Joseph – Genesis 25-50
Then a new king, to whom Joseph meant nothing, came to power in Egypt. “Look,” he said to his people, “the Israelites have become far too numerous for us. Come, we must deal shrewdly with them or they will become even more numerous and, if war breaks out, will join our enemies, fight against us and leave the country.”
Exodus 1:8-10 NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION (NIV)
The Israelites are Oppressed – Exodus 1
Then Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, gave this order to the Hebrew midwives, Shiphrah and Puah: “When you help the Hebrew women as they give birth, watch as they deliver. If the baby is a boy, kill him; if it is a girl, let her live.” But because the midwives feared God,
they refused to obey the king’s orders.
They allowed the boys to live, too.
Exodus 1:15-17 (NIV)
Moses – chosen by God to liberate the Hebrew people
Exodus: ex·o·dus
noun
a mass departure of people, especially emigrants.
synonyms: mass departure, withdrawal, evacuation, leaving; More: migration, emigration; flight, escape, fleeing “a mass exodus of refugees from the stricken city”
the departure of the Israelites from Egypt.
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.” So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea. The Israelites went up out of Egypt ready for battle.
Exodus 13:17-18 (NIV)
Have you ever wondered why?…
An Interview with Rick Warren:
“People ask me, ‘What is the purpose of life?’”
“And I respond: In a nutshell, life is preparation for eternity. We were not made to last forever, and God wants us to be with Him in Heaven. One day my heart is going to stop, and that will be the end of my body — but not the end of me. I may live 60 to 100 years on earth, but I am going to spend trillions of years in eternity. This is the warm-up act — the dress rehearsal. God wants us to practice on earth what we will do forever in eternity. We were made by God and for God, and until you figure that out, if isn’t going to make sense.”
“Life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you’re just coming out of one, or you’re getting ready to go into another one. The reason for this is that God is more interested in your character than your comfort; God is more interested in making your life holy than He is in making your life happy. We can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that’s not the goal of life. The goal is to grow in character, in Christ likeness.
This past year has been the greatest year of my life but also the toughest, with my wife, Kay, getting cancer….You can focus on your purposes, or you can focus on your problems. If you focus on your problems, you’re going into self-centeredness, “which is my problem, my issues, my pain.” But one of the easiest ways to get rid of pain is to get your focus off yourself and onto God and others.”
God is more interested in your character than your comfort. – God is more interested in making your life holy than making your life happy.
The Israelites flee from the Egyptians : The Israelites cross the Red Sea – Exodus 14
Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you;
you need only to be still.
Exodus 14:14 (NIV)
And when the Israelites saw the mighty hand of the Lord displayed against the Egyptians,
the people feared the Lord and put their trust in him
and in Moses his servant.
Exodus 14:31 (NIV)
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you,
plans to give you hope and a future.”
Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)