We can trust Him when pain makes hope hard to hear.
3
Sometimes obedience is followed by a heavier burden.
The same bricks. No supplied straw. Beaten foremen.
4
He knew the uniform. Now he sees the rescue.
Israel would experience the faithfulness their fathers had trusted.
5
Who He is. What He has heard. What He will do.
The LORD speaks to people still under Pharaoh’s burden.
6
God spoke further to Moses and said to him, "I am the LORD;
Exodus 6:2 · NASB
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and I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as God Almighty, but by My name, LORD, I did not make Myself known to them.
Exodus 6:3 · NASB
8
"I also established My covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they sojourned.
Exodus 6:4 · NASB
9
"Furthermore I have heard the groaning of the sons of Israel, because the Egyptians are holding them in bondage, and I have remembered My covenant.
Exodus 6:5 · NASB
10
"Say, therefore, to the sons of Israel, ' I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from their bondage. I will also redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments.
Exodus 6:6 · NASB
11
'Then I will take you for My people, and I will be your God; and you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.
Exodus 6:7 · NASB
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'I will bring you to the land which I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and I will give it to you for a possession; I am the LORD.' "
Exodus 6:8 · NASB
13
So Moses spoke thus to the sons of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses on account of their despondency and cruel bondage.
Exodus 6:9 · NASB
14
I
The Lord Has Heard His People
Exodus 6:2–5
15
And He said to him, "I am the LORD who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to possess it."
Genesis 15:7 · NASB
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Israel’s hope rests in what God has pledged.
His covenant was a binding commitment.
17
So God heard their groaning; and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
Exodus 2:24 · NASB
18
Trust in Him at all times, O people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Selah.
Psalm 62:8 · NASB
19
We do not have to wait until we feel strong to pray.
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The LORD is near to the brokenhearted And saves those who are crushed in spirit.
Psalm 34:18 · NASB
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"Can a woman forget her nursing child And have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, but I will not forget you.
Isaiah 49:15 · NASB
22
Remain faithful while life is hard.
Keep praying, obeying, and caring. Receive help when you need it.
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Their pain does not tell them everything about what God is doing.
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II
The Lord Will Bring Them Out
To be His people · Exodus 6:6–8
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Bring them out. Deliver them. Redeem them.
The Lord places His own power behind His promise.
26
Freedom from Pharaoh leads into belonging to the Lord.
Rescued to live under His authority.
27
Real bondage. Real deliverance. A real promised land.
“I am the LORD.” His identity assures them.
28
In Christ: deliverance already received and deliverance still to come.
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From slavery to sin into service to Christ.
We serve the one we obey.
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Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness?
Romans 6:16 · NASB
31
But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed,
Romans 6:17 · NASB
32
and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.
Romans 6:18 · NASB
33
From darkness to light.
Christ changes how we live.
34
for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light
Ephesians 5:8 · NASB
35
From Satan’s dominion into the kingdom of God’s Son.
Forgiven and living under His rule.
36
For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,
Colossians 1:13 · NASB
37
in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Colossians 1:14 · NASB
38
At His coming: an eternal inheritance.
Reserved in heaven for His people.
39
to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you,
1 Peter 1:4 · NASB
40
who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
1 Peter 1:5 · NASB
41
Our inheritance will not perish or fade.
We await it in faith, trusting God’s power and promise.
42
For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
1 Thessalonians 4:16 · NASB
43
Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord.
1 Thessalonians 4:17 · NASB
44
The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed, and will bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom; to Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
2 Timothy 4:18 · NASB
45
Death would not mean that God had failed to deliver Paul.
46
Israel’s deliverance was real, and ours is real.
In Christ we have an inheritance that will never fade away.
47
III
Pain Makes the Promise Hard to Hear
Exodus 6:9
48
So Moses spoke thus to the sons of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses on account of their despondency and cruel bondage.
Exodus 6:9 · NASB
49
God speaks of deliverance while they are still making bricks.
Their burden helps us understand their response.
50
The promise remains true when a hurting person struggles to believe it.
Despair does not cancel God’s covenant.
51
Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful;
Hebrews 10:23 · NASB
52
Help the weary hear His promise.
Listen. Sit with them. Help. Pray. · Hebrews 10:24–25
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Bring the burden to God.
Ask for relief and strength to remain faithful.
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Live as one who belongs to Christ.
Leave the sin. Accept His correction. Serve Him.
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Help someone whose burden makes hope hard to hear.
A meal. A visit. Help with a difficult task.
56
Our suffering will not have the final word.
57
Come to Christ for the freedom He gives.
Believe. Confess Him. Repent. Be baptized. Continue faithfully.
58
And Peter said to them, "Repent, and let each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.