Suffering To Setup Series

Suffering to Setup

Exodus 1:7-14

Ex 1:7 And the children of Israel were fruitful, and increased abundantly, and multiplied, and waxed exceeding mighty; and the land was filled with them. (8) Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph.

(9) And he said unto his people, Behold, the people of the children of Israel [are] more and mightier than we: (10) Come on, let us deal wisely with them; lest they multiply, and it come to pass, that, when there falleth out any war, they join also unto our enemies, and fight against us, and [so] get them up out of the land. (11) Therefore they did set over them taskmasters to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom and Raamses. (12) But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew. And they were grieved because of the children of Israel. (13) And the Egyptians made the children of Israel to serve with rigour: (14) And they made their lives bitter with hard bondage, in morter, and in brick, and in all manner of service in the field: all their service, wherein they made them serve, [was] with rigour.

There are subjects in the church we try to avoid for whatever reason. Some subjects can be considered combative or controversial while others are just unpopular and can risk turning people away because they only want to hear feel good messages, especially within Pentecostal churches we tend to keep our services up here. Today I am tasked with showing and encouraging you as born again, blood bought believers and daily followers of Jesus Christ that your victories are not on the mountaintops but in valleys of everyday living.

To my veterans in the faith, my prayer is you will find encouragement today and for those of you who are new in your walk with Christ I pray your faith will increase so that when you are dealing with life that satan will not be able to sow seeds of doubt and discouragement in your faith.

Life in general is hard. I think we can all agree with that. There are just challenges we all face in this life. There are stresses and concerns we have. As children of God, life can become an even greater challenge because it’s not just the temporal, the physical we must deal with but now there is the battle over our spirit. Paul sums up our struggles in Ro 7:14 For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. (15) For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. (16) If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good. (17) Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. (18) For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. (19) For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. (20) Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. (21) I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. (22) For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: (23) But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. (24) O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I encourage you to finish chapter 7 and even read on into chapter 8. What Paul said in Roman can be summed up in Ga 5:17 For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.

Since last fall my family is in the middle of life moments that honestly just don’t seem fair. Anyone else with me, you feel like everything is going wrong, there seems to be constant setbacks, troubles, and afflictions. You feel like every step is three steps backward. You are like where are the promises of God, why couldn’t God have warned me ahead of time, send me a dream or a vision or give me a word of knowledge that would help me through these moments.

I can imagine that the Children of Israel from my text felt the way we are feeling. God made the Abrahamic covenant in Genesis 12, God said to Abraham, And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God. I can imagine them reciting these words to themselves but wondering why are we being afflicted and held in captivity to Egypt. We are supposed to be great, but we are making someone else great. This mighty nation that can’t be numbered among the stars or sands are asking where is the promises among the afflictions?