Purpose in Pain

Exodus 1

“Purpose in Pain”

            This chapter narrates the alteration that occurred when the children of Israel went from being guests and citizens of Egypt (and particularly of Goshen), to being forced by their one-time hosts and fellow-citizens, into slavery.  The Hebrew children went from welcome to worry.  This is the first situation I notice in this first Chapter of Exodus – how does a nation make the long and painful journey from being welcomed as citizens to being so feared they are forced into servitude?

            We usually generate fear in our minds when we allow ourselves to be troubled over what “might” happen “if” a particular circumstance occurs.  The Egyptians obviously were playing the “what if” game and generated a fear of the Hebrews, thinking they might soon outnumber them, rise up and go to war against them and become their conquerors rather than their fellow-citizens.  This tells me two things:

            1.  The Hebrews were not just growing in number – there was an obvious and marked separation between the Hebrews and the Egyptians.  Although we do not know what they did to delineate themselves – somehow the Hebrew children did not meld their culture with that of the Egyptians.  They stood out from them – whether it was by their practices, their fashion, their demeanor, their style of living – we know their culture was different from that of the Egyptians.  And since the law had not yet been handed down to Moses from God – there was no religious observance we read about in Genesis that would have served to mark them.  We do know they must have been aware of the covenant between God and Abraham and their status as a chosen people; and we know from the way Joseph behaved in Egypt there was the possibility of setting an example of right behavior in this foreign land that most definitely occurred when he arrived.  However, we do not know if the Hebrews set themselves apart by right living, refused to integrate themselves into Egyptian society in order to maintain their separation as people of God or what might have occurred.  We do know there was a distinct delineation between these two peoples. 

            2.  When God has a plan He will carry out that plan even if He must stir up one-time friends into becoming enemies.  No matter how popular, cooperative, outstanding, well-meaning, contributing, unobtrusive, or friendly we might be, the rising up of one-time friends against us might just be a part of the bigger picture God means to use in order to wake us up and move us on.

            Because I am very familiar with the Book of Exodus, I know the end of the story and I know the course the Hebrew children will take.  I know the story of Moses and his encounters with Pharaoh, and I already know the children of Israel will soon leave the land of Egypt to head on their intended course into the land promised them by God.  But I also know at the beginning of this book they are not where they need to be or where God plans on them being. We know:

            1.  God has no desire for the Hebrew children to simply be one nation dwelling within the borders of another.  He plans for them to dwell in a land all their own provided by God Himself, Who loves them and has a design for them and their future.  The land and people of Egypt served a purpose in God’s plan for a short period of time.  God used the Egyptians to provide for His children and to teach some important lessons to Joseph, his father and his brothers.  But it was never His intention to keep His people there. 

God always has more for us than that for which we often settle.  The Hebrew children were not out of God’s sight or out of His will – whether simply dwelling in Egypt or during their time of slavery there – their position and their situation were always part of a bigger picture with a bright hope on their horizon.  Never is it God’s intention that His people should simply inhabit.  We must always realize Who He is, Whose we are and His intention that we stand apart from the society in which we dwell.

            2.  There was a “grander scheme” in the development stage of which the children of God were not yet fully aware.  They needed to place their trust in Him and allow Him to have His way.  They, perhaps, simply saw their circumstances as God having turned His back on them and were only able to dwell on the pain and trial of their lives.  However, we know this painful time for the Hebrews helped pave the way for the provision of a Deliverer for more than just the Hebrew children.

            How often do we mirror this picture in our lives?  Trouble arrives in the midst of our “inhabiting,” and we misread the situation (or are guided into misreading it by well-meaning people; i.e. Job’s friends).  Instead of trusting that God is working within the framework of a much bigger picture, we assume He is punishing us, has abandoned us or is ignoring us because we are somehow doing something wrong or have stepped outside of His will.  This usually happens because we have grown so accustomed to blessings and abundance we do not recognize or simply do not want to accept “purpose in pain.”  We usually prefer to live lives of ease and comfort and stay on the safe side of life than experience pain and obtain wisdom and a deeper discernment and greater understanding of the ways of the Lord. 

            Interestingly, the Kingdom of God and the people who refuse to even acknowledge their need for God, rely upon us, their fellow-citizens of this earth and God-acknowledgers, to obtain and distribute that wisdom and discernment in order to help them break free of their own bondage in Egypt.  Sometimes that means suffering and pain.

            I am certain the Hebrew children questioned and wondered how they went from being fellow-citizens to slaves.  In their misery they must have believed God had abandoned them and forgotten where they were.  I am thankful for their suffering – for their pain helped to pave the way for my freedom from slavery.

Dear Father,

            Please help me to stop wallowing in my comfort and whining in my pain.  Please guide me into the truth of both and help me see Your grander scheme and the hope on the horizon.