It’s Not about Real Estate
Did you ever wonder why God sometimes delays before He delivers us from our troubles? Why doesn’t He change our circumstances right away?
As I was reading Patriarchs and Prophets, I mused over why God allowed the Israelites to remain in bondage for so long in Egypt, and why He bothered to negotiate with Pharoah at all. Why go through all the heartache and trouble, especially in the beginning?
You know the story – Moses and Aaron ask Pharaoh to let God’s people go, and Pharaoh instead charges the people to make bricks without straws and yet requires the same number of bricks. “And Pharaoh’s slave drivers beat the Israelite overseers they had appointed, demanding, “Why haven’t you met your quota of bricks yesterday or today, as before?” (Exodus 5:14).
That seems really unfair. I don’t blame them for hunting down Moses and Aaron to complain, “May the LORD look on you and judge you! You have made us obnoxious to Pharaoh and his officials and have put a sword in their hand to kill us” (v 21). And I would have done what Moses did next – “Moses returned to the LORD and said, ‘Why, Lord, why have you brought trouble on this people? Is this why you sent me? Ever since I went to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has brought trouble on this people, and you have not rescued your people at all” (v. 22, 23).
Ever since I decided to be faithful to You, God, You have brought me troublel If You are leading me, why am I going through this? Have you ever thought that?
Perhaps you’re looking around you at those who do not worship God and see that they’re healthy, happy, and having fun. Life just seems to come together for them – they have good relationships, careers, and comforts. And they suggest to you that your life would be easier if you just let go of this silly notion that God cares. If God existed, they mock, why are you suffering?
“Words like these destroyed the hopes of many of the Israelites. The case appeared to them very much as the Egyptians had represented. It was true that they were slaves, and must endure whatever their cruel taskmasters might choose to inflict. Their children had been hunted and slain, and their own lives were a burden. Yet they were worshiping the God of heaven. If Jehovah were indeed above all gods, surely He would not thus leave them in bondage to idolaters. But those who were true to God understood that it was because of Israel’s departure from Him–because of their disposition to marry with heathen nations, thus being led into idolatry–that the Lord had permitted them to become bondmen; and they confidently assured their brethren that He would soon break the yoke of the oppressor" (PP 263).
She further clarifies, "The Hebrews had expected to obtain their freedom without any special trial of their faith or any real suffering or hardship. But they were not yet prepared for deliverance. They had little faith in God, and were unwilling patiently to endure their afflictions until He should see fit to work for them. Many were content to remain in bondage rather than meet the difficulties attending removal to a strange land; and the habits of some had become so much like those of the Egyptians that they preferred to dwell in Egypt. Therefore the Lord did not deliver them by the first manifestation of His power before Pharaoh. He overruled events more fully to develop the tyrannical spirit of the Egyptian king and also to reveal Himself to His people. Beholding His justice, His power, and His love, they would choose to leave Egypt and give themselves to His service. The task of Moses would have been much less difficult had not many of the Israelites become so corrupted that they were unwilling to leave Egypt.” (PP 263)
Could it be that we are not ready to leave Egypt? Could it be that God in His infinite wisdom and mercy uses this time of waiting, trying as it may be, to help us see through Satan’s lies and finally see God’s goodness? Could it be that what we need is not just salvation from our sins and circumstances, but a better understanding of God’s character, so that we choose not to sin again? After all, God could rescue the Israelites forcefully from Egypt, but then they would turn right back to their slavery. God would have to rescue them again and again, only to have them keep going back (actually, they kept threatening to do this during the Exodus, causing Moses much headache)… isn’t that our problem? We ask God to rescue us from our slavery to sin, and we moan and groan, but when it comes down to it, we really want to go back to that sin as soon as God isn’t looking.
God knows our hearts. He will wait, He will chasten, He will do miracles to show His justice, His power, and His love, so that we would willingly choose to leave Egypt and give ourselves to His service. What He desires is not mere relocation, but re-identification - it matters not whether we are in Egypt nor the Promised Land – the important thing is, do we serve Pharaoh or Jehovah? That’s what makes us either a Joseph or a Joe schmoe. It's not about real estate - it's about the relationship; its' not about where we are (in trials, valleys, or the wilderness) but about who we want to be (a slave to sin or a servant of God).
Let’s be patient, then. Let’s behold God as He reveals the contrast between Satan and Himself, so that we can choose to leave Egypt. Then we’ll never look back like Lot’s wife, and we will enter His courts with thanksgiving on our lips. We can be free, when we choose to be His.