CHAPTER 7 AN EXAMPLE AND A WARNING
While writing the first 5 chapters of this book, I was drawn to I Cor.10:6-13, and in particular to that portion of those verses which tell us "... THESE THINGS occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did ... These things happened to them as EXAMPLES and were WRITTEN DOWN AS WARNINGS FOR US, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come..." (emphasis added). The "these things" referred to are the wilderness experiences of the Israelites. We will begin this study by turning to Nu.14:19-24 and therein see what the cumulative effect upon them was of the things we are going to examine in more detail later on.
In this portion of Scripture Moses was talking to God after the Israelites had just committed their 10th major blunder in less than two years. Moses said, "In accordance with Your great love forgive the sin of these people, just as You have pardoned them from the time they left Egypt until now." Carefully note the Lord's response to Moses request, because it has a direct bearing upon those of us who have the hope of being alive and remaining when Jesus returns as set forth in Ro.8:23 and I John 3:2-3. "I HAVE FORGIVEN THEM, as you asked NEVERTHELESS, as surely as I live, and as surely as the glory of the Lord fills the whole earth ... NOT ONE OF THEM WILL EVER SEE THE LAND I promised to give their forefathers. NO ONE WHO HAS TREATED ME WITH CONTEMPT WILL EVER SEE IT ... BUT BECAUSE my servant CALEB has a different spirit and FOLLOWS ME WHOLEHEARTEDLY I WILL BRING HIM INTO THE LAND ... and his descendants will inherit it." (emphasis added).
God forgave them, but they could not physically enter the promised land. As we saw in chapter 8 of The Last Enemy, the promised land was a type and foreshadow of the physical immortality God has in store for His 42nd generation overcomers (see Heb.3:11&18; 4:1,3,5,10-11 which use the Greek word katapausis to denote a place of rest; whereas, Matt.11:28 uses the Greek word anappusis to denote soulish rest, or peace of mind). For us then, the promised land is to come into the Father's presence without first tasting of physical death (I Cor.15:25-26).
The relationship between physically going into the promised land and coming into the Father's presence without having to die to get there can also be seen by comparing Caleb's admonition to the Israelites as recorded in Nu.14:8 with Paul's statement of Heb.11:5. Caleb said, "If the Lord is PLEASED with us, He will LEAD US INTO THAT LAND..." and Paul said, "... by faith Enoch was taken ... so that he did not experience death ... FOR BEFORE HE WAS TAKEN, he was commended as one who PLEASED God" (emphasis added, see also chapter 7 of The Last Enemy). In short, we are being shown that even if this is the final generation, if we, like the Israelites in the wilderness, treat God with contempt by ignoring the "examples ... written down as warnings for us" (I Cor.10:11), we can be saved and forgiven, yet still not be alive and remaining when Jesus returns.
Some might say that this is not a correct correlation to make because Isaiah 53:5 tells us that the "punishment" that brought us peace was borne by Jesus on the cross, and we are therefore, not subject to any punishment. Now, while I agree with this point as it relates to our spirit, I urge you to consider that in the physical realm there are times when, even though we are forgiven, there may well be physical consequences which are suffered because of sin. Remember, Paul pointedly told the members of the church at Corinth that they were suffering physical infirmities and even premature death because of their failure to recognize the body of Christ in their celebration of the Lord's supper (I Cor.11:29-30). And that was well after Jesus had borne our punishment on the cross! Those who died were believers at the time of their death. Their sins had been washed clean by the blood of Jesus, ie. forgiven, but they were still dead when they should have been and could still have been alive!
The Israelites in Egypt were God's chosen people (Deut.7:6; Ps.33:12 & Ps.105:6), and I Pe.2:9 calls us God's chosen generation. The Israelites experienced a type of baptism in Moses and the Red Sea (I Cor.10:2) and we have been baptized into Christ Jesus in water (Ro.6:3 & I Pe.3:2). The Israelites partook of a foreshadow of the baptism of the Holy Spirit when they drank of the waters at Meribah (I Cor.10:3), and we have experienced the reality of this infilling (Acts 2:4 & Eph.5:18). They were forgiven (Nu.14:20) and we are forgiven (I John 1:9). Yet, "Nevertheless, God WAS NOT PLEASED with most of them; their BODIES were scattered over the desert" (emphasis added, I Cor.10:5).
Considering all the obvious comparisons, how can we now expect to physically come before the Father without first tasting death if we ignore the warnings, or pretend that the example really doesn't apply to us. Let us therefore examine the exodus so that we do not make the same mistakes they did, and thereby treat God with contempt once to often, thereby falling victim to some end time wilderness experience. In Nu.14:22 God refers to 10 instances wherein the whole community disobeyed and tested Him.
We will therefore begin this study by looking at the first two of these ten occurrences. Ex.4:29 tells us that upon his return to Egypt, Moses and Aaron informed the Israelites that God was going to deliver them out of their bondage. Moses then performed the signs and wonders God had instructed him to perform in order to confirm His Word. We are then told that the Israelites believed God's promise. However, immediately after Moses' first audience with Pharaoh, things got tougher for the people. Having been beaten for the people's failure to meet their quota of bricks, the Israelite foreman, who just a short time before believed that Moses and Aaron were God's messengers sent to deliver them, now said to them "May the Lord look upon you and judge you. You have made us a stench to Pharaoh and his servants and have put a sword in their hand to kill us (emphasis added Ex.5:21).
God then told Moses in Ex.6:6-8 to reassure the people by telling them
"... I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them and will redeem you with an outstretched arm and mighty acts of judgment ... I will bring you to the land I swore with uplifted hand to give to Abraham."
Their reaction to this reassurance was a compounding of the error represented by their verbal attack on Moses. I am therefore going to deal with these two separate incidents as one, because they point out the same shortcomings which we are to be on guard against. Ex.6:9 shows us that Moses conveyed God's message to them, "... but they did not listen to him because of their discouragement and cruel bondage." This shows us three things. First, they refused to listen to God's Word. Second, they became discouraged. Third, their discouragement was a result of cruel bondage.
Concerning our obligation to listen to God, I should like to point out God's clear direction to us in Mk.9:7, "This is My Son, whom I love, LISTEN to Him" (emphasis added). We are to be the sheep of His flock who not only know the Master's voice, but listen to it (John 10:27). While sheep are rather dumb animals, we are to be wise sheep who have gained understanding by listening to the Lord's promises and His directions (Prov.1:5). Isaiah 66:4 makes it clear that God's judgment will come upon those who do not listen when God speaks. Is it any wonder then that each of the messages to the seven churches in Revelation, the apocalyptic book of judgment, ends with this admonition, "He who has ears to hear let him hear what the Spirit says to the church" (Rev.2:7,11,17&29 and 3:6,13&22 - see chapter 8 of The Last Enemy for a more detailed discussion on the importance of listening to God).
It is also clear that even though satan would like us to become discouraged and give up on God's promises, that is not God's desire for us. To see God's desire in this area, all we need do is turn to I Sam.17:32 and see what David, a man after God's own heart (Acts 13:22 & I Sam.13:14) said to Saul when Israel was faced with what appeared to be an overwhelming enemy. "Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine, your servant will go and fight him" (emphasis added). A more contemporary example can be found in II Cor.4:1 when Paul tells us that he will not lose heart even though he had been beaten, shipwrecked, and jailed (II Cor.1:9 & 11:23-29).
This is an important lesson for us to learn because I Pe.4:16 advises us that "... if you suffer as a Christian do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name..." Verse 19 then tells us that "... those who suffer according to God's will should commit themselves to their faithful creator and continue to do good" (emphasis added). Remember, Rev.2:11 told us to hear what was being said to the Church in Smyrna, and part of that message was, "Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer ... the devil will put some of you in prison to test you ..." (emphasis added Rev.2:10). Like Joshua, we should remember the words of Moses in Deut.31:8 "The Lord Himself will go before you, do not be afraid, do not be discouraged."
Now what I am about to say may at first glance appear to be rather heartless, but I wish to point out the fact that not even cruel bondage is a sufficient excuse to use in order to justify not listening to God's Word. After having been flogged, thrown into the innermost part of the prison and then placed in stocks, Paul and Silas were not only praying to God, but they were singing hymns of praise to Him (Acts 16:23&25). If anything, bondage should bring us closer to God rather than drive us further from Him. Keep in mind that a person can be in bondage to a wheel chair just as much as a man in prison, and each of these individuals need to be reminded that "though we are slaves, our God has not deserted us in our bondage" (Ezra 9:9), Besides, God is the one who not only has the ability to remove the overcomer from bondage, but the desire to do so as well (Acts 3:7 & 12:7-10). This is important for us to remember because II Tim.3:1-5 points out that "(t)here will be terrible times in the last days: people will be ... abusive ... brutal ... treacherous ..." and those portions of the exodus we are examining were given as warnings to us, "...upon whom the fulfillment of the ages has come" (I Cor.10:13 - review chapter 1 of The Last Enemy).
Before we discuss the 3rd example wherein Israel tested God, allow me to set the stage for this event. Moses is not recorded as having approached the Israelites again with God's promise of deliverance until Ex.12:21-28. By that time 9 plagues had already been visited upon Egypt by God pursuant to His promise of Ex.6:7, and Moses was now informing the Israelites of the 10th and final judgment which would befall the Egyptians. When he finished informing Israel of the Passover regulations which they needed to comply with in order to be spared from the forthcoming event, we are told that "... the people bowed down and worshipped." It would appear that they remembered that God had said He would redeem them with "mighty acts of judgment" (Ex.6:8). They were now to witness His mightiest act up to that time - the death of the firstborn of every Egyptian (Ex.12:29).
Not only that, but in the next few hours they were to see the physical fulfillment of at least two other prophecies. First, when they left Egypt they left with great wealth, given to them by the Egyptians themselves (Ex.12:36) in fulfillment of God's Word in Ex.3:22. Secondly, they left 430 years (Ex.12:41) after first coming to Egypt, in fulfillment of Gen.15:15. Finally, Ex.13:21 tells us that God's presence went before them to guide them as a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. The stage is now set.
They had every reason to believe their deliverance was at hand. They had seen 10 plagues visited upon the Egyptians, 2 major prophecies had been fulfilled, and they were walking in the very presence of the Lord. Yet, when Pharaoh came after them we are shown in Ex.14:10 that
"As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord. They said to Moses, 'Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert (emphasis added).
Herein we are shown that they gave greater weight to the physical circumstances surrounding them when those circumstances were contrary to God's promise, and that they preferred a life of bondage to a time of testing.
As far as the entire topic of dealing with physical circumstances which are contrary to God's Word, I refer you back to chapters 1 & 4 of Needful Things. For now let me simply remind you that from II Ki.6:15 we are taught that God's ability to deliver us far exceeds our enemies ability to destroy us. This is not to say that the physical problems which we may be facing at any given instant are not "real." The storms which the disciples encountered while rowing were indeed real (Lk.8:24 & Matt.14:24-32). However, Jesus' Words in each case should have let the disciples know that the storms could not kill them. In the first instance Jesus had said that they were going to go over to the other side of the lake. In the second he specifically told Peter to come to Him. The Words Jesus spoke pointed to a future beyond the point in time which the storm represented. Therefore, the storm had to yield to the Word.
This is an important concept for us to understand, particularly as the fulfillment of the ages draws near. Ps.3:6 says "I will not fear the tens of thousands drawn up against me on every side." Why not? Because Ps.91:9 says "if you make the Most High your dwelling ... then no harm will befall you" (emphasis added). That's why Ps.91:7 can say "A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked."
Now, if these thousands are falling AT OUR SIDE, it seems obvious that we are not watching the proceeding from heaven, but from here on the earth. Since the punishing of the wicked is clearly related to the end time harvest of the wicked which proceeds the harvest of the righteous (Matt.13:30), it appears that we are being told in Psalm 91 to walk by faith, not by sight, trusting that God will protect us.
Dan.7:21-26 and 11:32&35 tell us that satan's forces will, for a short period of time attempt to alter the times set for this end time harvest. But these same verses also tell us that the servants of the Most High will firmly resist these efforts. Like Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, the fire we go through will not destroy our bodies (Dan.3:25-26), only the shackles that bind us. Like Daniel in the lions den, we are protected BECAUSE we will have learned to trust in the Most High God (Dan.6:23). End time tribulation will hold no fear for those who will totally walk in faith, believing God for their protection. They will not tremble at the sight of Pharaoh's army. Instead, "those who know Your Name will trust in You, for You Lord have never forsaken those who seek You...", and the name, or nature of God in which we are to place that trust is that of the Most High God (Ps.9:10&2)
As it was wrong for the Israelites, so also would it be wrong for us who are now being, and will in the future be tested, to look back with yearning upon the old life we had before we found Christ (Dan.11:35 & Ja.1:2-5). Not only is it wrong, but as you recall from the chapter 3 of the Last Enemy it can be deadly - as Lot's wife discovered when she left Sodom. Note also the warning found in Job 36:21 "Beware of turning to evil which you seem to prefer to affliction."
Once you have come out of Egypt, God directs us to rebuke any thoughts which enter our mind which would have us return (I Pe.1:14; II Pe.2:19-20 & Ps.85:8). Any desire to return is not from God. In fact, God clearly says that anyone who chooses to go back rather than face the purifying experiences that await us in the wilderness incurs His displeasure (Heb.10:35-38) And since we have already seen that pleasing God is one of the prerequisites to coming into His presence without first tasting of physical death, it is therefore obvious that the way back to Egypt is in fact the way of death, not life (see chapter 7 of A Closer Walk).
But in His grace and mercy, God overlooked their fear and directed Moses to extend his arm over the Red Sea and the sea parted (Ex.14:21). I have included this graphic not because of it's historcial accuracy, but because it again reminds us that miracles do not buld faith. (see Points to Ponder # 41) Just imagine what it must have been like for the people of Israel to have seen God move in such a majastic way as depicted here. Yet even this was not enough to cause them to remain faithful to His directions. (I am not being critical of them; rather, I am merely pointing out that we need to be on guard against becoming complacent as we see God move miracioulsly in our own lives.)
However, there are two aspects to this deliverance which are many times overlooked. First of all, we are shown in Ex.14:19 that immediately prior to the parting of the sea, the Pillar of Cloud moved from its position in front of the assembly, to the rear - thereby standing as a barrier between the Israelites and the Egyptians. "Throughout the night the cloud brought darkness to the one side (Egypt) and light to the other side (Israel) (parenthesis and emphasis added). Secondly, the Israelites crossed the Sea during the pre-dawn darkness which, as we all know, is the darkest time of the night (Ex.14:24)
Now, while these two points are often overlooked, they are vitally important for us to remember as we approach the fulfillment of the ages. You see, Amos 5:18; Joel 1:15; Mal.4:1-2 and I Thes.5:3 all clearly tell us that the day of the Lord will be a dreadful day of darkness, it will burn like a furnace and bring destruction. However, Zeph.2:3 (NEB); Joel 3:16; Zeph.1:18 with II Pe.3:10 and finally Mal.4:1-2 again tell us that it will be a day of shelter and a day of healing for those of His children who are found spot less and without wrinkle. For the unrighteous it will be darkness and destruction; whereas, for God's mature sons it will be light and deliverance.
It is at this point that the pre-dawn timing comes into the picture, for all indications are that our deliverance will not come about until the last trumpet has sounded. Those who believe in the pre-tribulation theory of the rapture attempt to get around the "day of the Lord" vs the "coming of the Son of Man" issue by saying that these are two separate events. However, a careful study of the overlapping points found in I Thes.5:3; II Pe.3:10; Matt.24:42 & Lk.12:39 wherein both the day of the Lord and the coming of the Son of Man are likened unto the coming of a thief, and the overlaps in Lk.18:26; Matt.24:37 & II Pe.3:3-10 wherein both the day of the Lord and the coming of the Son of Man are likened unto the times of Noah, will show that both events are one and the same. For a more detailed discussion on this point see chapter 14 of Needful Things. The point is, we must not loose heart, because even if our deliverance does not come until the final hours, it will come!