The Lord Will Fight For You!

We have this Scripture on the walls of our hearts.  We have this Scripture on the walls of our house.  This Scripture is one of my wife's favorite Scriptures in the Bible.  I, too, love Exodus 14:14.  However, I love the entire passage found in Exodus 14.  The Israelites had experienced so many miracles from God.  God rescued them and moved them out of captivity.  God provided for them and protected all along their way.  Oh, how quickly they forgot about the miracles and the goodness of their God!

Pharaoh and the Egyptians changed their minds about the Israelites; they realized how desperately they needed the service of their former slaves.  They pursued the Israelites with all of their fighting men and all of their chariots and magnificent weaponry.  The Israelites looked in one direction and saw the mighty Egyptians coming; the Israelites looked in another direction and saw the mighty waters and waves of the Red Sea.  Exodus 14:10 says, "As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching toward them.  THEY WERE TERRIFIED and cried out to the Lord."  Then they began to complain and fuss at Moses.  Yes, the Israelites cried out to the Lord, but in this moment they did not fully surrender to and trust in the Lord.  They immediately gave way to the terror, to the fear.  What we see in the Israelites in this moment is still true for us today: If we don't truly surrender to the Lord and trust Him completely, our FEAR will lead to FUSSING.  We will fuss at the Lord, and we will fuss at our family, at our friends, and at anyone whose attention we can grab.  Our FEAR can and usually does lead to our FUSSING.

We need to be grounded in God's Word; we need to be in the Word and allow the Word to be in us.  We also need strong brothers and sisters in Christ in our lives who can tell us the truth and encourage us and challenge us.  Yes, I love Exodus 14:14, but listen to what Moses says in verse 13: "Moses answered the people, 'Do not be afraid.  Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today.  The Egyptians you see today you will never see again.'"  And then Moses says in Exodus 14:14, "The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still."  Some versions use the word "silent" for still, and some versions use "peace."  In others words, Moses was telling the people that they need to SILENCE their fears and their fussing.  They need to truly surrender to the Lord and trust the Lord!  Instead of focusing on the Egyptians on one side and the Red Sea on the other side, the Israelites need to focus on their God.  I love what Brandon Lake sings in his song, "Praise You Anywhere."  He sings, "Sometimes you've gotta dance through the darkness, sing through the fire, praise when it don't make sense.  Sometimes you've gotta stare down the giant, worship from the lion's den.  Sometimes you've gotta shout it from the mountain, louder in the valley, TRUSTING that He's gonna get you there.  Sometimes you've gotta welcome the wonder, wait for the answer, WORSHIP with your hands in the air."  Oh, I love that song!  In the moments when life hits hard and the mighty Egyptians face us on one side and the might Red Sea faces us on the other side, we need to cry out to the Lord but do so with TRUST!  We need to praise Him in the good places and the hard places.  We need to WORSHIP Him in the good places and the hard places.  We need to SILENCE the fear and the fussing that comes with it!  But there is more...

Exodus 14:15 says, "Then the Lord said to Moses, "Why are you crying out to me?  Tell the Israelites TO MOVE ON."  Wow!  It was time to TRUST and to MOVE!  Dr. David Jeremiah says in his commentary: "The fact that Israel was facing the Red Sea posed no problem for God.  When things seem impossible, the people of God need to obediently follow Him in faith, leaving the outcome to Him."  God didn't tell Israel how He was going to fight for them; He didn't give them a detailed plan.  The Israelites had to make a choice to MOVE ON, to walk forward in faith.  Is it any different for us today?  We should cry out to the Lord, but we should also cry out with trust; and when the Lord tells us to MOVE ON, we need to MOVE ON obediently.  Lord, help me today to trust you more and more.  Help me today to be consistently prayerful but to also be consistently obedient.  Help me to silence the fears and the fussing in my life, and help me to unleash the worship and the praise and faith!  Thank You, Lord, for fighting for me!  Amen!