You Are Free to GO!
Listen to today’s passage – Exodus 10 – 12
Follow along on Blue Letter Bible – Exodus 12
Second Milers also read – Luke 1 – 2; Proverbs 23; Psalms 111 – 115
Listen to this morning’s Scripture Song – Isaiah 40:31
Read the “0123 Evening and Morning“ devotion for today, by Charles Spurgeon.
Read previous posts from today’s passage in Exodus – “Do I Have Your Attention” and “What Can Wash Away My Sin?“
“And Moses and Aaron came in unto Pharaoh, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, How long wilt thou refuse to humble thyself before me? let my people go, that they may serve me.” – (Exodus 10:3)
“31 And he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said, Rise up, and get you forth from among my people, both ye and the children of Israel; and go, serve the LORD, as ye have said. 32 Also take your flocks and your herds, as ye have said, and be gone; and bless me also.” (Exodus 12:31–32)
“Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may have free course, and be glorified, even as it is with you:” – (2 Thessalonians 3:1)
“Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage…. For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.” (Galatians 5:1, 13)
“And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” – (Mark 16:15)
In Exodus 12, true freedom came only through the blood of the lamb on the doorposts. Today, that Lamb is Christ—His blood sets us eternally free from sin’s bondage, and commissions us to go and tell others.
Moses made the demand to Pharaoh that the people of God must be let go, but notice that the reason that God wanted them free was so that they could serve their Lord. Why is it that free people so often neglect the freedom that they have been given by God to use in the service of the King of Kings? We live in America, and here we are free to preach the Bible openly to whoever will listen, but for the most part we keep silent. Peter wrote that we are to use our freedom as the servants of God:
“As free, and not using your liberty for a cloke of maliciousness, but as the servants of God.” (1 Peter 2:16)
Our Constitution in America guarantees the right of religious freedom:
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” (First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States)
Our Founding Fathers understood the importance of freedom. Patrick Henry is famous for stating:
“Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!” – Patrick Henry
Patrick Henry understood physical and political liberty; how much more should we cherish and use the spiritual liberty Christ has purchased for us with His own blood?”
Take full advantage of the freedom that you have been granted by God and use it to spread the good news of salvation to the people around you. It is my fear that the day is coming soon that this liberty that we enjoy today may be taken away, and then we will want to serve God, but we will be banned from doing so. Spurgeon said:
“Liberty is the birthright of every believer; but it is a birthright which must be guarded, or it will be lost.” – Charles Spurgeon
Jesus said:
“If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” (John 8:36)
We have been made free by the Lord. Let’s use that freedom to serve the Lord and send His Gospel to the world.
- Assemble now with God’s people.
- Serve the Lord with gladness.
- Testify of His goodness and glory.
- Win souls – share the gospel with your family, neighbors and co-workers.
- Invite someone to church this Sunday.
- Support a missionary.
- Street preach if the Lord leads.
Do it now, while you are still free to do so! Whatever your hand finds to do—do it with all your might, for the King’s business requires haste.
Posted in Devotions, Thoughts from Exodus and tagged Blood of the Lamb, Charles Spurgeon, Evangelism, Exodus 10, First Amendment, Free Indeed, Freedom, Great Commission, Israel, John 8:36, Liberty, Moses, Passover, Patrick Henry, Pharaoh, Religious Liberty, Soul Winning by Phil Erickson with 4 comments.
What About Judah?
Listen to today’s Passage – Genesis 38 – 40
Follow along on Blue Letter Bible – Genesis 38
(Second Milers also read – Mark 1 – 2; Proverbs 15; Psalms 71 – 75)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture Song – Psalm 89:1
Read the “0115 Evening and Morning“ devotion for today, by the Charles Spurgeon.
Read previous relevant posts from this passage – “Godly Character,” and “God’s Perfect Plan.“
“And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.” (Revelation 5:5)
We don’t talk a lot about Judah as a man. We know that Jesus comes from the tribe of Judah, and we know that when Israel split in the time of King Rehoboam that the tribe of Judah alone stood in Jerusalem and demonstrated better adherence to the Law of God than her neighbors to the north did. But what do we know about the man, Judah? I have been guilty of assuming that the reason that God chose the tribe of Judah above all of the other tribes was due to the fact that Judah was a more honorable man than his three older brothers. In fact, I recently posted that thought in “The High Cost of Unbridled Anger and Lust“ post from two days ago. However, after reading today’s passage, I had to give it a little more thought.
Judah’s Early Struggles
In chapter 37, we discover that it was Judah that suggested to his brothers that they sell Joseph to the Ishmaelites, and there is nothing in the context to support the fact that he did so for the purpose of sparing Joseph’s life:
“And Judah said unto his brethren, What profit is it if we slay our brother, and conceal his blood? Come, and let us sell him to the Ishmeelites (sometimes spelled Ishmaelites – Jdg 8:24; Ps 83:6), and let not our hand be upon him; for he is our brother and our flesh. And his brethren were content.” (Genesis 37:26-27)
It appears that he merely wanted to make a profit from the situation. Killing Joseph would not have benefitted him financially. By the way, we usually don’t think too highly about Reuben, but it was he who tried to save Joseph – not Judah.
Chapter 38 is a parenthetical digression dealing solely with the family of Judah. In it we see that Judah marries a woman from Canaan:
“And Judah saw there a daughter of a certain Canaanite, whose name was Shuah; and he took her, and went in unto her.” (Genesis 38:2)
You may recall that Isaac strictly forbade Jacob (Judah’s father) from taking a wife from the daughters of Canaan (Genesis 28:1, 6).
Later on in chapter 38, we read about Judah purchasing a prostitute, which turns out to be his daughter-in-law:
“When Judah saw her, he thought her to be an harlot; because she had covered her face. And he turned unto her by the way, and said, Go to, I pray thee, let me come in unto thee; (for he knew not that she was his daughter in law.) And she said, What wilt thou give me, that thou mayest come in unto me?” (Genesis 38:15-16)
A Surprising Turn
Now in a couple of days we are going to read a story about Judah where he is doing a good thing. In Genesis 44 he will be interceding with Joseph, pleading with him to allow Benjamin to go home to his father, Jacob. He even offers himself as a substitute. Judah got this one right because by offering himself as the substitute for Benjamin (who he thought was guilty), he perfectly pictured Christ:
“Then Judah came near unto him, and said, Oh my lord, let thy servant, I pray thee, speak a word in my lord’s ears, and let not thine anger burn against thy servant: for thou art even as Pharaoh. … For thy servant became surety for the lad unto my father, saying, If I bring him not unto thee, then I shall bear the blame to my father for ever. Now therefore, I pray thee, let thy servant abide instead of the lad a bondman to my lord; and let the lad go up with his brethren.” (Genesis 44:18, 32-33)
Grace, Not Merit
So, here it is: the bad and the good about Judah, and it seems that there is more bad than good recorded. So why did God choose Judah? Was it because he was a good man as opposed to his evil older brothers? No, I don’t think so. He did, however, demonstrate Christlikeness when he offered himself as a substitute for his brother Benjamin. But I still do not think that is the reason why Christ descends from Judah. Judah was just like you and me. He was a sinner. He did bad things, just like we do at times; and it was only because of God’s grace that He could do anything with Judah at all. By the way, it is only because of God’s grace that He can do anything with you or me. He saves us by His grace, and He can only use us by His grace as well.
The Lion from Judah’s Line
“Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies; thy father’s children shall bow down before thee. Judah is a lion’s whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up? The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be. Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass’s colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes: His eyes shall be red with wine, and his teeth white with milk.” (Genesis 49:8-12)
Questions for Reflection
- In what ways do you see God’s grace at work in your own flawed story?
- How does Judah’s substitution for Benjamin point you afresh to Christ’s substitution for us?
I would love to hear your thoughts – Leave a comment!
Posted in Devotions, Thoughts from Genesis and tagged Benjamin, Christ in Genesis, Genesis 38, Genesis 44, God's Grace, Israel, Judah, Patriarch Failures, Sovereignty, Substitute, Tribe of Judah by Phil Erickson with 11 comments.