3 Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. 3 So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.”
4 When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!”
And Moses said, “Here I am.”
5 “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” 6 Then he said, “I am the God of your father,[a] the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.
7 The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. 9 And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. 10 So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.”
11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”
12 And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you[b] will worship God on this mountain.”
13 Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?”
14 God said to Moses, “I am who I am.[c] This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’”
15 God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord,[d] the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’
Reflection
While listening recently to an instrumental of an old favorite, “Standing on the Promises,” I wondered just how many promises there are in the Bible.
The number varies, depending on the source. I found 3,000-plus, 5,000-plus, 7,000-plus and all the way to 30,000, which seems a little steep considering there are 31,173 verses in the Bible.
I could have taken the route of Everet R. Storms; a Canadian schoolteacher who thought 30,000 wasn’t accurate. So, he kept a record of the promises during his 27th reading of the Bible, according to a book, “All the Promises in the Bible,” by Herbert Lockyer.
It took a year and a half for Storms to compile his list, actually lists. He kept promises by God to man (7,487), one man to another (991), God the Father to God the Son (2), man to God (290) and several other combinations, including nine made by Satan.
In all, Storms tallied 8,810 promises.
I did a quick word search with BibleGateway.com and found the word promise, or a derivative, is used 214 times.
I also learned the backstory about the song written by Russell Carter. His song was first published in 1886 a hymnbook, Songs of Perfect Love.
Carter gave his life to the Lord when he was 15. He later became an instructor at an academy, as well as a coach, an ordained minister and also a medical doctor, in addition to becoming a musician and songwriter.
Like many, Carter only learned to truly rest on God’s promising when he faced with illness, and death at the age of 30. He was diagnosed with a critical heart condition.
Connie Ruth Christiansen, a teacher of college academics, Bible, drama and music wrote of Carter, ““He knelt and made a promise that healing or no, his life was finally and forever, consecrated to the service of the Lord.”
She added that Scripture took on new life for Carter. He truly began to lean on the promises that he found in the Bible.
Maybe even more important was his commitment to believe whether God healed him or not.
Some of the verses in his song include:
Standing on the promises that cannot fail,
When the howling storms of doubt and fear assail,
By the living Word of God I shall prevail,
Standing on the promises of God.
Standing on the promises I now can see
Perfect, present cleansing in the blood for me;
Standing in the liberty where Christ makes free,
Standing on the promises of God.
Standing on the promises of Christ the Lord,
Bound to Him eternally by love’s strong cord,
Overcoming daily with the Spirit’s sword,
Standing on the promises of God.
Standing on the promises I cannot fall,
Listening every moment to the Spirit’s call
Resting in my Savior as my all in all,
Standing on the promises of God.
This is the type of faith I crave. These are the promises I want to trust.
Incidentally, God healed his heart condition. Carter lived for another 49 years with a healthy heart, though he later suffered many other health issues God did not heal.
Carter came to the conclusion it was God’s choice to heal or not and what instrument He would use when and if healing came.
It would appear his hymn and life were personal testimony of his faith.
Now let us truly appreciate Exodus 1:1-15 and the great promises God made to us.
by Rick Reed
For Pondering and Prayer
So many promises from God to us. And they are all yes through Christ who strengthens me. Let us hold on to our many promises.
Prayer : Almighty and Blessed God. I want and need to hold onto your many promises. Help me to know in Christ’s name. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
