Exodus 13

God is finally bringing the Israelites out of Egypt, and along the way He will make them all dependent on the true God.

Will: https://www.instagram.com/thewilliamreich

Transcript

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Hello and welcome to the Christians on College Campuses podcast. My name is Will from the University of Oklahoma, and today we are talking about Exodus chapter 13. So, previously the Lord passed over the houses of the Israelites and killed the firstborn sons of the Egyptians and all of the firstborns of their flocks and herds of animals. However, God still wants the firstborn of the Israelites. It says that the Lord said to Moses, Dedicate to me every firstborn among the Israelites. The first offspring to be born of both humans and animals belongs to me. So Moses said to the people, This is a day to remember forever. The day you left Egypt, the place of your slavery. Today the Lord has brought you out by the power of his mighty hand. Remember, eat no food containing yeast. On this day in early spring, in the month of Ab, you have been set free. You must celebrate this event in the month each year, after the Lord brings you into the land of Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Hivites, and Jebusites. He swore to your ancestors that he would give you this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. For seven days the bread you eat must be made without yeast, then on the seventh day celebrate a feast to the Lord. Eat bread without yeast during those seven days. In fact, there must be no yeast bread or any yeast at all found within the borders of your land during this time. On the seventh day you must explain to your children, I am celebrating what the Lord did for me when I left Egypt. This annual festival will be a visible sign to you, like a mark branded on your hand or your forehead. Let it remind you always to recite this teaching of the Lord. With a strong hand the Lord rescue you from Egypt. So observe the decree of this festival at the appointed time each year. This is what you must do when the Lord fulfills the promise he swore to you and your ancestors. When he gives you the land where the Canaanites now live, you must present all firstborn sons and firstborn male animals to the Lord, for they belong to him. A firstborn donkey may be brought back from the Lord by presenting a lamb or young goat in its place. But you do not buy it back, you must break its neck. But if you do not buy it back, you must break its neck. However, you must buy back every firstborn son. And in the future your children will ask you, what does all this mean? Then you will tell them, With the power of his mighty hand, the Lord brought us out of Egypt, the place of our slavery. Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, so the Lord killed all the firstborn males throughout the land of Egypt, both people and animals. This is why I now sacrifice all the firstborn males to the Lord, except that the firstborn sons are always bought back. This ceremony will be like a mark branded on your hand or your forehead. It is a reminder that the power of the Lord's mighty hand brought us out of Egypt. So, like it says, the Lord brought the Israelites out of Egypt because he killed the firstborn son and male animal of the Egyptians, right? And so Pharaoh was finally like, get out of here, please, I'm done. Get out of my land, I'm done with you, I don't want to deal with you anymore. And when Pharaoh finally let the people go, God did not lead them along the main road that runs throughout Philistine territory, even though that was the shortest route to the Promised Land. God said, If the people are faced with a battle, they might change their minds and return to Egypt. So God led them in a roundabout way through the wilderness towards the Red Sea. Thus the Israelites left Egypt like an army ready for battle. Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for Joseph had made the sons of Israel swear to do this. He said, God will certainly come to help you. When he does, you must take my bones with you from this place. The Israelites left Sucketh and camped at Etham on the edge of the wilderness. The Lord went ahead with them. The Lord went ahead of them. He guided them during the day with a pillar of cloud, and he provided light at night with a pillar of fire. This allowed them to travel by day or by night, and the Lord did not remove the pillar of cloud or the pillar of fire from its place in front of the people. The Lord is leading the way with a pillar of clouds during the day and a pillar of fire during the night. That is honestly so cool. I mean imagine like you're just walking and or like I guess today you're driving, right? You're driving, you don't know where to go, and instead of using Google Maps, there is a pillar of fire or a pillar of clouds telling you where to go. That it would be just so fun, so cool. But I think what's important in the story is the Lord is providing everything the Israelites need and will need to get to the promised land that he has promised them so long ago. And he wants to do that with us. There are things he has promised us. There are also things that he wants us to do for him that will bring him glory and honor. And he will provide us what we need to get it done. No matter what it is, there will always be a way if we look through the doors that the Lord is opening for us, we will get from one place to another and end up where God wants us to be. And he will provide everything that we need along the way. All we have to do is trust him. And so Jesus is coming right now, and I pray that whenever we start our journeys, to do what you call us to do, to follow you, that you provide us with what we need, so that we can do the good works that you have called us to do on earth. I pray that whenever times get hard, that we remember that you are always with us and you will always lead the way. All we have to do is follow and trust you. And in Jesus' name I pray. Amen.