The Study of Exodus: Post Five
***Note – We have completed the book of Job and the book of Genesis! This is our fifth week in the book of Exodus!
Focus: Exodus Chapter Five
Tip: I highly recommend journaling your responses to the questions, prompts, and reflections. Writing them out can help you process more deeply and see how God is working in your life.
This week’s devotion includes:
Exodus Chapter Four – “Obedience Isn’t Always Easy”
Bible Memory:
Did you memorize last week’s Bible verse?
Hiding God’s Word in our hearts is such a valuable practice. Since I’ve been memorizing Scripture, I’ve experienced so many moments where God brings a specific verse to mind just when I need it most. It’s amazing how He uses His Word to speak into our lives right where we are.
This Week’s Memory Verse:
“And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.”
Galations 6:9
Exodus Chapter 5:
“Obedience Isn’t Always Easy”
(Read Exodus Chapter 5 First)
As I was working through Exodus chapter 5, I realized I never actually finished chapter 4 in our last post. Oops! Apparently, when you’re writing devotions with three kids in the house, your train of thought can occasionally leave the station without you.
So before we move forward, let’s quickly wrap up the end of chapter 4.
God had called Moses to do a big and intimidating job. Moses felt inadequate and afraid, so God gave him miraculous signs to confirm that the message he carried was truly from the LORD. Moses was still concerned because he did not feel gifted in speaking, so God allowed Aaron to be his spokesman.
One of the greatest lessons from chapter 4 is that God equips you when He calls you.
After God reassured Moses, Moses went to his father in law, Jethro, and asked permission to return to Egypt to see whether his brethren were still alive. Jethro blessed his journey and sent him on his way.
Remember, Moses had fled Egypt years earlier because he had killed an Egyptian. Pharaoh sought to kill him, so Moses escaped for his life. If there had been a bounty on your head, would you be eager to return? Probably not. Even with God’s calling, Moses had to feel some fear.
But God, in His goodness, reassured Moses that the men who sought his life were dead. What a comfort that must have been. Moses gathered his wife, his sons, and the rod God had given him and headed back to Egypt.
The LORD instructed Moses to perform the signs before Pharaoh, but He also warned him that Pharaoh’s heart would be hardened and that he would not immediately let the people go.
At first, we may wonder why God would allow that.
The LORD told Moses to say to Pharaoh:
“Thus saith the LORD, Israel is my son, even my firstborn: And I say unto thee, Let my son go, that he may serve me…”(Exodus 4:22-23)
God already knew the outcome. He was preparing to display His power in a way that would leave no doubt about who He is. We may not always understand God’s timing, but we can trust His processes.
The next passage in Exodus 4:24-26 was a little difficult.
This is what stood out to me after reading it.. God’s chosen servant is not exempt from obeying God’s commandments.
Moses was about to stand before Pharaoh and call an entire nation to obey God. Before he could lead others, his own household needed to be brought into obedience.
And this is true today. It is easy to focus on what everyone else should be doing while overlooking areas in our own lives where we need to obey.
Before chapter 4 closes, Aaron meets Moses in the wilderness at the mount of God. Moses shares everything the LORD had told him and shows him the signs. Together they gather the elders of Israel, Aaron speaks God’s words, and the signs are performed before the people.
The people believed.
I loved reading about what moved them to worship…
The Bible says they heard that the LORD had visited the children of Israel and had looked upon their affliction. When they heard that, they bowed their heads and worshipped.
Has God ever looked upon your affliction?
I know He has mine.
There have been seasons when I felt overwhelmed, discouraged, or uncertain, and God reminded me that He saw every bit of it. Just as He saw Israel’s suffering, He sees ours too.
Now let’s move into chapter 5.
Moses and Aaron finally stand before Pharaoh and deliver God’s message:
“Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Let my people go…” (Exodus 5:1)
Pharaoh’s response:
“Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice?” (Exodus 5:2)
Pharaoh did not know God, and because he did not know God, he had no desire to obey Him.
That is still true today. People who do not know the LORD often reject His authority because they do not understand who He is.
Moses and Aaron explain that the God of the Hebrews had met with them and requested that they all must journey into the wilderness to sacrifice unto Him. They also warned him that if they disobeyed, it could bring judgment upon them.
Pharaoh did not care.
And actually, he made things worse for them.
That same day, he commanded the taskmasters to stop providing straw for brick making. The people would now have to gather their own straw while still producing the same number of bricks.
He claimed they must be idle if they had time to talk about worshipping God.
I have heard similar comments before. Have you?
Maybe someone shares a dream God has placed on their heart, or a ministry they want to begin, or a change they feel led to make, and someone responds with, “You must have too much time on your hands.”
It is amazing how quickly some people dismiss the things of God.
There are modern-day Pharaohs all around us.
The good news is that God knows how to deal with Pharaohs.
The Israelites were scattered throughout the land searching for stubble, but they were still expected to produce the same amount of work. When they could not meet the impossible demands, they were beaten.
They became so desperate and they cried out to Pharaoh and asked why he was treating them this way.
He answered…
“Ye are idle, ye are idle…” (Exodus 5:17)
Afterward, the officers of Israel found Moses and Aaron and turned their frustration toward them. They accused them of making things worse and putting them in danger.
Can you imagine how painful that must have been for Moses?
He was simply doing what God had told him to do, but the people were not being set free. The conditions were being made harder for them and that made Moses feel terrible.
He did what we should all do in moments like that.
He took his hurt to the LORD.
He asked why all this evil had come upon the people. He wondered why God had sent him if things were only getting worse.
Have you ever done something in obedience because you knew God was leading you, and then you have obstacles appear everywhere?
Maybe people opposed you, or doors seem to close, and you start wondering if you misunderstood God.
Exodus 5 reminds us that just because you obey God that does not always mean you will have immediate positive results.
Sometimes things get harder before they get better.
Sometimes God is working behind the scenes in ways we cannot yet see.
Galatians 6:9 encourages us:
“And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.”
Moses could not see it yet, but God was already at work.
In the very next chapter, the LORD responds with these powerful words:
“Now shalt thou see what I will do to Pharaoh…” (Exodus 6:1)
What a reminder for us.
When God calls us to do something, our responsibility is obedience.
He will take care of the outcome.
If God has asked you to take a step of faith, keep going.
If people misunderstand you, keep going.
If opposition comes, keep going.
God has it under control, and you don’t want to miss what God can do through your obedience.
The Georgia Nest 