THURSDAY, MARCH 16, 2023

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Thursday, March 16, 2023

 

TRUST: The Lesson of the Desert

 

   “The Lord did not set his heart on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other nations, for you were the smallest of all nations! 8 Rather, it was simply that the Lord loves you, and he was keeping the oath he had sworn to your ancestors. That is why the Lord rescued you with such a strong hand from your slavery and from the oppressive hand of Pharaoh, king of Egypt.                                                            Deuteronomy 7: 8 & 9 (NLT)

 

  1. From the beginning of the exodus experience, even before the Hebrews left Egypt, they were learning what it meant to trust God.  This was true for Moses and Aaron, as well as for the flock they led.  As you read the following passages, notice how the stakes kept rising as the Hebrews were pushed to trust “a little more” each time.

The Progression of the Hebrews’ Trust in God:

 

a.     Exodus 5: 19 – 21;  6: 6 – 6

 

b.    Exodus 7: 19 – 21;  9: 8 – 10

 

c.     Exodus 9: 22 – 26 & 33

 

d.    Exodus 10: 12 – 15; 18 & 19

 

e.     Exodus 10: 21 – 23

 

f.      Exodus 14: 21 – 28

 

g.    Exodus 16: 4, 5, 22 – 26

 

h.    Exodus 17: 10 – 13

 

 

  1. READ:  Deuteronomy 8: 2 – 5.  God says that He took the Hebrews into the desert to humble them, test them and know their hearts…NOT enticing them to do wrong, but providing them the opportunity to prove the quality of their character through experience.

 

a.     What was the desert like?  READ: Numbers 20: 4 & 5;  Deuteronomy 1: 19;  8: 15 – 18;    Jeremiah 2: 6

 

 

b.    In what ways do you think life in the desert would reveal the quality of a person’s character?