By Codie Brenner

“I will walk among you and be Your God, and you will be My people. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt so that you would no longer be slaves to the Egyptians; I broke the bars of your yoke and enabled you to walk with heads held high.” Leviticus 26:12-13

God promises that He has a plan, a hope, and a future for us in Jeremiah 29:11-13, and yet we keep going back to Egypt, to the land of slavery and the house of bondage. Throughout Exodus and Leviticus God reminds us that He is indeed the LORD and that He has delivered us from the oppression of sin. So why is it that we return to Egypt?

As we see with the Israelites, we are not the only ones who needed to be reminded of God’s plan for good and of His command for obedience. He is a loving Father, gently and not-so-gently reminding the Israelites that His ways are for their good, and if they obey, they will experience an abundant life. Abundant does not mean the absence of suffering but the fullness of God’s promise.

Romans 7 sheds light on our afflicted nature. We don’t do the very things we desire to do, and yet, we do those things which we hate. It makes me want to scream! I want to be rid of my Egypt! And yet, that is where Christ’s sacrifice and continuing grace and mercy toward us comes in.
In Matthew 11:28-30 Jesus encourages us to come to Him with our yoke. “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” He recognized that we would foolishly and sinfully pick up those bars of bondage and try them on again from time to time.  And when we do, the weight of our own ways immediately becomes like shackles.

It is true that God’s ways are higher than our ways. Can I get an “Amen”? The evidence is in the hope, joy, peace, and fruit our lives bear when we do things His way. “With man this is impossible, but with God, all things are possible.” Matthew 19:26

I am a slave to my emotions more often than I’d admit. I am in bondage to my own opinion and to airing it out whenever I “feel” like it. It is pretty gross. I battle deep-rooted bitterness, resentment, anger and the manifestation of it, and outbursts of wrath.

What’s so appealing about returning to Egypt? It’s comfortable. It’s safe. We know how to act that way or do that thing, and we’re pretty good at it, actually…except that the Bible calls it sin, the old man, a body of death, a member we are to cut off or pluck out. Are we ever going to truly rest in our deliverance?

There is good news! If we go back to Leviticus 26, we will see that God already freed us and thus enabled us to walk with our heads held high. How?

Intellectually, we nod our heads. We know that we are free. John 8:36 says, “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” There is no magic in this fairytale. The ending has already been written and thanks to Christ, “It is finished.”

A simple memory verse many of us know holds the key to resting in the arms of our Deliverer. “Walk in the Spirit and you will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh.” Galatians 5:16 Whenever we find ourselves peering back at Egypt longingly or taking up full-time residence, we have the guarantee that in that very moment, we can change gears and receive grace.

I started out in Egypt today, focusing on self, wallowing in my own circumstances, setting expectations for others and emotionally responding to the disappointment that followed my unmet expectations.  I decided to open the Word. Life-giving ministry began…from Leviticus. When I sought the things of the Spirit, my spirit yielded and the emotions subsided.  

Let us go to the “Enabler” to receive what we need to WALK with our heads held high. We are daughters of the King with round-the-clock access to the throne of grace to find mercy and grace to help in our times of need. (Hebrews 4:16)
I always wanted to be a princess!

< Prev		Next >