Go Forward
27
God has raised up for the special purpose of advancing His cause.
They fail to see that God is testing them by bringing them into strait
places, from which there is no deliverance except by His hand.
There are times when the Christian life seems beset by dangers,
and duty seems hard to perform. The imagination pictures impending
ruin before, and bondage or death behind. Yet the voice of God speaks
clearly above all discouragements: “Go forward.” We should obey this
command, let the result be what it may, even though our eyes cannot
penetrate the darkness and though we feel the cold waves about our
feet.
The Hebrews were weary and terrified; yet if they had held back
when Moses bade them advance, if they had refused to move nearer
[27]
to the Red Sea, God would never have opened the path for them. In
marching down to the very water, they showed that they had faith in
the word of God as spoken by Moses. They did all that it was in their
power to do, and then the Mighty One of Israel performed His part,
and divided the waters to make a path for their feet.
The clouds that gather about our way will never disappear before
a halting, doubting spirit. Unbelief says: “We can never surmount
these obstructions; let us wait until they are removed, and we can see
our way clearly.” But faith courageously urges an advance, hoping
all things, believing all things. Obedience to God is sure to bring the
victory. It is only through faith that we can reach heaven.
There is great similarity between our history and that of the children
of Israel. God led His people from Egypt into the wilderness, where
they could keep His law and obey His voice. The Egyptians, who had
no regard for the Lord, were encamped close by them; yet what was to
the Israelites a great flood of light, illuminating the whole camp, and
shedding brightness upon the path before them, was to the hosts of
Pharaoh a wall of clouds, making blacker the darkness of night.
So, at this time, there is a people whom God has made the deposi-
taries of His law. To those who obey them, the commandments of God
are as a pillar of fire, lighting and leading the way to eternal salvation.
But unto those who disregard them, they are as the clouds of night.
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” Better than all
other knowledge is an understanding of the word of God. In keeping
His commandments there is great reward, and no earthly inducement
should cause the Christian to waver for a moment in his allegiance.