The Bible is Divine revelation from the Father. In Matthew 16:13-19 Jesus asked His disciples “Who do you say I am?” (v.15). Simon Peter, the boldest of the disciples, spoke up and said “You are Christ [Messiah] the Son of the living God” (v.16). Jesus said to Peter: “Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona [son of Jonah; a man]: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven”. Christ was saying that Peter the man was blessed because man, flesh and blood, had not revealed this to him but God the Father.
The word “reveal” is “Apokalupto” in Greek meaning: “to remove a veil or covering, exposing to open view what was before hidden” (see also Apokalupsis meaning “revelation”, one of three words in the NT referring to the second coming of Christ). Therefore Peter, a man of flesh, had spoken what was formerly concealed, exposing it to open view. He revealed what was in essence the coming of the Lord Jesus. This “revelation” did not come from man but was revealed by the Father in Heaven (from the spiritual realm).
Christ said further: “And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter [a stone], and upon this rock [large rock, bedrock] I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven”. (Verse 17). The word “Peter” is in Greek “Petros”, a small stone. The rock referred to in the scripture (“upon this rock”) is Petra in Greek which means a large rock or bedrock. What was this bedrock? The BEDROCK is the REVELATION from the Father to human flesh (Petros the stone). Thus it was the revelation of Christ coming from the Father that would be the bedrock upon which Christ would build His church. God planned to build His church on the bedrock of divine revelation. Likewise the Bible is the source of this bedrock of revelation upon which we can build a walk with God.
The content of the Bible is not mere words but Spirit. Jesus said: “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life (John 6:63). Books written by men may convey ideas, inspiration or emotion but the words in the Bible convey spirit. Not just spirit but the Spirit of the Lord whereby we change into His image from glory to glory. “But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit” (2 Co 3:18). By absorbing the Bible we change into the image of Christ.
The Bible strengthens our first love relationship with the Lord. In the Bible Book of Revelation John wrote to the church at Ephesus as follows: “I know your deeds and your toil and perseverance [steadfastness], and that you cannot tolerate evil men, and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not, and you found them to be false; and you have perseverance and have endured for My name’s sake, and have not grown weary. ‘But I have this against you, that you have left your FIRST LOVE. ‘Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place—unless you repent” (Revelation 2:2-5). The most important commandment is that we love the Lord first above all else.
There are 233 different English versions on the market. It has been translated from the original languages into over 2000 languages. The version that we will use here is the New American Standard Bible LaHabra, CA : The Lockman Foundation, 1977 ed and 1995 ed. We will occasionally use the The Holy Bible : King James Version 1769 edition of the 1611 Authorized Version. If another version is used it will be noticed in the text.
Kenneth B. Alexander. (2012). Mysteries of the Bible, lulu.com Pub.
Alexander, K. B. (2012). Spiritual Foundational Christianity lulu.com Pub
Introduction to Exodus
Exodus is the story of the deliverance of God’s people from Egypt. For hundreds of years the Israelites had prospered in Goshen where they had settled since the time of Joseph. They had prospered in Goshen and become very fruitful and had increased in population. However the scripture says a new King arose over Egypt, who did not know [the legacy of] Joseph. He said to his people, “Behold, the people of the sons of Israel are more and mightier than we. “Come, let us deal wisely with them, or else they will multiply and in the event of war, they will also join themselves to those who hate us, and fight against us and depart from the land” (Ex. 1:8-10). The Pharaoh decided on a plan of action that would reduce the number of Israelites in Egypt. He called for the extermination of all Hebrew born males. He also essentially made the Israelites slaves. “So they appointed taskmasters over them to afflict them with hard labor. And they built for Pharaoh storage cities, Pithom and Raamses (Exodus 1:10-11). “The Egyptians compelled the sons of Israel to labor rigorously; and they made their lives bitter with hard labor in mortar and bricks and at all kinds of labor in the field, all their labors which they rigorously imposed on them” (Ex 1:13-14).
This set the stage for Moses, who was raised in Egypt, to accept God’s commission to deliver the Israelites from their slavery in Egypt. Moses went back into Egypt with Aaron his brother and set about to do God’s will. Moses performed the greatest miracles ever performed until Christ including the death of every firstborn Son in Egypt on the day of Passover. As he left Egypt he was pursued by Pharaoh and his armies. Moses parted the Reed Sea (some translations Red Sea), the Israelites crossed but Pharaoh’s army was drown as the waters came back.
Moses set up camp with the Israelites in the desert wilderness. While there he received the Law of God on Mt. Sinai including the 10 commandments. The Law was instituted in the Israeli camp and Feast days were ordained. The details of Israel’s stay in the wilderness are continued in the Book of Numbers.
As we shall see here and in the book of Leviticus the Exodus has great spiritual significance to believers in Christ today. As Christ delivered all people on the cross from slavery to corruption so Moses delivered the Israelites from slavery of another kind. While Moses was performing God’s miracles God was bringing judgment on the pagan gods of Egypt, the greatest civilization in the land. Each judgment corresponded to an Egyptian god. The Passover is rich in Christian significance (see below). The Feast of Booths and the Day of Atonement represent Christ’s forgiving work on the cross. Moses received the Law on Mt. Sinai which Law becomes our teacher in leading us to Christ. Moses also established Israel as a Nation as he became their Lawgiver and mouthpiece of God.
The priesthood was created and instituted by the tribe of Levi. A tabernacle (or sacred tent) was constructed after the pattern that would reflect Solomon’s temple built later. The ark of the covenant was constructed which contained the presence of God and went before the Israelites in all battles. Likewise animal sacrifices were instituted for forgiveness of sin. The Lord provided a cloud by day for shade and a pillar of fire by night for light and warmth. This is just as Christ cares for His people’s every need. Food was also rained down from heaven every day as Christ gives each his/her daily bread of the Word.
Moses faced rebellion in the wilderness which resulted in swift judgment as Christ will judge all rebellion in the last days. He endured numerous grumblings by the children of Israel and was blamed for their every discomfort. The man Moses was called the most humble man on the earth at that time. His response to God’s word and to every difficulty was to prostrate himself before God in worship. Moses also bargained with God saving the Israelites destruction more than once.
As genesis was the Book of beginnings