Never Far Away

Exodus 13:22 KJV

He took not away the pillar of the cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people.

Can you imagine the emotions running through the camp of the Israelites as they left Egypt for the first time in four hundred and thirty years?

·       Excitement

·       Fear

·       Anticipation

·       Anxiety

·       Hope

·       Timidity

maybe all of it in one and the same person.

They did not know how to govern themselves. They did not know where they were going (other than from legends). They did not know what adventures awaited them in the journey or once they arrived.

Moses and Aaron must have offered some comfort. That God had used them was obvious. Though they had questioned them from time to time, and would again in the future, still they seemed to have a hand on confidence.

But there was one source of comfort that was irrefutable. God's presence stood before them

·       to lead them

·       to illuminate the way for them

·       to reassure them

The Bible says God "took not away the pillar" it was a cloud by day and a fire by night. It went before them to lead them but it never left them.

How good God is that He has promised to never leave us or forsake us. Despite the conditions and circumstances we face, by day and by night, God is with us.

·       In a Bible that has stood the test of centuries

·       In a church that the gates of hell have not prevailed against and

·       In the Holy Spirit who lives within us and constantly assures us "all is well".

One Plague More

Exodus 11:1 KJV

And the LORD said unto Moses, Yet will I bring one plague more upon Pharaoh, and upon Egypt; afterwards he will let you go hence: when he shall let you go, he shall surely thrust you out hence altogether.

I am not sure a person could say that each plague was progressively worse than the previous but I am sure that the last plague was worse by far than anything before.

I think people tend to think they can "handle" a few little plagues from God. They understand there are consequences to their actions and, whether they would acknowledge those consequences come from God or not, every person in some way calculates the risk and chooses the pleasure of the action over the consequences to the action, or not.

·       The loss of a certain amount of money in gambling

·       The headache the morning after a drinking binge

·       The night or two in jail getting caught in a theft

On and on it goes with actions we know to be wrong and risky, but we figure that we might get away with it and, even if we don't, we can handle the consequences. The trouble is, without our realizing is sometimes, those consequences are mounting up and their will come a time when God says, "Yet I will bring one plague more." and that one will be too much to handle. That one will cost us far more than we imagined. That one will break us.

Whether we can handle the consequences of our actions or not if we continue in defiance of the clear teachings of the Word of God, there will come a plague, a consequence that is more than we can bear. The thing to do is learn God's Word and follow Him obediently.

That way we never have to look out for the one last plague.

Darkness and Light

Exodus 10:23 KJV

They saw not one another, neither rose any from his place for three days: but all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.

There are, in the plagues of Egypt, obvious types of the differences between the lost and the saved. None of those types is more wonderful than the plague of darkness.

For three days the land of Egypt was so dark that the Egyptians were bound to do nothing and go nowhere. Yet the Bible says the Jews had light in their dwellings. This light could only have been supernatural in character, as any other would have naturally extended to the Egyptians. It was a light that was effective but it was a light that was for one class of people alone.

There is a light in the world today that is only effective for the people of God all others are blind to it. They may hear that it exists and perhaps even wish for it but it only serves the saved. They may own its source, the Bible, just as an Egyptian would have owned a lamp, but the light that proceeds from the Word of God may only be seen by the saved.

One could presume that the Jews may have used that light for all sorts of evil.

·       They could have looted the Egyptians

·       They could have escaped their captivity

But they did not. Some scholars believe that they used this time to pack for their journey. Others believe they may have obeyed the ordinance of circumcision, which would no doubt have lapsed under the strain of slavery. Whatever they did, it was ethical and not illegal. So it is with the true light of God's Word. Those who have it could never and would never use it for advantage against those in darkness. It is impossible to possess this light and desire to use it illegally, unethically or to one's advantage over another. 

Precedent Prophecy and a Principle

John 16:31-32 KJV

Jesus answered them, Do ye now believe?

Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me.

I find in these verses a precedent a prophecy and a principle:

The precedent

Jesus found Himself alone yet not alone. Though everyone scattered from Him and the world turn hatefully against him still His Heavenly Father was with Him.

The prophecy

We, who are His followers, will have tribulation and trouble. Not the Tribulation but tribulation. As Jesus found Himself alone and attacked, even so the Christian should expect it.

The principle

Be of good cheer, we are not alone. As the three Hebrews found Jesus in the fire and as Jesus found His Father in opposition we may expect to find Jesus in our tribulation.

God Made god

Exodus 7:1 KJV

And the LORD said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh: and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet.

There is no reason to avoid this passage or attempt to explain it away. The there is no other God but God he made Moses a god to Pharaoh. John Gill writes,"…I have made thee a god to Pharaoh; not a god by nature, but made so; he was so by commission and office, clothed with power and authority from God to act under him in all things he should direct; not for ever, as angels are gods, but for a time; not in an ordinary way, as magistrates are gods, but in an extraordinary manner; and not to any other but to Pharaoh, being an ambassador of God to him, and as in his room and stead to, rule over him, though so great a monarch; to command him what he should do, and control him when he did wrong, and punish him for his disobedience, and inflict such plagues upon him, and do such miracles before him, as no mere man of himself, and none but God can do; and even exercise the power of life and death, as in the slaying of the firstborn, that Pharaoh should stand in as much fear of him, as if he was a deity, and apply to him to remove the plagues upon him, as if he was one:"

Moses, though technically a slave, was granted an unusual audience with Pharaoh, a position of elevation. Further he made demands to Pharaoh and lived, he could have been executed. Also, he did signs and wonders, which Pharaoh was subject to, making him lower than Moses.

·       Moses was made a god and not inherently God.

·       Moses was made a god only to Pharaoh.

·       Moses was made a god to Pharaoh only for this time.