By: Nicole Miner

How do we persevere with hope when we can’t see the big picture?
In Exodus chapters 23 and 24 we saw Moses on the mountain of God, communing with Him and fasting for 40 days and 40 nights as the Old Testament covenant of law was established between the two. Under this covenant of law, God promised to bless and protect the Israelite people if they would keep the law as it had been laid out to them through the previous chapters. Though God’s people were overjoyed to have such a personal and loving Father, they’d soon find that the covenant of law only established peace with God until their next sin, which then required another sacrifice. In their own strength, it was impossible to keep up with all the laws laid out in this covenant.
You might be wondering, how could the Israelites have persevered in hope when they couldn’t see the big picture of redemption? And what you may really be asking is this, God, how can I trust You when what You’ve revealed to me in my current circumstances doesn’t feel like it’s enough to sustain me? How can I have hope that You really hold my child and I?

“Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Come up to me on the mountain. Stay there, and I will give you the tablets of stone on which I have inscribed the instructions and commands so you can teach the people.'” Exodus 24:12
In Exodus 24, Moses’ 40 day and night fast represents the establishment of covenant law.
In 1 Kings 19, Elijah fasted for 40 days and 40 nights as he was on the run from the evil queen Jezebel. God communed with Elijah and challenged him to continue on with the important work he had been doing before he was persecuted. Elijah was a prophet, sent to turn the hearts of God’s people back to Him. They had struggled to remain faithful under the constraints of covenant law and the oppression of neighboring nations. It was even said that John the Baptist was sent in the spirit of Elijah to prepare His people for the coming Messiah. God wanted them to recognize Him when they saw His Son.
Then, in Matthew 4, we see the Messiah fast for 40 days and 40 nights in the wilderness before coming to be tempted by the enemy. Because He came to the earth as merely a man, stripped of all divinity, Jesus would live out every covenant law righteously and offer Himself as the perfect sacrifice on our behalf. He knew we could never do it without Him.
After his fast, in Matthew 17, Jesus would take 3 of his disciples onto the mountain to witness His transfiguration and tell of the new covenant to come. Two men met them on that mountain before God spoke to confirm His Son… Moses-representing the law- and Elijah- representing all the prophets.
The disciples would have finally understood what Jesus meant when he had said, “Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose” (Matthew 5:17, NLT).
The covenant law of the Old Testament had never been the big picture- but the coming covenant of grace. God had known that, unless His people had seen that they’d never live out the law on their own, they’d never accept His Son. As painful as it had been to the Father’s heart, He’d had to reveal our own frailty.
Maybe like the Israelites living under old covenant law, you can only see your family’s redemption in part. You’ve read the promises of His Word- for healing, for deliverance, for restoration- but the circumstances of your life still haven’t come to match.
It’s important to realize that the Israelites didn’t walk this out well, but God had already known that would happen. He knew they were only human. They’d make mistakes as they tried to see from His perspective, and it’s why He sent His Son. Our stumbling still helps us to see how deeply we need Jesus, and we have a grace now that the Israelites didn’t understand. Still, just as they learned to look back and recount God’s faithfulness and to look forward to the coming Messiah, we can do the same. We can look forward to the second coming of Christ when all that’s broken and painful in this world will be healed and restored again. And, in the meantime, when we look back to recount His faithfulness, we can now include the full picture of Exodus 24 and the covenants of law and grace.
Heavenly Father, sometimes I beg for understanding of my family’s circumstances, but I realize now that knowing the answers is not the same as knowing You. You would never allow me to see the big picture or receive everything I pray for without first knowing You because Your Word says what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his own soul. Living without the big picture means looking back on Your faithfulness and trusting Your heart when it’s all I have to go by. It’s an opportunity to know You more every day. Help me Lord, to choose the Tree of Life over the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Help me Lord, to always choose You. Amen.

Dig Deeper
Reflection Questions:
How can Moses in Exodus 24, Elijah in 1 Kings, and Jesus in Matthew 4 be compared to the way you are now standing for your child?
In what ways are you still waiting to see the big picture of your family’s story?
How can seeing the big picture of the law, prophets, and Messiah encourage you to trust for your own?
Put Your Faith Into Action:
The story of Moses receiving the law on the mountain of God represents meeting with and serving God even without knowing the big picture plan of redemption. Just as Moses went to God, trusting Him to protect and provide for the children of Israel, so can we go to Him on behalf of our own children. Also, as Moses, Elijah, and Jesus fasted and prayed for strength, we can draw near in these same ways to better know God’s heart for our family.
This week, we challenge you to create a timeline of God’s faithfulness in your family’s story to display. Leave room for the redemption still to come.
Further Reading:
1 Kings 19
Matthew 4
Matthew 17
Isaiah 58
Verses to Meditate On:
Matthew 5:17

Nicole Miners is a Praying Through Ministries Volunteer
She is a writer. You can read more from Nicole and hear abouy her story at nicoleminers.com
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