FROM EGYPT TO THE PROMISE LAND 

 

EXODUS 13:3-5, 17-18 

            John 8:31-32 says, "If you continue in my word then are you my disciples indeed; and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."  As disciples, or those who are in covenant relationship with God, we are told here that continuing in the Word of God will bring about a knowledge of the truth, and that this truth would make us free.  However, there are many of us who understand many of the truths of God's Word.  We see and understand the spiritual war in which we are constantly involved.  We recognize that we have spiritual weapons and we endeavor to use them.  Though we recognize that we should be free, with every step closer to God we recognize more and more the lack of this manifestation of freedom.  We know that the weapons that God has forged for us as stated in I Cor 10:4, are mighty and will pull down the strong holds that the enemy has set up in our lives.  We know and believe the Word to be true, and have seen God work in our lives in so many areas.  Yet when we honestly evaluate ourselves, we can not with assurance say that we are free.  Having God declare us free and walking and living in that freedom is two different things.  In fact in Romans and other places where it talks of our being free, the context is our being free from sin or free from the law.  We are not told that we are free from the consequences of sin.  And whether we commit the sin or someone else sins against us, there are lingering consequences and these consequences also keep us bound.

            Now I believe that God can free us from whatever it is that holds us captive.  However, moving us from where we are to where we should be normally requires a process.   In fact there seems to be a road that must be traveled to get from bondage to complete freedom.  In other words, residing in the freedom that Christ has purchased for us requires more than knowing and believing that freedom is available.  We must walk the path from bondage to freedom.  Often we think in terms of going straight from bondage to freedom and in a physical sense that may be true, but emotionally and sometimes even spiritually that may not be true.  There is a process which is much like a road that must be traveled.  To illustrate this process I want to talk about the Israel on their journey from Egypt to the Promise Land.

            Now we all know the story of how the Children of Israel were enslaved in the Land of Egypt and how God, using Moses, delivered them.  Therefore for the Children of Israel, Egypt represented bondage.  Though in the physical we have not been enslaved, I will venture to say that all of us have at some point in time and many still are enslaved in one form of bondage or another.  So whether your bondage be sin, fear, guilt, unforgiveness, past hurts, etc., today let Egypt represent that thing or those things that grip you and hold you in bondage.  Let's begin our journey to freedom. 

EXODUS 13:3-5, 17-18 

            Here in these verses we see Egypt, the land of bondage, we see Canaan, which promises to be a blessed place and these two are connected by a wilderness which must be crossed.  I don't want to spend a lot of time on Egypt, but know that everyone has his own Egypt.  You may not see it now, but believe me you one day will.

            Now when we look back at verses 3-5, it is clear that God intends to deliver his people and bring them to a blessed place.  Now imagine that you are the children of Israel.  You have been a slave all of your life.  It is possible that you have never set foot our of Egypt and maybe not even out of Goshen.  You have no idea where Canaan is in respect to Egypt.  Maybe you think you will leave Egypt today and be in Canaan tomorrow or the next day.  That is how we are.  We want God to move us from our place of bondage and immediately place us in our blessed state.  I know in my case I felt like, since the events that prompted my bondage were not my fault, then it was only fair of God to simply restore me to where I should have been.  Why should I have to journey in the wilderness? Why could I not just move to the promise land?  We want God to twitch his nose like Samantha on Bewitched or wave His magic wand and it all be gone and then wave it again and a new life begin.  God did not just pick the Children of Israel up and set them down in Canaan.  They had to make the journey through the wilderness and so must we.

            Notice too in verses 17 and 18 that God did not take the people the short route.  That route was dangerous.  Now it was not that God could not handle the danger, but rather that they people did not have enough experience with God.  They had seen the plagues of Egypt, but they had no war experience with God.  Many times when we look at the things that hold us captive, especially strongholds from our past, we want God to simply wipe them away.  We don't want to remember, feel or even consider the hurts of the past and we especially hate having to assess the effects of the past on our present behavior.  When we ask God to deliver us, we want Him to wipe our past and its affects away.  We want a short cut healing.  But God says no.  You see healing alone does not always mean restoration.  God wants more than simple healing.  He wants to restore us back to His original purpose for man.  If God simply wiped away our memory of what has happened to us, would that really change our actions?  Some people live for years suppressing memories of past experiences, and yet they still act in ways resulting from that particular event in their lives.  Even without memory of the event, deep inside of us in the very core of our beings are wounds and scars, attitudes and ideas, feelings and emotions that must be dealt with.  They are there and they must be dealt with if we are to enjoy the abundant life, our promise land.  The process of uncovering and releasing the ideas, attitudes and feelings, and of cleansing the wounds and medicating the scars, is our wilderness journey and sometimes the journey is long and hard.  

Deut. 8:2-6 

            In our journey God wants to do some things in us.  He not only wants to deliver us from those things that bind us or fix the negatives in our lives, He wants to add some positives;  To develop our character as we go;  To develop humility, compassion and understanding for others, to strengthen our relationship and knowledge of him.  The wilderness is there for a purpose, not to consume us but to develop us.  Also we can have the assurance that God is in the wilderness with us.  Ps 78:52 says that he guided his people in the wilderness like a shepherd would his flock.  God went before them in a cloud by day and a pillow of fire by night.

            God uses the obstacles in our lives to bring about change in us.  Remember that God's ultimate goal is to change us into the image of Jesus Christ and as a result of that we receive an abundant life here on earth and Eternal life hereafter. 

            Now Israel had several encampments before reaching the red sea.  When they initially left Egypt they had plenty of water and food.  They were excited about leaving Egypt; they were finally on their way to the promise land.  Sometimes when we recognize that we are bound by something and we see God moving in to deliver us, we too are initially excited.  But the excitement wears off when the obstacles show up.  The first obstacle for the children of Israel was the pursuit of the Egyptians and being backed up against the red sea. 

EXODUS 14:10-22 

           In our attempt to break away or get a grip on those things that bind us, it seems that they grab hold with a tighter grip.  Do not be deceived into thinking that simply because God wants to free you that the enemy wants you to be free or that he will with ease allow you to walk away.  Bondage was pursuing the children of Israel and it appeared that they were trapped.  But what sometimes looks like a trap or the wrong way to go, God uses as a way of escape.  Whenever we are being pursued or tempted to turn away from God's will for us, He promises to make a way of escape for us (I Cor. 10:13 says).  God will make a way of escape for us but we must choose to Trust Him and the way that He has provided.  Sometimes the circumstances of the escapes do not appear to be favorable, but yet we must choose to follow Him in faith.  Imagine the waters of the red sea raised up like a wall around the people.  The first group to step in the path would have been a little hesitant.  But as they move further into the path their confidence builds.  Those who come up from the rear, although faced with the same picture would automatically draw strength in seeing others way out in the middle or maybe near the end of the path.  In healing our hurts and delivering us from the things that bind us, there will often times be obstacles along the way.  The uncertainty of where we are going, the path that must be taken and the time in which the task will be complete are certain to be obstacles.  But God sees all obstacles and he makes a way of escape and many times he put someone on the path ahead of you so that you can draw strength and encouragement to stay on the journey.  The red sea served as a physical separation from their bondage.  Once they were across, physically they were free.  Now begins the journey through the wilderness.

            Once we are in the wilderness there are 3 options; we can choose to give up and go back to Egypt; we can set up camp and stay in the wilderness; or we can continue to press forward to the Promise Land.  With each obstacle that comes up we must choose which option we will take.

EXODUS 16:1-3

            By now they have been in the wilderness about one month.  When food and water ran out, the people began to look back to Egypt and on our journey there will be times when you wish you had never begun and that you could simply quit and go back to the way things were.  You see bondage, sometimes provides security.  It is all we know; it is what is comfortable.  The fear of the unknown and the comfort of the know make some choose to stay in bondage and causes others to be tempted to return to bondage when times get tough.  When the food ran out Israel started to recall how they had food to eat when in Egypt.  Notice that they did not bother to recall any of the hurts and hardships of bondage.  Looking back on where God has brought us from can be beneficial as long as we do not begin to crave for the things of the past.  Gal 5:1 tells us not to become entangled again with the yoke of bondage from which Christ has set us free.  Though this is specifically talking about the law, it should be applied to every are of our lives.  The desire to go back to Egypt represents a change in our action that is not facilitated by a change in heart or attitude.  We are on the journey as an act of obedience not because we see the value of the journey or we hate our bondage more than the pains of the journey.  Though you can not see it, going back will place you in a worse state than before you began.

            The second option once in the wilderness is to just set up camp and live there.  This option normally results from getting tired on the journey.  You can't go back, but you are tired of the struggle to go forward.  Just after crossing the Red Sea God brought them to Elim (Ex. 15:27).  This was an Oasis where there was plenty of water and large palm trees.  It was a place where they could rest.  But the journey is still fresh.  They have gotten across the Red Sea.  They had run out of water but God had made provision; so all was well.  I doubt that their were many who at this point would want to go back to Egypt or many who would choose to stay at Elim.  Most would probably still be excited about seeing the promise land.  But by the time they reach Rephidim things have changed.  They are out of food and water.  They have had only manna to eat and they have been in the wilderness for a while, probably longer than any one expected.

EXODUS 17:1

            Rephidim means place of resting.  It was a large Oasis that stretched out for several miles and had a lush valley watered by the oasis.  The water here was cool and pure resulting from melted snow from the surrounding mountains.  This would be a place and time where many Israelites would choose to stop the journey and settle for less than God's best.  But when the Israelites got to Rephidim there was no water.  It is as if God removed the temptation to give up.  They were forced to move on.  Also here they had their first battle and on little food and water, after having traveled for over a month, God gave them victory.  This battle is to give them encouragement and confidence for the coming battles in Canaan.

            According to Numbers 32:15, two tribes, Gad and Reuben did settle outside of the promise land.  How does this apply to us?  Sometimes along the journey we get stuck.  It appears to be too hard and we find ourselves just standing still not trying to go forward or backward.  We don't want to deal with issues any more.  We recognize that all is not well but we try to operate in our everyday lives as if there is not a care in the world.  We simply stop the process and accept life as it is at that point.

            Looking at circumstances will also cause one to decide to settle in the wilderness.  According to Numbers 13:26 -14:4, about 2 years after leaving Egypt, when the Children of Israel were at Kadesh Barnea, about 24 miles from Canaan, they were given the opportunity to enter the promise land.  But looking at the circumstances, the giants and walled cities caused them to be fearful.  In Numbers 14:4 they spoke of returning to Egypt.  This refusal to act on Gods word to go forward caused them to wonder in the wilderness for another 38 years.  As we travel on the journey, the circumstances will not always look favorable, but in spite of what we see we must choose to believe that God will bring us through.  David said in Ps 27:13 that he would have fainted or given up if he had not believed to see the salvation of God while in the land of the living.  Paul says in Phil. 1:6 that we should be confident that God who has begun a good work in us will continue to perform it until Jesus comes.  Circumstances do not affect the ability of God.

      The final choice when in the wilderness is to press forward to the promise land.  After 40 years of wandering in the wilderness the Children of Israel finally enter the promise land.  I'm sure that many of them wanted to give up many times, but God had a plan and a blessing for them and he would not allow them to go back to Egypt, nor to wander in the wilderness forever.  Likewise God has a plan and a will for our lives.  Like the Children of Israel, we may influence how long it takes for the plan to be manifested, but if we stay with God he will see to it that the plan is realized.  God wants to bring the church to a place of freedom.  Paul said in Phil 3:13-14 "I count not myself to have obtained; but this one thing I do, Forgetting (or not acting on) those things in the past, and  reaching for that which is before me, I press or push myself forward toward the mark or goal that God has set for me.  There is a promise land of freedom, peace and an abundant life awaiting each of us as Christians.  The way of the wilderness is hard and the obstacles may be many, but on the other side of the wilderness, the promise awaits.