The Wilderness and the Cross

There are very few epic stories in history as memorable as the Exodus story (as portrayed by the Charlton Heston movie). In it, we see the miracles of God's saving provision. We see the heroic moments where Moses raises his staff and parts the Red Sea, or when he struggles down Mt. Sinai with two stone tablets carrying the ten commandments. We imagine the Israelite people facing an uncertain future, hoping to find the promised land, yet stubbornly living in the tension between turning back to the terrible but predictable slavery, or pressing ahead to the unknown fate beyond the wilderness. As we prepare ourselves for another season of Lent, and we ponder Christ's saving work through his cross and resurrection, I want to encourage you to consider what God is doing today in the world to call us out of slavery and into the wilderness.

Does the Exodus story speak to us today? Over this season of Lent we will be embarking on the same journey that the Israelite slaves took. We will consider who Pharaoh is and what modern day Pharaoh's look like and act like. We will consider what it would truly look like to form a new community that relies on God and God's provision, instead of the promises that our systems around the world provides. Ultimately, we will see how the work that God did during the Exodus, coupled with the work Christ did through his death and resurrection, reveals what God is still doing today in the modern world, and how we can choose to either remain a "stiff-necked" people, or step out into the promised land once more and live in God's picture of creation that helps all people flourish.

You won't want to miss any of the Sunday services, or the monthly reading guide for March which provides a way to navigate through this lengthy but legendary Old Testament story. I encourage you to read ahead, follow along, and participate through worship and study as we prepare our hearts and minds for Christ's resurrection on Easter Sunday.