Israel’s story is a parable of our journey to God’s Kingdom. They suffer as slaves in Egypt and God sends Moses to free them. They are saved from certain death as they pass through the Red Sea and the waters crash down, killing Pharaoh’s army. It’s a symbol of our call out of spiritual Egypt—sin—and salvation through baptism (1 Corinthians 10:1-2). They then journey 40 years in the desert, suffering because they don’t trust God to bring them into His promised land. It’s a desert many Christians still wander through because we lack faith in Jesus’s promised rest (Matthew 11:28). But Joshua finally brings them into the land and helps conquer the enemies. Our Joshua—Jesus—does the same for us. Having defeated the ultimate enemy, death, He teaches us to push sin from our lives. Yet the story doesn’t end there. In Judges we read, “These are the nations that the LORD left in the land to test those Israelites who had not experienced the wars of Canaan” (Judges 3:1). So though Jesus gives us rest, enemies remain. Temptations still linger. Lusts still call. And like Israel, we must answer the question—will we trust God to drive them out, or accept them and let them reclaim our lives? Open Bible – http://bit.ly/Jud3v1, http://bit.ly/1Co10v1-2, https://bit.ly/Mat11v28 (Craig B)
