Good Morning.
And the Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry to Me? Tell the children of Israel to go forward. But lift up your rod, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it. And the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea.” (Exodus 14:15-16)
Just after announcing to the frightened Hebrews that God would fight for them and deliver them from their enemies, Moses is now faced with the reality that a great body of water lay before them. Did he know in advance what God intended to do? If he did, the text does not reveal that. In fact, the question presented to him,“Why do you cry to me?” suggests that even Moses had been somewhat surprised by the command to march through the gorge –- an instruction that led them to be in this very precarious circumstance.
At this point, the time for prayer was over; it was time to take action and, thus, came the command to go forward into the sea. I don’t think its too far fetched to consider that this command was met with an incredulous expression from most. Nevertheless, God’s people are consistently challenged to believe the unbelievable and to go forward into the uncertain. It is an integral part of our faith journey — to trust that our God will do what He has promised.
There is a time for prayer and preparation and then there is a time to put our faith into action. Believing God is not defined exclusively as accepting mentally and spiritually that He can do something. Believing God is demonstrated when His people do what He asks them to do — hearing and doing. Thus we are exhorted to “be doers of the word, and not hearers only” (James 1:22). Therefore, when we find ourselves faced with what seems to be an insurmountable obstacle, let us all commit ourselves to believe God by going forward and through the circumstance, knowing that He will see us through it.
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
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