WOMEN OF FAITH: FROM PHARAOH'S DAUGHTER TO CHILD OF GOD

BITHIA:

THE CHILD SHE RESCUED, RESCUED HER

17 The sons of Ezrah were Jether, Mered, Epher, and Jalon. And Mered’s wife bore Miriam, Shammai, and Ishbah the father of Eshtemoa. 18 (His wife Jehudijah bore Jered the father of Gedor, Heber the father of Sochoh, and Jekuthiel the father of Zanoah.) And these were the sons of Bithiah the daughter of Pharaoh, whom Mered took (1 Chronicles 4:17-18)
Some of the greatest women in history came out of Bible history had phenomenal impact, yet they were the unlikeliest heroines of all time! We have looked at some of the main ones in the recent past – Rahab, Ruth, Hannah, Anna and Mary. (Click on names to read the articles).  One such heroine of the Bible is Pharaoh’s daughter! All through 3500 years of history, she is always a footnote. She is well thought of, but always sidelined in the light of the greater story of one of the greatest men who ever lived – Moses!

Still, it was this young woman – Pharaoh’s daughter (Merri, according to tradition) who actually called the baby Moses. Merri called him Moses, derived from the words “Mo” (meaning Son) and “Sheh” (meaning ‘to draw out’). Pharaoh’s daughter adopted and called him Moses (Moshe in Hebrew) because she draw him out of the water, in the  wicker basket. He became her son,  and was most likely childless since her bath in the river Nile was a ritual to the pagan Egyptian god of fertility. As a princess, she already had her own private quarters and exquisite private rooms to be attended to, for matters of hygiene. Also, as a sidebar, the River Nile ran red with blood during the Ten Plagues as a punishment from God for that same pagan idolatry. Each one of the plagues was a specific punishment against that specific pagan idol, which the Egyptians worshiped.

Merri, most likely in her late teens or early 20’s when she “found”, named and raised Moses as her own, obviously fulfilled a role selected for her by the Mighty Hand of God. After Moses was banished to the Midian wilderness when he was 40 years old, Merri would have been around 60 years old at the time. So when Moses returned at age 80, after being sent by God to tell Merri’s father to “Let My people go”, she would have been close to or at 100 years of age!

Here is the reason God kept her alive – to reward her! Merri was constantly in the presence of Moses’ birth mother. A Hebrew woman, Yochabed nursed her own son and cared for him in favor and safety, in the very house of the ruler of the greatest country on earth at the time!  Merri undoubtedly heard about and witnessed first-hand, what a true and amazing God, the God of the Jews was! Scripture never tells us how or when, but Pharaoh’s daughter Merri later became known as Bithia, according to the ancient Rabbis! Bithia is the Hebrew word for “daughter of Yahweh”! At some point,  she ceased being the daughter of the Egyptian ruler, and became a Child of the Living God!

Then comes the surprise overlooked Scripture which almost nobody reads, outside of a seminary. 1 Chronicles 4:17-18 (see above) records some of the most incredible turn of events ever. Here is what it says:
- Bithiah (Pharaoh’s Daughter who rescued Moses) married Mered, a Hebrew man.
- Bithiah had three children: Miriam (named after Moses’ sister); Shammai  and Ishbah.
- Bithiah left her Egypt behind and all its pagan ungodliness and crossed into deliverance across the Red Sea, with the people of God!

This incredible revelation that Pharaoh’s Daughter left Egypt during the Exodus with the Israelites is instructive to us in the 21st century, for the following reasons:
1. The circumstances of your birth means nothing to the Plans, Purposes and Power of God. We have no choice where we were born, who our parents were or the environment in which we grew up. We do have a choice whether to obey God and reach out in human kindness and decency. By so doing, we could be altering the course of history, as Bithiah did!
2. Not only is our lifestyle of Faith observed, but the more authentic we are in following and serving God, people notice. This can lead to many things, namely either a rejection of our straight and narrow morality or an embrace of True Truth/True Faith by the unsaved because they know us by our love.
3. Lifestyle evangelism is important as it demonstrates WHO and WHOSE we are, but we must share the Truth of God, so others can know WHO HE IS! This is really the crux of the matter. If we do not share the Gospel and the road to Salvation, by explaining as best as we can, what God has done for us through Christ, then all we will be is nice and harmless Christians. In this case, the devil has nothing to fear from us, and has us right where he wants us. 
4. Following the God of heaven brings untold blessings.  When she was the Egyptian princess Merri, she dipped into the pagan ritual bath of the River Nile to “enhance fertility”, but it was only when she became Bithiah – the daughter of Yahweh, and married a Hebrew man (Mered) that God gave her three children. This is reminiscent of Abraham’s barren wife Sarah, who erred in forcing Hagar on her husband, while God had a huge blessing for her to bear Isaac at age 90. We cannot know the Ways of the Lord but we can surely worship because of the Wonder of our Great God.
5. Do not neglect humble beginnings. Self-pity is never an admirable attribute at any time. But God has chosen the foolish things of this world to confound the wise. Wisdom comes from an acknowledgement of the awesome Power and Sovereignty of God and His rule over the affairs of mankind. Once we, as mere mortals, come to an awakening of this Truth, the sky is the limit as to the potential in our lives. In times of trials and tribulations, circumstances dictate certain responses, but we do not have to stay there. The greatest men and women of Faith were delivered from UNDER the circumstances and their own personal Egypts, but the God Who sees the end from the beginning. Where there is life, there is hope to those who submit to the direction and Lordship of the Master, the Creator, the Lord of all things - Jesus Christ.

Bithiah, Pharaoh's daughter, married a man from the Tribe of Judah - the same tribe from whence cometh the Lion of Judah - the Lord Jesus!
"For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, THAT HE WILL INSTRUCT HIM (from Isaiah 40:13)? But we have the mind of Christ..." (1 Corinthians 2:16)

Photo Credit Here

THIRTY ONE DAYS OF PRAYER AND THE WORD:JANUARY 1-31, 2015 THEME: "ABIDE"

DAY EIGHTEEN:
VERSES:
The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge...(Psalm 18:2)
PRAYER:

Most Heavenly and Holy Father, on Christ the Solid Rock I stand, ALL other ground is sinking sand. You are the Almighty, the Lord of Heaven's Armies, the Creator of All Things, the Upholder of the Universe, the Sustainer of All, the Provider, Protector and Standard of Your people! Through You, all was created by and for You and You rule over all. You uphold the righteous, You hug the loveless, You reach out to the hopeless, You guide the careless, You discipline the reckless and You grant favor to the penniless.

You reward those who bless You and pray for Your people. But You turn Your Holy Face against the hard of heart and those who reject You. You sent down fire and brimstone to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. You destroyed Pharaoh's army in the Red Sea.  You wiped out the ten tribes of the Northern Kingdom and gave them to the Assyrians. Today, perversion and corruption reigns as the followers of evolution have denied the Creator and worship the creation (Romans 1:22-25). You have given then the ultimate pre-Judgment - You gave them over to themselves. The righteous see them rampaging through and destroying our family structure, the unborn and the great institutions You ordained with no brakes and no check in sight. But this is just for a time. They have a future eternity to think of and regret all of this.

But You oh God, are my deliverer. You sent Your Son the Savior to set the captives free, to deliver us from all evil. While we are set upon, beat up, pressed down, oppressed and spat upon by the lost, from the outhouse to the fanciest house, You stand there for us. You stand in the Gap as our Shield and Buckler. Your guardian angels protect us daily, even in our temporary folly.  Because You are unshakeable...because You always existed and there is none like You...because You are God before the foundation of the earth....because You are sinless, pure, holy, and good and because You see the beginning from the end, You are more than a fortress. You are a bulwark. You are to Whom we run when we seek refuge and comfort. You are to Whom we raise up our hopes and hands because You are the Fountain of Righteousness and Source of All Power! Words cannot describe You. You scoff at the scoffing pagans and heathens of this world as they shake their puny fists like Nimrod did and You can remove them by a single word. Yet You stay Your hand not wanting that any should perish. You are a merciful as well as powerful God and we love You. We worship and adore You. We magnify Your Powerful Name, Oh Lord of Heaven's Armies Who shall one day return to rule the earth, and it is in Jesus' Strong Name I pray, amen.

'THE "I AM" STATEMENTS OF JESUS - YAHWEH!

In Exodus 3:14, we read "God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM"; and He said, "Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you. Then later on, in the New Testament, Jesus revealed just Who He was when He told the pharisees who were crudely questioning Him: ""Very truly I tell you," Jesus answered, "before Abraham was born, I am! ....(John 8:58)

"I AM WHO I AM" is the English of the original paleo Hebrew which Moses wrote. It is the tetragrammaton YHWH (or YaHWeH) or the Mighty Most Powerful God of Heaven. This is the LORD you see in all caps in your Bible and mine. It is the word which we use as Jehovah.

More importantly, Yahweh, is Jesus! He said so Himself.  It was Jesus Who went with Moses in the Pillar of Cloud and Fire through the Wilderness; it was Jesus Who met with Moses in the Burning Bush and then gave Moses the Law and more, which he then wrote down.  It was Jesus Who visited Abraham personally in Genesis 18, right before He destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.

This is the point - Yahweh - is the personal God. He is our personal Savior and He described His warm, loving personality this way:
"I am the Bread of Life (John 6:35)
"I am the Good Shepherd (John 10:11)
"I am the Way the Truth  (John 14:6)
"I am the Light of the World" (John 8:12) and more....

Watch this short program (28 minutes) for more on just WHO the Great I am really is!!!

"I AM STATEMENTS OF JESUS" - THE IMPACT OF JESUS OVER 2000 YEARS

Jesus Christ is not just the Creator of the World and everything therein.
Jesus Christ is not just the Lord and Savior of all mankind.
Jesus Christ is not just the High Priest, Prophet and King Who lives to make intercession for the elect.
Jesus Christ is not just the loftiest idea in literature, the melodies of a million songs.
Jesus Christ is not just the Image of the Invisible God:
He is the inspiration and the driving force of the following:
- The entire hospital and the entire health care system we have today.
- The entire educational higher educational system we have today.
- The missionary movement which took civilization, health care, clean food & healthy systems to the western world and to Africa, India, China and all points in between.

Princeton, Harvard and Yale all began as Christian colleges to promote the teaching of the Gospel. Princeton started as a bible study group. What they have become - secular humanist anti-Christian institutes of higher learning - is a testimony to the sin of mankind, for which accountability will be required one day. 

The following video: Part 1 of this two part TV show teaching examines first the foundational understanding  and underpinnings of Who Jesus Christ is, some of His impact, and the Historical/Biblical background of this teaching. 

Part 2: THE "I AM STATEMENTS" Examined....

FEAST OF TABERNACLES 2014 & ITS SIGNIFICANCE TO CHRISTIANS

The Glorious (and mandatory) Jewish and future Messianic Celebration of Tabernacles starts at sundown on Wednesday October 8, 2014! Glory to HaShem the Great and His Son, Yeshua! Blessings to our Jewish brothers as we celebrate the next week of the great Feast of the Tabernacles (Sukkot). Amein! (Tabernacles ends on October 15 at sundown, in the year 5775 from Creation, and the Jewish month of Tishrei).

Sukkot is the last of the big Fall Feasts, right after the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) - the Holiest Day in the Jewish Calendar. But what does this Harvest Feast have to do with the LORD Jesus Christ and the 1000 year reign, which is getting closer by the day? Well, glad you asked!

Instituted by the LORD in the Desert Exodus, Sukkot is based on the rememberance of the "Sukkah" or huts, tents etc..." which the Israelites lived in during their 40 Year Journey in the Wilderness. Later on, it became the Fall Harvest it is today. This celebration has eternal implications for every child of the Kingdom of the Soon Coming King!

It is a time to reflect on God's blessings, God's provision and God's care for His people.

It is a time for the people of God to be charitable and share this goodness with others.

It is a time for renewed fellowship with the Father Abba, through the Son Adonai.

It is a time of rejoicing at the Master, coming to live among us, first in Spirit and then in Person.

This last one is the Great Hope of the Millenial Kingdom! 

First of all, this 1000 Kingdom Reign by Jesus from literally Jerusalem, will occur after the Rapture.  Read here: Revelation 20:1-10 about this. Then read here: Daniel 12, about the first resurrection of the Old Testament saints, who will reign with Jesus and us Christians, for these 1000 years.

Jerusalem will be a Kingdom of Priests who minister to all the Gentile nations, led by the High Priest of the Universe - Jesus! It is here we see the Feast of the Tabernacles re-introduced by Jesus Himself! Two major prophets have spoken of this coming Event! Whereas Tabernacles was once only for the Jews, ALL NATIONS will be expect to not just rejoice and celebrate with Jesus, but to come up to Jerusalem ANNUALLY, to worship the King - JESUS CHRIST, the LORD!

Here is the confirmation of Tabernacles in the 1000 year reign from Zechariah 14. Again, this will occur after all the Wrath of God is reigned down on antichrist, the United Nations and all the pagan kings of the world. We pick up at verse 16: And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. 17 And it shall be that whichever of the families of the earth do not come up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, on them there will be no rain. 18 If the family of Egypt will not come up and enter in, they shall have no rain;they shall receive the plague with which the LORD strikes the nations who do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. 19 This shall be the punishment of Egypt and the punishment of all the nations that do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. 

Note the section of Bible prophesy in Blue! Even with Jesus on the Throne, many will still rebel against Him! This means that while Abraham, Isaac, Jeremiah, Paul, Stephen, Martin Luther, Wilberforce, Spurgeon, Moody and AW Tozer will return resurrected, people will still be born in your local hospital - full of their sinful nature! The 1000 year reign of Jesus will be occurring LIVE in actual time, during real daily life! But this is another topic.

For us today, let us resolve to observe the next 6 days with our Jewish brothers because one day in Paradise, we who are Christians, will all be grafted into the Tree of Israel as sons and daughters of the Holy One of Israel! 

Let us wave our flags, blow our shofars and praise the Great God of Heaven, Who prophesied this in Ezekiel 43:7-9: And He said to me, “Son of man, this is the place of My throne and the place of the soles of My feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel forever. No more shall the house of Israel defile My holy name, they nor their kings, by their harlotry or with the carcasses of their kings on their high places. ⁸ When they set their threshold by My threshold, and their doorpost by My doorpost, with a wall between them and Me, they defiled My holy name by the abominations which they committed; therefore I have consumed them in My anger. ⁹ Now let them put their harlotry and the carcasses of their kings far away from Me, and I will dwell in their midst forever.