In the Midst of our Flaws, God Provides!

December 22
Exodus 16:1-19:25
Survival in the Wilderness
Read Dr. Spina’s commentary at www.spu.edu/lectio

Moses, Part 2…and the final word

Summary

Throughout this series, we’ve been exploring in Genesis & Exodus a literary concept that makes an appearance in the best-selling young adult novel The Fault in Our Stars by John Green: Hamartia, or the "tragic flaw" in one's character.  Dictionary.com defines hamartia as “the flaw in character which leads to the downfall of the protagonist in a tragedy.”  It comes from the Greek word meaning “to miss the mark,” the same word the New Testament uses for sin.  While a character flaw is not technically sin, it often is related to it.  Simply put, our flaws are often where sin takes root in our lives.

A few weeks ago we discussed Moses and his tragic flaw of fearfulness.  In this week’s reading of Exodus 15-19, we encounter Moses as the wise & mostly confident leader of God’s people.  What happened?  In a word, the LORD happened.  The LORD never gives up on Moses, but more than that amazing fact, the LORD actually encourages, supports, and builds Moses into the person he was meant to be.  In the midst of our flaws, God provides!

There are two examples of divine provision in the text:

1. Food & Water in the Desert (16:1-17:7). The LORD provides strength for the journey based on grace, not merit.  Manna, quail, & water are provided not as reward for faithfulness but as basic equipment for daily life.  These blessings are given to all of the people regardless and in spite of their flaws.  They are given daily, not to be hoarded, so reliance on God becomes a lifestyle.  As then with them, so now with us!
2. People to Share the Load (17:8-18:27).  The LORD provides Moses with a person in his life who speaks wisdom – Jethro, his father-in-law.  Moses is burning himself out doing everything on his own, administering justice among the people.  Jethro notices and suggests to Moses that he invite people to help him with the task, people who would share the load of managing disputes.  Okay, it’s more than just a suggestion…he confronts Moses with the words “You can’t do it all by yourself!” (Exodus 18:18).  That’s an exhortation we need to hear, especially in light of our tragic flaws.  Never are we more vulnerable to our flaws than when we’re operating in isolation, not open to the wisdom words of others.

And speaking of words of wisdom, our text ends just before the LORD gives the Decalogue – the Ten Commandments – to the people.  As in the Sinai theophany of Exodus 19, the LORD appears in our lives to offer words of profound & foundational wisdom (profoundational!).  That’s what we've encountered on this journey of reading, learning, and growing in God’s word, the Bible.

The good news is that God walks with and works through sinners like us.  Like Martin Luther, we can rejoice in the status described by the Latin phrase "Simul Justus et Peccator" – simultaneously guilty of sin and justified by Christ.

Personal Identification Questions

• How has God provided for you in relation to your tragic flaws?

• How might God be wanting to provide for you in relation to your tragic flaws?

• Who has God put in your life to help you along the journey?  Who might God be wanting to bring into your life right now in light of what you’re facing?

Prayer of Confession

LORD, why is it so easy for me to try to do everything on my own without relying on your gracious provision?
I’m sorry…
For trying to do everything on my own
For not receiving the assistance of the people you send me to help with my journey
For not allowing your words of wisdom to shape and strengthen me in relation to my tragic flaws
Lead me not into temptation, and deliver me from evil.
Amen.

Encouragement

Philippians 4:19-20 (ESV)
And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. To our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.

Romans 5:1-5 (ESV)

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
_____________________

Now in Theaters...the movie Exodus: Gods & Kings.  Click here to see the trailer on YouTube.

Our Tragic Flaws ... God's Grumbling People

December 15
Exodus 11:1-15:27
From the Frying Pan Into the Fire
Read Dr. Spina’s commentary at www.spu.edu/lectio

God’s People…a.k.a. the “Grumblers”

Summary

Powerful!  That’s what these five chapters of Exodus are, testifying to God’s magnificent act of liberating His people from slavery in Egypt.  The final chapters in the Egyptian slavery story are also the first chapters of the distinctive communal worship life of God’s liberated people, with the institution of Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread.  The Red Sea crossing is a majestic act of the LORD, and Moses & Miriam write an epic praise song/poem in response.  God’s people are free at last!  And yet a tragic flaw arises in the collective consciousness of God’s people.

Tragic Flaw

Hamartia – “the flaw in character which leads to the downfall of the protagonist in a tragedy” from the Greek “to miss the mark” (Dictionary.com)

Grumbling

The word “grumble” could be classified as a case of onomatopoeia, a word that phonetically imitates or suggests the source of the sound it describes.  It means “to mutter in discontent, or complain quietly about something.”  Grumbling isn’t the same as groaning.  In Exodus 2:24 and 6:5, we read that God heard the groaning of the Israelites who were enslaved by the Egyptians, and responded with powerful concern.  God welcomes our pain-filled cries for help, sorrowful prayers of lament, even God-directed expressions of anger and disappointment.  Grumbling is another matter entirely: pure passive-aggressive complaining, arising from our ungrateful discontent with our circumstances.

The grumbling of God’s people is particularly poignant when you consider what God had just done for them – liberating them from slavery in Egypt!  And this is where their tragic flaw made its appearance: in a moment that called for GRATITUDE, God’s people GRUMBLED.

In Exodus 15:22-27, the freshly-liberated Israelites travel from the Red Sea into the desert, where they go three days without finding water.  Now, to be fair, this is dangerous territory – three days is about as long as you can go without water before you die of dehydration.  When they found water, it was bitter (marah in Hebrew, the name by which that place is known).  Finding undrinkable water?  Well, that was like adding insult to injury.  The people grumbled against Moses.  In response, Moses cried out to the Lord, and the Lord equipped Moses to make the water fit to drink.

In addition to this episode, in the Pentateuch we encounter many situations in which the people are grumbling about Moses and Aaron, or even grumbling against God:

• Exodus 16:2, 17:3
• Numbers 14:2, 14:29, 16:41
• Deuteronomy 1:27
• (Jesus’ disciples did the same thing in John 6!)

And yet, we must not miss a most important point: God doesn't tire of these beloved grumblers!  God continues to love them, and lead them, to be the people they were created to be.  On their way to the promised land, God guides them as people of promise.

Personal Identification Questions

• Where might this tragic flaw show up in your story?

 

• What’s your experience with grumbling?  What conditions tempt you into this type of complaining?  When people are grumbling and invite you into the grumble-fest, how might you offer a healthy response?

• Have people ever grumbled against you?  If so, describe the situation and the issues that gave rise to grumbling.  How might you encourage people to channel their discontent in a more productive and healthy direction?

 
Prayer of Confession
LORD, why is it so easy for me to be tempted into grumbling, against other people and even you?
I’m sorry…
For choosing grumbling over gratitude

For joining the chorus of grumblers who find contentment only in complaining

For avoiding healthy ways of communicating discontent & disappointment
Lead me not into temptation, and deliver me from evil.
Amen.

Encouragement

Philippians 2:14-15 (NIV)
Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky…

1 Peter 4:8-10 (NIV)

Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.

Our Tragic Flaws...Exodus: Gods & Kings

December 8
Exodus 5:1-10:29
God Versus Egypt
Read Dr. Spina’s commentary at www.spu.edu/lectio

Just in time for the December 12th premier of the movie Exodus: Gods & Kings.  Click here to see the trailer on YouTube.

Pharaoh

Summary

Pharaoh isn’t always considered a true biblical character, at least in the sense of being one of God’s covenant people.  And yet the fact remains that Pharaoh, while being an antagonizing enemy of the Hebrews, shares with them the status of being God-created.  Even though Pharaoh doesn’t know God (“Who is this Lord…I do not know the Lord" 5:1-2), they're engaged with each other in an epic battle of wills.

Pharaoh’s Tragic Flaw

Hamartia – “the flaw in character which leads to the downfall of the protagonist in a tragedy” from the Greek “to miss the mark” (Dictionary.com)

Stubbornness, in not responding to God’s directives

No one says “no” to God quite like Pharaoh! What's at the root of Pharaoh’s stubborn streak with God?

Exodus 5 – Valuing work productivity over the word of the LORD

• After Moses and Aaron give the “thus says the Lord” request for him to let God’s people go, Pharaoh responds: “Who is the Lord, that I should heed him and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and I will not let Israel go.” (v.1-2)  In this case Pharaoh's stubbornness was anchored to his concern for work productivity – “you are taking people away from their work…get to your labors!” (v. 4).  Then, vindictively, he makes the Hebrew slaves meet their brick production quotas without the key ingredient of straw.

Exodus 7 – A Hardened heart that doesn’t listen to God’s human ambassadors

• The text tells us that the LORD says “I will harden Pharaoh’s heart” (7:3).  Later in the story we learn that Pharaoh “sinned once more and hardened his heart, he and his officials” (9:34).  There has always been lively conversation on this point of the story – is Pharaoh just a victim of God’s omniscient actions, or is he fully responsible for his resolute refusals?  Regardless of how we resolve this question, it’s clear that Pharaoh demonstrated a heart hardened toward God by not listening to God’s appointed human messengers: note the recurrence of phrases such as  “When Pharaoh does not listen to you…” (7:4) and “Pharaoh would not listen to them” (7:13).

Exodus 7-10 - Not taking to heart the signs of the LORD’s authority

• The story of the ten plagues boils down to Pharaoh consistently refusing to acknowledge the LORD’s authority over him and his nation.  Each plague is convincing, but in his stubbornness Pharaoh brings on another plague because he refuses to “take it to heart” (7:23).  Even though the plagues were terrible for the people of Egypt, Pharaoh remained stubborn.  Even when the infestations came into his own house and family, Pharaoh, after giving a glimpse of a possible change of heart  (“I will let you go…pray for me” in 8:28, “Do forgive my sin and pray to the Lord to remove this thing” in 10:17), becomes even more stubbornly entrenched in his refusal of God’s authority.

Personal Identification Questions

• Where might this tragic flaw show up in your story?

• How do you experience stubbornness in relation to God?  What concerns keep you from taking God’s word to heart and responding to God’s call & direction for living?

• How do you deal with the fact that God has authority over you?  Do you embrace it with willing appreciation or do you chafe under the idea that you aren’t the ultimate authority of your existence?  If you struggle with stubbornness, what “fall-out” have you and others experienced because of it?

Prayer of Confession

LORD, why is it so easy for me to be stubborn in relation to your word, authority, and call?
I’m sorry…
For hardening my heart to your commands
For not listening to Your word that comes to me through your messengers
For insisting on my own way regardless of the collateral damage to others
Lead me not into temptation, and deliver me from evil.
Amen.

Encouragement

Mark 9:24 (NRSV)
I believe; help my unbelief (the Father of a Boy with afflicted with a spirit, to Jesus)

Ephesians 3:20-21 (NRSV)

Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more that all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

Our Tragic Flaws...Put Up with by God!

December 1
Exodus 1:1 – 4:31
Unlikely Heroes
Read Dr. Spina’s commentary at www.spu.edu/lectio

Moses, Part 1

Just in time for the December 12th premier of the movie Exodus: Gods & Kings.  Click here to see the trailer on YouTube.

Summary

Moses is perhaps the best biblical example of someone who both walked faithfully with God and stumbled in his faithfulness.  For all the veneration of Moses as a bible character, in the text he’s actually revealed to be the most normal of human beings, full of faults and flaws…yes, some of them tragic.  Moses knows this, admitting to God and people alike that he doesn’t have it all together – if anything, he’s one of the more self-aware characters in God’s story.  God surprises us throughout the Moses story in how God responds to Moses’ flaws.  In a phrase - God never gives up on Moses.

 

Moses’ Tragic Flaw

Hamartia – “the flaw in character which leads to the downfall of the protagonist in a tragedy” from the Greek “to miss the mark” (Dictionary.com)

Fearfulness

Seems kind of strange to say this of the leader of the great Exodus from Egypt.  But Moses repeatedly expresses the insecurity of fear…sometimes to the point of making God angry!  Follow the sequence of the encounter between God and Moses in the first four chapters of Exodus, noting Moses’ shortcomings and God’s response.

Exodus 2:11-15, 3:1-6

• Moses: Kills an Egyptian who was beating a Hebrew, and hides his body in the sand.  Not long after “Moses was afraid and thought, ‘what I did must have become known’” and then he fled the scene.
• God's Response: The Lord appears to Moses, calling him by name from within a burning bush.

Exodus 3:7-12

• Moses: After God reveals that God is sending Moses to bring the people out of Egypt, Moses questions God in fear… “Who am I to do this?”
• God's Response: To Moses in reply: “I will be with you.”

Exodus 3:13-15

• Moses: Questions God in fear…“What if I go to the Israelites and they ask me what your name is?”
• God's Response: Answers… “I am who I am.  This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’”

Exodus 4:1-9

• Moses: Questions God in fear… “What if they don’t believe me or listen to me?”
• God's Response: Answers by giving him miraculous signs as demonstrative proof that God is with him.

Exodus 4:10-12

• Moses: Defies God out of fear… “Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent”
• God's Response: “Now go: I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.”

Exodus 4:13-17

• Moses: Defies God out of fear… “Pardon your servant, Lord. Please send someone else”
• God's Response: Burning with anger against Moses, yet offers to line up his brother Aaron as a partner.

Moses repeatedly stumbles and bumbles in his conversation with God.  And yet God continues to call Moses and reveal himself to him intimately.  God is gracious to Moses even when his tragic flaw “pushes God’s buttons” of anger.

Personal Identification Questions

• Where might this tragic flaw show up in your story?

 

 

• How do you experience fearfulness in your human relationships?  How do you experience fear in your relationship with God?  How might you drag your feet in responding when God calls you?

• What causes you to “give up on yourself” when facing a challenge?  How might you struggle with feelings that God has given up on you?  How meaningful is it to you that God being “fed up” with us doesn’t mean that he’s going to give up on us?

Prayer of Confession

LORD, why is it so easy for me to fall into fear?
I’m sorry…
For being content with fearfulness in responding to your call;
For how my fears lead me to negatively influence others;
For assuming that your frustration with me means that you will give up on me;
Lead me not into temptation, and deliver me from evil.
Amen.

Encouragement

Psalm 103:8 (NIV)
The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.

2 Timothy 1:7

For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.