OCTOBER 10, 2024
Topic: “GOD’S COMPASSION FOR THE ISRAELITES”
Text: GENESIS 2:23-55; 3:7-10
Memory Verse: Exodus 3:7 – “And the Lord said: “I have surely seen the oppression of my people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows.”
Time changes and season shifts, however, the love of the LORD towards His people abides forever. It was with great joy and excitement that Jacob/Israel and his family left their homeland for Egypt (Genesis 46:1-47:12), it was not just to escape famine but it was a great reunion with the once-dead-now-alive Joseph. What a show of God’s love to Jacob, Joseph and their entire family. They entered Egypt in grand style; they were given a royal welcome and their livelihood became a state affair.
It has been over four hundred years and times and seasons have changed, “Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph” (Exodus 1:8). This was the beginning of the unsettling afflictions of the Israelites. One will wonder if this is still a show of love and the answer is yes. God’s plan was for them to spend four hundred years (Genesis 15:13-16; Exodus 12:41), so when we are settled outside God’s plan, He will unsettle us in order to resettle in our new settlement.
God will never allow His people to enjoy any comfort that might misalign them with His will. However, God’s compassion for us in our suffering reveals His deep love and care. He heard the cries of the Israelites and remembered His covenant with their forefathers, moving to deliver them from bondage (Exodus 23-25). This compassion shows that God is attentive to our struggles and is moved by our pain, ready to act on our behalf. How have you experienced God’s compassion in your times of need? How can you show compassion to others who are struggling today?
PRAYER: Compassionate God, thank You for hearing my cries and being moved by my pain. Help me to trust in Your love and to show the same compassion to others. May I be an instrument of Your love and care in this world in Jesus’ name, Amen.