Our Creator and Savior

“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.” — Exodus 20:2

If little green men suddenly appeared on this planet and it was your job to teach them about the Lord, what might you tell them? My guess is that nine out of ten people would include “creator of the world” in their first sentence. That is, after all, arguably God’s most famous act. However the first time that God introduces Himself to the world at large, by revealing himself at Sinai and handing down the Ten Commandments, this is what he says: “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.”

What’s the first thing that God wants us to know about Him? Not that He created the world. God wants mankind to know Him as the being who took the nation of Israel out of Egypt.

Now, the Lord performed amazing miracles when He freed the Israelites from Egyptian bondage. No one can argue with that. But doesn’t splitting the sea pale in comparison with having created it in the first place?

Many years ago I was teaching a group of teenagers, and we were talking about the existence of God. One of the girls raised her hand and said, “Rabbi, I don’t believe in God. But I do believe in a Creator.” Huh?

It sounds ridiculous, but here is what this girl was really saying — She was saying that she believes that some infinite being created the universe, but is no longer involved in it. That’s why for her, there is no God. Thousands of years after creation, God has no idea that cars and computers have been invented, that nations engage in war, or that I had pizza for dinner last night. He did his job and moved on.

But God wants us to know this: “I’m still here! I always have been and always will be!”

This is why the Almighty wants to be known as the being who saved Israel. He is telling us that not only did He create the world, He runs it, too! God is involved in every single aspect of life. He hears our prayers, just as He heard the prayers of the Israelites. Just as He saved them, God will come through for us too.

We are never alone. Can you see the hand of the Lord in your life? Are there times when things that seemed bad for you turned out to be the best thing ever? Can you find instances where amazing things happened that were beyond your doing? God is with us every step of the way. Always has been and always will be!

What’s the first thing that God wants us to know about Him? Not that He created the world. God wants mankind to know Him as the being who took the nation of Israel out of Egypt.

This writer's stance is not apparently what The God had in mind when He had Moses summarize His Existence from the first sentence in Bereshith of Torah. It seems to me ridiculous and presumptuous that one would assume this is not the place to start, from total ignorance of knowing about Him. This is exactly why The God introduces His progressive revelation of Himself with:

"In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth."

Witness a little tale:

"The White Rabbit put on his spectacles. `Where shall I begin, please your Majesty?' he asked.

`Begin at the beginning,' the King said gravely, `and go on till you come to the end:

then

stop.'"

Beginning somewhere in the middle is probably not very profitable, is it?

When The God sent Moses to lead the Hebrews out of Egypt, there had already been three other Covenants with mankind -- the Adamic, the Noachic, and the Abrahamic. So why were the Hebrews in Egypt? Why was The God taking them out? Shouldn't the novice learn about Sin, Righteousness, and Judgment first? etc etc

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