To God Be The Glory

I was reading about Moses and the plagues of Egypt and I began to think about what it must have been like for the Egyptians. Here is a thriving culture which had a god for different aspects of their culture. There was the sun god, the livestock god, the river god, etc, etc. Imagine how their world must have been turned upside down when their river god (Hapi) was unable to turn the bloody Nile back into water or even preventing it from becoming blood in the first place! What about Amon-Re, the sun god who was powerless to prevent the darkness over all of Egypt? What an awesome witness it must have been for Israel to show the power and glory of their God! Exodus 12 chronicles the final plague, the passover, and the beginning of the Exodus. We know that the Israelites took everything they had and left. They also asked for silver and gold and were given what they asked for by the Egyptian people. Finally, while describing the people who left and what they took with them, Exodus 12:38 in the NASB says: “A mixed multitude went up with them, along with flocks and herds, a very large number of livestock.” The Life Application Bible has a foot note that suggests this “mixed multitude” may have been Egyptians that, after witnessing the power of God, decided that Israel’s God was the true God and ended up following Him. I have to agree.

Today, many people are demanding some kind of a sign. Sometimes as Christians, it can seem frustrating when to us, it is obvious that Creation screams that there is a Creator but the world continues to be adamant that there can’t be one. Yet, there is hope. While I believe that God still uses the supernatural to get His point across, I think that His overall approach to get the attention of the world has changed. When Christ came, He reconnected us to the orignal intention God had–to have a personal relationship with us. 

While we don’t have modern plagues of Egypt that declare God’s glory, our own lives, attitudes, and love should reflect Him. Philippians 1:27 says: “Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I will hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving for the faith of the gospel.” What is this verse saying? This verse is saying that our Christian conduct show go beyond just the church setting and be part of our everyday lives. To many times, we do the church thing while at church and the world thing while we are away from it. Like the king of Egypt in Moses’ time, we see how God’s glory can work yet, we harden our hearts once His power has passed us by. If we are to conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel, people will take notice.

In this world, it can be hard to distinguish ourselves from the world. The Christian sub-culture has so easily blended us in. Yet, we should be as outstanding as the Israelites were while enslaved in Egypt. During the plague of darkness, the land of Goshen where the Israelites resided was unaffected. God was there and we know that God is light. Philippians 1:27 thus means we should distinguish ourselves by being the light not only while at church, but about in our everyday lives.

Jesus also told us this when He said in Matthew 5:16: “Let your light shine before men that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father who is in heaven.” Does your “light” shine in such away that a “mixed multitude” (Exodus 12:38 ) is praising the Father in heaven?