2010-08-02
3:7-19
(v13) “But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.”
(v16) “Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt?”
(v16) “Who were they…”
Today’s passage is very interesting, (I probably will not stop starting one of my devotions with the phrase, ‘interesting.’) because of the fact that God gives us specific reasons for what befell the Israelites during the 40 years of wondering. More specifically, “Who were they…” who were not able to enter the promise land?
The writer of Hebrews answers the questions with very rhetorical questions that he kindly answers them for us. “Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt?” God had literally shifted the world, devastated a nation, wantonly murdered, and parted a sea for “…those Moses led…” However, it is not ‘what’ God did for these people that is important. Rather it is ‘what’ these “…they…” saw, which is of importance.
The point is for 400 years the Israelites did not see God working amongst them. But we cannot forget a certain fact. In the Bible, it is mentioned that the Egyptian Pharaoh feared the Israelites because their numbers had grown. Now why would the king of a country fear the Israelites? In a contextual view point, we have to understand the social norm of that time concerning religion. The Pharaoh, considered a god in the minds of Egyptians, was considered powerful in the eyes of other surrounding countries. The thought process is, if your god is strong, then your country would be prosperous due to your god’s favor. Within the realm of ‘strong’ lay many different parameters. But above all one considered a nation’s power by its military prowess. There are two things that are paramount in measuring military strength during that time. Firstly, wealth, you have to feed your men and horses. Secondly, population, no man power, no army. Pharaoh, even before the plagues, feared the Israelites, or rather the god of the Israelites. In his mind was the question, ‘Who is their god that even without their own country, grow to have such a large population?' When gods were credited with the health, death, and sickness, a growing population meant that the God of Israel was indeed powerful enough to take care of his children even when in the presence of Ra, Anubis, Pharaoh, and hundreds of other gods.
God without a doubt is moving mountains around us. Israelites for 400 years could not see the mountains moving. And when God appeared in plain sight and sent the plague on the Egyptians, parted the Red Sea, guided them with the column of fire and cloud, sent manna and quail, lead them to victory against nations with seemingly bigger gods, but they saw, “…heard and rebelled…”
(v13) “…encourage one another daily…”
To see but not see. God even today is moving mountains for me. Do I see it? Do I listen to it? Do I then, follow it? There is no other way but by the grace of God that we do not fall into the same trap that the Israelites fell into. However, with the help of the Holy Spirit who resides within us, we are call to help each other “…so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.”
Am I listening?
-Worm