Moses - Servant of God - The Meekest Man in All the Earth
7 - Judgement and Salvation
We are continuing to discover some key lessons from the life of Moses the Servant of God.
Moses has returned to Egypt at the command of the Lord to seek the release of the Hebrew people from their slavery. He has confronted Pharaoh with God's demands, but has been met with point blank refusal to let the people go. The judgements, which God promised would take place because of Pharaoh's indifference, took the form of nine terrible plagues the details of which are described in Exodus chapters 7 to 10.
It is interesting to note the words of Exodus chapter 12 verse 12 where God says, "Against all the gods of Egypt I will bring judgement." We see this borne out in each separate plague. For instance, they worshipped the River Nile - which was turned to blood. They also worshipped the Sacred Beetle - the Scarab. They worshipped birds and cats and bulls - the Sacred Appis Bulls whose giant tombs can still be seen today.
The sun, moon and other heavenly bodies were also an important part of ancient Egyptian worship. It is on these that God's judgement plagues fell. Pharaoh and the Egyptians must be taught the folly of their idolatry and unbelief. They must either separate from their idols or perish with them.
God's moral law remains to this day and is still binding. We note the words of Exodus chapter 20 verse 4:
"You shall not make for yourself and idol in the form of anything in heaven above or in the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments."
This, of course, was one of the ten commandments given to Moses, Israel's leader, sometime later. Sadly, Israel as a nation did not always obey the words of God, and they suffered much as a result. It is because the sinful nature of mankind has made it impossible for everyone born into the world to obey these commands of God that there is the evil and sadness and despair that we see around us every day. God's moral law is the standard that He requires of us, but, as the Bible teaches us, we have all sinned and fall short of that standard and as a consequence are spiritually dead because of our disobedience.
The Bible also tells us that this law was given to highlight our inability to please God of ourselves and to drive us to Him for forgiveness. But there is hope for all as declared in these words in Romans chapter 6 verse 23:
"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord."
We recall that Jesus said one day during his time on earth, quoted in John chapter 17 verse 3, "Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent".
What an important statement this is, showing us that God in Christ offers each one who will believe, a personal relationship as well as the gift of forgiveness and eternal life.
Judgement awaits all who refuse to heed what God says, as Pharaoh was soon to discover.
Following the nine plagues described in Exodus chapters 7 to 10, we note that Pharaoh summoned Moses and said, "Go, worship your Lord, even take your women and children with you, only leave your flocks and herds behind". This was not possible because the livestock would provide the necessary sacrifices for the worship of the Lord. This in turn caused Pharaoh to go back on his promise and not allow the people to go. In a rage he said to Moses, "Get out of my sight, make sure you do not appear before me again. The day you see my face you will die". "Just as you say", Moses replied, "I will never appear before you again". As a result of this we read in chapter 11, that God said to Moses his faithful servant, "I will bring one more plague on Pharaoh and Egypt. After that he will let you go from here, and when he does he will drive you out completely".
The final judgement was to be directed against the first born son of every family in the land. Including the first born son of the king down to the first born son of the slave girl. This judgement would also fall upon their cattle. Inevitably it would leave in its wake great sorrow and crying. We must never lose sight of the fact that God is sovereign and all that He does is just and right. We are reminded here, yet again, of the severity of God's judgements that result from ignoring his commands.
It is important to observe what the Lord communicated to Moses concerning this final plague that He was going to bring upon Pharaoh and all the people of Egypt. The Lord told Moses that so as to be safe from the judgement that was coming, on the tenth day of the month each Israelite man was to take from the flock an unblemished lamb for his family, one for each household. The lamb was to be kept for four days and then killed. The blood of the lamb was to be smeared on the sides and top of the door-frames of their houses. On that night the judgement of God would fall on the Egyptians and all the first born would die. The significance of the blood on the door posts of the Israelites is seen in God's words to Moses: "I am the Lord: The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood I will pass over you and the destructive plague will not touch you."
There is an important principle for us to discover in all this. God was warning his people that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness for sins. An innocent, perfect lamb was sacrificed - its blood shed - so that the sins of the Israelites would be atoned for and they would come under the protection of the Lord when the Egyptians came under his judgement for their sin and disobedience. When we come to the New Testament we have the words of John the Baptist who, as he was preaching one day, saw the Lord Jesus approaching and cried out: "Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." He was speaking of the time when some three years later Jesus would be nailed to a cross to be, by the shedding of his blood, the sacrifice for our sins. It is that shed blood, that perfect life laid down, which cleanses the believer from all sin. Later, when writing to the Christians in Corinth, the apostle Paul would remind them that "Christ, our Passover Lamb has been slain for us."
Moses was further told that the month in which these things would take place was to be the first month of a new year for the people of Israel. That day was to be commemorated for generations to come, and is celebrated as a festival to the Lord even in our time. It is called "Passover", and serves as a reminder of the deliverance of those who followed to the letter God's instructions.
Friend, are you still under the judgement of God for your sins, or have you by faith taken heed to his word and placed yourself under the protection of the shed blood of Christ?