Learning to Follow God
It will take our whole life to learn how to walk with God. Learning to follow God’s leading is to learn to trust and obey. It begins with that dramatic moment when God leads us out in our own personal Exodus at salvation, out of our bondage to sin, into the joy of knowing and following him. And the learning process continues ever so slowly, moment by moment, the rest of our days.
Going Forward…by Going Back
We’ve been looking at the dramatic flight of the Israelites out of Egypt at the Exodus. God has led them through the Wilderness Way and the Dark Way, and now we see he is leading them forward–by going back?! Yes. Let’s consider this together.
Then the LORD said to Moses, “Tell the people of Israel to turn back and encamp in front of Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, in front of Baal-zephon…” Exodus 14:1
Suddenly ejected from Egypt, by now the Israelites have traveled by a longer unusual route, at night with fiery pillar lighting the way, and now they are instructed to turn back so as to appear to be lost. And we know from all the pages which follow, they are only beginning to learn how to walk with God!
Meanwhile their former captor and his armies are hot on their trail, hunting them down. Just as God said He would (14:4, 8) God intentionally hardened Pharaoh’s heart that he would see their steps as a opportunistic miscalculation whereby to pursue them and exact his revenge.
God, we know, had other plans. In fact, the LORD’s plans were infinitely above the present circumstances in their scope. God’s plans were not just temporal, they were eternal. This wasn’t just about God’s just wrath upon an evil people but about displaying his sovereignty over their gods.
I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, and the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD. – Exodus 14:4
What about the Israelites? Was it cruel of God to use them to appear confused and thereby to use them to lure Pharaoh to them? Absolutely not. Like a mother bear just feet away from her vulnerable cub, they were not in any real danger at all.
The Illusion of Being in Control
The Israelites were turned back and panic was setting in. Despite God giving them a glimpse into His plan, all they saw was their enemy closing in for the kill. (More about their reaction next time.) Little did they know that in God’s plan they were very much surrounded by Him and still moving forward in God-wrought victory. I’m sure it wasn’t how they would’ve had it if they were in control.
I know that feeling.
Learning to Walk with God Means God’s Will, Not Ours
Learning to walk with God means putting feet to our faith. Believing faith is inseparably joined with a desire for God’s will above ours. When God saves a person, they would much rather stay in their sin and be His enemy than to bow in submission and repentance.
Some may ask, “But how do I trust and obey God?” The Holy Spirit gives saving faith, we can’t believe the Good News of salvation through Christ unless he imparts faith to us. And in that believing faith is the supernatural desire to want what God wants–for us to be saved and reconciled.
From the moment of a person’s new birth, if it is true, there is a desire to always ever want what God wants more than whatever it is we might want, no matter how much. And that, like a tiny sprout, grows into the kind of believing faith that matures to trust and obey the Lord.
Conclusion
The Christian reads this passage and exults in God’s strategic brilliance in orchestrating their rescue (a rescue that was promised 430 years earlier, mind you). We can’t help but rejoice in seeing the wicked cast down, but the best part is seeing God getting the glory due Him. It’s why we should always look forward with hope to that Day when, at long last, the Lamb receives the full reward for His sufferings.
