Exodus 8 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

 Max Lucado Daily: Understanding God’s Story - September 27, 2021

Do you remember a time when, as child, you got lost? You felt the paralyzing fear of looking around and failing to see the north star of your parents’ strong presence. You were lost.

These moments of lostness can leave a pit in your stomach and bring fear to your soul. What is even worse is coming to a point in life when we realize that we’ve lost our way as a human being. We’re not sure why we are on this planet. We have no sense of our purpose.

It is in these moments we look to God, the master storyteller, and discover that the best way to understand our story is to listen to his. As we understand God’s story and where we fit within it, the haze begins to clear and our story begins to make sense. There’s more to your story, my friend.

Exodus 8

Strike Two: Frogs

God said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and tell him, ‘God’s Message: Release my people so they can worship me. If you refuse to release them, I’m warning you, I’ll hit the whole country with frogs. The Nile will swarm with frogs—they’ll come up into your houses, into your bedrooms and into your beds, into your servants’ quarters, among the people, into your ovens and pots and pans. They’ll be all over you, all over everyone—frogs everywhere, on and in everything!’”

5 God said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Wave your staff over the rivers and canals and ponds. Bring up frogs on the land of Egypt.’”

6 Aaron stretched his staff over the waters of Egypt and a mob of frogs came up and covered the country.

7 But again the magicians did the same thing using their incantations—they also produced frogs in Egypt.

8 Pharaoh called in Moses and Aaron and said, “Pray to God to rid us of these frogs. I’ll release the people so that they can make their sacrifices and worship God.”

9 Moses said to Pharaoh, “Certainly. Set the time. When do you want the frogs out of here, away from your servants and people and out of your houses? You’ll be rid of frogs except for those in the Nile.”

10-11 “Make it tomorrow.”

Moses said, “Tomorrow it is—so you’ll realize that there is no God like our God. The frogs will be gone. You and your houses and your servants and your people, free of frogs. The only frogs left will be the ones in the Nile.”

12-14 Moses and Aaron left Pharaoh, and Moses prayed to God about the frogs he had brought on Pharaoh. God responded to Moses’ prayer: The frogs died off—houses, courtyards, fields, all free of frogs. They piled the frogs in heaps. The country reeked of dead frogs.

15 But when Pharaoh saw that he had some breathing room, he got stubborn again and wouldn’t listen to Moses and Aaron. Just as God had said.
Strike Three: Gnats

16 God said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Take your staff and strike the dust. The dust will turn into gnats all over Egypt.’”

17 He did it. Aaron grabbed his staff and struck the dust of the Earth; it turned into gnats, gnats all over people and animals. All the dust of the Earth turned into gnats, gnats everywhere in Egypt.

18 The magicians tried to produce gnats with their spells but this time they couldn’t do it. There were gnats everywhere, all over people and animals.

19 The magicians said to Pharaoh, “This is God’s doing.” But Pharaoh was stubborn and wouldn’t listen. Just as God had said.
Strike Four: Flies

20-23 God said to Moses, “Get up early in the morning and confront Pharaoh as he goes down to the water. Tell him, ‘God’s Message: Release my people so they can worship me. If you don’t release my people, I’ll release swarms of flies on you, your servants, your people, and your homes. The houses of the Egyptians and even the ground under their feet will be thick with flies. But when it happens, I’ll set Goshen where my people live aside as a sanctuary—no flies in Goshen. That will show you that I am God in this land. I’ll make a sharp distinction between your people and mine. This sign will occur tomorrow.’”

24 And God did just that. Thick swarms of flies in Pharaoh’s palace and the houses of his servants. All over Egypt, the country ruined by flies.

25 Pharaoh called in Moses and Aaron and said, “Go ahead. Sacrifice to your God—but do it here in this country.”

26-27 Moses said, “That would not be wise. What we sacrifice to our God would give great offense to Egyptians. If we openly sacrifice what is so deeply offensive to Egyptians, they’ll kill us. Let us go three days’ journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to our God, just as he instructed us.”

28 Pharaoh said, “All right. I’ll release you to go and sacrifice to your God in the wilderness. Only don’t go too far. Now pray for me.”

29 Moses said, “As soon as I leave here, I will pray to God that tomorrow the flies will leave Pharaoh, his servants, and his people. But don’t play games with us and change your mind about releasing us to sacrifice to God.”

30-32 Moses left Pharaoh and prayed to God. God did what Moses asked. He got rid of the flies from Pharaoh and his servants and his people. There wasn’t a fly left. But Pharaoh became stubborn once again and wouldn’t release the people.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion    
Monday, September 27, 2021
Today's Scripture
Isaiah 40:21–28
(NIV)

 Do you not know?

Have you not heard?a

Has it not been toldb you from the beginning?c

Have you not understoodd since the earth was founded?e

22 He sits enthronedf above the circle of the earth,

and its people are like grasshoppers.g

He stretches out the heavensh like a canopy,i

and spreads them out like a tentj to live in.k

23 He brings princesl to naught

and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing.m

24 No sooner are they planted,

no sooner are they sown,

no sooner do they take rootn in the ground,

than he blowso on them and they wither,p

and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.q

25 “To whom will you compare me?r

Or who is my equal?” says the Holy One.s

26 Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens:t

Who createdu all these?

He who brings out the starry hostv one by one

and calls forth each of them by name.

Because of his great power and mighty strength,w

not one of them is missing.x

27 Why do you complain, Jacob?

Why do you say, Israel,

“My way is hidden from the Lord;

my cause is disregarded by my God”?y

28 Do you not know?

Have you not heard?z

The Lord is the everlastinga God,

the Creatorb of the ends of the earth.c

He will not grow tired or weary,d

and his understanding no one can fathom.

Insight

Isaiah contains the fullest revelation of Christ in the Old Testament. So much so, that this book is sometimes referred to as the “gospel according to Isaiah.” In Isaiah 40, the author paints a majestic picture of God as the powerful Creator and Sustainer of the heavens and earth. Compared to Him, we’re “like grasshoppers” (v. 22). Yet even though He can bring “the rulers of this world to nothing” (v. 23), like the starry host, He calls those who love and follow Him by name (v. 26; see 43:1). This holy, eternal “high and exalted One . . . [lives] with the one who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the . . . heart of the contrite” (57:15). By: Alyson Kieda

Unlimited

The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary.
Isaiah 40:28

There I am, sitting in the shopping mall food court, my body tense and my stomach knotted over looming work deadlines. As I unwrap my burger and take a bite, people rush around me, fretting over their own tasks. How limited we all are, I think to myself, limited in time, energy, and capacity.

I consider writing a new to-do list and prioritizing the urgent tasks, but as I pull out a pen another thought enters my mind: a thought of One who is infinite and unlimited, who effortlessly accomplishes all that He desires.

This God, Isaiah says, can measure the oceans in the hollow of His hand and collect the dust of the earth in a basket (Isaiah 40:12). He names the stars of the heavens and directs their path (v. 26), knows the rulers of the world and oversees their careers (v. 23), considers islands mere specks of dust and the nations like drops in the sea (v. 15). “To whom will you compare me?” He asks (v. 25). “The Lord is the everlasting God,” Isaiah replies. “He will not grow tired or weary” (v. 28).

Stress and strain are never good for us, but on this day they deliver a powerful lesson. The unlimited God is not like me. He accomplishes everything He wishes. I finish my burger, and then pause once more. And silently worship. By:  Sheridan Voysey

Reflect & Pray

How will you draw on God’s unlimited strength today? (vv. 29–31). In the midst of your tasks and deadlines, how will you pause to worship the infinite One?

Loving God, You’re the unlimited One who’ll accomplish all You’ve promised.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, September 27, 2021
The “Go” of Renunciation

…someone said to Him, "Lord, I will follow You wherever You go." —Luke 9:57

Our Lord’s attitude toward this man was one of severe discouragement, “for He knew what was in man” (John 2:25). We would have said, “I can’t imagine why He lost the opportunity of winning that man! Imagine being so cold to him and turning him away so discouraged!” Never apologize for your Lord. The words of the Lord hurt and offend until there is nothing left to be hurt or offended. Jesus Christ had no tenderness whatsoever toward anything that was ultimately going to ruin a person in his service to God. Our Lord’s answers were not based on some whim or impulsive thought, but on the knowledge of “what was in man.” If the Spirit of God brings to your mind a word of the Lord that hurts you, you can be sure that there is something in you that He wants to hurt to the point of its death.

Luke 9:58. These words destroy the argument of serving Jesus Christ because it is a pleasant thing to do. And the strictness of the rejection that He demands of me allows for nothing to remain in my life but my Lord, myself, and a sense of desperate hope. He says that I must let everyone else come or go, and that I must be guided solely by my relationship to Him. And He says, “…the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”

Luke 9:59. This man did not want to disappoint Jesus, nor did he want to show a lack of respect for his father. We put our sense of loyalty to our relatives ahead of our loyalty to Jesus Christ, forcing Him to take last place. When your loyalties conflict, always obey Jesus Christ whatever the cost.

Luke 9:61. The person who says, “Lord, I will follow You, but…,” is the person who is intensely ready to go, but never goes. This man had reservations about going. The exacting call of Jesus has no room for good-byes; good-byes, as we often use them, are pagan, not Christian, because they divert us from the call. Once the call of God comes to you, start going and never stop.

Wisdom From Oswald Chambers

The vital relationship which the Christian has to the Bible is not that he worships the letter, but that the Holy Spirit makes the words of the Bible spirit and life to him.  The Psychology of Redemption, 1066 L

Bible in a Year: Isaiah 3-4; Galatians 6

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, September 27, 2021
Tick Bites - #9056

One of our team members got pretty sick. Linda first developed a high fever, then muscular pain, and then these excruciating headaches. It actually took several tests to uncover what had caused her debilitating symptoms, but the doctor finally concluded she'd contracted Lyme Disease, which of course is carried by little deer ticks. And as Linda thought back, she remembered noticing a big red bite on her body a couple of months before. It occurred to her that it might have been a tick, but you know, she didn't think much about it...until now.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Tick Bites."

Linda recovered from her extreme systems, but I think she'd be feeling the effects of what that tick did for months, maybe years to come. One stupid little tick - all these problems. You have to check for those little things that can hurt you for a long time, and you need to get rid of them quickly.

Actually, you need to do that spiritually, too. Because there are "little ticks" that we get bitten with that can, if they're not removed quickly, cause us more pain and more problems than we could ever imagine. Small invasion - major damage. There's an enlightening example of that in Hebrews 12:15, our word for today from the Word of God. In this case, the "bite" is something that makes us have some hard feelings toward another person - something we all go through. And Scripture warns us, "See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many."

Bitterness and resentment always begin with, well, this little root. But bitterness never stays a little root. It keeps growing into a poisonous plant that ends up hurting us and hurting others. A root of bitterness has destroyed marriages, churches, friendships, and ministries because it wasn't pulled up when it was small. Because the tick wasn't removed immediately after it entered someone's system.

The principle of dealing with sinful urges while they're small applies to so many things in our life. Like a sexual fantasy or fascination. You have to, as the Bible says, "Flee youthful lusts" (2 Timothy 2:22), which by the way, aren't just a problem for youths! If you dwell on that wrong thought, that lustful attraction, it will quickly lead you where you never meant to go. You've got to yank it off the stage in your mind the second it shows up there, or it will embed itself in your mind like a tick and do damage you never imagined.

You have to get out of a wrong relationship sooner rather than later. You're going to be less likely to do the right thing the more time passes. It will never be easier to do it than now. When you start feeling the pull of an old weakness, respond immediately by running, not walking, the other direction. That urge to hurt back, to get even, to brood over a wound; those are all "ticks" that, if you let them get under your skin, they'll cause problems bigger than you ever thought for much longer than you ever imagined.

When the urge to respond sinfully bites you, you can't just let it go. You have to quickly and aggressively get rid of a spiritual "tick." It may seem like "no big deal" right now. But if you don't deal with it now, it will do damage that will hurt you for a long, long time.