Exodus 7: He Has Named Us So

I don’t know if I’ve told y’all this before but just case I haven’t, I love the book of Exodus. Love. It. Today, it blew my mind yet again.

Pharaoh will not listen to you, but I will put My hand into Egypt and bring the military divisions of My people the Israelites out of the land of Egypt by great acts of judgment. (Exodus 7:4 CSB)

Do you see it? I didn’t either at first. But now I can’t not see it. So weird how God does that. I looked at a different translation just to make sure I was seeing it right.

Pharaoh will not listen to you. Then I will lay My hand on Egypt and bring my armies, My people the sons of Isra’el, out of the land of Egypt with great acts of judgment. (CJB – Complete Jewish Bible)

The people of Israel had been captive in Egypt for over 400 years. They were oppressed, harassed, and enslaved. In fact, when God called Moses over to the burning bush in chapter 3, He told him that He had seen the misery of His people, and heard their cries.

They were slaves crying out in their misery, but they were already an army because God named them so.

I dare say, friend, that the view from heaven is so very different than here below.

I am a woman fighting battles with my flesh every day, feeling like I’m crawling my way through sanctification mud but I am already seated with Him in heavenly places because He has named me so.

And if all of this is true of the Israelites then and of you and me now, then what is true of His Church?

“You yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 2:5)

“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. ” (1 Peter 2:9)

We have leaders falling off pedestals like someone knocked down a domino somewhere and we’re brawling on social media like scrappy boys in a school yard and we are holy and we are royalty because God has named us so.

(As a matter of fact I am aware of my run-on sentence issue. Sometimes my words can’t stop for punctuation.)

Paul tells us that God chose him to be an apostle before he was even born and then he went on to become a pharisee who persecuted the Church. But one day God knocked him down and made him an apostle to build that same Church… because God had named him so.

Oh man I hope this encourages you like it does me. I also hope it convicts you like it convicts me. My earthly view is my reality far too often, but if I’m singing open the eyes of my heart Lord then I should believe I’ll see things differently, right? If He opens the eyes of my heart then I’ll see what He sees and I’ll see what He’s named that I haven’t been able to see through my veil of flesh.

And if I see what He sees because He has named it so, I will believe for beautiful things for the Church and for you and for me. I’ll hold back judgment and offer grace instead because I see what we are from His throne and He offers us all grace in our becoming.

We are His Beloved. He has named us so.