I Brought You in This World, and I Can Take You Out

Jealousy.  That's one characteristic we immediately frown upon when spoken of or observed in another.  But that's the term God used to describe Himself to Israel.  God even went as far as to say His name is Jealous.

"For thou shalt worship no other god: 

for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God."

(Exodus 34:14) 

One 21st-century icon said when she heard as a child that God was jealous, it changed her perspective of Him.  "I was raised a Baptist, and we were too hung up on traditional ways. I was sitting in church and heard that God is a jealous God. I asked 'Why?' Come on; let's get over it!"  But we have to consider why God is jealous.  Having responded to the Israelites' groaning and rescuing them from slavery, He expected the people to worship and reverence Him.  He took them across dry ground and through the Sea of Reeds, wiped out Pharaoh's entire army, and provided food, water, and shelter in the wilderness (along with a spectacular "compass" of sorts). Wasn't that reason enough to ask the people to stick to their end of the covenant? It's similar to past days of childhood when the parent says, "If you're going to live under my roof, eat my food at my table, and sleep in the bed I provided, you're going to follow my rules. I brought you in this world, and I can take you out." God had some rules for the Israelites and some repercussions if they didn't obey.

God is jealous in the sense that He has a "righteous zeal" for our worship and love, and He doesn't want to share it with another.  We may say we have no idols, but lack of a graven image is not the absence of idolatry. Idols can include time, money, people, success, absorption with self-image, etc. God wants ALL of our worship and reverence; He's just jealous like that.

 

The Lord Is My Banner

The first attempt at so-called "reality TV" in the United States was a show called "Survivor."  The creators wondered, "What would happen if 20 or so random strangers were placed on a remote island, stripped of all bare necessities, and forced to live together for 39 days? What will a person do to be the last standing survivor?" The larger question is who in their right mind would sign up for such an experiment? Tack on $1 million, and we see that some 300 participants have accepted the challenge in the course of the show's 21 seasons.

When participants first reach their destination, they're divided into two tribes.  Once assigned to a tribe, producer Jeff Probst give each tribe a set of buffs, which are distinct for each tribe and can be worn as a headband, tube top, bow tie, armband, or miniskirt, do-rag.  It serves as a mark of distinction, giving each player an identity and a sense of belonging. Immediately, an "us vs. them" mentality sets in and, with a matching flag, they march off to set up camp. Once the campsite is selected, the flag post is forcefully shoved into the sand, marking the territory of the tribe.  Wherever the tribe goes, the flag goes, too.  Headed to a challenge against the opposing tribe? Grab your flag. Headed to Tribal Council (where you go to vote someone off of your tribe after losing an immunity challenge)? Grab your flag. Those around the flag have an identity, a shared purpose and mission. It's akin to our modern-day gangs. Which hankie are you wearing?

This isn't a new concept. Long ago, armies carried a flag/banner when headed into war, signifying to the enemy, "We're coming for you." Stuck into the ground, it served as a rallying site for tribe members to gather, regroup, and plan their next move.

In Exodus 17, the Israelites found themselves battling the Amelekites. Verses 15-16 read: "And Moses built an altar and called the name of it, The LORD Is My Banner, saying, "A hand upon the throne of the LORD! The LORD will have war with Amalek from generation to generation."

Moses referred to the LORD as "Yahweh Nissi -- the LORD is my Banner." Moses knew the Israelites couldn't conquer the Amelekites in and of themselves; he knew they needed a higher power to be victorious. The Israelites may have had an actual flag, but that day, the LORD was their Banner. When Moses raised his hands heavenward toward their Banner, he was appealing to the God who'd brought them out of Egypt through the Sea of Reeds to fight for them and come to their rescue once again. Those on the side of this Banner -- those devoted to this mission -- came out victorious, while those identified by the opposing banner did not.  


The Banner of the Israelites went as far as to blot out any memory of the Amelekites. That's utter defeat.  Moses built an altar memorializing God's power and protection.  Wherever Israel went, other armies knew, "Those are the people who destroyed the Amelekites....Haven't seen them since. Those are the people with that Banner."

Because of Who You Are

We honor and praise people for their accomplishments.  A team wins the Super Bowl, and they get a parade in their honor.  Perform well on the job, and you'll get a raise or possibly a promotion.  Working in the Honors College, I am surrounded by high-ability students with some rather lofty accomplishments under their belts.  You can say a student's name and others in the room will say, "Oh, guess where she spent last semester abroad doing research!" or "Did you hear he's having to decide between four top medical schools?"  We speak of them with pride because they're "one of ours," and we esteem them for what they've done.

Character alone usually doesn't cut it for a person to receive praise.  We require fine character traits be put to use before we extend kudos.  Record a CD, win an award, win a competition, graduate with honors...whatever it is, you have to do something if you want recognition. Unfortunately, we also apply this type of thinking when it comes to praising our Creator.  All too often, He has to put something in to get something out of us.  More often than not, the impetus of our praise springs from His having done something for us -- kept us out of an accident, blessed us financially, healed an ailing friend/loved one, etc.  Throughout Scripture, we're reminded of God's promises to us (e.g., to give us rest, to supply all our need, to be our refuge and strength, to give us eternal life).  But is this our only reason for praise?

Repeatedly in the Old Testament, God had to remind the people of Israel, "I am the LORD."  One source says He told this to the Israelites more than 130 times!  He wanted the people to know Him.  Throughout Exodus, He works to establish a relationship with the people so that in knowing Him, they couldn't help but to praise Him.  For knowing Him leads to praising Him; it's a natural correlation.  And so it must be with us.  Our praise cannot be contingent upon what He's done for us, but we should praise Him just for who He is, who He's been to us, and who He's promised to be.

Lord, I praise You because of who You are

Not just for all the mighty things that You have done

Lord, I worship You because of who You are

You're all the reason that I need to voice my praise

Because of who You are

 (Billy Smiley, Bob Farrell) 

"I AM"

And Moses said, "I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned." When the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am." Then he said, "Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground" (Exodus 3:3-5).

When Moses encountered God while herding his sheep, it wasn't because he was looking for God. No, God tracked down him and had to put on quite a show with an inflamed, non-burning bush to get Moses' attention...to bring him to a place of worship. Sometimes, God has to do the same with us when school, work, family, obscure and drown out His voice and presence. 

Just because we're "Christians" doesn't mean we're always aware of/sensitive to God's presence. How many times have we looked back on a situation and said, "Wow. God was all in that." To "come into His presence" is not to say that He wasn't where you previously were and you've just now stepped into it. It's simply our coming to the realization that God is already here in our midst. Only then can we lend an ear to His voice and begin to worship Him. 

Just as He did with Moses, when you're least expecting it, God will show up in your day and call you to worship. Will you see it as an interruption to your oh-so-important schedule or an opportunity to encounter God in an unlikely place? Will you stop and say, "Here I am!" as Moses did? When He seeks out your attention, He wants to remind you that He is in your midst and that you are on holy ground. For where He is...it's holy. It's time to worship.

Who? Me??

Moses' encounter with God was on the back side of a desert with a flock of sheep.  How on earth did Moses wind up there from Pharaoh's palace? Because of his initial attempt to come to his people's aid, that's how. And now God was telling him to have another go at it?!

Moses offered several excuses for why he couldn't be the one to take on this task...Who am I? Who has my back? No one will believe me. I don't have the skill set.

Knowing how the story ends, we often chide Moses for his reluctance, but have we not had the same responses at some point in our Christian walk? God calls us to a task, commissions us to do a work, and our first question is, "Who? Me? No, surely not me." We follow that with, "Who would believe this? People will think I've lost it if I attempt this. I'm not even qualified."

Fact is, just like Moses, we have all we need to do that which God tasks us to do.  When Moses asked, "Who am I?" God didn't build up Moses' self-esteem or tell him he was anything special. What God pointed out was that He would be with Moses. Just like it wasn't about Moses, it's not about us. It's about who's with us, and He'll have our back every step of the way. 

"A lot of what God wants to do in your life won’t be done until you do what He has already revealed to you," writes Dr. T. Evans. If we'll do our part first and step out into what He's called us to do, He'll be on hand when we reach the Pharaoh's court and the Sea of Reeds characteristic to our own mission. If we'll do what we can do, God will do the big stuff.  Moses didn't have to fight an army or dry up an ocean. Moses used what God made available to him--a rod--and God took care of the rest.

The writer of Hebrews tells us how Moses had the strength to fulfill his mission...by faith. Will God find faith in you?

The God Who Sees Me

In the ancient world, it was common practice for a wife to offer her handmaiden to her husband for the purpose of providing an heir.  This was the situation in which Hagar found herself when Sarai elected to speed up God's will.  The right thing at the wrong time is the wrong thing.

Legally, Ishmael would have been considered Sarai's offspring.  Unfortunately, Hagar's attitude toward Sarai changed when she learned she'd conceived.  In return, Sarai treated her so poorly that Hagar fled.  In her despair in the midst of the desert, she encountered an angel of the Lord, who encouraged her with these words:

"Go back to your mistress, and submit to her.  I will so increase your descendants 

that they will be too numerous to count.  You are with child, and you will have a son.  

You shall name him Ishmael, for the Lord has heard your misery."

So she [Hagar] called the name of the LORD who spoke to her, 

"You are a God of seeing," for she said, "Truly here I have seen him who looks after me."  

Therefore the well was called Beer-lahai-roi ["well of the Living One who sees me"] 

(Genesis 16:9-11, 13-14)

In her response to the angel's initial questions ("Where have you come from? Where are you going?"), Hagar only answered the first; for she truly had nowhere to go -- out in the desert alone and with child.  In her despair and amidst this encounter, she had a revelation that El Roi ("The God Who Sees Me") was still watching over her AND her child, also that He was not unaware of her current state of affairs.  With this confirmation that El Roi was aware of her situation and that He had promised to bless her offspring, Hagar found the courage to return to her mistress.  I'm sure her demeanor must have changed on that walk back to camp.  Though she left with a bowed head, surely, she returned with an encouraged spirit...a secret, perhaps.  "Hagar, what are you smiling about?" another servant might have asked. Would they have understood? For they hadn't seen El Roi as Hagar had.  Despite anything to come (being cast out after Isaac's birth), she would always remember the guaranteed blessing and His ever-present watchful care. 

"Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love,
that he may deliver their soul from death and keep them alive in famine" (Ps. 33:18-19).