He then travels to Tacoma, WA and preaches for Pastor Mark Smith at the Faith Baptist Church on Wednesday evening.

He will finish the week out in Des Moines, WA preaching for Pastor Joel Byrum at the Open Door Baptist Church on Thursday evening, Friday morning (speaking to pastors) and Friday evening.

On this Mother’s Day, please take a look at the following references Exodus 2:1-11; 6:20; Numbers 26:59; Hebrews 11:23. These passages give to us glimpses of Moses and his mother. Of course Exodus chapter one gives to us the setting for this beautiful story of Jochebed the mother of Moses.

A thought that has always captured my attention in this story is found in Exodus 2:9, “…and I will give thee “thy wages”.

When one reads the setting of this story one must be captivated by the entire happenings. These were very serious times in the land of Egypt and for the nation of Israel who were long time captives and slaves. Now the situation had developed to the degree that the Hebrew baby boys were to be throne into the river at or near birth. Hebrews 11:23 tells us that Jochebed “saw he was a proper child” which led to the statement, “they were not afraid of the king’s commandment. Therefore they obeyed God rather than the King.

One must notice in Scripture when the time is the darkest that God has a way of stepping up to take notice and bring about a remedy. Human nature draws our attention to the many “incidents” that came about in this great chapter in Israel’s history.

God has chosen to single out this great mother who was tuned in to God and His plan for her baby and her family and yes even for her people Israel. One must remember that not only was she the mother of Moses Israel’s greatest leader, but she was also the mother of Aaron the first High Priest of the nation as well. We must not forget the young girl who directed Pharaoh’s daughter to baby Moses became famous in her own rights. Read Exodus 15:20-21; Numbers12:1-15. Especially read from Exodus fifteen for here we find the story of the nation rejoicing over the fact that the army of the Pharaoh had been drowned in the sea. It was Miriam the sister of Moses and Aaron that led the song that was sung at this great victory. In verse 20 the Scriptures calls her a “prophetess”.

Now, the name Jochebed must become a standout to all of us. Here is a mother that takes her place in our thinking on this special day. Just a couple of things about our original thought, “I will give thee thy wages”. Of course we know that this is speaking of the fact that Pharaoh’s daughter allowed Miriam to take baby Moses to his own mother to be cared for and then Pharaoh’s daughter would indeed pay for the care to Jochebed his own mother.

But let us take this thought of Jochebed’s wages one step further. Yes, she did receive wages from the daughter for caring for Moses but Jochebed’s wages were much more.

Think with me for a moment that she was to become the mother of not one but three famous people in the nation of Israel. Like most mothers, sometimes the payday for all the labor and sacrifice comes later when those little ones mature and serve our Savior.

Moses was the great law giver of Israel and later called “My Servant” in the book of Joshua.

Aaron was the younger brother who became the first High Priest in the wilderness.

It was Miriam the sister who led the song when God destroyed Pharaoh’s mighty army.

What a great payday. What great wages. What a great mother. What a great example.

Saturday (5/5) @ 4:00 pm PDT for Sunday School
Saturday (5/5) @ 5:00 pm PDT for church
Sunday (5/6) @ 1:00 am PDT for evening church.

Then Pastor will be preaching at the Good Sheperd Baptist Church for Pastor Nathan Lloyd in Albany Creek, AU during these times:

Monday (5/7) @ 4:30 pm PDT
Tuesday (5/8) @ 4:30 pm PDT
Wednesday (5/9) @ 2:30 am PDT

Please pray for a safe travels as well!

An interesting title but a greater subject. Please read here from Matthew 27:51-53, “And behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose; and came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.”

Many times we speak of the crucifixion of Christ in general terms and miss many of the details that surround His death. Notice first of all in Matthew 27:45-46, “Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice…My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?”

In this passage in Matthew 27:51-53 alone, there are at least six things that occur and each of them would allow us to have a meaningful discussion. The first one is the veil of the temple was rent or tore in twain or into and that from the top to the bottom. The fact that this happens physically is important. It is believed that this veil of the temple was held between two great columns that were 70 feet high. We are not sure exactly how thick that the veil was but have heard estimates upward to one foot. This happened at the death of the Savior. More than the physical tearing of the veil it was the spiritual impact of this veil being separated.

Historically, as we study the veil from the first one in the wilderness that closed off the Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle where only the High Priest could enter only on the Day of Atonement with the blood of the sacrifice for the sin of the Nation of Israel. It was sudden death for anyone to enter even the High Priest without the proper sacrifice. What just happened?

Now, because of Christ’s death the veil is torn and we can enter the veil to ask for the cleansing and forgiveness of sins. Hebrews 4:16 invites us to come boldly to the throne of grace because the door is open or the veil in rent. The sign which once read “Do not enter” now reads “Everyone welcome”.

The next thought is stated, “And the rocks rent…” Pause for a moment and get the picture of the scene that is happening. The sky is now in total darkness for three hours.

At the death of Christ, not only is the veil rent from top to bottom but the earth did quake and the rocks were rent or torn. I would encourage you to look at two Scriptures one found in the Old Testament in the book of Exodus chapters 19 and 20 and the other one in the New Testament that makes reference to these passages in Exodus. Look also at Hebrews chapter 12 verses 18-29. Notice like the darkness in Matthew, we also observe the darkness in Exodus and the reference to this in Hebrews. Yes, this is a little bit of Bible study for us. In Exodus at the mount, we are given the LAW but here in Matthew we are given the GRACE of God. In Exodus everyone was told to not come near the mount nor touch it not even an animal, but here in Matthew because the veil was rent or torn into we can all approach the Lord through His shed blood. Notice the similarities between the two happenings but most of all notice the differences. Because of the death of Christ the door is now open and the sign reads EVERYONE WELCOME.