A Woman's Place

This weekend we will start our Eastertide sermon series on the book of Exodus.

The story begins with a simple statement, "A new Pharaoh arose in Egypt who did not remember Joseph..."

A new king who does not remember history. Does not honor promises made before. Does not care about how things were done in the past and looks only to his own greatness and what he believes he can make of the future. That is how the story begins.

Alongside this prominent figure, God's own people, those who do not fit the bill of traditional Egyptian values, have grown more numerous than the sands of the Sahara.

Pharaoh begins to worry - if they figure out that they are fully human, what will become of us? So he makes them slaves. Then he gives them back-breaking work and sets taskmasters over them. And then, when they continue to multiply... he slaughters their children.

And the Nile runs red with blood, long before God does a single thing.

Because we humans have this tendancy to see some people as less valuable, less important, less human than others. But this is sin. It is evil. It is extremely against God.

Always has been.

So, God gets ready to come down. But first, God sends someone to prepare the way. Before Moses.

Because if these people did not prepare the way, Moses would not have even lived long enough to rise up.

God sends... the Women.

Shiphrah and Puah. Jochebed and Miriam. And Bithiah.

The women are where the resistence starts. Because that has always been their place.

See you Sunday.

Blessings,

Rev. Janie