Faith
When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds about them and said, “What have we done? We have let the Israelites go and have lost their services!” So he had his chariot made ready and took his army with him. He took six hundred of the best chariots, along with all the other chariots of Egypt, with officers over all of them. The LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching out boldly. The Egyptians — all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots, horsemen and troops — pursued the Israelites and overtook them as they camped by the sea near Pi Hahiroth, opposite Baal Zephon.
As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the LORD. They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!”
Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.”
Exodus 14:5-14.
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The Israelites were leaving what they had known for the unknown. They fled into the arid desert, where they would wander for forty years in search of their holy land. Before this scene, the Israelites had observed the plagues that God had brought on the Egyptians to make Pharaoh set them free. They'd seen the power of God. But when the Israelites thought they had finally got away, Pharaoh changed his mind. He commandeered his best horses and personally brought an army after the Israelites. And at this additional test, the Israelites quailed.
Christians are like modern day Israelites, being set apart by God not because of any innate merit, but because God has somehow chosen to use them to carry out his plan at this point in time. Like the Israelites, we're subject to many of the same irrational flaws and able to benefit from many of the same lessons. And I think that the lesson here was to hold to your faith. You have seen so many miracles already, doesn't it seem silly to quail at this one? Choose to believe, and then believe, and let God be your hope. Have faith: Stand firm and let God work in spite of your fear and hopelessness.
As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the LORD. They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!”
Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.”
Exodus 14:5-14.
*
The Israelites were leaving what they had known for the unknown. They fled into the arid desert, where they would wander for forty years in search of their holy land. Before this scene, the Israelites had observed the plagues that God had brought on the Egyptians to make Pharaoh set them free. They'd seen the power of God. But when the Israelites thought they had finally got away, Pharaoh changed his mind. He commandeered his best horses and personally brought an army after the Israelites. And at this additional test, the Israelites quailed.
Christians are like modern day Israelites, being set apart by God not because of any innate merit, but because God has somehow chosen to use them to carry out his plan at this point in time. Like the Israelites, we're subject to many of the same irrational flaws and able to benefit from many of the same lessons. And I think that the lesson here was to hold to your faith. You have seen so many miracles already, doesn't it seem silly to quail at this one? Choose to believe, and then believe, and let God be your hope. Have faith: Stand firm and let God work in spite of your fear and hopelessness.
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