← Don't Miss This Study
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Hi there. Welcome to Don't Miss this, a scripture study podcast with Dave Butler and Grace Freeman.
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Each week we point out things in the scriptures that we love and think you don't want to miss.
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Thanks for listening. Hi, I'm Dave Butler.
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And I'm Grace Freeman.
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Welcome to Don't Miss this. We're so happy that you're here, y'.
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All.
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If it's your first time, if you've just found us, we move through this year, the Old Testament, and point out the things we think you don't want to miss. Especially we're focusing on where do you find the heart and character of God in every single one of these chapters? The Old Testament is, what do you say? Famous, but the opposite. Infamous for being a book that makes people think that they don't like the character of God, that he's mean and harsh in this book. And and I think that his goodness and kindness are all over. And that's something that we're particularly going to see in today's lesson. So we're so happy that you're here studying the scriptures with us. This we have a timeline. If you don't know. Timeline and learning resources. P.S. any of the learning resources we talk about today, we have a tip in the journal. The posters, you can find those on good brandco.com or at Deseret Book y'. All. We're only in March or April. I don't know when you're listening to this, but we're we're just beginning. So if you are wanting help, wanting to get more into this, wanting to a New Year's goal in March or April, hopefully all of these things can help you. One of those things we have is this timeline that's free. You can get in our newsletter. And I think I was supposed to add this piece a couple lessons ago.
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It's okay.
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But it works for today because today it's a chains that shows that the children of Israel were so I think this is supposed to be Exodus 1:6 lesson y'. All. So sorry, the dates are off. I mean, I'm off. The dates are right. But we're going to put that chain on there to show that they came into Egypt with Joseph and then several hundred years later they were enslaved. And we talked about those prayers two weeks ago, the week before Easter, hopefully. Easter was awesome, by the way, everybody. And this lesson today, when the children of Israel are going to be set free from that slavery after 400 years is it's that. I mean that in and of itself, remember, two weeks Ago, we were marking where God keeps saying, I remember you, I hear you, and I know your struggle. And finally, this is the answer. And it's wild that this is generational prayers. I mean, I'm only 45, so the longest I could have been praying for something is 45 years. And we're talking people who've been praying for a release from bondage for their whole lives. And their parents did, and their grandparents did, and finally this is the day. In fact, can we just start at the end? I just want to start at the end. Is that okay? Great. I want a curveball here.
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Fine. Go. Out of order.
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Chapter 13, verse 19, it says, and Moses took the bones of Joseph with him when they leave Egypt. Spoiler if you don't know the Bible yet. They're going to get out of Egypt. But he took the bones of Joseph with him, for he had straightly sworn the children of Israel. Saying, like, before Joseph died, he made the children of Israel promise and saying, God will surely visit you, and you will carry my bones out of this land with you. So I wrote 430 years next to verse 19. It's been 430 years since Joseph made them that promise and said, one day God will surely visit you. And when that day comes, will you take my bones with you? Which to a 20, 26 audience, sounds kind of wild, but they cared really a lot. Where he wanted to be buried and put my bones in the promised land where God promised he would take you. And for that now to be fulfilled 430 years later, I just, I love that them taking that as a reminder of the fulfillment of promises that one day God keeps them all. Maybe 430 years from now, but he does keep them all. And that's what we see in today's lesson. So let's jump in, open up to Exodus chapter 7. We'll be in 7 through 13. This is the plagues of Egypt. Moses has been sent to Pharaoh to say, let my people go. And last two times ago, two weeks ago before Easter, Pharaoh asked that question, who is the Lord that I would ever let your people go? And we ended last that lesson by kind of talking about, that's a question that I think all of us should ask ourselves, who is he? Why would I ever want to obey this kind of Lord? And I think if you interviewed the Egyptians during the frogs and the flies and the cattle and the boils, some of them might have some answers for who the Lord is like, oh, he's a plague sender and he is mean and and, you know, vengeful and all of these things. But we want to point out and focus on as we study these chapters, that goodness and kindness of God, even in a time of plagues. Let's say first, though, that the fact that the plagues come as a way to convince Pharaoh to let the children of Israel go free is an act of kindness and mercy to the children of Israel. They were not talking, they weren't like staying in the Hilton in Egypt. They were slaves. Their faces were being driven into the dirt. They were being whipped. They, their, their children were murdered by this Pharaoh. So we're not talking about like an inconvenient time of life. We're talking about a desperate cry for justice for them. And God will intervene. And God does answer. And God is not going to allow this kind of injustice and this kind of terrible behavior to continue like it. Wickedness will be dealt with and that is good and that is kind. And, and even though it's Pharaoh who's choosing to, to be wicked, God, God's going to confront it and we thank him for that and we say he is good for that. And, and, and we love that we worship a God who does not turn a blind eye to people hurting other people. Like that's actually an attribute of God that I think makes him worthy of, of my worship. But so that's true. That's true. And, and the Pharaohs, I mean, and the plagues to the children of Israel, they're like, God is good. You know, when the frogs come, they're like, yes, yes, yes. So I think that is, is really good when reading this, the other side of it, the Pharaoh side of it. I think it's really important to know that we believe in a God who cares as much about Pharaoh as he does about Moses. And he loves the Egyptians as much as he loves the Israelites. And he is bent on saving Pharaoh and the Egyptians as much as he is bent on saving and rescuing Moses and the Israelites. And I think we see that in these, these plagues. So we're going to jump into these. But that is, that's what we're, we're looking at. We already know that it's an answer to prayer for the Israelites, but let's also see how he can answer their prayers and also seek to rescue and reach out to Pharaoh at the same time. God is so good.
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So as we get going, this will all kind of begin in chapter seven of Exodus. And obviously David kind of mentioned there's so many perspectives in this story and Sometimes we get really caught up in one. And I think that one thing that's really cool to do here is go through and study each of the perspectives. So as we go through, what me and David want to look through is like, what is this going to teach us about who the Lord is? What can we learn about his heart and his character? But if you open your study guide, your journal, you're going to go through. And that is honestly a really, really cool study. And as we were going through, we're like, oh, the journal really sets you up for success in a personal study. It's gonna walk you through everything you kind of need to know if you want your own personal study. And that is going to dive in all of the plagues and then Pharaoh's response and other people who are witnessing the plagues, their response as well. So that's a really cool personal study to go through. And one of the things that it kind of brings up on the left hand column, if you're looking in your journal, is a list of all the plagues. But not only all the pl. It also has a list of all of the Egyptian gods. Because as these plagues start and as they go through, you'll start to realize that these plagues kind of follow this pattern, that each plague is almost, like, associated with one of the Egyptian gods. And maybe you're gonna sit there and you can kind of, like, ponder. I think that's the cool thing about scripture, is that you can wonder and you can create and, like, the spirit will whisper, like, oh, here's some different ideas. But one thing that I think is really unique about that is I think it's evidence that God is going to speak your own language. Just like David said, God cared as much about the Egyptians, as much about Pharaoh as he did the Israelites. His goal was everyone that is who he is. That we read that in scripture. Like, I can't just make that up. Like, that is his goal. And I think each of these plagues is evidence if God wanted to punish them. If God was angry at the Egyptians and Pharaoh, if he wanted to hurt them, there was a million things he could have done to do that, but he didn't. Each of these plagues is specific. Each one associated with a specific Egyptian God. Almost as if God is whispering, realize who this is. This is bigger than what you think it is. Let me be evident in your life as if he was speaking to the Egyptians specifically about who he is and what he is capable of. And that is also the tippin that goes in your scriptures, right here in Exodus 7, it's gonna go through and it is going to say each of the plagues and each of the Egyptian God that it's associated with. But to me, that's the lesson that I don't wanna forget. Just simply based on all of the plagues and what they are, is that God is going to speak your language and when he tries to win your heart, he will do it individually and specifically.
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Yeah, and you might wanna write that on the tip in itself, just that reminder of that lesson, like God, God speaks Egyptian. God is going to talk to them and reach out to them in that they particularly are going to relate to. And as you get into chapter seven, there is a couple verses that a phrase that you might want to mark in here, verse five says it, and the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord. Verse 17. In this thou shalt know that I am the Lord. He's trying to answer Pharaoh's question. And those verses show us at the end of this, the whole point of all of this is so that you know who I am and that you trust who I am. And we see on here the very first plague is that the river turns to. That the river turns to blood, the Nile River. And it starts around like 19 and 20 in there. And that sounds like pretty terrible. The fish start to die, the river starts to stink. Then the magicians of Pharaoh are able to reproduce it in some way also, which is kind of wild and don't know really what to think about that. But I am interested in this verse, chapter 7, verse 23. Pharaoh turned and went into his house. Neither did he set his heart to this also. Or if you look down in the footnote, if you're reading the King James, he paid no regard even to this. So it seems as if whatever this plague was was not that big of a deal, that he was just like, oh, you know, Pharaoh didn't even care and the magicians could do it. And what I love about this, that teaches something about the Lord is that you will see through these plagues, they progressively get more intense. And eventually the final plague is going to be death of the firstborn son and darkness before that and destruction before that. But it starts off with what seems to be an inconvenience in one of the early. What do you say? I keep wanting to call them miracles and they are plagues, but kind of a miracle, like the gnats just appear. The magicians in chapter eight, verse 19 will say, this is the finger of God. And they're Just start. Can you see? They're just starting to recognize that it is him. Which means that God is gently doing this, that he's starting small, that he isn't coming out with. With all the artillery and the whole army of angels with him, but he is trying to gently convince. What the. Whatever the least plague I could do to answer the prayers and also convince Pharaoh, I'm going to do. And I love that you're going to see that all throughout this. You also see that, by the way, for you scripture scholars out there in the New Testament, in the book of Revelation, as it talks about the. The plagues that will come before the second Coming, you see a similar pattern there. A lot of the same language you'll find in the book of Revelation, but also it starts off half and then moves to full. And I think it shows that attribute and character of God that he's just going to listen. I'm going to try and least amount of pain possible to teach the lesson here.
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So good. Chapter eight begins with the second plague. And it's all of the frogs. And it is. I'm not gonna lie, it is really an intense plague. Okay, like, you see verse number three, and it's like, the frogs are gonna come out of the river. Like, there's gonna be frogs everywhere. You're like, everywhere, okay. And there's like, no, like, I promise you, everywhere. It's gonna come into your house and just go into your bedroom. It's gonna be on your bed, and you're like, ah, okay. It is like an intense plague. All right? I don't really mess with that. And then all of a sudden, what's gonna happen is Pharaoh stills, like, the magicians can do it. It's like, not that serious. Like David said, It's just like, one degree more. And then all of a sudden, what's gonna happen next is Pharaoh's gonna ask Moses and Aaron to come back. And he looks at them and he says, hey, can you go to your Lord and ask him that he will take away the frogs from me. And we do not give this verse enough attention to be honest, because how crazy is it that, like, our first instinct should be, like, it is not Pharaoh's right to ask God for something. He literally just like, how many. Three chapters before this was like, who even is the Lord? Why would I ever listen to him? I don't even know him. And now all of a sudden, he.
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And four chapters ago, throwing babies in the river.
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We're not. Yeah. Like, it's not like he, like, he does. He's not really, like, in the place for this. Like, he's not like he's in the mindset or the right. Or doing the right things or having the right behavior to, like, have any right to be asking the Lord for something. That is what it feels like to me, at least. And the craziest part is that he does and God says yes. That is absurd. The fact that we believe in a God that would look at someone like Pharaoh and say, ask and you shall receive. If you have ever read that scripture in any verse, if you've ever read that verse in any book of scripture and thought to yourself, that's not gonna work for me. You remember that? It worked for Pharaoh. So if it worked for him, why not you? That, to me, says more about the heart of a God than anything I could ever imagine. The fact that he wants to say yes so bad. He wants to. He wants to listen to us so bad. He wants to agree with us so bad that his yes, he even comes for Pharaoh.
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And I would just add to that. It happens 10 times. This same pattern throughout these chapters is going to occur.
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And Pharaoh's behavior doesn't get better. No, he doesn't learn his lesson. God says yes. Pharaoh's still mad.
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And then he changes his mind. He keeps changing his mind. And then he'll ask again, and God says yes, and he changes his mind. And God asks again, and he says yes. And this happens 10 separate times. And there is something about that. In fact, in that same chapter, chapter eight, one verse later, nine, Moses says to Pharaoh, glory over me. When shall I entreat for thee and for thy servants and for thy people to destroy the frogs? Like, okay, yes, I will ask, and when would you like the answer to come? And he says, tomorrow. That's when I want you to do it. And I think it is so interesting that throughout these chapters, you're getting this preservation of agency. I'll let you decide when. Really, this is a Pharaoh versus Pharaoh story, right? God is trying to train and persuade Pharaoh. And Pharaoh is the one who's like, oh, the reason these are happening are because of his decisions and him going back. But we have a God who says, pharaoh. I'm going to let you decide how you're going to respond to these. I will give you the dignity of that choice. I will not force your hand in this. And I love that. Throughout Scripture, we learn that God preserves agency because love isn't love if it's forced. And so he says, yes, I will intervene. Yes, I will Persuade, yes, I will move mountains and seas, but I will let you decide when. So that question is. So what's that? Not respectful, but just. It has so much dignity to it for the Lord and Moses to ask him, when would you, when should we do this and let him decide. And in the journal, as you go through Pharaoh's response and others responses, that is the lesson of those two columns in there. As you see the way that he is responding to each of these and the way that others are responding, you see that God is allowing them to make their own choices and to decide. And to me that is, he just does, he doesn't come in and just decide this is what we're going to do. And like he could have just, everyone could have woken up dead, you know, and then they leave. And the fact that he's allowing Pharaoh to choose is just showing again that he's like, I, I care about you and I want you to be a part of this.
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It's so easy when you go through these plagues to assume that God is so angry. Especially because you're like, well like look at, look at the way Pharaoh reacts, look at the way Pharaoh behaves. But I think the more you study this, the deeper you look into it, you start realizing that that is not exactly true. That's not exactly the case that God is so angry. And I think you see a piece of that evidence in chapter nine. Because what's gonna happen is the next plague comes and he's going to give a grievous disease to all the cattle. All the cattle are gonna die. And that is really intense. That would have caused a lot of problems in like so many levels. Food, work, labor, like a million things are gonna, that is gonna be really problematic. And I think it's sweet that the Lord knows that enough to the point that he's actually going to give them a little warning and he's gonna go. And you see this in chapter nine, verse five. And the Lord appointed a set time saying tomorrow the Lord shall do this thing in the land. And what is really true about me, about me? Well, about I, well this is true for me. But probably like maybe a lot of people is that anger isn't patient, anger isn't slow, cruelty isn't waiting to just see what's gonna happen. But that verse is because it's not like the Lord was gonna do it right then. He wasn't being rash, he was being intentional. And that is very evident in chapter nine. You see that when he says, listen, I am going to Set a time, and it's going to be tomorrow. I'm not in a hurry. I'm not acting irrationally. I am doing this intentionally, not to punish, but to give you a chance. Not to punish, but to try to win your heart. That is slow moving. That is not rash, in a hurry. That is me pausing and saying, here is my plan. Let me present it to you. Make sure you are ready. I am not doing this out of the anger in my heart, but really from a place of love and a place of patience, hoping you see that this is a plan all along. And I just remember there was like this time in my life and something had happened and someone reached out. And initially my thoughts were like, act as fast as you can. And I was like, a little bit angry and a little bit upset. And I was honestly a little bit defensive, which would have made sense for the Lord to be all of those things. But I got like this letter, and immediately my first thought was, you do not need to rush a response. And it almost feels like that is what the Lord was doing right here. He was seeing Pharaoh's responses. He was seeing how Pharaoh was acting. And then all of a sudden in chapter nine, you get that same reality of him saying, I do not need to rush my response. I want to do this right. Yeah.
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It reminds me of just the scriptures after the Adam and Eve left the Garden of Eden, where he says, I will appoint unto them a time to repent and to prepare to meet God. So the fact that he's saying, this will happen tomorrow is God giving that time. I will give you space to change. I will give you room to make changes. And it's interesting, in chapter nine, if you go into the next verse six, this says, the Lord did that thing on the morrow. It came as he promised, and all the cattle of Egypt died. That was the plague. But then, look, but of the cattle of the children of Israel died not one. And you start to see in these plagues, starting in the third one, if I can remember right, there is a difference between what's happening in the land of Egypt and what's happening in the land of Goshen. Goshen is the spot that the children of Israel live in. And if you go back one chapter into chapter eight, there is this verse, and it's 8, 23, it says, I will put a division between my people and your people tomorrow. Shall this sign be in the NIV translation, it says that the words are, I will deal differently with your people. And you're going to see that for the rest of the plagues on here. And what I love about that is that God will always provide a Goshen. God will always provide a place of safety in the time of flood. God is going to provide an ark. There is going to be a place to go. Now, some. Some of the effects of other people are going to impact everyone, right? Like, there are going to be some things like plagues one and two. It seems to impact everybody. And that's going to be the case in life. The other people's decision decisions are going to impact all of us. But man, last year, we just ended last year with promises in the Doctrine Covenants about Zion, that Zion will be a place of safety, that there will be a refuge from the storms of life. And that is what we are seeing in here. And as far as I read, anyone is allowed into that, into that place. Anybody can go into Goshen, anybody. There is an escape from these judgments for anybody who wants them so good the next.
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Honestly, this feels like a very similar tone to what David just taught, because what's gonna happen, chapter nine, if you keep going through it, the next plague's gonna come and it's gonna be hail. And what happens in verse 19 is almost. It is honestly just like the plan of mercy. It really is. It's the cutest thing. And he says, listen, go send therefore now and gather your cattle and all that you have in the field. For upon every man and beast which shall be found in the field and shall not be brought home, the hail shall come down upon them and they will die. And I love that in all the mess of this, in all the disaster and all the tragedy, the Lord wants to make sure that there is a way home. He says, listen, it's gonna be messy and it's gonna be complicated, and I want you to save as much as you can. And I think it is so sweet that in that verse 19 it says, and shall not be brought home. And I love that he knows there will be places of refuge and he will give people time to get there. And I think that is true in the way that the Lord works, that there might be hail out there outside. It might be a mess and it might be scary and it might be disastrous, but he will give you a time to gather every single living thing that you need to and give it time to bring it back home and to create a refuge there. And I love like, oh, my gosh, it just makes me want to pause because it really does feel like it is a hailstorm in the world. Right now, there are messes and disaster and tragedy everywhere. And I love thinking about a Lord that looks and says, you go gather every single thing that you can and you bring it back home and you make sure it's safe and found a refuge there that tells you about the heart of the Lord.
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Yeah. And I just think we see that all throughout Scripture. And it's such a. It's so beautiful. Again, again, there are some things that I don't want to accidentally preach a wrong lesson here, which is that, oh, if you are doing what the Lord asked you to do, you'll be preserved and saved from all the plagues that are in the world. Which is, you know, which is not the case. But it. But it is true that God provides places of safety and refuge that he does warn us from. I mean, this happened before the plague. Bring the cows inside because it's going to hail, right?
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Yeah.
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So there. There was warning that was given. We have a God of. Of warning. And again, this just feels similar. These all start to spread into each other because of. They're just evidence of the goodness of God. But in chapter nine, verse 32, I love that the hail comes and it says, In 31, the flax and the barley was smitten, for the barley was in the. In the ear and the flax was. I don't know what those mean. Okay, I. I'm not a farmer, but the flax and the barley were destroyed. But then in 32, it says, but the wheat and the rye were not smitten, for they were not grown up. And I just one. I think it is sweet that it wasn't an utter and total destruction. God knew they still needed to eat, and so he preserved for them the wheat. But I do love that there is that line in the King James Version. For they were not grown up. And to me there is this preserving of the wheat because they were. It was young and not grown up. And it just makes me think about God looking down and, you know, we were having this conversation in our house the other day about, you know, one of Christian's friends who did something kind of yahoo. And just the response of everybody who was over the age of 40. There was. They're just 19, you know, they are not yet grown up. And I think there's something about that in the heart of God where he looks down at us and he says, listen, there are consequences and all those things. But he looks down at us and he says, david, you know, this is just your 45th time around the sun, and you're just learning and you're not quite grown up yet. And so I am going to be merciful. The same way I would be with a child. And I know he's talking about the wheat in here, but there was something about that line that just touched my heart, that he looks down at Pharaoh and the Egyptians probably also and says, ah, give them a break. They're not quite grown up yet.
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So good.
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This reminds me of my grandpa Pompom. I used to go golfing with Pompom on Fridays. Him and my dad. I would skip school and go golfing with them. Yeah, it was a great life I had. And if I ever hit a bad shot, Pompom always had a reason for it. And he would say, and do you know what a mulligan is in golf? Okay. In case you're not a golfer, a mulligan is a do over. And I got 36 mulligans every time I golf with Pom Pom, because I would hit a shot and he would say, oh, the wind was blowing. Like, that's not fair. Like, I think, I think you. I think you need to try that again. Or I would hit and it would be bad. And he was like, yeah, I was really making a lot of noise behind you and distracting you. Or you weren't really thinking, I saw a fly land on your cheek. Or he always just had just a reason for me, for why I hit a bad shot. And he was like, why don't you have a do over? And I. That is just what I think of when I read that verse that God has. God has the same heart Pom Pom did where he just says, oh, you. You're just. This is why you're just not grown up yet. So let's have another go.
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Oh, my gosh, that's the cutest verse.
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I fell in love with it more and more as I was.
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Yeah, no one even cared about that verse until two minutes ago. And now everyone needs to write Pom Pom in there. Well, never script listen.
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And I actually think that might be the beauty of these chapters is when you are. Remember Moses two weeks ago where he had to turn aside to see God in the ordinary? And I. And I think that was a. That was an invitation to all of us. Hey, remember who he is. Read it with cross vision. Look for the goodness of God. Assume the very best as you read these, and you'll discover it in places that you would have probably just passed by.
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B
I just think all of these chapters are really good evidence that the Lord is willing to do just about anything to help you get to know him. And you might have to look in unexpected places, but you will find evidence of who he is. And that is what happens to me in Exodus 9:27, because you get a glimpse that it really is working. And Pharaoh sent and called for Moses and Aaron and said to them, I have sinned. This time the Lord is righteous, and I and my people are wicked. And, yeah, we know the end of the story. And you might go there in your mind and be like, ugh, did he really know? But, like, I just love to think about that verse, that one little tiny moment when he says, wait, I know that the Lord is righteous. And to just pause and say, the Lord is willing to do just about anything for his kids to know him. And even if it just works for one second, he is willing to keep working and keep fighting and keep going until every single one of his kids gets the moment when they say, wait, I'm learning something about the Lord right now. I know something that I didn't know about him before. And I cherish these chapters because it is far more often that I am Pharaoh than I am Moses. There are far more days when I say, who is this Lord? And I do not wanna do his plan, and I don't like this idea, and I don't wanna go with what he's going for. And I am not on board for that. There are far more times that I know that the Lord looks down at me and he says, oh, grace, you might be hardening your heart, but don't worry, I am willing to do just about anything I need to for you to know who I am. And even if I just get a glimpse of that day by day, miracle by miracle, plague by plague, for real, that is worth it to him.
- [32:53]
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Yeah. You know, if you go down Pharaoh's response in the middle column of the journal, I think you're gonna see a lot of. Well, I see a lot of me in there. And it almost is like just this cycle of temptation and sin. But I love that you see a softening of Pharaoh's heart through it, and you see that it is actually working. Because, you know, at the beginning, he's just like, I don't even care. And then during the flies in chapter eight, he asked, will you pray for me? And then in the hail in chapter nine, he says, you just said, I. I've sinned. And. And the Lord is right. And. And you see him like, okay, you guys can go, but not very far. And then the next Time. He's like, okay, okay. You know, and it's almost like you just see this progression in Pharaoh, even though it doesn't end how we hoped it would have, you know, for him.
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But that doesn't mean that God was going to give up on it.
- [33:44]
A
No, no. And I think that's really important because Pharaoh actually says right here, right? The locust came. And he just says, the Lord is righteous. And I was. And I'm in the wrong. And I was listening to a podcast probably like a year ago where a gentleman was talking about being arrested and he said that's how God saved me and my time in jail was sanctifying. And that's how he rescued me. Where in the end he was able to see that the consequence for my choices, the consequence he allowed to happen, actually was his saving grace for him. And it awesome to me that there are 10 plagues, because I think if you were omniscient and all knowing God, just skip to the one that's going to work. And instead we see one who doesn't just give three strikes, you're out. Or four, five, six or seven. But again and again and again, chance after chance after chance after chance. Like we often say, God is a God of second chances. Well, the Exodus story says God is a God of ten chances at least, and even more right, because infinite, I think, is the word connected with his mercy. But let's get into this last plague, which is the worst one of all. And we find out at the end of chapter 11 that this plague is coming and it will be the death of all the firstborn in Egypt. That is what is going to happen. But then chapter 12 is the escape. And I think that is. Again, we saw this already in one of the previous chapters. But there is a way that God gives for them to escape the justice of this plague. And I think there's something really symbolic about this in chapter 12 because you find out that he says this. Essentially he says this is a plague that's going to affect everybody. Everybody. Moses. Moses, mom, who we fell in love with last time. Moses, sister. The best of the best. Anybody who tries to fit face this 10th plague on their own will be toast. They won't be able to do it. And. But God provides a rescue. And this plague. I hope that you'll read chapter 12 and about this plague as the. As sin and death itself. And none of us have any power against it. No amount of tithing, no amount of service days, nothing. If we try and face sin and death by ourselves, we will not make it. But God has provided a way for those plagues of sin and death to pass over us. There is a rescue, and chapter 12 is the rescue. And there's so much you can learn from the rescue from chapter 12. But let's just talk about a few. I love when you start reading in chapter 12, verse 2, this month shall be unto you the beginning of month. It shall be the first month of the year to you. I love this verse because this month that they're in, Nissan is the name of the month was not the first month of the year. But what he's saying in verse two is what the thing that's about to happen is going to be so revolutionary and so big. You're going to start counting time differently. It is going to be the beginning of your new life, essentially. And from now on, you're going to count in the calendar differently because of what happened here. It makes me think about the day Jesus was born, how it reoriented the entire calendar and. Oh, go ahead.
- [37:44]
B
And it makes me want to say, this is I. One of my favorite things is talking to new converts in the church. And my favorite thing is when they're like, actually not even new converts, like any convert honestly, ever. And I love when they get so excited to tell you the day they were baptized and they know it. Like, that's like, why do they like, it's the sweetest thing in my life that they bring it up in the very first conversation. They're like, let me tell you, June 8, 1997. And I am like, that day really did begin something new in them. And that is what happens on the moment that you realize that Jesus. Jesus saved you.
- [38:24]
A
Oh, can't you just. I mean, we have a phrase in English that people use which is, that is the first day of my new life. We call it being born again. We call I got my second chance. And that verse is doing that. And so he says, the instruction in verse three is, on the tenth day of this month, you will take every man a lamb according to the house, a lamb for a household, one lamb for every house. Don't you love that? Salvation will be a home and family centered experience and fours. If your house is too little, you should share with your neighbor.
- [39:00]
B
Which is why I do.
- [39:01]
A
I love that.
- [39:02]
B
I don't even know why I love that. I don't know any spiritual significance to that. I just think it's the sweetest thing.
- [39:06]
A
Although, you know, I've never thought of any until right now. But don't you love like share the lamb with your neighbor.
- [39:11]
B
Oh, yeah.
- [39:12]
A
If you have a lot and they have none, share the lamb. Bring others into your home. The home covered by the blood of the lamb is what's being invited in verse four, verse five, this chapter. So rich, everybody. We'll try not to be two hours long.
- [39:32]
B
Oh, no.
- [39:34]
A
That lamb will be without blemish. A male of the first year, which is pointing us to Jesus. I put Hebrews 4:15 as a cross reference to that about the sinless Jesus. And then this. Take it out from the sheep or the goats, set it apart. The word for set apart is to anoint or Messiah or Christ. That's how you translate it in Hebrew and Greek, to take it out. It's set aside for a certain purpose, and you will keep it, it says in verse 6, until the 14 day of the month. And then everybody on that twilight of that night will kill that lamb for the Passover meal. And there's something just, I think, instructive and. Oh, I sounded really Elder Bednar Ish there when I said that. But if you notice, back in verse three, they say, go get the lamb on the tenth day, and then they're going to keep it until the 14th day. And if you play this out in your mind, someone is going to bring a lamb. And a lamb happens to be one of God's most darling creations. Like, he didn't have them. Go get, like a cat. Sorry, if you're a cat person, everyone's gonna. Wait, wait, wait. Cockroach. Whatever, whatever. It was a cute animal. They have those cute eyes and they're fluffy.
- [40:59]
B
And their ears. What is it about their ears?
- [41:02]
A
There is something about the animal chosen that I think he's trying to teach us something. And he says, and I want you to keep it in your house until the 14th day. And let me just tell you, I have children. And I know what happened in those days between the 10th and the 14th with the lamb in the house. They fell in love with it and they named it and they played with it in the backyard, and it became a member of the family that quickly. Ask anyone who's ever had a new puppy that is a member of the family by the next morning. And these families have been endeared to this little lamb, which will only bring out the symbolism more, because when this lamb dies in their place, it will cause heartbreak. And it's pointing us forward to the day when the most gentle, the most kind, the most endearing human soul to ever live in this world will. Will die. I remember having A conversation with actually the director of the Chosen, and him talking about having to film the season of the crucifixion. And he said, we are all. This was back in, like, season two or three. And he was like, we are already not. We're not ready for it. We already know, like, we've become so endeared to Jesus through the filming of this show that we don't know how we're going to do it when we have to film his crucifixion. And that was. That was just a. That's a reenactment of it, you know, And. And this reenactment here is pointing their hearts toward that day when that lamb will die. And it's one they love and one they knew the name of. And especially if there's anybody who's a firstborn, that you would have been particularly emotional on this night because you would have known that the only reason you're going to live is because that lamb died in your place. And seeing that lamb on the center of the table, a lamb slain you particularly, you know. And as we partake of the sacrament each week, I'm getting ahead of myself here, you know, I think we look up on the altar of that table and we see a lamb who died in our place. And all of us are the firstborn in those pews, and we say, the only reason I get to live is because that sweet, innocent Lamb of God died in my place. And they take the blood of the lamb and they put it on the top of their door and on the sides. And I just love that there wasn't just a sprinkling, at least in this particular case, but on the tops and the sides and fully covered in the blood of the lamb, no part of your life untouched by it. And they'll eat that lamb, and it says they'll eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs, and there's instructions about it, and each of those things will teach them. The unleavened bread. Because your rescue is going to happen so fast, you won't have time for the bread to rise. Isn't that so sweet? There is actually no time to leave the yeast, the bread out with the yeast to let it rise. Because you've been in here for 430 years and like that, I'm going to save you. Your rescue is coming so quickly and so completely that you'll have to eat this standing up.
- [44:40]
B
Wait, I know, I'm. Verse 11. Are you going to read that, too?
- [44:43]
A
No, go ahead, please.
- [44:44]
B
When it says this, and thus you shall eat it with your loins girded and your shoes on your feet. You get ready, put your shoes on. You are not even going to have time to tie your laces.
- [44:54]
A
Yeah. So great. And he says, the blood in verse 13, I love this verse. Shall be to you for a token upon the houses where you are. And when I see that blood, I will pass over you. Which is where we get the name of that holiday that's still celebrated in Jewish homes, the Children of Israel. The House of Israel, celebrated all the way until the resurrection and crucifixion of Jesus. I'm going to introduce the poster right now because that is the verse for the poster. Verse, which is Passover, which is to skip over, to pass over that plague that should have impacted you, but now it's going to pass over you. And this will be that reminder all week. And it's interesting because he says this in verse 14. This day shall be unto you for a memorial. And you will keep it as a feast to the Lord throughout your generations. You will keep it a feast by an ordinance forever. I want you to keep having this same meal. And they will, year after year after year. And throughout the rest of the Old Testament. We will point out the times that it shows that they have that Passover meal out in the wilderness for the 40 years. They'll do it 40 times on this first day of the month. It will be marked in the calendar. And they will reenact this moment in this scene where the blood of the lamb set them free. And they're going to tell that story again and again and again and again. And they're going to see themselves in that story. In fact, I love when it says that. Verse 26 of chapter 12, when you're doing this years from now, your kids are going to say, what mean ye by this service? Dad, Mom, Why are. Why are we doing this? Why are we eating the unleavened bread? Why are we eating with our shoes on? Why are we having this lamb? And you'll answer back in 27. This is the sacrifice of the Lord's Passover, who passed over the children of Israel in Egypt and delivered our houses, and the people bowed their heads and. And they worshiped. And it's interesting because that verse says, you will keep this memorial forever. And if you are a Christian, you're thinking to yourself, well, I don't do that anymore. And my scripture says that I'm going to do this forever and ever. Well, let's fast forward to what we celebrated Last week, Easter week, that Jesus will gather together with his disciples in an upper room and they will have a Passover meal together. And there will be bread and wine and bitter herbs. And to tell the story of the Exodus, to remember the day that God set them free. And in that meal, Jesus surprises them and gives new symbols to the items on the table. They used to be the Exodus story symbols. And he gives new symbols and he says, now this bread you eat will be my body given for you. And this wine will be in remembrance of the blood that was put on the. The doorposts of your houses. And it's interesting because Matthew, Mark, Luke and John all give the Passover story. And very, very conspicuously, they leave out the Lamb, which is the main course. And the main part of the entire story is the Lamb. And I heard from one preacher once, he says, well, that's because the Lamb of the Lamb was not on the table. The Lamb was sitting at the table. And that night, Thursday of Holy Week, Jesus becomes the Passover lamb. And by the blood of that lamb, we're set free. And the judgment and plague of sin and death can pass over anyone who's marked by the blood of that innocent lamb. And so we retell that story,
- [49:01]
B
not
- [49:01]
A
year after year, but as Christians, week after week, and we gather in our churches and we reenact the shedding of the blood of this lamb. And we remember that story. And we remember and we participate in the story because it's our story. And each week can become the first day of my new life, where I say my story is, I'm the kid set free by the blood of the Lamb. And all week long, people will try and teach us differently about who we are and will convince ourselves about who we are. And each week the Lord reminds us, no, no, you're the one set free. That's your story. That is who you are. And don't you love that verse when it says, and they bowed their head and they worshiped when they learned that. And there's this verse in chapter 13, and we can end here, but in chapter 13, I love verse three, when the Lord says, remember this day, the day that I set you free from your. From your bondage. And then verse 8, and thou shalt show your son in that day, saying, this is done because of that which the Lord did unto me when I came out of Egypt. When he asks you, dad, why do you follow this God? Why do you follow this Lord? Why do you do all these things he asked you to do? And he says, I do this because of what he did for me. That 138 is better. In another translation, it makes a little more clear. But essentially, that's what it's saying is I'm doing what I do because of what he did for me. And I love that reminder every week about who I am and more particularly about who he is each week as we reenact that Passover story and can remember all of these lessons.
- [51:11]
B
So good. Now we love Easter, even extra.
- [51:13]
A
I know. One week, everyone.
- [51:15]
B
It's okay.
- [51:15]
A
If you want to celebrate Easter again, you can. It's coming next year. But essentially, we do it Easter every week.
- [51:22]
B
So true.
- [51:22]
A
Because of the sacraments, we can't wait for Sunday. All right, you guys, we'll see you next week. Hi. Technically we said goodbye already and see you next week, but we'd be bad friends if we didn't tell you about these things that we forgot to tell you about. So what's up? Coming two awesome things. Conference and Easter. So double week. It's. Yeah. Oh, on the same weekend, I think same day is Easter on General Conference.
- [51:47]
B
Yes.
- [51:48]
A
You guys, I'm about to say something controversial that I don't really love. When Easter's on General Conference because you
- [51:53]
B
feel like you're missing out on. Yeah. Then you get two good weekends.
- [51:57]
A
Yeah. It's fine. It's fine. It's fine, everybody. But I'll say why I do love it. This is why I do love it when it happens. I always convinced myself like this, that I was like, oh, one of the things at Easter were the witnesses running from the tomb, telling everybody that. That he lives. And so conference gets to be that. Conference gets to be Peter and John and Mary running from the tomb, saying, the best news of all. So I take it back. I take it back. Both are fine. Both are fine. But we want to help you out with both of those. So if you've been around for a while, you know that these are things are right up our alley. Let's start with the conference notebooks first.
- [52:34]
B
Conference notebooks. I love these, first of all, because I just love having traditions. And so this feels like a really sweet tradition to have. And there are three different kinds of General conference notebooks. The first one is just like a classic if you are a note taker and you love to write things down, have thoughts, and there's just such beautiful art all throughout this entire notebook. It goes through every single session, gives you different things to think about, different things to write, different areas, different prompts for all of General Conference. I think One of the best tips I got is you actually don't not like taking notes about General Conference. You're just taking them the wrong way. And once I heard that, I was like, oh, maybe I don't need to write down every single thing that I've ever heard in General Conference. It sounds like it's gonna be a really cute Pinterest board, but maybe I just wanna go through and sit and be like, what's the spirit teaching me? That is such a good guide for it.
- [53:20]
A
Yeah. Because I like that it actually is divided out with prompting. Promptings, promises, and invitations for each of the talks that are there. And if you're an Inklings person who likes to watch, listen to that podcast or the this Is Kingdom podcast about General Conference, then this is awesome because it can carry you through the whole six months. And actually it has perforated pages if you want to put them into notebooks. And just. Anyways, it's awesome. Not just for the weekend, but for the whole six months.
- [53:48]
B
And it was, like, built for that. Like, the quality is so good. You want to treasure it, and you can. It, like, really is a treasure.
- [53:53]
A
So good.
- [53:54]
B
Then the next one is I'm biased. My favorite of all time in the history of the world. It is so good. It is a watercolor journal. And so half the page is going to be like a notes page regular, so you can write your notes. And then the other half is like a black and white picture that you get to color with watercolor. It comes with paints. It comes with everything you need. So if you are the type of person that's like, how in the world am I gonna sit down on my couch for. For four hours every single day and, like, just, like, sit there and do nothing? No, don't worry. This is, like, it's, like, gonna give you a little something to do. Your kids will die over this one. It is so, so good.
- [54:28]
A
And I don't even know why you said the kids, because when McKenzie texted me and said, what General Conference notebook do you want? I was like, what a silly question.
- [54:36]
B
Why did you even ask?
- [54:37]
A
I'm a note taker.
- [54:38]
B
Please.
- [54:38]
A
I am a colorer.
- [54:39]
B
Me too. And I love last time to color all my notes, too. If I, like, really like something, I'd write it in my pen and then watercolor over it like a little highlighter. And the last one is just a kid's one, and it is just mostly full of activities and a little bit of room for notes. So if you just want to think, what are my kids gonna wanna do during conference. It is this, and it's called Jesus Time. It's an activity book. You can take the activities, use them some for conference. Maybe you wanna take it to church too. It is the best little book. So those are the general conference workbooks this year.
- [55:07]
A
Okay. And then the Holy Week. I don't even know what you call this. Stand up. Stand. Holy Week. Stand. Listen, I somehow, some way, we just want to elevate Holy Week. We just want every day of that week to be so sweet and special. And we're hoping that this can help you so it stands up really nicely on your. What do you say? Just table or coffee table or kitchen table? Just right there. And there are beautiful pictures and thoughts and questions and family activities discussions for every single day of Holy Week. Just to elevate it. And you can pick and choose. Maybe you just wanna do like the family activity, or you just wanna ask the reflection questions or read one of the verses or whatever it may be, or take the invitation. But all of it's there for you to choose from, just for each day to be elevated. And then you just flip through the days and there's pictures of it and it just sits there. And one other thing that's awesome about it is you can make an Easter banner. So go to good newsbrandco.com to the Instagram page to see if you need kind of inspiration for how to make it. But it's included in there to cut out and create this Easter banner for all seven days of Holy Week.
- [56:21]
B
It's so cute.
- [56:22]
A
It's awesome. I love Easter so much. And whatever we can do to just elevate the day tradition so it's like,
- [56:29]
B
oh, right, I can do this.
- [56:31]
A
So good. Okay, y', all, that's what we forgot to tell you. And we wanted to, since we're friends. So there you go. And for real life now, we'll see you next week. If you want to follow along in everything we're doing, you can find us on Instagram. Don't miss this study at this week's Grace and at MrDave Butler.
- [56:47]
B
And if you want to subscribe to the app or get our weekly newsletter, all of the information can be found at don'tmissthisstudy.com See you next week.