For many, after they become a Christian, they are interested in searching out answers concerning the circumstances of their lives or to find the healing they need due to wounds received along their life journey. For me, my priority was to know MORE about who this God was that loved me so much. This verse was my life verse for a long time as I wanted to know my God so that I would be able to do mighty exploits. I continue on my journey with this same desire. I want to know more about and experience more of God each and every day. Because I have this desire, He continues to reveal more of Himself to me by the Spirit and His written Word.
We also learn more about God as He walks with us through the events of our lives. For example, He has delivered me out of some really traumatic circumstances and when He did, one of the things that happened is my understanding of who God is deepened. Tonight while reading in the book of Exodus, I realized the same thing was true for the Israelites. Think about it. God delivered Israel not when Egypt was at their weakest, but when they were strong and powerful!
The story of their deliverance goes like this. Even after Aaron’s staff became a snake and ate all of the snakes produced by the Pharaoh’s sorcerers, the Pharaoh’s “heart becomes hard…just as the Lord had said” (Exodus 7:13). It is clear that Pharaoh has not yet learned God’s identity. Now God sends a series of plagues to show the Pharaoh that He the Lord must be obeyed. As we read the story about the plagues it is evident that both Israel and Egypt would “learn to know” a little more about God through each plague.
The gnats were the first plague the magicians were not able to copy. The interesting thing is that all of Egypt was afflicted by this plague of flies. They filled the land, that is, everywhere except where the Israelites lived (8:20-24). What has God revealed to Egypt, the Israelites and to us in this event?
Here we see Yahweh, as our sovereign and all powerful God who is in control of everything that happens in our lives. Here we see that the disasters that had taken place were not just quirks of nature. Then there were the locusts that ate all that was left after the hail and the darkness that covered the land – again except where the Israelites lived. However, Pharaoh continues to dismiss Moses and his God. After all, He was Pharaoh.
There would be one more horrible plague that would free Israel. The angel of death would take every firstborn male in Egypt while God protected the Israelites giving them the instructions that would spare their children from death. Finally, Egypt would not just free the Israelites, but they would demand they leave. God has demonstrated His authority in this one night over Pharaoh and all of Egypt’s gods.
God is revealed in the devastations and challenges of life. Without them, how would we know God? These events are a necessary part of life’s journey in order for us to know our God and do mighty exploits.
Blog with Sarah 