CROSSING THE RED SEA
Pr. James Victor Lubwama
Psalms 121:1-4(NLT)
“I look up to the mountains—does my
help come from there? 2 My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth! 3 He will not let you stumble; the one who watches over you will not slumber. 4 Indeed, he who
watches over Israel never slumbers or sleeps. 5 The Lord himself watches over you! The Lord stands beside you as your
protective shade.”
Before God makes
realities, He first paints shadows. The Old Testament was a shadow of the New Testament. It spoke of things to come. Before we
get into realities, we always get snap picks or headlights of what will happen
to us in the future through dreams, visions and Rhema words by word of
prophesy. These are indications of what God is going to do, how he will take us
through or what our future holds before we get there.
In
the same way the red sea represents;
the things that we consider impossible i.e. levels we can’t reach, dreadful
situations, tough times, illness, hardships etc. However what is impossible
before the pessimistic unbeliever man is possible before the believers. What people usually consider as problems
are not problems if you analyse them, but what makes the difference is our
perception and in whom we put our faith and trust.
Amidst all problems there is always away that
cannot be seen by our physical eyes.
There was a way for the Israelites in the red sea which they had not
imagined when the water parted for them to cross. We can relate this to the doctrine of predestination.
Romans 8:29 (ESV) says: “For
those whom he foreknew he also predestined to
be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the
firstborn among many brothers."
God
knew us before we were born and planned away out for us in all matters of our
lives. He knows the challenges we will face and has already worked out
solutions before we even face those challenges. Jeremiah 1:5 (AMP) says: “Before I formed you
in the womb I knew [and] approved of you [as My chosen instrument], and before
you were born I separated and set you apart………..”
There
is always a hidden path that we may not see until we get to that time when we
need a solution. There is reason why we go through what
we go through;
Deuteronomy
8:2-5(NLT) says: “2 Remember how the Lord your
God led you through the wilderness for these forty years, humbling you and
testing you to prove your character, and to find out whether or not you would
obey his commands. 3 Yes, he humbled you by letting you go hungry and
then feeding you with manna, a food previously unknown to you and your
ancestors. He did it to teach you that people do not live by bread alone;
rather, we live by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. 4 For
all these forty years your clothes didn’t wear out, and your feet didn’t
blister or swell. 5 Think about it: Just as a parent disciplines a
child, the Lord your
God disciplines you for your own good.”
From
the above scripture we learn that;
- God chastens those He loves so that they
return to his ways.
- A desert is a place where people are
tested and humbled.
- God trains us through the hard times and
challenges. In the desert God cut off provision of the land and He
provided for them so that they would know He is the sole provider and that
it was not their hands that provided.
- In the desert God builds up a relationship
with His people. He wants us to turn our eyes and dependence from people
and recognise Him only as the almighty God. That's why He only comes to
help when we have totally failed in our own strength and when we feel we
cannot rely on anyone for help because he doesn't share His glory with
man.
