Out From Egypt: From Slavery to Freedomနမူနာ

Out from Egypt: From Slavery to Freedom

A Journey Toward Embracing Freedom

Although they had endured suffering during their time in Egypt, the Hebrews were not leaving empty handed. They had been prepared by the trials they endured. Their bodies were strong from their work on Pharaoh’s labor teams, many of them were trained in craftsmanship that would later be utilized in the building of the Tabernacle and its implements. Although they had entered Egypt as a rag-tag group of seventy shepherds, Pharaoh’s persecution had accomplished the opposite effect, they were most likely numbered in the millions when they left.

The Cloud led them through the wilderness to the edge of the Red Sea, a seemingly impossible place where their backs were against the water and the only way of escape was blocked by a vengeful army composed of the second and third born sons of Egypt—men who had lost fathers, sons, and brothers to the final plague.

It was not until Yahweh split the waters with a mighty east wind, congealing the waves into walls and allowing safe passage through the sea, that the multitude would actually step foot outside of Egypt. It was at that moment that they were truly free of the bondage that had held them their entire lives.

Yet after being dependent on Pharaoh for sustenance, it would take forty years of wandering for them to truly learn to be dependent on God. And it would take forty years in the wilderness for them to shed their false identities as Pharaoh’s slaves and grasp their royal inheritance as sons and daughters of the King.

There is only one path to freedom, only one way to enter the Kingdom of God. It is only by the sacrifice of our Messiah Yeshua on the cross and his death-overcoming Resurrection that saves us from eternal separation from the Father. And just as Yahweh brought the Hebrews out of Egypt, took them through the waters of rebirth and gave them new life on the other side of the Sea; so too, he offers us new life and freedom.

We must stop living in Egypt. Stop living as if we are still enslaved to sin. We are not slaves. We are free. We cannot define ourselves by the sins of our past, the lies of the enemy, and the labels of the world. We must embrace the forgiveness and the grace of our Father who loves us so much that he gave his only Son to die in our place.

We have been given a new identity, alive in Christ. Once we begin living like the free people we truly are, embrace the unique identity that Yahweh himself designed; the wilderness will become a beautiful place of learning for us, a place where Yahweh meets us, dwells among us, and leads us to a destiny far greater than we can ever dream.

Questions to Consider:

Which phase of the journey to embracing freedom do you think you are currently in? Crying out for deliverance? Preparation for the journey ahead? Backed up against a seemingly insurmountable obstacle? Learning to depend on God in the desert? Or embracing freedom and your new identity?

Spend some time in prayer, surrendering to Yahweh and his teaching, with gratitude for what he has done, and is continuing to do for you.

How can you begin, right now, living like the free person that you truly are and embracing the unique identity that Yahweh himself designed you to be?