(1)
God
of Compassion
What happened at
the first Christmas was not a new idea – maybe a new strategy – but not
something contrary to the way God had always acted. The Israelites, groaning
under the burden of their slavery in Egypt, cried out to God …
presumably a constant and corporate cry for help. “Groaning” would indicate a
passionate, deep, heart-felt cry. “Slavery” is a dreadful thing because freedom
has been taken away, and there would no consideration of basic human rights.
They would be suffering exploitation and economic injustice. How the Egyptians
treated the Israelites is referred to in terms of oppression (NRSV) and abuse
(NLT; 3:9). When God spoke to Moses a bit later we read (refer verse 7) words
used like “distress, misery, suffering”.
We then read that
their cries for help … “rose up to God” (2:23). This signifies to me that God’s
attention is never removed from us for too long. It was not surprising
that God heard the people’s cries – it was a natural result of God’s love for
his created beings. As we read in verse 25, “God looked upon the Israelites,
and God took notice of them”; or, in the NLT, “… and [God] knew it was time to
act”. Not only did God hear and take notice, but God is also caused to remember
his promises to Abraham and his descendants. God’s people could not be left to
flounder and suffer and die, because God had promised to bless all the nations
of the earth through these descendants of Abraham. There was a lot at risk!
One word
describes well God’s response to the cries of his people … ‘compassion’. We
know how Jesus shows deep, gut-wrenching compassion when confronted by human
need. This is who God is! All God does on this occasion comes out of
faithfulness to his own character and to the promises (or covenants) he has
previously made. And this compassion is NOT based on it being deserved
or earned, this compassion is based purely on human need. On the basis of this
compassionate reaction to their dire situation, God will over time seek further
and deeper relationship with his people; it would be those with grateful open
hearts that will respond and maximise the benefits of God’s acts of mercy.
God’s timing is
always impeccable, even when we can’t understand it or work it out. It is often
in hindsight that we see the perfection of God’s timing. The trick is to know
in the midst of uncertainty, that in fact, God’s timing is perfect … God will
act at the best time and in the best way. Verse 25b in NLT … “God knew it was
time to act”. God’s ultimate well-timed act was the sending of Jesus. We read
Paul’s words in Galatians 4:4-5 … But when the fullness of time had come,
God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those
who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children.
History has shown, because of a number of factors, why Jesus came just at the
right time so that God’s (compassionate) purposes might be fulfilled. We can’t know why God doesn’t seem to respond in some quite
similar circumstances to what the Israelites faced here, but we do know that
God can and does at certain times; which should encourage us to pray.
(2)
God
of Action
How does God act
on this occasion (in Exodus)? Well, he forms a rescue plan. And this plan not
only was a deliverance out of a bad situation, but also there was an idea
toward a new style of living environment – a “good and broad land” (NRSV) or a
“fertile and spacious land” (NLT). For the ancient Israelites this meant
literally a new place, and this is also what is needed for many modern-day
refugees … a new peaceful welcoming spacious land. But in other situations, for
other people, this may mean deliverance to a new family or to a new spiritual
community or simply to a new way of life (that could be described in terms of a
“fertile and spacious land”).
Now, this all
involves raising up a leader … Moses. Because God was calling him, Moses was
obviously ready – more ready than he knew. Moses had had an interesting life to
say the least. From being rescued from the river Nile, to being brought up in
Pharaoh’s house, to becoming an outcast for defending a fellow Hebrew against
an Egyptian oppressor – fleeing to Midian and becoming a farmhand, marrying the
daughter of a priest whose family he had helped, and having a son. Now Moses
faced a burning bush, a full-on fire … but the bush wasn’t succumbing to the
flames.
First of all,
Moses wasn’t frightened nor dismissive … he was inquisitive – refer verse 3.
This was an unusual happening … there might just be more to it! When he heard a
voice, that he may have begun to think was God, Moses was prepared to respond
“Here I am” (v.4). God then further tested his readiness. Not only was Moses
prepared to take his shoes off – showing reverence, he also hid his face –
demonstrating his potential unworthiness (to be so close to the very presence
of God). Moses thus passed the humility test! God can only use the humble …
those who have a proper assessment of themselves … a sinner needing to be saved
by grace. Yet having been saved by grace, we are then able to be used mightily.
(3)
God
of Faithfulness
God explains to
Moses that having observed the misery on earth and heard the people’s cries,
that he has “come down” to deliver them (v.8). This is personal!! Again, this
concept of ‘coming down’ is consistent with what will happen many centuries
later with Jesus. God’s ‘coming down’ on this occasion will involve the ongoing
leadership of a person dedicated to God’s cause. God says to Moses (v.10), “Now
go … for I am sending you to Pharaoh” (NLT); or better I think (given what
follows), “So come … I will send you to Pharaoh” (NRSV).
You want me to do
what? I have a bit of a chequered history with the royal family!! And there is
a bit of tension between me and the Hebrew people as well. How does God answer
these doubts?? What of great importance follows??? All protests become
insignificant when we hear, “I will be with you” (verse 12)! There will still
be difficulties and challenges for Moses to cope with … things would actually
get worse before they got better … yet this is the best guarantee we could
have!! There is no contradiction between God saying he will personally respond
and then actually calling Moses to complete the task … because … “I will go
with you”! This will be a partnership!
But before this
guarantee came, Moses utters the words, “Who am I … that I should go to
Pharaoh” (verse 11)!?!
What do you think
lies behind this???
·
Guilt,
shame
·
Identity
crisis – born a Hebrew, but brought up as an Egyptian (literally “who am I”?)
·
Lack
of confidence, self-doubt, feelings of limitation
·
Fear,
lack of courage, unwilling to take a risk
·
Only
sees the difficulty and probable failure, i.e. lack of faith.
The guarantee
stands!!
Understanding our
weaknesses will help us allow God to work through us; however dwelling on our
weaknesses, or hiding behind them, will render us ineffective. God meets us
initially where we are, at our recognized point of need, and from here we are
led on to an understanding of our needs at a deeper level – which we should not
ignore. A proper realistic view of ourselves is what we need to lead us toward
a proper trust in God. We come as we are, open ourselves to Jesus, receive his
forgiveness, fix our eyes on him, then go with Jesus through life … learning
along the way. Then any task we are called to, is a task that God can
accomplish through us. The “Come no closer” of verse 5 has now given way to “So
come … I will be with you” (v.10,12). The protest, “Who am I …”, should have
come to an end – it no longer stands up.
There will
eventually be a “sign” that God has truly called Moses and has been with him
all the way (v.12b), but that “sign” will not be seen until the job is
done. Moses will have to exhibit faith to experience the results which will
vindicate the whole effort. The proof of the pudding will be in the eating!
(4)
People
of Prayer & Compassion
So what might we
want to cry out to God about?
Are we attentive
to how God might answer?
What if we
ourselves are asked to participate in a ‘rescue plan’?
Can we apply
God’s promise, “I will be with you”?
The world, this
country, even elements of our own community are in great need. What are we
crying about? In the story of the exodus, clearly the people’s prayers led to a
remarkable outcome. God wants to hear our cries. This is part of our
participation in his compassion for the world. In some mysterious way, our
cries of pain energise God’s compassion. God’s action was decisively for the
oppressed, and against their oppressor Pharaoh. The protests and cries of the
victims, and those who intercede for them are always heard by God. Psalm
103:6-8 says, The Lord gives righteousness and justice to all who are
treated unfairly. He revealed his character to Moses and his deeds to the
people of Israel. The Lord is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and
filled with unfailing love (NLT).
Do we join God in
his nature of compassion? Do we back our prayers with action? Or, do we perhaps
just go through the spiritual motions a bit? Perhaps we don’t unleash enough of
God into certain situations!
Why doesn’t this
happen, or that happen, we wonder! Have we cried out? Have we gone out on a
limb??
God has a
consistent mindset of bringing people out of bad situations into new hope, out
of slavery into freedom, out of darkness and into light, out of death and into
life. This is no matter whether they have fallen into bad situations through
the behaviour of others, or got themselves into trouble and they themselves
bear the responsibility. This is how God responded to the “fall”, and how God
continues to respond. Ultimately of course, God responded to the sin problem in
the world with Jesus. But this shouldn’t have been unexpected, because God was
always seeking to get close up and personal and save his people.
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