Father… was not Your rescue of Your chosen people out of cruel slavery…was that not a demonstration of Your love, love demonstrated and recognizable… even though stern and severe… in the actions You took?
You spared nothing and no one to bring Your First Born to You to be one with You and a bridge to their siblings that would connect all mankind to You.
How is it that they missed Your love?
How is it they failed to trust… failed to know the assurance of their safety in You?
For that matter… how is it the Egyptians failed to know You, glorify You, recognize and abandon non-gods… and embrace You?
How different it all could have been.
Egypt could have recognized, by Your great deeds… love and faithfulness towards Your chosen people in coming to bring them to Yourself.
Pharaoh Could have sent Israel off with blessing and so reaped blessing himself according to the promise.
Egypt could have embraced “The one true God”.
His land would not have been laid waste and his might buried at the bottom of the sea.
If Israel had realized Your love, through the bread from heaven, water from rocks, victory in battle, they might have proceeded obediently, in faith and trust and entered into the land sooner, without hardship… covenanted with You in a more intimate way… maybe even without the need for an intermediary at all.
How many times have You seemed to us to be stern and seeming hard hearted, One to be in constant fear of… and we feel all we know is law and not the peace and joy of Your love in us?…
Help us to know Your love in the midst of our strivings to be obedient.
May law and love be linked in us Father.
May we trust in Your expectations and requirements for us that they are for our good and may we strive to be obedient… lovingly, without the grumbling, without resentment.
May we trust and take comfort that… continuing faithfully in our efforts to trust and obey…and even though we will fall short of perfection…
Still… You are gracious and merciful… and “…mercy triumphs over judgment…”
In that knowledge, enable us Father to walk in…
trusting, unburdened obedience of law…
balanced with…
experiencing Your love… Your joy… and Your peace.
May You be glorified Father.
In Yeshua’s name we pray…
Amen.
