King James Bible Study – [Mark 8:34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.]
Date: Friday, February 03, 2023
Chapters: EXODUS 13-15
Study: By The Grace of God
Hello My Brother/Sister/Friend,
As I was reading the chapters for today, I got a great sense of God’s presence, not only through His words, but His Spirit. I am feeling pretty good today physically, which has been a challenge for me this year. Most of it is my fault because as much as I try to eliminate the gluten that is much of the cause of my pain, it is simply not that easy to avoid it completely due to cross contamination. If I ever get my samples to the lab I can get a better understanding of just how sensitive I am to gluten or any other food that I may have an intolerance to. I can associate my pain to the reading for today in that while we as Christians try to keep sin our of our lives, it is impossible to eliminate all of it, which is why we have God’s grace, and praise God for that, [1 Corinthians 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.]
Oh, I am not going to say that I labored more, but I am going to say that I am who I am today by the grace of God, through my faith in Christ. As we continue in the reading of Exodus, Moses and the multitude of people, both Israelites and others whom have left Egypt as a result of the plagues. God, speaks to Moses and the Israelites specifically, instituting the first holy day that they were to observe once they get into Canaan.
[Exodus 13:1-5 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 2 Sanctify unto me all the firstborn, whatsoever openeth the womb among the children of Israel, both of man and of beast: it is mine. 3 And Moses said unto the people, Remember this day, in which ye came out from Egypt, out of the house of bondage; for by strength of hand the LORD brought you out from this place: there shall no leavened bread be eaten. 4 This day came ye out in the month Abib. 5 And it shall be when the LORD shall bring thee into the land of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which he sware unto thy fathers to give thee, a land flowing with milk and honey, that thou shalt keep this service in this month.]
[Sanctify unto me all the firstborn,] To sanctify means to set apart, to cleanse, purify or make holy. We do not nor even needed to be a first born or an Israelite in order to be sanctified unto God and used of Him, but we do need to sanctified. The only way that we can be sanctified today is through Jesus Christ, [1 Corinthians 6:9-11 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, 10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.]
[Remember this day,] We are to never forget the day that Jesus set us free from the bondage of our sin. When you stop to think about how much bondage we were to sin, it really does oppress us and take over everything from reason to our faith as well, but Jesus set us free from all that the second we accept Him as our Saviour, [Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever. If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. – John 8:34-36]
Our salvation can never be bought in our own flesh, even if we were as holy as we can be, we could never be holy enough to sanctify ourselves. We are only saved by the grace of God, through our faith in Jesus Christ, but even that does not mean that we are to continue in sin, we are to keep the Law not only for our own sake, but our children’s as well as everyone else we get around. The Israelites were to never forget that it is God who set them free and that it was by His strength that they are now free. God, takes it a step further though, watch what He says that He will do for all the firstborn.
[Exodus 13:8-10,14-15 And thou shalt shew thy son in that day, saying, This is done because of that which the LORD did unto me when I came forth out of Egypt. 9 And it shall be for a sign unto thee upon thine hand, and for a memorial between thine eyes, that the LORD’S law may be in thy mouth: for with a strong hand hath the LORD brought thee out of Egypt. 10 Thou shalt therefore keep this ordinance in his season from year to year. 14 And it shall be when thy son asketh thee in time to come, saying, What is this? that thou shalt say unto him, By strength of hand the LORD brought us out from Egypt, from the house of bondage: 15 And it came to pass, when Pharaoh would hardly let us go, that the LORD slew all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man, and the firstborn of beast: therefore I sacrifice to the LORD all that openeth the matrix, being males; but all the firstborn of my children I redeem.]
[Thou shalt therefore keep this ordinance] The life we live after we are saved is the token or testimony of our salvation and of the power that Christ has used to set us free. There is absolutely no way that we can successfully break ourselves free from the bondage that sin has us under without Christ, [Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world: But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. – Galatians 4:3-7]
[but all the firstborn of my children I redeem.] What God is saying is that the very first born, albeit, man or beast, would be set apart and used specifically for Him. The beasts, unlike the ones that were set apart for the sacrifices would be redeemed from becoming a sacrifice while the firstborn of man would be set apart to serve Him as living sacrifices. Our souls are forfeited to God’s justice, and unless ransomed by the sacrifice of Christ, we will certainly perish. Likewise, every saved born again Christian observes their spiritual baptism into Christ by getting baptized as well as the Lord’s Supper, [1 Corinthians 10:16-17 The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? 17 For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread.]
The Israelites were slaves in Egypt for four hundred and thirty years, it just became normal to them to live oppressed and under such harsh bondage. It is funny how we all get that way without even realizing it. Now, they are free and headed for the promised land, but unless they trusted the Spirit leading them completely, they would never reach it. And to see if they would trust Him, God decided to lead them to the promised land down a path that would be challenging, to say the least.
[Exodus 13:17-18,20-21 And it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God led them not through the way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, Lest peradventure the people repent when they see war, and they return to Egypt: 18 But God led the people about, through the way of the wilderness of the Red sea: and the children of Israel went up harnessed out of the land of Egypt. 20 And they took their journey from Succoth, and encamped in Etham, in the edge of the wilderness. 21 And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night:]
[Lest peradventure the people repent when they see war,] Jesus, said the path that we are led on is strait and narrow, [Matthew 7:13-14 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: 14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.]. And that is exactly why we are not led down a path that is easy, we are not to return to our life in the world, [2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.]
[And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar] Now, God could have led them down the path that would have gotten them there rather quickly. Instead He took them down a longer path. Why? Because He knew the second that danger came, they would head right back to Egypt. He also wanted them to see that day or night, He was right there with them, as He is with us, we just may not see the pillar. And at the first test of their trusting Him, what do they do? Start complaining.
[Exodus 14:8-11 And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he pursued after the children of Israel: and the children of Israel went out with an high hand. 9 But the Egyptians pursued after them, all the horses and chariots of Pharaoh, and his horsemen, and his army, and overtook them encamping by the sea, beside Pihahiroth, before Baalzephon. 10 And when Pharaoh drew nigh, the children of Israel lifted up their eyes, and, behold, the Egyptians marched after them; and they were sore afraid: and the children of Israel cried out unto the LORD. 11 And they said unto Moses, Because there were no graves in Egypt, hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness? wherefore hast thou dealt thus with us, to carry us forth out of Egypt?]
[Because there were no graves in Egypt,] Did it ever occur to you that the reason why God takes us the long way around is so that we can learn to lean on and trust Him alone? More often than we care to admit, the first reaction when our faith is tested is asking ourselves why we stepped out of that bondage in the first place. Whenever I start thinking of how good I had it when I was in bondage that is when Jesus reminds me of what He broke me free from, and it was more than my sin, He broke me free from a life that would have been hell on earth. Moses reminds the Israelites that God is still with them, and will help them, they just have to stand still.
[Exodus 14:13-16 And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever. 14 The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace. 15 And the LORD said unto Moses, Wherefore criest thou unto me? speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward: 16 But lift thou up thy rod, and stretch out thine hand over the sea, and divide it: and the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea.]
[and stretch out thine hand over the sea, and divide it:] Say what? The water of the sea is just going to split in half? I am sure that is what they were all thinking, but Moses had enough faith to know that when he raised that rod up that the sea was going to do something so that they could walk across. So many people try to discredit this or believe that the waters were not that high, but I believe what God said and if He says that they walked on dry land across the sea, then I will never question how it was possible because I know God made it happen. Now, watch as this incredible miracle takes place, they were not alone.
[Exodus 14:19-22,24 And the angel of God, which went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind them; and the pillar of the cloud went from before their face, and stood behind them: 20 And it came between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel; and it was a cloud and darkness to them, but it gave light by night to these: so that the one came not near the other all the night. 21 And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the LORD caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. 22 And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground: and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left. 24 And it came to pass, that in the morning watch the LORD looked unto the host of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and of the cloud, and troubled the host of the Egyptians,]
[but it gave light by night to these:] It is important that once we get saved to not only stand still, but move forward into the LIGHT of the Spirit that is actually not only leading us, but behind us, giving us that nudge to keep going. Do not lurk about in the life that you once lived, move forward in the newness of Christ, [Romans 6:4-5 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:]
[through the pillar of fire and of the cloud,] I love this, and of all the testimonies we are given of the Trinity of God, all three are right here. Every saved born again Christian has the Almighty Father, watching over them, as the Son, sits at His right hand, interceding for us, all the while we have the Holy Spirit lighting our way to the promised land, [2 Corinthians 4:6,14-15 For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. 14 Knowing that he which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus, and shall present us with you. 15 For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.]
We cannot see the amazing blessings that God has in store if we get angry and whine about how narrow our path is to God instead of trusting Him to get us through it. Oh, and God was not done, it was time to close the sea back up. God, waited until every person among the multitude had crossed over, and what He did next was truly a reminder that He gets vengeance, and it is not pretty for the wicked.
[Exodus 14:26-28,31 And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the sea, that the waters may come again upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen. 27 And Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to his strength when the morning appeared; and the Egyptians fled against it; and the LORD overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. 28 And the waters returned, and covered the chariots, and the horsemen, and all the host of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them; there remained not so much as one of them. 31 And Israel saw that great work which the LORD did upon the Egyptians: and the people feared the LORD, and believed the LORD, and his servant Moses.]
[there remained not so much as one of them.] “Throw my babies into the river and see what you get!” That is what I imagine God saying. That reminds me, at my job, we do not get recognized for our hard work, rather how we can sweet talk people. My favorite thing to say whenever one of my bosses favorites actually gets caught is, “How do you like me now?” I am not being proud, I am like, “You fuss at me over nothing, and pass me up for promotions because I am quiet while your sweet talking slackers get all the opportunities, but who do you call on to get the job done.” I imagine that we all get that way sometimes, one thing I know is that God keeps track of every hair on my head, even the ones that have fallen off, and He will certainly show Himself mighty before my enemies, [Luke 12:6-7 Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God? 7 But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows.]
As saved, born again Christians, we need to stop fighting God on what matters to Him, trust Him, lose the sin, lose the attitude, lose the doubt, the fears, and the faithlessness. One thing about many Christians that are just as bad as the Israelites on is that they can quickly forget the challenges God has gotten them through as soon as the another one comes. When you think about it, are they really believers, or just pretending to be because they see the power of God? Well, as soon as the Israelites saw the Egyptian guards die in the Red Sea they rejoiced, and even made up a song about it.
[Exodus 15:1-3,13,20-21 Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the LORD, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. 2 The LORD is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father’s God, and I will exalt him. 3 The LORD is a man of war: the LORD is his name. 13 Thou in thy mercy hast led forth the people which thou hast redeemed: thou hast guided them in thy strength unto thy holy habitation. 20 And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances. 21 And Miriam answered them, Sing ye to the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.]
[Sing ye to the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously;] Oh, they were rejoicing right now, but the test would be if they would still be rejoicing come the next challenge. Well, their rejoicing of God only lasted for three days, they had not see water since crossing the Red Sea, and finally when they do find it, it is bitter.
[Exodus 15:23-26 And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter: therefore the name of it was called Marah. 24 And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink? 25 And he cried unto the LORD; and the LORD shewed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet: there he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them, 26 And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee.]
[If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD] This reminds me of every time I have listened to God and praise Him for having paid attention. It has also reminds me of times when I did not and yet still have to praise Him when I get the, “I told you so.” for not listening to Him. I will tell you this, I do not get sick often, but when I do it is usually because I have not taken care of myself. The same thing applies to our spiritual health as well, if we take care of our spirits by being diligent in our walk with God, then even death has no victory over us, [1 Corinthians 15:55-57 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? 56 The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.]
Today’s Prayer: God, Thank You truly for Your mercies, which led me to be redeemed when I trusted that Your Son alone can save me from death and hell. Jesus, thank You, for setting me free from the elements of the world when I trusted You as my Saviour, and for healing me. You know that life itself is a big leap of faith and has its own challenges, and while You are not the only one who tests our faith, You are the one who always sees us through them and helps us conquer them when we trust You, and let You lead us through them. Lord, Lead us and guide us, instill the power of the Holy Spirit in us to trust You while we do our part, knowing that Your Light and mercies redeem us. I will not fear, I will stand still, and see Your salvation. I pray these things in Your name Jesus, Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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