There is much that can be said about each of the places that the Children of Israel stopped on their journey to the Promised Land. There is something to learn at each stop (maybe I’ll write a book). Today I want to lay the framework for some ideas that we can tackle in the next few posts. Here are the topics that I would like to discuss.
- God lead His people by a cloud in the day and fire at night. He also spoke to Moses, who relayed the message to the people.
- The real reason for the Golden Calf incident.
- The people never went without anything. They always had what they needed just in time: water from the rock, bitter water turned sweet, manna and quail delivery service and clothes that never wore out.
- The eleven-day journey from Egypt to Canaan turned into forty years.
Let’s discuss number one today. This may be the most crucial part of our Christian walk and most of us never get it. It also may seem like the most difficult and eluding part of our walk, but it was meant to be the most rewarding. In fact, I believe that this one idea is what we should spend the rest of our lives trying to perfect. But perfection should not be the highlight. The process of perfection should be our joy and fulfillment. What I am talking about today is learning to hear God’s voice. We should desire to hear Him perfectly, but fulfillment should come from the process of getting to know Him. Its time spent with Him that allows us to hear Him more distinctly.
God told His people that He wanted a kingdom of priests (the new testament proclaims that we are that kingdom) and God even wanted to speak directly to the people. The people told Moses that they did not want God speaking directly to them and that Moses should hear from God and speak to them. Next, we find one tribe of priests among the Israelites (instead of the whole kingdom of priests) and Moses giving direction from God to the people. And, we also see them to continue being directed by the cloud by day and the fire by night.
Here is how I imagine them being led.
During the day, they are walking along and suddenly some of the people walk into what seems like a fog. The further they walk the less they can see and then it gets so thick that they can’t see their hand in front of their face. Some people get so deep, that before they know it, they can’t get back to clear seeing without someone coming to their rescue. Someone must guide them back.
That’s the way most of us live our lives. We let our circumstances guide us through the day. If it’s a little cloudy or foggy, we adjust our direction back to where it’s clear. Then, sometimes we have our head down and we walk a little too far into the cloud and someone must rescue us.
The night is a more dangerous time and the people probably shouldn’t have been traveling. But, if they were traveling, the fire was the light to let them see any danger that might be around. There was also the heat from the fire that should have kept them going in the right direction. If they got too close to the heat, they would move to where it was cooler. But if they got too far away from the fire, there would not be enough light to see how to walk or see any danger. Some of us choose or let circumstances keep us in dark times most of our lives. We have just enough light to keep us moving along and many times we get too close to the fire. Some get so close that the fire consumes them, and they never come out. Then others get lost in the dark and never find their way back. Most use the fire and heat to move them and to correct their course.
God never intended for us or them to live life following the cloud and the fire. His desire was and is for us to hear his voice directly from Him. He began with the example of walking and talking with Adam in the garden. Jesus said that His sheep recognize His voice. We must take time to listen for His voice, if we ever want to make it to the Promised Land. I’m not referring to Heaven (See previous posts).
We are destined to wander the rest of our lives in the wilderness, allowing circumstances to direct our journey, if we don’t. The wilderness is where we learn to use God’s voice as our GPS in life.
Bill
Please join me in this discussion – FROM EGYPT TO THE PROMISED LAND, A journey from religion to life – as we compare our walk in life to the Children of Israel and discover the true Gospel of the Kingdom. Make sure that you never miss a post. Sign up to have my my free blog delivered directly to your email.