BACK TO THE FUTURE

Julie Breedlove

Central Truth

Praise God for what He did, leading the Israelites out of Egypt, and get a glimpse of the eternity that awaits!

Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord,
at the presence of the God of Jacob,
who turns the rock into a pool of water,
the flint into a spring of water.
(Psalm 114:7-8)

Tremble at the Presence of the Lord

1 When Israel went out from Egypt,
the house of Jacob from a people of strange language,
2 Judah became his sanctuary,
Israel his dominion.

3 The sea looked and fled;
Jordan turned back.
4 The mountains skipped like rams,
the hills like lambs.

5 What ails you, O sea, that you flee?
O Jordan, that you turn back?
6 O mountains, that you skip like rams?
O hills, like lambs?

7 Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord,
at the presence of the God of Jacob,
8 who turns the rock into a pool of water,
the flint into a spring of water.

In verses 1-6 of Psalm 114, the writer poetically praises God for His miraculous deliverance of His people from Egypt and for His abiding with them during their travels (verses 1-2). In verses 7-8, the writer tells the people that the proper response to such a rescue is trembling in awe! This historical event (the Exodus) has cosmic consequences for us! Our God is God of the supernatural—He is not confined by the laws of nature that He created! He turns rocks into water, flints into springs. Mountains and hills skip like rams and lambs, and seas and rivers retreat at His behest. He also dwelled with the Israelites as they traversed the desert for 40 years—a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night (Exodus 13:21, Nehemiah 9:19).

Friends, that is the kind of God we serve! I do love meditating on the character of God: His infinite goodness, faithfulness, mercy, and grace. But I am also jazzed by His might and power! The same God who is sovereign over atoms and molecules is the God who will be with my firstborn when she leaves for college in two months. The God who sliced the Red Sea in half is the God who is predominant over my husband’s job change after 21 years with the same firm. The God who can make water from a stone is the God who welcomed my neighbor's 7-year-old son home after a painful battle with a terrible disease.

And be reminded that He personally led the Israelites out of slavery. Revelation 21:3 says, "And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 'Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.'" We WILL live with God on the new earth where there will be no sun because of God’s light! OMgoodness! How do we know? Well, read Revelation and also take a look at what He did with those Hebrews when they were slaves in Egypt!

1. How much do you celebrate the sovereignty and power of God?

2. Do you have an eternal perspective that is informed by what God has done in the past? Do you know anything of what awaits you in heaven? The Bible is not silent on this.

3. Is the story of the Exodus old hat to you? Ask God to restore for you the wonder of what He did there. Praise God using the words of Psalm 114.