The Bible's Major Themes - Suffering Day 1

This fall, Bethany's Confirmation class has been exploring the major themes of the Bible and reflecting on stories that reveal the larger story God is telling through scripture. These devotionals follow that same path, inviting you to pause, reflect, and discover how each theme connects to your own journey of faith.

Egypt | Suffering | Monday
The book of Genesis details the stories of Abraham and his descendants.  We hear stories about Isaac, and then Isaac’s sons, Jacob and Esau, and then Jacob’s twelve Sons, one of whom was Joseph who was sold by his brothers and ended up in Egypt.  Eventually, the descendants of Jacob’s 12 sons (also known as Israelites) also ended up in Egypt, as slaves. 
 
For 400+ years the Israelites suffered as slaves in Egypt.  God sees the misery and suffering of the Israelites and calls Moses to be a part of freeing them from their oppression.  The following reading from Exodus 3 illustrates God’s compassion for the Israelites:

Exodus 3:1-10
1 Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed. 3 Then Moses said, “I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why the bush is not burned up.” 4 When the Lord saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” 5 Then he said, “Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” 6 He said further, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.
7 Then the Lord said, “I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings, 8 and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the country of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 9 The cry of the Israelites has now come to me; I have also seen how the Egyptians oppress them. 10 So come, I will send you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.”
 
Suffering is a theme that comes up a lot in the Bible and just as often, the Bible also describes how God sees the suffering of God’s people and sends help.  The story of God liberating the Israelites from their suffering in Egypt is a story of paramount importance to Christians and Jews alike because it reveals a God that sees suffering and oppression and, in response, sends healing and liberation.
 
This week, we consider the suffering in our lives and in our world and more importantly we look for all the ways that God is sending help and healing.