Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“But Moses said to the people, ‘Do not be afraid, stand firm, and see the deliverance that the Lord will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you see today you shall never see again. The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to keep still.’”
NL Daily Devotion for Sunday, October 2, 2022
by Dr. Kimberly Leetch, Clergy Stuff
Main Idea: God’s call can be unfamiliar and terrifying, but trusting in God’s call can also be unexpectedly rewarding.
Moving an entire community out of slavery, and under the noses of the slaves’ masters, is no small feat. It would take planning, coordination, patience, and courage. It would take an act of God.
The thing about acts of God is that they are rarely predictable nor are they controllable. In the case of the Hebrew people fleeing Pharaoh in Egypt, God went to great lengths to move Pharaoh so that he would let the people begin their journey. It took the death of Pharaoh’s own son for him to relent to God’s demands. But, once the Israelites were on their way, Pharaoh once again realized what was at stake—his entire kingdom had been built on the backs of these slaves. Letting them go threatened economic and societal collapse. He had to act fast.
Today’s story is set at the climax of this daring escape, when the Israelites were trapped between the sea and Pharaoh’s armies. It seemed like there was no escape. But God had plans nobody could have predicted. God cleared a dry pathway through the sea. The people fled, the armies pursued, and God closed the sea over the heads of the armies, washing them away.
The people were understandably shaken. But Moses reassured them, directed them to be still, and let God do the rest.
Often, when we are terrified or too paralyzed to act, we are called to courage and patience. It’s not an easy thing to come by when anxiety stirs us to fight, flee, or freeze. But God reassures us, “You have only to keep still,” and wait for God to act. And when God acts, we must be ready to seize the opportunity to act. (If the people had not fled through the sea, they would have been captured by Pharaoh’s armies, and their opportunity for freedom would have been lost.)
Still, on the other side of the sea, the people would be faced with uncertainty and unfamiliarity over and over again. The scariest journey of their lives would require the most intentional faith, patience, and response to God’s call. It would also prove to be the most fruitful journey that would cement the covenant between God and God’s people forever.
