Deliverance

I'm sitting in an airport, waiting for a flight (which is a long story, and which I'm sure will end up as a blog or sermon illustration some day). I was able to catch up on my Disciple reading (finished yesterday's assignment). I'm being less stringent about it this week (although I do plan to finish it) because I will be traveling.

I finished Exodus 5-7. As I was reading the story of Pharaoh forcing the Hebrew people to make bricks without straw, a strange parallel occurred to me. The Pharaoh commanded that the slaves make the same number of bricks, but he did not provide them with straw; they had to gather it themselves. It's an impossible goal. They don't have enough time to both gather straw and make the same number of bricks. When they fail at this unreachable goal, they are punished.

God's not like that. God sets a goal for us of sinlessness / blamelessness. He knows, though, that we cannot reach it. Rather than punishing us for our inability to do what he knows we cannot do, he gives us grace. Sins are forgiven, and we are made blameless.

Grace is absolutely amazing.

This chapter in Disciple is called Deliverance. I think that the Israelites were not the only ones who were and are delivered!