Your Future Is Enemy-Less
Written by Jarred Rushing
(6 minutes)
When Pharaoh finally let the people go, God did not lead them along the main road that runs through Philistine territory, even though that was the shortest route to the Promised Land. God said, “If the people are faced with a battle, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” So God led them in a roundabout way through the wilderness toward the Red Sea. Thus the Israelites left Egypt like an army ready for battle. (Exodus 13:17-18)
Then the Lord gave these instructions to Moses: “Order the Israelites to turn back and camp by Pi-hahiroth between Migdol and the sea. Camp there along the shore, across from Baal-zephon. Then Pharaoh will think, ‘The Israelites are confused. They are trapped in the wilderness!’ And once again I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will chase after you. I have planned this in order to display my glory through Pharaoh and his whole army. After this the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord!” So the Israelites camped there as they were told. (Exodus 14:1-4)
One of the most extraordinary pictures of Yahweh's kindness is found here in the Exodus story. Pharaoh finally lets the people of God go from the land where they were slaves and instead of taking them on the short route to the promise, Yahweh led them in "a roundabout way through the wilderness toward the Red Sea."
Yahweh gave instructions to Moses to turn back and have the nation camp in a very peculiar place. With the Red Sea in front of them, the Israelites would have been wedged between mountainous terrain and some caverns, with Egypt at their back. The campsite was so strange that Pharaoh thought the Israelites were deeply confused and literally trapped in the wilderness. Listen: it was the most vulnerable position that Israel could have been put in. Yahweh orders them to camp at this site and then explains to Moses that He's going to go and harden Pharaoh's heart so that he'll chase after the Israelites.
Why in the world would Abba send the children of Israel to this vulnerable position to be chased down by the Egyptians?
Why would Yahweh use the Israelites as bait in the wilderness?
Because Abba's heart is to see His people completely free, and complete freedom requires our being a first-hand witness to the drowning of our enemy. You see, if Israel doesn't see the Egyptians drowning in the Red Sea they will have walked into that wilderness with one eye always peering back to see if their enslaver was closing in on them. They would have spent their nights with watchmen on shifts to make sure that their enemy wasn't planning a raid while they slept. Partial freedom always has you looking over your shoulder, hoping and praying that the pain of your past will not catch up to you. Real freedom gives you the assurance that your enemy is no longer a threat to you or your future at all.
Can you imagine being the Israelites camped in this vulnerable position with the dark cloud of Egypt looming overhead, getting closer and closer to you and your family?
Our old mind, trained by religion, would've told us that Yahweh was mad at us. We must have missed something or made a mistake, because if we were really walking with Him it wouldn't have led us to this place. We would never be in this vulnerable state, trapped on all sides, with the threat of death marching in our direction if we were in the right place with God. We stepped out of His will somewhere. This must be punishment for our bad decisions.
But our new mind that is rooted in the kindness of Abba tells us a very different story. We don't see problems the same way anymore. They are no longer a witness that we've done something wrong; they are a witness that Abba is about to bring us into a greater measure of freedom than we were previously walking in. Because it's the kindness of Yahweh that would lure our enemy out so we could be first-hand witnesses to the death of that which we were slaves to for so many years. He wants us completely whole, no longer feeling the threat of that enemy at all.
Have you ever wondered why the Shepherd-King in Psalm 23 would lead us to green pastures and still waters, and then proceed to prepare a table for us IN THE PRESENCE of our enemies? It's almost as if Yahweh is saying to us, "Sit down and enjoy yourself. I want you to watch as I put an end to the thing that has tormented you for all these years. After this, you'll never have to deal with it ever again. The only thing that will be chasing you after today is My goodness and lovingkindness."
This is so much better than what we inherited under the influence of religion. Religion told us that the closest we could get to freedom was removing ourselves from the presence of the things that were a threat. Run as fast as you can away from those areas. Get an accountability partner, someone to help you keep watch for the enemy. Download this software that will block you from having access to those sites. Never go here or there alone. Don't read those books. Don't watch those movies. Your best chances at freedom is to avoid the problem at all costs. Religion promised us freedom and failed to deliver. It just taught us to remove the temptation and call ourselves, "Free indeed." Abba wants so much more for us than this!
Real freedom.
Complete wholeness.
Restored to innocence.
Certainty and assurance concerning our enemy-less future.
Yahweh wants you as free as you were before you ever encountered Egypt, so He invites you to stand still and watch as He drowns your enemy in the sea.
The kindness of the Father is changing how I see issues and problems. They are no longer signs that I've done something wrong or that I'm not where I'm supposed to be. My being vulnerable and seeming trapped is no longer an indicator that I've drifted off course. If you are hearing His voice and pursuing His presence and you find yourself in a vulnerable position, trapped and exposed to the enemy, this is Abba's invitation to pull up your chair and recline at His table as He deals openly with the thing that has enslaved you. The kindness of the Father gives you peace to hold as He fights your battle. Your only responsibility is to relax and enjoy the freedom that is being won for you.
Do you realize that all the wealth of his extravagant kindness is meant to melt your heart and lead you into repentance? (Romans 2:4)
What if how willing we are to believe that He is kind determines how far into transformation we will go?
If our soul is not quieted by His kindness, our anxiety will cause us to run away from the sea that we're supposed to see our enemy drowned in. Our believing that Abba is kind has everything to do with how far we will go into the freedom that He has in store for us.
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Worship: "Hell Or High Water" by Amanda Cook
Honor: Give Online to The Wilderness Place
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