"Therefore tell the Israelites: I'll take you as my own people and I'll be God to you. You'll know that I am God, your God who brings you out from under the cruel hard labor of Egypt. I'll bring you into the land that I promised to give Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and give it to you as your own country. I AM God."
- Exodus 6:6-8
"I love it when a plan comes together."
- John "Hannibal" Smith
The A-Team
As Americans, I think we're often frustrated when there is no plan. I think that's one of the reasons we love football so much: As a team, you huddle up and make a plan, you execute the plan, then you come back and make another plan. What could be simpler in life?
I also think this is why we hate soccer so much.
Soccer Player #1: "What's the plan?"
Soccer Player #2: "I don't know. What if we run all over the field and try to kick the ball to everybody else? Maybe something will happen in an hour or so."
Soccer Player #1: "Sounds like a plan to me."
If you're not an American, I apologize. I'm sure you have plans of some sort.
I think it's funny (and a little sad) when Christians act like there's no plan. Even more so, I get a little miffed at Christians who don't bother reading the Old Testament. Believe it or not, God revealed a four-fold plan to Moses in the book of Exodus (6:6-8), and the plan has never changed.
In that plan, God promised:
Deliverance. ("...your God who brings you out from under the cruel hard labor of Egypt.") God totally came through on that promise by rescuing the Israelites from the bondage of the Egyptians.
Community. ("I'll take you as my own people and I'll be God to you.") I think this scripture is the starting point of Israel's religious history, as well as the start of their relationship with God, and God knew how important community was in the grand scheme of things.
Intimacy. ("You'll know that I am God...") The cool thing about God is that He's the only God/god I know of who wants a relationship with His creation. He wanted the Israelites to know Him, not just appease Him out of fear.
Blessing. ("I'll bring you into the land that I promised to give Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and give it to you as your own country.") After 400 years of slavery, God promised the Israelites a home in Canaan, and God had a great track record for keeping His promises.
Sounds like a pretty good plan to me. And the amazing thing is that it hasn't changed, even though a lot of people think it has. They believe God had to regroup and re-strategize at some point. But He didn't. This was the plan all along.
Today, God still offers deliverance from sin by salvation through Jesus Christ, community by establishing the church in Jesus Christ, intimacy by wanting us to have a personal relationship with Him, and blessing by promising us an eternal home.
It still sounds like a fantastic plan to me.
Be blessed -
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