Greetings in the name of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, (Exodus 34:6)
After tthe ten terrifying plagues, Pharaoh, the king of Egypt finally let the Israelites people go. When word reached the king of Egypt that the Israelites had actually left, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds. “What have we done, letting all those Israelite slaves get away?” they asked. So Pharaoh harnessed his chariot and called up his troops. He took with him 600 of Egypt’s best chariots, along with the rest of the chariots of Egypt, each with its commander. The LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, so he chased after the people of Israel, who had left with fists raised in defiance. The Egyptians chased after them with all the forces in Pharaoh’s army—all his horses and chariots, his charioteers, and his troops. The Egyptians caught up with the people of Israel.As Pharaoh approached, the people of Israel looked up and panicked when they saw the Egyptians overtaking them. They cried out to the LORD, and they said to Moses, “Why did you bring us out here to die in the wilderness? Weren’t there enough graves for us in Egypt? What have you done to us? Why did you make us leave Egypt? Didn’t we tell you this would happen while we were still in Egypt? We said, ‘Leave us alone! Let us be slaves to the Egyptians. It’s better to be a slave in Egypt than a corpse in the wilderness!’” (Exodus 14:11-12)
We are not much different from the Israelites. When even a slightest inconvenience comes into our lives, while following What God told us to do, our hearts becomes panicky, and our mouth starts complaining, even blaming against God like the Israelites, “Why did you bring us out here to die in the wilderness?” The Israelites saw the mighty ten plagues that had stricken those Egyptians who were against the God’s will, and witnessed the enormous tragedy coming upon the Egyptians including losing first born sons. Then they argued to God, “Why did you make us leave Egypt? We said, ‘Leave us alone! Let us be slaves to the Egyptians. It’s better to be a slave in Egypt than a corpse in the wilderness!’” Not only did they complained against what God did for them, but also did they not believe God although they had just eye-witnessed the might power that brought them out of the Egypt, and the faithfulness of God as promised to their forefathers. They quickly connected dots by their own way – one dot: Egyptian army was chasing us, and another dot: we would be killed by the Egyptian army. Such a quick thought was s at most absurd or even stupid. Who brought out the Israelites? God did. Who subdued the mighty Egyptians who slaved Israelites for four hundred years? God did. Now, they saw the same Egyptians chasing them. What would be the most logical conclusion? Would the same Egyptians kill the Israelites or would the Egyptians confront the same fate as God did before?
Logically speaking, the answer was so obvious. The Egyptians would meet the same fate as before — being defeated by God again. On the contrary, the entire Israelites were panicking and blaming God while expecting to be killed by the Egyptians, rather than seeing again the God’s mighty hand as He did before. How illogical the Israelites were!
Yes, the Israelites did not faith at all. How about us? What’s our reaction from our heart when we meet a difficulty while we follow God’s will? Do we remember God’s miracle and His power or are we panicky because we focus on the difficulty that we can see and touch while connecting dots with a worst scenario like the Israelites who imagined out the worst with their illogical and faithless heart – i.e., being killed by the Egyptians?
Bible continues: But Moses told the people, “Don’t be afraid. Just stand still and watch the LORD rescue you today. The Egyptians you see today will never be seen again. The LORD himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.” (Exodus 14:13-14)
Then the LORD said to Moses, “Tell the people to get moving! Pick up your staff and raise your hand over the sea. Divide the water so the Israelites can walk through the middle of the sea on dry ground.”
Moses faithfully did. He raised his hand over the sea, and the LORD opened up a path through the water with a strong east wind. The wind blew all that night, turning the seabed into dry land. So the people of Israel walked through the middle of the sea on dry ground, with walls of water on each side!
The merciful and gracious God opened up a passage through the impossibility before the Israelites trapping in between the red sea in front of them and the furious Egyptian army chasing them behind. Our merciful God was faithfulness, and He was not swayed by the unfaithfulness of the Israelites. He continued guiding them through the red sea like a faithful shepherd who provides loving cares to every sheep. Although the Israelites completely failed before God, God continue carried them in His bosom. The same merciful, compassionate, slow-to-anger and loving God is now with us. He will continue faithfully guide us through any life challenges including such an impossibility that the Israelites faced with. Why? “He loves us not because we are lovable, but because He is love.” (C.S. Lewis)
The LORD is compassionate and merciful,
slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. (Psalm 103:8)