The God who Guides
In Exodus 5, we watch Moses and Aaron embark on a journey of obedience. And God guides them every step of the way.
But just because God is guiding us doesn’t mean there won’t be obstacles along the way.
Here’s one obstacle you may encounter from others when you’re walking in obedience to God.
#1: The obstacle of pride and arrogance
The shy and scared shepherd who ran from Egypt and argued with God has been transformed into a bold prophet who proclaims the message that God had instructed. With Aaron by his side, Moses proclaims to Pharaoh:
“The Lord, the God of Israel says, ‘Let My people go.’ ” (Exodus 5:1 NIV)
But Pharaoh responds with pride and arrogance:
“Pharaoh said, ‘Who is the Lord, that I should obey him and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord and I will not let Israel go.’ ” (Exodus 5:2 NIV)
The Bible tells us in Proverbs 16:18 that
“Pride comes before a fall.”
(Proverbs 16:18)
I read about a 5-year-old who’d been in Pre-K for two weeks. His grandmother took him out for ice-cream, and he told her he was the smartest kid in the class.
His grandmother asked him if that was what his teacher said. The little boy replied, “No, I had to tell her.”
Ha! A little too much pride?
Tancredo Neves ran for the presidency of Brazil in the 1980s. He boldly declared that if he got 500,000 votes from his own party, not even God could keep him from being president.
He won the election, but just one day later he got sick and died. There’s no way to know if God accepted his challenge, but what we CAN know for sure is that human beings shouldn’t make such bold, arrogant statements.
Remember when John Lennon remarked to the media that the Beatles were more popular than Jesus? “Christianity will go. It will vanish and shrink. I’m right, and I will be proved right. We’re more popular than Jesus now.”
Lennon’s remark caused quite a controversy and guess what—the Beatles never toured again!
When you choose to obey God, get ready to face people who stand against you.
The enemy is always willing to recruit someone to stand in your way when you’re walking the path of obedience.
When you choose obedience, you WILL face obstacles, but our God is committed to guiding you through the obstacles!
Love,
Susie
