Exodus 14:14-15 The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.” The LORD said to Moses, “Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward.
The Lord spoke to Moses, who led the children of Israel out of Egypt to be desperately cornered with the Red sea before them and Pharaoh’s chariots advancing upon them from behind. Overwhelmed with terror they cry out to Moses, “It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!” Having just miraculously escaped from the miserable life of slavery, and only beginning their new life of freedom, the children of Israel were faced with the most dire threat to their existence. This test of their faith, to trust God for their very survival, followed only a few days after the young nation’s astounding deliverance. Could it really be that YHVH had brought them out just to have them recaptured and returned to the slave camps or be slaughtered by Pharaoh’s army and be food for vultures?
We, who have been delivered from a life of slavery from sin, may also quickly be faced with massive and overwhelming trials, and we may cry out desperately to God, “Is this what you delivered me for !!??” How is it that the enemy, having lost his hold on us, will often make furious attempts to reclaim or even destroy us? Yet he is relentless, especially when he has just suffered a crushing defeat.
Now the Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward.”
No, you were not delivered to be ensnared, recaptured or slaughtered by the evil one. His final threat will only prove to be his undoing.
Go forward, press on! Your trial, your obstacle, the threat against you, is proof of your deliverance, and may just turn into devastating defeat for the one who is set against you. What Israel faced at the Red Sea, what appeared to be their death sentence, suddenly and irrevocably became God’s instrument to crush their enemies. “Tell the people of Israel to go forward!’ Just do it. The Lord will provide your victory!
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[worthy_plugins_devotion_single_body]The expectation of the coming Kingdom of God is intimately connected with the restoration of Israel and the city of Jerusalem. The preceding passage describes Zion in labor, as once again, we find the metaphor of birth used to convey this scriptural promise. It is a national gestation which will not be aborted, but will come to fruition. But first, before this labor begins…a “male child” is born… This can be none other than Yeshua (Jesus) the Messiah, Israel’s King, Himself, arriving beforehand, (on a donkey, at that), quite some time before the labor which gives birth to the nation; and causing the prophet to wonder if a nation can be born in a day.
Yesterday, we began our series of devotions focused on the birthing of the Kingdom. Continuing to develop these insights, let’s look at day 2 of creation and its focus upon water.
Here’s an interesting fact about American church history that you may not know. Years ago, when the first New England churches were designed, they were built with clear windows rather than the stained glass ones we see so often today — and the graveyard was usually built in the churchyard, which would normally be seen from the pulpit. Why?
For several years now, I’ve been focusing on the Kingdom of God, a central theme of Yeshua’s preaching [Luke 4:43], and will be offering a series of devotions on this topic with particular emphasis on our present season, which I believe portends the birthing of this Kingdom. A study of the gestation process from conception to birth yields insight as a natural parallel into the historical process we’re witnessing and taking part in. This theme will be developed in the coming days.
One of the sacrifices mentioned in the Tenach (Old Testament) is mentioned as a Peace sacrifice or sometimes translated as the Thanksgiving sacrifice. It is known as the ‘shalem’ sacrifice. The root behind this word is the word ‘shalom’ whereby we get the word, peace.
From the beginning of Genesis (Genesis 4:4) to the end of the Bible (Revelation 22:3), there is a common theme — the Lamb! In Revelation 6 we read about the Lamb who sits in the midst of the throne — worshiped by all of heaven because the Lamb was worthy to take the book and open the seals therein. The most harmless of creatures — the object of sacrifice, becomes the authority of heaven. Isn’t it interesting that the focal point of heaven is a Lamb?
So often in ministry, the Lord deals with my own spirit, saying – “You need to step back and get refocused!” And we all know how hard it is at times when we get so busy with the normal every day stresses of life tugging at our limited time.