5 Things that happen after God sets us free

When God sets us free it is not the end of the story. It is actually just the beginning of our journey with him. We see this in Exodus 12-17, which we cover in week 3 of the Redeemed: 30 Days with the Israelite Slaves Scripture Plan. The Israelites have finally left Egypt, but now what? We too can wonder what’s next when we receive God’s deliverance. From this week’s passage I have noticed 5 things that happen after God sets us free. Read on to discover how what happened to the Israelites can help you in your journey.

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5 things that happen after God sets us free

Others come with us

In Exodus 12:38 we read that ‘A mixed crowd also went up with them’ when the Israelites left Egypt.

This ‘mixed crowd’, made up of Egyptians and other slaves, had witnessed the power of the one true God and had decided to leave Egypt and follow Him. They knew God was greater than any god of Egypt.

After God sets us free we can also be a witness to others and encourage them to step out of bondage and receive freedom from God too.

We Remember our victories

As soon as the Israelites captivity has ended God speak to Moses about establishing a way to remember it.

The observance of Passover has special rules set by God. This is to be a special celebration, marked by the beginning of a new year, the birth of their nation.

The special rules include celebrating the Passover in their homes with their families and encouraging future generations to remember how God saved them.

It is good to honour God and thank him for his love and faithfulness. But, remembering how God has helped us in the past also helps us when we face new struggles. We can look back at God’s faithfulness in our past and trust him with our present and our future.

The enemy tries to pull us back

In Exodus 14 we see that Pharaoh had not finished with the Israelites yet! After letting the slaves go he realised that he is now without his workforce. He gathers his army and sets out to capture the Israelites and return them to slavery.

The Israelites feel trapped. There is no way out and they feel they will be taken back to Egypt or killed. But God is in control of it all. He not only makes a way through the Red Sea for the Israelites, but get’s rid of the enemy once and for all.

After God sets us free the enemy is not going to give up easily either. We, too, will feel the pull back into bondage or believe there is no way forward. We must trust God that he can make a way for us too.

We still face hard times

Freedom in God does not mean that we will never face difficult situations again.

Facing hard times is not a sign that we are out of God’s will.

In the story in Exodus we see two reasons why God leads the Israelites into the wilderness rather than the direct route to Canaan.

First, Exodus 13:17-18 tells us that God chose to lead the people through the wilderness rather than along the road because there was danger on the road.

When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them along the road to the land of the Philistines, even though it was nearby; for God said, “The people will change their minds and return to Egypt if they face war.”  So he led the people around toward the Red Sea along the road of the wilderness. And the Israelites left the land of Egypt in battle formation. Exodus 13:17-18

While we look at our difficult circumstances we may not realise that God is protecting us from something worse.

Second, God wanted to teach the Israelites that they could trust him. And, trust is not learned in the good time!

God lead the Israelites into the wilderness where they had no water or food. But they had to learn to trust him rather than complaining.

Each time God met their needs, but the next time they went back to fear and complaining again.

He made bitter water sweet.

He provided quail and manna.

He brought water from a rock.

Yet, each time they were in need they grumbled, complained and feared for their lives.

Through the hard times the Israelites, just like us, have to learn to depend on God. When the Israelites had plenty of food and water they did not need God to ‘show up’. But when they were in need, God provided.

The Israelites’ fear was more about concern for their future rather than the present. They had only just left Egypt and had all their livestock so they were not yet starving.  However, they grumbled that they would die and wanted to return to what they knew: slavery in Egypt. They did not trust in God’s plan for their future.

How many times do we get caught up in worrying about what might happen in the future rather than trusting in God? Why is it that after God sets us free we so often want to return to bondage? Our fear of the unknown is greater than our misery or discomfort in our present circumstances. If God wants us to move forward we must conquer this fear.

We still have a long way to go

In Exodus 13:9 Moses reminds the Israelites that God ‘brought them out’. Then in verse 11 he tells them the Lord will ‘bring them into the land of the Canaanites’. 

Freedom and deliverance are not the end of the story. God was not just interested in setting the Israelites free from Egypt, he was also interested in their future. After God sets us free there is still a long way to go before God’s promises are fulfilled. 

We rejoice that Christ has set us free but know that the story has just begun and we must continue our journey with God until we reach the ‘promised land’ and his promises are fulfilled.

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