Exiting Egypt Chapter 4 P3

Exiting Egypt

“The Blessings of Obedience”

By Dennis Lee Part 3

Exodus 4:18-31

3. With Obedience God Removes His Correction

Read Ex. 4:24-26

So here is Moses on his way to Egypt, obeying God’s call when God’s hand of correction fell upon him so severely that he was just about to slay Moses. Why, because he was deliberately disobeying God in a critical area of his life.

As he lay there in obviously distress ready at any moment to kick the bucket, Moses wife, Zipporah, circumcised her son throwing the foreskin at Moses’ feet proclaiming him to be a husband of blood.

It would seem that Moses and Zipporah had a disagreement and she objected to circumcising her two sons. And it would seem that she objected so strenuously that Moses just gave in. In other words, Moses put his wife and her objections before God. To keep peace in the home, it would seem that Moses chose to avoid the fussing and arguing instead of obeying God.

But why would Zipporah object so strenuously? Wasn’t she a descendant of Abraham, whomGod had told to circumcise as a sign of the covenant he had with him. It would seem that the Mideonites didn’t follow that practice, and maybe Abraham didn’t enforce it, because they were not the covenant people. This may have riled them and may have been a point of contention.

But why was this whole thing over this issue of circumcision?

Circumcision was the sign of the covenant that God had with Israel, the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It was a sign to teach His people to put no confidence in the flesh. You see, the cutting away of the flesh was to be the picture, the symbol or sign that those who were God’s children were to never place their trust in anything but God.

Further, God stressed the critical importance of circumcision. It was a command given to Abraham that every male child was to be circumcised on the 8^th day, and that any uncircumcised male was to be cut off and separated from the people (Gen. 17:10-14).

And so this brings out several salient points

• How could Moses lead the people unless he himself obeyed God?

• How could Moses teach the covenant to people if he refused to circumcise his own son?

• How could Moses teach people to obey God if he refused to obey God?

• How could Moses teach the people to put God first if he put his wife first?

And so God had to correct Moses. But notice Zipporah’s obedience, it was in anger and disgust. Now, it would appear that Moses then sent Zipporah and his children back to her father’s home. It was only after God delivered Israel out of Egypt and while they were then in the wilderness that Jethro came to see him along with Zipporah and the boys (Gen. 18:1-5).

A couple of things to note: first her rebellion against God’s word almost cost Moses his life. Also, her rebellion would have been a devastating hindrance to Moses call and ministry.

This brings us to an important point. We must obey God in all areas of our lives. We must not hold anything back, but surrender it all to God. If not, then God has no choice. He must correct and discipline. You see, God will do everything He can to keep us from the consequences of our sins. God will keep us from harming others and ourselves. He will keep us from destroying our lives, our testimony and our witness for Him. And so, when such correction comes our direction, we had best sit up and repent from a broken and willing heart, not from a heart of bitterness. The Bible says,

My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, Nor detest His correction; for whom the Lord loves He corrects (Prov. 3:11-12a NKJV)

Jesus said,

Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He (the Father) takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit (Jn. 15:2 NKJV)

And so, God loves whom he chastens, and what that means is that we then are His children. But obedience is the key to blessing, and here God’s blessing is the removal of His discipline.