When Moses and the fugitive Israelites arrived at the Red Sea, their backs were against the wall. There appeared to be only two choices that provided an escape from the brutal slavery to which they had been subjected--turn and fight Pharaoh or plunge into the Red Sea--both choices equally certain to produce death and destruction for the Chosen People.
Then God provided a third choice, miraculously moving the waters back to create a dry path through the Sea. All the Israelites had to do was step out in faith that the waters would stay where they were. I wonder if the average traveler saw this as opportunity or risk; I wonder how I would have viewed the situation.
How do I respond when such opportunities appear before me? The first question is: do I even recognize what I am seeing? Do I understand my hopeless plight, my enslavement to whatever it is from which God is offering deliverance? The first step in seeing "Red Sea" opportunities is to know I am in need of deliverance. My enslavement may involve dependence on gods of materialism or other addictions; it may involve a disordered set of priorities; it may involve bitterness in relationships; it may even be manifested in Pharisaic legalism that I have mistaken for Christianity. If I am deluded and don't recognize my enslavement, I will not come to the point of crying out to God for deliverance.
But let's say God has revealed to me my plight, and I have asked God for deliverance from my burden that weighs down my life and steals my joy. When the Red Sea parts, how do I respond? My tendency is to begin to analyze the risks, to calculate the odds of a successful crossing: "hmmm, the water is 20 feet high, the wind is 30 miles per hour, and I have about 40 minutes to make the crossing, or else I'm going to drown"--in other words, I forget Who it is who parted the Sea and I begin to lean on my own understanding of the risks and benefits rather than being obedient.
I calculate the harm to my reputation if I admit my addiction: I justify my need for financial security by claiming prudence as my god; I defend my pride by assuring myself that to try to mend that relationship will just result in my being betrayed; I argue that love has to have limits and that boundless compassion is just a license for someone else to sin, so I stand by my legalism. All the while the dry land waits, the waters roil, and the hope for the Promised Land lies on the other side.
The Other Side: The Promised Land AND lots of desert and difficulty.
How often do I consider the Red Sea opportunities in that light? Instead of valuing the supernatural event that God has placed before me, I argue for assurances that the other side will be all comfort and joy upon arrival. That wasn't realistic for the Israelites and it isn't realistic for me--there was desert on the other side and their subsequent disobedience delayed their arrival in the Promised Land.
Its the same for me: I can step out in faith, cross my Red Sea, but life will still be difficult in some ways, obedience is still required AFTER I cross, and there will still be temporal consequences if I make bad choices down the line--if I leave behind enslavement to one god and then fashion a golden calf on the other side.
The Israelites problem was not that they crossed the dry land to freedom, but that they turned to another form of slavery after they crossed. The risk for me, and for you, is similar--obedience in crossing may bring new challenges and new temptations. The answer is not to refuse to make the crossing, but to commit to obedience on the other side.
So, a challenge to you and to me: Let's open our eyes to our enslavement; let's pray to God for deliverance; let's walk on the dry land when God provides it; and let's remain obedient on the other side as we travel on to the Promised Land.
Father God, give us courage to step out in reliance upon your provision, not fearing the "other side" but trusting you moment to moment, day to day, with the outcome. We pray in the name of Jesus, Who died on the Cross in obedience to You, Amen.
