A God Who Hears the Cry of our Generation.

The Israelites faced bondage, fear, and desperation at its finest. Their slavery seemed inescapable, and rightly so. Let’s read a few passages out of Exodus in order to fully grasp the desolation in which the Israelites faced, and more importantly, the deliverance in which the Lord faithfully brought forth:

 (Exodus 2: 23-25) The Israelites groaned in their slavery and cried out, and their cry for help because of their slavery went up to God. ²⁴ God heard their groaning and he remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob. ²⁵ So God looked on the Israelites and was concerned about them.

(Exodus 3:7-12, 18-20) The LORD said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. ⁸ So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. ⁹ And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. ¹⁰ So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.

 ¹¹ But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?

 ¹² And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you^[b] will worship God on this mountain.

The elders of Israel will listen to you. Then you and the elders are to go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. Let us take a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the LORD our God.’ ¹⁹ But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless a mighty hand compels him. ²⁰ So I will stretch out my hand and strike the Egyptians with all the wonders that I will perform among them. After that, he will let you go.

A beautiful truth that is demonstrated in this passage is the personal feature of God’s character. In chapter 3, we see that God saw the misery of the Israelites, He heard their cry, He was concerned about the suffering in which they were experiencing, and to top it all off, He was coming down to rescue them with a mighty hand and outstretched arm. But before we stop there, let’s just make it clear that you can take it to the bank that He is without a doubt the same God right now that He was 2,000 years ago. Are you surrounded by inescapable, disquieting circumstances? He sees it. Is your heart broken? He hears that cry, whether it be an internal or external cry. He is intimately acquainted with you and whatever your situation may be, and you better bet that He’s concerned about it and that He’s coming to rescue you. He’s not a God who sits back and watches the world tear apart His children. In fact, according to John 16:33, “He has overcome the world”. Therefore, what have we to fear?

Another inspiring aspect that I would like to point out in this passage is the inadequacy of Moses, who was significantly troubled, and rightly so. After the Lord informing him that he was not only being sent to go before Pharaoh, but to also bring the Israelites out of Egypt, why wouldn’t he be concerned? Think for a second of the most dominating and intimidating authority that you can think of, triple the dominating and intimidating factor, and there you have it. Moses was going before an unapproachable king, and if that wasn’t enough, God was making an outlandish request. Moses responded to this peculiar request with, “Who am I, that I should go...” (Ch. 3, verse 11). I think we can agree that Moses’ response to God’s command wasn’t anything out of the ordinary. In fact, I’d be willing to bet that our response wouldn’t be all that different. But let’s take a look at God’s reassuring response to Moses’ concern: “I WILL BE WITH YOU” (Ch. 3, verse 12). See, God didn’t expect Moses “to be able to do it”. He knew that Moses wasn’t and could never be sufficient in and of himself. After all, he did create Him with His very own hands. The reason God sent Moses to carry out this fearful task is because Moses wasn’t going to do it. God was going to do it through him. It’s important to note that God knows our limits; He knows that we’re only human, and He therefore doesn’t leave us out to dry. When He commands, we may have every right to be troubled, which is why it’s essential for us to remember that we have the Holy Spirit dwelling inside of us. Although we are significantly inadequate, God is sufficiently adequate. Therefore we should be anxious for nothing.

Lastly, let’s look at verse 19 in chapter 3. God said to Moses, “But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless a mighty hand compels him”. I can guarantee you that His dominating power covers any enemy that we may, and inevitably will, face. Whatever you are fighting to overcome, you cannot overcome. Only a mighty hand can overcome the enemy who seeks destruction in your life.  Know that you cannot overcome your enemies, and allow the King of Kings to bring His mighty hand into the picture.  Rest assured that He will never be late, and more importantly, He will never lose.