Exodus | Paula Wiseman

A Friend of God

"So the Lord spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend." Exodus 33:11

Not as a man speaks to his servants.

Or to his son.

But to his friend.

Jesus reiterated this in John 15:15 "No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you."

Not enemies. Friends.

This includes me. This includes you.

Filed Under: Monday Meditations Tagged With: Exodus, friends, Moses

On the Lord’s Side

By Paula

Then Moses stood in the entrance of the camp, and said, “Whoever is on the LORD'S side—come to me!” And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him. Exodus 32:26 NKJV

After a week of hearing much in the news about personal moral failure, I read this verse. Three things struck me about Moses' call.

It is personal. No one can make the decision for you.

It is public. The challenge is issued in front of the entire nation.

It is active. It requires that we separate ourselves.

Today and every day, you and I face that same challenge.

Am I, are you, on the LORD'S side?

Filed Under: Monday Meditations Tagged With: Exodus, Moses, sanctified

Called By Name

By Paula

See, I have called by name Bezalel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. (Exodus 31:2 NAS)

God looked at a nation of two million Hebrews (maybe more) and called out one man, by name, for a specific job.

By name.

God knows our names, knows us intimately. We aren't part of a nameless, faceless multitude of "believers". We never have to give our 'believer account number' when we pray. We don't even have to wear a name tag.

See, I have called by name ____(YOU)______.

Filed Under: Monday Meditations Tagged With: Exodus

STT: Exodus

By Paula

Exodus, the epic story of God's deliverance of Israel from Egyptian bondage makes a great study. In fact I'm working my way slowly through Exodus right now. Often the detail and repetition discourage folks from reading and studying the book. For others, any study of Old Testament law seems irrelevant. However, here are a few things to watch that might help.

1. God speaks – Watch God's revelation of Himself through His words. I also love His conversations with Moses. After Moses' death, these words are recorded "But since then there has not arisen in Israel a prophet like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face." That's a relationship worth studying!

2. God acts – Take note of how God intervenes on behalf of His people, both in Egypt and in the desert. Some of my favorite passages are God's display of power at the Red Sea and His holiness at Sinai.

3. Leadership lessons – Moses makes a tremendous character study. Key traits are his humility, his compassion and his intercession. His humanity shows through many times, too.

4. Object lessons – Everything about the Passover and the tabernacle point to the coming work of Christ.

What have you learned from your studies of Exodus?

Filed Under: Study Tip Tuesday Tagged With: Bible study, Exodus, Moses

STT: Names of God

By Paula

One of the things we miss out on in our English Bibles is the variety of names for God used in the original Hebrew. Each one points to an intensely personal encounter with Him. The English doesn't leave the names out, exactly. You just have to learn to recognize them. I'll touch on four of the most used names.

God - This is Elohim, the most common used name. The 'im' ending means it's plural, but it takes a singular verb, indicating the three-in-one God. It's the word used in Genesis 1:1. The first part of the word "El" is used in other names for God like El Elyon, the most high God, and El Shaddai, Almighty God. (Interesting side note: When Jesus cries out from the cross, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" He uses a singular form.) "El" appears in proper names too, like Daniel- God is my judge, Ezekiel – God will strengthen, and Samuel – name of God.

LORD or GOD - (Usually appears in all caps or small caps) This is Jehovah, the covenant name God gave to Moses at the burning bush in Exodus 3:14. He called Himself the I AM, highlighting His eternal, self-existent nature. He is the covenant-maker, and the promise-keeper. This name is used in proper names too, and shows up as "jah" or "iah" at the end of a name, like Isaiah – Jehovah has saved. It also appears at the beginning of names as "Jo" like in Jonathan- Jehovah has given or "Je" like the Old Testament kings Jehoshaphat- Jehovah is judge or Jehoiakim- Jehovah raises up.

Lord - This is Adonai. It's used when the writer is focused on God's personal rule over him. David uses it in Psalm 51 as he confesses and asks forgiveness. The Hebrews used this name rather than take a chance on misusing God's covenant name, Jehovah.

LORD of hosts – This is a special one, translating the Hebrew name Jehovah Sabbaoth. That word looks a lot like sabbath, but it's the word for army. This is the vision Isaiah sees in chapter 6, Jehovah the Warrior King.

There are many others including El Roi: God Who Sees (Genesis 16:12), Jehovah-Jireh: The Lord Will Provide (Genesis 22:13-14), and Jehovah-Rohi: The Lord My Shepherd (Psalm 23:1).

As you read, notice which names are used in the verses that stand out to you.

Which name is most meaningful to you?

Filed Under: Study Tip Tuesday Tagged With: Adonai, El Shaddai, Elyon, Exodus, Genesis, God, Isaiah, Jehovah, Psalms