Be A Faithful Royal Priesthood

 

Exodus 14:1-31

The Israelites Crossing the Red Sea

Exodus 14 records yet another amazing miracle that the Lord did for the people of Israel after they had come out from Egypt, their place of slavery, when He led them through the Red Sea on foot!

We may easily have mistaken the significance of the Red Sea crossing as just another miracle which God delivered the Israelites from the hand of Pharoah. If we were to pay attention to the records found in Exodus 14, we would come to discover that God had a specific purpose for performing the miracle.

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites to turn back and encamp near Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. They are to encamp by the sea, directly opposite Baal Zephon. (v1-2）

The Israelites had just been delivered from the hands of Pharaoh, and they should leave Egypt and go as far as possible by all means after surviving the pursuit. Yet the Lord instructed Moses to ask the Israelites to turn back and it is something puzzling to us. However, we would come to understand His intention as we read on.

“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.” So the Israelites did this. （Exodus 14:3-4）

“I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them. And I will gain glory through Pharaoh and all his army, through his chariots and his horsemen. The Egyptians will know that I am the Lord when I gain glory through Pharaoh, his chariots and his horsemen.” （Exodus 14:17-18）

The Lord wanted to be glorified in the case of Pharaoh and his army, so that they would know that He was God!  The Egyptians were people of pantheism. The ten plagues that the Lord sent upon the land of Egypt had targeted all the Egyptian revered deities. “So that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God and that there is no other.” (1 Kings 8:60)

It is natural for the Lord God to have a desire to be glorified among all nations, for this is what the world has fallen short of. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” （Romans 3:23）

God created all things to reveal His glory, especially mankind who bear His image and likeness. But unfortunately, the one who is supposed to glorify Him turns out to be the first creature that falls short of His glory.

The Lord God has a higher demand from His own people. The two sons of Aaron were killed by Him because they offered unauthorized fire. Moses said to Aaron who was grieving, “This is what the Lord spoke of when he said: “Among those who approach me, I will be proved holy; in the sight of all the people, I will be honored.” Aaron remained silent. (Leviticus 10:3）

The Lord God had His certain demand from His people, and hence, He had a long-term plan drawn up for the people of Israelites who had been residing in Egypt and who were influenced by the Egyptian culture for 430 years. God’s purpose for the Israelites was for His people to know that there is no other God like Him. He wanted his people to be set apart for Him and enabled Him to be glorified.

Pharaoh and his whole army were destroyed in the Red Sea. “And when the Israelites saw the mighty hand of the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord and put their trust in him and in Moses his servant.” （v31）

Did the Red Sea miracle really cause the Israelites to fear God wholeheartedly and be obedient under the leadership of Moses forever? The reality tells us that their fear and obedience were but, a temporal passion.

Subsequent to this, the Israelites grumbled to Moses because they could not get water to drink (Exodus 15：22-25). Then they came to the Desert of Sin. The whole assembly of Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron because there was no food for them to eat.

“If only we had died by the Lord’s hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death.” (Exodus 16:3)

In the journey later, the Israelites sinned against God and grumbled against and even attacked their leaders Moses and Aaron again and again because of their unbelief. Though they also were judged and punished by the Lord God many times, they were still too stubborn to be changed.

The Lord God had performed many miracles among the Israelites forty years in the wilderness. For example, the leading of the pillar of fire and cloud, and raining down of manna and quails on time, turning the bitter water to become sweet water, and gushing of water from the rock, etc.

However, all these miracles were not able to make the Israelites trust and submit to God wholeheartedly and genuinely for long. This fact reminds us again that we do not merely rely on miracles to make sinners have true repentance. The miracles in the wilderness were God’s means for the Israelites to know His grace, to know that he is only true and mighty God, and to allow them opportunities to repent, in order to learn and observe His commandments.

Moses cried out to the Israelites in Deuteronomy: “Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years. Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the Lord your God disciplines you.” (Deuteronomy 8:2-5)

The Word of God is the very basis of man’s existence. Man will have no meaning for existence if there is no Word of God, and they will fall short of God’s grace.

The Kohelet also concluded his exploration in life and said, “Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind. For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.” (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14)

The apostle Paul also emphasized the effectiveness of God’s Word by saying, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” （2 Timothy 3：16-17）

Nevertheless, merely by impartation and teaching of biblical knowledge in an objective manner will not bring others to conversion. The Lord God oversaw and led the Israelites personally for 40 years, like a father who disciplined his children.

The author of Hebrews in the New Testament also issues a similar reminder to the Christians, “Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father?  If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all.” （Hebrews 12：7-8）

Conclusion

The Lord purposely allowed Moses and the Israelites to experience many trials and challenges like the crossing of the Red Sea, during their 40 years of journey in the wilderness, in order for them to learn many spiritual lessons from trials and battles. The Israelites were to glory God as his chosen holy people on earth, and remain faithful to him always.

The Israelites failed in their priestly function terribly, that’s why Christ, as a true Israelite, came later to accomplish God’s plan. Christ remained faithful to God until the end by giving up his life on the cross. What Christ had accomplished on the cross, being obedient to God’s will, are also our accomplishment as we put our trust in him.

The Israelites’ experiences and Christ’s work on the cross, both reveal that God is the Creator and redeemer, and also a Trainer! His purpose is to gather us together as his royal priests through Christ’ salvation, allowing us to know Him personally and declare His glory among the nations! 

May the love of Christ touch our hearts today. And may the Spirit empower us today, as we determine to follow Christ, setting our heart to be faithful to God until the end and learn to train ourselves to be useful servants of God.

May the well-known words of the apostle, Paul, become our encouragement and goal, for he said, “I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me trustworthy, appointing me to his service.” (1 Tim 1:12); “Which is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me.” (2 Tim 1:12)