Change 1

Slight modification to the schedule. Next week (14 July) we'll discuss Exodus 11-15:22.

Week 1 - The Paradox of Moses

Luke led an excellent discussion on the contrasts and paradoxes of Moses. Some of the high points from 16 June 2011:



- There is an apparent contrast between Moses' account of his own life and Paul's version in Acts 7: 20-25.

• Moses clearly depicts himself in Exodus 3:10 as "...not eloquent...slow of speech...slow of tongue..." Whereas Paul considers Moses as "mighty in words and in deeds."


• Moses is held up as the example of faith in Hebrews 11:23-29-- By and through faith. Moses' reluctance and constant excuses does not conjure up the image of faithfulness.

Three potential reasons / explanations for these glaring contrasts:

• God always sees the good in all of us. Moses was humbled by his experience in Egypt and the 40 years as a Shepherd in Midian. And so the account of his life is one of humility.


• Lisa made a great point that Moses is painted in a light that we can relate to. Most of us are not eloquent and powerful in speech, confident, or faithful (all the time).


• Sure Moses questioned God's plan. Sure he made excuses and convinced God to send Aaron with him. Moses' actions at the burning bush lacked faith... but at the end of the day Moses showed up and led the Hebrews out of Egypt. Luke highlighted Matthew 21: 28-30 and the parable of the two sons. The first son tells his father he will not go work in the vineyards, but repents and goes --does the will of his father. Whereas the second son tells his father he'll go, but does not --does not do the will of his father. In Luke's words, the second son 'talks a good game', but doesn't produce.

- If we look at Exodus 1-4 in two acts, we see a (more) confident and connected Moses taking justice in to his own hands --Going it alone. His attempt to right the wrongs of his Hebrew brethren backfires and ends up running away to Midian. Bottom line, he was acting alone, without God behind him. In act two we see a humbled Moses who lacks faith and confidence. This is the Moses that leads his people out of Egypt. This highlights that it is truly God leading his people from Egypt and not Moses.

- The last thought we ended on was that of time. Why does God leave Moses in Midian for 40 years before he calls on him at the burning bush? Was it that Moses' time as a Shepherd prepared him for what was to come (patience)? Could it be that it wasn't about Moses? And entire nation of Hebrews had to be prepared for the Exodus.

Don't forget to look at the schedule. Our next meeting is Thursday 30 June. The dinner theme is Soup/Salad.

MOSES Character Study

Here it is.... the schedule (for now). We'll be studying Moses as a character study. This takes us in to the 2nd week in September.

Coming Home

THINGS HAPPEN FOR A REASON.

Team Silva-Adams is headed to Middletown Rhode Island to live and we'd like to bless our friends and families with some of the things we learned from our Church here in Hawaii, Hope Chapel Kaneohe Bay (HCKB). One of the building blocks of HCKB is the Mini-Church concept. We go to Church on the weekends to drink from the well of knowledge and quench our thirst, but the mini-church is how we bring God in to our weeks and our homes.

Watch this space as our arrival gets closer - because we'd like to start a Mini-Church in our home on a regular basis.

A tool Erika and I have used to bring the Bible in to our everyday routine is to sign up online and receive a Bible verse every weekday... for a year. We are currently in the Book of Acts. Check out this website: Bible Reading Plan

Also, feel free to check out where it all started: HOPE CHAPEL