A Walk to a Walk in the Park 1/20/2014

"The rabble with them began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, "If only we had meat to eat!" Numbers 11:4 (NIV)

The people of God were rescued from Egyptian slavery after toiling for 430 years.  And while it may seem peculiar for them to have been in such a state, ti was during this time that the grew from a family of about 70 to over a million people.  They also learned trades, craft, agriculture, administration and a host of other things that allowed them to become the nation God intended for them to be.  God performed many miraculous feats among the people including the plagues on the Egyptians through which they were freed, their exodus through the Red Sea which was split by the wind He sent, He personally led them by cloud and fire and even fed them in the desert with manna from His own hand.  Despite all this, the people seemed to be in a constant state of complaining, desiring to go back to Egypt...the same Egypt from whose slavery they desired to be free.

Despite the many miracles and proofs that God exists and provides, the people often could not think past their own stomachs.  Though they were given bread from heaven, those who left Egypt began to complain about not having meat and vegetables.  This was more than what was needed to spark the Hebrew complaints and laments about having left Egypt.

Beloved, these attitudes, actions and circumstances speak to us to this day.  Before we obeyed the gospel, we were all slaves to sin.  We were born with a sin nature and no way to shed it outside of obedience to the gospel.  Through Jesus, God made a way for us to be saved, just as He had done through Moses for the people of Israel.  When we obey the gospel and are freed, we are given a new life, first, of reconciliation with God and then, His provision, guidance and protection.  We sometimes make the mistake of thinking that life will somehow become a walk in the park.  This is something that God never promised, instead promising that He would be with us through whatever we may walk.  This then causes some of us to miss our lives before Christ.  We experience the desire to return to our pre-Christian activities (sin).  And it is just as tragic for us today as we observe that it was for them.

Let us continue with God at all costs, and let us not be distracted by occasional difficulties.  And though it is true that times may get rough now and then, remember that like the Hebrews, God is leading us to the promised land, a land overflowing with milk and honey.  It is a land where we will ever be with Him and then, it will truly be a walk in the park.

One,

Lee