Jethro's Advice

This morning I read Exodus 18.  In this passage, Jethro, the father of Moses' wife, meets Moses as he and the Israelites are traveling through.  Jethro watches Moses' leadership style and then gives him advice regarding how he can delegate the heavy responsibility he is under.

"What you are doing is not good.  You will surely wear yourself out, both you and these people with you.  For the task is too heavy for you; you cannot do it alone.  Now listen to me.  I will give you counsel, and God be with you!  You should represent the people before God, and you should bring their cases before God; teach them the statues and instructions and make known to them the way they are to go and the things they are to do.  You should also look for able men among all the people, men who fear God, are trustworthy and hate dishonest gain; set such men over them as officers over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens.  Let them sit as judges for the people at all times, let them bring every important case to you, but decide every minor case themselves.  So it will be easier for you, and they will bear the burden with you.  If you do this, and God so commands you, then you will be able to endure, and all these people will go to their home in peace."

Moses follows Jethro's advice.  I wonder if we follow Jethro's advice; if not, why not.  What might have been Moses' alternative answers?

• "That sounds great Jethro, but I'm the only one who can do this.  I must keep control of this."
• "Great, except I don't want to do that.  I like what I'm doing - I find joy in all of this responsibility, and I don't want to give it up."
• "No, thanks, Jethro.  No one else knows how to do this the right way except me."
• "I would love to do that, Jethro, except this is a responsibility that God has laid on my shoulders.  It is my duty."
• "Jethro, great idea, except no one would do it.  They are too busy, and if I asked them, they would say 'no.'"
• "Jethro, who has time to do that?  I don't have time to recruit volunteers, determine their worthiness, train them correctly.  It's just easier if I do it."

God of Power

Israel saw the great work that the Lord did against the Egyptians.  So the people feared the Lord ad believed in the Lord and his servant Moses.  Exodus 14:31

This verse in the 14th chapter of Exodus is right after God parts the Red Sea for the Israelites to pass and then destroys the Egyptian Army by closing the sea.  I imagine, as the Israelites watched as dead Egyptians washed ashore, they absolutely did see the work of the Lord, and they were afraid.

There is a word play in this verse that one only sees in the Hebrew.  The words "to see" (ra'ah) and "to fear" (yare) sound very similar.  To see and to fear, leading to belief....

Does it remind anyone of Thomas, who had to see in order to believe?

My study Bible mentions that part of what the Israelites witnessed was God's power not just over the Egyptians, but over nature. God is more powerful than the sea (or the frogs or the flies, etc.) God is more powerful than chaos.

The Israelites aren't the only ones who have witnessed the power of God.  Do we see God at work?  Does it move us to fear (reverence) and belief?  What do we do about it? Does belief change our actions?

Remember

Remember.

How many times in the Bible are we told to remember? 

I was reading Exodus 13 today, and I was struck by how necessary it was to God (is to God) that the Israelites remember God's action.  The feast of unleavened bread lasts for 7 days, and it was a teaching tool for adults to pass on the story to their children.

Communion, among its many purposes, is a tool of remembrance.  Eat, drink and remember me.

How well God knows us that he would institute tools of remembrance.  We are certainly prone to forget.

Remember that you are loved.  Remember that I am here.  Remember, and it will make a difference.

Thoughts on Exodus 12

I'm reading my way through Exodus and read Exodus 12 this morning.  What I'm about to write about is nothing new, but it struck me today because we are so close to Good Friday.

It's interesting to read about the Passover observations in light of the Crucifixion.

1. The lamb for passover shall be without blemish.
2. Hyssop shall be dipped in the lamb's blood and used to mark the door for protection.
3. No bones of the lamb shall be broken.

Christ was without blemish. Remember the hyssop, dipped in vinegar?  Remember after his death, when they broke the bones of the other two with him, but did not break Christ's bones?

As I said, it's nothing new, but just struck me this morning.

What kind of act of faith was it for people who had been slaves for 400 years to dress themselves for travel?  Do we have that kind of faith?

And then, a question that makes me uncomfortable -- what does the killing of the first born in Egypt reveal to us about the nature of God?

And then a bit of trivia from the study notes in my Bible -- the Israelites were in Egypt for 430 years. The first temple in Jerusalem stood for 430 years. 

A hope hidden?

In reading about call, I am comparing Moses, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel.

What I noticed today is that God is sending these prophets to speak to people and yet God knows they will not listen.  He sends Moses to Pharaoh, and God knows his heart will be hardened.  He sends Isaiah to speak to a "sinful" nation, and he knows they will not comprehend.  He sends Jeremiah to a country that God says "shall be put to shame." He sends Ezekiel to speak to a rebellious house -- "they will not listen to you."

And yet God sends them anyway.

Is there a kind of hope in those desolate statements?

Questions

I've always liked the conversation between God and Moses in Exodos 3-4.  For me, it has always demonstrated something about the characteristics of God.  When I re-read it this week, I took a closer look at Moses' objections, and boiled them down to:

1. Who am I to do this?
2. Who are you to ask it of me?
3. What if no one believes me?
4. What if I can't do it?
5. Isn't there someone else who can do it?

Aren't those the same questions we ask when we are called by God?

Genesis 50 -- Resurrection

Sunrise this morning from the high school hill

I finished the book of Genesis today.   Since I was in Bethel Teacher training, the last book of Genesis has always seemed to me to contain on of the important messages of the book:

Even though you intended to do harm to me, God intended it for good, in order to preserve a numerous people, as he is doing today.  (Genesis 50:20)

God can bring good, even out of the most horrific history -- such as brothers selling their brother into slavery.

What does God do in our lives?  Are we chess pieces -- pawns that God moves for his purposes?  I don't believe so; however, God is involved in our lives.

It always strikes me that those who say that God "has a plan" -- and that by saying that mean that whatever has happened in the world is God's will -- are incorrect.  I don't believe all that happens is God's will or that he has engineered it for his own purposes. 

I don't believe that for many reasons, but not least among them is that a belief like that lets us off the hook.  We can't take responsibility for something that happens if it is God's plan.  God becomes our scapegoat.

Joseph isn't telling his brothers that none of what happened to them is their fault.  He doesn't say that what they did was not wrong (can you follow that double negative?) or that God motivated them to do it.  I think what Joseph is saying is that in spite of what the brothers intended, God's intentions are different.  God can bring about good in spite of what we do.  His actions to bring about his will despite what we do don't negate our sin.  In fact, in this passage, Joseph doesn't say the brothers did no wrong; he forgives what they have done.

Forgiveness loses its power if there is no sin.  If we can make excuses for the behavior, then we are saying that the sin did not exist.  That's not forgiveness.  Forgiveness is grace in spite of -- in face of -- the sin. 

The cross - the ultimate in forgiveness -- doesn't say we commit no sins.  It says that God forgives us, and love us anyway. 

The resurrection is life out of death.  Perhaps that is what Joseph is talking about here.  God can bring resurrection out of our death -- and sometimes the death isn't literal. 

Best Choice or not

Today I read Genesis 46-47.  In these chapters, the family arrives from out of town, and moves to Egypt.  I noticed a few things that I don't remember from reading these chapters previously:

• In the genealogy printed in these chapters, very few female offspring are mentioned, and those who are, don't count in the totals.  Hmm.
• Joseph instructs his family to tell the Pharaoh that they are shepherds, not farmers.  They do have livestock; it's not a stretch, but they aren't really shepherds.  My notes say he does it so that they will not be seen to make a claim on land, and so that they will be sent to Goshen, away from the population center.  They are welcome, but they are foreigners.
• I remember Jacob asking Joseph to promise to not bury him in Egypt.

All of this together makes me wonder if anyone was really comfortable with the situation -- either Joseph, Jacob, the family, the Pharoah or even the people of Egypt.  It seems happy and great, but I wonder if already they are concerned about the future.  Joseph does this so that his family will be secure in the the famine, but I wonder if it is only a "best choice from among the bad."

Genesis 44-45

Today I read Genesis 44-45.  In these chapters, Joseph's brothers have returned a second time to Egypt, this time bring their youngest brother, Benjamin.  They still don't recognize Joseph.  He sends them home with provisions, but has a silver cup placed in Benjamin's sack.  Joseph sends someone to accuse the brothers of theft.  They find the cup and all of them return to the palace.

Joseph tells them that Benjamin must remain as a slave, but that the others can return to their father.  Judah gives an impassioned speech, offering himself in place of Benjamin.  It is after this that Joseph reveals who he is.  All of his family is invited into the protection of Egypt during the famine.  (Low musical undertone as we remember they eventually end up as slaves in this land, but for now, it is good).

As I read this, a few things struck me:

• Joseph is now resorting to deceit.  His fore-fathers had done this, but not him.  I was surprised by his actions.
• For what purpose did he do this?  Was it a test?  What would he have done if the brothers had failed the test?
• In Chapter 45, Joseph could have chosen differently.  He had a choice between retribution and restoration; he chose restoration and forgiveness. 

Genesis 42 and 43



Sunset from the Cruise ship -- Taken by Steve

I was reading Chapters 42 and 43 of Genesis.  This is the story of the famine in Egypt.  Jacob sends 10 of his sons to buy grain, and they encounter Joseph, not knowing it is Joseph.  Joseph keeps Simeon and tells the other brothers to go home and return with Benjamin.
When they tell Jacob what has happened, he says:

‘I am the one you have bereaved of children: Joseph is no more, and Simeon is no more, and now you would take Benjamin. All this has happened to me!’  Genesis 42:36

;It strikes me that Josesph was sold into slavery and exiled from his home, Simeon has been separated from his family and imprisoned, and Benjamin has to leave home and possibly end up in prison as well, and yet Jacob considers that it has all been done to him.

Do we do that? Do we organize the universe so that it spins around us personally? 

What about when we claim that something terrible has happened -- orchestrated by God --  in order for us to learn a lesson.  Doesn't that seem to be a rather ego-centric opinion?

The Change in a Sister's Heart, Part III

Yesterday, Part II

That night, while everyone slept around her, enjoying their first night of peace in months, she couldn’t find rest.   The ground was soft beneath her, the stars shown brightly above her, and fear of Esau did not shorten her breath, but God would not leave her alone.  She knew what he wanted her to do – she knew that he wanted her to bridge the gap as Esau had done, but she would not do it.  She could not do it.  Her resentment of her sister was the only dignity she had left, and she could not part from it.  SHE was the one who had been wronged.  SHE was the one who had been insulted.  SHE was the one who deserved to receive an apology.  She would NOT be the one to reach out.

And yet that was exactly what God wanted her to do.

The next morning, as the camp began to stir and preparations were made for their departure, Leah set aside her weariness, and began to pack her belongings.  She watched Judah speaking to his brothers, but ignoring Joseph, who sat alone.  She heard the echo of God’s word from long ago, “Through this child, I will bless the world with a love greater than anyone has ever seen.”

How could God bring about a love greater than anyone had ever seen through her son, when she had only taught him resentment?

Walking across the camp, she reached Joseph, picked him up and carried him to Judah.  “Find him something to eat – he’s hungry.”  Judah held the child out at arms’ length, plainly shocked by his mother’s request.  Ignoring his protests, she continued on to greet her sister.

The Change in a Sister's Heart, Part II

Yesterday, Part I

Leah reached for a basket of wool, and began to work it through her hands, pulling out the leaves and dirt the sheep had left behind.  She thought of her life, and how she had desperately hoped that she would become acceptable in her husband’s eyes.  With the birth of each son, she had begged God to open Jacob’s eyes to her value as a wife.  As she plucked a seed from the soft, gray wool, she remembered holding her son Judah, wrapped in a gray blanket.  Even then, fresh from what must be the terrible experience of birth, her son had stared at her with quiet solemnity.  Watching him today, she still saw that same look on his face.  As she had gazed upon the infant, God had spoken to her.  “Look upon this child.  I know that you desire the love of your husband, but in that pain, do not forget to look at this child.  Through this child, I will bless the world with a love greater than anyone has ever seen.  I cannot make Abraham love you, but I love you – you are precious in my sight.”

She had named her son Judah, which means, “I will praise the Lord.”  Every time she looked upon him, she remembered God’s promise and reassurance.

Throughout her life, she had clutched the knowledge of God’s love close to her heart.  It had protected her from the hatred that had been growing there.  Each encounter with her sister, each evidence of Jacob’s love of Rachel, had been a new hurt, but God’s love had kept those stabbing moments from growing into something more.  She had been grateful for that, but she had kept that love to herself, like a precious gem, hoarded away.

Today she had stood with her family, afraid for their lives, and witnessed something different.  Today she had seen Esau run to greet his brother – the same brother who had deceived him, who had stolen from him, and who had left home out of fear for his life.  He had embraced Jacob, and welcomed him back.   She had been amazed, and she still couldn’t believe what she had seen.  To embrace her sister, after all that lay between them.  Impossible.  Esau must be stronger than she could ever be.

She sat and stared at her sister, the fire between them, and knew that she could never love her.

Tomorrow, Part III (Click hyperlink for final part of story)

Genesis 33

I read Genesis 33 today.  In this chapter, Jacob and Esau meet once again. 

• In Esau's grace Jacob sees the face of God.  How often do we allow others to see God's grace in our own face?
• Does this passage remind anyone else of the prodigal son passage in the New Testament?
• While Jacob could only imagine a violent end to his return, Esau saw one of grace.   Esau is the one who had a right to revenge, and he is the one who offered grace.  It is the "wronged one" who imagined and created the grace-full ending. 
• How often do we, as the one who was wronged, hang onto resentment, saying, "I'm the one who is hurt; I will NOT be the one who apologizes, or who mends the rift?"
• Leah, as first wife, should have had the place of honor that Rachel received.  What would life h ave been like for Leah?
• I wonder if there were ever a time when Leah and Rachel echoed the experience that Jacob and Esau shared?

Genesis 32

Today I read Genesis 32.  This chapter has two parts -- Jacob planning to meet with Esau and Jacob wrestling throughout the night.  My thoughts:

• Jacob plans to send wave after wave of gifts to his brother in order to appease him.  Do we do that?  Do we find it to be successful?  Should it be?
• The comments on the passage say that Jacob couldn't imagine any ending to the encounter other than a violent one.  Are we sometimes like that -- so worried and fearful that we cannot imagine any ending to an experience other than the worst possible ending?  Does that worry and fear sometimes block us from imaging that God could be involved and have other plans?
• This might have been one of the first times I thought Jacob was giving credit to God for his success.  He is almost too desperate to plot something!
• Later that night, Jacob sends his wives and children across the Jabbock but stays alone on the one side.  He wrestles with what is at first called a man, but later described as God.  God struggles with Jacob all night long, and in the end, there really is no winner.  What does this tell us about ourselves?  About God?  About our relationship with God?  I like this passage, because God does not give up -- he stays and struggles with Jacob, all night long.
• In the morning, God changes Jacob's name to Israel -- "God strives."  Does that denote a change in the man himself?  Is that what the struggle was about?

A dinner of Vegetables

Today I read Genesis 30.  This is a chapter with two parts -- one about Jacob's two wives and the other about Jacob's plan to leave his father-in-law and return home.
Deceit and jealousy run through Jacob's story.  He and his father-in-law make a deal with the livestock, and both of them strive to work their ways around it.  Laban had deceived Jacob with his daughters; Jacob had deceived his father.  This is not a pleasant household.

The wives battle each other to see who can give Jacob more children.  I wonder if either of them knows Jacob's love and is secure in it -- not even Rachel.

I also read Proverbs 15:17 -- Better is a dinner of vegetables where love is than a fatted ox and hatred with it.  Without the Genesis story, I might have missed the point of the Proverb, but I see it now!

Lies

Today I read Genesis 27.  It is the story of Isaac's blessing of Jacob and Esau.  If you remember it, Rebekah plans the deception of her husband.  She hears that Isaac has sent Esau hunting and to prepare food so that he can then bless his older son.  She has Jacob get food, she prepares it and then disguises Jacob to trick Isaac into blessing him, thinking he was Esau.

The study Bible I read brings up some interesting points.

• Rebekah had no authority to determine who would be heir.  She was a woman.  Her younger son had no claim in his father's property.  She did, however, have power, and she used it to manipulate the outcome to reach her goal -- an interesting comparison of authority and power.
• Some scholars see deceit and lies in her plans and Jacob's actions, and judge them for it; others see this as a an illustration of how the disadvantaged -- second class citizens -- took power over the privileged.
• Is she bringing about God's will, or is she not trusting God to lead the way?

What do you think?  When I read it, I see a whole lot of lies and manipulation.  Is all of that washed away in the light of the disadvantages the two of them faced?  Is it OK to use lies and manipulation to bring about God's will?

Wells

So Isaac departed from there and camped in the valley of Gerar and settled there. Isaac dug again the wells of water that had been dug in the days of his father Abraham; for the Philistines had stopped them up after the death of Abraham; and he gave them the names that his father had given them. (Genesis 26:16-17)

There are two ways (and probably more) to look at this passage.

Sometimes I worry that we dig wells just because that is where our forerunners dug wells. The only thought given to the action is, "This is what those who came before did, so this is what we will do." It doesn't necessary follow that just because a well yielded water in the past, that it will do the same in the future.

On the other hand, Isaac is following his fathers' lead. Our forerunners have already demonstrated how to reach water. They a have taught us who God is and how to follow him.

How do we make sure that we are not digging wells for just the sake of digging them? How do we know that our goal is to find living water, and that we are learning faith from those who came before us and not just traditions for the sake of "we have always done it that way"?

God will provide

Still thinking about Abraham and Issac and testing.

How does that relate to the idea that God will provide?  That God will take care of us?  The book I am using for Bible study through Genesis asks if it is easier for us to accept the idea that God will test us or that God will provide care for us.

We want God's protection and care to mean that we are kept safe and healthy, but when I look around and see faithful people who are not kept from harm, I find that kind of faith hard to accept.

How do they link together?  Are we unwilling to be obedient because we are unwilling to believe that God will provide?

Considering the parallel between Isaac's non-sacrifice and Jesus' death, is Jesus' obedience to the cross not only an illustration of his submission but also of his trust that "God will provide," as he does in the resurrection?

Testing

Consider "testing."  Think about Abraham and Isaac again.  Is God testing Abraham?  Does God do that?  Does he test us?

I recoil at the idea that tragedies in our lives are brought about by God as a way to test us.  I do understand that circumstances and events can test us or our faith, but is God the causative agent?

And if he is not, does that still leave the door open to the idea that God brings us to the brink of a decision in order to test us?  That would shed a whole new light on the idea of "lead me not into temptation."

Either way, we will be tested in life.  Our faith an our obedience will be tested.  How do we prepare for it; how do we react to it?  Perhaps those are the most important questions.

Questions

Still reading Genesis. 

Genesis 22 is the passage in which God commands Abraham to sacrifice Isaac.  I am struck by two conflicting responses:

1. It is abhorrent to me that God would command Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, and I believe my reaction is because God has created such a reaction in me.  To kill a child as an act of worship is unthinkable, and I believe I have been taught so by God.  So I am confused by his command to Abraham to do so.  Was it a test, and God knew all along that he didn't mean for Abraham to go through with it?  If so, it seems manipulative -- an in such as way that God would not condone.  So I have lots of unanswered questions.
2. In also seems to parallel in many ways God's sacrifice of his own son.  He (Isaac and Jesus) arrive on a  donkey, carry the implement of the sacrifice (wood and cross); and both would have been offered for sacrifice by their father.  The difference is that God allows for Jesus to be the sacrifice but not Isaac.

It is a puzzling passage.