February 1, 2012

God Reminds Pharaoh of His Place before Him (2/1)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Exodus 7-9.

After suffering through several plagues, Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let the Israelites go into the wilderness to worship God. After the sixth plague, God told Moses to deliver a message to Pharaoh, reminding him of his place before the Lord.

“Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, ‘Let My people go, that they may serve Me. For this time I will send all My plagues on you and your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is no one like Me in all the earth. For if by now I had put forth My hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, you would then have been cut off from the earth. But, indeed, for this reason I have allowed you to remain, in order to show you My power and in order to proclaim My name through all the earth. Still you exalt yourself against My people by not letting them go’” (Exodus 9:13-17).

These words were meant to remind Pharaoh of some facts he had allowed himself to ignore:
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January 30, 2012

The Midwives Feared God and Let the Boys Live (1/30)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Exodus 1-3.

“Now a new king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph” (Exodus 1:8).

This new king was fearful of the children of Israel. As the people multiplied, he worried that they might turn against him and depart. So he “afflicted them with hard labor” (Exodus 1:11), hoping that would keep them in check. But the Israelites continued to increase.
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January 27, 2012

"God Sent Me Before You" (1/27)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Genesis 43-45.

When Joseph finally revealed himself to his brothers, he did not lash out at them for what they had done. Instead, he told them that God was working through these circumstances to bring about good.

“Then Joseph said to his brothers, ‘Please come closer to me.’ And they came closer. And he said, ‘I am your brother Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. Now do not be grieved or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life’” (Genesis 45:4-5).

God preserved the family of Jacob on account of the promise He gave to Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3). This was not just for the benefit of Joseph and his brothers, but it was so that this people and Abraham’s lineage would be preserved. This was part of preparing the way for Christ – the one through whom God’s “eternal purpose” was “carried out” (Ephesians 3:11).
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January 17, 2012

Is Anything Too Difficult for the Lord? (1/17)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Genesis 16-18.

When the Lord appeared to Abraham by the oaks of Mamre (Genesis 18:1), He restated His promise that Abraham’s wife Sarah would bear him a son (Genesis 18:10; cf. Genesis 17:15-16). This would be one part of the fulfillment of the promises God made to Abraham when He first called him to leave his relatives for a place which God would show him (Genesis 12:1-3).

The difficulty in this promise – looking at it strictly through human eyes and ignoring the work of God – was that both Abraham and Sarah were past the age in which they could reasonably expect to have children (Genesis 18:11). So when Sarah overheard this promise, her reaction was one of skepticism.
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January 14, 2012

"Where Were You When I Laid the Foundation of the Earth?" (1/14)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Job 38-39.

“Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding, who set its measurements? Since you know. Or who stretched the line on it? On what were its bases sunk? Or who laid its cornerstone, when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?” (Job 38:4-7).

Man occupies a prominent place in God’s creation. In the beginning, God told Adam and Eve, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth” (Genesis 1:28). Yet many exaggerate the importance of man to the point where they forget God and view themselves as the ultimate standard and authority.

We need to remember what God was teaching Job in this question. No matter how important we think we might be, we are only here because God created us and the world around us. No matter how wise we believe we have become, our wisdom pales in comparison with God’s because His wisdom is behind all of the things in the natural world, even those things which we cannot comprehend.

God is the Creator. Therefore, all wisdom, blessings, and truth come from Him.

Tomorrow’s reading: Job 40-42

[I’m using the Chronological reading plan on the Bible Gateway website if you’d like to follow along, too.]

Daily Notes & Observations contains all 365 articles from this series and is available in paperback from Gospel Armory.

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January 6, 2012

Hope in God (1/6)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Job 10-13.

“Though He slay me, I will hope in Him. Nevertheless I will argue my ways before Him” (Job 13:15).

Job was in a miserable state, unsure why he was suffering as he was. His friends had been telling him this was God’s doing, a divine punishment for some sin Job refused to acknowledge. With nowhere else to turn, Job wanted a chance to appeal directly to God.

But even with the suffering that God was allowing, though Job may not have understood it, he was determined to put his full faith and trust in God. He knew this was the only place of security. Any hope he had for the future rested in the Lord.
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January 5, 2012

Disputes with God (1/5)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Job 6-9.

“In truth I know that this is so; but how can a man be in the right before God? If one wished to dispute with Him, he could not answer Him once in a thousand times” (Job 9:2-3).

Far too often, man tries to argue with the Lord. It is not a direct confrontation like what may happen when two people argue over a matter, but it happens. Man believes he knows what is best, what is right, what is truth. Yet when we claim to be right, but are not conformed to His will, Paul says, “Let God be found true,” and “every man… a liar” (Romans 3:4). No matter how wise and discerning we believe we are, we cannot come close to even the “foolishness of God” (1 Corinthians 1:25). Having a thousand chances to prove ourselves right before Him will have the same result every time — God is always right. When we challenge Him, we are always wrong.
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