March 17, 2015

Let Me Make Bricks Without Straw…



“…Pharaoh said, “Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.” Exodus 5:2


Early in the story of Moses, we see conversation take place that could easily take place today.  Moses had left the safety of home.  He and Aaron had traveled to meet the leader of the land of Egypt.  In the presence of the absolute ruler of the land, these mean declared God message.  What happen next in this exchange … the Pharaoh relented and the people of Israel lived happily-ever-after, right?  Wrong.  Like the here and now, the real world collided with Moses.  The Pharaoh retorted, “Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.” The Pharaoh does not stop at words, but responds to suppress Moses message by requiring the Hebrew people continue to provide the slave labor to make bricks but to do so without being given the straw need to make the bricks.


Does the account not remind you of the culture in which we live?  We who are Christian are all called to take the Good News message to the world around us… but when we do their response is akin to that of the Pharaoh.  Those who are unbelievers ask, “who is this outdated, old-fashioned, obsolete God of who you speak and how do you expect me to overcome rational thought to believe in such a being.”  The skeptics and self-proclaimed atheists do not stop there… but they socially marginalize those who believe in Jesus Christ.  They criticize and ridicule the Christian belief system.  The nonbelievers treat those who believe as drones, as slaves to an antiquated religious system dispensing worthless knowledge.  The unbelieving crowd regards those who proclaim God as unintelligent, brainless individuals no better than the brick-making slaves in ancient Egypt.


My friends… if professing Jesus Christ relegates me to the status of a brick-making slave… then I want to known as one who makes bricks without straws.