May 26, 2011
The Prayer Life of Moses
Exodus 14:15
Part Eleven
Go Forward
“Then Yahweh said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to Me? Tell the sons of Israel to go forward.”
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God had brought His people out of Egypt, but Pharaoh had changed his mind about them leaving and began to chase them with his army. As the people of Israel watched the mighty army storm towards them, the people of Israel became frightened and cried out to the Lord. The people of Israel prayed from fear, but Moses listened to God and implemented God’s plans for the destruction of the entire army by the supernatural power of God.
Fear Feeds upon Unbelief. As the army of Pharaoh marched upon the people of Israel, the people feared (Exodus 14:10). Their fear arose because they did not believe that God would actually deliver them. They said to Moses: have you taken us to the wilderness to die because Egypt had no graves? (Exodus 14:11). The people also immediately reverted back to their own faithless ways, and told Moses it would have been better to live in bondage to the Egyptians than die in the wilderness (Exodus 14:12). As fear grows because of the powerful forces opposed against us, sometimes we revert back to a desire for bondage. How quickly we tend to forget the power of God and His plans for our lives. Fear feeds upon unbelief, and our sight often misleads us.
The Lord Will Fight for You While You Keep Silent. Moses had great words of comfort and encouragement for the people. Moses also laid out the plan of victory for the people facing an angry army: keep silent and watch Yahweh fight for you (Exodus 14:14). In our lives, we must realize that with God fighting for us, no enemy will overcome us. When we remain silent, and watch in faith, then God will win the battle every time. God said He would deliver them by His power, so we should never fret when we face what appear to be insurmountable odds against us. If Christ is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31).
Go Forward. Yahweh spoke to Moses directly: “Why are you crying out to Me?” (Exodus 14:15). Moses had just given the people of God the message to watch God work. Yet, Moses was talking and standing, when God intended Moses to be moving the people forward. God told Moses to stretch out his hand over the sea and divide it, so that the people would go through on dry land. God intended to honor Himself through the death of the entire Egyptian army, so that everyone would know that God spoke truly: “I AM Yahweh” (Exodus 14:15-18). After the people saw the great destruction of the entire army of Pharaoh, with all of its horsemen and chariots, Moses sang of the victory and the people feared Yahweh and His servant Moses (Exodus 14:31-15:21).
So we learn more about the prayer life of Moses.
● Prayer means that we pray so that God will remove our unbelief as we face great forces opposed to us. As we pray, we count upon Christ to fight for us, both in the physical realm, and also to deliver us from spiritual powers and forces. With Christ for us, no one can overcome us ultimately. Although we may lay down our lives following Christ, yet we have eternal life in Him. For most of us today, our greatest challenges remain in following Yahweh every day, as He leads us through life by faith.
● Prayer means that we learn silence before God, and watch Him work in our lives. We stop our working, and our plans, and our efforts from the flesh. Instead, we believe that God will work His plans in our lives, today, right now. When we become accustomed to seeing God work in our lives, we rejoice in Him and our prayers become full of worship and praise for His mighty acts. Any time you start thinking about returning to the bondage of Egypt, then it’s time to start praying that God would remove your unbelief in His plans, sit quietly before God, and watch Him work His plans in your life.
● Prayer means that we beseech Christ to move us forward in our lives. Just as God had to command Moses to stop crying out, and get moving forward, so also we must listen to God move us forward. So many times in my life I have not been ready to move forward, because I have been mired in unbelief and doubting the full power of God. When I catch myself frozen with fear before my enemies, I know I must pray and listen to God say: Go forward–Now!
Application for Today
As we pray today, stop staring in fear, and start praying for faith. Believe that God will fight for you, and that every battle in Christ has already been won by the power of God working in you. No person or force can overcome God, and when we follow Him, we can see Him working for us. Are your ready to pray and move forward today?
