GOD
KNOWS YOU—KNEW YOU BEFORE YOU WERE BORN—CALLED YOU FOR A PURPOSE AND
CREATED YOU SPECIALLY TO FULFILL YOUR PURPOSE.
(NIV)
Psalm 139:13-14
-
13
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's
womb. 14 I praise you because I am fearfully
and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. 15
My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, 16
your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were
written in your book before one of them came to be.
NOTHING ABOUT YOU IS AN ACCIDENT. AND NOTHING THAT COMES YOUR WAY CAN
THWART GOD’S PURPOSE FOR YOU—AS LONG AS YOU ARE TRUSTING IN HIM. God
will bring His purpose to pass in you.
Psalms 57:2I will cry to God Most High, Who
performs on my behalf and rewards me [Who brings to pass His purposes
for me and surely completes them]!
As I
sit and prepare this message there is a Tropical Storm/Hurricane on the
way here and this scripture is very meaningful to me…especially because
the verse right before this says:
1
BE
MERCIFUL and gracious to me, O God, be merciful and gracious to me, for
my soul takes refuge and finds shelter and confidence in You; yes, in
the shadow of Your wings will I take refuge and be confident until
calamities and destructive storms are passed.
I
HAVE A PURPOSE AND IF IT IS NOT YET FULFILLED, NOTHING CAN DESTROY
ME—NOT EVEN A HURRICANE. And because of this, my soul finds confidence
in GOD and I take refuge under His wings.
YOU MAY HAVE STORMS IN YOUR LIFE RIGHT NOW. EVEN IF THEY COME WITH
HURRICANE FORCE, GOD WILL BE YOUR REFUGE. DON’T EXPECT ANYTHING OR
ANYONE ELSE TO PROTECT YOU—BUT BE SURE GOD WILL!
WE’VE BEEN GOING THROUGH THE CALLING AND PURPOSE OF MOSES IN OUR
STUDIES.
Moses had a purpose—bring Israel out of bondage—out of Egypt—and bring
them forth to worship God and fulfill His purposes for them. They were
to be a Holy people and He would show His power and might through them.
We are called to be a Holy people and show God’s power and might AND
LOVE through our lives.
GOD
PREPARED HIS PEOPLE TO COME OUT OF EGYPT AND TO LIVE THROUGH THE LAST
PLAGUE, WHEN HIS ANGEL WOULD PASS OVER THE LAND AND DESTROY THE FIRST
BORN.
EXODUS 12:21-23
Then Moses summoned all the elders of Israel and said to them, "Go at
once and select the animals for your families and slaughter the Passover
lamb. 22 Take a bunch of hyssop, dip it into
the blood in the basin and put some of the blood on the top and on both
sides of the doorframe. Not one of you shall go out the door of his
house until morning. 23 When the LORD
goes through the land to strike down the Egyptians, he will see the
blood on the top and sides of the doorframe and will pass over that
doorway, and he will not permit the destroyer to enter your houses and
strike you down.
ALTHOUGH NOTHING AND NO ONE CAN STAND BETWEEN YOU AND YOUR PURPOSE—YOU
HAVE TO OBEY GOD IN ORDER TO GET THERE. HIS PRINCIPLES ARE MEANT TO
PROTECT US, SAVE US, REDEEM US. HE KNOWS WHAT WILL KEEP US ALIVE AND
WHAT WILL KILL US.
24
"Obey these instructions as a lasting ordinance for you and your
descendants. 25 When you enter the land that
the LORD will give you as he promised, observe this ceremony.
26 And when your children ask you, 'What does
this ceremony mean to you?' 27 then tell them,
'It is the Passover sacrifice to the LORD, who passed over the houses of
the Israelites in Egypt and spared our homes when he struck down the
Egyptians.'
THIS WOULD BE A NIGHT
THAT WOULD CHANGE HISTORY—BEGIN THE FEASTS OF THE LORD AND FORESHADOW
THE DEATH OF JESUS—THE LAMB OF GOD WHO WOULD TAKE AWAY THE SINS OF THE
WORLD—WHICH WAS GOD’S ULTIMATE PURPOSE.
When you came to Jesus,
you began a journey. When God shows you your purpose, your path becomes
clear and you see that God has called you for a reason.
HE WAS CALLING OUT A
PEOPLE THOUGH WHICH HE COULD SEND HIS MESSIAH—HIS SAVIOR—JESUS CHRIST
AND THIS WOULD BE CELEBRATED THROUGHOUT ALL TIME.
God also sends His
Messiah through YOU! You are an ambassador for Christ—the ones who will
show the world who Jesus is, so that THEY may know Him too.
"
Then the people bowed down and worshiped. 28
The Israelites did just what the LORD commanded Moses and Aaron.
Amazing!! The
plagues had not only shown God’s might to Egyptians, but to Israelites
too. It amazes me that there is no record of any Israelite disobeying
this command. Considering what would happen in the wilderness, this is
miraculous.
AND
IT WAS A GOOD THING THEY DID OBEY!!
29
At midnight the LORD struck down all the firstborn in Egypt, from the
firstborn of Pharaoh, who sat on the throne, to the firstborn of the
prisoner, who was in the dungeon, and the firstborn of all the livestock
as well. 30 Pharaoh and all his officials and
all the Egyptians got up during the night, and there was loud wailing in
Egypt, for there was not a house without someone dead.
The
plague swept through Egypt and finally, Pharaoh learned his lesson (for
a time).
31
During the night Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, "Up! Leave
my people, you and the Israelites! Go, worship the LORD as you have
requested. 32 Take your flocks and herds, as
you have said, and go. And also bless me."
The Egyptians also
urged the Israelites to leave. Those who had been slave-masters now knew
that the slaves belonged to God and now they were terrified.
33
The Egyptians urged the people to hurry and leave the country. "For
otherwise," they said, "we will all die!"34 So the people took their dough before the
yeast was added, and carried it on their shoulders in kneading troughs
wrapped in clothing.
AND
THEY DIDN’T COME OUT EMPTY-HANDED. Those who had used them for free
labor now gave them their riches willingly. God will see to it that when
you come out of your time of affliction, you do not come out empty
handed.
35
The Israelites did as Moses instructed and asked the Egyptians for
articles of silver and gold and for clothing. 36
The LORD had made the Egyptians favorably disposed toward the people,
and they gave them what they asked for; so they plundered the Egyptians.
And
so Israel was brought out of Egypt. They journeyed a distance and then
stopped—TO WORSHIP GOD AND GET SUSTENANCE BECAUSE THEIR DEPARTURE WAS SO
HASTY, THEIR BREAD DIDN’T EVEN HAVE TIME TO RISE.
37
The Israelites journeyed from Rameses to Succoth. There were about six
hundred thousand men on foot, besides women and children.
38 Many other people went up with them, as well
as large droves of livestock, both flocks and herds.
39 With the dough they had brought from Egypt, they baked cakes
of unleavened bread. The dough was without yeast because they had
been driven out of Egypt and did not have time to prepare food for
themselves.
You may have been
waiting for a long time for your deliverance—your healing—your purpose
to be manifest, but it will happen and when it does, it will be
breathtakingly quick.
It had been 430
years—just like God had said in His words to Abraham—and the Israel was
freed AT THE APPOINTED TIME:
40
Now the length of time the Israelite people lived in Egypt [b]
was 430 years. 41 At the end of the 430
years, to the very day, all the LORD's divisions left Egypt.
42 Because the LORD kept vigil that night to
bring them out of Egypt, on this night all the Israelites are to keep
vigil to honor the LORD for the generations to come.
THERE IS AN
APPOINTED TIME FOR YOU AND IT WILL NOT COME A DAY TOO LATE!
At this time, in the
midst of their flight, God gave Moses instructions for all the
generations to celebrate the Passover:
43
The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "These are the regulations for the
Passover:
NO MATTER WHAT YOUR SITUATION IS—WORSHIP SHOULD BE YOUR FIRST RESPONSE.
Being in danger is not a time to ignore God—it’s a time to draw closer
and to find out what HE wants us to do. It’s the time to MAKE TIME---for
GOD!
They were free, but they were still scared, so God took them out the
long way. Sometimes, when we are afraid, we have to take the long way
instead of the shortest way possible. But, if we are “armed and ready”
we can go the short way. That would be my preference.
17
When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road
through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said,
"If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt."
18 So God led the people around by the desert
road toward the Red Sea. [c]
The Israelites went up out of Egypt armed for battle.
THE ISRAELITES WERE
ARMED, BUT THEY WEREN’T REALLY READY. THEY STILL HAD THE “SLAVE
MENTALITY”. We have to not only HAVE our armour on—we have to be ready
to stand and use it. To take ground and hold it.
THEIR JOURNEY CONTINUED---AND GOD TRAVELED WITH ISRAEL. He lit the way
for them and made His path visible.
20
After leaving Succoth they camped at Etham on the edge of the desert.
21 By day the LORD went ahead of them in a
pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of
fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night.
22 Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the
pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.
GOD WILL LIGHT YOUR
PATH AND CLEARLY SHOW HIS PRESENCE—IF YOU EXPECT HIM TO.
