PURSUED: “Blood On The Door”
RECAP
Week 1: Adam Hides. God Searches.
Week 2: Humanity Falls. God Provides A Way Through The Storm.
Week 3: God pursuing a people, so that through those people, He can rescue the world.
Week 4: God’s pursuit continues, in the unexpected and even into the pit.
Week 5: God’s pursuit of humanity is to free, not just to find.
Exodus 3:7-8 “Then the Lord told him, “I have certainly seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I have heard their cries of distress because of their harsh slave drivers. Yes, I am aware of their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the power of the Egyptians and lead them out of Egypt into their own fertile and spacious land. It is a land flowing with milk and honey—the land where the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites now live.”
GOD HEARS THE CRY OF PEOPLE IN BONDAGE.
God always has a plan and nothing that happens to His people takes Him by surprise. We can trust that God is working even when He seems silent. God knew Moses was the person He wanted to lead His people out of Egypt. He knew that Moses would have the faith required and would seek God’s wisdom in leading Israel, not depending upon his own understanding. Like we have seen in the stories before this one, humans think that rescue should look one way, but God knows exactly how rescue needs to look for it to be effective. Don’t forget that God does not waste any season we experience. Sometimes those hard and seemingly silent seasons are to teach us to lean in closer and to get quieter. Other times they are used to see how bad we really want the deliverance. Israel wanted to be rescued, but if we look closely, at times it does not seem like they wanted to be freed. Have you ever experienced a time when you sought rescue, but did not really want to be freed? What about a season where you really had to silence the noise of the world and focus on listening for God to speak? What did that look like? Do you believe that God hears your cries? Why or why not? Share your thoughts and discuss in your small group.
There is a recurring theme here. God allows… He knows that we are fickle beings who primarily seek our own comfort, so He will allow our discomfort to get the best of us in order to motivate us to be prepared for the change that freedom from bondage brings. Psalm 34:17 reminds us that “The Lord hears his people when they call…” If you have a hard time holding on to this Scripture, take time to journal a heartfelt prayer to God, telling Him exactly how you are feeling. Now reflect on the past year, really take a hard look at circumstances that have come your way. Where do you see how God heard you? If you are having difficulty with this, discuss with a trusted Christian friend or your small group. Let someone share how God heard them and see if there might be some similarities that you possibly overlooked, asking specifically for God to reveal to you exactly how He heard you.
GOD PROVIDES WHAT WE CANNOT PROVIDE FOR OURSELVES.
God makes a way when there is no way. Salvation did not come from the mark on the doors, salvation came through the strength of God’s provision and grace. Our obedience to God’s commands, like the obedience of the Israelites to mark the doors and eat the Passover meal as instructed, positions us to receive the provision and grace that God has waiting for us, just as it did for Israel. What is something that God has provided in your life that you could not have provided for yourself? Did you recognize His hand of provision quickly, or did it take time away from the situation to realize it was Him all along? Take some time to discuss what it looks like to see God’s provision in each area of your life with a trusted Christian friend or small group.
In Egypt God provided a way to save the Israelites with a temporary sacrificial lamb. Through Jesus He provided the once and for all sacrificial lamb — providing in grace what we could never provide for ourselves. What does this provision mean to you? Have you been able to accept that God’s grace is there for you to grab hold of and walk out in your life? If not, can you identify what is holding you back? Remember, grace is not something we can earn, it is undeserved. How can you live your life showing others the importance of God’s grace? Take some time to write a prayer thanking Him today for grace and letting go of any thoughts that it is something to be earned.
FAITH HAS TO RESPOND TO GOD’S PROVISION.
Our faith is put on display when we respond to God’s provision. Moses instructed the people of Israel that they were to practice remembrance through celebrating the Passover sacrifice every year. Like Israel, when we remember and respond to what God has done in our lives, we remain closer to Him in trust. Obedience comes as we acknowledge that provision and puts our trust in God on display. What lesson about provision have you learned from the story of Moses and Israel’s exodus from Egypt? How can you take that and apply it to your life today?
James 2:17 “So you see, faith by itself isn't enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.” Genuine faith produces a response; it cannot be helped. As we continue on our journey through Scripture we will see evidence of this in Israel’s faith journey. What does your faith look like? How does it translate into action in your own life? Is your faith on display for others to see and be encouraged by, or is it “faith” in word only? If your faith struggles to have a response, what steps can you take this week to move into active, response driven faith? Discuss with your small group or a trusted Christian friend.
THE BLOOD ON THE DOOR POINTS US TO JESUS.
It is all about the blood. I Corinthians 5:7 “…Christ, our Passover Lamb, has been sacrificed for us.” God has been pursuing His people since the Garden. He had a plan to bring us back to Him through the sacrifice of Jesus. As we have discussed the past several weeks, His timing is perfect. All of Scripture points us to Jesus, the perfect, eternal Passover Lamb. The precious blood of Christ removes the distance between God and His people. God loved us so much and desired to be in relationship with us personally, so He sent His son to die on a cross to put His love on display for all to see. How can you respond to that love? Take some time to meditate on this and share in your small group. Ask God to reveal things to you that perhaps your spiritual eyes may not have been open to see in the past.
Sit with the truth we covered in this point. “God’s love moves towards us before we can make ourselves worthy of it.” Come up with three ways you have seen God’s love move toward you throughout your life. Can you see evidence of His pursuit even before you acknowledged who He is and His love for you? How is God continuing to move toward you today? What is your response to Him? If you haven’t, take some time to read over the Scripture we covered this week and select one verse or passage that resonates with your spirit to memorize and serve as a reminder of how God’s love moves toward us first. Take some time to get quiet with God and ask Him to help you grow in awareness of the next step He is calling you to take and how to respond in faith to His love for you.
Scripture References for this week:
Exodus 1-2; Exodus 3-4; Exodus 11; Exodus 12; Isaiah 53; John 1:29; 1 Corinthians 5:7; Psalm 34:17; Romans 5:8-9; James 2:17
