So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said, “This is what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, says: How long will you refuse to submit to me? Let my people go, so they can worship me." Exodus 10:3
To this day, whenever I hear or read the story of the Israelites being held hostage by Pharaoh, my mind automatically starts shooting off questions like, "Seriously, Pharaoh, the plague of boils and frogs weren’t enough to convince you that just maybe there was a higher power working through Moses?" As a boy I would imagine things that might have changed his mind - like maybe little leprechauns dropping from the sky or baseball bats. The fact is there was nothing that would have softened his heart enough to let them go. Why? Because at some time, at some point he believed the lie that he was in control; that he was king; that submission was something only other (lower) people did.
As I was reading through this event again, I noticed something that I had never seen before. In Exodus 10:3, God is rebuking Pharaoh for not submitting to him. And then he makes this statement, “Let my people go, so they can worship me.” Do you see the correlation? I believe he’s speaking directly to Pharaoh’s heart, specifically to the root cause of his sickness and hardness. Pharaoh has it backwards, the roles reversed, and God is trying to show him the right way and the right order, that…
…submission is the beginning of freedom.
Do we get this? That until we leave those things that are enslaving us, we won't enjoy our walk with God, we won't be fully free? It starts by withdrawing from our way and yielding to His way and that withdrawing and yielding needs to be continuous all the way to the end. God knew that His people wouldn’t be able to follow him unless they left what was holding them. Many of them, in spite of the many miracles, continued to stand in unlocked shackles through the journey with him. Why? Because walking with God sometimes means not knowing what’s around the corner or over the hill and that doesn't sit too well with us, does it? We can relate to the Israelites and their journey with God, can’t we? Don’t we want to stay in our unlocked shackles from time to time? Aren’t we tempted to turn back to what is certain, to what we know? Don’t we from time to time refuse to listen, to submit to God’s warnings? Do we have more of Pharaoh in us than we realize? Isn't control the main issue in this story and in ours?
What does God need to do for you to help you believe that He’s fully capable of leading you and taking care of you? What needs to fall from the sky for you to step out of what's already been unlocked? Submission to God and His plan is the birthplace of everything holy and good. We can’t have faith, a relationship with him or a strong belief in his words without it. It’s important that we wake up every day only to lay ourselves down again - our plans, our control, our pride, everything and retuck them in again. We need to believe that God can finish what He started in us, that He won’t just get up and leave midway through the walk.
We submit, because we realize that we’re really not in control, and we really don’t have the power to achieve and accomplish what’s important. Isn't that a relief in and of itself? The truth that we aren't supposed to do it all, accomplish it all, fight it all, stress and worry about it all? We submit because we understand that submission isn’t an act of weakness but an act of strength and wisdom. We submit because we continually remember the day He rescued us from our oppressor, the day He broke through enemy lines and cut the chains that were keeping us from so much.
May we continually say no to the temptation to pick up the scepter and crown and yes to the voice of our Master and King.
Be released.
To this day, whenever I hear or read the story of the Israelites being held hostage by Pharaoh, my mind automatically starts shooting off questions like, "Seriously, Pharaoh, the plague of boils and frogs weren’t enough to convince you that just maybe there was a higher power working through Moses?" As a boy I would imagine things that might have changed his mind - like maybe little leprechauns dropping from the sky or baseball bats. The fact is there was nothing that would have softened his heart enough to let them go. Why? Because at some time, at some point he believed the lie that he was in control; that he was king; that submission was something only other (lower) people did.
As I was reading through this event again, I noticed something that I had never seen before. In Exodus 10:3, God is rebuking Pharaoh for not submitting to him. And then he makes this statement, “Let my people go, so they can worship me.” Do you see the correlation? I believe he’s speaking directly to Pharaoh’s heart, specifically to the root cause of his sickness and hardness. Pharaoh has it backwards, the roles reversed, and God is trying to show him the right way and the right order, that…
…submission is the beginning of freedom.
Do we get this? That until we leave those things that are enslaving us, we won't enjoy our walk with God, we won't be fully free? It starts by withdrawing from our way and yielding to His way and that withdrawing and yielding needs to be continuous all the way to the end. God knew that His people wouldn’t be able to follow him unless they left what was holding them. Many of them, in spite of the many miracles, continued to stand in unlocked shackles through the journey with him. Why? Because walking with God sometimes means not knowing what’s around the corner or over the hill and that doesn't sit too well with us, does it? We can relate to the Israelites and their journey with God, can’t we? Don’t we want to stay in our unlocked shackles from time to time? Aren’t we tempted to turn back to what is certain, to what we know? Don’t we from time to time refuse to listen, to submit to God’s warnings? Do we have more of Pharaoh in us than we realize? Isn't control the main issue in this story and in ours?
What does God need to do for you to help you believe that He’s fully capable of leading you and taking care of you? What needs to fall from the sky for you to step out of what's already been unlocked? Submission to God and His plan is the birthplace of everything holy and good. We can’t have faith, a relationship with him or a strong belief in his words without it. It’s important that we wake up every day only to lay ourselves down again - our plans, our control, our pride, everything and retuck them in again. We need to believe that God can finish what He started in us, that He won’t just get up and leave midway through the walk.
We submit, because we realize that we’re really not in control, and we really don’t have the power to achieve and accomplish what’s important. Isn't that a relief in and of itself? The truth that we aren't supposed to do it all, accomplish it all, fight it all, stress and worry about it all? We submit because we understand that submission isn’t an act of weakness but an act of strength and wisdom. We submit because we continually remember the day He rescued us from our oppressor, the day He broke through enemy lines and cut the chains that were keeping us from so much.
May we continually say no to the temptation to pick up the scepter and crown and yes to the voice of our Master and King.
Be released.
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