bible in 90 days, day 5: into the Exodus

Today I read the first 15 chapters of Exodus, and though I'm not going to do super in-depth recaps anymore (just due to the time that it takes) I wanted to make note of a few things that really stuck out to me.

Exodus thus far is basically the story of Moses...so immediately my mind is going to one the favorite movies of my childhood: the Ten Commandments with the fabulous Charlton Heston of course ;).  Wow.  They sure did take a lot of creative liberties with the story!  I think it's fair to say that I've watched the movie much more often then I've read Exodus (kinda sad) so my idea of how things transpired is a bit skewed.  Oh well...

In this section, the major thing that stuck out to me was the contrast in Moses' character from that of Abraham.  No matter what God asked of Abraham, he was met with immediate obedience.  Well, Moses seems to immediately question and protest what God asks from him.  We see this in chapter 4 when he is first charged with the responsibility of leading the Israelites out of Egypt.  He argues that he is "slow of speech and slow of tongue" and even when the Lord combats his protests with the fact that He created Moses and will be with his mouth and teach him what to say, Moses begs for someone else to deliver the messages.  God appoints Aaron, but is angry with Moses.  He does this again after his first meeting with Pharaoh which brought negative consequences to the Israelite slaves (5:22-23 "...Why didst Thou ever send me?...Thou has not delivered Thy people at all.") (whine much??)  and then in 6:12 "...the sons of Israel have not listened to me; how then will Pharoah listen to me..."

Though as a reader it is easy to see Moses' fault here, I think it is also somewhat encouraging that, despite his untrusting reaction, Moses was chosen to lead the Isrealites out of Egypt, as well as to see God and to be entrusted with the Law.  And really, who am I more like...Abraham or Moses?  Definitely Moses. 

There is an extremely confusing section in Ex. 4: 24-26 that seems so out of nowhere that I had to look up some commentary to see what in the world it had to do with.  Basically, though we don't see any unresolved conflict, the Lord meets Moses as he is on his way to Egypt and tries to kill him.  The conflict is resolved when Moses' wife Zipporah circumcises his son, and throws the foreskin at his feet and declares him to be a "bridegroom of blood."  Huh?  I won't try to explain it all b/c I don't get it fully, (you can read the commentary I looked at here) but the ultimate conflict comes down to the fact that Moses was chosen to deliver the Israelites yet had not upheld his part of the covenant of circumcision (Gen 17:9-10) in his own family.  There was potentially a cultural issue between Moses & his wife where she did not agree with circumcision on the 8th day after birth, so Moses had not implemented that requirement in his family.  Zipporah grudgingly circumcises her son to save her husband's life so that he can fulfill the will of God.  Read more if you want the details, but it does show the importance of following God's commands if you are seeking to serve him--specifically I think in the area of ministry (my own take on the issue).

Last point on this section.  A lot of people get hung up on the parts where God hardens Pharoah's heart against letting the Israelites go as opposed to when Pharoah's hardens his own heart.  I won't go into the whole issue of free will here--that can be a nightmare to try to understand/explain/discuss, but ultimately it is explained in 9:14-16 (v.16 "But indeed, for this cuase I have allowed you to remain, in order to show you My power, and in order to proclaim My name through all the earth") God did not turn Pharoah completely against what his natural inclination was or Pharoah would have never hardened his own heart.  Instead, God made sure that He fully demonstrated His own power, and showed that no other person or "god" could do what he could do (remember that the Egyptian magicians were able to replicate all of the plagues up until the plauge of the gnats).

From the beginning, it has been all about God's glory!  That is why he chooses inadequate sinners like us--if we could do it on our own, it would be no big deal!