Faith 101: Keeping Still, but Moving Forward

Moses answered, “Don't be afraid! Stand your ground, and you will see what the Lord will do to save you today; you will never see these Egyptians again. The Lord will fight for you, and all you have to do is keep still.”

EXODUS 14:13-14 TEV/ GNT

SETTING/ BACKGROUND:

The Israelites are encamped near Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. They are to encamp by the sea, directly opposite Baal-zephon. (V. 2)

Then the Egyptians, including the Pharoah started to chase them when he realized that he made a mistake in letting the Israelites leave.

In life, we always come to a point when great changes happen; we have to make big decisions while being caught in a seemingly overwhelming situations; we have to leave someone; we need go somewhere else with no assurance what awaits us; or start a new beginning full of uncertainty.

Anxiety will dominate.

Fear can be overwhelming at worst.

In this text, the Israelites are in despair because right behind them are multitudes of Egyptian armies chasing them. They even told 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!" (V.11-13)

Without the Israelites knowing, the Lord planned for this.

“Pharaoh will think, ‘The Israelites are wandering around the land in confusion, hemmed in by the desert.’ And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will pursue them. But I will gain glory for myself through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord.” (V. 3-4)

Like the Israelites, we are quick to panic, lose hope and give up faith so easily when we are in compromising situations. We are so afraid to leave our comfort zones and start anew.

But the response of Moses to the people are so inspiring that each line will be more than enough to be encouraged. Today, let us aim to listen to these words with understanding, to encourage us face life amidst any uncertainties; to move forward and stay faithful.

1. "Don't be afraid"

If we are afraid to leave the past and start anew, or afraid to leave our comfort zones, we will never reach new heights and we will never know God's beautiful plans for us.

Being afraid is a reflection of weak faith to God, weak personality and weak support system.

Fear diminishes you and your understanding of God and makes your enemies appear greater and stronger.

Other verses encouraging you not to be afraid:

ISAIAH 41: 10 - "So do not fear, for I am with you,"

DEUTERONOMY 31: 6 - "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified."

JOSHUA 1: 9 - "Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."

PSALM 23: 4 - "I will fear no evil."

JOHN 14: 27 - "Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."

2. "Stand your ground"

Stand for what you believe in - your decisions and declaration of faith.

The Israelites decided to follow Moses, but they were half-hearted. They wavered when the Egyptians started to chase them.

Have confidence that no matter how big the obstacles are, God will make a way, and He will give us strength to endure everything. 

Never get swayed easily by problems or temptations of temporary relief. Stand firm even if the earth is being shaken by the advancement of your enemies.

It was so tempting for the Israelites to just stay in Egypt specially in Goshen because it a fertile place. They might be thinking, they will just endure the hardships and slavery as long as they have what they have.

The Israelites began their exodus- they are eyeing to conquer the Promised Land. But when they looked back and realized that they are being chased again, they regretted their decision. Their enemies behind them, and the Red Sea that they need to cross put them in great distress and start to change their mind.

Just like us in our current times. When we decide to accept Jesus Christ and start our way to living a Christ-like life, then the chasers from our past make their way, others get so easily shaken and feel they made the wrong decision.

Be firm. "The old is gone, the new has come", as is declared in 2 CORINTHIANS 5: 17 NIV

3. "You will see what The Lord will do to save you today;"

God wants us to witness ourselves His greatness in our lives so we can testify about it - experiential faith.

Moses told the Israelites “You will see” – it's an introduction to personal experience; first – hand experience of God’s greatness- experiential faith

It is Him who will do the work. We may strive hard, but in His way, in His will and in His time, He will make all things work for good.

We will close our eyes in prayer, but God will open it to show us His answers. 

What a beautiful sight to see victory unfold in our eyes if we will just focus our eyes to God. We need to look beyond the image of fear and threat but only to the saving power of God. 

4. "You will never see these Egyptians again."

These Egyptians enslaved the Israelites during their times for almost 400 years.

In our time now, there are still lots of "egyptians" enslaving us - sin, materialism, wrong relationships, pride, greed, all forms of things and people and circumstances that keep on blocking our eyes and clouding our emotions and feelings and hinder us from moving forward.

We need to look beyond these "egyptians" in our lives and fix our eyes only to God through Jesus.

- The Egyptian King / Pharoah is no greater than our Lord God, Lord Jesus.

- The moaning and crying will be changed to praise, worship and prayer.

- The wandering around wilderness will become advancement of God’s Kingdom.

- The chasing of “egyptians” will become a purpose-driven life.

5.  "The Lord will fight for you"

Any battle can easily be won even before they start if we let God be our commander - the main voice dominating the battlefield, guiding our decisions and actions.

Our human efforts will never be enough. It is only God who will win victory for us. If we will let the Lord take the lead, no matter how difficult the situations are; bi matter how powerful our opponents are; no matter how slim our chances are, victory will be ours. Because God will never let His children be defeated.

The LORD looked down on the army of the Egyptians from the pillar of fire and cloud, and He threw their camp into confusion. He caused their chariot wheels to wobble so that they had difficulty driving. “Let us flee from the Israelites,” said the Egyptians, “for the LORD is fighting for them against Egypt!” (V.24)

As the Egyptians were retreating, the LORD swept them into the sea. The waters flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen—the entire army of Pharaoh that had chased the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them survived. (V.27-28)

6. "Keep still."

Don't panic.  Don't worry. Don't think about any negative things. Be still- that's what we need to do. When we take time to look at any situations we are in, we can assess and evaluate ourselves and plan perfectly without compromising or bypassing God's will and authority. Wisdom grows when our minds are not clouded with fear and anxiety.

The stillness of the moment will invite the Holy Spirit to saturate us deeper. Pray and read and understand the Bible and you will find in PSALM 46: 10, the Lord  says, “Be still, and know that I am God."

DESERT

The primary Hebrew word for "desert" is "midbar" which also carries the meaning of "wilderness" and, intriguingly, shares a root with the word "to speak" (dabar).

The Lord wants to speak to us. We can only hear Him speak if we keep calm; if we keep still; if we pray. 

After hearing His message for us, we will surely be more than ready to wander around the wilderness, then cross the sea of uncertainty, move forward and conquer the promised lands of our time, until His Time comes.

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CONCLUSION:

If we will continue reading this chapter, the Lord said to Moses, "Tell the people to get moving!" (V.15), and the Lord defeated the Egyptians - not a single one survived.

At some point in our lives, moving forward may seem so impossible and overwhelming. Fear will consume us. But the saving power of God will defeat everything. 

All we need to do is to stand firm in our faith and be still. Find comfort and peace even if we are plodding, knowing that God will fight for us and He will bring us safely and victoriously to a place where He can use us for His Kingdom to advance.