"Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods: for in the thing wherein they dealt proudly he was above them." (Exodus 18:11, KJV)
This is Moses' father-in-law, Jethro, speaking. The testimony of what the Living Triune God did for the Jews and against the Egyptians was ringing throughout the region. Not only Jethro, but also the nations surrounding him were hearing of the mighty acts of the Blessed Trinity.
What I can gather from the Interlinear Hebrew Bible, this is one of those Biblical passages which seems to be difficult to translate into the English. The CEV says, "Now I know that the Lord is the greatest God, because he has rescued Israel from their arrogant enemies." I checked other translations of our text, but I like the way the KJV translates it, "....He was above them." Our God, Who has revealed Himself solely in Jesus Christ, is above nations and gods of nations. One of my favorite passages is 1 Corinthians 8:5, 6, "For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth, (as there be gods many, and lords many,) but to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him." The battle then, as now, is between the, "gods many, and lords many," and our, "One God, the Father,..and One Lord Jesus Christ,"..and One Holy Spirit; but, "no fear." When the proud deal, "proudly He [, is] above them." The Egyptians were just pawns in the hands of the, "gods many, and lords many." The Jews, on the other hand, were the benefactors of The, "One God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by Him"---------------- so too, my friend are you and I.
I remind my fellow Americans in this hour, then, that the coming election, the choices which Americans will make in the next 36 hours, will determine the future of this heretofore great nation. It will determine not so much who, as what will rule this nation in the future. Do not be misled by the religious "God-has-everything-under-control people, which is far too often just code for, "I don't need to do anything." People who pray and do not vote might as well not pray. "There is not a place to which the Christian can withdraw from the world, whether it be outwardly or in the sphere of the inner life. Any attempt to escape from the world must sooner or later be paid for with a sinful surrender to the world" (Bohnoeffer, emphasis mine).
In light of our text and the prompting of the Holy Spirit, I am praying and, if I may be so bold, declaring Deuteronomy 23:3-5 today and tomorrow, along with fasting tomorrow. "An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter the assembly of the Lord; even to the tenth generation none of his descendants shall enter the assembly of the Lord forever, because they did not meet you with bread water on the road when you came out of Egypt, and because they hired against you Balaam the son of Beor from Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse you (MSNBC, CNN and the like?) Nevertheless the Lord your God would not listen to Balaam, but the Lord Your God turned the curse into a blessing, for you because the Lord Your God loves you." I leave any further interpretation to you.
Father, in Jesus' Name, I thank You that You have always, "turned the curse into a blessing for," all who obey You in Jesus Christ. Amen.
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If you could like to participate in a conference prayer call sometime within the next 36 hours, let me know. If/when I hear from anyone, I will then set a time.
This is Moses' father-in-law, Jethro, speaking. The testimony of what the Living Triune God did for the Jews and against the Egyptians was ringing throughout the region. Not only Jethro, but also the nations surrounding him were hearing of the mighty acts of the Blessed Trinity.
What I can gather from the Interlinear Hebrew Bible, this is one of those Biblical passages which seems to be difficult to translate into the English. The CEV says, "Now I know that the Lord is the greatest God, because he has rescued Israel from their arrogant enemies." I checked other translations of our text, but I like the way the KJV translates it, "....He was above them." Our God, Who has revealed Himself solely in Jesus Christ, is above nations and gods of nations. One of my favorite passages is 1 Corinthians 8:5, 6, "For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth, (as there be gods many, and lords many,) but to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him." The battle then, as now, is between the, "gods many, and lords many," and our, "One God, the Father,..and One Lord Jesus Christ,"..and One Holy Spirit; but, "no fear." When the proud deal, "proudly He [, is] above them." The Egyptians were just pawns in the hands of the, "gods many, and lords many." The Jews, on the other hand, were the benefactors of The, "One God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by Him"---------------- so too, my friend are you and I.
I remind my fellow Americans in this hour, then, that the coming election, the choices which Americans will make in the next 36 hours, will determine the future of this heretofore great nation. It will determine not so much who, as what will rule this nation in the future. Do not be misled by the religious "God-has-everything-under-control people, which is far too often just code for, "I don't need to do anything." People who pray and do not vote might as well not pray. "There is not a place to which the Christian can withdraw from the world, whether it be outwardly or in the sphere of the inner life. Any attempt to escape from the world must sooner or later be paid for with a sinful surrender to the world" (Bohnoeffer, emphasis mine).
In light of our text and the prompting of the Holy Spirit, I am praying and, if I may be so bold, declaring Deuteronomy 23:3-5 today and tomorrow, along with fasting tomorrow. "An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter the assembly of the Lord; even to the tenth generation none of his descendants shall enter the assembly of the Lord forever, because they did not meet you with bread water on the road when you came out of Egypt, and because they hired against you Balaam the son of Beor from Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse you (MSNBC, CNN and the like?) Nevertheless the Lord your God would not listen to Balaam, but the Lord Your God turned the curse into a blessing, for you because the Lord Your God loves you." I leave any further interpretation to you.
Father, in Jesus' Name, I thank You that You have always, "turned the curse into a blessing for," all who obey You in Jesus Christ. Amen.
**************************
If you could like to participate in a conference prayer call sometime within the next 36 hours, let me know. If/when I hear from anyone, I will then set a time.
When Peter, an 18 year old Norwegian, "heard the call to evangelize China, on that day he not only emptied his wallet into the collection plate, but included a small note with the words, 'and my life.'"
"Looking unto Jesus"
Hebrews 12:2
"Looking unto Jesus"
Hebrews 12:2
