Friday, December 02, 2011

Under Orders

Exodus 13:8 KJV
And thou shalt shew thy son in that day, saying, This is done because of that which the LORD did unto me when I came forth out of Egypt.

While Israel left Egypt a free people, they also left a "harnessed" people.

The word can mean that they left armed for war
Which is very unlikely especially since the preceding verse clearly says God took them toward the Red Sea because they were not prepared for war.

The word can also mean by fives
This definition gets us more closely to the concept The Lord has for us. It implies orderliness. Israel did not leave in a panic, fleeing, but under leadership and with guidance in an orderly fashion. One old writer estimated that if they went in literal racks. Of five - five abreast - the column would have been at least sixty miles long. What a sight!

The word most certainly has to do with the fact that they left under orders
God led them the long way. They were led. Though they were free from Egypt they were not free to go heater skelter. God had a direction for them. God had a plan for them. And God intended them to go in company.

Too much of today's Christianity looks more like a fleeing mob than an organized company. Christians, even so called churches, do as they please. They find the shortest routes to their own destinations. We have professing Christians who see no purpose in organized religion, and it is no wonder since we have professing churches who see no purpose in following God's Word. What a sight it would be should all those who profess the name of Christ accept His harness, His yoke; if we all headed the same direction under orders of God.

Though I will try, I might not convince the multitudes of wild eyed professors to come under orders, but this one thing I can do: I can take His "harness" myself.

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