Baptized Into Moses

(Exodus 12-15)

"Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the LORD drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left." (Exodus 14:21,22)

The story of Moses and the Israelites is a page turner. Beginning with God demonstrating His power to Pharaoh and ending with God's judgement against the Israelites unfaithfulness, the story is a demonstration of God's plan for us today. He calls us out of slavery to sin; He provides a mediator for His covenant and calls His people to faithfulness and purity. Today's reading takes His people through the Red Sea and into the desert on their way to the promised land. Sometimes, we have to dig to determine why God provides the stories that are included in His word and other times, He comes right out and tells us. I am always thankful when He makes it simple for me, today is one of those days.

In 1 Corinthians 10, Paul tells us the that "these things took place as examples for us, that we might not desire evil as they did." (v 6) Verse1 begins with the word "for", so chapter 10 is connected to chapter 9. Chapter 9 ends with Paul telling the church of Christ in Corinth this:

"Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified." (v 24-27) 

The church in Corinth was very familiar with the Isthmian games, so Paul's use of the imagery of the runner and the races is very logical. His point of course, is that as Christians we are to run the race in such a way as to win the prize. He makes sure they understand the seriousness of the effort needed by stating that even he could be disqualified from the prize. Every Christian is a runner in the race and striving to obtain the prize.

Chapter 10 picks up with this same idea and uses the Israelites as another example. He says they were "baptized into Moses" as reference that the Christians in Corinth had been baptized into Christ, they had committed their lives to the mediator of the Old Covenant, Moses and we as Christians commit our lives to Christ, the mediator of the New Covenant. They had all partaken of spiritual drink and eaten spiritual food, yet God found them to be unfaithful and the desert was littered with their bones for a generation.

In the same way, Paul tells us that even though we have been baptized into Christ, even though we partake of the body and blood of our savior in communion; if we choose to live unfaithfully, we too will be destroyed, we too will fail to win the prize. Paul calls us to lives of purity and integrity with the clear picture of the outcome of lives lived otherwise through the example of the Israelites. He repeats that the story in Exodus is for our instruction, our benefit: "Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come." (v 11) His point is this, when we read about the Israelites and their unfaithfulness and the punishment that they received; we are to understand that the same consequences await us if we are unfaithful.

May each of us determine to "run with endurance the race that is set before us" (Hebrews 12:1) with the assurance that when we finish, when the race is over, an imperishable prize awaits each of us. Thank you Moses for the example; may we learn the easy way! May we learn by the instruction we receive through God's word. On your marks, get set.......