October 11th

Exodus 6:13-8:32; Matthew 26:47-68; Psalm 19:7-14

This morning is about links. Right at the start of this journey I mentioned that we would see the bigger picture by reading all of the Bible and this is one of those places where that is true.

The Exodus reading in fact leads us to the night in which Jesus was betrayed which we are also in the middle of reading. The Old Testament passage today sets out the start of the Passover, the first few plagues that would lead up to the death of Egypt’s firstborn and the escape of the people of Israel. We cannot underestimate the importance of this story in the life of the people of Israel and Jewish people to this very day. And it was on this festival that Jesus shared the last supper with his disciples. There are times when we can read a well known passage and forget to relate it to the Gospel that was written so much later.

And it is not just a link between special days, this story is also a huge part of our theology. This is a story of salvation just as the death of Christ (very imminent in our Matthew reading) is also about Salvation. We believe in a God who saves his people, from the torment of the Egyptians and the ultimate salvation from sin and death. We have already seen the way that God reaches out and helps people when they are in need and how relevant that is to our own situation and this is the story of the Exodus. And it is this very same God who reached out by sending his son, knowing he would have to die on the cross in order that we may be brought back to Him and have eternal life.

By drawing the links between both stories we come to know the God of salvation much better. We come to be able to trust Him much more deeply with our lives knowing that his saving acts stretch across time and stretch to us today. So from our readings on this day, know that you are saved. From any torments of life (like the Israelites) and for all eternity through the death of Christ.