Exodus: New Direction, New Life
The Power of Passover
Text: Exodus 12
Dead horse theory
I don’t know if this is true but there is a legend about the
Dakota Sioux tribal wisdom. That has a saying “When you discover you are riding
a dead horse, get off.”
However, in the business/church world (might even apply to
military command), we often see other strategies for this situation:
Whip harder.
Change riders.
Appoint a committee to study the dead horse.
Hire a contractor to ride the dead horse.
Arrange a visit to another site to see how they ride dead
horses.
Create a training session to increase our riding ability.
Remind all concerned that "this is the way we have
always ridden this horse".
Harness several dead horses together for increased speed.
Promote the dead horse to a supervisory position.
Some people are riding dead horses, thinking that we are
going somewhere, when in reality we are stuck in our past, our routines and
sometimes in our sin. If we don’t get off the dead horse soon, we’ll be dying
as well. Life, especially the Christian life is about change. We see just such
a time of change in the book of Exodus chapter 12. It was time for a change,
time for a new life for Israel.
Life In The New Year Exodus 12:1-2
And the LORD spake
unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, This month shall be unto you the beginning of
months: it shall be the first month of the year to you.
God Makes a New Year
God tells the Israelites that a new calendar is starting.
It will be a time of complete change.
There will be a different new year from now on. They will
move to new land, and they will live new life. They would be free and no longer
slaves.
So radical would be the changes be that from that moment on
it would be remembered by the marking of the New Year on their calendar. From
this point on the new year would be Abib. Later it was called “Nisan” and comes
close to our April. The year used to began with the month Tisri, when the
harvest was gathered in. - Barnes'.
God Always Brings Change
Let me share some quotes with you about change. They might
sum up what we sometimes feel like when we are contemplating changes in our own
life.
Quotes:
Change is the handmaiden nature requires to do her miracles with. - Mark Twain (1835–1910)
Change is the nursery of music, joy, life, and eternity.
-John Donne (1572–1631)
Christians are supposed not merely to endure change, nor
even to profit by it, but to cause it. - Harry Emerson Fosdick (1878–1969)
Some of us can relate to this quote, “With me, a change of
trouble is as good as a vacation.” - David Lloyd George
This morning what I am challenge you to accept, understand
and even anticipate that our God is a God of change. He does it throughout history. The Bible is a record of one
change after the other, from creation, to the flood, to the beginning of the
nation of Israel, to the new Jerusalem, and New Heaven and earth. He changes
hearts, he changes nations and he changes churches through the greatest
catalyst of all eternity Jesus Christ.
Scripture:
2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is
a new creature: old things are passed away; behold all things are become new.
Galatians 6:15 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision
availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature.
Revelation 21:5 And he that sat upon the throne said,
Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are
true and faithful.
Those are strong verses containing powerful truths but we
must personally come to face what they mean when it confronts us with our own
need to change as God leads.
A new start, a new life in the Lord always means leaving the
old behind. The Israelites had to leave Egypt, their homes, perhaps many
of their friends.It was not easy but it was necessary and by God’s will and
power it was worth every loss.
No matter how hard it is to change, or how difficult it is
to leave things behind, we need to embrace the change that God will bring
because it always, always will be better than the old. Don’t keep trying to
ride that old dead horse, sooner or later it won’t just be the horse that is
dead.
Wesley and the Robber
(Now I’m not a big fan of John Wesley, after all he gave us
the Methodists, but I like a lot of things he said and did. So let me tell you
a story about John Wesley and the road agent, what we now call a robber.)
As John Wesley rode across Hounslow Heath late one night,
singing a favorite hymn, he was startled by a fierce voice shouting, “Halt,”
while a firm hand seized the horse’s bridle. Then the man demanded, “Your money
or your life.”
Wesley
obediently emptied his pockets of the few coins they contained and invited the
robber to examine his saddlebags which were filled with books. Disappointed at
the result, the robber was turning away when evangelist cried, “Stop! I have
something more to give you.”
The robber,
wondering at this strange call, turned back. Then Wesley, bending down toward
him, said in solemn tones, “My friend, you may live to regret this sort of a
life in which you are engaged. If you ever do, I beseech you to remember this,
‘The blood of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, cleanseth us from all sin.’” The robber
hurried silently away, and the man of God rode along, praying in his heart that
the word spoken might be fixed in the robber’s conscience.
Years
later, at the close of a Sunday evening service with the people streaming from
the large building, many lingered around the doors to see the aged preacher,
John Wesley.
A stranger
stepped forward and earnestly begged to speak with Mr. Wesley. What a surprise
to find that this was the robber of Hounslow Heath, now a well-to-do tradesman
in the city, but better still, a child of God! The words spoken that night long
ago had been used of God in his conversion.
Raising the
hand of John Wesley to his lips, he affectionately kissed it and said in tones
of deep emotion, “To you, dear sir, I owe it all.”
Wesley
replied softly, “Nay, nay, my friend, not to me, but to the precious blood of
Christ which cleanseth us from all sin.”
That highway man found change in Jesus Christ and it was the
best change he could ever make and it brings us to our next point. Change this
profound requires something much greater than our strength and resolve. It
requires sacrifice.
Life In the Lamb Exodus 12:3-7
Speak ye unto all the
congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take
to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for
an house: And if the household be too
little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house take it
according to the number of the souls; every man according to his eating shall
make your count for the lamb. Your lamb
shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from
the sheep, or from the goats: And ye
shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole
assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening. And they shall take of the blood, and strike
it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they
shall eat it.
God Starts New Life At The Passover
The single event that for the Hebrews, would make the new
completely break from the old was the Passover lamb. God told Moses that each house was to take a male lamb w/o
spot or blemish. It was to be slain in the evening with the whole assembly of
Israel. They were to take the blood of the lamb and put it upon the doorposts
of the house. Then they were to eat the lamb with all their family.
This would be the last action they took as slaves, for once
they partook of the Passover lamb they would be made free by the power of God.
For that night the Angel of the Lord passed through the land of Egypt and those
who did not put themselves under the blood of the lamb suffered death and
heartache. Those who refused to accept God’s protection, refused to accept
their need to change, suffered the terrible loss of life by the wrath of God.
But those who believed, those who made that slain lamb the
sign of their faith, were spared God’s wrath and they found a new life and
freedom.
New Life Starts With The Slain Lamb
Just as God brought new life to the Israelites through a
slain lamb, He will bring new life to us through THE slain lamb, slain as
though from the beginning of time. Slain given us new life, slain to protect us
from the wrath of God’s justice in the punishment of our sin.
The Bible tells us that Jesus of Nazareth is the Lamb of
God.
John 1:29 The next
day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which
taketh away the sin of the world.
It is through him and only through His shed blood that new
life can start.
1 Peter 1: 18-19 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not
redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain
conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious
blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:
If there is to be a new life for us, if there is to be a new
start for us it must be through the blood of the Lamb of God.
This is our salvation
from sin, this is our salvation from slavery, this is our salvation from
tradition and routine, this is our salvation from death.
We must always look
to the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ slain for us and place ourselves under the
protection of that precious blood. That is the sign of our faith, just as it
was for those Hebrews that first Passover night. Then and only then can we
really change. Change from fear to hope, from sorrow to joy from death to life.
William Wilberforce, a man who changed the world through Christ
When William Wilberforce was brought to Christ he went with
fear and trembling to his friend, the great statesman of the day, William Pitt,
to tell him of the change. For two hours his friend endeavored to convince him
that he was becoming visionary, fanatical, if not insane. But the young convert
was steadfast and immovable. He had spent his twenty-fifth birthday at the top
wave and highest flow of those amusements—the racecourse and the ballroom—which
had swallowed up a large portion of his youth. He had laughed and sung, and
been envied for his gaiety and happiness. But true happiness he had never found
till he found Christ. And now he laid his wealth and wit and eloquence and influence
at the feet of his Lord, his motto being—“Whatsoever others do, as for me, I
will serve the Lord.”
God changed William Wilberforce and William Wilberforce
changed England and the world by working for decades in Parliament to finally
eradicate slavery in England and to influence the emancipation of all slaves in
the Christian nations throughout the world. That is the kind of change God can
bring, first with one life and then that life that can change everything around
it.
Finally, we need to also understand that change often means
moving, taking action or going where God wants us to go.
Life In a New Land Exodus 12:8-14
And they shall eat
the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter
herbs they shall eat it. Eat not of it
raw, nor sodden at all with water, but roast with fire; his head with his legs,
and with the purtenance thereof. And ye
shall let nothing of it remain until the morning; and that which remaineth of
it until the morning ye shall burn with fire.
And thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your
feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the
LORD'S passover. For I will pass through
the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of
Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute
judgment: I am the LORD. And the blood
shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the
blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy
you, when I smite the land of Egypt. And
this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the
LORD throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for
ever.
God Says Go!
God tells His people to prepare to move. They are to be
dressed, with their staff in the hands and shoes on their feet. They are to go
when the Lord gives the signal. That night He would pass through the land
separating the old world of Egypt from the new world of the Promised Land.
Those who believed God would have the blood upon the door. Those who rejected
God or could not leave Egypt would not.
When the death angel passed over Israel it would start their
move toward the new promised land. Now from that day forth, they would keep the
Passover as a memorial to what God had done in making them free from Egypt’s
chains of slavery.
Are You Ready To Go?
I wonder this morning, are you prepared, when God speaks, to
go? Are we dressed in the armor of the Lord? Do we have our
staff, the Word of God, in our hands? Are we hastening to go and do what God
tell us to do? When the day of opportunity comes will we be ready to move
forward to the promised land or will we stay as slaves in Egypt?
This morning as you
sit in this church, will you respond as God touches your heart and tells you to
come and find a new life through Jesus Christ? Or would you look back to your
old life, your old friends, your old disbelief, your old sin and decide to stay
in the bonds of Egypt another day?
The death angel comes
into every life one day, but only those who have made Jesus Christ their
Savior, only those who have put His blood on the lintel and doorpost of their
hearts will be passed over and spared from the judgment of God to go from this
life to eternal life.
If God should open a door of opportunity for this Church
would we go through it? Would we see the chance to renew our work for God?
Would we take our staff in our hands and
work where God directed us? Or would we decide to hold on to the past,
our traditions or our fears and miss the opportunity that God opened for us.
Are you ready this morning to move when God says go?
Those who are will go on to the Promised Land, to the
newness of God. Those who are not will stay behind and miss the blessing that
only God brings with His call to change. I hope and pray that I will always be
ready and then choose to go when God signals, “It is time.” I hope and pray
that you are ready today.
Phillip Bliss always chose to go with the Lord
Bliss the writer of many hymns we still sing today, was born
in a Pennsylvania log cabin in 1838. His father was Mr. Isaac Bliss, a strong
believer in the Lord, who taught the family to pray daily. His dad loved music
and encouraged Philip to sing. Bliss had very little formal education and was
mostly taught by his mother, from the Bible. At only 11, he left home to work
in timber camps and sawmills. Every once in a while, he was able to go to
school.
Despite this, at 17, Bliss had been able to qualify as a
teacher. In 1856, he became a schoolmaster at Hartsville, New York, and during
the summer he worked on a farm.
In 1857, Bliss met the famous hymn writer, William B.
Bradbury who wrote the tune for Jesus Loves Me and the hymn Just As I Am. Bradbury
challenged Bliss to become a music teacher and writer. So by 1858, he became a
music teacher in Rome Academy, Pennsylvania.
There in the same year he met Lucy Young, they fell in love
and were married on June 1, 1859.
At age 22, Bliss took another step out and he became an
itinerant music teacher. On horseback, he went from community to community
teaching music and carrying his own a melodeon, a portable pump organ.
In 1864, the Blisses moved to Chicago. Bliss was then 26. He
became known as a singer and teacher. He began in earnest writing Gospel songs.
In 1869, Bliss made friends with the great preacher, D. L.
Moody. Moody and others urged him to give up his job teaching music and become
a missionary singer. In 1874, Bliss chose to go where the Lord was leading him
and he stepped out and became a full-time evangelist. Bliss by this time was
making significant amounts of money from song royalties but he gave them to
charity and used only enough to support himself and his family as he served the
Lord now as an evangelist.
Then on the 29th of December, 1876, the train on which Bliss
and his wife were traveling in approached Ashtabula, Ohio. While the train was
crossing a trestle bridge, it collapsed, all the cars fell into the ravine
below. Bliss escaped from the wreckage, but as he looked around he realized
that his wife was still trapped in the carriages that had now caught fire.
Bliss ran back to the burning train cars to try and save Lucy. This was the
last that anyone saw of the Blisses, no trace of either body was ever
discovered. Ninety-two of the 159 passengers died in what became known as the
Ashtabula Disaster. The Blisses left behind their two sons, just four and one
years-olds.
Found in his baggage, which somehow survived the crash and
fire, were the lyrics of the song "I Will Sing of My Redeemer." It
became one of Bliss’ most famous songs so much so that it was one of the first
songs recorded by Thomas Edison on his new invention, the phonograph.
Phillip Bliss lived his life always ready to go and serve
where God called. He was not afraid of change or challenge. He knew that if God
called, he must go. He gave his life and his living away because he knew Jesus
had given his life for Phillip Bliss.
When I was young I heard a hymn written by Phillip Bliss
that I thought was one of the saddest invitation songs ever written. I think it
still might be. Its number 322 in our hymnals.
Almost Persuaded by P. P. Bliss
"Almost persuaded,” now to believe;
“Almost persuaded,” Christ to receive;
Seems now some soul to say,
“Go, Spirit, go Thy way,
Some more convenient day
On Thee I’ll call.”
“Almost persuaded,” come, come today;
“Almost persuaded,” turn not away;
Jesus invites you here,
Angels are ling’ring near,
Prayers rise from hearts so dear,
O wand’rer, come.
“Almost persuaded,” harvest is past!
“Almost persuaded,” doom comes at last!
“Almost” cannot avail;
“Almost” is but to fail!
Sad, sad, that bitter wail,
“Almost,” but lost.
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