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Portion 38

Golden text: Ex 17:1-7
Readings for the week:

Day 1: Ex 17:1-7

Day 2: Ps 25

Day 3: Isa 64-65

Day 4: Mic 7

Day 5: Lk 7

Day 6: Rom 1:18-32

I- God with us.

This passage concludes with a pivotal question: “Is the Lord among us, or not?” (v. 7). God demonstrated to the people that if they willingly followed Him, they would lack nothing. We must understand the core of this teaching: It is not about God accompanying us in our plans, as any claim, but about us abandoning our ways to join Him. Notice that the people did not decide when to leave, where to go, or how long to stay in the desert; they had to follow what God established. Only then would the Lord be in their midst.

II- The divine sentence.

Man’s innate and immature grudge against God will inevitably lead to His correction. God guides and educates man, unless he becomes a complete rebel deserving punishment. If humans make a habit of challenging God, whether as a form of justification or pleasure, they must realize that divine judgement awaits them. However, this judgement is always for rebellion, not mere doubts. Divine justice lies in weighing human hearts and intentions, and God will never impose punishment lightly.

III- Opportunities with God are seized.

When individuals start facing the consequences of their mistakes, they often shift the blame onto others to justify their own sinful actions. Eventually, they run out of people to blame and begin attributing their invented blame to God Himself. This is one reason the Lord guides Israel through the wilderness – to help them discover and confront their own shortcomings (v. 1). God wants to lead them from a mindset of protection to a mindset of personal growth, but they must first acknowledge their own tendency to sin. Instead of taking responsibility, the people choose to blame God for their problems.

Human logic is often insufficient in guiding us to the right arguments and evidence for making just judgments. We must trust in God’s eternal thoughts, even when our limited logic suggests otherwise.

This is the reality of all humankind and not just the nation of Israel when they left Egypt: Man is unbelieving, ungrateful, and insolent. And if these characteristics exist in the heart of man, God will work to confront him with himself. Then, either the man tears down that inner self that has been growing malformed with wicked habits within him, which God has revealed He does not like, or the Lord Himself will completely sentence him.

IV- The very subtle of idolatry.

Israel was enslaved in Egypt for over 400 years, surrounded by an imperial and pagan culture. During their time there, they faced the risk of adopting the idols and beliefs of Egypt, potentially losing faith in the one true God who had delivered them from slavery. It is crucial to differentiate between idolatry and polytheism: Idolatry acknowledges the existence of God but introduces false intermediaries, while polytheism eliminates or marginalizes God within a pantheon of deities. This is a very misunderstood stage of history, as any of them did not become polytheists as understood today, but rather idolaters. Hence, when reading the text, we see that every time the only God in it is mentioned, everyone understands what is being talked about, and some of them even come to worship towards him amidst their idolatrous practices.

That is why the Lord commands Moses to continue using the same rod. God’s intention is for the people to recognize His consistency throughout time – He remains the same yesterday, today, and forever. This serves as a reminder that there is only one God and serves as the foundation for the commandments they are about to receive.

Questions:

1.- What differences can you find between faith and logic?
2.- Do you think faith has its logic or is it simply illogical?
3.- Why do you think God did not sentence Israel at this time, even though they were disrespecting Him?

Contenido en Construccion..

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