Pastor’s Bible Reading Schedule:
Exodus 5-8
The two great qualifications of a called prophet were to know the Lord God and faithfully to announce His words to the people. God called Moses and separated him for this very task. God disclosed himself to Moses in a fuller measure than the patriarchs before him. To such a man God would entrust His message of deliverance and command him to tell Pharaoh, the most powerful man on the earth, everything I tell you. Although he felt ill prepared for this task and still complained of less than desirable speaking skills, Moses now embarked on the mission for which God has created and called him.
Moses probably felt intimidated by the thought of venturing into Pharaoh’s court with such a message. Moses was to report to Pharaoh what God commanded him. The probable order of dialogue was Moses spoke to Aaron and then Aaron to Pharaoh. We should not suppose, however, that Moses never spoke directly to Pharaoh at all. God had told him he could do so, but eventually he accommodated Moses’ wavering faith in his ability to convince Pharaoh through his own tongue.
But God knew in advance that Pharaoh would not let the Israelites go. God would harden the king’s heart, causing Pharaoh to defy God’s words. Although the words of God about hardening Pharaoh create great theological debates for many today, the hearts of the leaders never slip out of God’s sphere of control. As God would later move Cyrus to proclaim emancipation to the captives of Persia, so he originally put it in the heart of Nebuchadnezzar to conquer Judah as an instrument of discipline. The result of these mighty judgments would be that Egypt would know that I am the Lord. Moses and Aaron now approached the sovereign throne of Pharaoh with the words of their God.
You and I are likewise commanded to confront a lost world with the words of our God. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him, should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)
Prayer Requests:
Personal
- Lord, please help me to have the boldness to share the wonderful words of life with those who so desperately need to hear them.
- Lord, please help me to have the discipline to declare your truth exactly the way you would have it to be communicated.
- Lord, please help me to have the desire to exalt you in every area of my life and the arenas’ that you allow me to minister.
Political
- Representative Sarah Lightner – District 065
- Representative Jim Lilly – District 089 – Macatawa
- Representative Leslie Love – District 010 – Oak Park