Land and rebuilt both the defensive walls of Jerusalem and the temple
to Jehovah God, they still suffered. They said, “Because of our sins, its
abundant harvest goes to the kings you have placed over us. They rule over our
bodies and our cattle as they please. We are in great distress.”
(Nehemiah 9:37)
The rest of Israel’s
story waited five hundred more years to reach its conclusion. We know it as the
story of Jesus. Jesus leads us on the new exodus. Jesus ransoms, redeems, saves
and delivers His people from slavery to sin and to the devil. He built His
temple, the church, among whom we offer worship that pleases God. He leads us
into the Promised Land of Heaven.
How is the new exodus written in your life? In 1 Corinthians 10, we learn
that Israel was immersed
into Moses in the waters of the Red Sea, just
as we are into Christ through the waters of immersion. They consumed the
sustenance that Christ gave them. Yet they were not faithful to God—that is
what faith in God means, faithfulness to Him—and were punished in the
wilderness. Paul exhorted the Corinthians: “Now these things occurred as
examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did” and
“These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings
for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come” (verses 6 and 11).
God always has wanted a people who faithfully obey Him (Deuteronomy 6:25).
Will you be one of His new people?