Tuesday 4 February 2014

TFTD - 04 February 2014 - Thoughts from Today's Bible Readings

04 February 2014

Exodus 10
Psalms 64; 65
Romans 15; 16

THOSE WHO BELIEVED IN THE TRUE GOD

We may were wonder about the references in the Exodus readings to the LORD hardening Pharaoh's heart. [Exodus 10:1,10,27] Can God blame man for what God does - if that is the way to understand this? Notice how God conveys the message of the LORD (i.e. Yahweh/Jehovah) to Pharaoh, "Thus says the LORD, the God of the Hebrews; How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me? [Exodus 10:3]

Pharaoh refused to recognise the power of the one and only God. Now this power was well and truly recognised in the time of Joseph as a result of the 7 years of famine and the prestige that was shown to Joseph. But when we read in Exodus 1:8 "Now there arose a new king over Egypt that did not know Joseph" the situation changed. To restore the spirit of knowing and fearing the only real God was surely part of the purpose of God in sending the plagues. God saw to it that a Pharaoh was "raised up" whose attitude would enable this to happen.

We can see a more modern parallel to this in Gentile history. When printing was invented, the first book printed in nearly every language was the Bible! This resulted in a wonderful change of attitudes, the world became more spiritual; laws were influenced by the principles of the laws in the Bible. The R.C. Church tried to resist this but the reformation movement, fed by the reading of The Bible, spread throughout the world. People at last read for themselves what God had really done and said. This reformation movement lost its power in the 20th Century, a whole generation has arisen now who do not know the Bible - except for a few. Others read the Bible to get power and influence for themselves and distort what it says, they have no fear and awe of God. The stage is set therefore, for God to bring another series of plagues on the earth, to show his power to Godless man, so that once again people will be aware of the true God.

Those who believed in the true God took precautions. The challenge today is to follow their example.
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- DC


Thought for the Day

04 February 2014

"Don't spend too much of your precious available time in reading books about the Bible: read the Bible itself-carefully and constantly. You will find that it is its own best witness to its claims to be a Divine revelation."

- A.S. Wadsworth
Cited in: Meditations, No. 86 (1944)

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