Today's Reading:
Hebrews 7
Exodus 3:1-4:31
Psalm 41
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| Listen to the Bible |
Thoughts and Commentary on Today's Reading:
In today's Bible reading, I would especially like to highlight the story of Moses found in Exodus. In this story, we find the beautiful details about Moses relationship with God - details which, if put to use in our own lives, will help us to be people who truly know and personally experience God.
The most important thing for a Christian
to do is personally experience God. In fact, since the true definition of “church” is “eyewitnesses to the life
changing, transforming power of God,”
experiencing God personally
is necessary in order to be part of His church.
So, how can we truly experience God? As Henry Blackaby powerfully teaches in his Experiencing God series, there are seven realities which we must understand in order to experience God.
The FIRST REALITY is that GOD IS ALREADY AT WORK AROUND YOU.
He is working for the Salvation of lost man,
whether you join Him or not. Ministry
for the
Salvation of mankind doesn’t begin with you and I. All ministry begins with God.
A good example of how people experience God through
these seven realities (in order) is found in the life of Moses. So, Moses didn’t need to drum up a
ministry assignment. He just needed to get on board with what God was
already doing!
Moses would never have gone up into the Mount to meet with God
if
God hadn’t initiated the encounter by giving him a personal invitation. God does
the same with you and me! Every day
that you are alive, God continues
to pursue a continuing love relationship with you that is real and personal.
The SECOND REALITY for Experiencing God is understanding that HE WANTS A PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP WIHT YOU.
The THIRD REALITY for Experiencing God is understanding that HE IS INVITING YOU TO JOIN HIM IN HIS WORK.
So many times, Christians feel the urge to do some valuable
ministry. They then think the burden of thinking up what to do is on them. But,
we can’t do ministry, unless God is ALREADY DOING IT. In other words, unless the Spirit of GOD is
at work, no amount of speaking on our part is going to convey the Heavenly
Truths. For this reason, we don’t need
to think up a ministry and then ask GOD to bless it and get on board. This is backwards. We need to ask God what He is doing and get involved with
HIM!
The fourth reality for Experiencing God is understanding that GOD SPEAKS TO YOU, just as surely as He spoke to Moses.
And it is also important to understand HOW God speaks. The Heavenly Father speaks to each of us by His Spirit through the Bible, circumstances, listening prayer, and His people to reveal Himself, His purposes, and His Ways. This revelation of Himself was an invitation to
Moses to join God in what He was about to do. It is the same with us today.The FIFTH REALITY for Experiencing God is understanding that His invitation for you to join Him in His Work will bring you to a CRISIS OF BELIEF which will require faith and action.
True
belief in God takes
the focus off of us. He is the one doing the work. And if He’s called us to do
something, we need to believe that HE will also provide the power, talents, and
abilities to accomplish what He’s called us to do.
Also,
we should recognize that it is a great PRIVILEGE to be asked by God to join
Him. He asks each of us to join Him, so
it isn’t rare to be asked. But, it is a privilege. God
could do the Work for Salvation far
better by sending the angels to do it.
I mean let's face it - the angels never disobey God. They never get His Signals mixed up. They are perfect and do His Will flawlessly, every time. But instead of sending the angels to do the Work of witnessing, He asks us failing humans to work with Him. Why? Because He
knows that the best way for us to get to know Him intimately is to join Him in
what He’s doing. We get to know Him on the job!
The sixth reality for Experiencing God is understanding that EACH OF US MUST MAKE MAJOR ADJUSTMENTS TO JOIN GOD in what He is doing.
This may mean that you have to move. It may mean that you
have to quit your job. But, whatever it
is, you can be sure that it will be a major life-change. This is what it takes to truly join Him in
what He is doing. Carrying out His Plans for your life means setting aside your
own plans and surrendering to His Will.The SEVENTH REALITY for Experiencing God is understanding that we come to know God, intimately, as Moses came to KNOW HIM BY EXPERIENCE as you obey Him and He accomplishes His work in you.
What form has God’s invitation to leave your comfort zone and join Him in His Work taken so far in your life?
God had a purpose that He was working out
around Moses. This is the big picture. The most important factor in this first
reality in Moses’ encounter with God was NOT about the Will of God for
MOSES, it was about the will of God for ISRAEL. Realizing this helps us to not think
self-centeredly when we begin our own journey with God.
God invited Moses to talk with Him and be with Him. God initiated and maintained a continuing relationship with Moses. He does this with each of us.
God talked to Moses about His Will. God revealed
to Moses His holiness, His mercy, His power, His Name, and many other beautiful Characteristics.
Moses offered many objections. He
questioned whether God could do it through him. In each case,
Moses was really doubting God more than himself. This is always the
problem when we protest our inadequacies for an assignment. Moses faced the
crisis of belief – is God really able to do what He says?
Moses made the necessary adjustments to
orient his life to God. Moses had to come to the place where he
believed God could
do everything He said He would do. Moses
became a moldable servant remaining at God’s disposal to be used as God chose.
Moses must have been humble and unworthy
to be used in such a significant way by God. But God DID use him to accomplish all He
intended. Every step of obedience brought Moses to a greater experience with
and knowledge of God.
So
what about you? Do you really want to know God? Do
you really want a personal
