Out of Fear and Into Hope

(S1) —

Ever found yourself in a place you didn’t want to be…?

Parable of the Donkey in a well

A place of FEAR: chaos, loneliness, despair, trapped, shame…death

Our Lenten Series is not about getting through something, picking yourself up, or digging your way out…

Its about God drawing us OUT of our place of Fear, and INTO God’s plan of FREEDOM, CELEBRATION, PROMISE, GLORY and RESURRECTION.

(S2)—Out of Exodus

Genesis and Jesus—Creation/fall/Noah/Abraham/Family (sons)/Joseph...

Genesis 50:20 “You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people.”

For the next few weeks we look at the story of the exodus—Moses…

The Hebrews exodus from Egypt really began with two woman of faith; who courageously do their part in God’s story of bringing the Israelites from slavery to freedom. Through them, God is drawing the people OUT of Egypt so he can draw them INTO himself

Today—Out of Fear and into Hope

Exodus is about the forming of people and their discovery of who God is and who they were meant to be.

As we journey through lent, my prayer is that we see this is as much our story as it was theirs.

Pray/Bibles

(S3) —

Exodus (Hb); to go out from, lead out, go forward; to leave behind. (Gk); Journey from one place to another…

— In both cases Yaweh (personal name of God), is the central figure. A story of the Israelites, descendants of Jacob, oppressed by the king of Egypt; slaves of his massive building projects

{Exodus 1:1–5}

Sons of Israel along with Joseph who saved them from the famine/Egypt—70 in all Settle in the area of Goshen

— the best of Egypt {47:5-6} separated them from the Egyptian culture and influence, but not its power…

They flourish as a people; many children…but as generations come and go…

Exodus 1:6 “In time, Joseph and all of his brothers died, ending that entire generation.”

Being in a foreign land; there is a Danger of them forgetting God

One Generation Away

The book of Jude speaks to the continuity of faith across generations

Judges 2:10 “After that generation died, another generation grew up who did not acknowledge the Lord or remember the mighty things he had done for Israel.”

The importance of…

(S4)

Telling the story of God’s FAITHFULNESS

My parents—God’s story

The responsibility of parents in telling God’s story…

Proverbs 22:6 “Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it.”

All the faithful are responsible for passing down the knowledge and love of God from one generation to the next.

With a generation gone, is their story over? Nope! Remember this is God’s story—God who remembers his covenant with Abraham.

Genesis 26:4 “I will cause your descendants to become as numerous as the stars of the sky, and I will give them all these lands. And through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed.”

Exodus is the continued fulfillment of God’s promise.

(S5)—

7 But...their descendants, the Israelites, had many children and grandchildren. In fact, they multiplied so greatly that they became extremely powerful and filled the land.

God blesses the Hebrew people...a lot of something going on...

One key element of the Christian life, is trusting in God’s math not over ours—We see this throughout God’s story;

— His law of multiplication of blessing, growth, of believers...and of the faithful

1 Corinthians 3:6 “I planted the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow.”

(S6) —

God is faithful to MULTIPLY what we can’t!

Church Growth? Evangelism

The exponential growth of the Hebrew people, worried the new king

10 “Eventually, a new king came to power in Egypt who knew nothing about Joseph or what he had done. 9 He said to his people, “Look, the people of Israel now outnumber us and are stronger than we are. 10 We must make a plan to keep them from growing even more. If we don’t, and if war breaks out, they will join our enemies and fight against us. Then they will escape from the country.””

There is a new sheriff in town—A new kind of king...Joseph and all he had done was long forgotten...

Pharoah sees the Israelites prosperity, and perceives them as a threat to the empire.

11 “So the Egyptians made the Israelites their slaves. They appointed brutal slave drivers over them, hoping to wear them down with crushing labor. They forced them to build the cities of Pithom and Rameses as supply centers for the king.”

Dealing with them harshly, he works them as brick-makers for his massive building projects

— Pithom/Rameses—Store cities (supply centers)

13 “So the Egyptians worked the people of Israel without mercy. 14 They made their lives bitter, forcing them to mix mortar and make bricks and do all the work in the fields. They were ruthless in all their demands.”

Sadly, the struggle of powerless under the powerful would continue to be a part of our history

(S7)

Harriet Tubman; and American abolitionist and social activist…

“If you hear the dogs, keep going. If you see the torches in the woods, keep going. If there's shouting after you, keep going. Don't ever stop. Keep going. If you want a taste of freedom, keep going.” Harriet Tubman

Power and oppression was the backdrop of the Hebrew people In Egypt...

(S8) The Great Sphinx of Giza (244’ L x 62’ W x 66’ H)

— The massive stone structures were monuments of Power (2560B.C) Pharaoh's projects, built on the backs of slaves...

Pyramids were already at least several hundred years old when Abraham went to Egypt to escape the drought in Canaan. So, he may well have seen it while living there.

{Genesis 41:46} — “Joseph and the Hebrew people certainly did, as they traveled throughout the land of Egypt.”

The more they feared them...the more Pharoah inflicted suffering

(S9)

When fear rules the day, God is still SUPREME

The two courageous midwives would have known these words…

Deuteronomy 10:17 ““For the Lord your God is the God of gods and Lord of lords. He is the great God, the mighty and awesome God…

Paul asserts the same as true about Christ

Romans 11:36 “For everything comes from him and exists by his power and is intended for his glory. All glory to him forever! Amen.”

Dietrich Bonhoeffer—German Lutheran Pastor—Confessing Church; resistance to Nazi Dictatorship. His willingness to stand up for Jesus...leading to his ultimate death

“May God in His mercy lead us through these times; but above all, may He lead us to Himself.” Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Ever find yourself in a place griped with fear…? Remember God is Supreme…and that God remembers you...

Things are not well in Egypt...they are worked ruthlessly to make them bitter...

Recall God’s command of the sabbath; the vision of rest for his people…no weekends, no days off, rest...

“We are created as spiritual being with the need to be free. God gave us the highest dignity and honor possible, in the very image of God Himself.”

(S10)

“Man is driven to use his own personal initiative to worship, work, and play. He must, therefore, be allowed to live in freedom, to live and share his life with others: his life of faith, work, and play.” Exodus, Part I (Chapters 1–18) (King James Version)

The amazing part of this story; there bodies may be broken, beaten and humiliated, but their spirits were not—the more they were oppressed the more they multiplied

It is under this shadow of fear that God brings hope remembers his covenant with Abraham...Issac, and Jacob

12 But...the more the Egyptians oppressed them, the more the Israelites multiplied and spread, and the more alarmed the Egyptians became.

Whats even more amazing; is that God’s deliverance; His fulfilling of a promise, is not with Moses coming onto the scene saying, “let my people go”. But, with two women…

(S11) —

15 “Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, gave this order to the Hebrew midwives, Shiphrah and Puah: 16 “When you help the Hebrew women as they give birth, watch as they deliver. If the baby is a boy, kill him; if it is a girl, let her live.””

Shiphrah (beauty) and Puah (Splendor)...midwives (supervisors), task with helping Hebrew mothers give birth and care for the babies until they regained their strength.

— Remember that FEAR rules the day...the king devises a plan…

Pastor wright...shares this perspective of the two women…

“Shiphrah and Puah were caught between two opposing stories”

— The story of FEAR: History and Power of Egypt; its many God’s...fear of death

— The story of HOPE...passed down for generations; learned on their mothers laps...

FEAR/HOPE—Shiprah and Puah are stuck in the middle; between the proverbial rock and hard place—A place that no one likes to be…

And yet, courageously they stand up to their oppressor and say NO!

17 But...because the midwives feared God, they refused to obey the king’s orders.

Not doing what the king had told them; letting the boys live

—in fact they insult all Egyptian women

(S12)

19 “The Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women,” the midwives replied. “They are more vigorous and have their babies so quickly that we cannot get there in time.”

...they were a lively bunch...filled with a unique energy and strength?

Where do we think this came from? It’s God’s story…God’s promise to multiply what they couldn't on their own—even with fear ruling the day!

— What’s interesting is they don’t seem to consult God...they just know that what Pharoah was asking them to do was wrong—It went against everything they knew of God!

(S13)

God GIVES and promises LIFE!

To them God was Yaweh...who created and creates...multiplies where we can’t...who is supreme even when fear rules the day.

Their faith brought them OUT of their story of fear and INTO the story of HOPE...

Is this the God you trust in...depend on?

Courageously doing the right thing; God blesses the midwives for their faithfulness, and in turn blesses the people...

(3) Blessings through Shiprah and Puah’s Courage

1. God’s blessing of KINDNESS to the midwives

20a “So God was good to the midwives…

2. God’s blessing of INCREASE

20b “…the Israelites continued to multiply, growing more and more powerful.”

3. God’s blessing of FAMILY

Exodus 1:21 “And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own.”

(S12)

God’s KINDNESS— God’s INCREASE— God’s FAMILY

The chapter ends in violence...Pharoah orders every Hebrew boy to be thrown into the Nile…but Moses and the rest of the story…

— {Ch. 2}Two women: Moses’s mother...and the daughter of Pharoah...

— Because of their hope and courage a baby named Moses is allowed to live...because of this the people are lead to freedom...a chance to live...

Here is what I want us to see…in the midst of all of this; their struggle to stay alive—there are those who have this sense of hope and courageously say NO; because of their faith in God’s story.

God is leading the people through the courage of these two women—OUT of fear and INTO Hope!

(S13) — OUT of Fear or INTO Hope?

Challenge

Which story are you living into?

Are you willing to do or say the right thing even when its hard or unpopular. To live into God’s story?

What we see in Exodus is..

— God who hears the cry of the poor, the afflicted, and the oppressed

— God who takes sides...who steps in and leads them to freedom

The good news is that God has not forgotten still…

Fast forward… the disciples after Jesus’ death—locked in a room because fear ruled the day . Not a king...but those who thought they were being faithful to God...

— Jesus appears…alive…who is God’s Hope, and our salvation

It may feel like fear still rules the day; but jesus came so that it doesn’t have to rule your life!

What do we do to move out of fear and into hope?

Tell the story of God’s FAITHFULNESS…

Trust God to MULTIPLY what you can’t

When fear rules the day, depend on God SUPREMELY

Believe in God who gives and promises LIFE

Does oppression still exists today? Are there those who need hope?

(S14)

“You may choose to look the other way but you can never say again that you did not know.” William Wilberforce

Here is what I think the questions I am asking as I read this story...

Where am I living into the story of FEAR instead of HOPE?

What is stoking fear in my life

What is my Egypt; the place I don’t want to be right now? Where fear rules the day?

Believing in Jesus who is our HOPE; who offers freedom and it starts with ordinary people who are willing to believe the story that God is writing!

— Doing the right thing when the right thing is hard

(S15)

How are you living into God’s story of HOPE?

What story do you want to live into...end of your life do you want people to say...he/she dared to follow the God of Hope to fear only God not man..

May this Lenten journey be about God drawing us out of our places of FEAR and into HOPE in Jesus who refused to say no to the ways of the world…and say yes to God!