Exodus Chapter 6 Verse 1

• This word for strong can simply be translated, “hard.” God says, because Pharaoh refuses to know, acknowledge, accept or obey Me, it will become very hard for him and you won’t have to beg for the people to be released, he will drive them out himself.  And such is the case so often when we disregard what the Lord has said.  Things get hard.  Now, that’s not always the reason that things can get hard.  Jesus said in John 16:33, “In this world you will have tribulation/trouble,” but if things are hard for you in your situation, I encourage you to ask yourself, “Am I following the Lord closely?”
• Pharaoh’s resistance to the Word of God will cause intense hardship, waves of hardships and many times I’ve sat across the table from wonderful, well-meaning people that for some reason or another have strayed from the life, the mind, the attitude, the routine…have strayed from what and where and how God would have them and the result is severe hardship. Things just become very hard.  Jesus said of the other kind of hardship, the one that comes from following Him closely, even within it…we will be of good cheer…there will be comfort directly from the Holy Spirit…and so again, if you’re in a hard season, perhaps you’ve been there for a while…take inventory lest you go the way of Pharaoh.  It could very well be that you don’t have to be there and it’s you that’s got you there.

Exodus Chapter 6 Verses 2 – 5

• How many times does God have to reassure Moses? Doesn’t matter.  God is in the business of wanting to love His people.  And what God says to Moses here is powerful.  Moses, you will know Me like no one else has ever…and that is the same promise God gives to each one of us through personal relationship.  To your fathers, I was El Shaddai.  God Almighty.  But you will know Me as God my Almighty!  To them I was the covenant Maker, but you will know me as the covenant Fulfiller! 
• Just as it was then for Moses it is for us still today. When we face humanly impossible circumstances and intensely difficult people, God reminds Moses that He has not forgotten His own promises and the call to Moses and to us is for us to forget who our God is…it’s so easy to though…isn’t it?  To forget that God is bigger than the bill you can’t pay…bigger than the diagnosis that you can’t accept…(and that is exactly what the enemy would have you to forget!)  But God gives more grace…He experienced the frailty of the human mind first hand…don’t forget that and don’t believe the enemy when he calls you a faker because you lack…God does not reject you in a time where you are unable to cling to Him…those are opportunities for Him to show you His love and with or without your courage…He will be faithful to you…just as He is here to Moses.

Exodus Chapter 6 Verses 6 – 8

• What’s intriguing about what we just read is that God makes seven distinct “I will” statements…I will bring you out, I will rescue you from their bondage, I will redeem you, I will take you as My people, I will be your God, I will bring you into the land, I will give it to you as a heritage…and in each one of these statements, the “I will” is not given as one would expect…in the future tense but instead God uses the past or perfect tense as if it’s already done. And I love that!
• Sending a message to Moses…I will do it and you can consider it done…anyone ever tell you they’ll do something? Depending on the person that may or may not give confidence BUT when someone says, “Consider it done,” at least to me that is an entirely different statement!  And here, it is God making these statements…God’s Word is like that folks…many times the fulfillment of His Word to us or in our situation is indeed future but I want you to know that God’s Word is so sure that it may as well be written entirely in the past tense…because surely it will come to pass!

Exodus Chapter 6 Verse 9

• It doesn’t matter if they don’t believe God…all that matters is if Moses believes God! They’re not going in front of Pharaoh…they’re not going to lead the people…Moses, do you believe? 
• This can happen though, that life has beat you down so much that even the good news promises of God…the strong “I will” statements of God lift no anguish from your soul in the present situation. That’s when folks need folks.  They need Moses to believe God.  They need Moses to lead because they are too heavy with grief.  So Moses…lead.

Exodus Chapter 6 Verses 10 – 13

• Hebrews 12:1-2 says, “Lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the Author and the Finisher…” Moses, here’s what I command you to do if you are going to find success….don’t look to Pharaoh.
• God is essentially asking Moses to do what he had done before that caused the grief on the people. He had already gone into Pharaoh and because of his previous request for Pharaoh to let the people go, they now had to gather their own straw, work longer hours.  In the eyes of Moses, it had not been a success.  But remember, God defines success differently than we do…
• Moses, here’s what I command you to do if you are going to find success…don’t look to the people. You set your mind on what they are saying and all you will feel is loss and unworthiness.  Moses, here’s what I command you to do if you are going to find success…don’t look to yourself.  You will find unsurity, fear, a deficit of capability….
• Moses, here’s what I command you to do if you are going to find success…heed My command! This is how Moses and we will throw aside every weight that stops us and run with endurance…when we look to the Author of the command and the One that will be the Finisher!  We ought to allow God to build in us an endurance to stick to His plan, to hold fast to His Word even when it seemingly is not being effective. 
• Waiting on the Lord, Jacob served 14 years for Rachel. David fled the nation that he would later reign over as king.  Joseph spent years in Egypt’s prison to emerge as a savior to his family.  Jonah was digested for 3 days in the belly of the great fish.  Jesus lay dead for three days…we need endurance, patience and faith to see God’s promises fulfilled in our lives like we want…and that comes from not looking at the situation, not looking at the world, not looking at others,  and not focusing on self…but rather keeping our eyes on the Lord and trusting that He is the God that fulfills all that He promises.  Remembering that He loves you…His grace is our portion because of His ultimate sacrifice…  (AND THAT IS A FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT!)
• You ever have someone in your life that will fight for you? I mean fight against their own junk and their own pre-installed wiring just to be with you?  One of the best feelings in the world is when someone is willing to fight for you…there are SO few people in each of our lives that are actually truly willing to do this…well never forget, God is not willing to fight for you, His will is to die so that you may be well…that same God is not going to let you down now…focus on His Word, focus on His faithfulness and focus on His demonstrated heart for you!  Be being filled with the Spirit!!  Endurance will come.

Exodus Chapter 6 Verses 14 – 30

• Genealogy was ultra-important to the Jews. When you would meet it wouldn’t be what do you do?  It would be, who is your father?  And respect and position would be determined from your lineage and so here we have established the lineage of Moses and Aaron including many names we will hear again. 
• As we close this chapter it is important that we also remember ours…who our Father is…not only so that we can walk with Him and trust Him more but that we in our hearts may resolve to uphold His honor and great name in our own lives. Truly we have a great Father!