I Give Up

O. T. #253  "I Give Up"
March 25, 2014
Exodus 34-Part 4
For I will... Exodus 34:23

LET IT GLOW

Can I open my hand and release control of it to God? Will I turn it over to Him? Lay it at His feet? Do I believe that God knows what is best? Am I willing to trust Him with it?

We are either in the midst of a problem, have just come out of one, or are waiting to go into one.
Do I give up, forget it, turn my back, say it's not worth it, or do I give it up to God to solve?

The good news is that I am not alone. You are not alone. Are we are trusting God to do what is best, on His timetable, in His own way? Can we let go of this? Can I let go of this?

Open your hand and release it, now. Yes, Lord. Here. I give it up to You.


We are continuing to read of the instructions God gave to Moses while on Mt. Sinai a second time.
In verse 24, God gives Israel some promises:

• He will cast out, drive out nations that are in Israel's way to the Promised Land and those possessing it.
• He will enlarge their territory.
• No one will covet their land.

These are conditional, and will happen if:
all their men will go up three times a year to appear before the LORD God.

Requiring all males to be present for three specified feasts at a central sanctuary would have had a socially and religiously uniting effect on the nation. The men must trust the Lord to protect their landholdings while on pilgrimage to the tabernacle. All three feasts were joyful occasions, being a commemoration of the Exodus (the Feast of Unleavened Bread), expression of gratitude to God for all the grain He had provide (the feast of Harvest, feast of Weeks, or Firstfruits ), and  thanksgiving for the final harvest (the feast of Ingathering, Feasts of the Tabernacles or Booths). (MacArthur)

Do we appear before God three times a day in prayer?
Are we united as a church in our giving?
Do we thank God for His provisions?
Is it with a heart of gratitude or just words we say when others are around or watching?
God has been so very faithful to me. How about you?
Great is His faithfulness, morning by morning.

LET IT GROW

What else was an instruction for Israel?

•  to offer the blood sacrifice along without anything containing yeast (Ex. 23:18;12:8);
•  to not let any of the Passover Feast sacrifice remain until morning. (verse 25)

Leaven, yeast, is a picture of sin in the Bible. Sacrifices were to not contain yeast. Sin is unacceptable to God.

Do we remember when God delivered our soul?
What are we offering to God? He gave His all for us.

LET IT GO

In her devotional book, Jesus Calling, Sarah Young says:

This is a time in your life when you must learn to let go: of loved ones, of possessions, of control. In order to let go of something that is precious to you, you need to rest in God's Presence, where you are complete. Take time to bask in the Light of His Love. As you relax more and more, your grasping hand gradually opens up, releasing your prized possession into God's care.

Let it go, Linda.

Let it go, friend.