Creation to Noah
"Wrong choices, wrong decisions." This quote from the movie characterized so much of humanity from creation to Noah. Starting with Adam and Eve in the garden, so many wrong choices and decisions have marked the human experience. By the time of Noah, every on earth except him and his family chose sin over living right. This depraved environment led to the flood.Abraham
Many years after the flood, God called Abraham to a new land. His willingness to follow was the first of many acts of faith in Abraham's life...- Faith to part ways with Lot
- Faith to be a leader
- Faith that God would give a child
- Faith that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars.
- Faith to sacrifice his only son - faith that God would provide an alternative.
Abraham's life always makes me question my own faith. Would I follow God to a new land? How much would I be willing to sacrifice?
I loved these quotes from the movie. "Isaac is the first star of all the stars in the heavens."
And then, when God called Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, "To be chosen by God is a blessing and a test." Abraham's reply, "Have I not shown you enough faith?"
And then, when God called Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, "To be chosen by God is a blessing and a test." Abraham's reply, "Have I not shown you enough faith?"
Abraham's faith astounds...
His story is also amazing because it points us to the coming Messiah. Abraham didn't have to sacrifice Isaac because God provided a replacement. In this, we see the coming Savior, Jesus. He is God's only Son and the sacrifice provided by God for all mankind.
Moses
Moses may have been born as a slave but God had other plans for his life. After many events took him to the height of power and reduced him to a running convict, God called him to return to Egypt, the home of his people and slavery. He obeyed and told the people, "God sent me to set you free."The story of the burning bush is one of my favorites. In fact, it is the source of the Grow Barefoot tagline Live Free· Pursue Holiness· No Excuses. Our family has a foreign exchange student living with us this year. She asked at this point in the movie, "Why a bush and why fire? Why not a rock or something else?" I didn't have an answer for her then but I do now. You'll have to check out the comment section to read it.
When God sets us free, we can say like the Israelites in the movie, "I will never be a slave again. God is with us." I love that line - God is with us; it reminds us of one of the names of Christ - Emmanuel. Emmanuel means "God is with us." Jesus is the One who ultimately sets us free from slavery.
In the movie, Moses warned the people, "Death is coming for us all." There was one important exception though. Death passed over the homes of those covered with the blood of the Lamb. Again, this pointed to Christ who is the final Passover Lamb that protects us from death. When death comes, will it pass over you?
Again, God provided a way.
Overview
As many have noted, many of the stories are missing from The Bible mini-series. Producers Mark Burnett and Roma Downey have done well at portraying the stories with a fair balance of biblical accuracy and dramatic interpretation; however, the scope of the entirety of God's Word is just too vast to include all of it in a mini-series. A society that thrives on 140-character Tweets would lose interest before we even got to Daniel in the Lions' Den.What's important to remember is that the Bible isn't a series of stories. It is a story. Singular. It is the story of God's relationship with man. A relationship that was perfect until the created rejected the Creator. From that point on, the whole Book points to the coming Savior who would restore that relationship; who would renew the love story. That's what I'm hoping to see in the coming weeks.
Other articles in this series:
The Bible Series - Passion (Episode 5)
Lots of people reading this post but none are posting comments! OK, I'll be the first so now you won't be the first one. Now it's your turn...what's on your mind from the movie?
ReplyDeleteHere's my answer to the question of why God appeared to Moses as fire in a bush.
ReplyDeleteWhy fire? God often appears in Scripture as fire. The first mention of fire in the Bible is the covenant between Abram & God in Genesis 15. God appeared as fire that passed between the cut animal. He later appeared to the Israelites as a pillar of fire (Exodus 13-14), Moses again at the giving of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 19), Elijah when he battled the prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18:38), and the disciples at the coming of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2).
Why a bush? This story is seen as a story of life, resurrection, and eternity. At this time, God declared His name as "I am" showing He is eternal. He is outside the confines of time. Twice in the NT this story is used to show that God is the God of the living, not of the dead (Mark 12:26 & Luke 20:37).
A bush is a living thing whereas a rock is inanimate. The bush encountered Holy God and lived just as Moses also encountered God there and found spiritual life. This was the beginning of the spiritual ministry to which God called him. We are already dead in our sins, we must encounter God to find life.