Moses Reunites with His Wife

Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses and for his people Israel, how the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt. After Moses had sent away his wife Zipporah, his father-in-law Jethro took her back, along with her two sons. The name of the one was Gershom (for he said, “I have been an alien in a foreign land”), and the name of the other, Eliezer (for he said, “The God of my father was my help, and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh”). Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, came into the wilderness where Moses was encamped at the mountain of God, bringing Moses’ sons and wife to him. He sent word to Moses, “I, your father-in-law Jethro, am coming to you, with your wife and her two sons.” Moses went out to meet his father-in-law; he bowed down and kissed him; each asked after the other’s welfare, and they went into the tent. Then Moses told his father-in-law all that the Lord had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel’s sake, all the hardship that had beset them on the way, and how the Lord had delivered them. Jethro rejoiced for all the good that the Lord had done to Israel, in delivering them from the Egyptians. Jethro said, “Blessed be the Lord, who has delivered you from the Egyptians and from Pharaoh. Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods, because he delivered the people from the Egyptians, when they dealt arrogantly with them.” And Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, brought a burnt offering and sacrifices to God; and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat bread with Moses’ father-in-law in the presence of God. (Exodus 18:1-12, NRSV)

After God led the people out of Egypt using Moses and Aaron, then the celebration can begin!

We need to tell everyone all the things that God has done for us and for all of God’s people. God will bring us the victory and will give us mercy and grace as we go.

Our job is to tell the world what God has done and celebrate those moments as we go.

Commandments to Honor God

you shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents, to the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me, but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my commandments. You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name. Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work. But the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work—you, your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the alien resident in your towns. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but rested the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day and consecrated it. (Exodus 20:3-11, NRSV)

How many commandments did you count here?

And is it really about keeping rules?

Don’t do this, don’t do that…

Don’t, don’t don’t.

I heard another pastor recently talk about the 10 Commandments as Godly Play does, as a better way.

You see life is happening all around us and sometimes the crap of life gets in the way and we want a better way to live and to do things.

And here, after God brought the people out of slavery, God gives them a better way. A better way to think about how they should live.

These 3 commandments in our Lutheran understanding are all about the vertical relationship with God.

And what they really say is focus on God and let nothing get in the way of that. God needs to be first and we need to love God. And if money gets in the way that is bad.

If possessions get in the way that is bad.

If religion gets in the way that is bad.

if anything gets in the way of loving God, then that is bad.

So do you love God above all else? and put God first?

Amalek Attacks Israel and is Defeated

Then Amalek came and fought with Israel at Rephidim. Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some men for us and go out, fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.” So Joshua did as Moses told him, and fought with Amalek, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed; and whenever he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses’ hands grew weary; so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side; so his hands were steady until the sunset. And Joshua defeated Amalek and his people with the sword. Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this as a reminder in a book and recite it in the hearing of Joshua: I will utterly blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.” And Moses built an altar and called it, The Lord is my banner. He said, “A hand upon the banner of the Lord! The Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.” (Exodus 17:8-16, NRSV)

So as long as Mose’s staff was in the air the Israelites would prevail. Can you imagine holding a staff up all day?

Seems like a small task but in reality, it wasn’t. Moses needed Arron and Hur to help him hold his hands up.

You see Joshua needed Moses and Moses needed Aaron and Hur. None of us can do this on our own.

We all need to help each other and be there when God calls us to be.

Running Relationships

I’m sitting at my desk thinking about the upcoming youth trip to Houston and all the things that have to be done for that. All the money the youth still have to raise. And I think about all the things that need to get done between now and the time of our family “vacation” to the Black Hills, and that needs to be done before the youth trip after that.

My mind wanders as I think about all the things that need to get done and all the things that will have to be done this summer. We seem to kick it into overdrive in the warm months here and fit in everything we have not been able to do when we were inside.

And that thought makes me think of the picture, which is The Trinity by Andrei Rublev. It is a depiction of the Holy Trinity with a wealth of images imposed together. There is the mountain and the tree for the cross and the temple. 3 “angels” or “persons” communing together. They are living in relationship together. And the best thing about this icon for me is, the Trinity is not complete. You see at the bottom of the icon, between the feet of the Father and the Spirit there is an opening. There is space that needs to be filled or an opening for you.

You see sometimes we get so hung up on what we think we have to do that we miss what we need to be at. I’m guilty of this. You see God is always in relationship and is inviting us into relationship with Him.

This trip to Houston with the youth is about building relationships. Don’t lose sight of the relationships God has blessed you with and work on building them this summer.

Water from the Rock

From the wilderness of Sin the whole congregation of the Israelites journeyed by stages, as the Lord commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. The people quarreled with Moses, and said, “Give us water to drink.” Moses said to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?” But the people thirsted there for water; and the people complained against Moses and said, “Why did you bring us out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?” So Moses cried out to the Lord, “What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.” The Lord said to Moses, “Go on ahead of the people, and take some of the elders of Israel with you; take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. I will be standing there in front of you on the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it, so that the people may drink.” Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel. He called the place Massah and Meribah, because the Israelites quarreled and tested the Lord, saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?” (Exodus 17:1-7, NRSV)

Is there anything God can not do?

Here God gives the Israelites water from a rock. God tells Moses to go to the Nile and strike a rock and out of it will flow water for the people to drink!

Imagine the places we will see and the things we will do if we only trust God. There is nothing God can’t do!

Bread from Heaven

The whole congregation of the Israelites set out from Elim; and Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had departed from the land of Egypt. The whole congregation of the Israelites complained against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the fleshpots and ate our fill of bread; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.” Then the Lord said to Moses, “I am going to rain bread from heaven for you, and each day the people shall go out and gather enough for that day. In that way I will test them, whether they will follow my instruction or not. On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather on other days.” So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites, “In the evening you shall know that it was the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, and in the morning you shall see the glory of the Lord, because he has heard your complaining against the Lord. For what are we, that you complain against us?” And Moses said, “When the Lord gives you meat to eat in the evening and your fill of bread in the morning, because the Lord has heard the complaining that you utter against him—what are we? Your complaining is not against us but” against the Lord. Then Moses said to Aaron, “Say to the whole congregation of the Israelites, ‘Draw near to the Lord, for he has heard your complaining.’“And as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the Israelites, they looked toward the wilderness, and the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud. The Lord spoke to Moses and said, “I have heard the complaining of the Israelites; say to them, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall have your fill of bread; then you shall know that I am the Lord your God.’“ In the evening quails came up and covered the camp; and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. When the layer of dew lifted, there on the surface of the wilderness was a fine flaky substance, as fine as frost on the ground. When the Israelites saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. Moses said to them, “It is the bread that the Lord has given you to eat. This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Gather as much of it as each of you needs, an omer to a person according to the number of persons, all providing for those in their own tents.’“ The Israelites did so, some gathering more, some less. But when they measured it with an omer, those who gathered much had nothing over, and those who gathered little had no shortage; they gathered as much as each of them needed. And Moses said to them, “Let no one leave any of it over until morning.” But they did not listen to Moses; some left part of it until morning, and it bred worms and became foul. And Moses was angry with them. Morning by morning they gathered it, as much as each needed; but when the sun grew hot, it melted. (Exodus 16:1-21, NRSV)

I read this and I think of whining kids. Why can’t we have this? When are we going to get there? I’m bored, isn’t there something to do?

Not content to know that God has freed them from slavery and bondage and is taking them to a land of their own, but whining about how good they had it when they were slaves!

But the Lord heard their cries and gave them manna in the morning and meat in the evenings. Manna, they collected every day except a double portion on Friday before the Sabbath.

God provided, and they should have known He would. How do we not think God will provide for us?

Crossing the Red Sea

Then the Lord said to Moses: “Tell the Israelites to turn back and camp in front of Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, in front of Baal-zephon; you shall camp opposite it, by the sea. Pharaoh will say of the Israelites, ‘They are wandering aimlessly in the land; the wilderness has closed in on them.’ I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will pursue them, so that I will gain glory for myself over Pharaoh and all his army; and the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord.” And they did so. When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, the minds of Pharaoh and his officials were changed toward the people, and they said, “What have we done, letting Israel leave our service?” So he had his chariot made ready, and took his army with him; he took six hundred picked chariots and all the other chariots of Egypt with officers over all of them. The Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt and he pursued the Israelites, who were going out boldly. The Egyptians pursued them, all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots, his chariot drivers and his army; they overtook them camped by the sea, by Pi-hahiroth, in front of Baal-zephon. As Pharaoh drew near, the Israelites looked back, and there were the Egyptians advancing on them. In great fear the Israelites cried out to the Lord. They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us, bringing us out of Egypt? Is this not the very thing we told you in Egypt, ‘Let us alone and let us serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.” But Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid, stand firm, and see the deliverance that the Lord will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you see today you shall never see again. The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to keep still.” Then the Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry out to me? Tell the Israelites to go forward. But you lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the Israelites may go into the sea on dry ground. Then I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them; and so I will gain glory for myself over Pharaoh and all his army, his chariots, and his chariot drivers. And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I have gained glory for myself over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his chariot drivers.” The angel of God who was going before the Israelite army moved and went behind them; and the pillar of cloud moved from in front of them and took its place behind them. It came between the army of Egypt and the army of Israel. And so the cloud was there with the darkness, and it lit up the night; one did not come near the other all night. Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. The Lord drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night, and turned the sea into dry land; and the waters were divided. The Israelites went into the sea on dry ground, the waters forming a wall for them on their right and on their left. The Egyptians pursued, and went into the sea after them, all of Pharaoh’s horses, chariots, and chariot drivers. At the morning watch the Lord in the pillar of fire and cloud looked down upon the Egyptian army, and threw the Egyptian army into panic. He clogged their chariot wheels so that they turned with difficulty. The Egyptians said, “Let us flee from the Israelites, for the Lord is fighting for them against Egypt.” (Exodus 14:1-25, NRSV)

Why do we back off when the going gets tough with our faith?

Have you ever done that? Thought that God was calling you to do something and then the going got tough and so you backed off or you questioned what God was doing?

We can easily do something when we know how it is going to work and how things will happen, but when things go not according to plan and lead us to places we hadn’t expected most of us backpedal.

And why do we do this with God? Can we not trust God?

We are not unlike the Israelites. How can we better trust God and know God will always be with us?

The Pillars of Cloud and Fire

When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was nearer; for God thought, “If the people face war, they may change their minds and return to Egypt.” So God led the people by the roundabout way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. The Israelites went up out of the land of Egypt prepared for battle. And Moses took with him the bones of Joseph who had required a solemn oath of the Israelites, saying, “God will surely take notice of you, and then you must carry my bones with you from here.” They set out from Succoth, and camped at Etham, on the edge of the wilderness. The Lord went in front of them in a pillar of cloud by day, to lead them along the way, and in a pillar of fire by night, to give them light, so that they might travel by day and by night. Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people. (Exodus 13:17-22, NRSV)

God was always with His people. And Joseph knew God would be with them and would take them from this place.

God led the Israelites in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. So they could always see God and where He was leading them.

How does God lead us today?

The Exodus: From Rameses to Succoth

The Egyptians urged the people to hasten their departure from the land, for they said, “We shall all be dead.” So the people took their dough before it was leavened, with their kneading bowls wrapped up in their cloaks on their shoulders. The Israelites had done as Moses told them; they had asked the Egyptians for jewelry of silver and gold, and for clothing, and the Lord had given the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they let them have what they asked. And so they plundered the Egyptians. The Israelites journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides children. A mixed crowd also went up with them, and livestock in great numbers, both flocks and herds. They baked unleavened cakes of the dough that they had brought out of Egypt; it was not leavened, because they were driven out of Egypt and could not wait, nor had they prepared any provisions for themselves. The time that the Israelites had lived in Egypt was four hundred thirty years. At the end of four hundred thirty years, on that very day, all the companies of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt. That was for the Lord a night of vigil, to bring them out of the land of Egypt. That same night is a vigil to be kept for the Lord by all the Israelites throughout their generations. (Exodus 12:33-42, NRSV)

The Israelites left quickly, without their bread had time to leaven. They left quickly and walked on foot about six hundred thousand men and children and great flocks and herd of animals. It was a sight to behold. They left with great plunder from Egypt after being there for four hundred thirty years.

God was always with them. And God led them out of Egypt.

Where is God leading you?

I am the Lord your God

On the third new moon after the Israelites had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that very day, they came into the wilderness of Sinai. They had journeyed from Rephidim, entered the wilderness of Sinai, and camped in the wilderness; Israel camped there in front of the mountain. Then Moses went up to God; the Lord called to him from the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the Israelites: You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession out of all the peoples. Indeed, the whole earth is mine, but you shall be for me a priestly kingdom and a holy nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the Israelites.” Then God spoke all these words: I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; (Exodus 19:1-6; 20:1-2, NRSV)

How are the 10 commandments supposed to be utilized by us?

Are they a list of rules we must follow to earn God’s favor?

A way that we earn our way into heaven?

Is that why God gave us the commandments?

God says in 19:4 “You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.” God brought His people out of Egypt and brought them to Himself. Notice that this comes before any of the commandments. God called His people to Himself before he gave them rules to follow. God established the relationship and then offered a model for how His treasured people should live. Notice God didn’t say if you don’t obey my voice and keep my covenant you will no longer be my people. He said, “if you obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession out of all the peoples.” We do not lose the relationship by not obeying but we are also not His treasured possession…

God established a relationship with us and then gave us an understanding of how to help others see the love He has given to us. It isn’t about doing it right, it is about loving as God did.