Who Am I?

Readings

1. Old Testament: Exodus 34:1-17

2. Psalm 60

3. Gospel: Matt. 5:21-26

4. New Testament: 1 Thess. 2:13-20

Devotional
“Tell me about yourself.”  It’s a request you’ve answered at some point in your life before.  Maybe on a first date.  Perhaps a job interview.  Maybe a time you arrived in a new city filled with new people.  It’s one thing when people describe who they think you are, but something about the way you describe yourself gets right to the heart of what you think is most important for people to know about you.  It’s a revealing question to answer because it reveals what we find most essential for someone to know who we truly are.

At this point in the book of Exodus, the Israelites have been through a lot.  God has rescued them from the hands of the Egyptians, He has given them the Law, and now they are journeying towards a land God has promised them.  Yet, in spite of God’s faithfulness, Israel has turned away and worshipped through a golden calf.  Moses is so distraught that he smashes the tablets of the law, and he begins to question God.  Why has God brought us out of slavery just for everyone to turn away.  How am I supposed to lead a people that don’t want to be led?  “If I have found favor in your sight, please show me now your ways,” asks Moses to God. 

God’s response is striking, isn’t it?  He would have every right to give up this rebellious group of people to the sinful desires of their hearts, but the first thing He says is literally “I Am who I Am (translated from the Hebrew Yahweh). A God who is merciful, gracious, and slow to anger.”  And the root of this graciousness, He says, is His covenant.  The promise that He made to His people that will never fail. 

Frequently when we approach God, it can be difficult to feel like we really know the God to whom we draw near.  Rather than try to imagine, what if we simply listened to God when He tells us what He is like?  He is merciful.  He is gracious.  He is slow to anger, and He always keeps His covenant love and faithfulness.  He forgives, but He always upholds justice.  God’s introduction was enough to equip Moses to return to lead a stubborn people, and it is enough to sustain you through your own trials.

Hymn
The Lord is King

Prayer
Almighty God, whom truly to know is everlasting life: Grant
us so perfectly to know your Son Jesus Christ to be the way,
the truth, and the life, that we may steadfastly follow his
steps in the way that leads to eternal life; through Jesus Christ
your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity
of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

A Hopeful Expectancy

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Prayers

1. Morning

   1. Readings

      1. Old Testament: Exodus 5-6:1

      2. Psalm: 121

   2. Hymn: Praise to the Lord, the Almighty

   3. Prayer: 

Increase, O God, the Spirit of Neighborliness among us;
that in peril we may uphold one another,
In suffering tend to one another,
and in exile befriend on another.

Grant us brave and enduring hearts
that we may strengthen one another,
until the disciplines and testing of these days are ended,
and you again give peace in our time.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.

1. Evening

   1. Readings

      1. New Testament: Mark 9:42-50

      2. Psalm: 122

   2. Hymn: Dear Refuge of My Weary Soul

   3. Prayer: A prayer for fellowship with God, from Psalm 31:22-24:

Devotional on Exodus 5:
The worst part about skydiving isn't the falling through the air. It's the waiting to fall through the air. Walking up to the plane is fine, getting in the plane is fine, listening to the safety instructions is fine. But flying through the air that you will soon be falling through... that part is the worst. Theoretically, you know you are going to have fun- that they pilot and guides know what they are doing, that the parachute will open... but theory has a way of seeming insubstantial with 10,000 feet of abyss beneath your feet. The operators know that this part is the worst, this waiting. That's why they tell you, before you get on the plane, that there is no turning back from that moment. If you get on the plane, the only way out is via parachute. No turning back, no wasting gas. Strap in. "Now you will see what we will do."

Life with Jesus is no different. Theoretically, we know he is good, we know he is God, we know that he loves us. The parachute will open. But being asked to walk into the desert with him, as the Israelites are in Exodus 5? As Jesus disciples are in Mark 9? When there is so much opposition in the world, and so much weakness in ourselves? Theory has a way of seeming insubstantial, when only the abyss is beneath your feet. 

But there is no other way to walk with Jesus. There are no half-measures. Strap in, no turning back. Each of our readings today invites us into deeper trust, and experiential intimacy in our walks with God. And there is a beautiful expectancy, a weightless sort of freedom, accessible to us by experience in brief moments of the future-kingdom-become-present, when the promise of God sometimes rings, sometimes whispers in our ears. "Now you will see what I will do."

For discussion:
1. What is the most difficult part of stepping out into life with Jesus for you?
2. Where are there gaps between your theory of his goodness and your expectation of his goodness?
3. What would it look like to jump into that gap?