Chapter 3: Liberated to be liberators.
After Joseph, the people become known as the Israelites. And they stay in Egypt, not in the land that had been promised to them, The people whose land they are living in oppress them and make them slaves, putting the people of God to forced labour. The Israelites are persecuted mercilessly. The people cry out for freedom.
God calls Moses and tells him that he has a mission for him: to bring the Israelites out of Egypt. There’s a plan. God has heard the cries. God will bring freedom. And God says that he will be with him, Moses, present. God and Moses begin a conversation, Moses will lead them out so the people can be with God. So God can dwell with them again. He chooses a human, someone who will be the message.
The people are brought out of Egypt, and into the desert, to return home to the land God had set aside for them. God leads them, his spirit, his presence is with them, day and night. They arrive at the mountain at which Moses first heard God:
'Then Moses went up to God, and the LORD called to him from the mountain and said, "This is what you are to say to the house of Jacob and what you are to tell the people of Israel: 'You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself. Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.' (Ex 19:3-6)
They are all to be priests, people who reflect the image of God. When other nations see them they will be seen as a people who are filled with the presence of God. The people were to be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.
He rescues them for a mission. They have been liberated to be liberators. To bring God’s mission to the world. If you want to see what God is like you look at the priest.
Moses is given a guidebook on how the people should live, called the Law. It outlines social responsibility and ethics and morals of how God intends them to live with him. God also gives detailed instructions for a tent called the tabernacle, a physical structure that will be placed in the centre of the Israelite camp in which God’s spirit will dwell.
God is going to move from the mountain and dwell with the people. But whilst Moses is getting the instructions from God, the people mess up. They get bored of waiting and choose to make their own gods to worship. Again humans reject God. [Ex 32]
As a result God tells Moses that he will send an angel to guide them, but will not go with them himself. Moses pleads with God and reminds him of the promise made to Abraham, he intercedes for the people of Israel and asks that God presence will go with them.
The LORD replied, "My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest." Then Moses said to him, "If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?" [Exodus 33:15-16]
God reveals more of his character that he is “compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.” Ex 34:6
The tabernacle is built; the place where God’s presence dwells, this is the tent of meeting. Later, the temple is built by Solomon and this becomes the focal point for the people of God in which the glory of the Lord dwells, the place of the presence. This is what distinguished the people of the Israel, the presence of God, dwelling amongst them.
They understood that the God who created everything could not be contained or constrained within a tent or a building but they understood the revelation that God chose to be present among them by his Spirit.
Once again the People choose to follow a different path, they choose to follow lesser gods, gods who are evil in nature and not abounding in love. They choose gods like Baal, Ashorreh and Molech. They even bring these idols into the temple of God and worship them their.
So the glory of the Lord leaves the temple. The presence leaves. And the people are left with the idols that they have made and chosen over God. The people of the presence become the people of exile again as they are beaten and captured by different nations. God leaves them to the gods they have chased after. But he leaves them with a promise:
I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. Ezekiel 36:25-30
I wonder, what is oppressing you, what's holding you back?
I wonder, how can you and I better reflect God's character?
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