Exodus 15:19-17:7 + Matthew 22:1-33 + Psalm 27:1-6 + Proverbs 6:20-26
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Old Testament - Today in Exodus chapter 15 we read about the prophet Miriam! You'll recall from Exodus chapter 2 that Miriam watched Pharaoh's daughter draw Moses from the Nile when he was a baby and Miriam wisely suggested that she find a Hebrew nurse for the baby (Moses' mom). We'll read about Miriam again in Numbers chapter 12 with a very interesting interaction with Aaron, Moses & God - you can read about it now at this link. Other female prophets we will read about in Bible include Deborah (Judges 4:4), Isaiah's wife (Isaiah 8:3), Huldah (2 Kings 22:14), Noadiah (Nehemiah 6:14), Anna (Luke 2:36) and Philips daughters (Acts 21:9). Below is an image of Miriam's song:

Verse 26 stood out to me in this chapter: "If you will listen carefully to the voice of the LORD your God and do what is right in his sight, obeying his commands and laws, then I will not make you suffer the diseases I sent on the Egyptians; for I am the LORD who heals you." It seems to me that here the Israelites are getting a foreshadowing of the Laws to come. "Listen to God - do what is right in his sight. And you will not suffer. I will heal you." We'll dive more into this when we get to the Laws - but, I'll say this now and repeat it often - I do believe that the Laws for the Israelites, as we even see in this verse, were born out of compassion from God. God wanted to preserve and care and heal his people - and imagine living in a desert for 40 years, coming out of slavery... the laws were beneficial for your very well being and life!

Today in Exodus chapter 16 we read about Manna and Quail from heaven. Verses 29 & 30 were powerful for me today, as God speaks about the Sabbath: ""Do they not realize that I have given them the seventh day, the Sabbath, as a day of rest? That is why I give you twice as much food on the sixth day, so there will be enough for two days. On the Sabbath day you must stay in your places. Do not pick up food from the ground on that day." So the people rested on the seventh day." You will probably read on this blog over and over and over again about the Sabbath... I am a huge fan of the concept! And such a poor practitioner of it... I honestly think the Sabbath is one of the most compassionate things God ever created for us. And, don't get me wrong - my personal view is not legalistic in the sense of the Sabbath.... But.... personally, I think the Sabbath is just such a blessing of a gift to us. And I think we - I - us - humans - often do such a bad job of really taking a Sabbath. Really taking 1 day a week to really rest and relax and be with God. Recently I read in our local newspaper about a Hasidic Jewish rapper who came through our town on tour - yes, seriously, there is a Hasidic Jewish rapper who is getting hugely popular nationally. Anyhow, the article - in our secular newspaper - wrote about how this rapper will not perform on Fridays or Saturdays in observance of the Jewish Sabbath Law - and Hasidic Jews strongly observe most all of the Laws still today (I believe... except for animal sacrifices - simply because there is not the Temple in Jerusalem today for the sacrifices). Anyhow - I'm going off on some tangents here - but, the point is, that when I read about how this guy will not perform shows on the 2 best money-making nights of the week for concerts, because of his observance of the Sabbath - I dare say his love of God and his appreciation of the Sabbath - it really struck me. And it really reminded me of how really really bad I am at truly resting and being with God 1 day a week. And I'm not feeling guilty about this per se... but maybe I am feeling convicted... :) Basically - I am feeling that God is really calling me to slow down and simply rest and be with him 1 day a week. A Sabbath.

Verse 31 quick comment - "In time, the food became known as manna. It was white like coriander seed, and it tasted like honey cakes." I love that manna means "What is it?"! That is awesome... I think you'll notice throughout our Bible readings this year that names can often be very descriptive of locations, happenings, personalities - and can even be simple questions like "What is it??" Great commentary on Exodus chapter 16 entitled "Boot Camp and "C" Rations" :) is online at bible.org at this link. Below is "The Gathering of Manna" from 1614 by the Italian painter Guido Reni:

New Testament - Today we read in Matthew chapter 22 the Parable of the Wedding Banquet. This parable has always been so convicting to me personally. It's basically about a king preparing an amazing feast at a wedding banquet, and inviting a ton of people to come to the feast. But - the people don't accept the invitation! They are "too busy" – taking care of their fields and their businesses. And I think about this parable in my own life. Am I sometimes "too busy" to accept Jesus' invitation to be with him? Am I sometimes too focused on my work or my social life or other distractions? Do I get myself so "distracted" that I don't spend time with Jesus? And in doing this, am I missing out on an amazing spiritual feast? How about you? Do you believe that Jesus is inviting you to spend more time with him? Are you "too busy" to do so? Do you believe that spending time with Jesus will actually be an amazing spiritual feast for your soul? Will you accept Jesus' invitation to the wedding banquet?

In verse 21 we read Jesus' famous line ""give to Caesar what belongs to him. But everything that belongs to God must be given to God." What you may not realize about the preceding verses is that the Pharisees and the supporters of Herod were trying to trap Jesus. Per the OYB Companion commentary, The Pharisees, a religious group, opposed the Roman occupation of Palestine. The followers of Herod - or Herodians - were a political party that supported the policies of Rome and Herod Antipas. Normally these 2 groups did not get along at all - but they united here to try to trap Jesus. If Jesus had said it was right to pay taxes to Caesar, the Pharisees would say he is opposed to God. And if Jesus had said the taxes should not be paid, the Herodians would have had him arrested. Jesus answer amazed them both... Below is an image of the Denarius (Roman coin) of Tiberius Caesar. Tiberius (42 B.C. - A.D. 37) became Roman Emperor in A.D. 14. This would have been the picture on the coin shown to Jesus, when he asked in verse 20: "Whose picture and title are stamped on it?"

Psalms - Psalm 27 verse 13 is so beautiful - "Yet I am confident that I will see the LORD's goodness while I am here in the land of the living." Do you have this same confidence? What are some examples of how you have seen God's goodness here in the land of the living? What are some examples of how you are sharing God's goodness with others here in the land of the living?

Proverbs - Proverbs chapter 6 verse 23 should make each of us rejoice in this amazing blessing of reading - and learning! - from the One Year Bible this year! "For these commands and this teaching are a lamp to light the way ahead of you. The correction of discipline is the way to life." Are you learning as you have read the Bible this past month? Is reading the Bible each day changing your relationship with God? Is it changing your behavior in any way? Is reading the Bible a lamp to light the way ahead of you? Will reading the Bible each day change the way you live the rest of your life? Do you believe that the correction of discipline is the way to life? Will you embrace and pray for and accept God's holy and divine correction of discipline in your life this year?

Worship Video: Today's readings about Jesus inviting us to his feast remind me of the For King and Country song "Fix My Eyes:"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Lol1tOMR3Y
Where are you fixing your eyes? Click here to fix your eyes on Jesus!
Please join us in memorizing and meditating on a verse of Scripture today: ""Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's." Matthew 22:21 NIV
Prayer Point: Pray that God would show you what in your life He would have you give only to Him.
Comments from You and Questions of the Day: Based on God's words about the Sabbath in our Exodus readings today, do you take a Sabbath? What do you do - or not do - on the Sabbath? Does it bless the other 6 days of your week? How long have you been in the habit of taking a Sabbath? Is it hard to get in the habit? Any other "tricks of the trade" you can share with all of us about taking a Sabbath? Please post up any wisdom you can share about your Sabbath habits in the Comments section below! Thanks! You can change our weekly habits here with your Comments! :) Also, what verses or insights stand out to you in today's readings? Please post up by clicking on the "Comments" link below!
God bless,
Mike
p.s. Download our monthly Small Group study notes for our Bible readings at this link.
p.s. #2 - Download a schedule of our Bible readings for the year in PDF format at this link.
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Exodus 15:19-17:7
Praising God one minute then bitterly complaining to Him the next, although it was by way of Moses and Aaron. Fickle people serving an all-powerful God. That is the way I am. I am thoroughly convicted by the following passage.
And Miriam sang in response to them, "Sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously; the horse and its rider he has thrown into the sea." Then Moses caused Israel to journey from the Red Sea, and they went out into the desert of Shur. They went three days into the desert, and they found no water. Then they came to Marah, but they were not able to drink the waters of Marah, because they were bitter. (That is why its name was called Marah.) So the people murmured against Moses, saying, "What can we drink?"
(Exodus 15:21-24 NET.)
There are times in our lives, especially when we are new believers, when God moves mightily in our lives to get our attention, to make us go, “Hmmm,” when we experience His signs and wonders. Yet after our faith begins to grow and He does not move in the same way as before when we experience crises, we complain bitterly. We understand that with our children as they grow, we shouldn’t be tying their shoes at twenty. We at first feed them but we should be teaching them how to feed themselves. God brings us out to feed ourselves, to face crises with the skill sets He has developed in us, yet we cry out, “Where are you God?” when crises come.
I’ve heard it said that crises do not come to destroy us they come to reveal the cracks in our lives. The writer of Proverbs puts it this way,
If you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small. (Proverbs 24:10 AMP)
I think we struggle with this because of fear: fear of being thought of as stupid, inept and just plan weak by others; and the others are not God. If our cracks are revealed in the time of crises then we have an itemized list of things to present to God, not things to cover up with white wash or things to throw back in the face of God.
The key to our handling the kitchen sink when it is throw at us is the verse that caught Mike’s attention, verse 26th of chapter 15, is in the middle of that verse,
Saying, If you will diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord your God and will do what is right in His sight … (Exodus 15:26 AMP). Doing what is right in His sight, not our sight or the neighbor, yes even not our parents or pastors’ sight, but His sight. In order to accomplish that we must know what is right in His sight by knowing intimately God’s Word. God and His Word are one as stated in the first verse of the first chapter of the Book of John. I had a crisis this week and I did not adhere to this concept. I forgot what God had done in my life. Not only did I forget I counted His past works as moot.
Grace and Peace,
Ramona
Posted by: Ramona | February 01, 2025 at 10:28 PM