I’ve been reading through the Old
Testament lately, and just came to Exodus 2. Verses 23-25 say:
“During those
many days the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel groaned
because of their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry for rescue
from slavery came up to God. And God heard their groaning, and God
remembered His covenant with Abraham, and with Isaac, and with Jacob.
God saw the people of Israel—and God knew” (ESV, emphasis
added).
Just three little words, but they
tell so much of the story, and of our story. God knew that the
Israelites were in a desperate situation in Egypt; after all, He was
the one who arranged for Joseph to be in charge in Egypt during the
years of famine. God knew they needed help. But more importantly, God
knew that He already had a plan in the works to redeem them through
the hand of Moses.
In more recent times, God knew the
suffering and decimation of the Jews in Nazi Germany. God knew what
was happening on 9-11 as planes were being hijacked. God knew what
was happening with every major earthquake, hurricane, and tsunami
ever recorded. It’s hard for us to look at massive deaths and
destruction and believe that God is both in control and concerned for
His people.
And it’s not just the events that
make the national news. Friends of mine from college have a daughter
who was born with multiple birth defects. She has endured (and
thrived) through numerous surgeries, and recently celebrated her 16th
birthday. They will be quick to tell you that she is “fearfully and
wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14). God not only knew what He was
doing, but He “knitted her together” the way He chose.
Ravi Zacharias brings it close to
home for me in his book The
Grand Weaver:
“To
be able to accept the wonder and the marvel of one’s own
personality, however flawed or ‘accidental,’ and place it in and
trust it to the hands of the One who made it, is one of the greatest
achievements in life. His ‘registration number’ is on you. Your
DNA matters because the essence of who you are matters and whose you
are by design matters. Every little feature and ‘accident’ of
your personality matter. Consider it God’s sovereign imprint on
you” (28).
He
later says:
“Faith
is a thing of the mind. If you do not believe that God is in control
and has formed you for a purpose, then you will flounder on the high
seas of purposelessness, drowning in the currents and drifting
further into nothingness” (43).
I’m
sure we all go through times when we wonder whether God is paying
attention and if or when He might intervene. Nations go to war,
churches split, couples divorce, children are left orphaned, and yet
through it all God knows.
Individuals go through physical or mental illness, all kinds of
abuse, and even death, and God knows.
If
you read on through the book of Exodus, you see all the details that
God worked out to free His people from slavery in Egypt. He is at
work today in working out His master plan and weaving His grand
tapestry. We may never get to see the bigger picture in this
lifetime, but in the life to come we will be awestruck by the beauty
He has created out of what seemed so messy and painful at the time.
On
my bathroom mirror I have taped Matthew 10:31, which with the context
from verses 29-30 says: “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And
not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But
even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore;
you are of more value than many sparrows.”
He
knows, and He cares.
