Moses – Page 25 – Praying Pint

He might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart

“For the LORD your God is testing you, to know whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.”

Exodus 15:22 Then Moses made Israel set out from the Red Sea, and they went into the wilderness of Shur. They went three days in the wilderness and found no water. When they came to Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter; therefore it was named Marah. And the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” And he cried to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a log, and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet.

There the Lord made for them a statute and a rule, and there he tested them, saying, “If you will diligently listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, your healer.”

Exodus 16:4    Then the LORD said to Moses, “Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in my law or not.

Deuteronomy 8:2    And you shall remember the whole way that the LORD your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not.

Deuteronomy 8:16    who fed you in the wilderness with manna that your fathers did not know, that he might humble you and test you, to do you good in the end.

Judges 2:22     in order to test Israel by them, whether they will take care to walk in the way of the LORD as their fathers did, or not.”

Psalms 66:10     For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried.

Proverbs 17:3    The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold, and the LORD tests hearts.

Jeremiah 9:7    Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts: “Behold, I will refine them and test them,

1 Peter 1:6-7     In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials,  so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

Do you ever wonder why we face trials and trouble this side of eternity? Sometimes it is because of the consequences of others, sometimes consequences of our own doing, but in all things, it is allowed by God. God can do this to test our faith (genuineness), to refine us, to humble us, to teach us, to see if we will remain true, and to allow us to see what is in our heart.

Being tested is good for us. When we have been through a trial we can be vengeful, hateful, hurtful, prideful…. or we learn to be humble, hopeful, reliant, and thankful to God. We find what He means when He speaks of never leaving or forsaking us, for being our refuge, our strength, our shelter, our road and fortress, our hope and peace.

It is good to be found worthy of being tested and refined.

26. They believe for a while

Psalms 106:12-13 Then they believed his words; they sang his praise. But they soon forgot his works; they did not wait for his counsel.

Luke 8:13 And the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe for a while, and in time of testing fall away.

Exodus 14:31 Israel saw the great power that the Lord used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses.

Exodus 4:31 And the people believed; and when they heard that the LORD had visited the people of Israel and that he had seen their affliction, they bowed their heads and worshiped

Exodus 19:9 And the LORD said to Moses, “Behold, I am coming to you in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you, and may also believe you forever.” When Moses told the words of the people to the LORD,

2 Chronicles 20:20 And they rose early in the morning and went out into the wilderness of Tekoa. And when they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem! Believe in the LORD your God, and you will be established; believe his prophets, and you will succeed.”

Getting to a place where we see the hand of God at work in a time of trouble or trials requires faith, trust, and reliance on Him alone. Have you ever noticed how some trials we think we can handle them on our own and they just seem to get worse the more effort we put in? Time is running out, money is running out, love is not being returned, and finally, we get to the place where we have fully turn to God – our last hope.

God should never be seen as our last hope. When He is placed as last hope, we have put some other hope in front of Him. When He is placed in last hope it is not faith that brings us to Him but rather the thought “I have tried everything else, I guess I will try God now.” Note what is recorded in Luke “But these have no root; they believe for a while, and in time of testing fall away.” And, in Psalms “But they soon forgot his works;”

God should be our first hope, our only hope. To have God first in our hope for trials and troubles, He must be made first in our life service to humbly honor, glorify, follow, and obey. We must be grounded and deeply rooted in our love and desire to know and serve Him. Our heart, mind, and soul must have an intentional commitment choice to have Him first. What intentional actions would place God first:

Seeking and desiring to honor Him, to spend time in His word, to hear His whispers through His word, to be led by the Holy Spirit, to follow Him, to obey Him, wanting to see His mighty hand of power and love, to be used by Him, to worship and praise Him, to be a reflection of the light of Christ, to tell others of the Good News of Christ.

When God is our last hope we are on rocky soil with no root, but when God is first in our heart, soul, and mind, our roots will be deep and He will be the first and only thought when any trials and troubles come our way.

In quietness and in trust shall be your strength

Exodus 14:14 The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent. ”The Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward. Lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the people of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground.

Isaiah 30:15    For thus said the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, “In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.”

Deuteronomy 20:4    for the LORD your God is he who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to give you the victory.’

Joshua 23:10    One man of you puts to flight a thousand, since it is the LORD your God who fights for you, just as he promised you.

2 Chronicles 20:17    You will not need to fight in this battle. Stand firm, hold your position, and see the salvation of the LORD on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem.’ Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed. Tomorrow go out against them, and the LORD will be with you.”

“In quietness and in trust shall be your strength”. How many times are we not quiet? How many times do we try to do it in our own strength? Far to many I fear. We say God is my rock and my shield, but could it be that we say things that are not faithed out in our lives? There is nothing like a Red Sea before us and a killing army pressing in on behind us to push the faith button. Why does it take such drastic measures to move us into complete trust in God? Why does it have to come down to the impossible, no way out type of a situation, before we acknowledge His awesome and mighty power over the situation?

Could it be we are not that close to God in our everyday lives? Oh, we may spend time reading a devotional, but did anything come of it that day? Were we looking and expecting anything new to be revealed to us? Was there a change in the way we acted throughout the day? Do you ever seem to have a hard time fitting God into your day?

Just think how much time you could spend with God if you conscious and intentional wanted/desired to be taught, held, protected, led, fed, strengthened, encouraged, forgiven, and loved by God – all the time. Everything you experienced throughout the day would have the light and shadow of God over it.

What if we consciously and intentionally chose to humbly serve, honor, glorify, worship, follow and obey God all throughout the day. Every action would then have purpose beyond self or just being a task.

Having God present all the time takes a heart and mind consciously and intentionally wanting/desiring to see His hand at work, to hear His whispers of leading, teaching, guiding, encouraging, strengthening, testing, empowering, throughout the day….. it is a change of heart, mind and soul to intentionally and purposely wanting God present in every moment and aspect of our day.

Choose this day to begin being purposefully, consciously and intentionally wanting God with you, to teach you, lead you, encourage you, help you, love you, forgive you, and strengthen you. You will continually grow in awareness of His presence, able to see His hand at work, able to hear His whispers of guidance and you will continually grow in humbly serving, honoring, glorifying, worshiping, praising, following and obeying Him.

“Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?”

Exodus 14:10 When Pharaoh drew near, the people of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them, and they feared greatly. And the people of Israel cried out to the Lord. They said to Moses, “Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? Is not this what we said to you in Egypt: ‘Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.”

Isaiah 7:2     When the house of David was told, “Syria is in league with Ephraim,” the heart of Ahaz and the heart of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake before the wind.

Matthew 8:26    And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.

1 John 4:18     There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.

It is hard to deny fear coming into our lives. Sudden fear at an impending outcome takes over and that is all we can think about. All of the negative outcomes. All of the worst possible scenarios. All the bad and troubling things we think are awaiting our downfall.

The Israelites looked up and saw a massive well armed army approaching, they were hemmed in by the sea and no way of retreat. The first thing they did was fear, then they cried out to the Lord, then they lost all hope. They then spoke to Moses “What have you done?” “Didn’t we tell you to leave us alone?”

It is important to note human nature in responses to this crisis immediately after they had witnessed many miraculous wonders, signs and power of God over many days. Staff into a snake, river into blood, frogs, gnats, flies, boils, hail, locusts, darkness, and firstborn deaths were all witnessed by the people. It was not at the word of one to another, they all saw the Mighty work of God. And, yet, they still fell into fear, doom, gloom, blaming, and hopelessness.

Think back in your life. Are you any different? Do you give up on seeing the Mighty hand of God work? Do you even want to be in a situation where you see it? Having any easy life does not do us any favors when it comes to serving God. In fact it actually takes you down a path that sees no need for God in everyday life. It places God on a back burner for sometime in the future when needed.

Our lives are to be set apart to seek and desire to humbly serve, honor, glorify, worship, praise, follow, and obey Him. It is sad to say, but fully true “We are weak and pitiful followers. We lack intentional commitment, earnest desire, and the want to be in His presence.” It seems as though we not only want, but expect, Him to be watching over us and bubble wrapping our lives from trials and trouble, without giving Him a second thought throughout the day.

If you do not have an ever present desire to seek to honor Him, how is it that you will know of His promises, power, might, strength, peace, joy, and hope when trials and trouble come?

We never know when God’s plans and purposes for our life will include trials and trouble. We do well to be intentionally walking closely to Him, always seeking and desiring to hear His whispers and see His might work in our life.

Oh to be walking so closely to Him that in the face of trails and almost certain major unfavorable outcome we can speak like :Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If the God whom we serve exists, then He is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace and from your hand, O king. But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden statue you have set up.”

When doubts and fear cloud your day, remember to continually say over and over again; “My God is able to do more than the trial and trouble before me. If He chooses to not show His mighty hand, I still will not fear. I can rest in His loving hands and know I am in His perfect plan.”

How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me?

Exodus 7:7 Now Moses was eighty years old, and Aaron eighty-three years old, when they spoke to Pharaoh.

Exodus 7:10 So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and did just as the Lord commanded.

Exodus 7:20 Moses and Aaron did as the Lord commanded.

Exodus 8:17 And they did so.

Exodus 9:14 so that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth. For by now I could have put out my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth. But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth.

Exodus 9:27 Then Pharaoh sent and called Moses and Aaron and said to them, “This time I have sinned; the Lord is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong.

Exodus 10:3 So Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh and said to him, “Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, ‘How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me?

Exodus 10:16 Then Pharaoh hastily called Moses and Aaron and said, “I have sinned against the Lord your God, and against you. Now therefore, forgive my sin, please, only this once, and plead with the Lord your God only to remove this death from me.”

Exodus 12:28 Then the people of Israel went and did so; as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did.

Exodus 12:50 All the people of Israel did just as the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron. And on that very day the Lord brought the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt

Exodus 13:3 Then Moses said to the people, “Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the Lord brought you out from this place.

Exodus 13:17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near. For God said, “Lest the people change their minds when they see war and return to Egypt.” But God led the people around by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea.

Can you see the committed following of Moses and Aaron, and as well the hardening of the hearts of the Egyptians. Though they saw first hand the might wonders, signs and works of God they denied them and the power of God.

Before doing what the Lord God asks of us we need to be willing to hear and willing to act. There will be those who oppose God. There will be those who will join God. There will be those who will follow God.

It is apparent who is opposing. They will say and do things that expose their heart of stone. They will try to explain away God. God is not hindered or blocked. His plans and purposes will come to pass.

Joining and following God is more than words. It is a change of heart, mind, and soul. It is permanent. It is life changing. It is life long. True commitment will be seen by their actions “so they did as God spoke“. They want to hear God’s whispers and will hear them speak into their heart. They will act on His leading. They will trust in His promises. They will grow in their humbleness toward Him. They will cling to Him, rely on Him, and trust in Him. They seek and desire to honor and glorify Him.

However, it does not take much hardening to deafen our ears to be able to hear God speak to our heart. The quickest way to hardening our heart is through busyness. We seem to find this excuse permissible and justified in our commitment and walk with Him. We need to be intentional in our walk with Him and be able to discern when busyness over takes us. We need to know what is non-value added into our lives and say “no more”. We may need to say no to some good things to be in control of our intentional walk with Him.

I don’t know how many lives of people I have seen where God intervened in their busyness by some trial or troubling event. God did not take them through and easy path – He led them straight to the Red Sea where there was no way back and no way forward but by the Hand of God. These people were changed because there was a new “God induced”, “God priority” set in their lives. If this is what it takes to renew, refresh, recommit, and establish a new level of commitment to humbly serve, honor, glorify, follow, and obey, I wish it on all people, rather than watch them spend another day without God being their joy, peace, love, hope, courage, strength, power, refuge, and guiding light.

21. Broken Spirit

Exodus 5:22 Then Moses turned to the Lord and said, “O Lord, why have you done evil to this people? Why did you ever send me? For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has done evil to this people, and you have not delivered your people at all.” But the Lord said to Moses, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for with a strong hand he will send them out, and with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land.” God spoke to Moses and said to him, “I am the Lord. I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by my name the Lord I did not make myself known to them. I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they lived as sojourners. Moreover, I have heard the groaning of the people of Israel whom the Egyptians hold as slaves, and I have remembered my covenant. Say therefore to the people of Israel, I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the Lord your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. I am the Lord.’” Moses spoke thus to the people of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses, because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery.

We can easily see why the people would not listen to Moses. He, through Aaron, had gone before the people and proclaimed what God had told him. He had done signs in sight of the people and they believed, bowed their heads and worshiped. Then after Moses spoke to Pharaoh their slavery became immediately worse. They thought they were being delivered from their bondage but ended up worse.

Faith is the substance of things hoped for and evidence of things not seen. What is it that diminishes your hope and faith? We have all been there, where we have are close to God, He speaks to our heart through promises in His word, and we find hope, peace and rest in what He revealed to us. Then what happens? Time happens. Our anticipation, hope, peace, and rest in the promises of God got tested by time. Our expectation left no room for time to happen. Our expectation of God’s promises left no room for His purpose and plans.

Our dependence and reliance on God’s promises are not dependent of our expectation of the time when we expect our situation to change. The moment God speaks promises into our heart and soul nothing changes from the aspect of what God will do. Nothing.

Now add time to our situation and soon we think God has changed. Our faith was wasted. Our hope was wrong. Our thought of what He can and will do was abandoned. Yet, God never changed, He will never leave us or forsake us, He will guide us, He will strengthen us, He will bless us, He will lead us, and He will give us courage for each new day.

The next time doubt enters your mind say this “forgive my doubt, I TRUST YOU. If you have to say this a thousand times do it and you will find the doubts soon turn into praises of faith and hope.

Be Bold, do not hold back

Exodus 5:1 Afterward Moses and Aaron went and said to Pharaoh, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Let my people go, that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness.’” But Pharaoh said, “Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.”

Ezekiel 2:6     And you, son of man, be not afraid of them, nor be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns are with you and you sit on scorpions. Be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house.

Matthew 10:28    And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

Acts 4:29     And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness,

Isaiah 58:1    “Cry aloud; do not hold back; lift up your voice like a trumpet; declare to my people their transgression, to the house of Jacob their sins.

Ephesians 6:18-20    praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints,  and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel,

2 Timothy 4:17     But the Lord stood by me and strengthened me, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed

Where has the boldness gone in proclaiming the Gospel? Where has the boldness gone to live righteously? Where has the boldness gone to declare the sovereignty, power and might of God?

The Greek term translated bold or boldly or boldness, means “candor in the face of opposition.” We should give a candid, clear, compassionate, compelling witness to the news of how sins can be forgiven in Jesus Christ and how we have experienced that reality personally. Boldness isn’t being obnoxious–I’m gonna shove this down your throat whether you want to hear it or not. Boldness can be very gentle, kind and from a loving heart. It’s not mean or pushy; it’s just convinced. Boldness does not adjust the presentation to avoid a negative response.

We want to see people converted but don’t want any feathers ruffled or anyone to get upset when they reject the Gospel. Today we want to be the aroma of life to those who are being saved without being the aroma of death to those who are perishing

God has called you to something bold today. It may not be taking a nation out of slavery, but God has put a task before you today that you need to accomplish. There’s going to be be people and circumstances that stand against you doing that bold thing. Ignore them or confront them, but don’t let them stop you. Persist in faith by continuing forward through the opposition into the victory that God has already won in through Jesus Christ.

There’s going to be trouble. There’s going to be opposition. But don’t worry about it. Jesus has already overcome and the Father has always been in control. Be bold in pursuing what God has put before you. Persist in faith.

I will harden his heart

Exodus 4:21 And the Lord said to Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you do before Pharaoh all the miracles that I have put in your power. But I will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go.

Deuteronomy 2:30-33     But Sihon the king of Heshbon would not let us pass by him, for the LORD your God hardened his spirit and made his heart obstinate, that he might give him into your hand, as he is this day.

Joshua 11:20     For it was the LORD’s doing to harden their hearts that they should come against Israel in battle, in order that they should be devoted to destruction and should receive no mercy but be destroyed, just as the LORD commanded Moses.

Psalms 105:25    He turned their hearts to hate his people, to deal craftily with his servants.

Isaiah 6:10     Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and blind their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand wit

Isaiah 63:17     O LORD, why do you make us wander from your ways and harden our heart, so that we fear you not? Return for the sake of your servants, the tribes of your heritage.

Romans 1:28    And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.

Romans 9:18    So then he has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills.

Romans 11:8-10     as it is written, “God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, down to this very day.”

2 Thessalonians 2:10-12     and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.  Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false,  in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

1 Peter 2:8    and “A stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense.” They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.

Ezekiel 3:6-11     not to many peoples of foreign speech and a hard language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely, if I sent you to such, they would listen to you  But the house of Israel will not be willing to listen to you, for they are not willing to listen to me: because all the house of Israel have a hard forehead and a stubborn heart Behold, I have made your face as hard as their faces, and your forehead as hard as their foreheads.  Like emery harder than flint have I made your forehead. Fear them not, nor be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house.”  Moreover, he said to me, “Son of man, all my words that I shall speak to you receive in your heart, and hear with your ears.  And go to the exiles, to your people, and speak to them and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD,’ whether they hear or refuse to hear.”

One of the more difficult biblical concepts to understand is that of God hardening the hearts and minds of certain people. What are we to make of texts like these, which explicitly or implicitly speak of God hardening the hearts of people? These questions involve very deep mysteries, mysteries about God’s sovereignty and how it interacts with our freedom.

There was a time when people thought that God was at the center of all things and they instinctively saw the hand of God in everything—even terrible things. Job said, The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised … if we have received good things at the hand of God, why should we not receive evil? (Job 1:21; 2:10) Thus the ancients would commonly attribute everything as coming from the hand of God, for He was the “first cause” of everything that happened.

The ancients were thus much more comfortable attributing things to God than we are. In speaking like this, they were not being superstitious or primitive in their thinking; rather, they were emphasizing that God was sovereign, omnipotent, and omnipresent, and that nothing happened apart from His sovereign will. They believed that God was the primary cause of all that existed.

We need to understand that the ancient biblical texts, while often speaking of God as hardening the hearts of sinners, do not mean to say that man had no role, no responsibility. Neither do they mean to say that God acts in a merely arbitrary way. Rather, the emphasis is on God’s sovereign power as the first cause of all that is. Hence He is often called the cause of all things and His hand is seen in everything.

In man’s enlightened, superior, highly educated, and self-reliance, man moved himself to the center and God was gradually “escorted” to the periphery. Man’s manner of thinking and speaking began to shift to focusing on secondary causes (those related to man and nature). If something happens we look to natural causes, or in human situations, to the humans who caused it.

We are dealing with the mysterious interrelationship between God and Man, between God’s sovereignty and our freedom – Mysteries. In the face of such mysteries we have to be very humble. We ought not to think more about the details than is proper for us, because, frankly, they are largely hidden from us.

Therefore, God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden. One of you will say to me: “Then why does God still blame us? For who resists his will?” But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? “Shall what is formed say to him who formed it, ‘Why did you make me like this?’”

None of us can demand an absolute account from God for what He does. Even if He were to tell us, could our small, worldly minds ever really comprehend it? My thoughts are not your thoughts, and my ways are not your ways, says the Lord. Yet we try to put God in a box we can humanly understand.

We should be careful to admit the limits of our knowledge when it comes to interpreting “hardening texts,” in which God hardens the hearts of certain people. These must be approached carefully, humbly, and with proper distinctions as to God’s sovereignty, our freedom, His mercy, His justice, His plans, and His purposes. (Charles Pope)

We do well to put God in the center of all things and man’s existence totally subjective to His sovereignty.

You provoked the LORD to wrath

Exodus 4:14  Then the anger of the LORD was kindled against Moses

2 Samuel 6:7    And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Uzzah, and God struck him down there because of his error,

1 Kings 11:9     And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the LORD,

1 Chronicles 21:7    But God was displeased with this thing, and he struck Israel

Numbers 12:9     And the anger of the LORD was kindled against them

Deuteronomy 3:26     But the LORD was angry with me because of you and would not listen to me. And the LORD said to me, ‘Enough from you; do not speak to me of this matter again

Deuteronomy 9:8     Even at Horeb you provoked the LORD to wrath, and the LORD was so angry with you that he was ready to destroy you.

Psalms 78:58-60   For they provoked him to anger with their high places; they moved him to jealousy with their idols.  When God heard, he was full of wrath, and he utterly rejected Israel.

Philippians 2:21    For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.

2 Timothy 4:10    For Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica.

Proverbs 4:23    Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.

Anger of God. Wrath of God. We hear much preaching and devotionals of God’s grace, mercy, and love but do not hear that much about His anger.

“Colin Smith” wrote an interesting devotional about this and after I read it I deleted what I wrote and shared his with you.

As peace is a truth widely loved, wrath is a truth widely loathed. Many in the history of the church has been embarrassed by God’s wrath and have wanted to revise this biblical truth.Yet, this theme of the wrath (or anger) of God toward sin and sinners is clearly and widely taught in the Bible. This truth is so interwoven with the hope of our peace with one another and with God that if we lose our grasp on the one, we lose our hope of the other.

1. The anger of God is not like our anger.

When we speak about the wrath of God, remember that it is the wrath of God. So everything we know about God—he is just, he is love, and he is good—needs to be poured into our understanding of his wrath.

The words “anger” and “wrath” make us think about our experience. You may have suffered because of someone who is habitually angry, loses his temper, or flies into a rage. Our anger can often be unpredictable, petty, and disproportionate.

Although these things are often true of human anger, none of them are true of the anger of God. God’s wrath is the just and measured response of his holiness toward evil.

2. God’s wrath is provoked.

The anger of God is not something that resides in him by nature; it is a response to evil. It is provoked.

The Bible says, “God is love.” That is his nature. God’s love is not provoked. He does not love us because he sees some wisdom, beauty, or goodness in us. He loves you because he loves you, and you can never get beyond that (Deuteronomy 7:7).

But God’s wrath is different, his holy response to the intrusion of evil into his world. If there was no sin in the world, there would be no wrath in God. So the Bible’s teaching about the wrath of God is different from ancient mythologies, gods who run around frustrated and fuming. God’s anger is his settled resolve that evil will not stand.

3. God is slow to anger.

Why does God allow evil to continue in the world? Why does he not wipe it out?

God holds out the offer of grace and forgiveness in Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:9). People are coming to him in faith and repentance every day, and God patiently holds open the door of grace. The day of God’s wrath will come, but God is not in a hurry to bring it because then the door of grace will be closed.

4. God’s wrath is revealed now.

How does God reveal his wrath when sinners suppress the truth about him, exchange the truth for a lie, and worship created things rather than the Creator? God gives them up (Romans 1):

Therefore, God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity (1:24).
For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions (1:26).
God gave them up to a debased mind (1:28).

One writer states, “Paul is not teaching that one day God will punish Roman civilization for its vice and decadence. On the contrary, the vice and decadence are themselves God’s punishment…Their punishment was their greed, envy, strife, deceit, violence and faithlessness.” [2] When we see the moral fabric of our culture being torn, then as Christian believers we should cry to God for mercy.

5. God’s wrath is stored up.

The whole Bible story leads to a day when God will deal with all evil fully, finally, and forever. This will be the day of wrath, when God will recompense every evil and bring to judgment every sin.

God will do this in perfect justice. The punishment for every sin will match the crime. When the judgment is done, every mouth will be stopped because everyone will know that God judged in righteousness and justice. Then God will usher in a new heaven and a new earth, which will be the home of righteousness.

6. God’s wrath is on sinners.

In John 3:36, he does not say, “The wrath of God will come on [the disobedient].” He says, “Whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remainson him.” It is already there. Why is it already there? By nature, we are children of wrath (Ephesians 2:3). It is the state in which we were born.

What, at the end of the day, is the greatest human problem? It is not that we are lost and need to find our way on a spiritual journey. It is not that we are wounded and need to be healed. At the core of the human problem is that we are sinners under the judgment of God, and the divine wrath hangs over us unless and until it is taken away.

How God’s Wrath Is Removed

The Bible speaks about God’s wrath being poured out at the cross: “I will soon pour out my wrath upon you, and spend my anger against you” (Ezekiel 7:8). This takes us to the heart of what happened there: The divine wrath toward sin was poured out on Jesus. He became the “propitiation” for our sins (Romans 3:25), which means that the payment for our sins was poured out on Jesus at Calvary.

Don’t ever get the idea that God loves you because Christ died for you. No, it’s the other way round. Christ died for you because God loved you! He loved you even when you were the object of his wrath! God so loved the objects of his wrath that he spent the wrath on himself at the cross.

The outpouring of God’s wrath was the greatest act of love this world has ever seen.

[Tweet “The hope for sinners is that between us and the wrath of God stands the cross of Jesus.”]

The hope for sinners is that between us and the wrath of God stands the cross of Jesus. Sin was laid on Jesus and the Divine wrath toward it was poured out, spent, and exhausted in the darkness of Calvary. And when it was done, Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “It is finished!” The wrath of God that will one day be poured out on all sin was spent at the cross with regard to all who are in him.

Then Christ rose from the dead, and he stands before you today, a living Savior! He offers to you the priceless gift of peace with God. He is ready to forgive your sins and fill you with his Spirit. He is able to save you from the wrath and reconcile you to the Father. He has opened the door of heaven, and he is able to bring you in.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”

Denying pending judgement of God, denying the anger and day of wrath of God, and living as though there is no consequence to being complacent and neglectful to God, does not make it untrue or go away. It just means your heart is of stone, your eyes are blind, and your ears are deaf to the holiness and righteousness of God and the ability to know of His grace, mercy and love. Seek Him while He may be found. Desire to have Him soften your heart, open your eyes and ears to knowledge and understanding of Him.

I am sending you

Exodus 4:10 But Moses said to the Lord, “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.” Then the Lord said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.

1 Corinthians 2:1-4 And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power,

2 Corinthians 11:6 Even if I am unskilled in speaking, I am not so in knowledge; indeed, in every way we have made this plain to you in all things.

What is it that keeps us from proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ. Coming up with excuses is nothing new. Note Moses when he said “they will not listen to me” and again when he said “I am slow of speech and of tongue”. We can come up with all kinds of excuses not to do what the Lord has asked us to do.

John 15:16  You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide,

John 20:21  Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.”

Mark 16:15 And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.”

Luke 14:23  And the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled.

Matthew 28:19  Go therefore and make disciples of all nations,

Psalms 96:3  Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples!

Acts 1:8  But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Knowing ourselves and what we think we are capable of, what we have done in the past, how we have failed and fallen short, how we listen to the doubt satan has put into our head, and not wanting to be rejected, all can lead us down an excuse path. In reality it is just us with fear of not saying it right, not knowing it right, not knowing it good enough, and thinking we are not good enough and that if the good news message we proclaimed is rejected we did it wrong or we will be perceived as foolish and weak.

Replace the thoughts that lead to excuses with promises and commands from scripture. Beyond these you only need 3 seconds of courage to speak the first word of the Good New of Jesus Christ. It is God who works in the hearts of mankind to soften it to hear the need of redemption and forgiveness of sin. It is not how well we speak or know the entire bible. It is not with eloquent words but by the simple truth and mighty work of God that a person comes to either believe or reject salvation – our calling is to proclaim the Good News.

“I am with you”

“I will never leave you”

“I chose you”

“I appointed you”

“You will receive power”

“I am sending you”

“Go and make disciples”

“Declare His glory”

“Compel people to come”