Deut. 26:8 And the LORD brought us forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm (z’roah), and with great terribleness, and with signs, and with wonders: The Lord is the same yesterday, today and forever.
Right now, around the world, many are celebrating the holiday of Pesach (Passover) reminding us of the time that the Lord led His people out of slavery in Egypt.
As it applies to us today, there is a spiritual Egypt from which we all need deliverance. The spiritual Egypt symbolizes worldliness, carnality and spiritual bondage and the Lord wants to redeem us from those with His outstretched arm. He wants to lead us out of the burdens of this world and bring us into a place of freedom in Him!
In Hebrew, the word for arm is “z’roah”. His z’roah is a picture of His might and His strength and His z’roah is mighty and able to bring us out of any bondage that hinders our spiritual walk. When the z’roah of the Lord led Israel out of Egypt He displayed great signs and wonders and He is more that able to do the same for us today.
Be encouraged! Whatever situation we may be in, whatever bondage has us enslaved, the z’roah of the Lord desires to display great signs and wonders in our lives and lead us out of our Egypt! Let’ give our all to Him again and be FREE at last!
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[worthy_plugins_devotion_single_body]There is a tale told of that great English actor Macready. An eminent preacher once said to him: "I wish you would explain to me something."
Yesterday, actor Robert Clary of Hogan's Heroes fame passed away at the age of 96. Upon reading his autobiography, Mr. Clary was the youngest of 14 children. However, 10 of his siblings were tragically killed during the Holocaust. He survived his captivity in the Buchenwald Concentration Camp in 1942. Upon reading his story, and with thanksgiving coming this week in the United States reminded me of another story by Corrie Ten Boom, a Christian survivor of the Holocaust because of her willingness to protect Jews during World War 2.
The parable of the Prodigal son might also serve as an illustration of the relationship between Israel and the Church.
The first thirty years of my life were spent in Baltimore, Maryland, and I have many fond memories there. One of these is a trail in the woods by the Patapsco River. I used to go fishing there with my dad and spent many a weekend hanging out with my friends, wading in the water.
Scottish minister Alexander Whyte was known for his uplifting prayers in the pulpit. He always found something for which to be grateful. One Sunday morning the weather was so gloomy that one church member thought to himself, "Certainly the preacher won't think of anything for which to thank the Lord on a wretched day like this." Much to his surprise, however, Whyte began by praying, "We thank Thee, O God, that it is not always like this."
As we continue in our study of the parable of the Prodigal son, let's focus on the central figure in the story -- the father. The father is much like the helpless parent whose unending love is neither understood nor appreciated by either son. He allows his sons to make their own decisions, despite how bad those choices may be. No matter what terrible wrong they may commit, he loves them -- a perfect picture of the love of our Heavenly Father has for his children.
Most people overlook a very significant part of the parable of the prodigal son, which is – the elder son received his inheritance as well! (Luke 15:12b) According to the custom of the times, the older son's inheritance would have been twice that of the younger son. In that light, his response to his younger brother's initiative, a response of silence...speaks volumes.