A Way of Escape
July 23, 2007
Dear Friends,
When the children of Israel went in the wilderness to worship the Lord, they camped near the Red Sea. Imagine their horror when they saw that the army of Egypt was bearing down on them fully equipped for war. They had no way to fight against such an army and no way to escape with their backs against the sea.
As we all know, God provided a way of escape. Through his servant Moses, God parted the sea and allowed the children of Israel safe passage to the other side. What was shortly before an insurmountable problem was now one of the greatest moments in their national history.
Life can appear at times like we have no way of escape. Our backs are against the wall and a vast army approaches. We have problems that seem like they cannot be solved. Any course we take seems like the wrong one. However, we worship a God that is much bigger than our problems. He has promised us:
None of the trials which have come upon you is more than a human being can stand. You can trust that God will not let you be put to the test beyond your strength, but with any trial will also provide a way out by enabling you to put up with it. (1 Cor. 10:13 NJB)
This promise doesn’t mean that our trials won’t be scary. It also doesn’t mean, as we sometimes wrongly assume, that God will sweep in at the last moment to save us from our trial as He did the children of Israel. There is no promise about them not being tough. The promise is simple; the cards won’t be stacked against us. We won’t have to sin in our trial. There will be a way of escape or a way for us to achieve victory.
The context of this promise relates to sin. In the verses leading up to the promise of verse 13, God warns the Corinthians about idolatry (v. 7), sexual immorality (v. 8) and complaining (v. 8,10). He relates this back to the failings of the children of Israel in the wilderness and warns them that this should be an example to them. We can’t assume that just because God brought us “out of Egypt” that we will make it the Promised Land. Even something as trivial (to our eyes) as complaining can derail us from our goal.
Some of us are caught in sins of idolatry. Let us not be fooled into thinking that this means falling down before some rock or wooden image. Idolatry is putting something ahead of God whether it is career, school, family, friends or hobbies. Some of us are caught up in sexual immorality. With the proliferation of internet pornography, we don’t even have the leave the comfort of our own homes to engage our lusts. Some of us have succumbed to the sin of discontent and complaining that God’s blessings in our current circumstances are not good enough for us. The children of Israel complained and were punished because they were hungry and thirsty. How much more is God displeased with those who complain about something even more trivial?
The real escape is trusting God as did Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Sometimes the only way out of our trial is death. The three, while facing the choice of betraying God or being executed, chose death and obedience over life and disobedience. They told the king:
We are not careful to answer thee in this matter. **If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us** from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. **But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods**, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up. (Dan. 3:16-18)
The real way of escape for the three friends was obedience. It is always the one and only way of escape. By the way, God also saved their lives. However, if they had died in that dreadful furnace, their escape would have been no less secure.
The key to this promise is, as the NIV styles it, that “God is faithful.” He will keep this promise if we believe Him. Each and every trial we face, no matter how stiff and unrelenting, is conquerable by faith. The writer of the book of Hebrews echoed this same promise when he wrote “Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised).” (10:23) God is going to fulfill His end of the bargain by not stacking the deck against us and by providing us a way of escape. It may not be quite as dramatic as parting the sea, but He will give us our way out. Will we fulfill ours by continuing to believe in His faithfulness and remaining steadfastly obedient?
Have a great week,
Comments»
“Sometimes the only way out of our trial is death.”
That concept was a fairly recent realization on my part, and I’m glad to see that you didn’t shy away from stating it plainly. It’s easy to get caught up in the everything will be okay if I have faith idea, and to forget that our okay may not be in God’s plan. Thanks for the reminder.