Obedience to the word of the Lord and trust in His divine providence are the proper response that God expects from us, His children, every day. Our heavenly Father delights in seeing us do what He says and believe His word.
While it is hard for us to do what God says and trust in His word, especially when circumstances are unfavorable and people are against us, we can be assured that God is pleased when we trust Him and obey His word regardless of the situation.
Take the situation of the Israelites in Egypt, for example. For many years, they have been abused and oppressed by their unbelieving Egyptian taskmasters under the rule of an oppressive Pharaoh. Their masters have been unreasonable to them (see. Exo. 1:8-14).
So they’ve turned to God and prayed to Him to save them from their oppression as God told them through their forefathers (Exo. 2:23-25). But for more than forty (40) years, God seemed to be deaf to their cry for help and deliverance. The only response they’ve heard from God is this Moses who just showed up from nowhere and told them that he’s God’s prophet and deliverer (Exo. 4:28-31).
However, instead of relieving them from their oppression, this Moses has caused more trouble to them than relief (Exo. 5). So they rejected him (Exo 5:20, 21). They accused him as a troublemaker.
It was hard for Moses, and for his brother Aaron, who was Moses’ assistant in this work of deliverance. But time and again, God has strengthened Moses and Aaron when they’re at the end of their rope. God sustained them with His word and showed them His power through the signs they’ve performed (see Exo. 7:1-13, 20-25).
So in the book of Exodus, we not only have a display of God's sovereignty in redeeming His people out of Egypt, but we also have a picture of God's final judgment against all those who resist His will.
The choices are quite simple. You accept His word, you acknowledge Him as Lord, He makes you to be His People, and He becomes your God. Or, like Pharaoh, you respond by going back into your house with no concern, rejecting God and His word, and the final judgments of God are visited upon you.
Those are the only two options for us either in Exodus or anywhere else in Scripture. Bow the knee and serve the Lord Jesus Christ, or be judged in God's just judgment. That's the message of Exodus, especially in the sending of plagues after plagues upon the unbelieving Egyptians (Exo. 7-11).
We are blessed when we acknowledge God’s sovereignty and lordship out of love for and fear of Him. Despite of the troubles and difficulties in life, when we seek in our lives, in our words, in our thoughts, in our work or studies, the kingdom of God first and His righteous rule, we are truly blessed. God grants His grace to sustain and preserve us through trials. He rewards our faithfulness way beyond what we deserve.
So let us not give up living for the Lord and for His kingdom. Let us neither fret even in the face of hardships nor fear the enemies of the Christian faith. In the end, when we finish the race, when we keep the faith, the Lord shall vindicate us. At the end of this age, even unbelievers will be forced to revere and honor the Lord Jesus Christ, but they will not do so out of love.
But for us who love Him now and fear His name shall be loved by Him until the end. He shall wipe our tears and replace our sorrows with joy and great rejoicing in His glorious presence!
Amen. "We are blessed when we acknowledge God’s sovereignty and lordship out of love for and fear of Him."