Open Exodus 6:8-9.
Know anyone who used to go to church? What happened? Disappointed with God? Hurt by people?
What happens when life doesn’t work out as you expected, when pain erodes hope?
There’s an apparent contradiction in the Exodus story:
- Exodus 4:31 says the people believed Moses’ message.
- Exodus 6:9 says they were unresponsive to Moses’ message.
What happened in between to destroy their faith?
Pharaoh made their life even harder so they’d give up hope of escaping his grip. The strategy worked. Moses kept repeating the promises, but the people stopped listening. Why?
Exodus 6:8–9 (ESV)
8 “I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. I am the Lord.”
9 Moses spoke thus to the people of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses, because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery.
Cruel experiences wear you down. You give up on hope, just to survive.
Know anyone whose spirit has been drained away by inhuman treatment? Know anyone whose life is just a mechanistic cog in someone else’s machine?
How do we restore a broken spirit? How do we help people find their purpose in something bigger?
What do we do when expectation evaporates, when faith fades?
Any suggestions?
Seeking the kingdom 