Much like the cross is the sign of God’s faithfulness to us in the New Testament, the book of Exodus and the cry of God’s people in Egypt is God’s reminder to His people of His faithfulness in the Old Testament. He heard our cry—He rescued us. The story of Exodus paints a bigger picture of God’s sovereign work in the background, intricately folding each nation and people group into His redemptive plan.

Scripture References:

Exodus 1:5-22
Genesis 15:12-16

Center My Life | Austin Stone Worship | iTunes
Revelation 5:13 • Matthew 6:19-23 • Romans 12:1

You Never Fail | Hillsong Worship | iTunes
Psalm 73:26 • Psalm 27:1 • 2 Samuel 7:22

Dwell | Aaron Keyes | iTunes
Psalm 91:1 • Isaiah 54:17 •  Psalm 23:6

God with Us | All Sons and Daughters | iTunes
Joshua 1:9 • John 1:14 (ESV) • Psalm 68:19-20 (ESV)

Song of Moses | Aaron Keyes | iTunes
Revelation 15:3 • Exodus 15:1-3, 18 • Psalm 28:7

Overcome | Elevation Worship | iTunes

1. God is laying the foundation that He is with the Israelites and that He sees them; His hand is always moving, always working, and is ultimately going to deliver and He will use suffering to break our addiction to our temporal comforts. We are able to stand outside of our most difficult moments because we know there is a powerful, sovereign, good King ruling over them. What suffering or difficulty are you going through now or gone through recently where it might be hard to see God’s hand? What truths do you need to remember to help you trust that He is Sovereign over that situation?

2. Sometimes events of our life and our country become too big in our minds, causing God to become small. We can over-identify with the small details of God’s bigger picture. Do you find yourself trusting in a country or system of government or are you trusting in a God that causes countries to rise and to fall? What are some examples in the past month where you have placed your hope in something temporal in your life rather than God?

3. We tend to exalt ourselves over others out of fear for our own security, prosperity, or comfort. Just as the Egyptians saw the Israelites as a threat to their comfort and security and took matters into their own hands, when someone or something poses a threat to us, we tend to choose ourselves first. In what ways do you elevate yourself over others out of fear? How have you noticed this play out in your life recently?

4. Because the midwives feared God, they didn’t obey their pharaoh’s commands. When we fear God in the same way and obey Him first, the opinions of people will not hold as much weight for us. In what circumstances does your fear of man outweigh your fear of God? Why do you think we tend to put more hope in the approval of people than in our Creator? How does your use of social media and phones reflect your craving for approval?

Thoughts to Consider

– Our lives seem incredibly big to us, but they are small at the same time as God works in and through us. He may not intend comfort or ease for us as He accomplishes His bigger plan. We have to trust God with things we do not fully understand.

– Social media and phones, paired with our society’s craving for approval, leaves us “quenching” our thirst with salt water. Our thirst can only be truly quenched by God.

– Exodus 1 sets the foundation that the Egyptian pharaoh is ultimately not in charge, reminding us that, at the end of the day, even our most difficult authority is not in charge either. If our authority demands that we disobey God, we are to obey God first and foremost.

– There is nothing new about this broken world. Our only real hope is to engage people personally to put their trust in Jesus.