In the violent world of the Middle East, Israel’s first concept of God as Savior tended to be military and political. Their tradition said that Moses and the Israelites sang about God as savior after Egypt’s army drowned in the Red Sea (cf. Exodus 15:1-3). Similarly, the Israelites had a powerful sense of God as savior when they were allowed to return to their land after decades in exile in Babylon.

• Egypt was the dominant world “superpower” when Moses led the Israelite exodus to freedom. Persia had overthrown Babylon, and dominated the scene when they let Israel return after the exile. And Rome seemed unassailable when Jesus’ followers spread out to preach the good news. Do you believe God is still more able to save than any world superpower today (cf. Psalm 2)? How does God’s power operate differently than human political and military power?
• Before the exile, Israel had turned to a variety of alliances and kingly maneuvers to try to carve out their own place in the world. Isaiah 43:11 spoke strongly to their efforts to fix things for themselves: “I, I am the Lord, and there is no savior besides me.” What are some of the “saviors” people still tend to look to today? How confident are you that the truth Isaiah declared about God as savior is still true?