The Lord is Preparing a Deliverer
by Joseph Cheng
Where is God in the midst of evil rulers, slavery, and genocide? He remains on his throne, providing for and protecting his people in ways that we can’t always see. This meditation on God’s sovereignty during Israel’s enslavement in Egypt is addressed to the house church in a time of pandemic and persecution, but speaks to many of the crises we face in our world today.
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Dear brothers and sisters, do not let our assumptions and our opinions limit God's own work. God made a seed turn into a nation of millions. As history continues from generation to generation, our God, who transcends history, continues His work. How wonderful this is! This would be especially important for the people of Israel later in history, when Moses was preparing to die before entering the land of Canaan. It seems that Moses was reminding the people of Israel that although he would leave this world, this mighty God would still take them into the land he had promised. Just as when Joseph died, the Lord was still sitting on his throne.
Think about how important this message is for those people in the second generation, who had not seen Israel’s deliverance from Egypt. What an encouragement this is to them! Yes, when we think that God only did works in the past, and do not believe that God still does miracles and wonders today, we are actually limited by our own wrong ideas. In the face of what is happening today, we may not take the Bible seriously. We may laugh it off and say that that happened all in the past, not believing that God is still in control. So many times we replace the work of God with some unbiblical ideas in our mind and allow Reason to sit on the throne. Pray that the Lord will transform our mind once again.
While the house of Jacob lived in Egypt, their life changed from being easy, abundant, and comfortable to being enslaved and oppressed. However, they still saw God's preservation during the dark days that God allowed them to be in. He protected Moses. He preserved their community. When the people of Israel saw God's work in Moses’ life, and Moses returned to deliver the word of God to them, what a comfort and encouragement that was to them. God was not the God of the past, because Moses was still alive. This inspired them to be creative, so that they could continue to move forward. This is the first point.
When you look back at the grace you received in the past, what is your attitude? We see how God has preserved us in the past, whether it was in our lives, in our families, or in the operation of our churches. We can still see God's protection and grace in the midst of the hardships during the recent two years. The children of Israel in the Old Testament foreshadow God's people in the New Testament today, and it is God who preserves us.
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Joseph Cheng is the pastor of a city church in China.
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Category: Devotional
Date created: 2022
Scripture: Exodus 1 & 2
Key terms: suffering, persecution, sovereignty of God
