Monthly Archives: February 2018
God’s 4 Signs to Moses: The Staff That Turned into a Serpent
The LORD said to him, “What is that in your hand?” And he said, “A staff.” Then He said, “Throw it on the ground.” So he threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from it. But the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand and grasp it by its tail”—so he stretched out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand… – Exodus 4:2-4
Oh Father, our heavenly Father, wash us in the blood of Your Son again today. Let us come to you with a clean conscious. Wash us in the Water of your Word. Open the eyes of our hearts to see Christ, receive Christ, and enjoy Christ. In Jesus’ Name, which is above all names, Amen!
In Egypt, Moses had the highest education and was skilled in speech (Acts 7:22). When the Lord came to give Moses the revelation that He would free the Israelites, Moses tried to achieve the Lord’s will in his own strength and ended up killing an Egyptian. Trying in his own strength, just led to death.
The Lord took Moses through 40 years of death in the wilderness. Moses was a broken man when the Lord appeared to him again. Moses could no longer speak well (Exodus 4:10) and he needed a staff for walking.
We all have many staffs that we rely on. Every earthly thing that you rely on for your daily living is a staff. Your career is a staff. Your education is a staff. Your news is a staff. Your hobby is a staff. Your caffeine is a staff. Your sweets are a staff. Your family is a staff. Your car is a staff. Your intellect is a staff. Your emotions are a staff. Your television is a staff. Your video games are a staff. Your internet is a staff.
There is no Life in these staffs. These staffs are dead wood. When Moses threw his staff down it became a serpent. Not only is your staff dead, but it is also a serpent.
Whatever you rely on, other than the Lord, becomes a serpent.
Your staffs must be thrown down and put to death. Only then, by the Lord’s command, can you grasp the serpent by the tail, and lift the staff up in resurrection.
Don’t abandon your family. Don’t set up a law in your heart on what you may eat or drink. But turn to the Lord, beholding Him and giving Him your ear. Give everything that you rely on to Him and let Him give you back what you need in resurrection.
In resurrection, you are no longer reliant upon the staff, you are reliant on God alone.
Father, we cast our staffs down before you. Open our eyes to see the things that your enemy uses to usurp your rightful throne in our hearts. You provide everything we need as we seek Your Kingdom and Your Righteousness first. Let us grasp the enemy by the tail in Your Resurrection Life, that we may be overcomers in Your Victory. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
1
If I’d know Christ’s risen power.
I must ever love the Cross;
Life from death alone arises;
There’s no gain except by loss.Chorus
If no death, no life,
If no death, no life;
Life from death alone arises;
If no death, no life.2
If I’d have Christ formed within me,
I must breathe my final breath,
Live within the Cross’s shadow,
Put my soul-life e’er to death.3
If God thru th’ Eternal Spirit
Nail me ever with the Lord;
Only then as death is working
Will His life thru me be poured.
Desiring Meat From Egypt
The whole congregation of the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. The sons of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the Lord’s hand in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of mIeat, when we ate bread to the full; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”
Exodus 16:2-3 NASB
The Lord frees us from Egypt at the time of our salvation. This is the objective Reality. But, the Lord must experientially remove Egypt from our hearts.
The Lord has judged Egypt, which is a type of the world. The Lord sent 10 plagues to show His People what the true state of the world is. Don’t you know that the Lord could have finished off Egypt with but a word? But no, we need the lesson. We need to see the world how the Lord does. The Lord was very patient in teaching the Israelites, and so He is with us. Today, we can see the fruit of sin the world is bearing. There are bombings, shootings, kidnappings, rapes, climate change, disasters and more. This is the natural fruit of the world, under the enemy’s rule, enslaved to sin.
Yet, we still desire the things of this world. We want to be entertained, fulfilled, and successful. We want to find satisfaction in this world. This is just what the Israelites wanted. So many called ones of God want the meat of Egypt today.
I hope the Lord has blocked your way in finding satisfaction from the world. This is great evidence of His care for you. The world is just salt water, which will dehydrate you. The Lord is the fresh Living Water, always new and abundant. He is so available. The Water is flowing, open your mouth and drink!
The Spirit and the Bride say “Come”! (Revelation 22:17)
The dissatisfaction with the world makes a Way for us to find Satisfaction; the hunger and the thirst open the heavens for the Heavenly Manna.
Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread out of heaven, but it is My Father who gives you the true bread out of heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven, and gives life to the world.” Then they said to Him, “Lord, always give us this bread.” Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst.
John 6:32-35 NASB
We need to embrace a holy boredom. If you are bored or worn out, don’t go seeking the things of the world for help. Don’t go down to Egypt. Turn to the Lord and offer your boredom to Him. Embrace your boredom as a time to enjoy the Lord. The Lord wants to be our Entertainment. The Lord wants to be our Satisfaction. The Lord wants to be our Enjoyment. God has given us Christ, in the Spirit, to meet all our needs. He is our Life and Life-supply. He is superabundant and always more than we need.
Take Christ as Everything by faith. He is even our Faith. If you need this Satisfaction, turn away from the things of the world and turn to the Lord, within you. Confess your dissatisfaction. Declare to the Father that Christ is your Satisfaction! Whether you feel like it or not, take Him by Faith. It is His responsibility to bring you into the experience of Christ as the Good Land, Christ to meet our every need.
O taste and see that the Lord is good; How blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!
Psalms 34:8 NASB
Oh dear Father, wash us a anew in the blood of Jesus and wash us in the water of Your Word. Thank you for cleansing us of our sins and all the worldly dirt. There is no satisfaction in this world. The more we drink, the more thirsty we get. You are the real Food and Water. We eat You and drink You now by Faith. Thank you God for becoming edible, in Christ. We eat You and become constituted with You, to be one with You for Your move and expression on earth. In Jesus’ holy Name, Amen!
1
Drink! A river pure and clear that’s flowing from the throne;
Eat! The tree of life with fruits abundant, richly grown;
Look! No need of lamp nor sun nor moon to keep it bright, for
Here there is no night!
Do come, oh, do come,
Says Spirit and the Bride:
Do come, oh, do come,
Let him that heareth, cry.
Do come, oh, do come,
Let him who thirsts and will
Take freely the water of life!2
Christ, our river, Christ, our water, springing from within;
Christ, our tree, and Christ, the fruits, to be enjoyed therein,
Christ, our day, and Christ, our light, and Christ, our morningstar:
Christ, our everything!3
We are washing all our robes the tree of life to eat;
“O Lord, Amen, Hallelujah!”—Jesus is so sweet!
We our spirits exercise, and thus experience Christ.
What a Christ have we!4
Now we have a home so bright that outshines the sun,
Where the brothers all unite and truly are one.
Jesus gets us all together, Him we now display
In the local church.
God’s 4 Signs to Moses: The Burning Bush
Dear Body of Christ, we can learn a lot about this Life, that we have gained in Christ, from the Scriptures. The Old Testament is like a living painting, while the New Testament is like the description below the painting. What the New Testament says in plain words, the Old Testament says in detailed color.
With that in mind, I want to take a look at the signs that the Lord gave to Moses, when he was called. The 4 signs are the burning bush, the rod that turned into a serpent, the leprous hand, and the Nile’s water turning to blood. These signs were lessons, not only to Moses, but also to us.
Let’s start with the burning bush.
The angel of the LORD appeared to him in a blazing fire from the midst of a bush; and he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, yet the bush was not consumed. So Moses said, “I must turn aside now and see this marvelous sight, why the bush is not burned up.” – Exodus 2 NASB
This bush symbolizes us. In the original language, this is not only a bush, but a thorny bush. The thorns grew out of the earth as a result of Man’s fall (Genesis 3:18). Thus, this thorny bush symbolizes fallen humanity. But the thorny bush is able to contain the fire without being consumed. This is the divine Fire, God Himself.
Don’t be stumbled because it states the angel of the Lord here. This angel of the Lord is Christ. Paul was so bold to say the the rock, which followed the Israelites in the wilderness, was Christ (1 Corinthians 10:4). Is Christ only our Follower, and not also our Leader? Surely, if Christ is the rock who followed the Israelites, He is also the angel of the Lord who led them.
Praise the Lord! Even though we are thorn bushes, we can be the Lord’s vessels. By nature, we just prick and hurt each other. But thanks to the Lord Jesus, we can be one with God. Not only are we one with God, but we are also one with each other. We all have the same Fire. This is a corporate thorny bush carrying the divine Fire. This is God’s Assembly, His House, the New Jerusalem!
At the end of Moses’ life, he even recalls this sweet sign: “And the favor of Him who dwelt in the bush” (Deuteronomy 33:16).
Our dear Father, cleanse us anew in the blood of Jesus. Thank you for cleansing us of our sins and making us white as snow. We are dead in Christ, resurrected, ascended, and seated at your right hand. Thank you for clothing us with Christ as our Righteousness. Thank you for abiding in us as the divine Fire. May we abide in You always. You have made us one with You and one with each other. Lead us to experience this oneness, that the world may know that Jesus is Lord. In Jesus’ Name, amen.
1
In the wilderness for God!
Just a common bush aflame!
Thus may I be, blessed Lord,
For the glory of Thy Name.2
Just a common bush to be,
Something in which God can dwell,
Something thru which God can speak,
Something thru which God can tell.3
All His yearning over men,
All His purposes of love,
Flaming with no light of earth,
But with glory from above:4
God Himself within the bush,
Nothing seen but just the flame;
Make me that, just that, O God,
For the glory of Thy Name.
The Passover Lamb for Leaving the World
Now you shall eat it in this manner: with your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it in haste—it is the LORD’S Passover. (Exodus 12:11)
Dear called ones of God, I am concerned that some of you have not yet made it to the wilderness, let alone the Good Land, and still remain as slaves in Egypt, living under Pharoah’s harsh rule. You have indeed put your faith in Jesus, and have taken Him as your Passover Lamb, but you forgot that He is Food for the journey. The Israelites were to be dressed and ready for travel when they ate. There was a rush to get them out of Egypt. The Passover Lamb was to be their Energy to leave Egypt.
We have a journey to embark on.
Sure you may have been taken out of Egypt objectively, but you need the subjective experience. Never be satisfied with just an objective head knowledge. God desires for us to experience and enjoy Christ. If you have not been separated from the world, then do it now. There is not time to waste. Give your stomach, your career, your news, your sports, your hobbies, your video games, your television, and your family over to the Lord.
Whatever has a hold on your heart, give it to the Lord. Quit trying to find your satisfaction in Egypt. This is terrible. Find your satisfaction in Christ. God has provided Christ to be everything for us.
Confess to the Lord that you cannot free yourself and that He must free you; and He has indeed freed you. It’s for freedom that you have been set free. Christ is our Freedom. Take Christ as your Freedom by faith.
Your enjoyment of the world is limiting your experience of Christ. He is a Chair for you to rest in, but you have cluttered your path to Rest.
Turn away from the world and set your eyes on Christ, beholding Him by faith. It’s in this Way that we are able to eat Him.
Don’t make this into a law of something you need to achieve for God to please Him. He is only pleased with Christ. But offer to God your experience of Christ. If you cannot enjoy Christ in an activity, then it is not profitable. Stop judging according to what is good and evil, and start judging according to what is of Life, what is of Christ. Give God the firstfruits of your time. He deserves the richest portions, the fat of our offerings.
If you have believed into Christ, you have been set free from the world. The Lord has crushed the enemy’s head. Sin no longer has any power over you. Now walk accordingly.
Our dear heavenly Father, we have been crucified in Christ. Our old man has been put to death and we are a new creation in Christ. Wash us anew in the blood of Jesus. Wash our feet of all the worldly dirt. Renew our hearts for You and for your Kingdom. Lord Jesus, You are our Bridegroom. Let us only have eyes for You. We love you Lord! Be our First Love now and forever. Let us love You with the Love you have poured into us. In Jesus’ Name, amen.
1We are the Hebrews! Praise the Lord!
We’re from the other side.
Throughout our hist’ry we have passed
Through rivers deep and wide. Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!
He has brought
All us river-crossing Hebrews
To the land, to build up
The temple of our God.2Old Noah’s age was so corrupt,
In deep depravity;
So Noah passed across the flood—
That separating sea. Praise the Lord! He has brought
From the old
To a new recovered region
Where he built in this land
An altar for his God.3Then Abraham was called apart,
For Godto take a stand;
So through the river he was led
Into a new, good land. Step by step he was led
From Chaldee
Through the river into Canaan,
That good land, there to be
The servant of his God.4The Israelites in bondage were
To Pharaoh’s choking hand.
The God of Hebrews made a way
For them to leave that land. Through the sea, they all passed;
Egypt fell,
Hallelujah! In the good land
They built up God’s own house
To satisfy His heart.5Then wand’ring through the wilderness,
The land they could not find;
Till through the Jordan they did pass
To leave themselves behind. Praise the Lord! In the land
They built up
God’s own temple. Hallelujah!
Praise the Lord! There they dwelt,
His people and their God.6But then religion conquered all,
So John the Baptist came
And buried all beneath that flood.
The Jews were not the same. Buried all! Buried all!
Buried all!
Underneath the Jordan River
Buried all to become
The Hebrews passing through.7Now in the church life, we have left
The world, religion too;
Now we’re the river-crossing ones,
Enjoying Christ so new! Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!
We have passed
From the oldness, Hallelujah,
Into Christ—one new man.
And now we’re one with Him!8O Lord, You’ve taken us across
The fiery sea of glass,
With all the worldly things beneath;
Across the sea we’ve passed. Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!
Now we stand
As the Hebrews, Hallelujah,
On the sea! Praise the Lord!
We’ve passed through everything!
Enjoying Christ 