“Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. And he said to his people, “Look, the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than we; come, let us deal shrewdly with them, lest they multiply, and it happen, in the event of war, that they also join our enemies and fight against us, and so go up out of the land.” Therefore they set taskmasters over them to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh supply cities, Pithom and Raamses.”
Exodus 1:8-11 NKJV
I used to sing the song, “Just as an Eagle Stirs Her Nest.” Here are some of the lyrics:
So often when men are blessed
With prosperity
The goodness and mercy of God
They no longer see
They seem to say within
My soul take thine ease
And they turn away from God
And do just as they please
But as an eagle
Stirreth her nest
So that her young ones
Will have no rest
God in His own
Mysterious way
Stirs up His people
To watch and pray
This song seems to have been inspired by a passage of scripture referencing how the Lord dealt with His people:
“As an eagle stirs up its nest, Hovers over its young, Spreading out its wings, taking them up, Carrying them on its wings, So the Lord alone led him, And there was no foreign god with him.”
Deuteronomy 32:11-12 NKJV
Interestingly, this scripture is reflecting on how an eagle actually operates with its young. You see, the eagle builds its massive nest using sticks, thorny vines, even rocks, but then carefully covers the inside of it with soft materials such as feathers and animal fur. Now, as the eaglets begin to get close to the time that they need to learn to fly, the mother will begin to gradually remove the soft elements of the nest exposing sticks, stones, and other hard materials. In so doing, she makes the nest considerably less comfortable and the eaglets more willing to get out and fly.
King Nebuchadnezzar had been warned to pay attention to God and turn from his self-exalting ways. But he was at ease in his situation and had to be stirred from his comfort.
“The king spoke, saying, “Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power and for the honor of my majesty?” While the word was still in the king’s mouth, a voice fell from heaven: “King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: the kingdom has departed from you! And they shall drive you from men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. They shall make you eat grass like oxen; and seven times shall pass over you, until you know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He chooses.””
Daniel 4:30-32 NKJV
If you have read the rest of the story you know that this disturbance of Nebuchadnezzar’s world, ended with him recognizing God as being the Most High.
Jesus told a parable concerning one who was at ease and paid for that ease with his soul.
“Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.” ’ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’”
Luke 12:16-20 NKJV
The Lord spoke through the prophet Isaiah, warning the women who were at ease among His people, that destruction was headed their way.
“Rise up, you women who are at ease, Hear my voice; You complacent daughters, Give ear to my speech. In a year and some days You will be troubled, you complacent women; For the vintage will fail, The gathering will not come.”
Isaiah 32:9-10 NKJV
On this our 40th day of “40 Days with Moses,” we return to the beginning of the story.
The children of Israel, having prospered in Egypt, began to be oppressed by a pharaoh who didn’t know—or care—about the great deeds of Joseph. Now they were under a terrible burden and cried out to God for help.
You see, before they began to be oppressed, the people prospered and most certainly were content to live out all of their days in Egypt. But as we know, the Lord had another idea. The Lord had separated out Abraham from whom would come a great nation, a nation separated unto Himself.
“But when the time of the promise drew near which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt till another king arose who did not know Joseph.”
Acts 7:17-18 NKJV
Let’s look at the Lord’s promise to Abraham:
“Then He said to Abram: “Know certainly that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them, and they will afflict them four hundred years. And also the nation whom they serve I will judge; afterward they shall come out with great possessions.”
Genesis 15:13-14 NKJV
The time had come for the children of Israel to come out of Egypt and go to the Promised Land. But the people weren’t willing to leave their comfort, so their comfort left them.
As counterintuitive as it may seem, and as difficult as it proves to be for those experiencing the stirring, God can and does use contrary circumstances to make our place of settling, less comfortable. In so doing, we just might be shaken from our ease, and try to fly!
For today let us discover what Moses discovered:
Sometimes we have to be stirred to keep from settling.
“An altar of earth you shall make for Me, and you shall sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep and your oxen. In every place where I record My name I will come to you, and I will bless you.”
Exodus 20:24 NKJV
There’s an interesting scene in the movie, “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade,” where they are presented with a table full of different drinking cups. They were desperate to find the right cup (the Holy Grail), thinking that it had healing powers. The bad guy chose to drink from a very elaborate cup “fit for a King.” He chose poorly and died because of it. On the other hand, Indiana Jones chose a simple cup saying this was “the cup of a carpenter.” He chose wisely and was able to save his father from dying. Now this is a fantasy; but this scene offers a valuable lesson.
You see, we may have an idea of what God wants and we offer that to Him. Often, in our exuberance, we go full throttle toward what we think will please Him; and often we are wrong.
At the transfiguration of Jesus, Peter being overcome with the thrill of the moment, had a “great idea.”
“and He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light. And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, let us make here three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.””
Matthew 17:2-4 NKJV
Although it isn’t spoken, we know that shrines to Himself, Moses and Elijah, was not what Jesus wanted at that point in time. But Peter thought it was a good idea.
The fact is, the Lord does not honor every gift or every deed we think up to offer to Him. It’s only when we offer what He wants that He puts His name on it (receives that offering, blessing the one who gives it).
Most of us know about the fact that the Lord accepted the offering of Able but rejected the offering of Cain.
“And in the process of time it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground to the Lord. Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat. And the Lord respected Abel and his offering, but He did not respect Cain and his offering. And Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell.”
Genesis 4:3-5 NKJV
We receive more insight into why Cain’s offering was not accepted from the writer of Hebrews:
“By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks.”
Hebrews 11:4 NKJV
Throughout the word of God we see the Lord being very displeased with His people who were keeping His ordinances in the way they saw fit, basically choosing what they would do for Him and when they would do it. At the same time, they were ignoring the things He had clearly spoken as being His will! Look at these examples:
“Is it a fast that I have chosen, A day for a man to afflict his soul? Is it to bow down his head like a bulrush, And to spread out sackcloth and ashes? Would you call this a fast, And an acceptable day to the Lord? “Is this not the fast that I have chosen: To loose the bonds of wickedness, To undo the heavy burdens, To let the oppressed go free, And that you break every yoke?”
Isaiah 58:5-6 NKJV
“I hate, I despise your feast days, And I do not savor your sacred assemblies. Though you offer Me burnt offerings and your grain offerings, I will not accept them, Nor will I regard your fattened peace offerings. Take away from Me the noise of your songs, For I will not hear the melody of your stringed instruments. But let justice run down like water, And righteousness like a mighty stream.”
Amos 5:21-24 NKJV
““To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices to Me?” Says the Lord. “I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams And the fat of fed cattle. I do not delight in the blood of bulls, Or of lambs or goats. “When you come to appear before Me, Who has required this from your hand, To trample My courts? “Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; Put away the evil of your doings from before My eyes. Cease to do evil, Learn to do good; Seek justice, Rebuke the oppressor; Defend the fatherless, Plead for the widow.””
Isaiah 1:11-12, 16-17 NKJV
Today we find Moses being instructed by the Lord as to how to build an altar to Him on which sacrifices will be offered. Additionally, Moses is told that in obeying the instructions of the Lord, the Lord will put His name on the altar (honor it) as well as receiving and blessing the sacrifice.
I’ve been there. I’ve had “great ideas” of what I thought God would want from me; but I was wrong. Let’s listen to the Lord and give Him what He wants, where, when, and how He wants it. In so doing, our offering will be received and blessed!
For today let us discover what Moses discovered:
God does not honor every altar or every offering.
“And God spoke all these words, saying: “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. “You shall have no other gods before Me. “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain. “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you. “You shall not murder. “You shall not commit adultery. “You shall not steal. “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.””
Exodus 20:1-4, 7-8, 12-17 NKJV
My mother’s family was always very competitive in terms of playing board or card games. I remember that when my mother and some of her family members would gather to play “Scrabble,” the game was often interrupted by accusations of cheating. In general, the accusations proved to be true. As you may know, in the game, there are a couple of blank tiles that can be used for whatever letter you need to complete your word. Now, whereas it has no points associated with it, it can enable you to make words on squares of high value, using letters of high value, thereby racking in the points. Well, one of the competitors was notorious for turning over a regular tile and using it as a blank tile, a cheat that sometimes wasn’t discovered until after the game. Then there was the hiding of undesired letters, enabling you to pick extra letters without being detected. And, there were other ploys, and other affected games (which I don’t have space to list here). Now, this “cheating” was good-natured and usually ended with laughing. But, the fact is, many people just don’t like rules, especially when they stand between them and what they want.
Lance Armstrong is an American road racing cyclist who became an icon of the sport having won seven consecutive Tour de France races. Sadly, he was later stripped of all his titles having been found out to be central in a doping scheme. Lance wanted to win more than he wanted to follow the rules and it came back to bite him.
Sometimes rules are not followed because the assumption is that nobody else is really following the rules, so why should I be penalized for being the only standup guy? Such was probably the case with Lance’s case, discussed above.
Additionally, some rules are considered to be arbitrary and capricious. Some rules are seen as being unfairly applied. Whatever the excuse we have for breaking the rules, we probably have as many excuses as rules.
Today we find Moses receiving what we have come to reference as the Ten Commandments. It’s interesting to note that these commandments were given early in the forty year trek.
Some people think that the Ten Commandments are passé and not relevant in the Christian age.
Let’s take a brief look at what Jesus had to say about the Ten Commandments.
In one case Jesus was approached by a young ruler wanting to know what he could do to attain eternal life. Jesus offered the following answer:
“Now behold, one came and said to Him, “Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?” So He said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.” He said to Him, “Which ones?” Jesus said, “‘You shall not murder,’ ‘You shall not commit adultery,’ ‘You shall not steal,’ ‘You shall not bear false witness,’ ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ ””
Matthew 19:16-19 NKJV
Here we see Jesus reiterating six of the Commandments. But it doesn’t stop there.
“Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?” Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.””
Matthew 22:35-40 NKJV
Here, Jesus is introducing a system of organizing the commandments, boiling them down to two great commandments: loving God completely and loving others as yourself. Then He makes the observation that everything we need to do is a product of observing these two commandments.
But what about observation of the Sabbath? A full discussion of that question would take a lot more time than we have here, but I will offer you this. When Jesus was approached (more than once) about why His disciples “broke” the Sabbath, this was His response:
“And He said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath.””
Mark 2:27-28 NKJV
What Jesus is saying here is that He—being the Creator of all things—determines the rules over how the Sabbath is observed. In fact, He has become our Sabbath rest. Now, this does not take away the need for God to be honored in a consistent manner by gathering with the saints. Jesus was resurrected on the first day of the week and we worship on that day. However, there are still denominations that gather on Saturday and I have no argument with them. The point is, a time must be set aside for the honoring of God in the company of other believers. With that being said, let us understand that God has said what He wants and it is our part to obey.
We know that we cannot earn entrance into God’s Kingdom by obeying any commandments. Rather, the transformation leading to eternal life comes to those who accept Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. But make no mistake, our Christian walk must be characterized by behavior consistent with God’s righteousness.
For today let us discover what Moses discovered:
God has rules.