Wed.’s Devo - Final Victory

God led his people to the Red Sea with a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. They brought Joseph’s bones with them just like they had promised. The pillar stopped at Pi-hahiroth which means “mouth of the defiled.” It was across from Baal-zephon where the Egyptians worshipped the Baal of the north. Every plague dealt with one of Egypt’s gods and God would deal with another. Meanwhile, Pharaoh changed his mind again and came after them as they were trapped against the Red Sea with nowhere to escape. Pharaoh and his chariots chased after them with 600 of Egypt’s best chariots and caught up with them. The Israelites panicked when they saw the Egyptians coming. Moses told the people to not be afraid but just stand still and watch what the Lord would do to rescue them. The Egyptians they saw today, they would never see again. He told the people that God would fight for them. The Lord asked Moses why he was crying out to him, Moses needed to act. God told Moses to pick up his staff, raise it over the sea and divide it. (Reminds me of when Jesus told his disciples, “you feed them” talking about the 5,000.) God told Moses that the sea would divide and the people would walk over on dry ground. The angel of the Lord went behind them and put the cloud as a dividing line between the Egyptians and the Israelites. The Israelites had light on their side and the Egyptians had darkness. Moses raised his hand over the waters and the sea divided. The wind blew all night turning the sea into dry land. The people walk through the path to the other side. Pharaoh and his army chased them and when they got to the middle of the sea. God told Moses to stretch his army back over the sea and the waters returned. Their chariot wheels got stuck in the water and drown them all in the sea. The people of Israel saw the great deliverance that God gave them and sang a powerful song about the Almighty God they served. In Matthew, the Pharisees and leaders of the law came to ask Jesus who gave him the authority to do the things he did. He asked them whose authority did John operate from. They couldn’t answer him so he told them that he wouldn’t answer them either. Then Jesus told them a parable about a man who had two sons. He gave them the same assignment to go work in his vineyard. The first son told his father he wouldn’t go, but changed his mind and went. The second son told his father he would go, but didn’t. Jesus asked them who did the will of his father. They said the first one. Jesus explained that they had been given John the Baptist to tell them how to live and they refused to do it. They were the second son. The tax collectors and prostitutes heard John’s teaching and accepted it and repented. They were the first son. If that didn’t make them mad enough, he told them another story about a vineyard owner. He set up his business, then left it to overseers to run. When he sent his servants to collect his proceeds, they beat one, killed another and stoned the next. The owner decided that the only one they would respect was his son, so he sent him. They murdered him so they could have the vineyard to themselves. Jesus asked them what they thought the owner would do when he returned himself. They answered that he would kill the wicked men and lease his vineyard out to others he could trust. Jesus quoted Psalm 118:22-23 about the cornerstone. Then the religious leaders realized he was referring to them as the wicked overseers who had killed the prophets and would soon kill the son. Lord, thank you for the great stories you give us about your deliverance and your great power. The government of this world is truly on your shoulders.