Analogy of the Exodus – Continued
From last lesson: To avoid new forms of evil and suffering, they could have returned to the familiar hardships of Egypt. But the strength they gained from their new trials and troubles prepared them to seize and keep the land of their dreams.
The analogy here with the human race is that God could take away our current evil and suffering. But if He did, we might lose the capacity to gain and keep access to the new creation. At best, we think we could return to Eden, but not in the same condition as when we left. The Hebrews, too, deceived themselves in thinking they could return to Egypt as it was before the unleashing of the ten plagues.
We might be tempted to wish that God would take us to the new creation with a little less evil and suffering than we must face in this life. Again, the Hebrews’ journey through the wilderness suggests why He does not fulfill that wish. In spite of the forty-one years of “training” they underwent, and even with the help of all the miracles God showed them both in Egypt and in the promised land, they were barely able to gain possession of the land. Eventually they lost their grip on it and only regained it, partially, in recent years. The history of Israel indicates that God did not overtrain these people.
Likewise, we can be assured that God is not overtraining us. We know how much motivating the Hebrews needed to undertake the exodus out of Egypt. They experienced much evil and suffering but they also experienced many supernatural proofs of His power and protection. Therefore we also should know and be aware of how much motivating we need of a similar nature to undertake the exodus from sin’s captivity. Still more evil and suffering, along with miraculous reassurances, moved the Hebrews along toward possession of the promised land. We, too, need more evil and suffering, along with God’s miraculous reassurances, to move us along through the process of sanctification so that we will be ready for the splendors of the new creation.
Not all the evil and suffering we endure comes for our benefit alone. Sometimes God allows us to experience evil and suffering so that others may benefit also. Stephen, who was stoned to death by an angry mob of religious leaders, seems to be a prime example of this very point. Holding the coats for that crowd, and seeing the radiant faith and face of the “villain” was a young zealot named Saul, whom God later transformed into the apostle Paul.
If we want to shorten the span of this training program we find ourselves in, we can do it. Just as the Hebrews could have shortened their wanderings by cooperating with God and following Moses’ instructions, we can cooperate with God more fully than we have by bending every effort and investing more resources toward completion of Christ’s assignment to us. That assignment, which we call the Great Commission, could be carried out in our lifetime. Our struggles with evil and suffering will end when we successfully, by His enabling, bring the gospel and raise up disciples in every ethnic group on earth. That goal is within reach of the physical and spiritual resources of Christians, and it has been for some time, as determined by researchers at the United States Center for World Missions. While remarkable progress has been made within the last fifteen years, we need increased faith and wider involvement among His people to make way for His coming. Remember, even though God’s desire is that none should perish, our desire should be that at least every person should have the knowledge and ability to make the choice for themselves. Therefore, they need to hear the Word of God.
To Be Continued
FOR THE LOVE OF GOD 
You must be logged in to post a comment.