Knowing God
I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the Lord your God. (Exodus 5:6,7)
Ex 5:1-7 and 16:12; Josh. 3:9,10; I Kings 18:37; Joel 2:27; Jn. 17:23; II Tim. 1:12
What Is God Saying?
God spoke to Moses on a dark day in the history of Israel. They were slaves of the proud, mighty Egyptians. Moses went to Pharoah to ask that they might have time off from their relentless toil. ‘Let my people go out into the wilderness a three days' journey to celebrate a feast.’ Pharoah hated their sacrifices and their belief in a strange God. ‘You talk about your God, but who is the Lord God that I should heed his v0ice .... I don't know the Lord. I will not let Israel go.’
Moses felt he was a failure, and the people who trusted Moses were rubbing it in, ‘A lot of good it did to go to Pharoah. Things are only getting worse. You took us from the frying pan into the fire.’ Israel was hurting. Moses failed, but he knew where to turn. He drew strength from knowing that God is always in control. The Lord said, ‘I have heard You are my people. I will redeem you with my hand. I will be your God. Know that I am the Lord your God.’
At first, the people wouldn't listen to Moses ‘because of their broken spirit,’ but they learned that God is God. Even the Egyptians came to know that the Lord of Israel is the true God. The drama of the Exodus was to part the curtain, ‘You shall know that I am Lord.’
How Does This Apply To Us?
We come to know God in many ways. Sometimes it is when the sky is blue and the road ahead is clear and bright. Sometimes it is when the spirit is calm, the heart is at peace, and success comes easy, but just as often, coming to know God lies in trials and hardships. We don't want it that way. We look around for choices. We struggle and resist but finally yield. Then we discover that the hard way of obedience and duty, of loyalty and faithfulness, of trusting God in the darkness leads to knowing Him with a brightness and a joy we have never before experienced. Pharoah drove Israel (as circumstances sometimes drive us) into and through a wilderness to find the Promised Land. Do we want to know God? Let us simply do His will and say yes to His loving commands. Then we will see horizons of new understanding and knowledge. ‘You shall know that I am the Lord your God.’
Pray With Me
Lord God, once again I hear the promise, intended as much for me as for the children of Israel, ‘I will be Your God.’ That is the basic blessing. It is from that blessing that all other blessings flow. Praise God! But today, dear Lord, I ask for the added blessing of knowing that You are the Lord our God. It is one thing to see clusters of grapes ripening on the vine. It is a better thing to taste them. It is one thing to see the wind sending waves of top-heavy grain across a field at harvest time. It is a better thing to take its nourishing fullness in food. It is one thing to read in a book (even the greatest of Books) that You will be our God, but it is a better thing to feel the strength of this fact in a heart that is fully convinced that you are God and you are mine.
As the children of Israel needed this reassurance given their heavy burdens, I need it also when things are pleasant and life is easy. Sometimes the danger is greater when I am not at the end of my rope, when my days are filled with pleasure, and when success like ripened fruit falls at my feet. Either way, Lord, when burdens make me fear the loss of Your caring love or when the easy life makes me forget my need for Your caring love, give me the added blessing of knowing that You are my God.
Through the night the strength of the hills is there, the blossoming trees are there, and through the night, the playful breakers never cease. As surely as the mountains stand or the trees grow or the waves roll on, so surely does the promise remain, ‘I will be Your God.’ Lord, please send the dawn that makes it possible to see the beauty and experience the wonder of Your Presence. With the dawn send Your added blessing of knowing that You are the Lord our God.
In the name of Him Whose coming, more than anything else, has shown that the God Who is, is ours. Amen.
Moving On In The Life of Prayer
The true foundation of prayer is that God is God and we belong to Him, but there is more; in prayer, we come to know the One who has promised to be ours. It is a cultivated friendship. It is a joyful discovery. It is a by-product of spending time in His presence. It is durable strength. It is lasting hope. It is the greatest joy we can know this side of Heaven.
