Exodus 13 – 16
It is interesting how many of the Jewish traditions and celebrations stem from Moses and the exodus from Egypt. Chapter 13 goes into the Feast of the Unleavened Bread. One thing the caught my eye was the lead into this section in verse 13:2:
“Consecrate to me all the firstborn. Whatever is the first to open the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast, is mine.”
The importance of the first born actually gets explained later in the explanation of the “Feast”. The first born male for some reason in most cultures gets the highest place in the family structure. That then add significance to the story of the Prodigal Son because remember it was the younger son who leaves and returns to the feast. The oldest, with the birth right, is upset that this never happened for him. Read the story again in light of the importance of the first born son and see if you can understand the eldest son indignation towards his brother.
Chapter 14 is probably the most debated chapter in the Bible where Moses parts the Red Sea and the people are saved. Something this amazing happens only one other time when the flooded Jordan River is stopped up and the people again pass on dry ground. The Jordan could be explained away with blockage, where there is no way to explain the Red Sea. One scientist actually built a model of the Red Sea and demonstrated how God must have done this miracle. That was real cool to watch, and only lead credence to how this is a real story.
Imagine being in verse 14:29 and walking the corridor of water:
But the people of Israel walked on dry ground through the sea, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left.
We tend to think this all just happened, but in the story God held off the Egyptian chariots with the pillar of smoke and fire before the ground was dried. This then makes the scientist’s depiction of the event more believable. It’s cool when you read about an amazing event like this and wonder how it could have ever happened and then have science show how it may have occurred. The only way I believe skeptics will believe is if they found 600 chariots at the bottom of the Red Sea. Doesn’t matter how many working models one had of the event, it’s very unbelievable.
And this is where God wants to work. He is not looking at some Biblical scholar to “light the way” for everyone, but someone like Moses or Paul. Both we murderers and both were not adept at speaking or leading. But God made these two the foundation of the Church. Think of Jesus’ reception in Nazareth and how He was rejected for being the son of a carpenter, not the living son of God. God uses the most unlikely for the most amazing.
Darren Wilson, a producer of many great films, had an interesting story of a person he was following. This man was known for his ability to heal others and Darren was following him to capture these miracles for his movie. They came upon one man who had a hurt leg, after many times this “healer” failed and called on Darren to try. Darren reluctantly did this, said a few “God, heal this leg” and without faith asked how the man was doing. He was healed, not by a man of great faith but by one of NO faith. That is where God want to be, where there is no doubt it was anything but HIS own power.
As we close out the reading Moses is again in the wilderness with grumbling people. In verse 16:12 God responds to this complaint:
“I have heard the grumbling of the people of Israel. Say to them, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread. Then you shall know that I am the LORD your God.’”
God had manna from heaven and quail in the evening just that “magically” appear each day for the people to eat. And the people just kept complaining and drifting. Really! How much more does God have to do to keep the people quiet? He does 10 plagues before the people, leads them around the wilderness with fire and smoke, parts the Red Sea, purifies water and feeds them, yet they eventually blow this trip to the Promised Land. How difficult must it be for us who just relies on the redeeming blood of Jesus shed for us some 2000 years ago? The one benefit we have is the Holy Spirit to help solidify our faith in God. But how is our faith just reading stories like this where the people then LIVED this and still strayed.