Sign up to save your podcasts
Or
Share Exodus. Week 08. Moses and Pharaoh (Exod 5.1-6.1)
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Or
Exodus. Week 08. Moses and Pharaoh (Exod 5.1-6.1)
In this week's teaching, Josh explores the main themes of Exodus 5 with the help of some prompts from Walter Brueggemann's exquisite commentary. These themes are categorized as: the church and politics, the church and consumerism/busyness, the church and the (comfortable) middle, the church and impatience/lack of faith/unbelief, and the church and Jesus.
the restoration project. Joshua James. 12 March 2017
Small Group Study Questions
(1)Josh argued that Yahweh's demand that the people go out and worship him in the wilderness was (among other things) a highly political demand. How so?
(2) Brueggemann writes, "Given the identification of Yahweh with the slaves, it follows that biblical faith is inevitably concerned with political questions, with an inescapable tilt not only toward justice, but also toward liberation." What do you think about the claim that "biblical faith is inevitably concerned with political questions? What do you think the relationship should be between the church and politics?
(3) Pharaoh denies Moses' and Aaron's request and then counters with an increased workload for the Israelite slaves. Brueggemann observes that part of the rationale could be Pharaoh's acknowledgment that "Productivity numbs attention to the voice of new possibility." How does this work out in Exodus? How does this work out in our context? (You could talk a bit about consumerism in our culture.)
(4)Josh mentioned an article by Eugene Peterson on the "busyness" of pastors. Peterson says, "[T]he word busy is the symptom not of commitment but of betrayal. It is not devotion but defection." Do you think busyness is betrayal/defection or is it honorable?
(5)In Exod 5:10-14, the (Egyptian) slave drivers beat the (Hebrew) foremen/overseers for not making the quota of bricks. These overseers functioned as something of middle men between the Egyptian hierarchy and the Hebrew people. Brueggemann draws a brilliant comparison with us, claiming that we are often “cast in our society precisely as those ‘in the middle’ of such abusive arrangements. Few among us are as powerful or as brutal as Pharaoh… Many more of us are positioned where we notice and care, where we can protest injustice, but only at risk." Is he right? What should we do?
(6) After Moses hears from the overseers, he immediately blames God for the lack of results. He says, "You have not rescued your people at all." Can you relate? Does it seem (or has it seemed) like God is not holding up his end of the bargain?
View all episodes
By restoresby
4.6
1010 ratings
In this week's teaching, Josh explores the main themes of Exodus 5 with the help of some prompts from Walter Brueggemann's exquisite commentary. These themes are categorized as: the church and politics, the church and consumerism/busyness, the church and the (comfortable) middle, the church and impatience/lack of faith/unbelief, and the church and Jesus.
the restoration project. Joshua James. 12 March 2017
Small Group Study Questions
(1)Josh argued that Yahweh's demand that the people go out and worship him in the wilderness was (among other things) a highly political demand. How so?
(2) Brueggemann writes, "Given the identification of Yahweh with the slaves, it follows that biblical faith is inevitably concerned with political questions, with an inescapable tilt not only toward justice, but also toward liberation." What do you think about the claim that "biblical faith is inevitably concerned with political questions? What do you think the relationship should be between the church and politics?
(3) Pharaoh denies Moses' and Aaron's request and then counters with an increased workload for the Israelite slaves. Brueggemann observes that part of the rationale could be Pharaoh's acknowledgment that "Productivity numbs attention to the voice of new possibility." How does this work out in Exodus? How does this work out in our context? (You could talk a bit about consumerism in our culture.)
(4)Josh mentioned an article by Eugene Peterson on the "busyness" of pastors. Peterson says, "[T]he word busy is the symptom not of commitment but of betrayal. It is not devotion but defection." Do you think busyness is betrayal/defection or is it honorable?
(5)In Exod 5:10-14, the (Egyptian) slave drivers beat the (Hebrew) foremen/overseers for not making the quota of bricks. These overseers functioned as something of middle men between the Egyptian hierarchy and the Hebrew people. Brueggemann draws a brilliant comparison with us, claiming that we are often “cast in our society precisely as those ‘in the middle’ of such abusive arrangements. Few among us are as powerful or as brutal as Pharaoh… Many more of us are positioned where we notice and care, where we can protest injustice, but only at risk." Is he right? What should we do?
(6) After Moses hears from the overseers, he immediately blames God for the lack of results. He says, "You have not rescued your people at all." Can you relate? Does it seem (or has it seemed) like God is not holding up his end of the bargain?